Part V

Max woke up feeling absolutely refreshed. She was momentarily confused at the feel of warm arms around her and she looked up at Rain who was awake and staring off at the sky.

She sat up and stretched out while Rain laughed, "About time you woke your lazy ass up."

Max grinned slightly and got off the truck and ran inside.

"Hey!" Rain grabbed the blanket and pillows before walking after her, "You on crack or something?"

"Or something!" By the time Rain reached the 'sleeping area', Max was already fully dressed and brushing out her hair.

"Shit you're fast," Rain tossed the blanket to the side and the pillows on to one of the beds.

"Not in every case," Max smirked slightly and finished with her hair. Before Rain could respond, Alice walked in to the room with them.

"I just wanted to thank you, for coming to rescue me," Alice smiled and hugged Rain tightly.

"Think we were just gonna leave you there?" Alice shrugged slightly.

"I didn't even know where I was until a few minutes before I walked out, then there you guys were. Ready and waiting, I would say like knights in shining armor except for the whole, wearing Umbrella uniforms and what not. Speaking of which, how the hell did you even know where I was?"

"Thank Max and Angela for that," Alice turned to face Max in confusion.

"More like thank Angela, she sensed you. And I just sort of illegally hacked into Umbrella's network."

Angela walked in; she ran over and grabbed Alice's hand, "I want to show you something."

Alice looked up at them in surprise and smiled, "Guess I'm going to go see something."

Rain and Max laughed slightly as they watched Angela drag Alice away. They sat in silence for a moment before Max looked up at her.

"Is there something different about her?" Rain looked over at Max and shrugged.

"Hmm," Max mumbled out and got up at the sounds of someone yelling for them. They both trudged out of the room and toward Jill's yelling voice.

"What the fuck are you yellin' about Valentine?" Max plopped on a pad on the floor that they used as a chair.

"Shut up Rodriguez and listen," she tapped a button on one of Kaplan's many mini computers and they listened in.

"...reports of cannibalistic attacks on the citizens of Michigan. We're going live to an exclusive interview with a man who wishes to remain anonymous."

"I was in Raccoon City. I saw those things, those, those monsters eat people! And then I saw what was left of those people get back up and start eating other people! I watched...," there was the sound of a deep sigh and a soft sniff, "I watched my best...my best friend, the woman...I so desperately loved, get eaten by those monsters. Umbrella is at fault here, they caused this. They brought these monsters down on us."

"And now we go to Reverend Jeremy Meyers, Reverend? What have you got to say about the current events?"

"Thank you Mr. Roberts. And yes, I do have a few things to say. This is God's way of punishing us! We, the United States have sinned! Adulterers! Homosexuals!" At the sound of the last word Jill cut it off.

"Shit. I didn't know I caused the zombie apocalypse," Max threw up her hands and laughed.

"Shit loca, why you always gotta start shit?" Rain laughed too and pulled her in for a kiss.

"Oh damn, why didn't ya'll warn me? I gotta get the camera," they turned and looked at LJ who scrambled for an actual video camera.

"Really LJ?"

"What?" He looked around at everybody and shrugged.

"So Alice," LJ turned to look at Alice, who slowly looked up at him, "You ever hit that?" He made a few vulgar thrusts toward Max. Max's eyes widened slightly and everyone fell silent, Rain looked at both of them.

"No, we never have," Max laughed slightly and Alice grinned. Rain relaxed a little before sitting back. Max's eyes didn't leave Alice though, something about the way she was acting was off. Her face was red where as Alice was as normal faced as can be.

She couldn't put her finger on it.

-Week Later-

Max had suspected something about Alice all week. She was now pacing past the truck that Rain was working on with LJ. They were talking gun talk while fixing the transmission. Max tried to tune them out and pay attention to the things going on in her head. She had yet to tell anyone that she suspected Alice of anything, for fear of being judged and ignored.

As if on cue and reading her mind, Alice walked out with Angela at her side.

Rain and LJ were in a heated discussion about the cons and pros of a Desert Eagle and a 9mm Beretta.

"Yeah, well the Deagle is gonna fuck you up, even those bastards go down hard when ya shoot them," LJ held up his gold-plated gun to emphasize a point.

"But a 9mm is so much more practical; and it's easier to use," Rain held up her own standard 9mm.

"Where you two going?" Max asked Alice and Angela looked up at her. There was something strange about their eyes. Angie looked at her, begging with her eyes, and Alice, well, they just didn't seem right.

"We're going to get ice cream!" The fake smile plastered on her face set Max on edge.

"Mind if I go with you?" Alice frowned before shrugging slightly.

"Sure, the more the merrier," Alice, Angela, and Max walked toward the car they'd recently procured and got in. They drove to the ice cream place and when they parked, Alice's eyes looked around the streets and she nodded. Max acted as though she didn't see anything and carefully fingered the pistol in her pocket.

They entered the ice cream shop with the jingle of the bell on the door; Alice led Angela toward the counter and Max noted the rough grip she had on her arm. Max stood behind Angela and she looked up at her and mouthed the word, 'Help.'

Max nodded slowly at her and as she went to pull the weapon from her pocket, Alice swung around and cracked her in the jaw, it popped from the force and she hit the ground. The door burst open and two men with guns ran in; one hit Angela in the head and knocked her out. Max yelped and swung a leg out, Alice jumped over it but the other man didn't. He fell back and she jumped up.

Alice swung again, this time Max was ready, she blocked with her forearm and winced at the pain. Alice was clearly stronger than she was. She blocked a few more swings and tried to hit her a few times but Alice blocked each time, getting a few hits in before Max could react fast enough to block more. She heard Angela yell for her and she turned her head in time to see Angie get stuffed into a vehicle. She felt the fist hit her in the back of the head and all she knew was black.

_

When she came to, there were people around her, trying to help her up and wake her up. With a groan and someone's offered hand, she got up.

"Where'd they go?" The man in front of her looked confused.

"The kid and the woman? Which way they go?"

A look of realization came over him, "They took off in a van. Lady you gonna be okay?" She waved him off and staggered out. To her dismay she found that their car was gone. Her feet couldn't stay in a straight line but she ran as fast as she could toward the warehouse. Surprisingly, she got there pretty quick. She pushed open the door and found the place completely deserted. Her heart sank and she felt nothing but confusion.

She wandered in to the bedroom area and found her stuff still laying there; she grabbed her vest and put it on. They had only left a handgun and a clip behind, the rest of her things gone. Her hand felt for the other weapon in her pocket and she sighed in relief as it was still there.

"Come on Max, think, where did they go?" She racked her brain for answers before thinking about Alice. She tensed and instantly started for the door. Her goal was the Umbrella Detroit Facility. Her feet carried her to the street; a lone car drove toward her and she whipped out her gun; she aimed it at the driver.

"Get the fuck out now!" The driver did as he was told and she jumped in. Her foot stomped on the gas pedal; it sent her forward with a jerk and she sped at speeds that were beyond illegal. What should have been a twenty-minute drive turned into five and she drove through the security gate. No one was manning it and that left a bad taste in her mouth. The windshield cracked when the wood of the gate shattered against it.

Max slammed on the brakes and jumped out. She could hear a few faint pops of gunfire and she got out; her feet carried her in to the building. There were a few bodies of security guards here and there. She ran past them and into a room where she saw Kaplan. He aimed the gun at her as she entered the room, he fired three shots that narrowly missed her head. She ducked down behind a desk. He shot a couple of times and they sent bits of the wood near her head.

"Kaplan! Chad, it's me! Max!"

"I know who you are! Where is she Max?" She could hear him reloading quickly.

"What do you mean? Why the hell are you shooting at me?"

"Alice told us what you did! Fucking traitor," she could hear him walking closer to her.

"I don't know what she said to you, but she lied! I was trying to get Angela from her when she attacked me. Two Umbrella fucks took Angela and threw her into a van; Alice knocked me out! You gotta believe me Kaplan!"

"Why should I believe you? Alice told us you set them up and sent them after us. They took Angela to experiment on her, you set that up," Kaplan's voice was wavering.

Max slowly tossed her unhidden weapon toward where his voice was coming from, "I'm unarmed Kap. Just hear me out please?"

There was silence and then she heard him bend down to pick up her thrown weapon, "No sudden movements. Nice and easy, stand up." Slowly she stood, her arms up in the air and he had his gun trained on her.

"I don't know what they did to her Kap, but she isn't the same Alice. Not anymore," he shook his head and groaned.

"Do you have proof?"

"No, I don't. But maybe," Max nodded over at the computer and he motioned for her to go to it with a jerk of his gun. She slowly walked over and sat in the swivel chair and began to type things. A few images popped up, one looked like it was coming from the eyes of someone, and she brought up more files. They all regarded commands given to Alice and the miniscule cameras placed in her eyes.

The images showed Angela in front of Dr. Isaccs, he was talking to her. Angela was shaking her head, trying to fight whatever it was that he wanted from her.

"What the fuck is going on?" Kaplan holstered his gun and leaned in behind Max to watch the scream. Max tapped at something and sound came on and filled the room.

"...that's a shame. You might have made a useful experimental subject. Kill her." Their eyes widened as Alice raised her arm, but she could see from the blinking lights that Alice was fighting his command.

"I said kill her, now." The gun in her hand went off, it sent brain matter and blood on to the floor. And Angela fell in a bloody heap.