Disclaimer: No infringement intended. Not affiliated in any way with anyone. Net worth is still a negative number. Nothing to sue here people, move along.

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Working Title: Apprentice of Evil.

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Part Eight: Bad

Logan sat alone, a solitary figure fighting an endless war with all that was wrong with the world. He typed furiously at his computers, but they brought no answers, no peace of mind. He had tried to get Max to come over here so he could break it to her in person that a transgenic had been killed. He didn't know if he was one of the ones that escaped with her. He didn't even know if she'd know if he was one of the escapees. By the age, he was probably an X5, but Logan didn't have any way of knowing for sure. Max wouldn't come. She must have known that something was wrong, but what did she know? Was it enough to protect herself from whatever killed the other X5? He should have just told her. He should have told her a lot of things. Damn it, he was afraid it was too late.

Lydecker had swooped in and closed down the investigation. Not surprising.

Beverly checked with medical examiners in other cities. Lydecker had done the same thing before. Two died in Chicago, four in Miami, three in New York. Were they X5s that remained behind, dying on missions? Or had he found a way to track down the escaped X5s? If they were the ones that escaped, then ten of them were already dead. Brin was back at Manticore. Could Max really be the only one left? If so, for how long? He should have told her.

He jumped when the phone rang. Beverly Shankar's call was not reassuring. His heart clenched in his chest when she said they'd found another body. Logan felt a little guilty being happy when Beverly said that he had a barcode, but it only lasted a few seconds. It was the same barcode, on all eleven bodies.

Logan set down the phone and put his head in his hands. Max, where are you? What is going on?

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"Maxie?" The handsome young man asked.

Max's face lit up as she recognized him. "Ben?"

Ben nodded and smiled. "Max, we thought we'd lost you. That you drowned under the ice. I'm so glad you made it."

"I made it, but I don't know where any of the others are."

"Me neither. I haven't heard from Zack in a while. The old contact number isn't working and I don't have the new one. I didn't think I'd pissed off Zack that much but …" Ben trails off as he notices that Max has been crying. "Maxie, what's wrong?"

"I'm 'in trouble'." Max gestured to her slightly swollen abdomen.

"You're pregnant?"

"Yep."

Ben smiled. "Wow!" then he chuckled softly. "When I find family I go all out!" His smile died on his face as he noticed the expression on Max's pretty face. "I take it that the father didn't react well."

"I… haven't told him."

"Your call …but… why not? I am sure we could fake the doctor's visits. He doesn't need to find out that there is anything …not normal about either of you."

Max smiled. Funny, his casual use of the word 'we' warmed her heart. Apparently Zack's attitude wasn't prevalent among all of her siblings. She did have family, after all. "That's not it. He knows I'm an X5, it's just… we aren't like that."

Ben just looked at her with one of his eyebrows up.

Max laughed at herself. "OK, we were like that once, but …"

As her laughter dissolved into tears Ben could take no more. "It's OK. I'm here. I'll help. You're not alone."

"Someone like me." Max smiled and embraced her brother.

"Yeah, we are the same." Ben smiled as he held Max. Ben was happy to see his sister; happy about the prospect of having a little one to teach. He was even happy at the thought of snapping the neck of the SOB that had made his sister cry.

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To be continued …