Title: …Happily Ever After
Author: Roxy
Beta Reader: Rose
Category: Action, Humor and Romance. (M/L)
Rating: PG 13
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created by James Cameron and Charles H. Eglee. I don't own Dark Angel, though Noah and Lou do belong to me. I am making no money out of this.
Summary: This is my hit at a 3rd season. Max and the others are trapped in TC, surrounded by White's men. A new little sister comes along. Deck reappears (isn't he just our favorite bad guy?). X5s reunion. More Familiars and how to deal with them.
Previous Chapter: Max and Logan have finally gotten over the virus… ahem…use your imagination… Lydecker's decided that it was long time for a talk with Sandeman and he knows exactly where to find the creator of Manticore. Zack and Noah are facing a slight misunderstanding involving Alec and caused by Lou.
Notes: Ok, here goes… been wanting to write a chapter like this for quite sometime now because I think that it kinda keeps the spirit of S1 going. You know, Max on a mission for Eyes Only and having fun and never even heard of White and his whacky cult! So that was S1… now, throw in more X5s, a heated environment, an ideal cliché of a bad guy… come on, this was too tempting not to write lol!
Feedback: BlackRose9: More Deck… you're interested in Deck's past concerning Sandeman right? Well I must admit that my wonderful Beta babe's helped a lot on this one because I really was stuck there for a while… but it's all figured out now and you'll get more and more details about what happened between the two of them in the coming chapters. I really had a doubt about that last Zack – Alec encounter… I wasn't quite sure "the real Zack" would have reacted with such anger and impulsivity… I mean, he's all about planning and calculation but even Lydecker's told him sometime in S1 that he hadn't changed in the sense that he was still so angry.
Nanny4: lol! I can understand you being fed up with Alec… especially seeing the number of fic in which Max dumps Logan in a heart beat to go make hot monkey love with Alec! I've never been much of an Alec fan girl myself… but I mean he's a delight to write in a sense that it's so easy to put him in embarrassing situations you know? But there must be a certain number of true M/L writers out there as well, right? You (M/L shippers) all seem so unsatisfied with this fic whenever it comes to Max and Logan's relationship. True, they are not the main center of the fic. That is deliberate. But, though I have read some excellent M/A fics, I could never write any… But surely, I can't be the only one, right? Well I know we have to take into account to fact that everything that is DA is now becoming a bit outdated and that the fandom is slowly dying or at least is not what it used to be but… there has to be other DA writers that write fics only based on M/L! Thanks for the review and keep telling me what you think!
Suzy: Another unsatisfied M/L shipper! I promise I'll do my best to give you more M/L… you can already count on chapter 9 and 12 being mostly about their relationship… so that's a start. I must admit that I no longer read any DA fics… I know, I know, shame on me, not even supporting one my favorite fandoms… Thanks for the compliment on my writing but if you like it, then shouldn't you like other parts of the fic as well? I mean give the other characters a chance, you might actually end up liking a few of them ;-)
BlueAngel137: All I can say is… THANK YOU!!! Yes, you're doing your encouraging job perfectly. Never hesitate to tell me about things you don't like in this story either… even though I obviously prefer praises to flame (lol!), constructive criticism is always welcome…
Bid Edna: Thanks as always for your review. Max and Logan… well there will no real explanation for the virus in this chapter. I was just correcting something that never should've happened in the first place! I'll mention it in chapter 9 though, so you'll see then. Alec and Lou… naughty grin… I know I'm messing around with the two of them and I'm really enjoying it as well… but things are just about to get slightly more complicated… yes, yes, you read right it was "more complicated", not "less complicated" lol! But you know it's not like they didn't have it coming… I mean she's an unbearable pretentious little brat and he's a self centered, egoistical, perverted sex on legs… so you know shrugs lol!
Third equinox: So you're only down to chapter 3 so it'll be sometimes before you read this answer… still thank you very much for your review, you guys don't realize how happy I am as soon as I see one popping in my mailbox! It really just makes it all worth it… that's why I take the time to answer each of you individually.
Lydecker wana b : Well there you are… an update… hope you like it and thank you !
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… Happily Ever After
Chapter VIII: Back to Business
Max was awoken from her deep slumber by the light and regular tip-tap of typing and the scuffing, at regular intervals, of three day beard growth.
Logan was working!
Max reluctantly turned her head to the source of light and opened one eye. This was a really embarrassing situation: the killing machine with shark DNA was lost in dream world while the ordinary cyber journalist was awake at five in the morning hacking God knows what!
Yeah well the cyber journalist didn't have to go through hours and hours of tyrannical training, did he? And he didn't have a weekly appointment with a pee brain wacky member of an even wackier cult whose plan was to rid the whole planet of any human life in probably in the worst way, now did he?
Still, Logan awake at this time of the day meant only one thing: Max wasn't tiring him enough.
Ok, time to place the bar a little higher… Logan Cale prepare to be blown away, cuz you ain't see nothin' yet!
Max wrapped the bed sheet around her naked self and walked towards Logan. She leaned on the desk hoping to switch his attention from his computer to her demanding body. But the guy was lost in deep, deep concentration as he only said:
"Morning. Sleep well?"
"Yeah… did you?" Max responded her voice like a purr.
Logan went on typing, the frown on his forehead only reflecting the focus of his ingenious mind.
"You know, I just might get vexed" Max said drawing a circle from the desk to behind Logan's chair.
"Why's that?" Logan said absentmindedly.
"Because you seem to be taking more interest in your computer than in me" she whispered to his ear, "I don't think I'll be able to bear this much longer"
Her hands locked on his chest and her tongue started playing with his ear lob.
"Really…" Logan seemed to be holding his breath.
Defocusing mission launched.
"But... um… it's about… Eyes Only… planning on… making him… come out of…"
Logan was pausing as the tip of Max's tongue was sending waves of pleasure through his body.
"Yes?" Max drawled.
"Um… come out of his cupboard" Logan finished.
"Yeah… but right now?"
"Well, pretty soon… before the state governor's elections anyway"
"Um… I thought this was about Eyes Only not about being a model citizen…"
Max started wondering whose focus was running low.
"Have you ever heard the name of Antonio Gonzales?"
"No. But let me guess… a real big bad guy"
"Yep. Prostitution, drug, murder… name it, he's done it and he's starting to build a nice little mafia of his own. And Eyes Only's gonna bring him down"
"Are you sure this is a good idea because I think that between the Familiars and the transgenic problem we've got enough on our hands as it is"
"Yes, but this has to do with the facility"
Max frowned and leaned down next to Logan.
"How so?'
"Gonzales' latest activity is corruption"
"I can see the link with the state governor election but not any further…"
"James Mackenzie, our actual governor, has been borrowing a lot of money lately without ever returning it and Gonzales has proof of that. But he also has proof that the other running candidate, that's Terri Johnson, has a strong taste in… younger women to the extreme displeasure of his wife"
"How much younger exactly?"
"Younger than Lou"
"See the reason why I hate politics so much… how the hell are we suppose to vote knowing that one is a major crook and the other is a pedophile? Anyway, I suppose Gonzales is keeping that kind of information as a safety net, in case one of them turns on him, right?"
"And that's also information Eyes Only would like to put his hands on"
"I bet, but what's it gotta-"
"Lemme finish. The thing is both of our candidates got the word that Gonzales holds that kind of information so they want it back as well. But they don't want to destroy his trust, so they're trying to force him to choose between the two of them, to show where his loyalty lays"
"The thing is" Logan went on, "Gonzales doesn't know the meaning of the word loyalty, so it's up to the one who gives him the most. Mackenzie, our current governor, said to Gonzales, and these are his exact words, that if the Latino gives him what he wants, he'll make sure he gets certain privileges, plus he'll uncover the mystery about a national threat"
"A threat? The only thing that's been called a national threat for the past few months is us!"
"Precisely"
"How do we know Mackenzie's not bluffing?"
"He is the governor of the state where the facility is hidden, isn't he? I'm sure he'd know stuff like that"
"He'd know while agents from secret governmental agencies like White wouldn't? Plus what's the point in telling Gonzales where we are?"
"Each and every one of you is worth way more than anything Gonzales will ever get his hands on? He can use you guys for anything… best agents in the world to support his growing little mafia, hottest girls for his prostitution net, rat labs for new drugs, I don't know! Anything!"
Max looked blankly at the screen before her. It showed the picture of the man who could destroy their fragile balance and safety in an instant. He looked around his fifties and rather well fed, the bastard!
"We gotta tell Deck and launch an Eyes Only mission right away!" she burst out, standing up.
"I was hoping you'd say that but… are you sure about the 'right away' part?" Logan asked a boyish smile twitching the corners of his lips.
"Well, maybe not right away, I mean the whole facility's not going to be up for another two hours" Max shrugged.
"Three for some of its residents" Logan said referring to a certain baby sister.
"That does make an awful lot of time" Max said in an innocent tone that fooled no one.
"I believe you mentioned something about you not baring that I take more interest in my computer than in you" Logan said pushing on his arms in order to rise from his chair.
"Oh, did I?"
"Yes… I also happen to believe that I might be able to do something about it"
Now Max was looking up to him through her long eye lashes.
"Oh, you mean halt your quest to making this rotten world a better place? Please not on my account"
"Well, it wouldn't be halting my quest; it would more of a continuation of my quest. See, so many people to make happy"
"Really, hope you aren't planning on making them all happy the same way you're doing with me" Max said brushing her lips against his.
"I might not have the strength for that" Logan said locking one arm around her waist and kissing her passionately.
Max let go of the sheet, her only clothing, while her arms played along Logan's chest and back. She rushed him towards the bed and fell on top of him.
As one of Logan's hands was lost in her long brown hair and she was literally ripping his pants apart, Max thought: defocusing mission accomplished.
-------------------
"So that's why I'd like to send a group of X5s on this mission" Logan concluded.
He was in Lydecker's office and had just exposed to him the Gonzales-Mackenzie problem, but somehow, he hadn't found Deck as attentive and concerned as he had expected.
"Are we sure Mackenzie knows the location of this facility?" Lydecker asked at last.
"No. And government people are your buddies not mine. But the real question is, are we willing to take the risk of endangering all this?" he waved his arms at the office, the walls, the whole facility and the whole transgenic population, "If Mackenzie doesn't know than it'll still make one more bad guy off our back"
Logan wasn't sure this was an argument that would convince Deck; in fact, he was sure it wouldn't. However, against all odds, the older man replied:
"Fine, take whatever you need" he paused before adding "Except Zack"
"Why?" Logan asked puzzled.
Zack had a really bad temper and always wanted to have his say in everything but he was by far the best soldier in the whole facility.
"Because he has to remain at base. He's in charge" Lydecker said placing his brief case on his desk.
"In charge?" Logan frowned.
In charge of what? Logan asked himself. A new program, trainings… these could all be suspended until the whole case was solved.
"In charge" Lydecker simply replied in a conclusive tone, locking his brief case.
Logan raised a questioning eyebrow: surely, Lydecker wasn't planning on retiring this very minute.
"Yes. I'm leaving in an hour. I'll be gone for about a week" the older man said answering Logan's silent question.
"Where to?"
"That doesn't concern you. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a lot of things to take care of, starting with covering my tracks from the government and warning my partner on this" he said gravely making for the door.
"Your partner? Who happens to be…" Logan inquired.
"Joshua"
And with that, he left the room, leaving Logan staring blankly after him: Lydecker leaving the facility at such a time of crisis, with a dog-boy and hiding the whole thing from the government… And I thought my day was going to be interesting…
-------------------
Lou hadn't fully recovered but she was in a good enough shape to leave her bed in the hospital wing for the one she had slept in for the past few months. Such little compensation but for once, she wished she could go back to training.
It would take her mind of all the horrible things she had done lately: failed recon mission, flight to England followed by torture, overhearing conversations and jumping to conclusions.
She must've been wrong about Alec and Noah. Zack wouldn't be acting the way he was, with the both of them, like nothing had changed. Alec seemed a little edgy around Zack though but other than that, things hadn't changed at all.
Suddenly, her head snapped up at something Logan had said.
"What exactly do you mean when you say Lydecker's gone?" she asked in disbelief.
Logan had set up a meeting between the O9ers and Alec. And his room – while perfect for two – had shown itself much too small for such a crowd.
"Pretty much only that"
"What are you complaining about? You hate the man and that is the understatement of the century" Alec snorted.
Lou elbowed him less discreetly then she had intended too, but Logan went on nonetheless.
"I was actually hoping that one of you guys could tell me what was going on"
Instinctively, eight pairs of eyes fell on Zack who was, arms crossed on his chest, standing in the dimmest corner of the narrow room. He looked up at them all and simply said:
"I don't know much more. He only told me to keep an eye out and to do as I had been trained to. I found especially strange that he was only taking Joshua. I mean, if he's going on an undercover mission, we have more… inconspicuous units"
Joshua did particularly stand out in a crowd, as much because of his giant height than because of his cute puppy face. Plus, he wasn't exactly fully comfortable around ordinaries.
"Joshua?" Max's head snapped up at the mention of her big fella.
Zack nodded gravely and they all fell silent, as though trying to read Lydecker's mind from a distance.
Logan presented another problem as he explained for the third time since that morning what Mackenzie was planning on doing, Gonzales' implication and stressed that their safety was at stake. Once he was sure he had their complete attention, even Lou's, he exposed his three part mission.
Gonzales kept the documents they were after in a safe located in a hidden room. Logan laid a map on the desk.
"Not so secret, huh?" Zane snorted.
"Eyes Only has friends who are architects" Logan shrugged, "The tough part's going to get past the iris scan to get in and then Gonzales' thumb print to open the safe in question"
"Wicked!" Lou exploded, becoming all of a sudden enthusiastically British, "Can I be the one to rip his eye out? I bet you guys have all done it loads of time!"
Everyone stared at her and you could've heard the crickets singing till Max broke the silence:
"No actually, we just let Lydecker do it"
"Some ambassador's daughter, I tell you" Alec added in low tone.
Lou slapped him in the back of his head but that didn't whip the trademark smirk off his face.
Logan explained that the first part of the mission was to recover Gonzales' hand print. He was talking about it like they were going to be drinking tea with the guy, but Max wasn't sure how they were going to pull this trick off.
However, she had full confidence in Logan and decided not to badger him with what he thought were details. Logan went on with part two and concluded:
"Ok that's it for the general aspect of the mission, now let's get to details-"Logan started.
"Wait!" Lou interrupted, "You've only told us part one and two. What's part three?"
"Well. Part three will take place later on in the game and only one person will be needed for that. You really don't need to know about it right now"
That didn't satisfy Posh X5 in the least, but she remained silent at the warning glances the others were throwing at her. She crossed her arms on her chest and engaged herself in a nice brooding quality session worthy of X5 599.
"Ok so back to the field-"
"Excuse me Logan, but what exactly is the field?" Jondy interrupted politely.
"Oh right, I didn't mention that! Gonzales owns a night club, a salsa night club. Pretty handy to re-inject all that illegally acquired money. And think of how many dealers and clients he gets to be in contact with" Logan pointed out.
"What?" Max frowned, "The safe in question is in a nightclub!"
"Are you sure about that?" Syl asked not much convinced.
"Positive" Logan simply nodded.
"Gonzales' gotta to have his mind slowed down by all those illegal substances he's selling" Alec put in.
Nothing ever seemed to surprise him much.
"He's there nearly every night and it's also where he makes most of his transactions" Logan added.
"Whatever" Max shrugged, "Let's get on with part one. How do we get the thumb print?"
An Eyes Only contact could reconstruct a glove of the exact image of Gonzales' hand. All he needed was something the target had touched: a bottle for example.
"Waitresses come and go in his club, so it won't be tough for one of you girls to get in and out with an empty bottle of beer without anyone noticing" Logan pointed out.
The reconstruction would take at least twenty-four hours, forty-eight at the most, depending on how fast Logan could get a hold of his contact. This was why part one was taking place tonight.
Syl was assigned to it, but she'd have to stay at base for part two. The risk of somebody noticing her was not one worth taking.
"Ok, let's get to part two" Logan rubbed both is hands together.
His plan was being pieced together and he was experiencing the pleasure and excitement Lydecker certainly felt each time one of his kids accomplished successfully an assignment.
"One of you who's going to be on field is going to wear these" he said holding out a pair of glasses Jennifer Lopez wore back in the days.
"Really? I thought these were part of your new makeover" Alec had been eyeing the pair set on the desk ever since he had entered the room.
"How do they work?" Noah asked.
"Well, the target -- that's Gonzales -- is going to have to look at the wearer of these babies for at least thirty seconds straight for us to get a scan of his iris. So chances of that to happen will be highly increased if the wearer is a lady"
"Because you expected one of us to wear them" Alec snorted and Krit joined in.
Logan merely ignored them. Past experience had taught him that answering back to these two only brought more chaos.
"The scan obtained by the glasses will immediately be transferred into this" he showed a big man's silver ring with a no doubt fake diamond "OK, so now it's up to you guys" Logan said turning to Zack who was the most adapt at choosing which one of his siblings should do what.
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Alec climbed out of the car and checked that everybody else had, before slamming his door and pushing the automatic lock on the car's keys.
Nice engine!
He smoothed his white tuxedo and made sure the horrible ring was perfectly in place before glancing at the others.
Zane was wearing a tuxedo as well, but black to match his short gelled hair.
It had been settled that Noah would be the diversion but she looked more like an attraction in that short red dress clinging perfectly to her made-in-Manticore curves. She wore matching high heels and Alec wondered if she was seriously planning on dancing with these or if she was going for the I-sprained-my-ankle technique. Noah placed her earpiece; making sure her many curls were hiding it, before placing the J.Lo glasses on her nose.
Alec spun around; better not take too much of a close look, last encounter with Zack had been enough. His hazel-green eyes fell on Max.
She was stunningly beautiful though she wore a more formal, longer but low cut black dress. She had created unnatural curls on her long dark hair and had lifted them in a very fashionable knot, Alec had not doubt Lou had something to do with that. If Max wasn't much at ease in her heels, it didn't show while she was walking. Her feline features taking over and making her look like a dangerous and fatale predator, which she was.
Zane took Noah's arm and Alec Max's and all four of them walked away from the car and headed for the entrance of Gonzales' club.
They walked in, the girls easily charming the bouncer so as he didn't ask them any questions.
As soon as they stepped in, they felt a wave of heat whip them all over. The lights were dim and reddish, the atmosphere was stuffy. The club was already crowded and that only added to the warm temperature.
The décor was made to remind of the Caribbean; fake coconut trees and large leafs of fake palm trees. Logan had only mentioned that Gonzales was Latino, which they all could've guessed thanks to his name, but he hadn't told them from where exactly. Maybe Cuba or Puerto Rico, Alec shrugged.
"All right guys, you're in" Logan's voice resounded in all of their ears, covering the club's music thanks to their extra sharp hearing, "Now you know what to do"
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Noah settled at the bar with Zane, Max and Alec. All four of them remained still and in silence for a little while, scanning and embracing the club's structure and discerning ordinaries from bouncers from crooks.
Logan's words from their last meeting echoed in Noah's mind as she tried to focus entirely on their mission.
I need four X5s on field for part two of the mission – one of them would be in direct contact with Gonzales and serve as a diversion, while two searched for the documents and one stayed around for back up. Four other elements will be needed at base, one for each of the X5s on field.
Noah inhaled loudly, trying to work out the nervousness out of her system.
She had never done this without Ginna and she wasn't particularly looking forward to it either. The sooner this would be over, the better.
Her co-partners seemed to sense her jittery state as all three of them were surreptitiously eyeing her and absolutely failing to be discreet about it. This was only adding to her cranky mood but they were in their right to stare: after all, it wasn't like the mission could start if she just sat there all night. After all, she was supposed to be making the first move.
Trying to appear as natural and relaxed as possible, Noah turned her head towards the dance floor. It wasn't packed yet. Just a few couples were dancing to Latin rhythms and she couldn't help but biting her lower lip. Could she really go through with this?
She felt someone touch her hand and jolted out of her thoughts. She spun her head around and Max's brown gaze captured hers, her eyes holding an unspoken question.
Noah shrugged and casually said:
"Just looking for a dancer worthy of the title"
Noah knew she wasn't fooling anyone; her smile wasn't reaching her eyes and no doubt Max had noted that.
"This one looks like a good deal, whadya think?" Noah added nodding at a young man not far away.
Max couldn't judge the merchandise properly; the guy had his back to them. He was talking to a group of people and making animated gestures with his arms.
The real hot-tempered, passionate Latino.
But Noah wasn't looking for a sincere approbation; she wanted a little encouragement – which was exactly what Max offered her when she simply nodded and smirked reassuringly.
Noah turned her attention back to the guy. She straightened up, passed a nervous hand through her hair, pulled on her dress and walked to the guy; seduction and self confidence radiating from her like the good little soldier that she was.
Max turned on Zane with a meaningful look and he departed with a simple nod, leaving her and Alec at the bar.
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Being fully concentrated on the mission was a luxury some thought they could do without.
True that after spending months cooped up in facility and having a schedule highly resembling sleeping, eating, training, eating, training, eating and sleeping again, ending up in Latino night club appeared like an unexpected break. Or so that was Alec's vision of the mission.
It also highly amused him that he had been assigned on field while Posh X5, after countless bouts of begging, suck ups, demands and back to begging again, was still locked up in that facility miles away.
She had still been pouting when he had left and had felt so resentful that she had refused to be his liaison with base. So Syl had taken on the challenge while Lou was in contact with Max, Krit with Noah and Jondy with Zane. Logan was supervising it all, among other things.
The barman refilled his Margarita and checking that Max was fully focused on Noah's actions, Alec lifted his glass in the direction of a cute little brunette. The girl offered a skittish smile in return and Alec was already congratulating himself when the girl walked up to him and started talking... in Spanish!
"Um sorry, English only here" he replied with his trademark smile.
But the girl went on in Spanish and beckoned at something behind him. Alec's head turned around and he came face to face with a less than pleased Max. He casually shrugged and turned his attention back on the girl.
"Her? Nah, don't worry, she's just my sister"
Which wasn't an outright lie… she was his clone's sister.
Never taking his hazel-green eyes off the girl, as to make her think he was addressing her, he asked his privileged correspondent:
"Um tell me Syl, any chance for a simultaneous translation?"
"Why Alec? You incredible hunk of night thing" Syl's ironic tone resounded in his ear, "Since when are words part of the plan? I thought you were all about body language"
Alec simply made a taut smile. There was a pause before Syl's voice reached him again.
"Can't help you on this one Alec. My Spanish is as limited as Jondy's"
Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to face Max.
"Maybe I can help you out for once"
"Why Max, that would be perfect if you only spoke Spanish" Alec taunted.
"Give me some credit here Alec! I'm a fast learner; I was with Lou nearly all the time she taught Noah. Plus, I've got Lou right here" she said tapping on her ear "if it ever goes beyond my modest skills"
Alec rolled his eyes, sighed but still offered her to be his translator with an inviting gesture of his hand. Max came closer to him and the girl and Alec motioned the girl to repeat what she had previously asked him.
The girl did so and Max immediately responded without consulting Alec.
"Hey, hey, I wanna know what you're telling her"
"Nothing" Max shrugged, "she was wondering who I was. I told her what you had said previously, that I'm your sister"
"Oh" Alec paused "Good. Ask her her name and if she comes here often"
"Alec, it's not like you're gonna be coming back anytime soon if the mission succeeds" Max noted.
"Max, I know what I'm doing, it's all about feinting interest so just ask her"
Max sighed and spoke in Spanish.
This might've been a risky business if it hadn't been Max. But for some reason, Alec couldn't picture the world's savior pulling a dirty trick on him. Max was responsible and reliable… unlike him.
Max kept on translating for another few minutes ("Tell her she's a unique creature unlike any other"; "Broken record much Alec?"; "Not unless it's twice on the same girl, Max") and Alec was starting to wonder if he might be able to linger for a little while after the mission was over.
They hadn't been out for so long; surely the others would enjoy it as much as he would… and Lou would be beside herself with anger. He could already picture her throwing another tantrum. He almost felt bad for Zack and Logan.
The girl was looking interested and Alec thought now was the perfect time to spice things up.
"Um, Max, d'you think you could add little somethings to your translation?"
"Such as?"
"Maybe you could slip in how really sensitive I am since I've just come out of this really hard relationship and maybe you could also mention that I am a beast in bed"
"How would I know that if I'm supposed to be your sister?"
"Good point. Tell her I just broke up with my girlfriend… long distance relationships never work…and I'm trying to take things slowly… but whatever you do, don't tell her that I told you to say all that"
"I can do that" Max said and went on with the Spanish.
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As it was, Ruben turned out to be a tremendously talented dancer.
When Noah had propositioned him to dance (in Spanish!), he had immediately accepted – not that she had expected anything else, and she had lead him right in front of the VIP lounge where she knew for a fact that Gonzales was settled, eyeing the dance floor, carefully comparing all of the ladies' potential. Noah had to be sure that she would be the one Gonzales would come after.
But for now, it was all about enjoying the moment. And Noah was feeling a slight twinge of guilt at how easy it was. She had been so apprehensive at the idea of dancing again, now that Ginna was dead, that she had completely forgotten how much she actually enjoyed dancing.
It was liberating in a sense that you didn't have to think, predict or anticipate anything, it was all instinctive and physical. It was quite primal when you thought of it, probably one of the oldest kinds of expression, but relieving in so many ways.
Ruben was steering her firmly like he was supposed to, but still allowing her enough space to breathe and do her own thing. Because that was what salsa was all about; it was a very macho dance but it was extremely sensuous all the same. The girl had to feel every move made by her dancer, she had to track every change of direction, every body shift, every tiny little impulsion send by her dancer and she had no time to think for that.
It was easy when your dancer was holding you tight, like Ruben was at the moment. He made his chest transfer tiny vibrations to her as if preparing her. Then, he gave a stronger one and she felt his hips shift as he arched her backwards.
When he brought her back up, Noah was grinning and he noted her enthusiasm. He grinned back and grabbed her close to him again.
He placed one of his hands in her back; firmly maintaining her hips facing his, his other hand still holding hers up. The upper part of his body moved from right to left to the rhythm of the music, as supple as a snake's, inviting, training hers to do the same. She joined him and his legs went back in motion as he led her through the dance floor, lesser couples respectfully moving out of their way.
He pushed her a little away from him, now only holding her with one hand and made her turn again and again, her feline grace not lost on his expert eye. When she came back to face him, he gave another impulsion and finally let her go.
Noah wasn't lost for the least; she knew exactly what to do. Salsa was a macho dance but it was also all about showing off and sometimes the best way to do so was to break away from your partner. It wasn't a coincidence if these special moments were called shines.
Never stopping the basic steps in order to remain in the song's rhythm, Noah let her attention be fully absorbed by her partner. Ruben was making steps of his own, a tiny choreography that held African influences as much as hip hop mixed with Cuban salsa. The guy knew his thing and Noah couldn't help but being impressed at it all.
Finally, after a gracious turn, he pointed two of his fingers at her and winked to tell her it was her turn to shine.
Noah appreciated the attention. Some dancers were just so full of themselves that they barely looked at you during the dance, making you feel like a worthless piece of meat in their expert hands; never allowing you any freedom whatsoever.
Noah's grin broadened as familiar steps came back to her, steps Ginna had taught her. She twisted her hips, arched her back and fully playing the salsa game of seduction. She turned around her partner who was looking at her mesmerized.
If this had been a test, Noah was sure she had passed.
She let herself be engulfed in the music, her hips slowing down their never-ending twisting to match the rhythm. She let her fingers go through her curls, freeing them from the sweat that was sticking them to her temples. The beat was building up, getting faster and faster and Noah's moves followed it.
She closed her eyes, forgetting all about Ruben for an instant, her only partner being the music till the beat came to its climax and she felt all her energy and tension be totally drained out of her and finally returned to his arms.
She looked into his black eyes and for a minute they remained in each other's arms, panting and sweating.
She was jubilating at the fact of having a partner of her own merit and Ruben was obviously feeling the same way.
After a meaningful nod, they went back into motion, now fully aware of the other's abilities and capacities.
Noah let herself go in his arms, feeling every impulsion of his body, as he lifted her in an unexpected and complex porté. She let out a squeak of surprise which was fully covered by the sound of the music. She remembered that a girl also had to trust her dancer.
Too soon, Noah recognized the final notes of the song. Ruben settled on a slower pace matching the music and finally came to an immobilized position. He raised both his hands, raising Noah's hands with his as well and never letting go, he arched her backwards once again. Instinctively, Noah's left leg entwined Ruben's right, while her right remained firmly implanted on the floor to keep her balance.
Ruben took his time in summoning her back up; she felt her curls graze the floor. But when he finally did, still out of breath, all he said was:
"Baila como una diosa"
Noah laughed at the compliment and managed to reply:
"You're not so bad yourself"
His reaction matched hers as his laugh was mirthful and satisfied.
-------------------
Alec didn't really know what had happened exactly… and chances were that he'd probably never know… well, at least, not until the mission was over.
He also had the feeling that if the cute little brunette had all of the sudden switched from being a paused and hot-looking creature to an untamed tigress, it had something to do with what Max had told her… or rather what Lou had told Max to say… Max's responsibility in the whole process wasn't quite established… yet.
Hopefully, Zane was coming back from his thorough little tour of the club.
"Ok, I think I know where the stairs to- what the hell happened here?" he exclaimed when he realized Alec's white suit was wet and strongly smelled of Margarita.
"Alec got himself wet" Max said trying hard not to let the corners of her lips twitch.
Alec shot her a dirty glare which only managed to send her into sniggers.
"Why Alec? I thought you'd gotten over that weeks ago" Zane said highly amused, "How do you intend to ever get a girl in your bed if you put yourself in such states when she hasn't even touched you yet" he added in a condescending and fake-sorry tone.
"Oh, she's touched him all right" Max grinned before Alec could even respond.
"Will you all just shut up!" Alec finally blurted out, taking his suit's vest off.
Then he rubbed his left cheek and made a mental note never again to underestimate the blow of Latin fury in action. Next time, he'd duck.
"And that was meant for you too Syl!" he added angrily as he heard her chuckling in his ear. With the little dignity he had left, he added, "Now let's get down to business, shall we?" he turned to Zane and with a motion of the hand, invited him to lead the way.
Zane tried his best to maintain a straight face… unsuccessfully. He and Alec left a satisfied Max alone at the bar, noisily sipping the end of her drink.
She spun around on her seat and noted that Noah was no longer dancing.
The guys had better get to that safe fast because Gonzales was already asking Noah to join him in his private lounge.
-------------------
After being abandoned by Noah, Ruben wandered to the bar to get some refreshments. There, he came face to face with yet the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen. He leaned against the counter next to her and offered to buy her another drink.
"Don't you think it's a little presumptuous of you to be coming on to me like this after the way you just danced with my friend" Max smirked.
"As you so rightfully pointed out, I was only dancing with her" Ruben said in his adorable Spanish accent, "Some people get confused because they don't draw the line between dancing -- which is always sensuous, and actually liking somebody"
"Don't even try to make me believe that you've never crossed that line" Max scoffed but Ruben remained serious nonetheless and didn't back down.
"I might've… under exceptional circumstances. A dance partner can become a partner in life and vice-versa but thankfully I don't change girlfriends as often as I change partners"
He sounded sincere and this time Max didn't mock him. Maybe there still were some decent guys out there who weren't rotten to the bone. Maybe Ruben was even one of them.
"So tell me" Ruben went on, not letting the silence settle between them "why are you here if not to dance?"
"Just accompanying a few friends"
"Where are they now?" he inquired.
"Oh, somewhere" Max simply shrugged before putting her empty glass on the counter.
"Well then, how about that drink?" Ruben asked, his black eyes shinning with intensity.
-------------------
"They're both going to pay for this" Alec swore for the umpteenth time.
He and Zane had just stepped through a door marked employees only located on the far right corner of the club. They were making their way down the corridor as quietly as Alec's ramblings allowed them to.
"Yeah, yeah" Zane replied absentmindedly, then he added, "Jondy, do you have any idea how many doors there are in this corridor?"
"Exactly thirteen" her voice resounded in his earpiece.
"I'm sure this was Lou's idea-"
Zane was focusing hard on Jondy's light and cheery tone; his ears trying to abandon Alec's ranting in the background.
"Ok, and which one do we wanna open?"
"-being the perfect gentleman and-"
"Well, they're all mostly used for storage but the third one on your left is the one you wanna take"
"-not like Max-"
"Ok thanks Jon and-" Zane never got the time to finish his sentence and Alec's voice trailed off as the door right in front of them opened and two men stepped out.
They too seemed quite surprised as one's smirk froze on his lips and the other's laugh died in his throat rather abruptly.
Zane and Alec hadn't had the time to go through another door.
The four men stared at each other for two seconds; two seconds, long enough for Zane to evaluate the whole of the situation.
He and Alec had been discovered and had no valuable excuse that would justify what they were doing in this corridor. The guy who owned the club was a major crook and it wouldn't take long for the two Latinos in front of them to add two and two and click that he and Alec weren't looking for discreet, hidden room to make out.
One of the Spanish guys opened his mouth, probably to tell them to get out of here. A second later, he had collapsed on the floor, in for an early bedtime. It didn't take long for Alec to forget about his Margarita incident and react by making sure the second joined his buddy.
"Um… guys? All right there?" Syl's voice said unsurely in both of their earpieces.
"Yeah, we just need to hide these guys in another room so that they don't draw attention" Zane said already lifting one of the knocked out employees.
"Leave them there" Krit's voice said.
"What? Why?" Alec asked.
"You guys don't have the time for that. Noah's been trying to hold Gonzales off for a while now. It's only a matter of minutes before he starts getting interested in something else than just looking at her"
Right.
The iris scan Noah would obtain thanks to her J.lo glasses would be directly downloaded in Alec's hideous ring but it wouldn't remain stored there forever. Just long enough for them to trick the computer into thinking that it was face to face with the real live Gonzales and that'd be it… a few seconds at the most. That was why they needed to already be in front of the machine before Noah launched a stare fight with Gonzales.
"Ok, but we can't just leave 'em there. Eventually, someone else will come in and-" Alec started.
"And that person will be Max" Krit cut him.
The two guys looked at each other before nodding and then disappeared behind the third room on the left side of the corridor, leaving behind the two Latinos' body messily spread on the floor.
-------------------
This was really getting rather messy… with a little luck Zack would've learned something from their latest serious talk…
Catching Gonzales' attention had really been a lot less trouble than what she had first expected. That had even been enjoyable, thanks to Ruben.
Now that the first step had been completed, the rest was showing itself far less appreciable.
Noah was trying hard not to let her disgust show on her face at the realization that Gonzales' hand was on her thigh.
Imagine it's nothing but a bug…
… A big, gruesome, stinking, disgusting bug waiting to be burst...
Ok, that wasn't quite working like it was supposed to.
Alec and Zane were going to pay for forcing her to be the decoy.
She had been in this tiny room at the back of the VIP lounge for nearly fifteen minutes alone with The Bug and she was seriously running out of imagination and things to say… The only words she could clearly think of were 'Urgh!' and 'Showers are the best thing mankind's ever come up with'.
He was getting closer.
No wait, that wasn't possible.
Noah realized that she no longer had any personal space. It wasn't like she could pull away without raising suspicions. What kind of girl accepts an invitation in the boss's private lounge and then withdraws?
Noah doubted Gonzales had even the slightest idea what an X5 was and she'd rather keep it that way.
She was seated on the edge of the couch and could hardly get away from him, unless of course she slipped over the armrest and wouldn't that just appear terribly inconvenient?
She was going to kill Zane and Alec as soon as she got outta there.
Gonzales was already looking at her with eyes filled of sickening desire and Noah knew that tomorrow morning he wouldn't even remember whether she had been blonde or redhead.
His head was tilting closer to hers.
Urgh!
He was wetting his lips with his tongue.
Double urgh!
His hand on her thigh was heading upward.
Showers are the best thing mankind's ever come up with!
His other hand was closing around her shoulders.
Shower, shower, shower!
Next thing she knew, Gonzales was on top of her as he had grabbed her by the hips and pulled her under him.
Wow! Talk about foreplay and building up anticipation!
Well, at least he hadn't kissed her yet.
"I want you" he whispered, his lips millimeters away from hers.
Some men just know how to talk to women.
Suddenly, Noah heard something else than The Bug's hoarse breath and the distant, muffled sound of music.
"Guys are in position. Do your thing" Krit told her.
Finally!
Noah's attention switched back to Gonzales; she pulled a scowl as he already had his eyes closed and his lips pushed together.
Triple Urgh!
"Wait a minute" Noah blurted out and tried pushing him backward with a minimum of enthusiasm.
Gonzales raised a brow and Noah knew that he wasn't used to being interrupted like this. She would have to make full use of all her charms to make sure that he wouldn't get impatient and go fetch another girl.
"Before that" she said softly and seriously, "I need you to look at me"
All right, play sentimental, this'll only add more to his future joy at throwing you away like an old sock.
"Look at me and tell me what you see"
She straightened up and pretended passing a hand through her curls while she was truly just pressing the download button on the side of her glasses.
Gonzales paused to look at her straight in the eye for several seconds; trying to understand what exactly she expected him to answer and why she was even asking at all.
Finally, he grew impatient and the smirk on her lips started to annoy him. He pulled closer once again and-
"Perfect Noah. The guys are in. Get yourself out now"
The Bug was still drawing closer.
Noah put a finger on his chest and his eyes snapped open at once, this time he was angry but probably not as much as she was.
"Wrong answer" she said before throwing him off the couch and across the room.
-------------------
Really!
Calling her to clean up after Zane and Alec!
She was a back up fully trained agent, not a substitute maid!
Still, the two guards were no longer a threat to anyone. Not now that they were, hands immobilized, bound to one another with some extra rope that she had found in one of the storage rooms. Nope, these two were in for a nice little nap until somebody found them.
When Max got out of the corridor the same way she had gotten in (the employees only door), she headed back for the bar where Ruben was still sipping his drink his back to her.
"Sorry it took so long" Max smirked apologetically, resuming her previous seat "never ending line for the ladies room"
"I suppose it could be a valuable excuse" Ruben shrugged before adding, "if you hadn't headed the total opposite way you were supposed to"
He pointed at some point in front of him. Max followed his finger and her eyes fell on a lit sign that read Restrooms in bright, big, bold letters. A sign you couldn't possibly miss.
Oops…
"Ok, so you got me" she complied uneasily "I got lost. Guess I've had one too many drinks" she smirked praying that would be sufficient.
"Somehow, I have the feeling that you're not the kinda girl to get drunk after only two drinks"
Honey, I'd barely be getting dizzy, that you'd be lying passed out on the floor.
"Really? And what makes you so sure that you know what kinda girl I am? After all, you barely know me" she tried steering the conversation in another direction.
"Well, then" Ruben said calmly lifting his glass to his full lips, "Surprise me"
Max wondered where her famous repartee had gone to, because just then, she was at a loss for words.
-------------------
The third door on the left side of the corridor had opened on a room that pretty much resembled all the others. However, when you took a closer look, you noticed that the fruit boxes were empty and all the alcohol bottles were filled with water.
Zane and Alec hadn't felt discouraged when they hadn't come face to face with a flight of stairs. Logan's map said that there was a way down and Logan was never wrong. So, they had both started probing the entire room; walls and floors and their efforts hadn't been in vain.
Alec had noted a thin line on the floor that stood out because it was less dusty. He passed one of his nails along it and finally found a tiny whole which allowed him to lift the part of the floor that was the trap door that led downstairs.
They crawled down the narrow ladder, making sure they closed the trap door behind them and arrived in an even smaller room.
"Um… guys?" Alec's voice echoed through the empty room, "Are we sure this is what we're looking for?"
"Positive" Logan told him, "Why would Gonzales go through so much trouble to hide this room if it wasn't what we were looking for?"
Right.
But in the meantime, he wasn't the one standing in the middle of a creepy, dark room a few feet underground.
The guys started scanning the room following the same pattern they had used in the previous room; letting their hands run along the walls and the bare cold floor.
Eventually, one of them pressed something and a light turned on. It emanated from a small screen that had been perfectly disguised behind the wall.
Zane and Alec studied the funny looking device for a second.
The iris scan.
They had no idea how things were going on Noah's side but she had responded to their request much faster than they could've hoped for. Only a few minutes later after they had descended to narrow ladder, another secret door opened and this time, they stepped into a luxurious office.
-------------------
At some point, Max recalled recovering the power of speech. She didn't remember saying anything particularly interesting but at least she hadn't remained stuck in one of Lou's uncle Fred's gold fish imitations.
Ruben really was a complex and interesting character and she was having a hard time trying to fathom him.
He didn't seem the least interested in finding out where she had slipped to when she had pretended to go to the restrooms. Neither did he ask annoying question, she would have to lie to answer anyway.
He was keeping the conversation going, without asking her too many questions and Max, grateful for it, relaxed a bit. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had a normal regular talk with a normal regular person.
Listening to him telling her about how he had learned salsa in his cute Spanish accent was quite pleasant and entertaining -- that is until she noted something unusual.
Max was the back up agent and unlike some people who enjoyed Margaritas a bit too much, she hadn't forgotten about it. While chit chatting with Ruben, her eyes had endlessly traveled through the club, or at least what she could see of it from her seat.
Two guys had entered the club a few minutes ago. Two large gorilla-looking guys both in black suits. Two guys who somehow didn't seem to fit into the rest of the setting.
She had tried keeping an eye on them discreetly enough so that Ruben did not notice she wasn't giving him her full undivided attention. She had lost track of them at some point but they had just popped out again.
And their current attitude was confirming to Max her idea that these guys weren't here for the music or the girls or even the cocktails.
Nope, they were searching for something, and not finding it was etching frowns across their faces. The question was: what were they looking for?
The thing that had just caught her attention was the fact that two other constipated baboon faced guys had just stepped in.
What? Two more?
They weren't on the same team as the previous ones though; that much was clear, as not only did they not acknowledge each other, the new comers were covering the same places the first ones had – a tactical waste of time, had they been on the same side.
Max somehow had the feeling that the fact that neither of these two teams could find what they were looking for was, in fact, a very good thing.
"Something wrong?" Ruben asked her and Max realized that her eyes hadn't darted in his direction in the last minute, which was quite impolite.
"Um… no, I just have to…" she paused searching for words and cursing herself for not thinking before speaking.
"Go to the ladies room?" Ruben suggested with a satisfactory smirk.
He knew she was lying and he had known all along. But Max didn't have time to deal with that at the moment.
"Exactly" Max said uneasily before getting up.
Once she was sure Ruben was out of earshot, she started speaking to Lou.
"I think there might be complications"
"What has Alec done now?" Lou sighed though sounding amused.
"No, I mean that there are two other teams here. I think Mackenzie and Johnson might've sent their respective men to recollect the information Gonzales has on both of them"
"Oh"
There was a pause before Lou spoke again:
"Don't worry; Zane and Alec have already opened the safe. They have what we came for. Noah's keeping an eye on a knocked out Gonzales. She'll be joining you as soon as the boys get out, OK?"
Max nodded but still couldn't get rid of the knot that had formed in her stomach.
She slowly walked back to her seat at the counter, near Ruben.
"Something wrong?" he asked again.
"No, things are just… slightly less smooth than expected" Max said.
Her eyes widened as she realized that she hadn't automatically lied or come up with something else. But Ruben merely shrugged and went on:
"Aren't they always? I thought you'd gotten bored from listening to me blabbing about my life"
Max doubted that Ruben had felt so for a single second but nonetheless, she added:
"I think your life sounds thrilling"
"Really?" Ruben snorted, "I think perhaps yours is much more interesting"
"I haven't said anything" Max frowned alarmed.
"Precisely" Ruben smirked, "It's not those who talk the most that we should listen to. It's a mistake people often make. If you wanna hear something out of the ordinary, you have to learn to listen to those nobody else listens to"
Max smiled back and couldn't help admiring the philosophy. Maybe she should've felt worried, anxious at the idea of being in the presence of someone that seemed to know so much about human nature. But she wasn't.
"Of course, the hardest part is to get these people to talk to you as they're not always willing to"
"You could always force them or trick them into it" Max proposed.
"You could" Rube admitted "but it's not half as rewarding as knowing that you've managed to win their affection and trust"
"I guess not but-"
Max was cut off by something Lou told her.
"Alec and Zane are having problems getting out incognito"
Max's head spun around and she saw two things.
First of all, the guys were, in fact, in trouble. Second of all, Noah was coming out of the VIP lounge and her eyes were not on Max but on Alec, Zane and their charming though surely armed buddies.
Yes, two of the gorillas (whether they were Mackenzie's or Johnson's would forever remain a mystery) had just taken an interest in the employees only door. It had only taken them that long to find it.
Still, by an unfortunate coincidence, they had opened the door at the same time Alec and Zane had been coming out. And while these two might not have been very clever, their IQ level still stretched as far as discerning employees of the club from… non employees of the club.
They knew something fishy was going on and they were right in Alec and Zane's way.
Max got up but before she could even make it to where they were, Zane had elbowed one gorilla out of the way and both he and Alec were blurring across the club.
A gunshot echoed, sounding over all of the glass clinging, the music and the talks. The DJ immediately stopped and reached for something under his turntable.
Max had reached as far as the dance floor when she stopped dead in her tracks, looking for both the shooter and the bullet? She would've expected commotions, screams and yells but no, everyone just remained still, like frozen.
She took a look around; she, Alec, Zane and Noah had ended up in the middle of the dance floor, their backs together; the bouncers and all of Gonzales' cronies encircling them… and that meant nearly one third of the club!
Her first realization was that there were a lot of gun barrels pointed in their direction. And she doubted that all their owners had permits.
Her second realization was that Logan was rubbing off on her.
She didn't push the thought any further though as she decided that the situation at hand required her full attention.
The tensed silence was interrupted by something – or rather someone.
The crowd on her right side parted and a man in his fifties stumbled towards them, his face bruised, his mouth opened as he was continuously yelling insults in Spanish, one hand pulling his pants back up and the other pointed at the four X5s.
She heard Noah utter a hushed "Oops" besides her.
Max took some time to recognize the angry and very much ludicrous looking Gonzales. Under other circumstances, she would've laughed right in his face but at the very moment, she thought it wiser to remain still if she didn't want to end up with a bullet in her head.
Gonzales kept on screaming at his cronies till he realized that there were four armed men that weren't even regulars of his club. Max wondered how come no one had noticed Mackenzie and Johnson's men up until then. After all, they were the ones who had started shooting!
Gonzales paused for breath at some point but the silence didn't last till his next fury wave.
This time, it was the crowd on Max's right that parted.
She heard what she thought was a "Shit!" from Zane before she recognized the two Latinos she had tied up herself.
They were screaming and pointing at Zane and Alec, probably explaining how they had ended up locked up in a storage room for nearly an hour.
Max saw Gonzales' eyes widen and she didn't want to be around for when the other shoe dropped. However, trying an attack at this very moment would be pure suicide. The DJ in his cubicle was placed slightly upwards, an ideal position for a sniper. Plus, all eyes were now on them and those weren't all friendly eyes.
As a matter of fact, now that Mackenzie and Johnson's men had been neutralized (at least they showed signs of survival instincts), the four X5s were the center of all the attention.
Gonzales' cronies kept on stepping closer and closer while Max, Noah, Alec and Zane kept on stepping back till they felt the warmth of their backs pressed together and knew they couldn't go any further.
Finally, Gonzales barked in Spanish and four armed men detached themselves from the crowd and made their way towards the four X5s. They stopped in front of Alec and Zane.
Zane lifted his palms up and pulled his head back haughtily as a gun barrel was pressed firmly on his chin. Alec was forced to do the same as one of the man started searching his pockets. Obviously not finding what he was looking for, the man turned to Zane with a scowl.
Max held her breath; the man's hand extended and reached out for Zane's vest when-
Max thought she had closed her eyes though she couldn't remember doing such a gesture. But her cat's eyes adapted to the dark quite quickly and she soon realized what was going on.
A power break!
She thanked whoever was up there and was giving her this tiny head start; she remembered from her years in Seattle that power outs were quite frequent in big cities and Las Vegas hardly made any exception.
She blurred in the direction in which she remembered was the club's exit, pushing everything that came in her way. From the muffled screams of surprise and the gun shots, Max guessed that the three others were following her.
She reached the heavy metal door first and burst it open. She welcomed the cool and bitter wave of air that took over her as she did so, before stepping aside in order to let all the others pass. When Zane blurred by, she looked at him and he nodded meaning that yes, he still had the information they had come to collect.
Good.
Then, as the others were making for the car, she pushed the door closed again, knowing that it wouldn't take long for the power to come back and then for Gonzales to realize that the four X5s had slipped out in all the commotion.
She spun around and was about to start running as Alec had already started the engine when something caught her arm. Her head perked around and she fell face to face with a pair of black determined and intense looking eyes.
Ruben.
"Don't you know that slipping away without saying good bye is extremely rude?" he said.
Max scanned the lines of his face. In the parking lot's lights, his southern features gave him a scary appearance and even the slight smirk twitching the corners of his full lips gave him a somewhat grim and ghastly side.
Ruben noted her apprehensive stare and snorted:
"Oh, come on Max, if I had been on their side, would I have spent most of the night telling you about my miserable teenage years?"
Max wasn't so easily convinced and her whole body stiffened. She was ready. After all, for all his incredible understanding of human nature, Ruben was still only that, human. And she could send him seeing stars with one flick of an eyelash.
"I also thought I'd give you a chance of thanking me" he added with a hint of pride.
Max's eyes narrowed at this and Ruben's grip on her arm mellowed like backing up his words.
"The power out? It was you?" she said in disbelief.
"Oh, yes Max" he snorted, "Super heroes aren't even that lucky"
"Guess not" Max admitted seriously.
"Even angels need guardian angels" he added smirking.
"And what do guardian angels do when angels leave?" Max asked playing along.
"Well, they do what they do best" Ruben paused for dramatic effect "they go back to dancing salsa" his smile broadened and Max herself couldn't help but grinning at the second most extraordinary ordinary man she'd ever met.
Her head turned around as she heard Noah calling after her. She gave Ruben one last look before giving a peck on the cheek.
He seemed stunned for a second and Max decided that it was an expression that suited him quite well.
"Thank you Ruben"
She spun on her heels and before blurring to the car, her cat's ears picked up:
"You're welcome Dark Angel"
-------------------
"Now can you tell us about part three?" Lou complained to Logan at the dinner table, approximately twenty four hours later.
"Don't worry about that" Logan replied airily, "It's already been taken care of"
Lou's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
She hadn't been asked to play a role in part one; she had been refused the privilege of being a field agent in part two and now, she'd just discovered that part three had taken place without her even knowing about it!
What? Were they trying to keep Posh X5 out of their business? Was this some kind of message they were trying to get through to her?
"It was really all about making sure that no matter what happened to him, Mackenzie would keep his mouth shut about this facility" Logan went on.
As it was, Eyes Only had made extremely good use of the information the four X5s had brought back. Max had said that she might even vote in the coming election!
Mackenzie and Johnson were both out of the sunlight for a while and so was Gonzales for that matter. But Eyes Only had promised that he would protect the facility and Mackenzie, with his knowledge of the transgenic HQ was the biggest threat to their safety.
"And…" Lou drawled expectantly.
"Well, one of you paid Mackenzie a visit he'll never forget"
Lou paused, digesting the information.
"And…" she repeated, waving her arms for Logan to pursue.
Logan was about to open his mouth when a tall someone who had walked up to their table interrupted him.
"Logan" Mole grunted, "Don't forget about my Cuban cigars. I did do you a great favor"
"No worries Mole. Cigars are on their way" Logan smirked satisfactorily.
Logan turned back to his meal as Mole left the cafeteria.
"What was that all about?"
"You know how Mole is" Logan shrugged, "I mean, he was more doing a favor to himself and to you guys than to me but I'm the one who can purchase him a life long supply of smokes"
"Oh my God" Lou said astonished, "Tell me you did not send Mole to convince Mackenzie to shut up"
"That's exactly what you'll have to say if the government asks you the question. But do keep in mind that Mole has excellent negotiating skills"
"Negotiating skills? Is that what you call it? The words 'physical pain' come to mind but hey! It's a miracle Mackenzie even made it out alive!"
"That was part of the deal, otherwise Mole could start sitting in the non-smoking section of restaurants"
A tiny part of Lou was inwardly sniggering at the idea of Mole sitting in a restaurant, bored and sighing in the non smoking section. Then, she caught herself; her lower lip dropped and she seemed really disgusted once more.
Mole had been an essential member of the team when all she had been able to do was make sure Alec got a Margarita spilled on his suit!
Can you spell injustice and favoritism?
-------------------
Escaping the facility had been easier than he had expected it too. The only questions he had had to answer where Logan's and Zack's and neither of them had insisted much. Lydecker had no doubt that his departure would have raised a whole lot more questions if it hadn't been for the Eyes Only mission Logan had planned. But Lydecker wasn't about to complain about it.
It was already hard enough to hide from the Committee that he was leaving the facility with one transhuman to Colorado, without the kids putting their noses into it!
He and Joshua were to remain unnoticed and therefore, the plane hadn't appeared like a very good idea. Traveling by car was safer and, as far as Joshua was concerned, it was best. Lydecker only dreaded the attention they would be drawing upon themselves if Joshua felt sick on the plane… He was already turning a funny color in the car.
Joshua would turn out to be an essential key in his reunion with Sandeman. Obviously, the old genius wouldn't be very pleased to see his old rival, but Joshua's presence would change the balance of the equation, the dog boy would confirm Lydecker's sayings which Sandeman, for now, had no valid reason to believe.
Lydecker remembered only too well their last encounter.
The year was 2003. He had just been placed at the head of project Manticore.
Lydecker had always known how to deal with his enemies. Even once you'd won, you should never turn your back on them because they'd be waiting for the right moment to strike back. He had learned that on field when serving in Kuwait. And so, Lydecker had decided to get rid of his old rival once and for all; he had barged into Sandeman's lab located in what was now called Terminal City, with two of his best men.
Sandeman had had the decency to look surprised but hadn't pretended not knowing what was going on. He hadn't protested vehemently, he hadn't yelled for help.
Nothing.
He had gone peacefully. But, at the time, Lydecker hadn't realized the awkwardness of that surrender.
Sandeman was a Familiar… not truly human -- or if human, much better anyway. One X5 could easily take down three men, armed or not. Lydecker now supposed that Sandeman could've done so as well. Then why? Why hadn't he even fought back?
"Oh" the genius had said, "it's you now. I would've invited you to come in but it seems that nowadays, people don't bother with things like that anymore. They just barge in and make themselves at home"
That was all he had said and he had a wife and two kids. He hadn't even tried to resist for them!
Sandeman had looked resigned to the idea of being imprisoned for the rest of his life. Hadn't he wished to see his sons grow? Even though one had turned out to be a lunatic and the other one a murderer… Hadn't he wished to grow old along with his wife?
Obviously not.
Unless of course, back then, Sandeman himself had realized that this was his best chance at survival. From what Deck knew Sandeman wasn't much appreciated among the members of his little cult. What if they had discovered the truth about Manticore and were prepared to come after him?
The life imprisonment Lydecker was offering him was probably much better than anything the Familiars had in reserve for him. No wonder; in their eyes, he was a traitor, a flaw in their wonderful plan.
It also gave an explanation as to why Sandeman had never attempted to escape from Powell Institute. Lydecker would immediately have been warned if that had been the case. Now that he looked at it, Lydecker also realized how easy it would've been for Sandeman to get out and go back to a normal life. But that only would've added Lydecker's men to the list of his chasers.
However, according to the 09ers, a tracked life was better than a trapped life… so what had ever gone through Sandeman's head? Were the Familiars really that powerful and omnipresent that you could never hide from them?
Lydecker was jolted out of his thoughts and memories by the second passenger of this car who was moaning alarmingly.
"Ok Joshua?" he asked casually though a little worried.
"Joshua don't like cars" the dog man replied.
"Like I explained we didn't have much of a choice. But the trip is worth it, you do want to see your father, right?"
Lydecker took his eyes off the road long enough to see Joshua nod.
"Good. Now all you gotta do is keep your mind on that, keep your mind on your father and you'll see you'll forget about being sick"
Joshua nodded with an evident lack of conviction.
"Tell me Joshua, what do you remember about Sandeman?"
"Father was nice, very nice. He liked reading, painting. That's why Joshua likes painting" replied Joshua.
"Yes, I've seen your paintings. They're good. Did he teach you?"
"No, Joshua learned alone" the dog boy said with an obvious hint of pride.
"Let's hope Sandeman'll be able to teach us plenty of things about the Familiars and Max… and Lou" Lydecker whispered more to himself.
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End of Chapter
Notes: So there is this deleted scene that I took out because the chapter was already long enough and that I didn't like enough to keep and didn't hate enough to completely wipe out… it takes place right before the mission starts while Logan and the X5s are still in Logan's room discussing the plan. So I post it on my Live Journal and no, s isn't shameless self promotion of my life... I am not doing this to get more comments on my LJ… well maybe just a little lol!
(edited to add: it seems that fanfiction won't let me post a link so I'll just post the link and on my bio page… how does that sound… so if you wanna read the deleted scene, go to my bio page and click :D thanks)
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