A/N: Having trouble with lyrics again; they'll be up as soon as I find them. Thanks so much for the reviews!

Chapter 8

Alec's rage couldn't be tempered or controlled. It burst out of him with such frightening violence that he was sure Rachel would run screaming from the room. He couldn't concentrate on her, though, not when Max was lying on the floor with Berrisford looming over her like a grizzly bear.

"Get away from her!" Alec shouted, just as Berrisford bellowed, "You!"

They attacked each other simultaneously, and Alec was momentarily disarmed by Berrisford's bulk. But his superior skills combined with his explosive anger led to an extremely brief scuffle, and in seconds he had Berrisford by the neck. His face was hard and narrowed as he squeezed Berrisford's windpipe, feeling the man gasp beneath his fingers.

"Daddy! Simon, no!"

And then fingers were grappling at his hand, pulling at him to let go. He couldn't make his hand listen, couldn't force his body to obey hazy directions when his anger was so full and sharp.

"You're going to kill him! Please don't do this!"

Finally her voice reached inside of him, and abruptly his fingers went slack. Berrisford sputtered and coughed, sounding like a mutilated frog. Alec knew he should do something, knew he should try to talk to Rachel, who was no doubt terrified as she scrambled to reach her father. But all he could see was Max, and he was by her side quicker than anyone could blink.

He felt for a pulse first, his own heart seeming to hesitate as he searched for one. Finally it pounded into his fingers, strong and demanding. He released a shaky sigh and examined Max for injuries. His keen eyes found the needle marks in her arm.

Movement from behind caught his attention, and he jerked around, moving protectively in front of Max's prone form. "What have you done?" he snarled, eyes scanning Berrisford's infuriated, crimson face.

"Nothing," Berrisford denied. "She came by to make a delivery, and she fainted. I was tending to her when you showed up."

"Try again, you son of a bitch," Alec demanded, taking a menacing step forward. "There are track marks on her arm. You drugged her."

"Daddy?" Rachel had turned wide eyes to her father. It was clear that, for all her newfound wisdom, she still childishly believed the best of her father. "Daddy, tell me that isn't true."

"Of course not, sweetie," Berrisford returned. Alec didn't doubt that Rachel would believe her father.

Yet strangely enough, Rachel didn't look convinced. "But she was here hours ago, and you said you'd take care of her. I thought you left to take her to the hospital."

"I—it seemed extreme, honey, given the circumstances. She was just overheated, so I brought her in here—"

"And built a fire?" Rachel demanded. She stepped away from her father, incredibly moving closer to Alec. The flare of Berrisford's nostrils showed he didn't miss the movement.

"Give it up," Alec sneered. "Your own daughter isn't buying it. What were you going to do to her, you bastard?"

"I'm the bastard!?" Berrisford bellowed. "Me! You devastated my daughter! You left her with scars that will never heal! She spent a month in ICU, four in the hospital, and she'll never be the same—never!"

"Dad," Rachel said, horror loosening her features. "How could you—what were you going to do?"

Berrisford glanced almost unwillingly towards the fire, and Alec went cold despite the heat of the room. Beside the fire were all sorts of tools—sharp pokers and flat fire shovels and other iron utensils. That would not be strange, except that they were arranged carefully on the edge of the fireplace, almost like a surgeon's tray. Alec understood before Rachel, but he heard her reaction when she finally got there.

"Daddy!" she shouted, and Alec had enough left in him to be surprised by the steel in her voice. "How could you even think about—you were going to burn her, weren't you? Weren't you! My God, only a monster would—"

"I was doing it for you!" Berrisford begged, eyes glued to his daughter. "Don't you see? He loves this girl, I know it, and she's just like him. We could get justice for what happened to you, for what he—"

"This isn't justice!" Rachel shouted, her face tightening, hardening. "This is vengeance, and it has nothing to do with me! If you'd asked me, you would have known I'd forgiven Simon a long time ago."

Berrisford seemed bewildered by that. "But—but how? He destroyed you!"

"No, he didn't," Rachel answered, and Alec was startled by the calm in her voice. Yet it was no less hard, no less unforgiving toward the father she adored. "I'm right here! I'm alive, and it's because of him. If he hadn't tried, the bomb would have gone off and we both would have died."

Alec opened his mouth to tell her that he did not feel he deserved this courtesy, but Berrisford interrupted. "But you stayed here, Rachel. You haven't gone to college or gotten a job—you haven't done any of the things you wanted to do. He ruined your life!"

Rachel shook her head ruefully. "Don't you see? I didn't do any of those things because I thought you needed me. I was afraid you'd fall apart if I wasn't here. But it looks like it didn't matter," Rachel added, staring at the female transgenic splayed on the floor. "You fell apart anyway. I can't—I don't think I could ever look at you the same again."

Berrisford flinched visibly and reached for his daughter. Up until that point, Alec had been stuck in a kind of trance, struggling to process Berrisford's hideous plan. As Berrisford's hand grappled for his daughter, though, Alec's anger returned full force and he lunged for the man.

This time he shoved Berrisford against the wall as he squeezed his throat. This time he had no intention of letting go.

"You son of a bitch," Alec snarled, pulling the man forward and then slamming him back into the wall. Rachel was yelling behind him, but Alec saw and heard nothing but Berrisford's wide eyes and broken gasps. "Did you really think you could hurt her and get away with it? I'll kill you for this."

He would, too. He could feel Berrisford's delicate throat start to crumble. Only a little more pressure and the man would be damaged beyond repair.

But what would that solve?

The thought came unexpectedly to his mind, and his fingers loosened a tiny fraction. Now that he'd asked the question, he couldn't let it go. It wiggled its way into his head and planted itself there.

What would killing Berrisford do, besides placate Alec's white-hot anger? Rachel would be fatherless, and Alec would be a murderer yet again—and this time it would be worse because he wasn't following orders. And Max, the woman he was defending in the first place, would look at him the same way she had when he'd told her about his solo-missions. She would look at him like he was a monster.

Almost without meaning to, Alec released Berrisford's neck, and the man slumped to the floor. The transgenic stared at him as Berrisford coughed and sputtered into the expensive carpet, and then Rachel abruptly blocked his view. She leaned over her father, sobbing as she examined him.

Alec stared for a moment and then turned away, looking at Max instead. He could see her eyelashes stirring and he hurried to reach her. The last thing he wanted was for her to wake up alone in a situation like this.

"Max?" he asked, fingers instinctively stroking her cheek as her eyelashes struggled to lift. "Maxie, can you hear me?"

"Alec?" Her voice was low and hoarse, barely more than a whisper. Then her gaze sharpened and she bolted upright, only to stagger and clutch her head as the drugs barreled into her again. Alec quickly used his arm to support her, settling it behind her shoulders. Max didn't say anything, and that more than anything proved how disoriented she was.

Abruptly she stared down at her hands, and then reached up to feel her face. Her fingers were quick and frantic.

"Max, it's okay," Alec said, although he had to clench his fists to keep from starting another round with Berrisford. "You're fine."

"Oh," she said faintly, looking openly relieved. Then her gaze shifted to Berrisford and his daughter. He saw her anger, but it was buried under drug-induced haziness.

"I'm getting you out of here," he said, standing and pulling her with him. She wavered dangerously again, and he hooked his arms under her knees and picked her up.

"Alec, stop it!" she demanded, as he expected. He ignored her, however, knowing she wasn't in any shape to stop him.

He stared down at Berrisford and his daughter, trying to ignore the sharp sting of regret as he met Rachel's eyes. Then Alec focused on her father, and all of his fury returned. This time, however, he kept it locked inside his eyes.

"I understand why you hate me," Alec said clearly, and Berrisford answered his comment with a fittingly hate-filled gaze. "I would have understood if you'd come after me. But if you ever touch Max again, I won't hesitate. I will kill you. You won't get another chance, Berrisford."

Alec made sure the man met his eyes, made sure that Berrisford knew he was serious. Then he carried Max out of the room.