Thank you very much for the kind reviews! Now let's see what kind of mischief these two can find, eh?

February

Alec stood perfectly still in a pristine black suit and tie, a few feet behind and to one side of Andrew Rafferty, CEO of Agri-Genome, LLC, and owner of the sacred genetically altered potato that had been giving them so much trouble. Other company employees were seated around the table, along with a group from another company in the same line of work. Alec's team was on bodyguard duty, and Alec was pointman as usual.

Honestly, this sort of gig was below the usual level for his team. They were the most highly skilled team working at Specialist Services Incorporated, more affectionately known as Freak, Inc. They usually left the more run of the mill security work to others. It was Alec's team though that had recovered the stolen files, and Rafferty had requested they be the ones to guard him while he was at this business meeting with some other bigwig in the ag business.

"Alpha One, Base," Alec heard Dix call through his earpiece.

"Go for Alpha One," Alec replied quietly. For Dix to be calling him, something had to be up. His gaze sharpened, looking for trouble at the incredibly boring business meeting, but there was still nothing to raise any alarm.

"Alec, you need to get back to TC." Dix didn't exactly sound panicked, but he didn't sound calm either.

Alec didn't bother demanding an explanation. Dix wouldn't have bothered them on the job if it wasn't important. "Alpha Two, take point."

"Copy, Alpha One," Slick answered. He was Alec's second in command and he could easily step up.

Alec knew that Slick could handle it, and the rest of the team would shift to their secondary positions for just such a contingency. Usually that contingency was because one of them was hurt, but this counted just as well.

Slick came through the door and nodded to Alec as he took his place. Rafferty seemed to notice there was a shuffle going on, but Alec gave him a reassuring smile to let him know there wasn't an issue.

After that it was a race. Alec took one of the motorcycles they'd used as a motorcade of sorts on the trip there, and headed for TC. "Dix, I'm on my way. What's going on?"

"You need to get to the infirmary."

Just those words had Alec blinking as the blood drained from his face and he felt lightheaded. "Max?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady. She'd had an appointment that morning. Alec hadn't been able to go because of the security detail.

"She's ok," Dix said, "but…"

"But what?" Alec demanded.

"But she's nuts," Mole cut in. "She's yellin' at everybody and freakin' the docs out. Get down there before she scares 'em off."

"On it," Alec replied, and raced as quickly as possible through traffic and checkpoints to get to TC. Thanks to their government work, the teams all had bulletproof paperwork to get them through checkpoints quickly even though they weren't technically citizens, or legal at all, really.

The guards saw him coming when he arrived and already had the gates open. One of them even strode up and took the bike from Alec so he could run. Ever since news had got out that Max was pregnant, it had become everyone's duty to protect her. They all knew now how difficult it was going to be to have children, and each pregnancy had become precious.

Alec blurred to the infirmary, but was stopped by a group of people blocking his way when he arrived in the lobby. He'd made sure the waiting room was better fitted out in the last month. He'd found comfortable chairs and a TV, and so on, but none of that was being used. The medical types were either huddled in groups, or milling around, wringing their hands. Normally, Alec barely saw one or two of the doctors at a time, but this looked like most of them, and Alec quickly realized why.

He heard a loud crash followed by Max screaming, "Get out!"

Dr. Peterson, their resident veterinarian, shot out a second later followed by another clang as something metal crashed against the door he'd just come through.

"Where's Alec?" Dr. Peterson said, sounding more frazzled than Alec had ever seen him. He was a shorter, scruffy-looking young man, who'd come through for them time and time again, but today had obviously tested his abilities. "I told you people to find Alec!"

"I'm here." Alec pushed his way through the herd of doctors. "Somebody want to tell me what's going on?"

Peterson slumped in relief at the sight of him. "Oh, thank goodness. Alec you've got to calm her down. This isn't good for her. Her blood pressure has to be through the roof."

"What did you morons do?" he demanded, almost a growl. Every protective instinct he had was on full alert.

"Alec, put the gun away." Peterson snapped. "I've had a bad morning already. I don't need that, too!"

Alec realized he'd pulled his gun and was holding it in a death grip at his side. His wife was upset and his immediate unconscious reaction had been to end whatever or whoever was causing it.

Alec took in a slow breath through his nose, and out through his mouth. He carefully put his gun back in the holster clipped at the small of his back and pried his fingers off the grip. He looked at Peterson and held his hands up to show he was unarmed. "Sorry," he said. "I get tense when Max is screaming." He looked around and realized the other doctors had backed away in fear, making a wide ring around him. This was why Peterson was the one who usually dealt with them one on one.

"Fine," Peterson said, still miffed. "Now, get in there."

"What set her off?"

"We gave her some news and she reacted badly."

"What news?" he asked, and his fingers itched to reach for his gun again.

"We were going through her check-up this morning and realized we were hearing a third heartbeat. We've confirmed it now. It's not twins, Alec. It's triplets."

Alec wasn't sure what happened after that, but next thing he knew he was sitting on the floor with his head between his knees. Dr. Peterson was saying something, but he couldn't quite tell what it was over the ringing in his ears.

"Alec? Alec, can you hear me?"

Alec blinked, twitching when he felt someone taking his pulse. "What…" He licked his lips, trying to get some feeling back in them. "What happened?"

Peterson smiled. "I told you about the triplets and you tried to pass out on us."

Alec's eyes widened. "You're sure?" he asked. Alec didn't know whether to jump for joy or throw up. How was he supposed to take care of three babies? He knew next to nothing about babies, and absolutely zero about being a father. How on earth could he make this work? They were going to need a bigger apartment. He was going to have to bring in more supplies, get more baby clothes, find another crib, get…

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Peterson said. "I guess it's better than Max wanting to kill us, but hyperventilating isn't much better."

"Sorry," Alec said, forcing himself to focus. Manticore had trained him better than this. He didn't show emotion. He didn't show distress. He didn't let others see that he was struggling. Not that he was struggling. Another baby. Three babies. Three. Babies. With the woman he loved. Three babies with Max. How could that ever be a bad thing, or even a questionable thing?

"Better," Peterson said. "You with us now?"

Alec looked up and saw a ring of anxious doctors hovering, but still wary. He was still armed after all. Alec nodded and held out a hand. "Help me up."

Peterson grabbed his hand and hauled him to his feet. "You good?" He waited for Alec to nod again. "Fine. Now get in there and calm your wife down."

Alec mentally psyched himself up. Max didn't have time for this. Their children didn't either. He walked to the metal swinging doors that led into the infirmary and poked his head through. "Max? You in here?"

A second later, a metal bedpan clanged into the door a mere whisper from his head.

"Hey!" Alec slipped through the door, eyes peeled for any more flying medical equipment. "Knock it off, Max! You trying to kill me here?"

There was no answer and Alec looked around, but didn't immediately see her. "Max?"

"Go away!" she shouted, but there was a tiny wobble in her voice. He hated that wobble. It made him want to tear people apart for causing it. It did, however, give him an opportunity to zero in on her from the sound.

Alec walked to one of the side rooms and peeked in. Max was standing next to the exam table. She was wearing a hospital gown, her hair was a mess, and she was holding one of those little curved metal dishes that always seemed to be around for some reason. She was thumping it on the exam table with enough force that Alec though it had to be hurting her hand.

"Max?"

She stopped thumping the basin on the table, but didn't turn.

"Maxie, you want to tell me what's going on? I'm… I'm worried here."

She turned toward him, and he could see that rather than angry she was absolutely terrified. He could see how the doctors wouldn't know the difference. With Max, angry and terrified were pretty closely related. When she got scared, she hid it behind her fury.

"What are we gonna do?" she demanded. "I mean really? What are we gonna do, Alec?"

"First," he said, inching closer, his hands up, "we're going to be very, very calm. The doctor's worried about your blood pressure."

Max practically snarled at him. "If one more person tells me to calm down, I'm going to scream!"

"Seem to be doing a lot of that anyway," he muttered, but she went on as if she hadn't even heard him.

"Three! We're going to have three!" she shouted, her voice getting higher and higher. "I'm having a litter!"

"Max, come on. People have triplets all the time. This isn't all on Manticore."

"Are you even listening to me?" she shouted. "Three babies! I only have two breasts, Alec!" She threw down the metal basin which made a horrible racket as it hit the concrete floor. She then grabbed her breasts as if they had somehow offended her. "How am I supposed to feed three babies?"

"Shifts?"

"You think this is funny?" she shrieked.

"Not really." He moved forward and grabbed her wrists, drawing her hands away from where she was still clenching her boobs. "Don't want to damage these, do you? We're going to need them before too long."

"HA!" she said too loudly, and wrenched her hands from his grasp. "That's what you think!" She shook her head and backed away from him, then started pacing in a circle around the exam table. "Did they tell you the rest?"

"What?"

"They didn't, did they? Cowards!" she shouted, wanting to make sure the doctors in the lobby heard her.

"What is it, Max? Is something wrong? Are the babies…" He felt the blood draining from his face again, and he wanted to find a place to sit.

Max didn't realize, however, and kept ranting. "They say the babies are growing slower than normal. Normal for a human. They think I'm going to be pregnant for an indeterminate amount of time. That's what they keep saying. They think I could be pregnant for months longer than normal. Months!"

She threw her hands up in frustration, or disbelief, or… he wasn't sure. All he knew was that he could breathe again. The babies were fine, and Max was just freaking out. That was doable. He'd been dealing with Max's blow-ups since they'd met. He tolerated her temper, and she put up with him being a smart-mouthed jerk.

Alec rushed forward and grabbed her by the shoulders, giving her a shake for good measure to make sure she was paying attention. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!" he said angrily. "I thought something was wrong with the babies." He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to him. She struggled for a moment and then completely relaxed as if she were a puppet and her strings had been cut. She began to cry quietly, and finally wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face into his suit coat.

"And don't wipe your nose on my suit, Max. You think dry cleaning is easy to find these days?"

Max let out a hiccuping laugh. "Sorry I scared you. I just… I don't know what we're going to do. I still don't."

"Sorry I wasn't here when they gave you the news," he replied. "I should have been."

"You were on a job," she countered. "The world doesn't stop just because I got knocked up."

"Still, I should have been here to freak out along with you," he said, and meant it. He wasn't going to miss any more appointments if it could be helped.

"Whatever. I shouldn't have freaked out. I know it's not good for me."

"If it makes you feel any better, I tried to pass out." That got a laugh out of her, which made his humiliation worth it.

"Three babies," she whispered. "Alec, we're… we're gonna be outmanned."

"Outgunned, too. That's a lot of baby vomit they're going to be spewing."

Max nodded against his chest. He leaned down and placed a kiss against her hair. "We'll figure it out, ok?"

"Ok." Max released him, and backed up a step. "I'm going to have to apologize to them, aren't I?"

"The doctors? Probably." Alec shrugged. "Or not. Personally, I don't mind if the docs are scared of us. It keeps them from getting ideas."

They both turned when there was a knock at the door to the exam area. Dr. Peterson was standing there looking nervous. "You going to threaten to disembowel me again?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Maxie, you didn't," Alec said, playfully aghast.

"I did."

"Well, that's just dumb. You know it's a lot more effective just to break their necks."

Peterson glared at him. "You're hilarious, Alec."

"I know, right?" he said, and grinned broadly.

Peterson chuckled, then his expression turned serious. "Sit down for me, Max," he ordered. "Let me check your blood pressure."

Max obeyed. She hopped up on the exam table and held out her arm. "Sorry," she offered, embarrassed. "I, uh… don't do well with surprises."

"Ya don't say," Peterson relied wryly as he wrapped the blood pressure cuff around her arm and began to inflate it.

Alec hopped up to sit beside Max on the exam table and put his arm around her. She leaned into him and relaxed into his side. Peterson and Alec shared a look and the doctor nodded his thanks.

"Better," Peterson said. He removed the cuff and tossed it to one side. "Let's keep it that way, all right?"

"Yeah," Max answered. "Sorry."

"How did we miss a whole baby?" Alec asked.

"Max told you the babies are growing slower than we anticipated?"

"At high volume." Max jabbed her elbow into his stomach for his quip but he continued. "What about it?"

"The babies aren't as developed as we were expecting and one masked the other. We just missed it. But…" He trailed off, and Alec didn't like the grave expression one little bit.

"What is it?" He tightened his arm around Max.

The doctor looked at Max worriedly, obviously not wanting to upset her again.

"Say it," Max ordered. "I'll behave."

Peterson sighed and nodded. "The third baby… it's weaker."

"What does that mean?" Alec asked past the constriction in his throat.

"The baby is smaller than the other two, and the heartbeat is weaker."

"A runt," Max whispered.

"A baby," Peterson chastised gently. "And we're going to be watching you like a hawk from now on."

"You weren't doing that already?" she asked, appalled. Alec knew she was already chaffing against their demands that she come in so often for tests, diet changes, etc.

Peterson laughed at her expression. "I seem to remember you promised to do whatever was necessary. I'm going to hold you to it, Max."

For once in her life, Max nodded meekly. Alec knew she was thinking the exact same thing he was. They would do absolutely anything for the little lives she was carrying.

"Max said you've given up on the nine month calendar?"

"Different animals have vastly different gestation periods. We were aiming for human, but your DNA has decided on a longer timeline, so we're going to take it one step at a time. Elephants can be pregnant for 22 months, some sharks are up to three years, and Max is carrying DNA from both. You, too, Alec."

"Years?" Alec asked wide-eyed.

Peterson laughed. "I don't think we're talking nearly that long, but it's going to be longer. We need to get a handle on the growth rate. So… we'll see, all right? Once we have a better idea, we can pin down a better due date. Sound good?"

"Ok," Alec said, and exhaled slowly. "Triplets." He slid off the exam table and turned. Rather than let Max do the same, he grabbed her around the hips and lowered her to the ground. "We can do this."

Instead of smacking him for his high-handed behavior, Max just smiled and leaned back into him. Once again, Alec could kick himself for missing the appointment, and letting Max have her freak-out session alone. This was definitely a two person mission.

"Can we head out then?" he asked. He began looking for her clothes so she could change out of the hospital gown. Alec wanted to take Max back to their apartment and become better acquainted with Baby Three in the privacy of their own home.

"Of course. We'll see you back here bright and early in two days. Ok, Max?"

"Sure thing."

"We'll both be here," Alec promised.

"And if you could come unarmed, we'd appreciate it," Peterson added, eyebrows raised.

"Ah, come on, Doc." Alec grinned. "You wouldn't recognize us if we weren't threatening you."

Peterson just shook his head and walked away from them. "My dad wanted me to be a lawyer," he muttered under his breath, "but no… I went with vet school and got homicidal cats."

More tomorrow…