To you I will always return Chapter 4, a tribe fanfic

CHAPTER FOUR

"Ahhh, back so soon." Ebony frowned. "Did ya miss me or something?"

"This isn't a social visit Eb," Lex leaned in her office doorway the following day. "I got some questions about May."

Ebony rolled her eyes." What about her?"

Lex shrugged as he came into the room and fell into a chair. "Anything you can tell me."

"You're not playing detective over a dead beat drug addict like May are you? Please don't waste my time."

"What can you tell me about her before she skipped town? Who was she spending time with? Did she mention anything about leaving the city?"

Ebony absently flipped through some papers on her desk. "I know this isn't Mega's doing because he couldn't give two shits about someone like May biting it on the dark side. You're doing this on your own for some psychotic reason. Seriously Lex I think you're losing it in your old age..."

"Christ!" Lex groaned. "Just tell me what you know you fuckin' midget of evil!"

An amused smirk played on Ebony's lips at the small glimpse of the old Lex she once loved to hate.

"Look, if you're looking for her killer you're asking the wrong bitch. May was so far gone by that time no one knew what she was thinking. Her habit was too big to be handled by dealers in the city so she went to the source. I'm guessing one of your border guards let her through without scanning her. She prob'ly did him a 'southern favor'." She purred teasingly. "Anyway, her dealer prob'ly took her out to set an example for the other junkies out there with bad debts. It's not worth giving yourself a headache."

Lex stared at her, his brow furrowed.

"What?" Ebony narrowed her eyes back at him. "That's all I know. I can't tell you anymore."

"Can't or wont?"

"Jesus Lex, drop the Sherlocke Holmes bit. It was only May."

Lex stood abruptly and swung the door open. "Thanks a lot." He snapped and slammed the door behind him.

"What the hell is wrong with him?"

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Lex stared out into the night, the smoke from his joint curling around him like a snake. Another shitty day. Another sleepless night. He wasn't sure why he was letting May's death affect him like this. There had been a time when he would have gladly killed her himself. It wasn't as if she'd been an innocent victim. May was a creature of opportunity who often turned on those closest to her. Her bad energy finally caught up to her.

"Bad energy," He said out loud. "Damn you Taisan. Get out of my head."

To add to the aggravation, Gel's husband descended upon the office in a hailstorm of hysterics filling out a harassment complaint. Someone had threatened Gel's life though she wouldn't say who or what they wanted from her. That left the Techno officers with little to do about it. Though it was obvious she was scared out of her mind, she wouldn't open her mouth and help herself. Lex had grown so frustrated with her he wanted to throw her through a damn window.

Gel was lucky she still had her looks because there wasn't a brain in that girl's head. Her face was her only fortune in life. That lovely puss was what convinced her most loyal client at the club to marry her and whisk her away to a better life. Every stripper's dream was Gel's reality. Only stupid people got that lucky. Though Gel remained silent over the identities of those who had threatened her, her husband was sure it was an old contact from the club trying to scare her for money. He wanted added security in their building and a Techno escort for Gel whenever she left the house. It was a nightmare.

Lex looked over at the clock. Three-fifteen am. Looked like he was pulling another all niter. The smallest of smiles played on his lips as he thought back to guard duty in the mall. He and Ryan pulling shifts to keep their band of misfits safe. Something was always happening to keep them on their toes. If it hadn't been so frightening at the time it would have been exhilarating. It meant something to stay awake for all hours back then. It was important to protect the tribe. Now it was stupid and pointless. There was nothing to watch out for. He glanced at his empty unmade bed. No one to protect. Salene was right. He needed a woman or at least some female company. Someone to keep his mind off the Mallrats. Something to keep him from going nuts.

A week later Lex found himself with Salene and Jeremiah at the park down the street from her flat. She'd surprised him with a lunch invite instead of dinner.

"I thought you needed a little fun in the sun." She told him. "Winter will be here soon."

They chased Miah, blew bubbles, pushed swings, climbed trees and spun the merry go round more times than Lex wanted to remember. Less than two hours later Salene and Lex strolled the sidewalk while Miah napped in his pram. It felt good to be out in the crisp November air. The sector three neighborhood was peaceful yet alive with the families that lived there. Familiar scents of the season, pumpkin pie and apples, gave a feeling of home and safety. They could see and hear the waves crashing into the beach. Some die hards were out there in wet suits trying to catch a perfect wave.

"Just looking at them makes me cold." Salene shivered.

"That's because it is cold." Lex muttered as he lifted Jeremiah's pram into the diner doorway. He was careful not to wake the toddler and gently rolled him to a booth that overlooked the street. He helped Salene with her coat before sliding into his seat. After they'd ordered and were served their food, they ate silently staring out at the world.

Lex had always liked sector three though it was slightly too domestic for his taste. It was very family oriented with most everyone coupled and having children. And unlike sector one, it wasn't about the money. Being located near the front gates, many self made people grew their own food and traded with the farms outside the city. Compared to other sectors it was humble with few businesses. It was mostly residential and had a great sense of community.

"You know what I miss?" Salene broke the silence as she nibbled at her apple cake.

"What?" Lex didn't look away from the window.

"Yeast."

Their eyes met as he tried to measure whether or not she was joking.

"Yeast?"

"Yes. Cake is meant to rise." Salene said sincerely before breaking into a laugh.

Lex laughed with her. "I hear ya. What I wouldn't give for a risen crust pizza."

"We've come so far and yet have so much more to learn." Salene tucked some auburn hair behind her ear. "Speaking of breakthrough science, are you going to Jack's wedding this weekend?"

Staring down at his plate Lex shook his head.

"Why not? He'll want to see you. It's been what, two years since you've seen each other socially?"

"Two and a half." He corrected still not looking up. "Since Ellie lost the baby. He wont miss me."

"Yes he will." Salene insisted. "It's been forever since he's seen any of us. He'll expect his friends to be there. I hear his fiance is real nice."

"I'm surprised he found time to meet anyone at all. He became so obsessed with his work after the divorce. A complete recluse."

Sal nodded. "True he did drift away from the land of the living. Losing your wife and kid can do that to a man." Their eyes met. "You of all people should understand that."

"I know,"

"Ellie getting remarried so quickly didn't make things easier. I'm surprised he didn't go crazy."

Lex thought back to the tragedy that ripped Jack and Ellie apart for good. Their two year marriage had been marred with disaster, the couple constantly threatening to call it quits. Though they'd briefly reconciled during the pregnancy, they still fought over Jack's long hours at the science department. Ellie came to hate his quest to make a better world and berated him over it continuously. In her seventh month the pair had a terrible row that resulted in Ellie's premature labor and the delivery of a dead baby. After that it seemed there was no going back though Jack tried. Despite their differences he really loved her and wanted her back. Ellie on the other hand couldn't face him, partly blaming him for the loss of her child. She moved out and a month later stunned all by announcing her engagement to some man they'd never heard of. He turned out to be one of the city kids taken and put through the Techno rehab. Their marriage two weeks later drove Jack inward and he shut himself up with his work for months. Almost completely cutting ties with the other Mallrats.

"We should all be there to support him." Salene continued about the wedding.

"I know." Lex nodded. "I'll prob'ly have to work though. A wedding requires extra security."

"Well maybe you'll be able to stop by the reception. It's supposed to be a big gala. Amber says they've reserved the entertainment hall in the Shorefront."

"If I don't make it I'll be sure to message him a congratulations." Lex sipped his Tocum hoping that last statement would end the conversation.

Salene was about to say more but was interrupted by a small hand tugging her arm. She looked down into her son's smiling face, sleep lines etched in his chubby cheeks.

"Cake!" Jeremiah pointed happily causing Lex and Salene to laugh.

He never made it to the wedding having to spend most of the day rearranging security around the city. Because he and Chiava were attending the nuptials, Mega wanted airtight security at the wedding. Lex stayed on the move making sure the Techno guard didn't wear too thin in trouble areas such as sector seven and the city gate. By the time he trudged into his flat, he didn't have the energy to make dinner. Determined to get some actual sleep, he took a pain killer while gulping what was known as 'sleepy time tea'. Within twenty minutes he felt it's effects and passed out on his bed.

The knocking was consistent and loud. Lex's eyes slowly opened as he realized someone was pounding on his door.

"Lieutenant Lex! Sir?"

He rolled over and looked at his clock. One am.

"Damn!" Was he doomed never to sleep through a night again?

He stumbled out of bed barking at the knocker before finally opening the door. It was a young messenger boy no older than twelve. He looked terrified as Lex growled at him.

"What!"

The boy's hand trembled as he held out the folded message.

"I... I... uh... Governor Mega s...s...sends for you... it's... important." He stuttered.

Snatching it Lex's aggravation quickly turned to apprehension as he read the scribbled writing.

"Go downstairs and hail me a buggy." He commanded the boy. "I'll be right down."

He arrived at the flat just in time to see Amber being wheeled out on a stretcher. Her unconscious pregnant form was covered in defensive wounds with a large nasty gash to her forehead. The flat she and Jay shared was completely trashed, evidence of the struggle that went on. Jay's lifeless body lay face down in a large pool of blood next to what used to be a white sofa. Now it was splattered with crimson as was everything else. It was enough to make his stomach turn.

Lex couldn't imagine for a moment that the couple could do this to each other yet he didn't understand why someone else would do it to them either. Security had been called when a neighbor complained about loud shouting and glass breaking. But when they knocked on the door of the flat it was silent. One concerned guard who knew the family well thought it best to open the door and found the horrible scene. No one believed for a second it was domestic. The theory was that someone broke in and attacked Jay who had retired early that evening. Amber must have walked into it when returning late from the wedding reception which had lasted well into the night. No one was positive but it looked as though Jay was the target and Amber more of an innocent bystander who put up the fight of her life. Lex was welcomed by a fellow detective. Lieutenant Ari worked the night shift and usually got stuck with the strangest cases.

"Sorry to call you out of bed but as you can see..." Ari shook her head.

"Yeah," Lex nodded and avoided looking at Jay. "Who the hell would do this?"

"I dunno man." Ari sighed. "We've got the Techno guard on high alert all over the city. I mean, Jay was a judge and there are some assholes out there who'd wanna get back at him."

"But who in their right mind would dare break into the Shorefront?"

"Someone willing to take a gamble... and won." Ari grimaced.

Lex shook his head. "What about surveillance?"

"Okay this is where it gets weird," Ari lowered her voice as she leaned into Lex's ear. "There's absolutely no footage of anyone but Jay and security coming to this flat."

"What!" Lex narrowed his eyes.

Ari nodded. "Not even Amber. The tapes were looped so whoever did this wouldn't be caught."

"But that would mean..."

"That someone had access to the security office. Scary, I know." Ari finished for him. "We're checking the rest of the tapes for anyone who shouldn't be in the building."

"That wont help." Lex sighed. "With the wedding and reception this building was full of people who shouldn't be here. Anyone could have come and blended in perfectly."

"Yeah but not all of them left with a six year old boy."

"What?"

Ari cocked her head. "Security only found one kid. The three year old hiding under her bed. The oldest is still missing."

"Someone took Bray?"

"Looks like it."

"You're not suggesting kidnapping was the motive?" Lex frowned. "If someone wanted Bray they could have done it at his school, or the park or someplace public."

"No, you're right. Jay was definitely the target here. But Bray is one of our strongest leads right now."

"Though I don't know what murderer wants a kid as a bonus." Lex shook his head.

"An ex girlfriend maybe." Ari shrugged. "Scorned lover wanting to hurt them both."

Lex looked around at the shattered apartment. "Would take more than one ex girlfriend to make this mess."

Ari nodded in agreement. "We're definitely looking for at least three people. One for the security office, two for in here. Maybe four."

Lex felt the bile raise in his throat as Jay's limp body was placed into a body bag. Another person from his past was dead. His young life snuffed out before it's time. Would anyone from his generation live to be old? Perhaps they were cursed because they outlived the virus. Maybe death had a vengeance and it would hunt them all down one by one. He shook the dark thought out of his head.

"I still can't believe it happened here." Ari whispered. "Especially today with so much security."

Lex was disheartened as he watched the bag carried from the flat. "Not enough apparently."

As he made his way up to Mega's flat, Lex chastised himself for not concentrating more of the Techno guard at the Shorefront. Instead of trying to spread it evenly throughout the city. This wasn't the first time he'd made a bad call. Though he knew it wasn't necessarily his fault, he couldn't help but feel partly to blame. If someone had to be at fault it might as well be him. He was surprised to find Chiava in the living room crying on the couch. Mega's angry shouts could be heard from his office.

"Chiava?"

She looked up at him with red swollen eyes and hugged herself. Lex instinctively sat down next to her and placed a gentle hand on hers.

"What happened? Are you and..." He gestured subtly to Mega's office door. "...Okay?"

Her hazel eyes looked confused for a moment before she caught what he meant. She quickly nodded her head, the dark waves of hair spilling over her shoulders. "We're fine. I...I heard about Jay and Amber." The tears spilled down her cheeks.

Lex sighed and put a protective arm around her as she sobbed into his shoulder. Though they were close, his body remained stiff and unyielding as though he were subconsciously fighting the intimate moment. This was Mega's wife after all and he didn't want anyone to see them and get the wrong idea. But it also had to do with the fact that Lex avoided most forms of intimacy with anyone. What was the point when everyone he loved was taken from him eventually?

"How could anyone do that?" She soaked his pullover. "I don't understand. They didn't deserve that."

"No, they didn't." Lex agreed quietly.

"Poor Amber. What if she doesn't wake up? What if she does wake up and she loses the baby? And the kids... little Soleil and Bray. My God Bray! What if they don't find him? He's just a little boy. What if Amber wakes up and he's still gone!"

"Don't think about it." Lex comforted. "We'll find him."

"Just when you think you've seen the worst that humanity has to offer." She sat up and wiped her face. "You wouldn't think that anything could surprise us after what we've seen. The forgotten generation."

Those words made him sigh. How true they were.

The office door slammed open causing the apartment to tremble slightly. A Techno guard nearly ran to the front door as Mega appeared in the doorway. Lex had never seen him like this. He was so angry he practical shook with rage. His hands balled into fists so tight his knuckles were pure white. The muscles of his jaw were rigidly clenched and Lex wouldn't have been surprised if he could have heard the man's teeth grinding together. Nothing upset Mega more than incompetence and lack of control. He was pissed. But the anger in his dark eyes melted almost immediately when he focused on his wife. The look of hate on his face dissolving into concern as he struggled to find his calmer voice.

"Chi," He said almost hoarse from yelling and rushed to the couch. "What are you doing up?"

"I'm sorry," She sniffed as she stood up to greet him. "I over heard..." She didn't finish as she broke down.

"It's alright," Mega took her in his arms and tried to comfort his sobbing wife. There was a new look in his eyes. One of fear and love.

Lex looked away feeling as though he'd experienced far too many emotions for one night.

"You shouldn't be upsetting yourself like this. It's not good for you. For either of you." He gently touched her enlarged abdomen.

Chiava nodded. "I know."

"Connie!" Mega called loudly for the servant, annoyance in his tone.

Connie, who seemed to have been waiting just outside the room appeared still dressed in her day clothes.

"Give her a tranquilizer and make her some tea." He ordered without taking his eyes off Chiava. "I want her resting."

He kissed her forehead softly before Connie gently led her from the room. His eyes remained on the closed bedroom door as his mind raced. Lex shifted in the uncomfortable silence pondering what sort of trouble he was in. He watched as Mega's body slowly regained it's rigid stance.

"Lex," Mega finally spoke, his voice uneven. "I want answers. Go."

Relieved to be released Lex sprang from the couch and nodded to his boss before letting himself out. Even as he was leaving he could see Mega's eyes stayed glued on the bedroom door.