I disclaim-I don't own a thing ;)

"Something definitely went on here." Max shuddered.

"White must have got him." Alec ran his fingers through his hair nervously.

"How? Why would he know to come here?"

"Maybe he's been following you?"

"But why take Joshua?"

"To get to you," Alec stated quietly.

"Oh, Alec, poor Joshua, he must be so afraid."

"That is if he's still..." Alec didn't even finish, because before he knew it, he was pinned to the ground with Max's forearm pressing into his neck.

"Don't even say that!" She seethed. "We'll get him back, we have to!"

"Don't you see? This is what he wants. He knows you'll go after him. Don't do it Max, you'll only wind up captured too," Alec bit off, anger lacing his voice.

"I can handle it, I was made for this sort of thing," she whispered, loosening her grip.

Alec rubbed his neck. "Yeah well, so was I and I'm not going to let you go looking for him alone."

"Alec... what if he's hurt? What if they're doing things to him?" Max asked, her voice cracked giving away her emotions.

"We'll find him, I promise," Alec told her, sitting up, with her still straddling him. He put his arms around her cautiously at first, but as she eased into him, he let it become a full blown hug.

Alec held her in his arms hoping beyond all realistic expectations that White hadn't hurt Joshua. He knew Max wouldn't be able to take it if White had done anything to Joshua. "It'll be okay," he whispered against her ear, gently stroking her back.

Max let him hold her and comfort her. It had been a long time since she had such contact, and the gentle ease with which Alec held her made her all the more relaxed. As odd as it was, sitting on Alec's lap, letting his body mold to hers, something about it felt so right that she had to pull away.

Chills ran down her spine. Maybe from the loss of contact or maybe from the closeness they had just shared. She wasn't sure what it was, but an uneasy feeling came over her, almost scaring her. This was Alec, a smart-ass at best, and a trouble maker at worst. Yet, his name sounded different in her head. Different because she was finally getting a real taste of who he was. Over the past few days he had shown himself to be considerate and loyal.

She stood, turning from him so he couldn't see the emotions playing out on her face. Then there was Logan. A man she couldn't remember but knew he was somehow important to her. Now, with Joshua missing, she had to put all of that aside and concentrate on finding him.

Alec followed Max as she briskly walked down the darkened streets. She seemed to have a destination and he certainly wasn't going to argue with her while she was like this.

Suddenly they heard a loud howl as clear as the night sky. It was Joshua, there was no mistaking it. Max ran towards the noise with Alec hot on her trail. Through the industrial sector of town, the howls seemed to be coming from a condemned warehouse.

"Max?"

"What?"

"Don't you think we should think this through? Stake out the place for a bit, and then come up with a plan?"

"There's no time for that. Joshua's in there and they're doing shit knows what to him. We have to get in there and get him out as fast as we can."

"Max, wait! This isn't smart. You know better than this. Let's stop and phone Logan and tell him where we are, just in case."

"What's the point, Logan can't do anything to help us anyway. Now either you're with me or not."

Alec was shocked. Shocked that she had referred to Logan so coldly, and shocked with the thrill it gave him. "Fine, but be cautious. Who knows what kind of traps White has set up for us."

"Stop stalling!" She growled and lifted herself onto the ledge of a window.

She easily opened it and slipped through. Ducking inside, she took a look at her surroundings. "The coast is clear. Come on!" She yelled down to Alec.

"If I have to be the voice of reason, you know this isn't going to go smoothly," Alec chided Max. She just looked down at him and motioned for him to follow.

Alec easily mounted the sill and was standing beside Max in no time. "I still have a bad feeling this is a huge setup," Alec admitted.

"There's no time to worry about that now. You go that way and I'll go this way."

"There's no way in hell I'm letting you go out on your own! We'll stick together, no arguing."

"Fine," Max simply said, taken aback by his authoritative and somewhat protective tone.

They crept against the walls, keeping their eyes on all corners of the rooms as they wove in and out, listening for more of Joshua's howls.

"This way." Max motioned to a room at the end of the hallway.

Slowly they made their way to it. Max, never one for subtlety, burst through the wood frame with the sole of her boot.

They walked into the room, still hearing Joshua, but the room was empty. "Over here!" Max indicated to the centre of the room, where a small crate sat. She opened the box easily.

"A tape recorder?" Alec said, in disbelief.

"I don't get it."

"It must be a trap. Let's go!" Alec told her, turning to leave, when he noticed the wire trailing from the door. He followed it with his eyes, resting them on the wooden crate, where Max kneeled, looking for any trace or clue as to Joshua's whereabouts. Alec made the connection, and as Max went to remove the tape recorder he screamed. "MAX!"

TBC