Unconscious, plus blood, plus collar equals very bad situation.

Iggy stirred a little his eyes flickering open for a moment. He looked straight at Mel. "Get out of here, the… bomb."

Disclaimer: Don't own. Don't sue. Thank you.

Warnings: Swearing. Don't read if you can't handle it.

Max's POV

We were silent for a moment. This is the part where either time moves really fast or really really slow. "Well, fuck." We turned to look at Cole. "What? A bomb is going to blow this place sky high in half an hour, we have an unconscious flock member, and several dozen experiments to rescue. I would say that this is an appropriate moment for swearing."

"You knew about this?" Fang growled, glaring at him. "So?" "You knew, and you didn't tell us?" I asked incredulously. He shrugged. "We'll deal with this later." I told Fang, who looked about to murder him. "But first, he's going to tell us what experiments he's talking about." I said, glaring at Cole.

"Well, you see, Iggy and I were poking around one evening about three weeks ago, and we discovered that they were housing loads of successful experiments from Itex. Most of them are still in cages and crates in the storage wing way over on the other side of the compound. We don't know that much about them, as we only had the chance to talk to one, but it appears that all of the ones here are sentient. They can talk and think for themselves. According to the girl we talked to (I think she was a girl, it was kind of hard to tell), the white coats have been treating them badly. Instead of him threatening them like he does us, he actually hurts them to get them to do what he wants. They don't like it, and want out. So Iggy decided to build a bomb, and blow this place up, killing Jeb and the whitecoats, allowing us to free them. Cool plan, huh?"

"Cool plan? COOL PLAN?!?!?!?!?!? We're all gonna die because of your stupidity!!! Do you have anything else to tell us?" I asked "Just that we only have twenty seven minutes left." "Shit. Ok, Mel and Alec, can you two take care of Iggy?" they nodded "Good, Fang, Cole, Dylan and I will take care of the experiments. We'll meet you outside. Any Questions?" I asked. "I've got one. What about Shaw and Mary?" Dylan asked. "Leave them. They knew who they threw their lot I with." That was Cole. "Are you crazy? Mary's just a kid! She didn't do anything!!!" Alec shouted. I sighed, we didn't have time for this. "Well Max? What should we do?" Mel asked from the floor. Fang turned to me. "I'll support whatever decision you make." He told me.

It was then that I made one of my famous snap decisions that either saves us, or gets us all killed. I only hoped that it would be the former. "If you see Mary, she comes with us. Shaw stays here." They nodded. "Now lets go, we have how long, Cole?" "Twenty five minutes." "ok, lets move out, people."

Ella's POV (in another wing of the facility)

"You're being moved for observation." He said. I nodded and followed the whitecoat out of my room and down into the treatment wards. He straped my arm to a table and put a stint into it, and connected that to a cable. Whatever this was, it wasn't observation. I tried to yank the cable out. It wouldn't budge. I'll admit it, I panicked. I could feel the drugs pumping through my system. I tried to fight it. If I could just get it out of my arm…I went down. I couldn't fight anymore as my world faded to a little pinpoint, just out of my reach. I felt floaty and light, the sounds around me are distant, and echoy. There was a crash, and someone far away screamed. I decided to store that little bit of information away for later when I could process it better. I just wanted to sleep.

Eventually, a word or two of what they were saying got through to me. "Bomb…"and "Run." For some reason, I knew I should be frightened, but I couldn't bring myself to be. I was just so tired, and it was warm. I was just about to drift off completely when my arm started itching.

I couldn't ignore it, it was getting worse every second. I tried to reach it, but it was like moving through a sea of Jello, next to impossible. I was just going to have to wait this out.

Max's POV

After we split up, Mel and Alec supporting an unconscious and most likely internally bleeding Iggy, The boys and I followed Cole through a maze of corridors. I was nervous and jumpy, feeling like an eraser was going to jump out at us at every corner. When none materialized, I began to worry all the more. Where were they? We haven't seen any now. At the very least we should have seen the patrols that are supposed to guard the corridors.

As I thought that, an unconscious, furry body slumped out of the door way in front of us. How corny is that? Right the moment I think of something, I'm proved wrong. Although, this might only mean that we have an unknown (and potentially more dangerous) enemy.

A small head with large green-blue eyes and fuzzy brown hair poked around the corner. The little boy saw us and backpedaled furiously, disappearing back into whatever room he had come from. "Is that them?" I asked Cole, he shrugged.

"It's the right door, although I don't recognize the kid." He said. I looked to Fang. He nodded and followed me through the door…

I know it can be unconditional, unpredictable, uncontrollable, down right irrational, and strangely easy to mistake for loathing. My heart, it feels like my chest can no longer contain it. Like it doesn't belong to me anymore. It belongs to you, and if you wanted it, I'd give it to you with nothing in return. No presents or goods, no declarations, but knowing that you loved me too. My heart in exchange for yours.

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End of this chapter

Preview of Ch. 36!!!

Max's POV

"Dear Ella,

I don't know much about love, but I do know that it can be unpredictable, uncontrollable, down right irrational, and strangely easy to mistake for loathing. My heart, it feels like my chest can no longer contain it. Like it doesn't belong to me anymore. It belongs to you, and if you wanted it, I'd give it to you with nothing in return. No presents or goods, no declarations, but knowing that you loved me too. My heart in exchange for yours.

Love, (I'm so glad to be able to write it, finally)"

XXXX

(edited by the author for sensitivity)

I dropped the letter, staying to watch just long enough to insure that the flames consumed it as they had it's author. The letter began to blacken and curl, that's one letter she'll never receive.