Disclaimer: I don't own these characters yada yada yada, JP and SM do.

Chapter 19

Max

Without stopping even for food, I landed in Death Valley hours later. I hadn't been back here in years and I had hoped to never see this place again. That seemed to happen a lot lately. My past was coming back to haunt me and tear me to pieces.

I had tracked Jeb here. Actually, he had told me that he'd taken over the School a few months ago. I needed to talk to him. He was the only living person I could talk to, now that I'd shot my only living best-friend.

Way to screw up your own life once again, my brain scolded me angrily. I flinched and walked unsteadily towards the gates that loomed over me. Miraculously, they opened when I shoved them. Walking forward, I couldn't help but be angry with myself for not stopping for food and a little rest. I was completely worn out.

"Max!" Jeb at least sounded happy to see me. He emerged from the main building, his white lab coat billowing around him. I cringed mentally before remembering that he ran this shindig now.

"What brings you out here?" He sounded genuinely surprised to see me. I'm pretty sure that surprise and happiness set me off.

I slumped to the ground, my hands covering my face. Jeb bent over me, hesitant and unsure of how to deal with a bawling eighteen-year-old bird-kid. He finally decided that rubbing circles on my back was best. I leaned into him and cried. Jeb put his arms lightly around me and just sat there, holding me as I cried.

When my sobs finally subsided, Jeb stood, pulling me to my feet. He led me into the School and I let him. Never though I'd willingly go into that place, now did ya? Well neither did I so we're even.

"What happened Max?" he asked softly. Jeb pulled up two chairs and pushed me lightly down into one. He sat in the other directly across from me.

I told Jeb what had happened. His brows furrowed when I told him about living at Jacob's place for a few days. I forgot that he didn't know about the wolves and vampires. The back of my brain vaguely noticed that he didn't show any emotions at all when I told him about the sudden and unexpected appearance of the Erasers and Flyboys.

"Come, I'll make you some hot chocolate," Jeb said soothingly. I just rose and followed him through the hated halls and into a small kitchen.

"Can I stay here?" I asked tentatively. Jeb continued stirring the two drinks.

"I wasn't planning on letting you leave," he said without looking up at me. I forced a smile, but dropped it quickly.

Jeb handed me my hot cocoa and led me to a small room. It held a bare cot, a table and two chairs, a mirror, and a tiny, dirty bathroom. He shrugged apologetically and left me alone in my new room.

Sitting on the edge of the cot, I sipped my hot chocolate and thought about my completely screwed up life. Let's go down the list, shall we?

My parents allowed some psychotic scientists to do tests on me, giving me wings.

As I grew older, the tests got more painful.

Living on our own, thinking Jeb was dead.

Angel was kidnapped by Ari.

Ari said they were the good guys.

I was shot.

I have a Voice in my head.

I had a chip in my arm.

Ari was my brother.

I killed my brother.

I was up to 47. I kissed a loser in Virginia, when Jeb came back. He leaned against the door and watched me, an odd look on his face.

"Are you done with your hot cocoa?" he asked suddenly. I nodded and put the empty mug on the floor beside my feet. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel… weird," I said, surprising myself. I hadn't noticed before the cloudy feeling that spread throughout my entire body. It made my limbs tingly and my head was starting to get a little fuzzy.

"I'm not sorry you know," Jeb said, walking towards me. I saw a small group of Erasers behind him. They came into the room, grinning maliciously at me.

I still had enough sense to get up and fight my way out. So that's what I did. From what I can tell, it didn't work. At all. I am currently in a too-small cage with a battered and bruised body.

"I told them not to hurt you too bad, but you know Erasers, they can get out of hand sometimes," Jeb said from outside the cage. His voice sounded a little slurry to me, but then again, that was probably because of me.

"Jeb, what's going on?" I managed to blurt. Jeb chuckled.

"I thought you were smarter than this," he commented dryly. "You seemed like you knew everything. You made everyone believe you knew it all, you had everything under control. But you don't, do you?

"You see, when I learned that Valencia was pregnant with you, I immediately took measures into my own hands and did those tests on you. You were born, and one after the other, I acquired the rest of the flock."

"Did you kill them?" I whispered, my head clearing a little from the shock.

"Yes, sadly, I had no other alternative. They were getting in my way." I stared at him, unable to grasp what he was saying. "You were supposed to die as well, but Zane is a fool. He thought he could take you down by himself. I warned him you were good, but he didn't listen. He thought he was superior to a teenage girl, forgetting that he was barely older than Angel was."

"Do you understand now?" Jeb asked, meeting my eyes. He slipped a hand through the bars of my cage. I pushed myself against the bars behind me, making him laugh. "I see that you do. I am very surprised that it took so long for you to figure it out. I fooled the great Maximum Ride her entire life. I count that as one of my greatest accomplishments in life, don't you think?"

My mind slowly processed what Jeb was saying. He was never the good guy. He's tricked me and the flock since before we were born. He was never there to help us, just to further his deception.

"Are you even my father?" I asked, my words slurring together from whatever he had put in the hot chocolate. Jeb sighed.

"Yes, that is one of the only truths I have ever told you. Surprising, isn't it? She doesn't know my part in this company either, so don't blame Valencia." He didn't sound sorry that he'd lied to me at all. I imagine he wasn't.

"It looks like you'll be able to catch up on some rest now Max," he said calmly.

He was right. Whatever had been in that drink was taking hold of me and it wasn't backing down. A surge of drowsiness washed over me, along with the feeling of limpness and the inability to move. I tried to raise my head, but I couldn't. My body slumped and I lay on my side in the dog crate. The last thing I saw was Jeb looking calmly at me through the metal bars of my cage.

Jacob

I forced my eyes open, my head swimming from the pain I felt in my chest. Looking down, I saw that my entire upper body was wrapped in thick white gauze. I touched it lightly, unsure of why it was there. The material felt hot under my fingers, even to me. It all came flooding back to me as my brain woke up. Max was in trouble. I ran to help Max. She had a gun. Max shot me.

"Jake?" I looked to my right and saw Quil, Embry, Sam, Bella, and my dad hovering beside me. "How are you feeling?" Bella asked softly.

"I'm fine," I lied quickly. I didn't like the way they were all looking at me, like something was wrong. "Where's Max?" I looked around, but I didn't see her.

They all frowned in unison. That was weird. Billy sighed and wheeled himself over, stopping beside my head. They were silent for a few minutes and it was killing me. Where's Max? Why isn't she here? I hope she doesn't think I'm mad at her or anything.

"Max isn't here," Billy said firmly. I rolled my eyes.

"I can see that. Can someone go get her?" They all looked grim, and for some reason, angry.

"Max left," my dad said gruffly. He didn't sound too happy.

"Why?" I choked out. My chest was hurting, and it had nothing to do with being shot. "Why would she leave?"

"Jake, she shot you," Bella said slowly. I nodded. So? They didn't seem to like how blasé I was about Max shooting me. Bella's lip curled and she walked out. Embry and Quil followed her, Sam not far behind.

"Hey Jacob," Edward said, coming into the room. My dad left, joining everyone else outside. "How are you feeling?" I rolled my eyes at him. He smirked and read my mind. There was no point lying to him.

"Where's Max?" I hoped he would answer me.

Edward frowned and looked down at his pale hands. "She isn't here. She left Forks," he said quickly. I shut my mouth.

"Why would she leave Forks?" I asked quietly after a few seconds. Edward glanced out the door, his eyes blazing. He didn't look happy with the people standing outside.

"She wasn't welcome anymore," he muttered darkly. My brows rose, surprised.

"What does that mean? Of course she's welcome here, why wouldn't she be?" I was stunned.

"She did shoot you," he pointed out. "Everyone was furious with her. Even Bella was with the group that chased her off."

"What? What do you mean 'chased her off'?" I couldn't seem to comprehend what he was telling me.

"The pack, Emily, Billy, and Bella followed her into the woods. Sam told her she was no longer welcome here, and they scared her out of Forks."

"Why the hell would they do that?" I snapped, my hands shaking. What gave them the right to make her leave?

"I don't know," he snapped back. "Ask them!" He stormed out, returning with everyone.

"Sam, what did you do?" I growled, sitting up. Ignoring the pain that gave me, I glared into my pack-brothers eyes.

"Max shot you. You could have died," Sam said calmly. "We were angry. We still are. She isn't allowed back here."

"That's not for you to decide," I said.

"It was my decision," my dad said, surprising me. I looked at him, stunned.

"Why? You all know I love her." I don't think that fact had registered in any of their minds. It did now, and they looked a little sheepish, but mostly pissed off. "I have to go get her."

I tried to lift myself up, but the pain in my chest was too much. I hissed and sat back down. Swamped with pain, I closed my eyes and lay back. I waited until I could think clearly, before I opened my eyes again and looked at them.

"You can't leave like this," Bella pointed out softly. I glared at her, not yet ready to forgive them. "Jake, just wait a few days. When you're healed, you can go after Max." I knew she was right, but I didn't like it, not one bit.

For the next few days, I lay in my bed, staring up at the ceiling for hours. Sam and Quil had moved the TV into my room, so I was at least able to entertain myself with pointless comedy. When I was finally able to walk around without any pain, two days later, I tugged on a pair of sweatpants, determined.

Sticking my head out the door to my room, I saw that Billy was either not here, or in his own room. I crept quietly to the front door, making no sounds at all, as I snuck out of the house. I looked back only once and I thought I saw my dad sitting by the kitchen window, looking out at me, but I'm not positive.

As soon as I reached the forest, I tied my pants to my leg and shifted. I shook my limbs and rolled my shoulders, easing my muscles into the wolf form. As I ran, I realized I had no idea where I was going.

Where would she go? If Max had to leave, where would she go? I recalled that Max was a tad suicidal, and decided quickly that she had gone to that place in California, the one where she'd been a prisoner for years. The School or something like that. I don't know why, but I had a hunch she'd be there.

I didn't know where the school was, but when I crossed into California, pushing myself faster, I felt the same tugging sensation that I'd felt on the beach. It's leading me to Max! That could come in handy.

I followed my senses, going with the flow and letting my heart? lead me to Max. I ran across the state, staying in forests as much as possible. At night, I was able to run out in the open across small deserts. When I felt weary enough, I would stop and rest for a little while, drinking water from whatever stream I could find, and eating whatever animal was closest. Sometimes that ended up being coyotes, but it wasn't too bad. It was fun, actually, to test myself this way, in a new environment. If I wasn't racing to save the love of my life, I would be enjoying myself.

After a few more hours of intense running, I found it: the School. The place Max and the flock hated more than any other place in the world. It was understandable as I looked at it. The place was downright creepy. I stopped just outside the large iron gate, unsure of how to proceed. Max had told me very little about her past, but Emily had told me practically everything about the School that Max herself had told Emily.

"It's now or never," I muttered in my head. Sighing, I jumped, gaining footholds where there should have been none, giving me the ability to leap over the wall. I landed in the dirt and looked around quickly. Hearing people in the distance, I shifted and pulled my pants on. It was better to be caught as a weird human than a giant wolf.

Turns out I was right. No sooner had I walked right up to a door that I felt a searing pain surge throughout my entire body. I fell to the ground instantly, my head swimming. Before I blacked out, I saw tall, good-looking people in black suits standing over me, some sort of weapon in their hands.

Max

"Ugh," I groaned, finally able to open my eyes. They fluttered open slowly, resisting, wanting more than anything to close and go back into the darkness. I would have let them if I hadn't smelled something completely unusual. For this place, anyways.

"I thought you'd never wake up," a husky voice said from somewhere to my left. I couldn't sit up, but I did manage to lift my head.

"What are you doing here?" I croaked. Jacob smiled wryly.

"Rescuing you."

"How's that working out for you?" I muttered, laying my head back on the metal cage floor.

"Not so hot. I meant the rescue mission, by the way. I am still amazingly hot, temperature aside," he said, sounding proud of himself. I snorted and the action made me cough. My throat was incredibly dry.

"Here's some water," Jeb said politely. I didn't even lift my head to look at him. He stood beside my cage and stared at me, ignoring Jacob's growling. When I didn't acknowledge his presence, Jeb threw the water angrily into my cage and stormed out, muttering angrily under his breath.

"Drink the water Max," Jacob said. I shook my head. "Max, it's in an unopened water bottle. He couldn't have done anything to it."

"So you say," I muttered. I sighed and lifted my head, searching for the water bottle. I found it in the far corner, out of my reach.

It was a struggle, but I strained my body and got the bottle in my grasp. Jacob growled, and turning to look, I saw him glaring at someone standing in the doorway. My entire body hurt and other parts ached a little, but I managed to turn myself so that I could see the door to the lab and Jacob with a slight turn of my head.

"Well, look who it is," an Eraser said, grinning evilly. "Maximum Ride, I thought you would never grace our presence again. I certainly never would have thought you'd come all on your own, but I guess you have a few more tricks up your sleeve, don't you?" The Erasers laughed at my weakness, causing me to shrink back against the back bars of my cage. Jacob continued to growl menacingly.

The Eraser looked at him mockingly. "What're you gonna do, fight me?" he asked, chuckling at the seeming stupidity of that thought.

"Sure," Jacob snapped. "Bring it on dog-boy." I suppose he was conveniently forgetting that he was a dog as well. Whatever insult suits you best I guess.

"Maybe we should let the little darling watch," he said, sneering at me. I cringed when he opened my cage, trying to get as far from his large paws as possible in so small a space.

"Oh honey, you can't escape us," he said with a laugh. "Haven't we proved that numerous times? We always get you."

"Screw you," I rasped, my throat still dry. The Eraser laughed, his buddies joining him. He grabbed my arms and dragged me out of the cage, letting me fall three feet onto the hard floor.

"Have any last words to say to your girlfriend?" the Eraser asked Jacob, kicking me once in the ribs for good measure. Jacob roared and rattled the bars of his cage. "She won't be allowed to live, not this time. The boss has specific orders to kill you babe." He lifted my head up, gripping my hair between his clawed fingers. "Pity. You are pretty damn hot, for a mutant freak."

"Look who's talking," I muttered. He growled and kicked me again. "If I wasn't drugged, I would kick your ass right here. You and your little friends."

"Probably," the Eraser agreed. "But then it's a good thing you aren't at your best, otherwise we would be in deep trouble, wouldn't we?"

"Maybe you should let me out, then we'll see how much trouble you're in," Jacob snarled. The Eraser glared at him.

"I'm sick of your snide comments," he snapped. "I'll kill you, just for that."

"I would love to see you try," Jacob hissed. An Eraser unlocked the cage. He didn't move out of the way fast enough, because Jacob shot out of the cage like a bullet, slamming into the Eraser with just as much force as a small car.

Jacob fought his way through seven Erasers, punching, kicking, and snapping necks until the only Eraser left was the one still clutching my hair. He put his claws on my throat and squeezed, drawing blood.

"Take a single step closer, and I'll kill her right here," the Eraser snarled. Jacob stood hunched over, preparing to pounce. I was glad the Eraser had no idea how fast Jacob was. If he had, I would probably be dead.

Jacob leapt, taking the Eraser out with a single swipe of his suddenly massive head. Jacob howled and grabbed the Eraser, tearing his hands away from me. The Eraser cried out, but the scream was cut off when Jacob crunched his chest between his teeth.

Jacob dropped the dead body and walked slowly towards me, tentatively putting his huge head in front of my own. He whimpered.

My mind was blank. I could not believe that I was going through this again. How many times do I really have to break out of this godforsaken place? Jacob ran his rough tongue over the left side of my face, snapping me back into the here and now.

"I'm fine," I said. He lay down, his shoulders at just the right level for me to reach out and push myself up. He rose slowly as I did, helping me up.

"Really, I'm fine," I insisted when a giant black eye stared at my face. Jacob cocked his head as if to say 'you've got to be joking.' I was determined to show him that I was capable of walking on my own two feet. Disentangling my hands from his long furry coat, I took a wobbly step forward, almost pitching over face first.

Jacob ducked his head and caught me yet again. Using his massive head against my stomach, Jacob pushed me up until I was able to clutch his fur again.

"Shut up," I muttered when he huffed. Jacob rolled an eye at me and started walking. I followed. I started to turn towards the door that would get us out of this hellhole, but Jacob led me farther down the hall.

"Where are we going?" I rasped. "The exit is back there!" He shook his massive head and led me down a few more halls. When we entered a large room, I understood.

Jeb, flanked by what I assumed was the remaining Eraser force, was glaring murderously at me. He lifted his gun and put his finger on the trigger, the barrel aiming right at me. Jacob shoved me behind him and sprang into action. I tried to keep up, but he was moving almost too fast for my eyes to see.

"Jacob! Watch out!" I cried, seeing an Eraser with a gun pointed at my friend. Jacob spun and snapped up the gun and the arms holding it in his large jaws. He spat them out and continued mauling the people in the room.

Either I drifted off to sleep, or I lost consciousness for a few minutes, because I opened my eyes at a nudge from Jacob. I looked around the room and saw blood everywhere. There were a lot of dismembered bodies, and a few whole ones, lying around the room.

I looked up and swept my eyes over Jacob quickly. He didn't look hurt at all. At least, I couldn't see any visible wounds, but then again, his fur is pretty long.

Jacob leaned over and butted his head against mine lightly. I slung my arm around his huge neck and let him lift me to my feet. He ducked his head and let me lean on him as we made our way out of the building. I didn't realize until the breeze hit me that Jacob had just killed a large group of Erasers and Jeb. Jeb is gone. He's dead. My arm slipped and I fell to the ground, dry heaving on my side. I was glad I hadn't had anything to eat lately. Puking sideways would have been absolutely disgusting.

Jacob nudged me with his nose, flipping me onto my back. I groaned and closed my eyes. I was determined to sleep. I don't care if I'm thirty feet from the School, I'm tired. I said as much and Jacob huffed. He ran off suddenly, heading back into the School.

To my intense surprise and pleasure, the main building had smoke coming out of the windows in thick black billows about ten minutes later. The same happened with the rest of the buildings. When Jacob didn't emerge, I got scared and worried for my friend. What if he was hurt? What if the smoke was choking him and he couldn't get out?

My breathing resumed when I saw Jacob running towards me. He grinned wildly and scooped me up into his now-human arms. I didn't resist. His arms were certainly more comfortable than the ground was. I noticed that he had stolen someone's pants before he set the place on fire. He ran with me in his arms, putting as much distance between us and the buildings as he could.

"You're gonna pass out," Jacob said, frowning. I looked up at him and tried to smile. I don't think it worked. He stopped and crawled with me still in his arms a few feet back into a shallow cave. He laid me on my back and hovered over me, searching my face for intense pain most likely.

"I'm fine," I murmured. "Are you alright?" I put my hand lightly on his cheek. He closed his eyes for a second before answering me.

"You shot me." I pulled my hand away. He opened his eyes and looked at me.

"I didn't know it was you," I mumbled. He raised an eyebrow at me. I glared up at him. "Do you really think I would purposely shoot you? Are you stupid?"

He smiled. "I was hoping for that reaction exactly. It proves to me that you're sane."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," I muttered, looking away. Jacob lay on his back beside me, his shoulder pressed against mine. We looked sideways at each other.

"What, you're telling me that you aren't sane?" he asked, raising a brow at me. I nodded.

"It's a possibility." He frowned.

"No it isn't."

"And why not? How the hell do you know the sanity of my mind?" I snapped. His lip curled up, baring his teeth in a threatening scowl.

"Because do you really think I'd Imprint with a mentally unstable person?" I froze, the scowl wiping off my face quickly. I stared incredulously at him.

"What?" I whispered. He blushed and looked away. I reached across my body and grabbed his chin, forcing him to look at me. "You Imprinted with me?"

Jacob nodded. "So… this entire time… you've been flirting with me, just waiting for a chance to make a move on me!" I was slightly outraged. Jacob's eyes went wide and he moved out of my grip, hovering over me again.

"No!" He looked horrified that I would think he was slowly taking advantage of me. "I wasn't trying anything. If anything, I was trying to earn your trust, but that had nothing to do with the Imprint." I raised a brow and he smirked. "Ok, so the Imprint made it more important for me to be your friend. But I want to be your friend Max."

"I can't handle this," I mumbled, putting my hands over my face.

"Max." Jacob sounded like he was just inches away. I pulled my hands away and saw that he was indeed inches from my face. "Take a deep breath." I glared at him but did as he said. I breathed in slowly, and out just as slow. It worked. For once, deep breathing actually cleared my head and helped me think straight.

"What was that supposed to help?" I muttered. Jacob grinned.

"It was to help you relax. Max, you are way too stressed out right now."

"I wonder why!" I cried. "I just found out that the only thing left in my life that made sense to me was all a lie. My father just tried to kill me!"

"That was your dad?" I nodded. "What the hell!"

"I was a science project, remember?" I whispered, my voice cracking. "I wasn't even supposed to live this long."

"Well, I'm glad you did," he said. I frowned at him.

"Please don't," I begged softly. He looked confused. "I just found out it was under his orders that they killed Fang. I need to… I can't… I need space, ok?"

"Sorry," he mumbled, flipping over and lying beside me again. "I should make you tell me what happened, but I know you'll tell me when you're ready." I leaned my head against him.

"Thanks," I whispered, closing my eyes.

"Sure, sure," he murmured, leaning his head over mine.

Some time in the night, I must have gotten cold, because when I opened my eyes, I was on my right side, my face pressed into the hollow at Jacob's throat. He had his arms around me, holding me against his warm body, his back to the cave opening. I didn't even think about it. I just burrowed myself closer and went back to sleep.

I was woken some hours later by Jacob. He lifted me into his arms and crawled back out into the desert. I was still half-asleep when he set me on the ground and loped back into the cave. Moments later, he emerged as the giant russet wolf. The stolen pants were tied around his hind leg as usual. I sat up and put my arm around Jacob's bent head, letting him help me up.

"I'm fine," I said when Jacob nudged me. He rolled his black eyes and lay on the ground in front of me. "I can fly myself home just fine, thank you." My voice came out snippier than I'd intended, but hey, I feel like absolute crap. I'm allowed to be grumpy.

Jacob just huffed and rose to his feet, towering beside me. We began our journey home by walking away from the huge plumes of smoke in the distance. It made me smile to think of that place up in flames. Such a beautiful sight, too bad I was practically unconscious.

Twenty minutes in, I was clutching my ribs and trying not to alert Jacob to my pain. It didn't work too well because he stopped and turned to look at me, his eyes telling me he was worried. Jacob lay on the ground in front of me again and this time I relented. I had some difficulty climbing onto his back, but once on, I wound my hands into the fur at the back of his neck and held on tight.

It was surprisingly comfortable, the fur acting as a padding between me and the bunching muscles below me. As Jacob ran across the flat land, I slid down his back and rested my head against his neck, my hands still holding his fur and my knees clamped down on his sides as best I could.

"You're like a giant puppy," I muttered sleepily. Jacob emitted that weird noise that was the wolves' chuckle and ran faster, eager to get back home. I was too. And then I wasn't, if only because I would have a lot of explaining to do.