"No, it's violet!"

"Nuh uh! Whatever, homegirl, you know I'm right!"

"Cindy...VIOLET!"

"You color-blind? Any fool can plainly see that it is NOT violet." Original Cindy's stance emitted hostility. With her hands on her hips, she leaned slightly forward, looking like she was about to smack her opponent any second.

"Are you callin' me a fool?" Max wasn't as adamant as Original Cindy was. Her face was blank, but every now and then, the corners of her mouth could be seen quirking up, and her head would shake a bit because she was trying hard to keep from exploding with laughter and getting Original Cindy's wrath.

"Max, seriously, I'm telling ya, it's totally purple...I can't see how it can be MORE obvious." Max and Original had unconsciously stumbled into the argument when Max came up a few minutes before and complimented her.

Normal, even from the other side of the room, overheard their conversation. Annoyed, he started making his way through the crowd of people, pushing them out of the way when the were coming to close to him.

Max and Original Cindy didn't even notice him because they were still completely involved in their conversation. Cindy was frustrated, chewing on her gum with vehemence. Max just calmly stood there with her arms crossed, looking straight in Original Cindy's eyes, which made her even more irritated.

Normal walked up to them with a brown package in his hand. "Ladies, is there a problem here? I see packages. I see them here. I'm even ACTUALLY HOLDING ONE! But is it supposed to be in my hand? NO! You two are supposed to take them to their respective owners. That's what you are PAID to do. SIMPLE! I don't need you two standing around, taking up space, arguing about what color her NAILS are!!! Get going!"

Max's dark eyes glared at him. She shot Cindy an incredulous look as to say 'Can you believe this guy?' "Get a grip, Normal, I'll do it when I feel like it, 'kay?"

"Fine! But don't blame me if a certain smart-ass finds herself unemployed tomorrow." And with that he left to yell at some poor guy standing too close to his desk.

"He should be happy that Original Cindy's pulling in overtime." Cindy grumbled.

"Well Normal's gotta be himself, otherwise he'd become tolerable."

"Got that right."

Cindy smiled, all was forgotten, and that argument was ridiculous. She erased her smile and quickly frowned as Max's pager went o f. "Well, duty calls, I gotta blaze."

"Don't you mean 'booty call'? Rich boy sure has you on one short leash." Cindy's all knowing, no nonsense tone bothered Max a little, enough for her to get defensive.

Max narrowed her eyes slightly; she didn't want to get into another drawn out conversation. "Funny. He's a friend, that's all." She said dismissively. She knelt down and picked up an envelope that she had left there a moment before. Max planned to give Logan a call later and tell him that she would be over after she was done working.

"Sure, and I'm gonna be employee of the month."

"Don't sell yourself short. See ya tomorrow!" Max adjusted her hat. She steered her bike around the various people loitering around, and gave Normal a little wave so he would know that she was leaving to deliver packages. Complaining and mumbling something about 'lazy, good for nothing...," he gave her a slight nod.

"Yeah, drive safe, babe." Cindy smirked at Max's retreating back. With her hand on her hip, she then turned slightly and leaned forward to get Sketchy's attention. He was standing a few steps away. Grabbing a tight hold of his shirtsleeve, she looked straight into his eyes. "Hey, dude, what color are Original Cindy's nails? Violet or purple?" she demanded while wiggling her fingers out at him.

Sketchy looked perplexed. He couldn't help but wonder if Original would hit him if he said the wrong thing. "Uh, what's the difference?"

Cindy's eyes widened in aggravation, and, letting out an exasperated sigh, she said, "Men! Can't live with 'em and Original Cindy can sure live without 'em!" Letting go of Sketchy she headed in the opposite direction in search of a person who would tell her that her nails were purple.

*****

Max found Logan that night in his office absorbed with whatever was on his computer screen. "Knock knock." When he heard her, he turned his chair around to face her.

"You know, actually knocking might be just as effective." Logan smiled to let her know he was just joking.

"Well, I didn't want you to bother getting the door," She stopped to think briefly and added as an afterthought, "but it's not like you get it anyways. Besides, who else would be knocking on your door this late?"

"Other people, maybe?"

She slightly shrugged her shoulders. "I thought I was your favorite visitor."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I don't know." With a small grin on her face, Max went on, "So is this a social thing, or are we conducting serious business?"

"Serious business, I'm afraid." Logan turned back to face his monitor.

"So, who's the evil-doer this time, where is he, and when do I get to kick his ass?"

Logan chuckled a bit. "It's not that easy."

"Sure it is, cuz, well, I'm me and he's not."

"Getting cocky aren't we?" Logan couldn't help but smile at her attitude; she obviously had no problem with self-confidence.

"What? I can't help it if I do my job so well."

"Well the perpetrator is Lou Gardner. I'm not sure, but I suspect he's running a drug ring. Supposedly he sells a variety of sorts, but specializes particularly in a new drug, OI-k56..."

"OI-k56? Never heard of it"

"That's because it's a new drug, I would think you would actually pay attention when I'm talking." Logan smiled; he couldn't help teasing her a little bit. She was always eager to kick some ass, but she had very little patience for the drudgework, the research.

Max rolled her eyes. She was about to retort when he started talking again.

"So anyway, the drug is believed to potentially be very beneficial. It's a stimulant. In a nutshell, it gives the body more energy and is conveniently manufactured in a simple pill form..."

"What's so special about this drug? Does the same thing as caffeine, why would this guy sell it on the black market?"

"Quit interrupting." A hint of exasperation could be detected in his voice.

Max only shrugged.

"Ok, it also somehow increases production of ATC molecules in the blood, enough so that a small pill would equal a vigorous hour-long workout. Builds muscle, strength. An easier way to get healthier and stronger without the hassle and time of exercise." He pointed to his screen, showing her a list of the ingredients. "Made up of pretty basic stuff...weird combination though."

Max glanced at the list briefly. After taking off her dark coat, she tossed it onto the couch behind them. She impatiently shifted from one leg to the other, and then decided on impulse to grab a chair. Flipping it around she sat in it backwards, next to Logan at his desk. She leaned over, putting her elbows on the desk. "So, are we getting to the bad part yet? You know, the part where I find out what he's done wrong and then go out and discipline him." She drummed a few fingers on Logan's desk, while resting her chin in her other hand.

"Well, OI-k56 has side-effects; a few bugs that haven't been worked out. The accelerated ATC production gives off a lot of heat. Enough to break down and destroy human cells..."

"Causing the body to cook?"

"Kind of crude to put it that way, but yeah. Here are various stages of it." Logan changed the screen so she could
see pictures of the same person experiencing different phases of the effects. The person in the picture was young,
probably no older than seventeen. By the time she got to the last picture, she was thoroughly disgusted. The skin
was barely hanging onto the bones by then.

"He's dead after fifteen days of use." Logan added quietly.

"Why are people buying it then? Why do they continue to use it after they notice they smell like chicken?" She
kept staring at the last picture. Slightly uncomfortable, she was rocking back and forth.

Logan gave a small grimace at the last comment. "They don't realize the side effects until it's too late, and it's
addictive, very addictive. They see a cheap, quick way to get stronger more easily, to have more energy, without the
hassle. It's advertised as a miracle herbal remedy. I've heard that they practically give the first few doses away, so
that the victim is dependent on the drugs, and then they make them pay for it." He noticed Max staring at the
screen. After reaching over to switch it back to his text, he turned back to her and gave her a small smile.

"Pretty brutal, huh?"

"Not the prettiest thing I've seen"

"That's why we have to find out more about this, and fast."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"First I want substantial proof of Gardner's connection with OI-k65..."

"And how do I get that?"

"He's a wealthy man, owns a corporation, WareTech, he wouldn't want any connection to be made between him and
an illegal drug. That's why it's so hard for me to be sure. All I know for certain is that he sure had invested a lot in
this drug. He may have little lapdogs doing his dirty work for him. I received a tip. Tonight, there's a shipment
coming in, and I want you there, ready to get descriptions of men involved. Any ID you can find is good; see where
they go, and find out who the supplier is, that's all you do, here's a camera, take some pictures, and then we'll see if
there's any connection to Gardner." He said while tossing her a small rectangular black camera.

She easily caught the small object, "You don't have to throw it. I'm right beside you."

"I'll remember that next time, and by the way, I tossed it."

"Tip a reliable source?"

"Hasn't steered me wrong yet."

There was a drawn out pause, Max really didn't know what else to say, Logan was too absorbed with his computer
screen.

"This is going to be fun..." Max said, interrupting the silence.

~What's that supposed to mean?~ "Joking? Or are you serious?" Logan looked down at his hands, and avoided her
eyes. He didn't think that he would be able to bear seeing the statement behind them. Perhaps boredom,
indifference, animosity towards him for making her do something that she didn't want to do.

Max stared over at him, her eyes scrunched up in confusion; partly because of his reply and partly because he was
deliberately not looking at her. "Well I'm not too fond of the whole stealthy waiting and watching aspect of this
job." She replied cautiously. 'Is that the right answer?'

"You think of this as a job?" Logan stated it more than questioned it. His statement was solemn. He looked up at her
face this time, searching for any signs that might tell him what she was thinking.

"Well, yeah, I do the leg work, and then you pay me with info." She replied lightly.

"And I thought you were doing this because fighting for the greater good is on your list of things to do." It was
meant to be a light quip, but he said it too evenly. Breaking eye contact, he turned back to his monitor.

"Ok, where, boss?" Max figured that whatever was on Logan's mind that had caused him to act so 'gloomy' would
go away if she steered the conversation back to business.

"Don't call me boss. Downtown Seattle, the International District, umm, do you know that place? With the fish
market on the left side and the spice store on the right...graffiti on walls...Village something."

"That's specific. Graffiti's everywhere, so are fish and spices." Max said sarcastically, "But lucky for you, I know
what you're talking about it, Village Pavilion, right?" She had been swinging her right leg back and forth and
accidentally kicked the table, startling Logan.

He looked at her suspiciously. "Yeah, that's it. You a little fidgety?"

"Yeah, well I haven't had any action for two whole weeks. Believe it or not, I'm kinda getting used to this superhero
lifestyle."

"Getting a conscience?" He asked, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"Naw, I think I just like kicking people."

Logan nodded a little; it looked like he was concentrating on something else. "That must be it," he murmured softly.

"So when are they meeting?" She spoke up, getting his attention.

He looked up and saw her eyes narrow with impatience. "Eleven thirty, tonight, but it's best to be there early."

"I have an hour before I'm supposed to be smacking bad guys around? Give a girl some time to get ready at least."
Max rewarded him with a real smile, finally.

"I wasn't sure, and my contact wasn't very clear. He's a nervous guy. Besides, you have plenty of time, AND I called
you way before you were supposed to be smacking bad guys around. You now have a whole hour to get down
there and do your thing."

"Ok, I'm on it...BOSS" Max stood up and returned to chair to its original place next to the table. She gave Logan a
mock salute and turned to get her coat.

"Hey! Report back when you're done, I don't care how late it is, I need the information as soon as possible."

"Report?" She let out a short noise that sounded suspiciously like a snort. "Okay, yes sir!" She leaned over the
couch to grab her coat and started to head towards the door. She was almost through it before Logan's voice
interrupted her stride.

"Be careful!"

With her back to him, a slow smile spread across her face. She turned around, quickly erasing the grin, and said
innocently "Aren't I always?"

Logan looked up to the side, pretending to think, then he gazed back at her, "Like I said, -be careful."

*****

~Why do bad guys always meet somewhere damp, dark and dirty? Why not a warm condo?~ Max wondered. She
had already been there for an hour and there were no signs of anything happening. Crouching beside a rusty
aluminum vent on the roof of the building, she wondered how much longer she would have to wait.

The building was one of seven on that particular street. It was once white, but all the rain and mud turned the
peeling paint into a grayish-brown color. Max looked at broken cement roof once again and made sure that she
wasn't coming into contact with anything too unpleasant. She had chosen to watch from the highest building,
which was only twenty feet tall. But it was tall enough to avoid the street lamps.

~If someone would get here already...~

Letting out a small sigh she re-scanned the area for what seemed like the fiftieth time.

Nothing.

The same blinking neon sign was still across the street. The dark asphalt parking lot was still shining from the recent
rain, and people were still rushing back and forth.

~You'd think people would try to be punctual when buying drugs. Maybe Logan got the time wrong, or the
day...probably not. Maybe it isn't the Village Pavilion. Why would anyone want to meet in front of a market? Why
are there so many people around? Don't they know what time it is? Maybe I missed something...~ Her mind whirled
with all the possibilities. She was getting impatient.

She was about to give up and tell herself that there wasn't going to be a drug deal when she saw something that
caught her attention. It was a sandy haired man walking slowly towards the center of the parking lot. He wasn't
rushing and chatting like everyone else around him. His composed yet nervous attitude contrasted with everyone
else's frenzied purchasing state. He cautiously looked around.

In front of the building, Max could see another man in a dark brown hat get out of his car. He was walking with his
back to her and his hat covered too much of his face. That wouldn't have even gotten a lot of her attention, but this
man started to head towards the sandy haired guy in that same calm manner; except for he had no nervousness in
his posture.

Finally, the two men met. The brown hat guy held something that she couldn't make out. It was long and black. It
blended too well with the asphalt so that she couldn't tell its outline from so far away. It wasn't a gun, she knew that.
The man's back was to Max, and even with her enhanced vision, she couldn't get a good look at his face. A person
walking by constantly obstructed his face, or his hat would cast an impenetrable shadow. She could see the other
man fairly well though, so she imprinted his face into her memory.

The two men started talking, the first one started gesturing nervously while looking around. The second one didn't
seem too concerned with what the first man was saying. He stood there, clam and collected. Max watched as the
sandy haired guy said something that made the other man to reach out and grab his arm. It wasn't really a
threatening act. It was more like a surprised act.

Max watched with interest. She couldn't tell for sure if it was a normal male squabble, or if it was the meeting. She
wondered why the meeting would only consist of two men. She moved her head and started to concentrate on the
first man. His coat was flimsy and it occasionally flapped away from him at the sides. Underneath, she could see a
tiny dark object against his white shirt.

~Why would a guy, who is not the police, carry around a radio at the market?~ Max asked herself. She reasoned
that these were the men that she was looking for. She took note that the one with the radio looked frightened as the
other man took out his own radio and said something into it. 'That's weird.'

~Gotcha, next step is simply watching, pictures, and then reporting later~ Max shifted her position to get a better
view of the men. She took out the camera so that she was ready for a long night of staking out.

*****

"Ugh, sleep, good." Logan murmured after he hoisted himself onto his bed and was laying face down. He let the
tiredness lift from his back. He was exhausted. He had been up for nineteen hours working on his contact, coaxing
out information while trying to get as much stuff on OI-k65 as possible. Logan figured that Max would come and
wake him up when she was done. He just hoped that she stuck to the original plan, to watch, just watch and do
nothing else.

He was about the drift off into dreamland when a high-pitched beep rudely snapped him back into reality.

"Go away." He mumbled into his pillow. But his computer terminal continued to beep loudly from his office.
Grunting and groaning, he opened his eyes and turned over to reach for his glasses. While putting them on, he
peered at the clock on his nightstand. It read 1:06 AM. After sitting up he twisted his body so he could lean back
into the wheelchair next to his bed.

Listening to the incessantly screeching machine in the next room, he got annoyed. Reaching the door to his office
he threw open the door and quickly rolled to the desk. Grabbing the headset lying on top of a speaker, he put it on
messily and proceeded to punch in on his keyboard the password to his security system, making the beeping noise
stop. Logan watched with disinterest as the desktop faded into a screen revealing the face of a man. The man
looked like he was in his mid-thirties. Dark hair uncombed, and with a long pointed nose on his face.

"What?!" Logan knew that the man on the other side of the screen couldn't see his tired and angry statement.

"Er...sorry Eyes, man, but ya said that I could, uh, call ya anytime I need ta, so...uh...I did...um...I am." The man
stuttered. His didn't know who Eyes Only was. Talking to someone without a face made him uneasy.

"Listen, Redi, I didn't think that you would actually take 'anytime' literally. It's one in the morning. I sleep too, you
know." Logan couldn't help but sound cross.

"Sorry, man, but I wouldn't have called if it wasn't something big." Redi flashed an apologetic smile.

"And by 'big', you mean...?" Logan really had no interest in whatever it was that Redi was about to babble about, he
just wanted to sleep.

"The drug-switch. No deal tonight. Got canceled."

"Canceled? You sure? How do you know?" That got his attention. Logan jolted up straight. He was awake and alert.

"Positive, swear to you on my dog's grave, man. I was hanging out at the usual place. Overheard Seattle PD talking
'bout it. " Redi made little jerky hand movements that distracted Logan a bit.

"Your dog?" He asked, flustered. "Never mind, why was the deal canceled?" he brushed off the original comment.
"Where do you hang out?" He added later, clearly confused.

"Here and there..." Redi was purposely vague.

"Never mind, I don't care anymore. Why was the deal canceled?" He concentrated on his original question.

"Dunno for sure, but...uh...something about a in--inter-ception?"

"Interception? What's that supposed to mean?" Logan demanded.

"Like I said already, I ain't got no clue, some big army dude in charge though...name sounds something
like...uh...Lybeckner?"

"Lybeckner?" Logan repeated carefully. All he could think about was that it was too much of a coincidence that it
couldn't possibly be true. 'What are the chances?' Somehow, he didn't believe his own logic.

Redi nodded casually.

"Any chance the name you are thinking of is 'Lydecker'?" 'Please say no.' He bit his lip in anticipation.

Redi suddenly brightened up. "Yeah! Man, I remember trying to sound that one out. Geez, when the guy next to me
was talkin' bout some dude takin' over I wasn't that interested but after..."

He rambled on further but all Logan did was block out his words. All he could think about was that Max was in the
same vicinity as Lydecker. A thousand things flashed through his mind. His biggest worry was her safety. Logan
didn't know what to feel. He was just numb.

"Are you sure?" Logan's voice was low and strangled.

"Yeah, man, have I ever steered ya wrong?" Redi replied cheerily.

That only made Logan more panicked. "No! Are YOU SURE?" He enunciated the last two words firmly.

On Logan's screen, Redi could be seen blinking rapidly. Logan's outburst caught him off guard. "uh huh. Definitely,
I swear on my..."

"Dog's grave, yeah I got it." Logan interrupted. He was staring at Redi through his monitor, questioning his every
comment. Although he knew that he wouldn't purposely lie to him. The guy was just too laid back to be the
conniving type. "Anything else." Logan held his breath. He hoped that there was nothing else.

"That's all I got, Eyes."

"You sure?" Logan watched him warily.

"Yup"

"Ok, thanks, Redi. You did good."

"Maybe I'll see ya later, man. Wait, maybe not." Redi said beaming, he was happy that he was able to help Eyes.

"I'll send you money later."

"Not to be ungrateful and all, but I gotta ask, when?" Redi's face reflected total innocence.

"Soon, don't worry about it."

"Thanks, you're a real pal."

"Bye."

Logan quickly cut the line and removed his headset. He sat there unmoving for a moment before he took off his
glasses to rub his eyes. He banged his head on his desk purposely and let out an agonized groan.

~This is just great.~ He thought dejectedly.
 
 

~What are they doing?~ Max had been holding her unwavering gaze on the two men and neither of them seemed to
be doing anything that resembled a drug exchange. They stood around. A few words would be exchanged every
few seconds, but they doing nothing out of the ordinary. She had been there for what seemed like forever, but was
actually only for a half an hour. She had already taken a million pictures of the sandy haired man, but the guy with
the hat wouldn't give her a good view.

~First man came, Second one joined. Stood around talking. Still standing around.~ She relayed everything in her
mind and she came up with no definite conclusion. She started to consider the possibility that maybe these were not
the men that she was supposed to watching out for.

~But then why are they just standing there?~ The only plausible conclusion that Max could come up with was that
maybe the men were waiting for a third person to join them.

~I'm missing something~ she thought squirming around a little. Her legs were falling asleep from squatting in the
same position for so long. She let a small frustrated sigh. Then some movement below caught her attention.

~Hey! He's moving!~ She was finally going to get a shot at the hat guy. He took out his own radio and turned
slightly so he could have some privacy from the other man.

Max stood up to get a good view of his face. She was in position to get a decent shot. She stood there and waited
for people to stop weaving in front of the man. ~Any moment now.~ She thought as she watched him turn around
fully.

*****

Donald Lydecker was displeased. The grim statement on his face clearly showed that. He took out his radio and
spoke into it. "Look, Joe, I'm telling you, there is nothing happening tonight."

"Give it five more minutes, Don, I'm sure they'll turn up." Replied 'Joe'.

"Look." Lydecker began dangerously. "I want this drug as much as you do, but when they don't show up, we have
a PROBLEM, and it's been six 'five-minutes' already..." He briefly glanced at Crouche, the sandy haired man, before
he turned around to give himself more privacy.

"I know that, Don, but this is probably the only chance we'll get."

"Then why don't you get your own ass down here?" Lydecker hissed into the radio.

"You know I would if I could, but I have things to do." His voice sounded reasonable and composed.

"Things to do? Like what?" Lydecker obvious doubted the fact that his business partner had anything to do.

"Do you want me to list them?"

"Listen, I don't want to accept the fact that we missed it, or that word got out about us being here, but it's true." He
paused to think. "And by the way, Joe, there's always another opportunity, believe me. So whether you like it or
not, I'm leaving and..." A little flicker on the roof of the building distracted Lydecker. 'What is that?'

He concentrated on where he thought he saw the flicker of light. It lasted only a split second but Lydecker was sure
that he had seen it. It looked like it came from the top of the highest building.

'That's odd. There shouldn't be any light there since the building avoids all the streetlights, and if there was an item
up there that light can be reflected upon, it's unlikely that the light would appear and then disappear.' He wondered
what that meant. 'So whatever reflected the light must be moving, and there's no wind to move a lightweight object,
so that must mean...'

"Don...Don? Donald?"

"Shut up for a second." Lydecker replied. He held up his flashlight quickly and snapped the switch to reveal a
bright beam of light. Looking like a deer trapped in the headlights, Max had an statement of horror on her face. Her
camera lens had reflected the light from the neon sign across the street.

Still holding his gaze on her, he spoke into the radio. "Get me as many men as you possibly can down here, now!"

"What is it? What's happening?"

"Just do it!"

*****

A few moments before she was exposed, Max was shrouded in darkness, and diligently watched as the man turned
around fully. She could see enough to make out his features. Her heart caught in her throat as his face morphed into
something recognizable in her mind. It was Lydecker. ~Shit~

She couldn't do anything; she was frozen. He hadn't seen her yet. Her mind was frantically telling her legs to leave,
to get the hell out of there as fast as possible. But she couldn't. She was frozen on the spot and she didn't know
why.

~Is he looking at me?~ No, he couldn't be, she was sure that the vent provided a shadow that hid her silhouette.
Nevertheless, she could feel his eyes on her. No! He can't see her. Her mind was just playing tricks on her. Yeah.

~I should stay a bit more, see what he's doing here.~ That sounded logically enough, to stay and see what he
wants. Or maybe she was just trying to prove to herself that she wasn't scared of anything.

~That I'm not scared of him.~ She immediately brushed that stray thought from her mind. She resumed watching
him.

But then he had to go and hold up that flashlight. ~So the blunt object was a flashlight.~

The second the beam hit her, she felt a physical reaction to it. She wanted to throw up. She was frozen, this time in
absolute horror, not at him, but at the situation.

~Move!~ Her mind was telling her that over and over again, but she couldn't comprehend it. All she could think
about was that it was him. She felt this intense hatred and hostility.

~He killed Zack.~

~Zack is dead because of him.~

~No! Zack is still out there!~ She chastised herself. Max couldn't help but feel a wave of guilt flow over her. It
should have been her in that plane crash. Somehow, she was spared. And Zack wasn't anywhere to be found.

~It's my fault.~

With that final thought spoken in her head, she made a conscious effort to snap her mind back to the present.

~Move!~

Then she saw it. He had a smirk on his face, a look of pure satisfaction and control. She saw him say something into
his radio while the other man looked on, confused.

~He's probably calling his men.~ There it is again. He's held his flashlight at her, and he smirked in triumph. People
began to gather around, perplexed at the two. The crowd whispered around.

~That's it.~

~It's over.~

~He's got me.~

~I can't move.~

A sharp rush of exploded air went past her ear and interrupted her reverie. Down below, she could here Lydecker
yelling at the man next to him with the gun.

The bullet had put her in motion. She sprinted across the roof in no time. Covered in darkness again she felt eerily
safe, but with a tightness in her chest. Reaching the edge of the building, she paused briefly. She saw the men
dressed in black head towards her so she did the only thing she could do; she jumped. The next building was about
fifteen feet away.

Max could feel her knees snapping straight as she sprang up and she felt them bend again as she landed on the flat
roof of the other building. She could hear the bullets whiz past her body as the men dressed in black fired at her
liberally.

~Run!~ Her mind screamed.

She forced her body to take off, going as fast as possible. Reaching the edge, she grabbed a metal pole and made
her way down the fire escape. She climbed down only a few feet before she decided to just let go of the ladder. She
fell the rest on the way down and landed easily on her feet.

There was already a man waiting down there for her in the darkness. Before he could call for help, she had already
jumped behind him and delivered a quick blow to his head with the back of her arm. He crumbled to the ground,
unconscious, and she made her way down the dark alley. Turning a few times, she noticed that the streetlights were
brightly lit. She tried, but she couldn't avoid them all. Luckily the streets were deserted due to the previous incident
involving her.

Max hadn't even gone twenty yards when she heard behind her, a clamoring of footsteps first pausing to announce
the unconscious body, then following her previous route. Her running was halted when she slammed into what she
thought was a wall.

She didn't see it because her head was twisted around to see if there was anyone directly behind her. She fell to the
ground, cursing herself for being too careless. She looked at the object that was the source of her fall. It was a
dumpster.

She made up her mind as she thought ~I've always wanted to lie in a dumpster~ Max noiselessly lifted up the lid.
Easily bracing her body onto the edge, she scowled before letting herself fall in.

~It stinks.~ She tried to block that out of her mind as she squeezed and wriggled herself lower until she was
completely hidden from the surface. Holding her breath, she waited among the banana peels and other rotting food,
oozing out of their trash bags. She, once again, held back the need to throw up.

Silencing her movements, she heard the footsteps of about twenty men. They momentarily stopped near the
dumpster. A gruff voice commanded that someone look in the dumpster. The other men proceeded forward as two
stayed behind to check.

Max tensed up as she heard the lid open up. ~Dammit~

*****

Logan didn't know what to do. There was no way for him to contact Max so that he could warn her. He tensely
rolled into his office and picked up the phone. As soon as he held it up to his ear, he was clueless. He had no one to
call that could possibly be of any help. Slamming the phone back down in frustration he knocked over the books on
his desk. He ignored his fallen paperbacks and picked up his remote, pointing to the T.V. hoping there was
something on it that clued him in on Max's situation.

Nothing.

Not being able to bear sitting there, doing nothing, Logan clicked off the television set and rolled to his closet. He
grabbed the first jacket that he saw and haphazardly threw in on himself. He headed to the door leaving his brightly
lit apartment, going into the dark dreary night to find Max.

He didn't care that there was basically no chance that he would ever find her. Sitting around, waiting, doing nothing
was driving him crazy. He felt helpless, and when he felt helpless, he was useless.

He had managed to get into his car without too much difficulty. He was mainly concentrating on his own self-pity,
and on Max. Why was he doing this? Was it his guilt? He was the one that sent her to the pavilion. Was he trying
to erase the helplessness he felt, or was it something more? Starting the engine and not knowing the answers to
either of his questions, he headed towards downtown Seattle.

*****

Holding her breath, Max squeezed her eyes shut as she felt the lid open up. She mentally yelled at herself for
picking a dumpster as a hiding place. Straining to hear the muttering of the men, she still remained passive. She had
decided that striking first would bring attention. The lid began to creak as it was lifted.

"Geez! It smells like shit in here!" She heard on of them say. Luckily, she was hidden from their view.

"Hurry up and check!"

She felt someone rustling of the bags around and some poking. The man that was 'checking around' was using a
metal pole that he found on the ground to search with. She felt him nearly poking her a few times. She could do
nothing but helplessly lie there, hoping that they would just leave. They were so close to exposing her that it made
her want to just throw cautions to the wind and snap their necks, but something held her back.

She tensed up again as she felt the long rod nearly getting shoved into her stomach, but the soldier pulled it back
within a few centimeters. She let out a small silent sigh of relief.

*****

Logan had driven around aimlessly, trying to find the right place, although he didn't know where or what the right
place was. His heart was racing and he was just terrified that something horrible had happened.

When he managed to get to the Village Pavilion unscathed from his reckless driving, he saw a crowd of people and
men with guns scattered around. In the midst of it all was a very flustered Lydecker. One of the armed men gestured
for him to stop his car. Logan pulled up beside him in a corner of the large parking lot, away from Lydecker's view.

Rolling down his window, he smiled to the man holding the gun. "Yes, officer?"

"'Scuse me sir, but this area is quarantined, you're going to have to leave." The soldier's tone seemed friendly
enough.

Logan feigned a look of mild surprise. "Oh, I didn't realize that." He looked thoughtful. "What's going on
anyways?" He couldn't help but try to find out as much as possible about the situation.

The soldier assessed Logan and decided that he was harmless enough. "Nothin' much, just some guy blowing
things way outta proportion."

"What do you mean?" Logan assumed that the guard was talking about Lydecker.

"Can you believe that we are all here so we can capture one female? It's ridiculous to stand out here at two in the
morning looking for a supposed fugitive."

"That is pretty dumb." Logan said, agreeing with him. He was pleased that the guard was willing to give away the
information so easily.

"Far as I know, she didn't kill no one." The guard observed Logan's incredulous statement and nodded in
agreement.

"This much trouble for just one woman?"

"Tell me about it! Not even a woman, a girl. Old man's nuts." The guard obviously didn't want to be there, looking
around for what he thought was a harmless girl.

"What's so dangerous about her?" Logan questioned.

The man, resting his arm on the car door, leaned in closer to Logan, "I dunno, something about her being a threat to
something or other."

"So you guys didn't catch her yet?" Logan asked.

"Naw...not yet, not that it'll be a big deal if we don't." He signaled his hand around as if he was dismissing the
situation.

Logan took some time to think over what the guard had said. He ended the conversation by starting his engine.
"Well, it's getting late, I suppose I should go somewhere else for my fish."

"Have a safe morning, sir." The guard said with a smile and minor wave.

"Yeah, you too." Logan cheerfully said.

He backed out of the parking lot and started to drive down the damp street. The guard waved once more to Logan
as he left.

Removing the fake grin on his face after he was a safe distance away, Logan sighed and concentrated on the road.
He didn't have any clue where Max was.

'At least Lydecker doesn't have her' he thought optimistically. 'Yet'

Driving straight ahead, he just hoped that she was all right.

*****

"Look, I don't think she's in there, let's just go, I'm gonna pass out from all this crap."

"Yeah, whatever."

Max felt a wave of relief. They were finally leaving.

"Hold on there, what's that?" She heard one of them say. They clicked on their flashlights and she could sense that
they were too close. She opened her eyes to see another pair of eyes peering directly at her. The owner of those
eyes was holding the lid open while his partner reached for his radio.

Max reached out a grabbed the guy with the radio with her left hand. With her other arm, she wrapped her hand
around the other guys head and slammed it down onto the side of the dumpster. She cringed as she heard the loud
noise that it made. She didn't repeat the action with the guy on her left; instead, she briefly let go of his shirt and
backhanded him with her fist hard enough so that he lost consciousness and dropped his radio. Hearing footsteps,
Max quickly lifted the two men into the dumpster with her and picked up the lid quietly.

She felt the darkness envelop her again as the lid was dropped down on the dumpster. Waiting until the incoming
footsteps to disappeared down the street, she reached up with her right arm. Feeling for the indented middle where
the two lids joined, she sat up cautiously and felt the garbage fall off of her. She started to gently push on the edge
of one lid.

Max shivered a bit as she felt something cold and thick run down her back. 'Wonderful. Not only am I all nasty, I
probably stink too. At least I don't look as bad as these guys.' She briefly wondered why she didn't just kill them.

"I'm getting soft." She voiced out loud.

Pushing the lid the rest of the way, she stood up, taking in a breath of fresh air. She carefully flipped the lid over so
that it was hanging by it's hinges on the side of the dumpster noiselessly. Placing her foot on the rusty metal edge
of the dumpster, she gracefully leapt to the ground. Standing up from her crouching position, she took off in the
opposite direction that the soldiers came from.

She threw cautions to the wind and ran as fast as she could, her footsteps silently pounding on the pavement.
Reaching the end of the alleyway, she turned the corner and ran down the brightly lit street.

Max sprinted down the road, avoiding the street lamps. She turned around another building and suddenly stopped
when she saw that there were guards everywhere. At every street corner it seemed. Immediately pushing herself up
to the indented brick wall, she was hidden from view. She moved more quietly and slowly this time. Evaluating her
surroundings carefully, she saw that the only area that was somewhat clear, was up the building. 'Here we go again.'

Max soundlessly leapt up about seven feet to grab onto the lowest windowsill. It was a brick building so it was
sturdy enough. Facing the wall, she tried anchoring her feet on something. She barely managed to hold her balance
while she felt for something better to hold onto with the left hand. Her weight leaned on her right arm. Running her
fingers across the middle of the window, all she felt was smooth glass. Remaining calm, she moved her hand down
and took a hold of the bottom of the window. Yanking up, she was able to open the window without breaking the
glass, but she did manage to bend the metal frame a bit because windows weren't meant to be opened from the
outside.

Balancing on both of her hands, she lifted a leg into the room and effortlessly pulled the rest of her body up. She
squeezed her frame through the tiny window. Max examined the room, her nose crinkling slightly from the musty
smell. It was a storage room, holding miscellaneous items ranging from old fruit to cheap laundry detergent. Making
her way through the dim room faintly lit from the streetlights outside, she walked over to another window, this one
revealing a view of the front. There were about five guards out there. Normally she wouldn't even bat an eyelash,
but the chance was slim that she would be able to take them all out before any of them would call for someone,
therefore, giving away her position.

She couldn't stay in one place forever though. They were bound to find her. Somehow, she would have to make her
way back to the Village Pavilion to get her bike. She was only a few blocks away.

*****

"What do you mean you can't find her?" Lydecker couldn't believe it, but he was strangely calm about it. "I thought
you were right behind her."

"Sorry sir, but she disappeared." The soldier tried to sound firm, but under Lydecker's piercing gaze, it came out
meek.

"A person cannot just vanish, not even her, you lost her."

The soldier cringed and visibly shrunk a bit under Lydecker's penetrating glare. "We're still looking."

"Make sure that your men look harder."

"Yes, sir."

The soldier quickly retreated. Lydecker turned to stand beside the man next to him, but looked straight ahead.

"I don't get it Don, what's so important about catching this particular girl?"

"I have my reasons, Joe." 'Joe' finally came out the see what the commotion was about. He stood firmly next to
Lydecker.

"You know you've ruin any possible chance of getting our hands on OI-k65, right? The crowd here is undoubtedly
going to scare away any drug deal."

"This is something bigger, makes the drug deal pale in comparison."

"Then why won't you tell me what it is?"

"You should worry about your 'business' and I'll worry about mine."

"You lost me a lot of money, possible research too."

"How much do I owe you then?" Lydecker said, still concentrating straight ahead.

"It doesn't matter. These are my men, I'm...ahem...I am going to have to call them all back. Sorry, Don, but this is
costing me big money and you won't even tell me why you threw it all away to chase some supposedly dangerous
female."

Lydecker looked sharply in his direction. "You have no idea what you are doing."

"You're right, I don't, because you won't tell me. Look, I want to help you, I really do, but Crouche is getting antsy.
He's got a lot riding on this meeting and when they don't show up, and you start ordering men to chase around one
person. What's he going to think?"

"Who cares what he thinks?"

"I don't like him anymore than you do, but he has money, money that I need. I'm wasting my own time and money
right now. I sorry, but I'm calling my men back."

"You don't know what you are letting get away."

"Ignorance is bliss. I'm not going to sweat over it if I don't know what it is."

With that last comment he left. Lydecker could do nothing else but stand there, staring straight ahead with his jaw
tight.

*****

Max had already been there for fifteen minutes; she knew that it wasn't smart to stay in the same place for very long.
But she was trapped. There were guards outside, and there were probably guards on the roof too. She just stood
there silently, holding her head down, occasionally looking outside.

'I'm so stupid. I didn't run faster.' She criticized herself harshly for being too sloppy. She didn't know what was going
to happen. Lydecker would probably catch her sooner or later. She would be back at Manticore in no time. Feeling
defeated, she sank down onto the floor. Wrapping her arms around her knees she let out one shaky breath.

'I'm getting emotional.' She didn't know if that was good or bad. For one thing it clouded her judgment. It had frozed
her into place before. Zach was right; her sentimentality was her foreseeable downfall. Because of one stupid feeling
of hatred and fear, she got stuck. There was nowhere for her to go. All she was doing now was delaying the
inevitable.

But on the other hand, the 'sentimentality' made her feel like a real person. Made her feel like she was human, not an
emotionless machine.

'Well how the hell is that suppose to help me? I'm still stuck here because of it.'

Some shouting outside interrupted her thoughts. She was at the window immediately, peering out to see one guard
waving his hand to the others and talking into his radio. The men assembled around the guard with the radio all
stood there, motionless, while it looked like whoever was on the other side of the radio was giving directions. Out of
nowhere, Max saw a black jeep pulled up and the men jump inside, driving away.

'Are they leaving?'

*****

Logan had been driving onto random streets for hours, finding no signs of Max.

'She didn't make it out.'

He kept replaying that over and over in his head. Stopping his car, he just sat there, motionless.

'Is it supposed to feel this bad?' He asked himself.

'Of course it is, because Max is your friend.'

Was that it? Was that the reason why he felt like there was nothing left for him? He was emotionally exhausted. He
didn't want to think anymore. He even lacked the will to drive himself home.

'It's my fault, I did this.'

He closed his eyes and rested his head back. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally forced his eyes open
again and he reached to turn on the ignition.

*****

Max wanted to be sure that every soldier was gone before she made a move to leave. She waited as long as she
possibly could. When it felt like she was able to explode with anticipation she got to her feet and silently let herself
out.

Even though she was positive that there wasn't another body out there, she still stayed hidden in the shadows.

It was a brief trip getting to the Village Pavilion. No one was there. Everyone had left.

Except for the man that stood in the middle of the parking lot.

Lydecker.

He didn't see her, hidden in the shadows, fifty yards away. Pausing briefly to watch him, she saw the statement of
frustration on his face before she took off in the opposite direction.

Making her way out of the Pavilion, she reached the alley where she parked her bike. Slipping on her glasses first,
she straddled the seat, ignited the engine, and took off.

~Yup, just another boring stakeout.~

*****

Logan sluggishly rolled his way to his apartment. He had given up searching for Max. If she was okay, she would
find a way to contact him. He just hoped that she was safe.

His arms were tired, sore to the point where it felt like they were just going to fall off. He reached into his coat
pocket, pulled out his keys, and slid them into the keyhole.

'So now what happens? Do I wait and see if she shows up?'

Logan stopped. He just let go of his keys and he just sat there unmoving. His apartment reminded him of Max.

'Why does it matter so much to me? I was fine when she wasn't in my life before. I can do it again. I don't need her.
For all I know, she can be safe and sound somewhere. I'm probably overreacting.'

'But what if she isn't safe and sound?'

He opened the door, pushing it gently. He started to make his way into his darkened apartment.

He barely notices that something wasn't right.

He snapped a light switch on, illuminating the room, and nearly rolled over a very dirty Max. She was sitting on the
floor in front of his door.

"Sorry, I didn't want to get your furniture all gross." Max said, rubbing at a grimy spot on her cheek. She stood up.

After getting over his initial shock. Logan was suddenly hit with a wave of relief. She was okay. "Max!
You're...you're okay, God I was so...I drove around everywhere...but you...and what are you doing here...how did
you...?" He trailed off.

"Logan, you're making no sense. Whole sentences are a good thing." Max said calmly, her statement blank. She
walked over to the middle of the room with her back to him.

Logan was baffled. She had been hunted down for hours and that's the first thing she says to him? "You okay?"

She shrugged. "I'll be fine once I find some water, soap, and, well, more soap... Was in a dumpster. Other than that,
I'm good, never been better."

"You sure?" He asked skeptically.

"Uh huh, why wouldn't I be?" She acted like showing up at his place early in the morning looking like she had rolled
in a dumpster was a normal occurrence.

Logan was getting a little upset with her nonchalant attitude about the whole thing. He had never been so worried
in his life and she didn't seem to even care. "I looked for you for hours, you know, I was worried."

"Well, you really shouldn't have wasted your time. I told you that I would come back when I was done. See? Here I
am." Max's face reflected only calmness, and Logan didn't understand it.

"Lydecker was there."

"I know." She looked straight into his eyes, but he couldn't see anything in her statement.

"That's all you have to say?"

"What do you want me to say?"

"Nothing. Forget it, Max." Logan was too tired to get into anything with her. "So I guess you figured out that the
drug deal never took place."

"Doesn't take a genius to figure that out."

Logan flinched a bit. "I'm sorry about that, I didn't know until you were already out the door."

"Yeah." Her statement was hard. Logan wasn't sure if she was angry at the fact that he sent her to Lydecker, or if
she actually didn't care.

"So what happened?" He made an effort to watch her face carefully.

She betrayed nothing. "The usual stuff. Got there, took pictures, reported back here."

Logan saw something flicker in her eyes as she said 'reported.'

"So, you're okay?"

"Fine, never been better." That wasn't the answer Logan was looking for.

"You said that already."

"And I meant it the first time, too." Her voice was developing an edge.

"No problems, then?" Logan couldn't help but push the issue.

"I'm getting the feeling that you don't believe me." She peered at him challengingly.

"I just thought that seeing your own personal 'Anti-Christ' would evoke some sort of feeling other than 'okay-ness.'
But then, that's just my little thought." His tone had a hint of sarcasm to it.

"Why don't you stop hinting around and just say it." Max was getting angry, and whether Logan knew it or not, his
every comment was fueling her anger.

"Say what?" He looked challenging at her.

"Say what you're thinking. Don't think that you can manipulate me."

"*I* am manipulating you? You can't actually believe that!"

"Why not?"

"Why are you avoiding the problem?"

"I'm not! There is no problem."

"Yes, there is."

"And what problem would that be, Logan?"

Logan let out an incredulous sigh. "You were in danger, Max. Big danger. And I don't know how you managed to
escape, but you did. You got back here in one piece. But the problem is that you won't give any details and you
won't admit that maybe it shook you up a bit."

"Sorry if I don't want to spill all the gory details. So what? Do you want me to tell you how I heard every individual
bone crack when I slammed my arm into a man's face? Or do you want me to tell you that the damn dumpster that I
had to haul my ass in smelled like shit?"

Logan was silent. He didn't know what to say. Her words weren't the ones that he had expected.

"It was no biggie." Her statement was hard again. She didn't want this to be forced on her. She wanted Logan to
stop his onslaught of questions, specifically the ones regarding how she felt about the whole ordeal.

"No biggie? You could've been captured, or worse, you could've been killed!" Logan usually had no problem
remaining calm in tense situations, but he was tired from driving all over the city. He was exhausted from worrying
about her.

"But I wasn't. Get a grip Logan, it's not like I haven't done this before. I knew what I was doing. I do this a lot."

"That doesn't excuse it!"

"Excuse what? Am I being careless? Am I intentionally putting myself in danger?" Her eyes dared him to answer her
questions. "Let me tell you something, Logan. I have to constantly watch my ass out there. I have to think about
every single damn movement I make until my brain feels like exploding from the sheer amount of concentration. So
excuse me for making one tiny mistake every now and then."

"When I sent you out there, I didn't want you to take any unnecessary risks. You're not invincible, Max. You can
get hurt."

"I knew exactly what I was doing."

"And I suppose you knew exactly what you were doing when you gave away your position." He made it obvious
that he was mad.

That did it, Max was furious. She didn't understand why Logan was blowing this way out of proportion. She was in,
and she got out safe and sound, end of story. Why did he have to pick on her?

"Well, I wouldn't have been in this mess in the first place if someone didn't give me faulty information."

That stung, not only did Logan already think that it was his fault, he thought that Max did too. He avoided her
accusation because he didn't really have a reply to it that wouldn't agree with her. "So you admit it! It was a mess!"

"One that wouldn't have happened if you were doing your job! What is your job, Logan? Is your job making me sit
there for hours, waiting for people that never show up? Is it?!"

"I was doing my job, were you doing yours? What part of 'watch' did you not understand? I don't get it Max, is it so
hard to stay still?"

"I watched! But remember, they never showed up! Can you tell me why?" Her jaw was clenched, she felt like hitting
something.

"Don't change the subject!" He shouted at her. Her avoidance of the situation bothered him a lot.

"What were we talking about then, huh, Logan? It seems to me that we were still talking about the same thing."

"Why...do...you... always...have...to...do...THAT!?" He leaned forward; punctuating every word so there was no
chance that she'd missed anything of it.

"Do what?"

"Play games! Just be honest. Is that so hard? Or was it something that the scientists took out?"

"I've been telling you the truth! Don't you dare accuse me of lying!"

"What else can you call it when you act like it didn't affect you, when it should have. Maybe it really didn't, which
says a LOT, but it affected me! It's not like it matters to you anyways."

"So I'm heartless now, is that it?"

"I didn't say that."

"You certainly hinted it."

"I didn't hint anything. I said what I intended to say. No hidden meanings there, Max. You are just twisting my
words."

"Twisting your words?! You said it! Loud and clear, 'It's not like it matters to you anyways' were your exact words!"

"Well, If I said it, then I must have meant it. Tell me, when you just show up acting like the last few hours didn't faze
you in the least, does that express feelings?" He clutched the arms of his wheelchair so that Max wouldn't notice
that he was shaking.

"Look, I'm sorry I caused you trouble, okay?" She said after a moment of silence, trying to just end the
conversation.

"No you're not!"

That remark hurt her, but she didn't want him to know that. She spoke in a quiet strangled tone. "And how do you
know what I feel? You have no idea. You like to think that you have me all figured out. But the truth is, the real truth
is that you have no idea, none at all, so don't go around pretending that you do."

"Do you feel? Do you even experience the slightest bit of anything?! I don't know! That's exactly my point!"

"Let's keep it that way then, I don't need you getting all 'worried' every time a little problem arises! It happens! If you
can't deal with it, then maybe you

are in the wrong business. I don't need someone ranting on and on about how I screwed up! I know I did! I berate
myself just fine! If that is what 'worrying' is, then I DON'T NEED IT! Got it? I don't NEED IT!"

"So you don't need me? Is that it? Am I in the way?" Logan screamed back at her.

"YES!" The second she blurted that out, she regretted it instantly. She could feel his barriers go up.

He smiled at her.

'Why is he doing that?'

It wasn't the smile that she always got from Logan. This one was emotionally detached and cold. "Logan, I-I didn't
mean that, it sort of just came out..."

"Forget it." His eyes were bitter.

"No, Logan, I'm sorry, I really am."

"Yeah, whatever, it's all right."

"No, it's not, it was a stupid thing to say, I-I didn't mean it." Her face was apologetic. She knew she had crossed the
line. 'He looks so rigid.'

"Then why did you say it?" He asked quietly. His voice was low, but it was tense.

"I dunno." She whispered.

"Listen, I am tired, it's four in the morning, I'm just going to get some sleep, you can let yourself out, right?"

"Logan, we should talk about this..."

"Now you want to talk? Sorry, but I don't feel like talking."

"Logan..."

"I said I didn't want to talk about it." He avoided her face. He turned around and started to head towards his
bedroom.

"But Logan..."

"In fact there's nothing to talk about." Max felt him drift away from her a little further with each additional foot that
seperated them.

"Logan..."

"Quit saying my name!" He shouted.

Max could only stare at him.

"Just leave, Max."

"Will we talk tomorrow?" She asked gently.

"Like I said, there's nothing to talk about." He said rolling away from her and into his room.

He left her feeling dead. She wordlessly turned around and left the same way she came in.

*****

Max entered her building lethargically, steering her bike in the narrow hallways. She turned off all thoughts, all her
feelings. She was just walking now. All she was concentrating was walking because she didn't want to deal with the
ramifications of Logan's words.

~That's it, one foot in front of the other...now do it again, okay, so far so good.~ Except that she wasn't so good.
What did he mean? Despite her acute sense of hearing and her highly developed mind, she didn't understand what
he was getting at. Maybe she did, but didn't want to deal with it. He should know by now that she was trained to be
impassive, detached, so why was he mad at her for being who she is?

~Is that who I am? Really?~ Reaching her door. She slid in and softly closed it behind her. She decided to not wake
up Kendra by taking a shower right then.

Entering her bedroom, she removed her jacket and threw it randomly on the floor.

Without bothering to remove her shoes she collapse onto her bed. She rolled over to look at the ceiling anticipating
the long hours ahead of her.
 
 

She had lain there unmoving, waiting. She didn't know what for though. She had spent hours and hours analyzing
to death what she had to do to make everything with Logan better. She wanted to go over there, offer a truce, and
pretend that things had never gotten so tense. She felt terrible. She felt awful for saying what she did, and if she had
the opportunity to take it back, she would.

But it wasn't that easy.

Things never are.

She wondered if it was over. The partnership. That's what it was. It wasn't the bits and pieces of information he gave
her that made her come. It was that she actually wanted to see him. To listen to him spout off his unattainable ideas.
They were never unattainable in his eyes. Maybe that was what kept her coming back, his eyes.

"Max! You in here?" Kendra breezily pushed opened the door and flipped on the light switch. "You sure came home
late last night, I thought that...whoa! It smells in here..."

"Huh?" Kendra caught Max in mid-thought. "Yeah sorry 'bout that, I was gonna take a shower, but you were
sleeping, and I didn't wanna wake you."

"Next time," Kendra scrunched up her nose. "Don't worry about it."

"I'll make a note of that."

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah, fine, why wouldn't I be?"

"I dunno, Max, could it be that I come in here to find you bathing in your own stink, which, remember, I have no
idea how you got, and staring blankly at the ceiling, so I ask again, are you okay?"

Max couldn't help but grin a little. No matter how bad she felt, it was nice that someone still cared.

"Hey! You still there?"

"Huh? Yeah! Still here, but I think I'm gonna go over there and get myself clean." She said pointing to the bathroom
door. She stood up and started to head in the direction she had pointed.

"Good." Kendra said as Max walked by her. "Very good."

Max only grunted in response.

"Max?"

"Hmm?" She said turning around.

"How did you get so dirty?"

"I'm not sure that you really want to know this." Max debated whether she should tell Kendra or not.

"Trust me, I do." Kendra said, the corners of her mouth quirking up a bit.

"Ok, well the truth is..." she paused for dramatic effect.

Kendra sighed. "Well?"

"I was in a dumpster."

Kendra eyes grew wide. "What?!" Then she started laughing. "Are you serious?"

"Yup." Max gave a little wave as she walked into the bathroom leaving Kendra staring at her.

*****

"Herbal says my nails are purple." Original Cindy snuck up behind Max blurting it into her ear. Because her mind
was elsewhere, Max's head snapped up, startled.

"Wha...what?"

"You heard me, they're purple. You alright, Max? Ya seem kinda jumpy." Max flinched under Original Cindy's
scrutinizing gaze.

"Fine! Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

"Whoa there, Original Cindy ain't looking for no trouble."

"Sorry..." Max said sheepishly, "I just didn't get enough sleep."

"You don't sleep though."

"That must be it then." Max had a far-off statement on her face.

"Huh? You ain't makin' no sense."

"Sorry."

"What's up with all the 'sorry's' It ain't like you. Where's my homegirl, Max?"

Cindy nudged her.

"I'm here, just tired."

"You're tired." Cindy stated skeptically. "R-i-i-i-i-ight."

"I am." Max insisted.

"You know what Original Cindy thinks happened?" She stopped and looked at Max again.

"You're gonna offer me a piece of your wisdom? Or are you gonna stand there and continue to gawk at me?"

Cindy continued to look at Max. Max pretended not to notice, but after a bit she got frustrated.

"What?" Max asked sitting down on a bench and looking up at her resignedly.

"You and rich boy got in a lil' spat." Cindy said sitting down next to her.

"And what made you come to that conclusion?" Max said jadedly.

"Original Cindy knows everything."

"So other than being my annoying friend, you're psychic too?"

"What else could it be? You leave here yesterday in a hurry to call him or whatever. Then the next day you are
walking zombie girl. It don't take no genius to figure it out."

"Well, genius, you can't possibly be more wrong."

"Really?" Cindy said quietly, genuinely concerned.

"Yes." Max replied so pathetically that Cindy couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"Y'know, Max, if you ever need to talk, I'm here. Original Cindy hates seein' ya all sad."

"Yeah, I know."

"So, you'll talk?"

"I don't think I'm ready just yet." Max smiled briefly at Cindy.

"Takin' a rain check?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, that's alright. Jus' find me when you're ready." Cindy said smiling.

"Max! Get your ass over here and deliver this package!" Normal bellowed from across the room.

"That man sure knows how to ruin a moment." Max said.

"No kiddin'."

"I better do what he says." Max got up and left leaving Original Cindy sitting there, contemplating Max's sulkiness.

*****

Max spent the most part of her morning delivering packages. She was pedaling through the busy streets when
someone caught her attention.

"Hey, gorgeous! How 'bout some stuff to get you looking a bit more 'active'?"

She turned around to see a short blond man in a bright blue shirt addressing her. He was standing under a gray tarp
to block the rain. Stopping her bike, she put a foot on the ground and scowled in his direction. He was leering at her.

"What do you want?!" Max barked at him.

"Whoa, chill there, just have something that may interest you." He said, trying

to coax her to come closer.

Max decided to play along and pedaled over to him.

"Name's Al" He held out his hand to her.

She ignored his hand.

It didn't faze him in the slightest. "You got a name, beautiful?"

"Yeah."

"And what name would that be?"

She saw that he held a small medicine bottle filled with green pills. "What's that?" She said, purposely ignoring his
last question.

"I like to call it 'the miracle diet' interested? A little thing like yourself must be concerned with keeping in shape." He
said while looking at her again.

"A little man like yourself should keep his comments to himself, unless he wants to get hurt." Her voice was
dangerously low.

"So what's your name?" He seemed to ignore her last statement.

She grunted and snatched the bottle away from him, peering at the label. "OI-k65"

"Yeah, you can call it that if you want."

"How much?"

"Umm, I usually charge a pretty penny for this stuff, but since you're such a lovely lady, I sell it to you half price, if
you give me your number, that is."

"How much?" She demanded again.

"Twenty bucks for the first batch. There are fifteen pills in there, enough to last you a week or so. So what's your
number?"

The guy's face falls as she handed him forty dollars. "Where do you get this stuff?" She asked, examining the bottle
closely.

"A pal of mine."

She glared at him tensely while holding the small bottle. "Who?"

"I dunno his name."

"You sure?" She looked into his eyes to make sure he wasn't lying.

"Yup, I wouldn't lie to such a pretty lady."

"Make sure that you don't. How do you get in contact with your buddy?"

"What's with all the questions?" He asked suspiciously

"I like to know where my stuff comes from."

"Well, it's genuine, I can tell you that."

"Better be." She started to leave, placing the bottle in her pocket.

"Hey! Come back anytime!" The guy said brightly as she was riding off.

*****

Peering at the bottle, she didn't know what to do with it. She just watched to pills roll around as she sat on the
bench.

"Whatcha got there?" Max looked up to see Original Cindy and Herbal peering down at her.

"Nothing." She said shoving the bottle into her jacket pocket quickly.

"Didn't look like nuttin' Looked a lot like sumting to me." Herbal said frowning.

"Herbal, I'm sure if Max says there nothin' then they're nothing." Cindy spoke up thinking that the pills were for
Max's seizures.

"Yeah, don't worry about it, Herbal." Max looked up at him smiling. "I'm fine."

"Make sure thatcha are." He said looking worried. He noticed that Max wasn't herself all morning, and her mood
didn't seem to be improving as the day wore on.

"Herbal, why don't you go over to Sketchy, me and Max got some chattin' to catch up on." Cindy stated pointing to
Sketchy with her head.

"All righty." Herbal walked past Max, patting her on the back. "Feel better."

"Thanks." Max made an effort to brighten up.

"Sooo..." Cindy said sitting down after Herbal left. "What's up?"

"Nothin' much."

"Your seizures been buggin' you?" She asked concerned.

"Not too much, just looking at the pills." Max admitted, telling herself that she wasn't exactly lying, just letting
Cindy think something else.

"Well...have you called him?"

"Who?" Max asked looking at her hands.

"Don't play dumb with me, Original Cindy knows you."

"I can't call him."

"Well, if you're not ready..." Cindy said soothingly. They both sat side by side in silence.

"Can I cash in that rain check now?" Max blurted out.

Original Cindy beamed. "Sure!"

*****

"So what did you do after that?"

"What was I supposed to do? I went home, he didn't want to talk to me anymore,

I couldn't very well bang his bedroom door down." Max had spilled out as much of the story as possible, leaving
out parts about Lydecker and the dumpster, which made the story more difficult to tell, but she was managing.

"Why not?"

Max laughed quietly. "Because...it's...you know..."

"See! Ya shoulda done that!"

"And then what? Beat him up?"

"Well, that's not a bad idea, someone needs to knock some sense into that boy."

Original Cindy paused, then amended, "Someone needs to knock some sense into

both of ya."

"I'm not one for subtleties. What are ya saying?"

"Original Cindy is sayin' that both of y'all are stupid, really stupid."

"I dunno if I like sitting here, being insulted." Max smiled.

"Well, ya are."

"Thanks"

"Don't mention it, hon." They lapsed into companionable silence again.

"So how are we stupid?" Max spoke up. She was clearly confused.

"Just go over there an' talk to him. I'm sure he's waitin' for it."

"He's the one that usually calls me, remember?"

"So what?"

"We have an arrangement."

Now it was it was Original Cindy's turn to be confused. "Whaddaya do over there anyways?"

"Nothin' much, eat, talk, play chess." She mentally added ~bust drug deals~

"Really? That's...dull."

Max was silent.

"But that's okay!" Cindy added hurriedly, "If ya like it, then...good!" She said firmly. "Do ya guys do anything
else?"

"Nothing else besides the normal stuff."

"Well Original Cindy's gotta ask, why did ya go over there so much?"

"He's my friend...was my friend." Max said sulkily.

Losing her patience, Cindy smacked Max upside the head.

"What did you do that for?!" Max asked unconsciously rubbing the back of her head.

"Honey, you are so stupid!"

"Yeah, I got that part, I'm stupid, but I'd like to know why."

"If ya don't know already, tellin' ya ain't gonna help any."

"Yes it will." Max protested.

"Trust me, this one is so obvious! It will make ya feel more stupid if Original

Cindy tells ya."

"TELL me! If you don't I'll smack you upside the head!" Max shouted, getting the looks of everyone around them.
"Mind your own business!" she snapped at them.

Original Cindy snickered. "Hey! Do ya always pick fights with people ya love?"

"I dunno." Max began thoughtfully. "I have this habit of...huh?" Max stopped, realizing what Cindy said. "You
think that I...tha-that...nuh uh, no way...I don't think so...n-n-no."

"Y-y-y-yeah" She said mocking Max's stuttering.

"Where the hell did you get that idea? I go over there cuz he has good food. You're crazy."

"Wait a sec, you said you went over there cuz he was you friend."

"Since when do you listen so carefully?"

"Next time you try to pull one over on Original Cindy, make sure you got your story straight."

"He's just a friend..." She replied meekly.

"And Original Cindy's Santa Clause."

"Speaking of which...when's it gonna snow?"

"Hey! Don't try that 'change the subject' thing with me. You're acting all nuts."

Max thought for a moment. "I don't do that!"

"Do what, Sugah?" Cindy didn't know if Max was referring to the 'change the subject thing' or the 'nuts' part."

"The 'change the subject' thing."

A look of recognition spread over Cindy's face. She nodded. "Yeah huh, ya doing it now."

"You're wrong."

"And you're stupid."

"Quit sayin' that!"

"No"

"Yes"

"No"

"YES!!" Max raised her voice enough for the people around them to glance over again in curiosity. "Didn't I tell you
idiots ALREADY? Mind your own stupid

BUSINESS!"

"Calm down there." Original Cindy said from Max's side.

"I am calm. I AM CALM! And I am NOT stupid!" Even though everyone around them could hear every word, they
were smart enough to not look over in Max's direction.

"Nope, sorry Sugah, you're stupid, just gotta face it."

Max crossed her arms and just leaned against the wall, pouting.

"Ya gotta be kidding!" Cindy bursted out laughing. "Geez, better talk to rich boy soon, ya losing your edge over a
lil' teasin'."

*****

Standing on top of the Space Needle had always helped Max clear her thoughts before. But now, it wasn't working.
It had been two days since she had last seen Logan. She still has no idea how to approach this situation. She
wanted to talk to him, and she wanted to see him. That was all she was willing to admit. But what if he didn't want to
see her? Max didn't think that she could bear the rejection.

The cold air blew past her sending a shiver down her spine.

~There are so many lights down below.~

~I wonder if one of them belongs to him.~

She was idly watching the Seattle skyline. It was pretty in the dark with all the lights. She couldn't enjoy it though,
all her thought kept drifting to

Logan.

~I don't need him. I've gone without him before. Hell, I've lived most of my life without him and had no problems.
Logan's just a distraction, a bad distraction. I don't need him to brainwash me with all his ideas, because my first
priority is me.~

~I don't need him.~

Her last thought echoed in her mind. She knew that it wasn't true, and it was no use to try to convince herself
otherwise. Max wondered when the exact moment was. The exact moment that caused her to let her judgment get
clouded. She practically disregarded everything that she was taught. Was it worth trusting Logan? She didn't know.

~I trusted him too much. I got too close, and so here I am alone again, just like I started. Except this time it hurts a lot
more. It's his fault. He wouldn't leave me alone. He gave me no choice.~

Max knew it was happening before it happened. She knew that he was getting to her the very moment that she
found herself thinking about him. She didn't know what was worse, getting too attached to Logan, or not seeing him
at all.

~It's not his fault. It's mine. I knew I was getting sucked in but I didn't fight hard enough.~

She wanted it to stop. She wanted to go back to before she ever met him. Life was easier then. She didn't constantly
throw herself in danger and she didn't care as much.

Her body stiffens as she hears the high-pitched, rapid beeping from her waist.

Who else would be paging her? Peering at the number, it only confirmed her suspicions. It was Logan.

*****

Reaching the familiar door. Max hesitated before knocking, finally mustering enough courage, she tapped on the
door with her knuckles three times.

"Come in, the door's open."

It was his voice. She didn't know how much she had missed it until she heard it again. Carefully opening the door so
that she didn't disturb whatever it was that he was doing. She entered his neat apartment. She cautiously made her
way into his office. His back was to her. It was only two days, but it seemed like a lot could've changed in those two
days.

"Hey" She breathed softly.

"Hi." He replied with his back still to her. "I paged you because there's something happening with Gardner. I
wouldn't have called, but I can't do this part by myself." He paused slightly. Turning around in his chair, Max wasn't
quite prepared for the shock of seeing his face again.

She nearly choked on air when she saw him.

He looked exactly the same as he had two days ago. Why wouldn't he? But something was different. She searched
his face for the answer.

His eyes.

The once bright blues eyes now reflected only icy detachment. "I know where the necessary information is to link
Gardner with OI-k65 dealing. I need you get into the facility, get the proper files and copy them for me."

He stopped. He was expecting her to speak now. Finding her voice, Max managed

to croak out, "Yeah, okay."

He nodded. "I haven't been able to find much stuff for you, just a little here on the history, research, and bits and
pieces of documents on the Manticore Project. Not much though, just electric bills and things like that. I hope that
this is sufficient enough." He handed her a manila folder. She shakily grabbed onto it while he just watched her
movements, like he was evaluating her.

The folder was like a foreign object to her. She just stared blankly at it.

Logan still had that penetrating gaze on her.

~Oh right! I'm supposed to say something else.~ Swallowing the lump in her throat. "Yeah it's good."

"Good, well, all right, the facility is a large building, it's conveniently in Seattle. It is on top floor of the new Columbia
Tower. I suspect that it's in the office of a Mr. Vander, vice-president of WareTech. The incriminating documents
are in his computer." He looked at her, to see if she understood. She nodded. "I need you to be ready tomorrow
night, is that enough notice?"

"Y-y-yes." She squirmed in discomfort upon hearing her stuttering. ~Why do I do that?!~

Logan either didn't notice her stutter, or chose to ignore it, she didn't know which. He just went on. "You'll need to
dismantle security. It shouldn't be too difficult for you. I give you more detail on that later. You should then get to
the computer terminal as fast as possible and then there will be a series of codes and passwords that you'll have to
bypass. Now, that part is going to be a bit difficult. How much do you know about computers?"

"Um...a bit."

"Good, that'll come in handy. The way I've planned it, you'll be in and out in an hour's time. You've got to be quick.
I'll go over the details later, but I figured that you would need the general idea. What do you think?"

"Yeah, good plan." Max said in a tiny voice.

"Well, if you don't have any questions, I think were done here." He said looking up at her expectantly. "Do you
have any questions?"

"Um...no," she said hesitantly.

"Okay then, you can leave now." He turned back to his computer screen and once again his back was to her.

She turned around. Anguish sitting in the pit of her stomach.

~Is that how he wants it to be?~

She headed to the door, not daring to turn back because she was afraid that she might break down, and she didn't
want him to see her weak. He already had so much power over her.

But something compelled her to stop. Mustering as much courage as she could she turned around and spoke up.
"Actually, I do have something."

Logan turned himself around again and looked at her coolly. "Yes?"

"Um...uh...I got this off the street." She reached in her jacket pocket and tossed him the bottle with the green pills. "I
dunno if it'll be any help."

He caught it in his right hand and turned to bottle over to examine the label. "This is OI-k65." He stated.

"Some guy was selling it." She didn't know what else to say.

"Well, this might be helpful, as evidence. I'm not really sure if we'll use it." He stopped with the emotionless
statement still on his face. "Thanks though." It didn't sound sincere. To Max, it sounded like it was just a formality,
as if he felt obligated to say it.

"No problem." She just awkwardly stood there.

"If there's nothing else, I should really get back to work." He turned around again.

Max felt him slipping away from her. "Wait, Logan."

"What?" He asked over his shoulder.

Taking a shaking, although calming breath she said, "Do you hate me?"

She saw a quick look of surprise spread over his face before he disguised it

again. "No. I don't hate you. Is that all?"

"No, I want to talk, Logan."

"What have we been doing?"

"No, I want to really talk."

"Is it about the job?"

~The job?~ "No."

"Then I don't think that it's a good idea."

"Why not?"

"Because it will accomplish nothing. My goal is to get the files, and if we are not talking about that, then it's a waste
of my time."

"Your goal? What about mine?"

"I gave you the folder already, it's pretty self explanatory, but if you want to talk about that..."

"No, Logan," she said forcefully, "I don't want to talk about that either."

"I don't understand, Max." He looked straight into her eyes; revealing that he did, in fact, know exactly what she
was getting at.

"I miss you."

He didn't expect that. Logan didn't trust himself to say anything more. He started backing away from his desk, away
from her. "I don't want to hear this."

He said, shaking his head.

"If you don't want to talk, that's okay, but there are a few things that I need to say before I go." She saw his eyes
cast downwards.

"No, I said I didn't want to talk."

"Then just listen to me."

"I don't want to listen either." He left his office and went into his room.

"Logan!"

He had locked himself in his room.

"I can't believe that you are doing this again! Do you always run away when there's a problem?"

She couldn't hear anything. He refused to talk.

"You are aware that I can break this door down!" She threatened. Max decided that yelling wouldn't be the best way
to get Logan to cooperate. She softened her voice. "Please. Just hear me out. I want to get some things out in the
open."

He still didn't reply and she took it as meaning that he was listening.

"I want you to know that I really didn't mean it. I didn't, Logan. I was stupid. I am stupid. I know that. Sometimes
people just blurt things out, things that they don't believe but it just comes out anyways. It was a stupid mistake.
I'm allowed to make mistakes aren't I? I'm not perfect. Please Logan, come out."

"Why did you say it?" He asked opening his door. "Why did you pick that for your 'stupid mistake'?"

"I don't know. I guess I said it because I wanted to hurt you."

"Why did you want to hurt me?" He wouldn't look at her.

"Because you had hurt me."

"How did I hurt you?"

"I'm sorry, I said that wrong, it wasn't you that hurt me. It was just that you were just someone to put the blame on. I
just felt...you know that feeling of negativity? The one that just causes you to feel bad all over?"

"Yes." He looked like he understood.

"I just pitied myself too much. I would dwell on the things that I didn't have, a mom and dad, a childhood, happy
memories, feelings."

"And then I accused you of not feeling."

"It wasn't your fault, you didn't really anyways. I just twisted it in my head.

Logan you've got to understand, I didn't mean it..."

"It's okay, I told you that already." Max couldn't tell if it was actual sincerity in his eyes, or if he was just trying to
end the conversation again.

"No, it's not! You aren't someone for me to take my aggressions out on. I need you to know that is the last thing I
believe. You are not nor have you ever been an inconvenience for me. God, Logan, you have no idea what you do
for me; you help me so much in so many ways. I needed you then. I need you now. You are crucial to my very
existence. These past few days have been hell for me, not knowing if I've ruined the best relationship in my life,
thinking that I did. I would walked around pointlessly for hours just thinking of you. I was terrified; I had never
been so scared in my life. The possibility of losing you nearly killed me. It hurt so much." Max held back a sob as
her vision blurred and she let the tears fall down. She was tired of holding them back. "I...I don't know what I'll do
without you." She sinks onto her knees, worn out from the emotional outburst.

Logan was by her side in a split second. "Shhh, it's okay," he pulls her into his arms. Max couldn't stop the tears
from coming. She had stopped fighting them a long time ago, now she was just letting it run its course. She felt
Logan hold on to her tighter as the sobs wracked her body. After her tears had subsided into little hiccups, he pulls
away and wipes her tears away with his thumb.

"Better?"

Max nodded, smiling weakly.

"Good. Max, I want you to know that I never meant to imply that you didn't feel. I know you do. I just meant that
you hide it. We're friends, and I want you to tell me when something bothers you. I wanted you to talk to me, not
hold everything in and pretend that it's no big deal."

"I know that now. I was just in a bad place before."

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about something. I can respect that. But please don't shut me out. It doesn't
bother me because I have this need to know everything." He paused to look at her features. "It bothers me because
I want to know that you're safe, that you're happy. And if you're unhappy, I want to know too, because I care about
you."

Max was elated. She showed that by just simple adorning her face with a tender smile. "You know, I expect the exact
same treatment. If you are cranky or upset, you don't have to hide it from me. I can handle it Logan."

"But I always let you know." He protested gently.

"Right, and what was that whole act before?"

A look of acknowledgment flashed across Logan's face. "Oh, that."

"Yes that."

"I guess we are a lot alike."

"Scary, huh?" Max laughed a little.

Realizing that she was still in his arms, she jerked away embarrassed. "Sorry."

She muttered

"It's all right."

After she composed herself, she looked at him and said what was on her mind.

"Are we okay?"

"Sure, why not?"

"No, I'm being serious, Logan."

"So am I."

"Are you trying to pick another fight with me?"

"Why do you have to ask me if we are okay? Do you think we're okay?"

"Yeah."

"Then we're okay."

"Friends." She smiled at him.

"Compadres." He returned her smile.

*****

"Okay, this chip is placed behind your ears, like so, are you watching? You put this small one under your chin. To
activate it you tap on this piece once, to deactivate it you tap on it twice. Got that, Max?"

"You have really cute eyes." Logan blinked noticeably at that comment, but chose to ignore it.

Logan and Max had been going over all the fine points of the task all morning. After they had finished talking last
night, Max had left and Logan had gone to bed. She arrived there early the next morning to go over the details.

"Max, you aren't listening. I know you hate this part, but we have to plan it out and I think that putting in a
communication utility will stopped the problems of the last assignment from happening again."

"Sorry, I'll listen this time." She said munching on a cookie.

"Okay, for the fifth time," He holds up two small devices. "This goes behind your ear, and this...Max, watch."

"Okay."

He stopped, with an annoyed look on his face. "You're not watching."

"Yes I am!" She said with her mouth full.

"Then tell me, what are you supposed to do?"

"Okay, watch Mr. Yells-at-poor-defenseless-Max," she said taking the two devices, "Goes behind my ear, goes
under my chin, tap once on, twice off. Easy.

Even an idiot can figure it out."

"You're getting crumbs all over them."

"No problem," she said wiping off the crumbs with her sleeve. She looked up at Logan to see his critical statement.
"What? No 'good job, Max!' ?" She lowered her voice, attempting to imitate Logan. "No 'you should get another
cookie!'?"

"I don't sound like that." Logan coughed to cover up his laughter. "Max, good job, and do you want another
cookie?"

She pretended to think about it and calmly shrugged. "Sure, why not?" She snatched up another.

"So, do you have any questions?"

"No."

"Sure?"

"No, I don't think so, I got everything."

"Are you sure you remember everything that I told you?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, so meet back here at midnight and you'll be there at one. That okay?"

"What if it wasn't?" Max challenged jokingly.

"Too bad, you'd have to do it then anyways, asking you was just a formality."

Max growled.

"Was it something I said?"

"No, I have to be at the Jam Pony in ten minutes." She looked at his clock on the wall.

"Oh. Well remember, meet back here..."

"Yeah, yeah, midnight. Got it." She interrupted.

"Okay, bye, and have a nice day." He smiled.

"I'd much rather stay here with you, and watch you do your computer thing."

Logan laughed. "Go."

"You're kicking me out?"

"Look who you are talking to."

"You know what I mean. All right, I'm leaving now."

"Finally!"

"Bye!" She stood up at started towards the door. Before she went through it, she hastily turned around and
grabbed three cookies.

Logan did his best to contain his laughter.

When Max saw that his face nearly turned blue from holding his breath, she held up the cookies defensively.
"They're for Original Cindy! I bet she'd really like them."

"Right."

"She would!"

"Bye, Max."

"Bye." She smiled and left.

*****

Logan looked at his watch for what seemed like the fiftieth time. It was 11:52 PM. "Being punctual is good. Really
good, so why do some people wait for the very last minute to get their lazy selves where they're supposed to be?"

"Hey, already yelling at me and I'm not even late." Max voice rang out behind him.

"It's about time!"

"You said midnight. I'm actually early." Max crossed her arms.

"Okay, I'm sorry. Put these on." He tossed her the devices.

"What kind of apology is that?" She stuck the chips into their proper places.

"Let's see if they work," Logan grabbed his headset and put it on, "Max? Can you hear me?"

"Yeah, I can hear you, you're sitting four feet away, Logan." She said innocently

"Can you hear me through the earpiece?" He said through gritted teeth.

"Well why didn't you say so in the first place?" Her tone was laced with sarcasm. "Yes, I hear ya loud and clear. Can
you hear me?"

"Yeah."

"So it works."

"Uh huh."

"I go get the stuff, right?"

"That is correct. You know what you're supposed to do?"

"No, Logan, even though we spent hours going over it and over it, I still have no clue what to do."

"Your sarcasm isn't needed here." Logan tried to sound stern, but Max could see right through him.

"I'm withdrawing the remark, happy?"

"Very."

"I'll see you when I'm done?"

"Yes, and if I fall asleep from boredom, wake me up, okay?"

"Well, I'll try to make it as exciting as I can."

"Thanks. I appreciate it. Now, go! Oh, and don't forget, be..."

"Careful...yeah, got it, you say that all the time."

"That's only because I want you back in one piece."

Max couldn't help but smile at his last comment.

"Bye!"

"Okay, fine, I'm leaving!" She turned around and left.

Logan just sighed and waved goodbye. He turned to his computer and punched in a few commands.

"Took ya long enough!" Her voice shouted into his headset.

He flinched. "Well you deserved it. Serves you right for being difficult. By the way, you don't have to talk so loud."

"Sorry."

*****

"This is soooo dumb, Logan!"

"Look, Max, don't get mad at me for making it easier on you."

"What do you mean easier? It's no sweat!"

"So the cockiness has returned. Funny, I was starting to miss it. Quit whining."

"I don't whine." She snapped at him good-naturedly.

"And I believe you, okay? Now get inside!"

"But it's so much cooler if I entered the building through the roof."

"You're joking right?"

Silence.

"Go through the door, Max."

"The door? But that's so ordinary."

"We are trying to imitate ordinary. I don't see it working too well with you standing there in the dark talking to
yourself."

"I'm talking to you."

"Does that average bum on the street know that?"

"Fine! I'll go through the door.

"Thank you! That's all that I ask."

"You never let me have any fun."

"This is not supposed to be fun! This is serious work!"

*****

Max managed to get to the top floor without any trouble. The security guards were trading shifts so she got
through the building undetected.

"All right, I'm on the top floor. Which door is it?" She whispered.

"Third one on the right." Logan voice sounded through her earpiece.

"Okay...one...two...three. Here we go." She knelt down on one knee and took out her lock picks. "Shove this sucker
in there, like so. Twist this other guy around a bit. Now, jiggle it around..."

"Max, do you always talk yourself through this?"

"Well, usually it's in my head, but since you're here..." She shrugged a bit.

"Concentrate!"

"I was! I mean I am! If you didn't interrupt me in the first place, I would be in by now." She kept her voice low and
continued to pick the lock. Something in the door clinked and Max easily pushed the door opened.

"You in?"

"Yes." She headed to the other side of the room, cautious not to set off any of the security alarms. Max stopped at a
glass door marked 'Arnold Vander.' She was about the reach for her lock picks when she discovered that the door
was already unlocked.

"Yay!"

"Did you just say 'yay'?"

"Gotta problem with that?"

"Nope, no problem at all."

She walked into the neat office and sat in the desk chair in front of the computer. "I'm at the computer, Logan."

"Bypass the passwords and codes, just like I showed you."

Max recalled all the numbers and letters that Logan gave her. She started the furiously typed them in and soon she
was rewarded with an opened file. The file contained documents of drug testing, various transactions, and detailed
information explicitly depicting all illegal activities. It was more than enough to incriminate Gardner and his
vice-president Vandal.

"I'm copying the stuff onto the blank disk now." She shoved a disk into computer and typed in a command.

"Do I want to copy the file? Yes." She said to herself.

Logan was silent on the other end but she knew he was listening because she heard him breathing.

"C'mon...hurry."

"Patience, Max."

"Shh! You wanna sit here waiting for this stupid thing to copy?"

"I am sitting, waiting for the thing to copy."

All of a sudden, she heard movement down the hall, probably security guards making their rounds. Turning off the
monitor she ducked under the desk quickly.

"Max? What happened? What are you doing? Max?" Logan's voice silenced as he heard two men talking.

They walked into the office. One of them shined a light at the computer. Max tried to shrink down. She hoped that
they wouldn't see her. "Hey, Bob, look! This computer is still on. Do you think we should turn it off?"

"Naw, better not touch it. The big wigs probably leave it on all night for a reason."

"Yeah. Probably making more money right this second."

The stood there talking for a few more moments. Max safely was out of sight under the desk, although she was
getting impatient. She was in the middle of wondering whether she should just punch the guards until they were
unconscious when she heard them start to leave.

"Well, nothing here."

"Let's go."

Max crawled out from under the desk when she heard their footsteps disappear down the hall.

"Close one." Logan said after he was sure that there was no one there.

"Tell me about it."

The disk popped out and Max grabbed it. She placed in her pocket and turned off

the computer.

"All done. I'm coming over now."

*****

"Here it is!" Max shouted when she arrived at Logan's apartment.

Logan rolled into the living room from his office. He took the disk from Max's hand. "Thank you very much."

"You gonna do your little broadcasting thing now?"

"No, not yet, I need to get a few things together and I should also wait until people are actually awake to hear it."

"Good point."

"Well, Max, I appreciate you effort, but I think we're done here. You can go home and do whatever it is that you
usually do."

"You don't mind if a stay a bit do you?" Then she added hurriedly. "I can go if you're tired."

"No, you can stay."

"So..."

"So..." He repeated her words because he didn't know what to say.

"Maybe I really should go. You do look tired." She laughed lightly.

"Yeah, I am a little tired."

She turned and started to head towards the door.

"Max!" He caught her attention and she turned to face him.

"What?"

"Umm...nothing. Sorry."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. So you better get going soon, beat the traffic." He joked. "Have to be careful on those slippery roads."

"Okay." She smiled and walked out the door.

Logan slumped in his chair after she was gone. ~These few days have really taken a toll on me.~

*****

~He hasn't called me. It's been a week and he hasn't called me.~

Max stood at the payphone and debated whether to pick it up or not.

~There is probably not much going on. That's why he hasn't called. I should check to make sure though.~

Letting out a breath that she didn't know that she was holding, she decided that she might as well swing by Logan's
place since she was nearby.

~No harm in visiting a friend.~

*****

"Logan?" Max walked into his living. "Logan, where are--"

She is greeted to the sight of Logan sitting in the middle of the room with a woman that Max has never met before.
A woman who, in Max's opinion, was very attractive.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize that you had company." Her voice faltered slightly.

"That's all right, I was just leaving." The woman stood up and smiled brightly at Max. She didn't seem to notice the
awkwardness. "I'll see you later, Logan."

She smiled at Max once again before letting herself out.

"So Max, is there something that I can do for you?" Logan looked up at her.

"I was just wondering why you haven't called, but now I see why."

Logan seemed to overlook the underlying meaning in her last remark. "Yeah, Samantha's visiting. She's been
keeping me busy."

"I'm sure she has."

"Something wrong?"

"No." Her voice lowered.

"Are you jealous?" His eyes were laughing.

Max's eyes widened in surprised. "Of course not. What would I be jealous of?"

"You tell me." Logan was obviously enjoying the situation. He watched in interest as she squirmed in discomfort.

"I'm not jealous."

"Denial."

"I'm not, Logan. You and I are friends. That's it. Why would I be jealous?" Max expelled a deep sigh and sat down
on the couch opposite of him. She ran her hand through her hair, agitatedly.

"You're right, Max. I'm sorry for giving you a hard time about it." Logan could see that Max was getting worked up
and he did his best to just drop the subject.

"So...who is she?" She tried to sound as casual as possible.

Logan almost laughed out loud at the way her voice sounded. "Samantha is a friend."

"Oh, so she's a friend."

"Yes." Logan nodded carefully.

"Okay."

"She and her husband are old friends of the family. They are staying with me for awhile."

"Husband?" Max tried to mask to relief on her face.

"Yeah."

They sat in silence for a few moments.

"Do you feel better now, Max?"

"Do I feel better because I found out that she's married? What difference does it make?"

"You were jealous." Logan teased.

"No I wasn't."

"Yes you were."

"No, I just didn't like the idea of some other woman being all friendly with you."

"How's that different from jealousy?" He smirked.

"You are enjoying this way too much." Max mumbled. "What do you want me to say? Fine, I was a little jealous.
Stressing the 'little' here."

"Thank you, that's all I wanted to here."

"It's not like I'm in love with you."

That shocked Logan, he had no idea when the conversation got so serious. He sat there blinking at her. "I never
said you were."

She fidgeted around with her hands. Logan noticed that she wouldn't look at him. "I know. It's just that you know
almost everything about me and I like to talk to you. In some ways, I can't imagine someone more perfect for me, you
put up with me. So I guess in a way, I do love you." ~Why did I say all that? Can't I just shut up?~

Logan sat there dumbfounded.

"Logan, did you hear me? I said I love you."

He looked at her as if he was first realizing that she was still there. He beamed. "I heard you, I love you too, Max."
He looked up at her. "You are my

best friend too, and I hope you know that."

Max frowned.

"What? Is something wrong?" He asked genuinely confused.

"Best friend?"

"Well, yeah, isn't that what you meant?" He looked at her, puzzled. Then realization dawned on his face. "Oh. You
meant..."

"Never mind, forget it, you don't feel the same way, it's okay." Max uneasily shuffled her feet. She looked
everywhere but at Logan's face.

"Max, I had no idea..." Logan, however, was looking straight at her.

"It's fine, you know, let's just forget that I ever said anything."

"But Max..."

"Logan, you don't need to explain. I'm okay with it, I made my peace with it."

She attempted to smile. "You know what? Since I have made my peace with it, I think enough has been said that
there can't possibly be anymore to say, so I'm gonna blaze. Yup, I'm gonna go now. See ya!" Her breathing was
labored and Logan could tell from where he was. She stood up and started to walk past him towards the door.

Before she had the opportunity to retreat, Logan had a tight grip on her arm. "Hold on there."

"Huh? I thought we were done." She avoided his eyes.

"You may be done, but I still got some things that I'd like to say. First of all, Max, I have to admit that this does
come as a huge shock. I can't say that it's a bad shock, in fact it's good, really good."

That made her smile; he took that as a sign that meant it was okay for him to go on. "So, I don't think the question is
whether I reciprocate your feelings or not, because I do, I whole-heartedly do. I love you. I think I've loved you from
the first time I ever laid eyes on you. I don't know how you can even think otherwise. I only thought that you meant
it in a friendly way because I couldn't comprehend the slightest chance that you might feel any more than that.

But I have to tell you the truth, and that truth is that a lot of it hurts sometimes." He watched as she looked at her
hands. "It hurts when you're not here, when you aren't with me. I love your smile. I love the way you bluntly say
things. I love everything about you. When you are here, everything is so much better. The air smells cleaner, the
rain looks better, and even the stain on my floor has a nice pattern to it. You make my life better. So, leading back to
my original statement, the question isn't whether I reciprocate your feelings, that much is painfully obvious. The
question is..." He pauses grinning at her, "what will this do to our professional relationship?"

With a strange strangled noise, Max leapt at him, assaulting him with her lips, taking him by surprise and knocking
him out of his chair. Both of them fell to the ground with a hard thump, but neither noticed. Logan encircled his arms
around her waist and pulled her closer. Running his finger through her soft curls, he felt overwhelmed with her
scent, the feel of her skin, just her. The kiss had started out soft and tentative, but as they got more comfortable
with each other, the tension left. They lazily explored each other's mouths. Max was thinking how perfect it was
when he suddenly pushed her away. Her face looked confused and hurt.

Logan chuckled slightly, cupping her face with his hands. "Some people need to breathe."

"Oh." Her face flushed with embarrassment. "Sorry."

"S'okay," he said laughing, and then he stopped, a look of pain spread across his features. "You know what they
say?"

Max's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. "What do they say?"

"Love hurts." He stated gesturing to his overturned chair.

Max giggled as she helped him into sitting position. He rubbed his shoulders.

"Sorry," she said guiltily.

"More than okay."

"I love you." Now that she had said it once, it was easier.

"I love you too." He couldn't help grinning like an idiot. "Hey! When you thought that I didn't return your feelings,
you sure got over it fast. I believe your exact words two seconds later, were 'I've made my peace with it.' What do
you have to say about that?" He had a twinkle in his eye.

"You never let me get away with anything, do you?"

"Well, you're just so perfect."

"Good answer."

He pulled her to him, "Do you have any idea what you are getting into?" He murmured into her hair.

"I could ask you the same question."

"Good point, so, we are both aware?"

"Yup."

"And we have no problems with it?"

"Nope. I cannot think of a time when I'm as happy as I am right at this very moment." She smiled up at him.

"Good."

They sat like that for an undetermined of time before Logan spoke up. "I think that you should know that I have this
bad habit of being very picky about my remote control, if I'm not holding it when I watch TV, I get very cranky and I
know that it's really ridiculous to be that attached to a remote, but it's very good, has served me well for years and
it's..."

Max silenced him by reaching up and pulling him in for another kiss that left him breathless.

"Hey, you interrupted me. You know I don't like that." He teased her when they pulled back.

"You sure know how to ruin a moment."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I won't do it again." He smiled as she kissed him again.

THE END