Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners (Dark Angel, Fox, etc.) The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No copyright infringement is intended.
Author's Note: In case you're wondering if this is just a fidget of your imagination…well rest assure, it's not because I had finally updated the story. I sincerely apologize for the prolonged absence; a lot of things happened in all this time – moving, car accident and flu episode (not exactly in that order) – and I found myself unable to sit down and took some time to complete this chapter.
Thanks to Jenna for her work as beta for this chapter, she's always fighting bravely against my verbs tense crimes.LOL. Thanks to all of you who reviewed last chapter and to the ones who took some time to ask and request an update ;)
I promise that next update wouldn't take this long, now let's get on the story…
Chapter 12
Fragments Of A Memory
His eyes are fixed on a screen displaying the layout of a building illuminated by small blinking dots. Static from the comm unit still attached to his ear is the only background sound. His face doesn't reflect anything but boredom as he drums his fingers rhythmically against the flat surface of the keyboard; years of practice masking your emotions were quite useful sometimes.
Two weeks of research, profiling and planning had practically gone down the drain; if it had been his time he'd be really pissed by now, but that wasn't the case. Instead, he was frustrated by the prolonged waiting, the failure of the communication which had left him in the dark about the status of Alpha-Team for the last twenty minutes, and the obvious gaps between reality and the so-called 'intelligence' they had been briefed with.
If his team couldn't extract the mark from hostile territory, the whole mission would be nothing more than a waste of lives, time and resources. Alec massaged the bridge of his nose, he had to admit that it might have been too bold a plan on his part, but at the time the potential benefits had seemed to outweigh the risks; back when he had been missing vital information about their enemies.
Looking at the blinking screen he suppressed the urge to burn something if only to release some of the stress he was feeling. Besides providing the right location, their intel had proven useless – nothing had been as it was supposed to be. There was always a downside of joining up on a mission that was already in motion; this time he had missed the planning, the gathering of vital information. The beginning of a killer headache reminded him why he avoided these sorts of situations.
It would have been less chaotic if they had been called from the very beginning. Sometimes the Committee's actions defied all logic. While he understood their need to maintain control over some aspects inside Prometheus, he firmly believed that missions of this type should always be supervised by an Elite.
Their target, Raphael Bocci, was a dangerous combination of a cold blooded killer and sophisticated business man. His less scrupulous business dealings had recently caught Prometheus' attention and the Committee had sent a Shadow team to take care of the situation. However, the SO team found more than they expected, after the first recon trip they found Dr. Kristopher Jurgen, a renowned physicist kidnapped a month ago. The Committee eventually ended up requesting the Elite's support for coordinating the clean extraction of the hostage.
Unfortunately Bocci's main objective hadn't been chemical weapons as the Committee had been led to believe, the man's ultimate goal was far simpler and at the same time more complex. He had been financing the development of a nanochip that worked as a nerve-block; once it was implanted into the brain of a subject the device warmed up the nerves to a higher temperature than a regular PRF technique; it effectively produced a temporal interruption of pain recognition.
The new technology allowed Bocci to achieve better control of the neuromodulation of pain, allowed him to turn his usual thugs into fighting machines unhindered by physical pain. The new chips enabled him to create small armies of super soldiers capable of fighting through nearly any injury – the perfect soldiers for militant groups like RAV-4, one of the most aggressive in the world.
Science was always pushing limits and tearing down old paradigms, it could be used to save lives or end them in a matter of seconds. He was the result of scientific advances in genetics, just like the men who were slaughtering the SO Team he had sent to retrieve the hostage; the irony of the situation wasn't lost to Alec.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
'Don't stare at him; whatever you do don't stare at him.' That had been the advice from Marty, and James had been trying to follow it for the last half hour; inevitably, he did look and couldn't help but stare at the young man sitting in front of him. Under normal circumstances he might never have seen an Elite – he certainly wouldn't have ended up working as their Data Analyst. He, like most of the people at Prometheus, had heard about more than seen the legendary group.
Prometheus had complex structures and hierarchy levels for almost everything, the analysis of data was no exception. He was a Class 3 Analyst and worked almost exclusively with SO teams. Each Elite member had C5 analysts assigned from the Crystal Tower, so he had always believed that his chances of meeting face to face with the Elite's CO had been practically non existent.
This was supposed to be an average mission, and it had been until 16 hours ago. It all started when one of their operatives had been killed during a surveillance incursion; when the carefully designed plan began to crumble.
Eight hours ago, two new members had joined the mission. The newcomers' late addition wouldn't have been out of the ordinary if the pair had also been part of a SO unit; that had not been the case, they were Elite members; Elite memebers who also happened to be the CO and his SIC.
The kid sitting in front of him was barely a man, probably around twenty, though despite his young age there was already a dangerous aura surrounding him. The black attire made him look even more intimidating as his hazel eyes remained locked on the laptop in front of him; impassively scrutinizing the increasing number of bright dots swarming across the screen. The drumming becomes more intense and James wonders once again how he ended up as the data analyst to the Commanding Officer of the Elite.
The analyst finds the kid's expression wholly unreadable; he doesn't look particularly worried or angry at the events that had completely changed the original parameters of the mission.
As his laptop emits a shrill beep he glances down only to see the number of bright dots identifying the hostiles finally decreasing number.
"Don't." The hoarse command causes the analyst to look up just in time to see the CO of the Elite muttering a creative string of curses as he glares at the quickly disappearing dots on the screen. The drumming stops abruptly and for that brief second he would swear that Alec's hazel eyes have golden flecks in them.
Ten minutes and twenty three seconds later two bloody and battered SO operatives enter the van carrying a third shocked but apparently unharmed civilian in his late forties.
Alec stands up and focuses his attention on the blond operative who seems to be in better condition than his partner. "Are you able to report?" The man nods as they walk into the room.
The SO member takes a deep breath, knowing that what he has to say is not what his CO wants to hear. Alec had assigned them a duty and they had failed utterly, not only had he lost most of his team but he had been unable to extract the mark until Alpha Leader had come to their rescue. "Three losses Sir, Target is safe. Alpha Leader is cauterizing the site."
Alec suppresses the urge to sigh; he had recognized her handiwork the moment the dots started to disappear from the screen. He had issued a direct order for her to wait for the backup team and she had completely disregarded his authority. Bocci's men had proved to be a serious threat; the four dead members of the SO team were proof of it.
"Call Housekeeping and organize Dr. Jurgen's transfer." Alec's voice leaves no room for argument as he picks four more chargers and places them on his belt.
"Sir, can I go with you?" The man looked expectantly at the young CO.
Once upon a time, it had been his unit's task to keep the Elite members safe during their outside missions, always in the shadows, always undetected. Not so long ago, the young man looking back at him had been a child.
Alec glances at the blond operative who had asked the question, recognition flashing in his eyes for a brief moment as he remembers him as one of the oldest members of the SO squads. "It's not necessary, I'll be back soon." He replies easily as he walks out of the building and starts running in the direction of the warehouse.
The temperature had dropped during the night and a cool breeze was blowing. As he moves between the trees he can feel the wind on his face, the sky is covered by dark clouds and the crescent moon is the only witness to his advance
The first thing he was aware of was the painful throbbing at the back of his head; taking a deep breath he made a mental checklist.
Injuries? None as far as he could tell – nothing felt broken, and aside from the killer headache he had there was nothing else.
Current location? Lying on some unknown surface - correct that - in some unknown location where the soil felt damp, muddy. His memory wasn't cooperating with him enough to provide details; it looked like he would have to wait until he opened his eyes.
Last conscious memory? Blood, crimson red stains on his hands. A voice, clear blue eyes looking concerned at him. Which one of them had been real?
He stayed still and blinked a couple of times in order to adjust to the scarce light and shadows surrounding him. Hazel irises finally opened and looked up to find a yellow crescent moon staring back at him.
The whisper of a name, the image of a face…he had been running through a forest looking for her.
This was the third time today that he had woken up disorientated and lying on the ground, somehow it seemed to be his preferred surface of the last hours. He turned his head to the right and noticed the lone figure perched cross legged on the debris of a concrete wall, the blond strands flew freely around her face as her gaze seemed to be locked on a distant point lost in the sky.
Not everything had been a dream; the girl looking at the sky was Claire.
He closed his eyes forcefully and opened them a second later. Claire was still in the same position. His first test had been successful; he had proved to himself that she wasn't a figment of his imagination. Once again his eyes wandered to the moon, so distant and yet seemingly so near. . . just like the truth, he could feel that he was getting close.
The last dream was a memory of his life. He recognized the place as the north outskirts of Dushanbe in Tajikistan. He remembered the small forest surrounding the warehouse; small details were slowly piecing themselves together making it easier for him to remember, it had been three years ago.
"How are you feeling, sir?" The voice brought him back from his thoughts and into the present. Alec tilted his head and watched the clear blue eyes looking concernedly down at him. For a second he felt disappointed, her eyes weren't the right shade of blue, though that made sense, she wasn't the girl he had been thinking about.
Slowly he sat up using both hands to keep himself relatively steady, the soil was muddy and he got a pretty good idea of the mess that his clothes and hair might be at the moment. He felt her gaze on him and remembered that she had asked him a question. "You really don't want me to answer, do you Claire?"
She jumped from her spot and walked towards him, sitting on the ground in front of him. "Actually, yes, I want to hear your answer, sir."
Hazel eyes lock onto hers and for a moment CeCe is reminded of the times when she had been on the receiving end of that glare. Just like in the old days, she could feel her blood freezing at the power and control his eyes projected. "How long?" his tone was hoarse as his eyes continued to bore into her.
The simplicity of the question caught her unprepared and her face betrayed her surprise. "What do you mean?"
He arched an eyebrow at her, a smirk slowly formed on his lips. "Forget the 'Sir' already, CeCe? Behavior like that doesn't suit you." His eyes harden again as he continues, "You should know exactly what I meant, how long have you been watching me? And who else is here?"
CeCe knew that Alec's reactions could be unpredictable; being able to read his emotions was a near impossible task. He only ever allowed anyone to see what he wanted, nothing more and nothing less.
"Almost two weeks." Alec might be a master when it came to mind games but this wasn't the first time she had confronted him. Straight answers were the key, if you hesitated he would use it to his advantage.
He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, still watching her warily. "You haven't answered the other question."
"Most of the time it was Neil, Biggs was here for a while but left a couple of days ago, May's been here a day and I arrived today…Sir." She watched and waited patiently for his reaction, Alec could have been testing her knowledge in order to prove her allegiance. In the state that he was in, his reasoning was a mystery to her – she would have to wait to see how this game of questions was going to evolve.
He stood up and watched the moon as he turned his back to her. "What the hell happened?" The rage in his voice was unmistakable and for a second CeCe was afraid that he would loose control again.
"Even now we're not sure of the details. The two of you took over a mission profiled for a SO team and disappeared after its completion. The GT's malfunctioned and we ended up sending search parties to opposite locations. . . With all of the chaos following the 5th disaster we lost vital time and thought that you were both dead. Two weeks later we resumed the search. It took us a while to find you." She held her breath, waiting for his reaction and expecting the worst. Her eyes watched carefully as the words sank in and his shoulders sagged.
CeCe's words only vaguely registered with him. A mission for a SO team? His mind searched for any kind of memory of it…a place, San Francisco. The image of the blood came back full force… so much blood, the images were disturbingly detailed. Almost as if he were afraid of the answer he tentatively asked, "Is she ok?"
CeCe sighed, she knew that her answer would not give him any peace of mind, but the truth was unavoidable. "We don't know for sure. We're still looking for her."
"I see." He turned around and CeCe took an involuntary step backward. His eyes looked empty, devoid of emotion. She felt like she was looking straight into a dead man's eyes.
Alec noticed the way she took a step back, the uneasiness of her movements, the fear radiating off of her. He wanted to scream at the top of his lungs that he had the right to be upset, it was his life that was a mess, it was him who had forgotten everything that mattered. And if being upset made other people afraid of him, well, then that was someone else's problem.
But he knew that it wasn't that simple.
The moment he became the CO of the Elite he had become responsible for them. He did have the right to be angered, maybe even to vent some of his frustration at her, but she wasn't responsible for the mess he found himself in. None of this was her fault, he was quite sure of that.
Two years of his life were gone, it was a fact that couldn't be changed no matter how much he screamed about it. He had better things to do now and finding out what had happened was his first priority.
Alec closed his eyes and took a deep breath hoping to calm the inner turmoil of his mind. 'Focus only on the things you can change'. When he opened his eyes the mask he wore so often was securely back in place, his feelings buried underneath the façade for the sake of his lone witness.
His posture relaxed as he scratched idly at the back of his neck, a small smile grazed his lips as he looked back at CeCe. "I don't know about you Claire, but before we go hunting for my memories I need a shower and clean clothes."
A relieved smile lit up the blonde's face, "Your words are my command, sir."
"CeCe drop the sir, I barely remember my own life." He tried for levity as they walked back to where he had left the bike. He paused as a thought stuck him, "Wait a minute, wasn't Max here?"
The answer was preceded by giggle that made him turn around and shoot the blonde an incredulous look. "Let's just say that May took care of her and knowing May's methods Max will probably never remember this little episode."
"Go figure, Max got knocked on her ass and I missed it."
CeCe grinned, taking in the cute pout on his face; his eyes found hers and his expression sobered instantly. "By the way CeCe, don't think for a second that we're done with this conversation. I still want a full report on the current status of both the Committee and the Elite." His voice left no room for argument and she wondered exactly which divine being she had infuriated to end up with the worst part of the job despite the fact that she had been the last to join this mission.
"Of course, sir." She replied quietly, her tone resigned. There were things in life that were not negotiable, like having to debrief your Commanding Officer on the nearly two years worth of memories he was missing.
Alec's eyes darkened at the irony of the situation he found himself in. The good news was that he wasn't insane; all of his dreams had been real. All of his questions were about to be answered, he should be glad to finally be getting his life back.
But, a voice in the back of his mind whispered, sometimes the truth does not set you free.
Florence, Italy
Saturday 06:30 am
Maximus watched as fog swept across the city in the early hours of the morning. Last night he had given up on having dinner with Artemis after waiting for her for an hour; the fact that he might have been interested in spending time with the head of the Committee did not under any circumstance mean that he was that desperate for the chance to speak with her.
He wasn't. And he would have just as happily agreed to share breakfast at a more decent hour. Somehow, he still found himself waiting to meet with her in her private studio in the grey, early hours of the morning.
The doors finally opened and the reason for his short night's sleep strolled into the room looking fresh and shiny, as though she had been awake for a while. It was incredible the energy that Artemis had at this time of the day.
Raising his glass in a salute he waited until she sat in front of him to ask the reason for their early meeting. "Morning Artemis, care to share your reasoning for this?" Maximus motioned to the room pointedly.
"Thanks for joining me Maximus, I know that you're not an early riser by nature but I needed to talk to you about something before gathering the Committee." She replied applying butter to a slice of toast.
Maximus finished his fourth cup of coffee and wondered if he should get a fifth. "Then by all means, tell me what you found out."
"We were right in our assumptions, Malik was behind both events. We've gathered enough evidence to neutralize his contacts in the army and the Congress." Artemis' voice never faltered, never showed any kind of emotion.
Maximus' clear blue eyes fixed on her as he repeated his question, "But that's not the reason why you called me at two in the morning. . ."
Artemis sighed; Maximus would always be Maximus, always straight to the point. "We have a possible location."
A raised eyebrow from the man told her that she had his full attention. "What are you planning?" Maximus' tone was harsh, his voice quiet.
"Four SO teams to cauterize the location, Intel verified that security won't be an issue." She waited for the question that she knew would be coming once the man realized the full meaning of her words.
He surprises her by objecting first. "I don't agree. Malik will be more useful if he's preserved. What about Nyx? If you have proof that Malik was behind everything there's a good chance that he's aware of her location."
"If you want to stop the infection you isolate and kill the source. Keeping him alive will only make him a hero." Artemis was well aware of the price she might have to pay for killing Malik, if Nyx was still alive then the man was indeed their best chance of finding her, but she was equally sure that this was an opportunity that was not going to repeat itself.
"And you don't think killing him will produce the same result? Artemis, both of us know that this situation has been prolonged far too long already, killing Malik isn't going to solve our problems. Are you willing to sacrifice Nyx's life in exchange for his?" The German member of the Committee watched his old friend closely, waiting for her reply.
Green eyes hardened as she glared back at him, "I'm willing to sacrifice whatever it takes in order to stop that man."
Maximus sighed tiredly; Artemis wasn't going to back down on this matter and it saddened him deeply. The Elite shouldn't be sacrificed to correct their predecessor's mistakes. "Nyx was the SIC of the Elite and one of the most powerful among the D1, you'll be risking a lot."
"Hades' recovery is progressing on schedule, we haven't been able to find her, and she might be dead for all we know."
Maximus swallowed his rage at her callousness and opted to point another flaw in her plan, hoping that reason might still diffuse this situation. "If Hades gets his memory back there's a good chance that he'll come for answers. What are you going to tell him this time, Artemis?"
"I'll deal with that when, if, that moment comes." She replied calmly glaring heatedly at Maximus, she hadn't called him here so he could send her on a guilt trip.
"You'll lose Hades if he finds out that you approved a mission compromising the safety of his SIC. In fact, you'd be risking all the Elite's loyalty." He continued as he stood and watched her from his full height.
Their silent battle of wills was maintained for a couple of seconds. Finally, Artemis nodded in his direction accepting the responsibility of it. "Hades will understand that I value the well being of his entire unit rather than only one person."
Maximus sighed loudly at the stubbornness of his friend, hoping desperately that the remaining members of the Committee refuse to approve her plan. "Artemis, think very carefully about this. Be prepared to accept the consequences. . . " He added quietly as he leaned against her and pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head.
The doors closed with a soft thud, and she found herself alone. Maximus and her had been friends for so long that Artemis was more inclined to think of the German as her brother. He had made his position clear; during the Committee meeting she won't have his support. It hadn't angered or disappointed her; somehow she had seen it coming.
Unfortunately, it meant that she will have to convince Balthazar, Demos and Dike to approve her plan. Time was crucial, the decision couldn't be delayed any longer. She'll deal with the consequences later. After all, what's done is done, there's no turning back.
Seattle, Harbor Medical Light
Friday, 22:00 pm
The car stopped abruptly two blocks away from the hospital and a pair of incredulous gray eyes shoot to the redhead behind the wheel. "Any particular reason you decided to stop?"
Green eyes shone brightly as she smiled sweetly at him, however the icy tone of her voice made it clear that the smile was only for the people who might be watching. "There's always a reason Neil. It so happens that this time you can't be here when she wakes up. Now, be a good boy and get out."
Neil raised an eyebrow at the order, "What are you talking about? She's practically dead to the world."
"Not for long, I don't want to spend my evening babysitting a niner." She looked pointedly at him and then to the still closed door.
He pressed the lock down and crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm not moving. This is my car and it makes more sense if I'm the one who brings her for medical attention."
"Aren't you forgetting something? She already knows you, or at least she knows 'Tyler Scott,' who could be your twin; you'd be exposing your cover for nothing. I, on the other hand, have never had the pleasure of being introduced." May smiled pleasantly at him as she once more unlocked the doors.
Neil grunted in response, the fact that his crazy counterpart was right didn't mean that he had to like it, besides it looked like it was going to rain…again. "You're the reason she's unconscious. It was you who knocked her out in the forest." He added weakly.
May raised an eyebrow as if waiting for him to explain how that could be considered a bad thing, when he remained silent she sighed and replied in a soft voice, "Are you honestly telling me that you would have preferred that she witness Alec's pyrotechnics?" her tone went cold again as she continued "Besides, she was getting on my nerves – I like her better when she's out cold…she could be my best friend."
"Yeah, in an alternative universe where white fluffy bunnies are the rulers of the world." Neil muttered as he opened the door.
"Did you say something?" She asked as she checked her reflection in the rearview mirror.
Neil scowled at the sky and wondered why he kept asking to be assigned to missions with her. The woman was insane and colder than Finn when he was particularly upset. He was probably a masochist because a part of him enjoyed the time they spent together.
The first drop of water fell on his nose and he suppressed the urge to kick the door. He was worried about Alec's condition and CeCe's ability to handle him on her own; his patience was running low and while he admitted that May was merely providing a distraction for both of them, right now he was about to snap.
Taking a deep breath he looked back at her, "Nothing. By the way, I'm staying at your place tonight."
The redhead opened the passenger side window before asking. "Why?"
"Proximity and water issues." He replied easily. At her warning look he sighed and elaborated. "It's about to start pouring and your place is closer."
His gray eyes looked bigger than usual and his face suddenly reminded her of kid asking for more cookies.
"Fine, but it's the last time." she replied and rolled the window back up as forcefully, and meaningfully as she could, before starting the car and advancing in the direction of the hospital.
Neil grinned as he started to walk away. Actually, it would be the first time but he would let it go this time; after all, May only misspoke when she was annoyed. He should know, annoying May was one of his hobbies.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
Inside the silent car, green eyes watched the rear mirror as the object of her frustration walked away with a contented expression. He had to use 'the look' she thought irritated. He had smiled innocently at her as his eyes got that lost puppy look May found so hard to resist. Neil was one of the closest people to her, the only male friend that she had, and one of the five people who could get anything from her with only a look.
Sometimes she wondered why he put up with all her crap. She wasn't an easy person to work with, she was well aware of her reputation as a cold hearted bitch, in fact, she encouraged it. Her decisions were based on facts and logic, she avoided feelings because they were an interference, people led by emotion always ended up in chaos. Today's events were a proof of it, she let her feelings rule her actions and had ended up compromising Alec's well-being.
As the car drew closer to the hospital she went back to thinking about what had been on her mind since she saw him in the forest. Alec. How was he doing? How was CeCe doing? There was an old saying about news, no news is good news. May sighed and glanced at the prone body on the backseat, it was time for the wake up call.
Taking a small vial from her bag she pressed it into Max's arm. The needle went through the fabric of her jacket and delivered the chemicals to her blood.
She stopped the car and rushed inside the hospital requesting help for the unconscious girl in her car.
A male doctor and an overeager nurse rushed to keep up with her as she kept up her frantic, concerned act. As they placed the unconscious brunette on a stretcher and wheeled her into the hospital May followed closely and used the sound of her heels hitting the floor to count the seconds before the X5 woke up, 5, 4, 3, 2, and…
"What? Where am I?" Brown eyes squinted in the bright white light of the hospital and May smiled inwardly, her calculations had been perfect. With the X5 groggy and suffering only a headache she knew that there was no risk of exposure. Her job was done, or at least she had thought so.
"Max?" May looked up, surprised to find a middle age female doctor standing by the door of the examination room.
The nurse smiled at the new comer, "Doctor Shankar, do you know the patient's name?"
"Yes, I'll take care of her Sue, go on and take your break." Answered the female Doctor.
May watched, fascinated by the exchange, how exactly did the doctor know an X5?
"I'm sorry are you with Max?" the doctor's question made May realize that she had been staring at them in silence.
"I brought her here; she was lying unconscious by the side of the highway. As far as I could tell she had a mild concussion."
Beverly Shankar looked at the way the young girl held herself, her clothes giving away her status as the rich kid playing Good Samaritan. There was no chance that this girl had any idea that she had helped a girl considered by most people to be nothing more than a science project of the government that taking a simple blood test would cause all hell to break loose. "Well thanks for bringing her here, I'm Doctor Beverly Shankar."
"Elizabeth DuPont, it's nice meeting you, though it would have been better under different circumstances."
May smiled as she shook the woman's hand, this encounter might still prove useful. The good doctor had been staring at her assessingly as she discreetly removed the orders for blood tests written by the first doctor that had originally been treating the now fully conscious girl. May found it extremely interesting that Doctor Shankar seemed to be aware of 452's X5 nature.
"What am I doing here?" Max groaned clutching her head, the headache was killing her. She looked in Doctor Shankar's direction but it was the foreign girl with the reddish hair who answered.
"I believe that's my fault. I found you…" May's voice recounted the same story she had told earlier, adding some detail to make it credible.
In the end, she kept Max's company until Logan Cale came to pick her up. By the time May was back in her car she was sporting a satisfied smile. Her little good Samaritan performance had provided her with the means to finally meet the notorious X5 who had set fire to Manticore's facilities.
She had lied to Neil earlier, she had hit Max for three specific reasons; the first was to keep Alec's power a secret, the second was because that little Nero act of hers had cost them months of hard work, and the third. . . was because she was really annoying. Payback was a bitch.
Alec's apartment
Friday, 23.15 pm
CeCe sat in front of the window mesmerized by the rain falling on the city. Wrapped in one of Alec's sweaters she felt warm and cozy, the fading smell of cologne still present mixed with something that was distinctly Alec. Two years had done nothing but increase the magnetism of the Elite's CO.
Alec was the kind of man a girl never gets tired of looking at. . . or touching, she added smiling to herself. All of the transgenic were physically attractive there was no denying that, but some of them had something extra, something that not only attracted but enthralled the people around them. Alec had that something extra.
Ever since he was a kid, the boy had meant trouble for the female population. There was no limit to age, race, or language; she'd never met a girl or woman able to resist Alec's charm besides Nicole. The brunette was much more than his SIC, and their mutual respect and loyalty amazed CeCe.
The Elite members forged their strongest bonds when they were still children, all of them were part of a team but inside that team every one had someone special to talk to about their fears, their dreams and their doubts. When life revolved around training and missions friendship allowed them a glimpse of a different life; it was inevitable that doubts and questions will arise in a person's mind, and originally their friendships had evolved from coping mechanisms meant to deal with the constant stress they were under, gradually those shallow interactions had deepened into relationships that were more deeper and more meaningful than could ever be explained.
For the D1 members things were even more difficult, their position placed higher expectations on them and, as such, the four D1 members were generally even closer than the other Elites. As the Commanding Officer, Alec felt the pressure more than anyone else and it was Nicole who had offered him support, his connection. Seeing the pair as they sat on a rooftop was not an odd event, she had learned to respect his need for silence and he acknowledged her need for open spaces, they created balance in each other.
Sighing softly CeCe watched the drops that continuously hit the glass of the window, thin trails of water forming as gravity pulled the water down to the earth.
A smile formed on her lips as she watched the rain, Alec was alive and on his way back to where he belonged. For the first time in all these months she felt that things were going to be okay.
The sound of the shower running told her that there was still some time to order her thoughts, once he walked back into the room the real conversation would start.
CeCe was still trying to decide on the best approach; she had been so deep in thought that she missed the footsteps behind her and nearly jumped out of her skin when a hand landed on her shoulder.
"You didn't hear me coming?" His tone was amused as he moved to stand next to the window.
"I just lost myself in the rain." She replied quietly.
He raised an eyebrow before adding, "After you see it everyday it loses its charm."
"I don't think anyone else will enjoy it unless it's their element." She relaxed a little, however the feeling was short lived as he sat on the run down sofa in front of her.
"Interesting, but we're not here to talk about the rain, right CeCe?"
"You wanted an update."
"Yep, so what's been happening?"
"The attack on the 5th Division Headquarters in Germany happened four hours before we got confirmation of your disappearance. Five Committee members were among the casualties…" CeCe's voice never wavered as she relayed the happenings of the past months.
Alec found his attention drifting away from CeCe's voice; he could still hear her in the distance and forced his head to nod in her direction. The images formed in his mind as found himself running through a forest, small snowflakes starting to fall. . .
He could hear the gunshots way before he neared the warehouse. By the time he arrived, the staccato sound of gunfire had been replaced by the duller, muted sounds of flesh hitting flesh.
Alec raises an eyebrow at the body laying by the entrance, as he walks inside he has to admit that the whole place has Nicole's signature. As he advances through the warehouse he starts noticing that the bodies are more battered, the injuries deeper, blood now covering the lifeless corpses. A feeling of dread starts to creep through his body.
His steps are silent as he ghosts through the corridors. A bulky, tall man materializes in front of him, one of his eyes swollen closed and blood glistening on his chest. Alec recognizes the injury as a gunshot, though the man seems to be oblivious to his condition as he starts shooting wildly.
Alec's speed gives him the advantage and he dodges the projectiles easily; jumping on air as he shoot down at the man, hitting him between the eyes and watching the corpse slump to the ground. He moves the body as he takes out a metallic bar that looks like a flashlight. He directs the blue light from the device over the man's head and neck.
A loud 'crack' makes him look up just in time to dodge the bullet that been directed at his head, two more men had appeared. His current position offers no cover, and Alec blurs behind some crates, a bullet grazing his cheek as he feels the heat on his skin left by the passing bullet.
"Start working on the scan image I just send. I need the exact location of the nanochip". His voice was clear on the comm. unit as the sound of bullets indicated yet another player joining their party.
He would have to give it to Bocci, his new toy was performing as expected; but, it wasn't designed to be a challenge to them.
Alec blinked a couple of times. It was the first time that his memories continued from where they left once he woke up. His attention was once again centered on the blonde girl in front of him, he would think about those memories later, preferably alone.
CeCe had decided to focus on the wall in front of her rather than look at him, though his lack of reaction when she had finished her report caused her to turn to face him again. Hazel was no longer present in his eyes, instead a light teal color had taken its place, cold, detached, just like Nicole's eyes after that mission.
"I think that's all of the highlights from the time you were missing." She added, unsure of what was going on inside of his head.
"Five Committee members died during an attack on one of our bases and more than a year later we still don't have any information about it?" Alec asked absently, the pieces simply didn't fit together. Prometheus was a complex and extremely organized entity with limitless resources and the ability to make possible the impossible, no matter the cost. How could something as serious as an attack on one of their Division Headquarters still be unsolved? It didn't make sense at all, ineptitude was not tolerated within Prometheus and the only other conclusion he could draw was that someone didn't want them to know the truth.
"Preliminary investigations confirmed the involvement of a military group linked to Manticore." She replied.
Alec snorted at the naïve comment, that couldn't possible be all. If Manticore had been the main actor in this play, he wouldn't be alive. Dissected and displayed for observation maybe, but never alive and functional.
He still needed the rest of his memories, but he was certain that Manticore hadn't been aware of his identity or rank, if they had known that he was not only part of the Elite but the CO they wouldn't have placed him among the X5's. No, they hadn't known that piece of information, but they knew he was part of Prometheus.
"You don't think it's possible?" CeCe asked raising an eyebrow at him. The Committee had been confident in the results of the investigation; however, Alec seemed to have a different opinion.
"What I think right now is irrelevant. I need to find out what happened, then we'll know who's right." He could feel that he was close to the truth, to the events that brought him to this day.
Blue eyes focused on him as she bit down on her lower lip. "But you do have a different theory."
"Of course." His lips curved in a sly smile.
"Are you planning on telling me?" She asked grinning.
Alec looked at the clock over his coffee table, 04:35 am. "Try to get some rest CeCe. We're going to San Francisco first thing tomorrow." He replied absently as he guided her toward his bedroom. He picked up one of the pillows and a blanket and walked back towards the door.
"You know I don't sleep that much." She protested.
"My place, my rules." He replied as he shut the door behind him.
CeCe stared at the closed door, as smile graced her lips. That was a typical Alec reply, completely ignoring the question or argument from the other person. She sank onto the bed and took the cell phone from the back pocket of her jeans. The sun would be rising soon; at least she could book them a flight.
May's apartment
Saturday 06:04 am
"We need the files on Cale's computer"
May wondered why Neil's voice has sounded so near and why it was so loud. Opening a single brave eye in order to investigate where the offensive sound had come from she found her male counterpart sitting on the empty half of her bed.
"What are you doing here?" her words got muffled by a yawn.
He smirked at her and raised his coffee mug in a cheers motion, "We need to recover the files from Logan Cale's computer."
"I heard you the first time. I'm just wondering why you thought that was a good enough reason to be waking me up at. . . 6:05 am? Aghh, I'm going to kill you." She made no attempt to hide her irritation as the last vestiges of sleep wore out of her.
Neil ignored the typical reaction, after all these years he was used to her morning grumpiness. "CeCe called, she and Alec are going to San Francisco."
A perfectly raised eyebrow gave her face a serious look that contrasted with the rest of her disheveled appearance. "Without backup?"
"Not this time."
"How is he?" Despite the detached tone of her voice when she asked the question, Neil knew that May was dying to know about Alec's progress.
"He's back to his usual inscrutable self. It's slowly driving CeCe up a wall." Neil smirked at that thought.
"I see…" If the insensitive man who woke her up at such an ungodly hour wanted her help, he better be willing to part with his coffee. Knowing Neil, if she asked politely he would refuse, and since she really wasn't in the mood for a fight right now, she opted to just snatch the mug away from him instead.
Neil watched amused as the redheaded mess sitting on the bed drank his coffee. Seconds later she smiled brightly at him and placed the empty mug back in his hands.
"So when are we going to get those files?"
Foggle Towers
Saturday 06:15 am
Max could feel the bright light shining through her closed eyelids. Trying to block the light, she moved her arm over her head only to feel something soft brush against her skin. Her subconscious found the soft texture odd – her sheets certainly didn't feel like that, where was she?
As she opened her eyes she recognized the paintings on the wall and the owner of the place who was currently sprawled in an awkward position on a sofa. She was at Logan's.
Slowly she started to piece together the events from the last night. After being in a foul mood all day she had decided that she needed to go back to the place where everything had started. She had gone to Manticore's ruins and found Alec already there. His behavior had been stranger than usual and he hadn't been pleased to see her. She hadn't made it easy for him either and they had started to argue.
She remembered how the atmosphere around them had changed and suddenly the air in the middle of the forest had become warmer. The events after that were unclear, Alec's eyes were golden and his breathing was harsher . . . the hit came unexpectedly before everything went black.
Her next memory had been when she woke up at Harbor Hospital surrounded by Beverly Shankar and a redheaded girl who introduced herself as the one responsible for bringing her there. There had been something about that girl, she felt as if it wasn't the first time she had seen her, maybe it was the color of her hair…
Alec.
She needed to talk with him. Max knew he was involved in something serious. Too many questions were left unanswered and she wasn't about to keep waiting for him to open up to her.
"You're awake." Logan's voice was hoarse and she suspected that his late-night vigil had a lot to do with it.
"Yeah, I just woke up. You should have let me sleep in the guest room."
Logan could have let her use the guest room, but he hadn't wanted to. He could feel the distance between Max and him growing with every passing day, for every step forward; there were five steps backwards. If there were any chance of them getting back together he was not going to waste it, even if it started with something as small as having her sleeping in his bed.
"No sense in that. Stay here, I'll fix your breakfast." He replied, satisfied with the scene he was currently living.
Max watched his pleased expression wearily. There was a feeling of déjà vu, of the old times when she used to spend most of her nights at his place having dinner or listening to his stories about the good guys and Eyes Only's crusade against the bad guys. Some days she really missed that, but they couldn't go back no matter how much they both might want to. Before, she hadn't touched him because she had been unsure of her own feelings, now a single brush of her hand could cause his death.
Leaving the comfort of the bed she walked toward the kitchen and found the infamous Eyes Only deeply absorbed in making pancakes.
"I need to call OC." She stated, taking the phone and starting to dial her friend's number.
Logan raised his eyes from the pan. "It's okay, I talked to her last night."
Her expression clearly showed her confusion about when he could have possibly called her friend.
"It was after you fell asleep. Max, what happened?" he asked concerned.
"I'm not sure, but I know who has the answers. We have to find Alec." She replied as she remembered his golden eyes; they had stared but not looked at her, as if he had been in a trance.
Logan grimaced as he noticed that she had that look, the same look she had when they decided to attack Manticore. Whatever it was that had happened yesterday; Max was taking it personally and apparently wasn't interested in sharing until she confronted her nemesis in person.
Not really interested in fueling her temper Logan decided to go with a peace offering. "Okay, we'll go. Breakfast first?"
Max's stomach grumbled at the sight of the tower of pancake smothered with maple syrup. She checked the clock on the wall, 7:00 am; they might have time for this.
It wasn't supposed to end like this, they were supposed to be stronger and faster than their enemies; they were supposed to win.
He watches as his team is slaughtered by them. Two figures dressed in black that appeared from nowhere and wrought a devastation he had never seen before. In the last five minutes he had seen as his comrades choke to death or burn to ashes. It wasn't supposed to be like this.
Red flames curl around his body, the heat is unbearable and he can feel the fire destroy layers of skin at an amazing speed. He can't feel the pain, so there is no distraction from the horror of seeing his skin blacken and flake from his fingers, the sensation of his blood starting to boil; the last image he sees is of the man dressed in black holding a flame in his palm.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
Alec sweeps his eyes across the place dispassionately; none of the hostiles were left alive. His arm had been broken in three different parts, but right now the pain is distant; the coppery taste of the blood in his mouth is ignored along with the memory of how it got there. None of those things are important at the moment, nothing is important but the figure standing ten feet away from him.
She watches him with a mixture of annoyance and guilt, her injured abdomen bleeding profusely and her breathing becoming more labored with every passing second. She could tell by the way he was looking at her that he was beyond anger. She was also quite aware that she was the reason for his current state.
"What the hell were you thinking?" Alec realized that his voice was gravelly, probably thanks to the heat from his recreation of Dante's Inferno only minutes ago. With every step he takes in her direction he fights the urge to strangle her.
Light cobalt blue eyes stare back at him, unaffected by his display of rage. "I was quite capable of taking care of the situation."
He grits his teeth and takes another step forward, "I told you to wait for reinforcements before engaging."
Her eyes become glassy for a second; she fights down the sickness and the lightheadedness as she meets his gaze. "The SO team was no match for them; if I'd waited the hostage would be dead now. We both know that's not acceptable."
He continues his advance in silence, eyes glimmering with golden flecks; the intensity of his stare meeting the quiet resolve in her eyes. It's a duel of willpower between two predators.
Her eyes are flashing so many emotions, anger, frustration, fear, concern and something else he can't recognize, seeing her standing there with her hands stained with her own blood is making him sick. He hates to see her like this, vulnerable, hurt.
He's finally in front of her and as he takes another step forward she moves backward, her back hitting the wall. For a second he felt satisfied by her instinctive reaction, even if it had been unconscious. He was furious at her, not only did she get herself hurt but she also disobeyed his orders.
He grabs the arm that she was using to keep pressure on her wound and raises it away from her body, inspecting the wound he feels some small measure of relief, it's a clean cut. He rips the arm of her shirt and uses it as a bandage.
He turns around and doesn't look back. "Let's go."
"Yes, Sir." She replies in the same flat tone he gave her. They move in silence through the now empty warehouse. Hidden between the walls and crates a red light blinks as the two masked people completely dressed in black make their way out of the devastated place.
Alec's Apartment
Saturday 06:15 am
He stood under the cold water trying to put his thoughts into some kind of order. There had to be a reason for this recurring memory, it kept starting from where it left and it felt like watching a movie where he was the main character.
It was impossible for him to add more details while he was fully conscious, the events eluded him and he was forced to wait until he either fell sleep or entered one of those trances. Something else had happened there, something important that he needed to remember.
Turning off the shower he grabbed a towel and tied it around his waist. His memories will have to wait; right now he has to get dressed and ready for their flight. Walking out of the bathroom he finds CeCe in front of the kitchen and glaring at the stove as if it had committed a crime.
Stalking silently behind the girl he stole a glance over her shoulder and laughed when he saw what the problem was.
CeCe felt the voice and presence behind her and reacted on instinct shoving her elbow against her attacker's stomach as she spun around to face the threat. However, her arm was stopped midair and held behind her back as a body blocked her movements.
"Easy Claire. I swear I wasn't going to do anything." Alec's voice sounded behind her and she cursed her lack of awareness and her inability to prepare anything edible using a stove.
"I'm sorry Sir, I wasn't paying attention." She replied as he released her arm and moved away.
The half naked man laughed at the look on her face as she watched mesmerized the way the water was still dripping down his body. He moved closer to the stove and raised the black pan containing what he suspected had once been eggs but now were a jellied white substance covered with a brown powder.
"Morning CeCe…for the sake of my health and yours, we better get breakfast at the airport" he seemed to be amused at both the failed breakfast attempt and her annoyance.
"I just thought it would have been good to eat something before we go."
"There's a good reason why there're so many Starbucks in the world CeCe, God doesn't want to kill us all with food poisoning." He laughed at her offended expression as he sauntered back to his room in search of clothes.
CeCe watched him go and smiled despite herself. He seemed to be doing better. Checking her watch she realized they had less than an hour to get to the terminal. Dropping both the frying pan and its contents into the trash can she walked toward the living room. Knowing Alec, he'll be ready in less than five minutes looking like he walked out of a magazine.
Business District
Saturday 07:15 am
A girl sat on the balcony of the 24th floor as her eyes tracked the couple in the penthouse across from her building as they finished their breakfast and started to clear the table.
"Who's going to Cale's?" Neil's voice made her turn around in order to glare at her partner in crime.
Green eyes shone defiantly as she answered coldly, "The answer is obvious. You're going."
Gray eyes glared back with the same intensity and he didn't move from his position on the couch. "And when did we decide that?"
"We didn't, I did. I'm going to make sure they stay away from the place, something you can't do because you have interacted with 'Max' before"
Neil glared at May as he raised an eyebrow, "So have you."
The redhead nodded at his observation. "Yes, I have. But I've got two good reasons; one, she was dazed and two, I really don't care about her. You, on the other hand, seem to be more attached to her and her well being."
"Where did you get that?" he asked, amused at her accurate perception. The 'Max' he met at the embassy was someone fun and easy to get along with, but he had no clue if that was the real 'Max'. After all, he had also been playing a part that night.
May didn't turn around to answer him. "Simple observation."
"I'm not going to win this, am I?" He asked defeated.
A big smile was included with the answer he got. "Sometimes, you're a pretty bright guy."
Seattle's JT Wilson Private Airstrip
07:30 am
Alec and CeCe took their seats on the small plane and prepared themselves for the short trip. After his insistence on taking the first flight available, CeCe had chosen a small private airline.
He sat by the window and watched in silence as the city underneath became a group of small dots. The white clouds enveloped them and seconds later a blue sky was visible from the window.
The peaceful view relaxed him to the point of falling asleep less than ten minutes after takeoff.
The return to the 9th Division Head Quarters had been eerily silent as both Elites sat on opposite sides of the van. The SO members had tended their injuries, Alec's arm required medical assistance to be set properly, and Nicole had needed a transfusion and stitches.
Less then an hour later, their injuries had been treated. He had been released but she needed to stay in the medical ward until her transfusion was complete.
Back in his office, Alec finds himself unable to concentrate; he can't even bring himself to finish the mission report. Today he learned to hate the snow, today he realized that maybe there was something else about her.
He had been so furious at her, and as he stalked through the forest fuming he had realized that he couldn't feel her presence anymore. When he had turned around he found her collapsed in the snow, unconscious, her blood painting the fresh snow red.
Looking for a secluded place he ended up on the rooftop of the main building, it was the perfect place to avoid people and enjoy the silence.
Nicole sighs loudly as she reaches the last step and quietly opens the access door to the rooftop. Of all the places he could have gone, he had chosen the one with the longest staircase. Her stitches are stinging and she forces herself not to scratch at them.
The whole situation is stupid; they aren't kids anymore, they don't need to avoid each other like this, and she isn't going to keep playing this game any longer. He has good reasons to be upset about her behavior so either he can scream at her and let go of whatever else it is that's bothering him or get over it and stop acting like a five year old.
The soft scent of vanilla lets him know that she's there; it is, after all, her trademark.
"Alec, about earlier. . ." she starts as she moves next to him.
"Save it. Just tell me what the hell you were thinking." Hazel irises were once again covered in golden flecks that seem to hypnotize her.
"I was thinking that I was able to get the hostage out alive and that it was in my hands. I had the choice to save the hostage and maybe avoid losing more of our people." Her voice is flat and she keeps her eyes down, she's well aware of the fact that she had disobeyed his command.
"You were bleeding. You passed out twice on the way to the egress point and then again in the van." His tone is annoyed, though he tries to hide the fact that most of his annoyance stems from her tendency to overlook her own well being.
She turns in his direction, forcing him to look her in the eye, her cobalt blue eyes meeting his gold flecked hazel without blinking. "That happens when you loose blood."
His scowl deepens as he moves in front of her, pressing his body closer to hers. "Damn it Nicole, you could have gotten yourself killed."
"I know what I'm doing; in case you've forgotten, we do have the same training." She was getting pissed off by his condescending attitude, with his assumptions about how she had been injured in the first place. She was more than capable of dealing with a few thugs like those, she had done it before.
The reason she had been injured had been his sudden appearance; she had placed herself between the knife and his back and gotten herself stabbed. As his Second In Command it was her duty to protect him and she had never hesitated in doing it. Still, part of the blame was hers, if she hadn't have rushed to the site he wouldn't have come looking for her. Maybe she should start following his orders.
"That's not the point." He was getting frustrated, why was it so hard to make her understand that he hated to see her like that, he didn't want her to sacrifice herself for him.
"Alec, I'm perfectly fine…" 'I'm always right'. He knew the words by heart, and it wouldn't have been the first time he heard her use them; he had come to hate that damn phrase. She wasn't okay and he wasn't either. For the last month they had been ready to kill each other on a daily basis, and this mission was only the latest in a long list of similar occurrences.
His temper got the best of him as he pushed her against the wall. The sudden movement surprises her and by the time she tries to react she's pinned to the wall with an enraged Alpha breathing on her lips.
"Don't say it again." His lips move over hers as he speaks and she can't help the way her eyes follow the expressions on his face, the furrowed brow that gives him that fiery expression, the way his hazel eyes reflect the light.
"What are you doing?" The words were nothing more than a whisper as the distance between them disappears. He can taste the flavor of her lip-gloss as she asks the question, and he's still searching for an answer.
"I don't want to see you die." His lips move closer to her ear as he caresses the side of her face to get better access. The moment his lips touch her skin he gets his answer, he's finally accepting something he had suspected for a while now. Her skin felt like velvet, soft and addictive, pushing his senses into overdrive.
Her hand forces him to look into her eyes, light blue as the oceans threatening to drown him and he's willing let it happen if it means that he would get to be with her.
"I'm not dead." The words are hushed and this time it's her who starts the kiss, soft lips moving against his and the world disappearing somewhere into the background. The only thing that matters is the fact that he finally feels at home.
Minutes later both of them come up for air, his left arm has been immobilized and the only thing he can do with it is caress her hair. His other hand rests on her hip and he realizes that she's loss weight.
"This is…" she starts as her brain futilely tries to string a thought together.
He grins at her confused expression, "Insane?"
"Pretty much." She agrees but does nothing to move away; he's relived for that.
It's too early to express in words all the things both of them are feeling. Uncharted emotions on a path that is new and strange, relationships were not one of the subjects they had been taught and none of them had been particularly interested in learning about it until now.
He wasn't sleeping; he hadn't been sleeping for the last thirty minutes. He kept his eyes closed as he remembered the way her lips felt against his. The shine of her eyes as she laughed at him. Suddenly, all the memories started to make more sense. The fingers tracing his tattoo were hers; the memory of the apartment, not a mission – it had been his place in London.
All this time he had been remembering things that were connected one way or another with her. Nicole.
'Where are you?'
He kept his eyes closed, and listened as the flight attendants informed CeCe that they would be landing in minutes.
'I'm going to find you.'
Alec's Apartment
Saturday, 09:15 am
May had been following Max and Logan since they left his apartment and twenty minutes later they arrived at Alec's place. The knocks and shouts hadn't received answers and Max had decided to let herself in, the Elite watched as the pair walked around the empty apartment and maintained her position. If they didn't find anything that she might consider important she would not make a move, it was as simple as that.
But life was anything but simple.
Max was in the bedroom and had started to rifle through the drawers, she found a carved wooden box in his shirt drawer. The delicate design of the box stood out as something that couldn't belong to a guy like Alec. The carving seemed to be old, as if the box were a part of some kind of antique collection.
"I found something." Max called out waiting for Logan to join her in the room.
The voice that replied did not come from the hacker, but an accented woman. "Has no one ever told you that stealing is bad?"
Spinning quickly in the direction of the voice, she took a defensive stance. Her mind clicked as she recognized the woman standing in front of her. "You're the girl from yesterday"
May smirked at the phrase, "That sounds so cliché"
Logan had found himself staring at the barrel of a gun while he was in the kitchen. The green eyes of the girl had looked amused by his expression as she moved him in the direction of the bedroom. There seemed to be no connection between the stranger from the hospital and Alec, he had a feeling that whatever it was, it would be big. He asked without expecting a reply, "What are you doing here?"
May grinned as if the situation was indeed quite amusing. "Didn't I tell you yesterday? I work for a security company in my spare time; you're on private property please leave the premises."
Max bristled, her defensive stance shifting towards aggressive as she replied, "We're not leaving."
May showed her the Beretta before again placing it behind Logan's back. "If you don't understand English we can try in a different language, which one you understand? Last call 452, leave now."
Max blurred at May's position in an attempt to disarm her but May reacted faster and twisted Logan's arm as she kept the gun pressed up against him. "You can't beat me, so do me a favor and don't try."
"You're X5." It wasn't a question, merely a blunt statement as Max realized that the girl was probably the right age to be an X5.
May rose an eyebrow at the comment, "Kind of, close but not really. Rest assured Max, we aren't related."
"You have to be an X5 to move like that." Logan argued as he felt the pressure leave his arm.
"I'm not here to answer your questions, leave now and everybody can be happy." May was clearly bored by the exchange.
But Max was not one to take orders; she was still holding the box and proceeded to drop its content to the floor. Her eyes widened as she recognized Alec in the pictures. . . With a girl.
"You know, that was a very stupid move. . ."
To be continued
AN: Got 2 minutes? Leave a review, you know you want to :)