Disclaimer: See chapter 1. Nothing has changed.

A/N: Thanks to Alaidh for the beta. This was been a long time coming and I know it’s very short but I’ve had really severe writer’s block for a couple of months now. Drop me a review if you like it, or even if you don’t.

Alec unlocked the Aztek and slid into the driver's seat. He started the engine then looked for the switch to activate the foot pedals. He'd seen Logan do the opposite often enough to know. The SUV started with a healthy roar – it was old but, despite external appearances, Logan kept it in good repair mechanically. Alec switched the controls over then tried the gas pedal experimentally, smiling at the answering roar from the motor. "Mission accomplished," he said to himself, putting the car in gear and driving out of the parking garage.

The rain still poured down, streaking the glass between strokes of the wiper blades, misting the windows. He steered a course north, thankful of the fact that on a night like this, most people wouldn't want to venture out of doors, and even the cops manning the few checkpoints left wouldn't be prepared to leave their warm, dry booths to check anyone's ID. He had a clear run out of the city.

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"Max."

She felt the relief in his voice. "Of course."

"Did you get a hold of Alec?"

"Yeah, he just headed out. You wanna hang on the line while we do this? I could probably do with the company."

Logan smiled, even while he acknowledged to himself that the reality was she didn't need his help. "Yeah. Did you fix him up with some comms?"

"Yes, but they'll be outta range by the time he gets there."

"You might wanna try bouncing the signal off a weather satellite."

"Um, Logan? Have you looked outside? Ain't nothin' gonna penetrate that. Hang on a minute." Max switched the phone to the speaker, freeing her hand to use the keyboard. "Nothing in the area. We're gonna have to rely on what we got."

Logan nodded and closed his eyes tiredly. "Okay." He scrubbed at his face with his free hand, the scruff scratching at his hand, waking him up. "Any thoughts on what he's doing in this neck of the woods?"

"Not a clue," she replied. "As far as I'm aware, he hasn't been in these parts in years."

Logan nodded to himself, and heard the office chair creak as Max changed position, sitting up straighter, adjusting the position of the baby on her lap.

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Alec winced as the rain grew heavier. The radio was inaudible over the combined din of the loud tattoo on the roof of the vehicle, coupled with the swish of the wipers and noise from the road. “Looks like the car’s gettin’ washed whether you want it or not, Logan.” That thought kept him grinning for a while.

It was a miserable night to be driving – a miserable night to do anything at all. He nosed the car slowly out of the city, grateful that the weather was keeping most people indoors. Hitting the highway north, he upped the speed, thankful for the superior vision and reflexes that allowed him to do so. He didn’t want to stay out in this any longer than he had to. Twenty minutes later, he spotted lights ahead and was stopped by a police barricade across the road.

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“You took your time getting here.”

Alec glared at the compact figure standing before him, rain dripping from a borrowed slicker two sizes too big. “Hey, if it were up to me, I wouldn’t be here at all,” the X5 snapped back.

“I knew she’d send someone if she couldn’t come herself.”

“Yeah, right. Curiosity killed the kitty cat,” Alec snorted derisively. “Come on. She wants you back at her place, pronto. Car’s this way.”

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“Got the package,” Alec said into the phone enigmatically. “Can I go home now, ma?”

Max rolled her eyes. “Bring him back here then you can go home,” she said sharply into the handset of the phone.

“You sure you wanna do that, Max?”

“He’s been here before, Alec.”

“Okay…see ya soon.” Alec snapped the phone shut and started the engine. “Put your seatbelt on. Don’t wanna be held up by an over-zealous sector cop,” he said.

The only response was a grim smile.

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“Mr. Cale, what are you doing awake?”

Logan looked up at the nurse somewhat tiredly and gestured at the phone he still held in his hand. “Talking to my wife,” he said slowly.

“Are you all right?” She looked up from where she was studying his chart. “Pain okay?”

“Not really,” he said.

“You’re due for your meds.”

He nodded. “Thanks.”

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“Logan, you still with me?” Max asked. She’d heard the quiet conversation in the background as the nurse spoke to him and bit her lip guiltily. Oh, Logan…

“I’m here,” he said, his speech slightly slurred – part weariness, part from the drugs the nurse had just administered. Even to himself he sounded oddly disembodied, his brain fogging over as the medication kicked in.

“Hey,” she replied affectionately. “I got this under control. Get some rest.”

“’Kay, Max.”

He didn’t even have the strength to hang up the phone and dropped it to the pillow beside his head. Max heard the start of some gentle snores before she broke the connection. She left her hand resting on the receiver for a moment before letting out a loud sigh. She missed Logan more than she would ever admit. He had become too much a part of her over the years. Gathering up Eva, she walked through to the living room to wait for Alec. Logan’s wheelchair was parked in front of the picture windows where she’d left it after bringing it home earlier in the week. Hugging the baby to her, she tried to peer outside through the torrential rain that coated the windows and obscured all but the brightest lights in the building opposite. She gave an ironic grin to the chair and touched the back gently with one hand before crossing to the front and sitting down in it. Snuggling into the comfortable seat cushion, she felt an instant connection with her absent husband and was able to relax for the first time since she’d seen the news broadcast.

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Alec cast a cynical glance at his passenger. Their paths hadn’t crossed while he was at Manticore, although he knew of the man’s reputation, but they had met a few times since then.

“How is she? She still with Cale?”

“What do you care?” Alec snapped.

“Snippy,” the man replied and grinned. “Prick a nerve?”

“No,” Alec rolled his eyes. “Definitely not. Just got better things to do on a night like this than play taxi driver to you.” He glanced over to his right to see his passenger give a small chuckle and wad his jacket into a ball against the window as a pillow before closing his eyes against the night.

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“Yo, Max!” Alec called out softly, entering the apartment with his passenger right behind him. “Where are you?”

“Living room, Alec,” she replied, equally softly. She was curled up in an armchair, having just returned Eva to her room. “Come in.” She waited for Alec to conduct her guest into the room. “Thanks, Alec, you can go.”

Alec looked at her doubtfully for a moment. “Okay, you mind if I…” he waved the car keys at her.

She waved him away impatiently. “Bring it back tomorrow…intact.”

He gave her a mock-hurt look. “What?” Then his normal good humor reinstated itself. “Later, Max.”

Max turned a glittering gaze on the other visitor, fixing him with a stare. Her posture, as she sat in the armchair, was deceptively relaxed, one knee bent and an arm resting upon it. She waited for the click of the front door closing before she spoke again. For his part, the man before her cast a look around the room, eyes narrowing when he saw the wheelchair parked in front of the window. His head cocked slightly as he also heard the door close and he returned his eyes to Max. “Hello, Max,” he said, his voice gruffer than she remembered. “You’re looking good.”

“Hi, Don,” she said somewhat casually. “What brings you to Seattle after all this time?”

He pulled a slip of paper out of the inside pocket of his jacket. She stood to take it from him as he held it out to her. “This,” he said, his expression grim.