Episode 3.14 - Hugger Mugger 4 страница

Logan just stared at him, refusing to answer. His captor grunted in disgust, and pulled out a cell phone as he walked to the far corner. Sketchy remained slumped in the chair, apparently unconscious.

After a few minutes, Rennie returned. "Gil says to waste him. We got friends in the cops and there ain't no investigation goin' on. So it don't matter who he was talking to. He'll just be another dead freak. Bring the tattoo gun."

Logan noticed that Sketchy's neck bore a distinct barcode. Two of the men grabbed Logan's arms and pulled them behind him, snapping on a pair of cuffs. They pushed him roughly to his knees, and one pushed his head down, baring the back of his neck.

Logan braced for the feel of the laser-powered tattoo gun on his neck, but there was silence.

Morrie let out a string of curses. "Batteries are dead. Now what do we do?"

"There's another one in the van, charged. Get it, Morrie. Get some extra weights for the body as well."

Morrie ambled off to get the equipment, leaving Logan kneeling on the floor.

He returned quickly, carrying a sack in one hand and the tattoo gun in the other. "Got it," he said, dropping the sack and holding up the gun.

"Takes about two minutes to warm up, then we take care of this clown, shoot them both and dump them in the bay. Sally, bring the other one down to the water while we give this one his tattoo. We'll be along in a minute."

"Should I shoot ‘im or wait for you?"

"Wait. We'll take care of ‘em both at once."

Sally lifted Sketchy and tossed his unconscious body over his shoulder, then headed out a rear door.

"That should be ready. Give our friend his beauty mark," Rennie directed Morrie, who began to lower the tattoo gun to Logan's neck.

"Ooh, can I join the party?" Max's voice rang out. The two men turned to stare at her as she stood there, hands on hips, smiling at them. Morrie pulled a 9 mm and held it on Logan.

"Who the hell are you, babe?" Rennie demanded.

"I'm Max." Max sauntered forward provocatively, keeping the men's eyes glued to her every move.

"Well, Max, if you want some fun and games, we'd be happy to oblige, but we gotta take care of our friend first." Rennie ran his eyes over her body and leered.

"Whatcha doing to him?" Max moved closer, working the obvious lust in the men's eyes.

"He's gettin' one' a them barcodes like the freaks got," Morrie informed her.

"You mean like this one?" With that, Max turned and whipped her hair up, exposing her barcode. Before the men could react, she continued in the turn, kicking out and sending the gun flying from Morrie's hand. Rennie had his own gun out, but Max jumped in the air and simultaneously somersaulted as she flew over their heads. She landed behind their backs, facing them, standing between them and Logan, who had scrambled to his feet.

"Stay back, Logan," she hissed, as she threw herself into a forward handspring. The two thugs were just turning to face her as she came down, and she caught both of them in the face with her feet, sending them flying backward into the wall. They hit, slid down, and stayed down, slumped in heaps against the partition.

Keeping a wary eye on the two, Max went to Logan and, with a snap, broke the cuffs holding his wrists. "Piece of cheap junk." She threw them aside in disgust. Logan scooped up the guns the goons had dropped, and followed her to the wall.

"Moe and Larry'll keep a minute. Seen any rope around here?" she asked.

"They might have more cuffs in the van. They seem to be well supplied. Let me look." Within moments, Logan was back with two pairs of handcuffs. Max had dragged the two men to a support pillar, and she and Logan quickly cuffed them together around it.

"That oughta hold ‘em until the sector police arrive. I alerted Matt Sung on my way here," Logan told her.

"Good thing you didn't count on them being in time for the rescue," Max observed. "Where's Sketchy?"

"The third Stooge took him outside to wait."

"I'll get him. Did Sketchy see you?"

"No, he was blindfolded and unconscious."

"Good. Don't want him connecting you and our omniscient friend when this all comes out." She winked at him.

The sound of approaching sirens intruded on the silence of the warehouse.

"Sounds like Matt's almost here. Why don't I head out to the Aztek while you take care of Curly out back?"

"In a sec." Max walked over and smacked Logan on the chest. "I told you to be careful. What the hell were you thinking?"

Logan stared down at her, then grinned. "Same thing you're thinking when you go charging into trouble?" Max just glared at him. The sirens were right outside, their wails growing louder. Logan met her stare straight on, then leaned down, taking her by surprise, and kissed her, hard.

"Thanks, Max." He took a deep breath and then said, "Max, there's something I need to talk to you about..."

A car door slammed, and they heard voices and footsteps coming closer.

"Police," Matt's voice called out, echoing in the empty warehouse. They could see a flashlight beam through cracks in the partition.

"C'mon, Logan, we gotta blaze. Neither one of us needs to be seen here." Max pulled him after her, out the rear door. "Meet you at the car in five minutes."

She was gone in a blur, toward the water, and Logan quickly headed back to the Aztek.

Laundromat, Sector 5 - December 4th, evening

The chaotic office behind the laundromat had been turned into a clean and neat one. The walls had been painted and the broken shelves had been repaired. Two new desks, each with a computer and a telephone, had replaced the old one. On a cabinet in the back stood a TV.

Gem put some bottles and glasses on a desk and grabbed a bag to pull out some crackers. When Alec entered the office through the swing doors, he asked, "Everything ready?"

"Did you put up the sign?" she wanted to know, looking over behind the desk where Elfie lay in an old baby-carriage. "Saying this is a private investigation agency?"

Alec nodded. "Yeah, above this door, as we planned it," he confirmed. "We're gonna put up a sign at the front window when the laundromat is running again, and we've figured out a name for the agency.""

"Yep," Gem nodded. "So we're ready for the party," she concluded, and opened the back door.

Startled, she jumped back in and went into alarm mode, only to realize that Joshua must have been waiting in front of the door.

"Hey, Joshua." she greeted him, breathing deeply.

"Hey, Gem. Hey, Alec." Joshua said, and entered. "Looks much better than the last time Joshua was here."

The doors on the other side swung open and Original Cindy and Sketchy entered. Original Cindy hugged Gem and said, "This place is really cool. I can't believe you're starting your own business."

"Better than being a bike messenger, right, Sketchy?" Alec asked, and Sketchy nodded.

"So much better. Hey, listen, if you ever need help from a journalist..." he started, but he was interrupted by Max, who entered hand-in-hand with Logan.

"...they'll both know better than to call you," she laughed and hugged everyone. "Props on getting your own agency," she told Gem and Alec. "Did you two know that this used to be a private investigation agency before? I can't believe you ended up here, of all places..." she said.

Alec looked surprised. "Really? How do you know?"

Max shrugged and looked at Logan. "Had some dealings with the old tenant."

Gem whistled. "Now I know what all those files were for. What happened to the guy?"

Max shrugged and said, "Not the right topic for a party. Crossed the wrong people. But you can be sure that he won't come here lookin' to get his place back."

"His place back?" somebody repeated from the doorframe. Turning, the group saw Ginger standing there. She stepped toward Original Cindy and tried a weak smile.

A moment of hesitation passed before Original Cindy answered, "Hey," and gave her a quick kiss.

"Okay, so let's start the party and have a drink," Gem suggested, handing Alec a bottle of champagne.

"Is everybody here?" Alec asked. He smiled when the door opened again. "Hey, Asha."

"Hey, everyone," she greeted back, smiling when Alec came to hug her.

He started to open the bottle. Just as the cork popped up and flew against the ceiling, the door opened again and Matt Sung entered. He stopped when he saw Joshua, but Logan came over to him and smiled. "Hey, Matt. Glad you could make it."

"Hey, Logan. Max, Alec, Gem, Joshua," he greeted everybody he knew. "Hey, Original Cindy."

Logan introduced him to the rest. "This is Asha and Ginger. Oh, and the baby in the carriage is Elfie."

Alec handed everybody a glass of champagne and said, "Thanks to Logan for doing all the paperwork for us, and Matt for helping us with the PI license. Without them, we wouldn't get started for a year. The officials in this town are still no big fans of the transgenic species."

Matt shrugged. "They're no big fans of anybody who isn't as corrupt as they are."

Max raised her glass and said, "To Gem and Alec, and their agency. We wish you lots of clients with loads of money."

"To Gem and Alec!" everybody said, and they clinked their glasses.

Seconds later, the program on the TV that had been quietly running all the time, changed to the red, white and blue of Eyes Only. Alec turned up the volume.

"This is a Streaming Freedom Video Bulletin. The cable hack will last exactly sixty seconds. It cannot be traced, it cannot be stopped, and it is the only free voice left in this city. Games that hold the possibility of winning money have always fascinated people. The latest version of this promising game is Seattle Superstar. With a grand prize of $100,000, it attracts people trying to break out of poverty. Instead of giving them the chance to win money, the producers of this show take cash from them as an entry fee and then kill the winners. They promise hope and the chance of a better life, but they bring death to the helpless. Stay away from them. This has been a Streaming Freedom Video Bulletin from the Eyes Only informant net. Peace. Out."

Max looked at Logan, surprised. "When did you do that?" she murmured.

"Before I picked you up. Programmed it to start while we were here," he whispered back, smiling.

"Hey, that's so cool," Sketchy shouted over to them. "I thought my end was near when those guys kidnapped me. Good thing Eyes Only is the man to tell the truth. Wonder how he knew."

Matt nodded. "Yeah, I often wonder that too. This guy should call himself ‘Ears Only.' He seems to have his ears everywhere."

The look Matt shot at him made Logan wrap his arm even tighter around Max and nod. "Yeah, maybe he should."

"But you were so good at playing the cello, Sketchy," Original Cindy laughed, changing the topic that was obviously making Logan uncomfortable.

"Yeah, that's me, Sketchy – man of many talents," he said, dodging the crackers Max and Original Cindy began throwing at him.

EPILOGUE

Space Needle

Max sat on the edge of the Space Needle, staring at the city below.

Looks like I got what I wanted – my strange little life back. Not to mention all the things I had completely forgotten about that go with it. Logan being lost in his Eyes Only work and me doing his legwork. Him going out and trying to save Sketchy, risking his own life for him, even though he depends on the exo to walk.

I don't know how much worse his legs've already gotten, but I know I could be there to help him. If he'd let me. If he'd only talk to me. It seemed like he was going to, but them the cops came. Maybe he wasn't going to tell me anyway.

It's like we're back at square one, but this time there's more to it. This time he should know that I love him and that we're in it together. Thing is, I'm not sure he does know, and I don't wanna ask him. I want him to tell me. Isn't that what's supposed to happen? Or maybe I've just been watchin' too many of his pre-Pulse sappy movies...

Episode 3.15 - Hot Run for Mars & Venus

Max and Logan confront their demons as they work to reconcile old wounds. Will they be able to clear the air? Meanwhile, Lydecker prepares the X5s for impending conflict, and the P.I. agency's first client has more on her mind than just detective work...

PROLOGUE

Fogle Towers – Monday, December 6, 2021, early morning

Logan was sitting on the training table, lifting weights, when his cell phone rang. After setting down the dumbbells and drying his face with a towel, he reached down carefully and picked up the phone from the seat of his wheelchair nearby. He glanced at the caller ID before answering. "Hey, Max."

"Hey," Max said with a smile in her voice. Logan could hear her Ninja idling in the background. "Me hittin' you back."

"I was hoping you could stop by on your way to work. Got some dastardly deeds to discuss."

She laughed. "It never ends, does it? So what's on the mighty Eyes Only's plate today?"

"I'm looking into some corruption. You know – same old, same old," he joked.

"I'm on my way to Terminal City right now to pick somethin' up," Max said, "but I'll swing by afterward."

"Sounds good."

"Cool. See ya later."

Max closed her phone and tucked it into her pocket. She revved the engine, put the Ninja into gear, and began flying down the road.

It's been a week and Logan and I still haven't had that talk he mentioned. Sure, Normal's been ridin' my ass and givin' me extra overtime, but that's not the only reason. Logan keeps sayin' it's not a good time. It's gotta be about his legs, but every time he stalls, I can't help wondering what's holding him back. Not like it would kill him to show a little more respect for me, and tell me the truth. But I guess that's Logan – everything has to be just so before he'll make his move. Only one of these days it's gonna come back and bite him in the ass.

Detective Agency/Laundromat

"Picked up the supplies for our little P.I. business," Alec declared, plopping two bags on the desk. "And the extra money will be nice if we can get those washers out there to start working again." He rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "The Alec and Gem Detective Agency."

Gem's head shot up from where she sat behind the desk, cradling Elfie in her arms. "I was thinking the ‘Gem and Alec Detective Agency.'"

Alec shrugged. "Hey, I was just trying to keep it in alphabetical order...makes it easier for the public to remember," he said. "Plus, I already put it on the sign out front."

Gem rolled her eyes. "What, that piece of cardboard that's gonna fall down at the first rain? Which will probably be in, what? Five minutes?"

Alec huffed, pretending to be annoyed.

"We could combine our names," she offered.

"Hmm, let's see..." Alec tapped his chin, feigning deep thought. "Gemalec? Lameceg? Acemelg? Legacem?"

Gem started laughing. "No, you're right...we should keep it ‘Gem and Alec Detective Agency.'"

"You mean Alec and Gem."

"No, I meant..." Gem trailed off as Alec began unloading the bags. "Alec, that isn't the stuff I got for us!" she exclaimed. "What happened to the stapler, the hole punch, the paper?"

"Ah, we can go back and pick those up at Joshua's later. For now, I was thinking we could blow off some steam and relax," he said casually. Grinning, he produced a dartboard from the first bag, modeling it with flair for her approval.

Gem groaned in response. "I can see this is going to be a 60/40 arrangement, huh?"

"That's right. 60 percent fun and 40 percent work," Alec replied, positioning the board on the wall. He turned to look at her. "Aww, come on, Gem. Let's just get everything set up today and then we can start actually working tomorrow. Deal?"

Gem eyed him and then looked down at Elfie sleeping peacefully in her arms. She sighed. Turning up one corner of her mouth, she said, "Okay. Three outta five wins."

"That's my girl." Alec grinned. "Now why don't—?"

Alec was interrupted by a loud banging from the front of the laundromat. Gem looked at him, alarmed.

"You stay here with Elfie," Alec said. "I'll go check it out."

ACT I

Basketball Court, Terminal City

The streets of Terminal City were almost empty. Max passed a few transgenics here and there as they walked by, intent on their business, but the bustle that had become commonplace by the end of the siege was missing. She picked up the fancy lunch Ginger had asked her to deliver to Original Cindy at work, and then wandered by the basketball court on her way out of the complex. The court was intact, but no transgenics were shooting hoops on it; instead, about thirty were using it as a military training ground.

Max stopped in her tracks and watched from the cover of the building she had just rounded.

Children lined up, heads shaved, standing stock-still, with their eyes forward. They held the barrels of their guns with the butt ends resting on the ground. The drill sergeant shouted as he walked down the line, putting the young X5s through the same exercises that the transgenics on the basketball court were performing. Calluses had formed on Max's eight-year-old hands from the hours of work. The whole unit was forced to repeat the drills from the beginning whenever she failed to perform fast enough. The voice of the drill sergeant echoed in her ears.

Lydecker stood nearby, and young Max glanced over at him with the slightest flick of her eyes. His face was emotionless during exercises, never changing even when one of the children dropped from exhaustion or a seizure. He simply indicated to the drill sergeant that the rest of the kids should work even harder. Then Max's eyes were forced front again.

The transgenics in front of her now were as focused on the exercises as Lydecker had been. Disturbed, Max began to step into the open area surrounding the basketball court, only to stop when she noticed Mole and Zeri watching the proceedings and conversing. She remained hidden and listened in.

"Feels good to be soldiers again, doesn't it?" Zeri observed.

"You got that right. Sitting on our asses and waiting to be jumped was a waste of talent," Mole said around the cigar anchored between his teeth. "You're sure Lydecker's got a place for us in his new X-corps? I heard he wasn't too keen on the freaks."

"Talked to him myself, Mole," Zeri reassured him. "He says he's got room for any soldier willing to obey orders. Personally, I never saw him do anything against the freaks. He was always too busy chasing the rogues from ‘09." She snorted and crossed her arms, never taking her eyes off the transgenics on the court. "I never did see what was so special about civilian life."

"Alec and Max made it seem glamorous. That's why most of the X-series left, especially the ones who came here straight from hiding. They never saw the outside world firsthand. Max and her boyfriend got ‘em all hyped up on ‘freedom' and being ‘normal.' Hah." Mole laughed bitterly. "None of us will ever be normal, no matter what we look like. Not even Max."

"They'll find out, and they'll be back, wanting to do what they were made to do. You wait and see."

The conversation ended as Mole and Zeri joined the sergeant who was training the soldiers.

Neither one saw Max. She stood there for a moment, lowered her eyes in contemplation, and then turned and left the way she had come.

Detective Agency/Laundromat

Alec walked through the swinging doors that led from the office to the laundromat. Walking past the rows of washers, he approached the front of the store and saw a woman peering through the large windows.

"We're not open!" he yelled to her through the glass.

"Oh, please, I just wanted to come in for a quick load! Are you sure you can't open it, just for me?" the lady asked, batting her eyelashes and pressing her body flat against the glass.

Alec raised his eyebrows. The woman, in her early thirties, was attractive, with big brown eyes and shoulder-length, dark brown hair.

"I dunno, lady...you're gonna have to give me a good reason," he replied.

She pointed to his crooked sign. "I have a job for you," she said.

Alec broke out in a wide smile. "In that case, come right in," he said, unlocking the door and ushering her in. "Let me show you to the office."

The woman followed Alec to the back room. He burst through the doors, startling Elfie into waking up. She let out a loud wail, and Gem rocked her, attempting to calm the baby.

"Gem, we have our first client," he said proudly. "This is, uh..."

"I'm Teresa Buckland," the woman filled in, extending her hand to Gem. "But everyone calls me Teeny," she said, flashing a coy smile at Alec.

"Hi, I'm Gem, and that's Alec." Gem glanced at Alec, puzzled.

Alec ushered Teeny to one of the chairs. "Ms. Buckland, here, take a seat, tell us all about it."

"Oh, please, honey, call me Teeny," she said flirtatiously. Gem raised an eyebrow in amusement as Teeny raked her eyes over Alec. Shrugging off her coat, Teeny sat down, suddenly becoming very quiet. Her eyes filled with tears, and she whispered, "I think my husband is cheating on me. I'm so ashamed, and I don't know what to do."

Alec knelt beside her. "Don't worry about it. He's a bastard for cheating on a beautiful woman like you." Gem looked over Teeny's head and caught Alec's glance, rolling her eyes. Alec continued. "What do you want us to do for you?"

"Umm...uhh." Teeny began to squirm. "It's kind of embarrassing to talk about, especially with, uh..." she trailed off, glancing quickly at Gem. "With your wife here and all."

Alec snorted. "Gem isn't my wife, she's my partner. You can tell us. It's okay," he soothed.

Elfie took the opportunity to once again let her presence be known, and began crying in earnest. Gem sighed. "It's time to feed her." Casting a glance at Teeny, she said, "I'm gonna step in the other room. Alec will fill me in later, but don't worry, we'll get the job done for you."

Teeny flashed Gem an appreciative smile. Once the door shut behind Gem, Teeny turned her full attention to Alec and adopted a seductive demeanor. Licking her lips, she leaned into him, whispering in his ear. "Looks like it's just you and me now."

Surprised, Alec jumped up and looked at her. "Uh, yeah. Now what exactly do you want us to do? Tail him, beat him up, what?"

Teeny rose from the chair, walking slowly toward Alec, her hips swaying, until she had him backed up against the desk. Grinning, she trailed her finger down the front of his shirt. "Why don't I just show you what I want you to do?" she suggested.

Alec gulped. Before he could respond, she shoved him back onto the desk, and swung her legs up and straddled him. The lamp clattered to the floor, and Alec managed to squeak, "Hey, that's the only one we have!"

Teeny ignored him, frantically trying to pull his shirt out of his pants. She was breathing heavily and giggling, and Alec could only make out fragments of what she was saying. "...Such a stud..."

Emerging from his daze, Alec grasped both her arms, pushed up and stood, keeping her at arm's length. "Why don't we just take a moment here. You can catch your breath, hopefully regain your sanity, and I'll just appreciate how bizarre this is."

Teeny responded by launching herself at his neck. "I'll pay you, sweetie. You just name your price," she purred.

Suddenly, the back door swung open with a bang, catching her off guard. She turned to look at the intruder with a glare. He was in his early twenties, with sandy blond hair and a well-built body.

Alec pulled away from Teeny and turned to look at the man in wide-eyed shock. "What the hell! Where are you people coming from?"

The intruder responded tersely. "I'm looking for X5-238."

"You mean Gem?"

"If that's what X5-238 is callin' herself, then yeah. Where is she?" the intruder asked.

Alec crossed his arms. "Why don't you tell me your name, and I'll decide if I want to tell you that information?"

Teeny, perturbed at being ignored, gathered up her coat. "I'll let you boys work out your testosterone issues without me." She brushed closely past Alec on her way to the door. "I'll catch up with you later, sugar," she demurred, sashaying out.

Alec shook his head after her. Turning his attention back to the intruder, he asked again. "So, pal, who are you?"

"X5-739," the intruder responded.

Alec raised his eyebrow. "X5 huh? Manticore's gone...what do you call yourself now?"

"Name's Cody."

"Cody, huh?"

The man shrugged. "Well, it's ‘Cody Avenue East,' actually...that's where I happened to be when I realized I needed a civilian name."

"Lucky you weren't on a rural route," Alec snorted. "What are you doing looking for Gem?"