Chapter 7

The game was going along just as planned. Max couldn't have been happier. She had to admit, she and Alec were a great team. They were winning with ease. It definitely helped that both could read people very well and tell when they were bluffing, and of course, being able calculate the chances of a certain card coming up was a plus.

After their last hand, Max smiled, gathering her winnings. "Well, gentlemen, it has been a pleasure!"

Alec nodded, "We really ought to do this again sometime!"

As soon as they stood up to leave, they found that there were 6 men pointing guns at them, ready to fire. "Not so fast," Amelio said calmly. "I have a new deal. You 2 hand over that money, and you walk out alive. What do you think of that?"

Max stared at Alec, not really sure what to do.

"Those pills were easily worth double this money here," Alec insisted. "How about this deal, you let us walk out with the money, or we walk out with the money and leave you all laying here with broken bones. What do you think of that?"

One man fired his gun. Both Max and Alec saw it coming. They moved just as the trigger was pulled, both narrowly missing it, and went into action immediately. If someone watching would have blinked, they would have missed Alec and Max knocking out all 6 men, grabbing the money, and escaping through a window. Two transgenics versus 6 men really wasn't a fair fight.

They raced for Max's ninja, and jumped on, Alec holding the winnings as well as Max's waist.

"Why didn't you grab those pills on the way out?" Max asked Alec. She was hoping he'd tell her what he was doing with them.

"If I didn't let them have those, they would have come looking for us. This way, I think they'll be satisfied enough to leave us alone."

Max couldn't disagree, he was probably right. He hadn't told her what she really wanted to hear, though. "What exactly were you doing with those pills? Is that why you were at that club tonight? Pulling some kind of scam?"

"Yea," Alec lied, "Thanks for ruining what could have been a bigger take. The 30 here will maybe cover the fee for how much work it took getting those."

Max wanted to slap him, but her hands were busy steering her ninja. "I need this money for a good cause, something better thanyour personal spending!"

Alec didn't feel like fighting with Max then. He didn't want to admit to her that he had gone out of his way for her. He also couldn't help being miffed that she was so worked up over helping Logan. "What is your good cause again? Fixing your relationship with Logan?" he couldn't help himself from asking.

Max gripped the handles tighter. He was really pushing his luck. She had half a mind to throw him off her bike. But then again, he was holding the money. "This is not about fixing my relationship. It doesn't need fixing! Logan and I are really good right now. At least we were, until you infected me with that damn virus! And anyway, this money is not just for that. I need to find Zack and the others."

"And you know," Max added, "I really don't need to explain myself to you. Look at yourself, pulling drugs for what, stripper money?"

Alec was surprised at Max's inability to connect the dots. Her frustration that it was Alec was probably getting in the way. Of course she felt Alec doing anything right was impossible. She would never see without him straight up telling her. He didn't feel like it, though. It wasn't like it would change her attitude toward him.

They didn't speak the rest of the way to Joshua's, something that made Max uncomfortable. Normally Alec couldn't stop making wise comments. She remembered how he'd been at the club earlier, deep in thought. Maybe he was caught in some kind of trouble, got involved with the wrong people. Max rolled her eyes at the thought. If that was the situation, Alec had only himself to blame. She'd let him deal with it on his own.

Alec stepped off the bike, grabbing a wad of cash from the bag before tossing it toward Max. He headed toward the door.

"So, are you gonna watch Joshua tomorrow night? Or go out to another strip club?" Max asked.

Alec didn't turn around to answer, "I'll be here the next time you need an errand boy."

Max frowned at the comment. She didn't appreciate him referring to her as some sort of demanding boss. She felt like maybe she should apologize. She couldn't get the image of him at the bar out of her head. Maybe he really was stuck in a big mess.

Max couldn't bring herself to apologize, however. This was Alec, after all. Since when did she start to care whether he was in trouble or not? Instead of saying she was sorry, she turned and tossed the bag over her shoulder.

The next stop should have been Logan's, but Max found herself tired. She could drop off the money tomorrow. Besides, Logan would be asleep right now anyway, at least that is what Max told herself. Really, she couldn't place why, but she just didn't want to see Logan right then. As they found they couldn't touch at all, which meant they couldn't kiss or embrace or show any kind of affection, they had found it was easier to just not even bring up their relationship. Seeing Logan and not showing or feeling anything toward him other than as a friend was becoming more and more comfortable for Max, and she didn't want to admit it. The truth was, if she didn't find a cure soon, she was worried that whatever she had with Logan would completely slip away.

Thanks to everyone who has given this story a chance. I am stopping here as it seems no one is reading this, and besides I don't have much time to write right now. I will always have a soft spot for Zack and his mysterious ways, but I realize that not everyone shares that opinion! Sorry to cut it off just when it was getting into it to those who actually were enjoying this. Any Zack fan, please write a fic! there aren't enough!