Part 28 - Can't Any of You Stay Dead?

A/N: Huge thanks to Iz and Michelle for their invaluable help

LOGAN

Tossing and turning in bed and wrapped in a delicious dream...

She looks so beautiful, sitting on my lap, her face bathed in the golden flicker of candlelight. I reach out to stroke her cheek, still in awe that my bare flesh can finally caress hers. There is no virus, no Alec, nothing to keep us apart.

As I gently touch her skin, her eyes close. "Look at me, Max. I want you to see what you do to me," I moan gently as she pushes me onto my back along the length of the couch. This time my eyes shut at the sensations. I feel her climbing up my chest, straddling me. Her hands sliding up my arms, then brushing through my hair and down my neck to my throat and -

I opened my eyes in shock. Her hold was vise-like; I was rendered helpless by a single hand to my throat. I tried to speak, and she relaxed her grip slightly, her feral grin growing as she watched me gasp for air.

"You're dead!" I rasped, eyes bulging, my entire body shaking beneath her. I was pinned by two strong thighs.

She just laughed at my reaction. "Hey! Save me some pizza! When I'm done with this jackass, I'll be hungry," she called over her shoulder. Staring intently at me, trapped under her small form, her eyes narrowed. "We've been watching your place for days. Zack never trusted you; we shouldn't have either. We witnessed that little show of yours earlier - you're quite the actor, Logan. But you hurt Max; hurt our little sister. Don't you know by now that X5s aren't so forgiving?"

She began to squeeze and little white and black dots flashed before my eyes. I was losing focus, losing my grip on consciousness, when suddenly her fist connected with my nose, light flashed and then darkness.


BIGGS

Jake, Steve, Tanner and myself crept stealthily through the quiet streets. When we reached Fogle Towers, we split up. Jake and Tanner headed for the roof - they would drop from the skylight. Steve and I opted for picking the front door lock.

We made our way up the stairs. The elevator would make unnecessary noise, a surefire means to alert Logan to our presence. This was meant to be a quick and simple B&E, though we all hoped for a chance to pay Logan our 'respects'.

Inching the door open, we stopped to listen for hints of movement in the apartment. It was our first time in Logan's place. Not sensing anything out of the ordinary, or anything indicating threat, I motioned for Steve to follow and we made our way silently down the hallway. I stopped short, signaling to Steve to stay back. Something wasn't right.

I saw a black boot peeking out beyond the entrance to the kitchen. A boot that looked a lot like Jake's; the little specks of pea soup from earlier still spattered the material. Shit. Who the hell could take down an X5 but another X5...or a Familiar? Steve caught my eyes, communicating with hand signals that he was going to check it out. I nodded and edged down the hall towards the bedrooms.

Logan's bedroom door was open. I stared dumbfounded at his bloodied face and neck, a purple handprint standing in garish contrast on his pale skin.

I barely had time to register that the handprint was a small one before a figure in black vaulted into the air, legs aimed at my head. It took me a second, but I knew what was happening; two slender legs were about to wrap around my neck - the ultimate goal to crush and snap my neck in mid-air. Despite my moment's hesitation, I was ready for it. I grabbed at the form hurtling toward me, holding the slender waist, and I flipped the figure face-down, legs flailing overhead, my attacker's face between my knees.

I was about to roll us, to pin my attacker to the ground when the most painful sting tore at me, overtaking my entire body at once. I looked down in awe at the impish face and long blonde hair whipping about. Her grin was the last thing I saw before I succumbed to the mind-numbing pain her head butt to my crotch had elicited. Then my world went black.


When I awoke I was stretched out on the couch, my hands and legs secured tightly with wire and my groin still throbbing painfully. Jake, Tanner and Steve were similarly bound on the floor beside me. I looked up into the most startling pair of sparkling brown eyes I'd ever seen.

"You!" I exclaimed, straining against the wires and thumping my legs in frustration. I recognized her from before. She's the one who...attacked me. "What the hell is going on and why the fuck are we tied up?"

A trill of laughter filled the room and the impish blonde I'd encountered earlier grinned first at her companion and then down at me.

"I couldn't exactly have left you like I dropped you, now could I?" she replied matter-of-factly. "You're X series. Open your eyes, assess threat and attack before you get the whole story? Wasn't gonna let that happen."

I kept my face blank until she came over and knelt beside me. "No point trying to deny it; seen the barcode, babe. Dead giveaway. That and your stealth skills. Commendable performance by the way, but not quite up to par."

Her companion, a dark haired man who resembled Max almost like two drops of water, came in from the kitchen carrying a slice of pizza in one hand and a bottle of scotch in the other.

My eyes narrowed at the insult to my skills. " Who are you?" I sent them both an accusatory look.

"Old...friends...of Logan's," she sneered.

"I take it you don't like the guy much," I grinned back at her. "Welcome to the club."

"Hey, can we finish this already? There's nothing on TV and I'm bored." Her dark haired counterpart took a swig from the bottle, followed by a big bite of cold pizza. My stomach rumbled as I lay watching the food disappear.

"Sit your scrawny ass down and shut up," she retorted. "I need to think."

"You're X series too," I stated. The guy looked too much like Max for it to be a coincidence. They had to be Manticore.

She nodded. "Explains a lot," I muttered.

We fell into silence. Jake, Tanner and Steve had yet to say a thing about the events of the evening. I knew they were smarting as I was; embarrassed at having been caught unawares. We were lucky these two were transgenics.

I pulled myself into a sitting position and glanced around the apartment, noticing the open bathroom door on the opposite side of the room. The light was on and glaring brightly. I gasped and then bit the inside of my cheek to still the laughter threatening to bubble up and out of my throat.

Logan was handcuffed to a thick pipe over his bathtub. From his position, his toes barely brushed the bottom of the tub. His face was a dark mess of bruises and dried blood, his nose was broken, there was a deep gash over his left eye and he was out cold.

"Why is he in the bath?" Jake asked suddenly. All eyes were on the bathroom, taking in the scene.

The male, Max look-alike chuckled. "Doesn't it make sense to chain him up somewhere we can clean up easy? We don't leave any clues behind this way."

"Clues?" Steve shot a look of confusion at him.

"Yeah. Killing him, cleaning up after the mess and disposal of the body will be a lot easier this way."

"And you're killing him...why?" I had no idea why they were here or what they wanted with Logan. How were they connected to Eyes Only?

"Fuckwit had it coming. No one hurts our little sister and gets away with it." The blonde entered the room, a bowl of pasta and what smelled like mushroom cream sauce in her hand. She chewed thoughtfully a moment before adding. "Logan left her for dead, let her get taken by the enemy. That constitutes traitor in my book.. Besides, he's screwing up her love life."

"What do you mean?" Jake inquired.

"A little slow on the uptake aren't you?" Steve teased. Before he could say anything further, the girl continued.

"This morning Logan was acting like a dick. It was about that guy; I think she said his name was Alec. Logan lied and told her Alec kept secrets from her, that he was only looking out for number one, yada yada. It's so old. Typical jealous, male Ordinary trying to take down the opposition with deceit. What happened to good old fist-fighting?"

Her words registered in my brain. No one hurts our little sister and gets away with it. This had to be one of Max's old unit.

"So that means you're an 09- from Maxie's unit?" I amended, looking at the slim blonde.

She snorted. "Is that what they call us? 09'ers?" She let out a giggle and turned to the dark haired man. "Y'hear that, Krit? We're like a vintage, pre-Pulse wine: classic, unique."

Max viewed the label as an insult but apparently her 'sister' thought she was in a class of her own. Interesting. I wondered if all of Max's unit were so full of themselves.

The girl must have caught the look in my eye and she dismissed me with a smirk and a wave of the hand. "Nothing wrong with being sure of yourself, now is there?" She looked me up and down and I felt like a horse on display at auction, her eyes searching and appraising. I sat up straighter without even thinking.

Her lips curled into a grin and she extended her hand. "I'm Syl."

I stretched and took her hand in both of mine; her grip strong and sure, yet soft and warm. Tingles worked their way up my arm in a most inviting way. "Biggs," I grinned back.

Glancing down below my waist she smirked and giggled. "Oh, yes you are." I blushed, remembering exactly how she came to be aware of that fact. As our eyes met, she winked.

"Now that we're acquainted, is there any chance at getting the circulation flowing in my hands and feet?" I held out my wrists, twisting my face into a puppy-dog pout for good measure. She ignored me.

"Did you say 'Syl'?" I asked, the name triggering a memory from not so long ago: a sobbing Max, her face buried in my shirt, 'Krit and Syl. Two of my siblings. White killed them.'

"Yeah," she replied with a shrug. "Why?"

I stared hard wondering if my confusion was a lingering side-effect from her attack on me earlier. "Sacramento Syl and Krit?"

Krit looked at me as if I'd grown a second head. "Yeah, man, what of it?"

I thudded back against the couch and slid my eyes closed tightly.

"Biggs, what's wrong?" Jake asked worriedly.

After a few moments of silence I sat up and opened my eyes to meet Syl's questioning ones. "I'll be damned," I whistled, shaking my head in wonder. "Max thinks you're dead."

Krit smirked. "Yeah, we figured. Perks of eavesdropping." His face took on a thoughtful expression and his eyes grew serious. "How's my little sister's mental health after this rollercoaster week?"

Jake piped up. "Lots better now that Ben's okay and she and Alec have patched things up."

"Ben's really alive?" Syl asked, voice shaking, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. Jake, Steve and Tanner shot me hard looks. They were still upset about what had happened between Ben and Alec. It would take time for them to come 'round, even if Alec already had. I was glad Syl and Krit didn't see their faces.

I smiled softly. "Yeah. He went through hell, but he's okay now."

"Soon as we figure this bitch out we'll go see them, okay sweetheart?" Krit whispered, pulling Syl into a hug and she burrowed into his chest. The look in his eye was both determined and sad. And it hit me. Son of a bitch. They're a couple! Why the hell was she flirting with me?

"Why were you breaking in here anyway?" she asked finally.

"Trying to get some info off Logie's computer. Alec sent us."

Syl reached into her pocket, removed a wire cutter and clipped my binds without a word. She then turned and freed the others as well.

"Hop to it. Get what you need. We'll burn the rest afterwards." With a nod of thanks, Steve scuttled off to the computer to download the files.

Syl walked around the room picking up various items and placing them in duffel bags. Krit was doing the same.

"You guys are ripping off Eyes Only?"

She shrugged. "He's got good stuff. We could fence most of this shit for a fortune; set up house in the Caribbean and live it up for years. Sure as hell beats Seattle."

Krit was rummaging through the cupboards lining the living room wall and muttering curses, every so often snorting and laughing out loud.

"Hey Syl, check this out! Maxie was dating the king of pervs!" He tossed her a video tape which she caught without even looking.

She glanced down at the picture and title, sniggering, and then flipped it over to read the synopsis.

"I don't want to know. Throw this with the rest of the shit we don't want," she said, pointing to a pile. "What is it with men and their fascination with porn?"

Tanner laughed suddenly. "You should ask Biggs; he gets more action on screen than in real life." I shot him an angry glare but a soft hand gripped my chin and turned my head. I was face to face with Syl, her brown eyes mocking and playful.

"What?" she started, gaze flicking over me, causing my body temperature to rise a few notches. "Sexy guy like you can't get any ass? What've you been doing wrong, babe? Or are you one of those guys that are waiting for 'the one'?" Again she was flirting.

Her taunting pissed me off. What was I doing wrong"Sweetheart, you untie me now and I'll show you exactly what I'm capable of - and I assure you - you won't be disappointed. For the record, with me it's not quantity that counts, it's quality. Unlike with some people I know, who'll screw any female with a pulse."

Our eyes met and she looked away. I wasn't quite sure why, but I was disappointed.

Jake, Tanner and I followed Syl to the bathroom. She called back over her shoulder.

"Krit, honey, gimme your pocketknife, will ya?" He crossed the room and leaned against the bathroom door frame before tossing it to her. She flicked it open.

"Uh, Syl?" I started. "If you kill him, Max will never forgive you. Trust me, there are plenty of us more than willing to take him out; quite frankly, the only reason we don't is Max."

She eyed me warily and sighed. "When the hell did Maxie grow a conscience? Shit. Okay, Krit? Plan B."

The two 09'ers grinned broadly at one another and before we knew what was happening, Logan was dangling buck-naked from the pipe, his clothes strewn about the floor of the bathroom. Syl reached into her pocket and pulled out a small tube, what looked like a felt pen, blue and silver powder and a pot of sparkly stuff.

"What are you doing?" I asked skeptically.

"Just watch. I always excelled in art." With flourish, she began with painstaking precision to 'paint' Logan's stomach with the things in her hand. The end result was hilariously funny, and our small group broke into fits of laughter.

"Oh my god," Tanner sputtered. "You drew the Eyes Only thing on him! What are you gonna do next, call the cops and report him!"

Krit just smiled, picked up the phone and dialed.

"Hello? Yes, I'd like to make an anonymous tip." He paused briefly and nodded. "Well, it's about Eyes Only. His real name is Logan Cale..."

TBC

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