Episode Two
SISTA TWO

Chapter Four
BETWEEN YOU AND ME

Johndy looked curiously at Max, “What do you mean? What is this symbol? And why are you encircled in red ink?”

Max looked at the matrix on the board.  It does not really give her a clue, but it does tell her that Sandeman ties up Manticore and the Breeding cult.  “That’s the Breeding cult’s symbol. Jhondy, I remembered White asking me why I don’t have any junk DNA in me.  There’s some kind of a purpose for all my genetic make-up so he says… maybe we’ll see something here that could give us heads up.” 

With that, Jhondy proceeded to look into the metal shelves, finding out case files of each X5s ever made.  She thought as she was doing so, Dammit! Didn’t this man know computers exist?  She looked over at Max and then went back to work.  Max did not seem to have any answers to any of her questions.  She had better start looking for something of relevance rather than ask her. 

In the meantime, Max went over the desk again and looked at the papers on it.  The papers did not seem to have deteriorated from being kept inside the vault.  It looked old, but not a paper that has been in the vault for 22 years.  It must be the pressure inside the vault.  She looked around again and she saw some medical equipment and laboratory supplies, which may be helpful when the time comes.  Scanning the room, she saw storage cases and proceeded to put some supplies into them. 

“Hey Jhondy!  Care to help me load these up?  They may be useful in Seattle and no one would surely be using them here.” 

Jhondy took out 12 files from the vault and handed it to Max, who reached for it, before loading up the supplies.  She nodded towards Max and the papers, “Those are our files.  Might be useful.”

Max gratefully nodded, “I’ll get these things in a briefcase.” Spotting a silver, heavy duty fireproof one, she easily brought it onto the table before putting the files inside.  Then, she gathered the files on the desk and placed them in.  “Get those syringe, gloves, test tubes and the a couple of microscopes in those storage cases.” She said as she looked in the drawers and gathered everything she could see formulas written on and placed them in the briefcase.

“Max.  We’re not running an epidemic center here.”

“We might well be.  We don’t know.  I don’t know.  It may come to that.  It’s always good to be prepared.”

Jhondy stopped what she was doing and confronted Max, “Okay. What did you do to my sister?  And where did you bring her?”

Max sighed and decided to play along, “Saw sister coming out of a bar.  She was well overworked and underpaid in a messenger dump in Seattle where I decided to let her off the hook and grime and take her face to be mine.”

Jhondy gave her a gruesome look, “Ugh! Quit it, Max. Seriously -”

Max cut in, “Seriously.  The past couple of months transgenics have been exposed to the world, feared and on the run because I did not follow Zack and chose NOT to think about plans and follow instructions.  I have those transgenics in Seattle barricaded and they needed everything they can get their hands on to survive… even outdated medical equipment.”  Trying to lighten the mood, Max shrugged, “Sides, we could always fence it off.”  She smiled at Jhondy.

They continued gathering all they could.  Afterwards, they went into one other room at the side of the vault, which was a makeshift kitchen.  Jhondy proceeded to tell Max that they have been utilizing it since they had arrived to preserve the abandoned look of the ranch house.  Max then asked Jhondy what she has been up to and Jhondy updated her on the last 13 years of her life.

< UPSTAIRS >

Zane continued to hold onto the ice bag over Logan’s face.  The man will have a terrible headache when he wakes up, but he did not whack him in the face any more forcefully than necessary.  But that’s not what’s bothering him.  What’s bothering him is seeing two of his sisters again in such a short span of time.  He did not plan on staying here long… the borders must be crossed if he is to be safe… heck, if all of them are to be safe.  But there’s something about Max… and this man.  He hasn’t seen her for so long, but from the looks of it, Max does not seem to be in a hurry to cross the border.  In fact from the few minutes they spent in each other’s company, it appeared like Max was here for a purpose.

Logan moved on the bed and winced, then groaned because wincing was more painful.  He felt something cold on his face as he tried opening his eyes, his hands warding off what would be an ice pack.  He felt it being lifted as he opened his eyes.  His left eye has a black eye, but other than that, he had to contend with a searing pain on his head.  His blurred vision began to focus on a man seated on a chair holding an ice pack in his hands, looking at him intently. Wondering who it was he asked, “Who are you?”

“Zane.”

Just then Max and Jhondy walked inside the room.  Max immediately looked at Logan.

“Hey.”

Logan attempted a smile, which only made him wince and elicited a suppressed groan from him. “Hey. I gather you know these people.”

Max looked down on her hands and then back at Logan.  “Logan,” motioning towards Zane, “Zane.  He’s the one who gave you a whack in the head.”

Zane nodded at Logan, “Sorry bout that, man.”

Logan nodded at him, smiling a little, “should have known.  Only Max’s brother would whack me like that.”  At this, zane and Jhondy laughed.

“This is Jhondy, my sister.”

“Pleased to meet you. I’d reach out my hand, but…” he motioned at himself lying on the bed.

Jhondy nodded and replied, “It’s all good.” At this, Max and Logan looked at each other and smiled. “Since you’re awake, I’d best ask Zane to help me with some supplies Max and I tried to pack downstairs while I make us some sandwiches.”  She motioned to Zane who got up and followed her.  She needed to talk to him all about what Max had told her about.  They had to think about their tactical strategy.  Max smiled gratefully at Zane and went to sit on the chair Zane occupied.

She repeated, “Hey.”

“Hey.  Your brother packs a punch… but then again, he is your brother.  Should be glad he used his strength only to immobilize me.”  Logan said teasingly at Max.

Max fidgeted with her hands again, “Yeah.  I guess.  Haven’t talked to him much since we came here.”

“You need to know where he’s been.”

“Mmm…” Max nodded at that, silently agreeing with Logan.

Logan teased her, “Your sister seems to know more than boiling water.”

“She’s learned to cook… she gotta in order to survive.”

Logan smiled at her, “Led a normal life, huh?”

“Mostly like mine.  She’s good with mixing drinks, working at place like Crash and all.”

“Makes me wonder why you never got learn how to cook.”

“Hey!  Too busy tryin’ to earn my keep!”

Logan looked at her ruefully, “Fencing.”

Max merely gave him a contented smile, “You gotta admit, I did okay doing that.”

A moment of relaxed silence passed between the two. Then simultaneously, they said, “So...” and laughed at that.  Logan motioned for Max to go ahead.

Max asked as concern betrayed her emotions, “How’s your head?”

“Feels like hell, but considering he’s you’re brother… I’ll live.” Logan smiled and tried to reassure Max.  Then he remembered their purpose of being here, “You saw anything?”

Max looked at the wall across her, “There’s a second basement hidden among the basement walls.  Contains lab equipment for genetic mutation and DNA sampling.  Some medical equipment too.  The works.”  Logan’s eyebrows shot up in question as Max continued, “He sure kept himself busy in here.  He also made a sort of a matrix much like you only he didn’t give names of specifics, only Manticore and the cult.  Jhondy helped me pack supplies we could use.  I packed his scriblings.”

Logan digested this information, “Mmm…”  Then he asked hesitantly, “Are they coming with us?  I could probably get them new identities if need be in Seattle.  I don’t know how long they’d last before they would be found here.”

Max shrugged and stared longingly on the wall opposite her, “It’s up to them.”

Logan knew that she wanted Jhondy and Zane to stay, but he also knew Max well enough that she would also want her siblings to be protected from all the chaos of Seattle.  Plus, there’s the problem of the sector passes, though he could probably get hold of Matt Sung or Clemente for that as well.

< LATER >

Max, Logan, Zane and Jhondy were seated.  Zane and Jhondy had already loaded the supplies from the lab downstairs into the Aztec.  Max and Logan got up.

“We gotta go.”  Max said, looking longingly at her brother and her sister.  “It’s getting late.  People might suspect.” A look of understanding passed among Max, Jhondy and Zane.

Having talked about it with Jhondy, Zane said, “There’s an easier route to that cabin you’re renting.  We can follow you there as soon as the sun comes down.”

Logan smiled reassuringly, “We have to be showing ourselves around town… live up to our ‘tourist’ status.”  He reached out his hand to shake Zane’s, thinking how different he was from Zack, but still the same brother to Max as Zack was.  An awareness passed between them as Zane acknowledged Logan’s part in Max’s life silently.  Zane silently told Logan he’d better take care of his baby sister while Logan gently acknowledged that he would with that brief handshake.  He was going to shake Jhondy’s hand too, but she held his between her two hands and looked at him in understanding.

She said, “Take care of my baby sister.”

Max embraced Jhondy and Zane and they drove off.  The two never bothered to see them off the porch so people passing about might not suspect.  Both Logan and Max acted like they had just entered some abandoned place and were thinking about it’s possibilities as they drove off to go to their cabin.

< CABIN >

“So… what are you thinking?”  Max broke into Logan’s thoughts as he held on to his pre-dinner wine. 

Logan and Max went into town appearing like a normal couple taking a vacation from the ranch earlier.  They came back to their cabin and Logan is now done making dinner for them and their guests.  If they are anything like Max, which they are likely to be, they’d be hungry by the time they reach the cabin.  Logan nodded to acknowledge Max’s question, “Seems to me like you were close.”

Max knew he was referring to Jhondy,  “We wanted to stick together during the escape… we didn’t want to separate, but Zack said it was imperative.” Max’s eyes flickered, remembering about Tinga… and Zack – their siblings, which both Krit and Jhondy did not know about… not yet anyway, but she’d have to tell them.  She did not know what their plans are.  As much as she wanted to stay together or even keep in touch the way Zach used to do with his voicemail and all, she knew she might put her sister’s and brother’s lives in danger.  Besides, it’s even more dangerous for them to go back with her and Logan to Seattle… not with White and his Fenos ‘tol cult bitch lurking about.

Logan understood the silence, “You want them to stay… in Seattle.”

Max replied in a deadpan voice, “I want them safe.”

“You want them with you.”

“I’m only after their safety, Logan.  I have already compromised the transgenics in Seattle.  I am not gonna let that happen to my brother and sister.”

Logan walked over “You said so yourself, Max – It’s their decision.”

Max sighed, wishing things could have been different.  “Yes.”  But wishes are dreams that people conjure up to escape the hard pavement of reality.  She needs to remind herself that in order to survive.

Logan took his eyes off the fireplace and turned to Max seated on the opposite chair.  He reached his gloved hands over and cradled Max’s face with his hand, lifting it so her eyes would meet his, “The universe is right on schedule.”  They stared longingly at each other.

***********

Author's Notes here

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