Chapter 14: Moving Out

"Max can you pass the salt and pepper?" Iggy asked, stuffing another strip of bacon in his mouth.

"Sure. Here," I said, passing them over to him.

"Thanks. So," he stopped briefly to swallow, "what's the plan, all mighty leader?"

"I say we just go there tonight and sneak in through the window," Gazzy chimed in, his eyes glistening with excite as his mind formulated an idea. "We can put on all black, and put face paint on, and go all commando super spy!'

"Interesting thought, but, no. We're not breaking into anyone's house unless it's absolutely necessary," I replied with a smile. "No, we're just going to have my mom drive us over there, and answer the ad. We'll tell them that he ran away, get Fang back, give him the antidote, and get everything back to normal."

"Ugh. That's so boring!" Gazzy complained, sloughing in his chair.

"I know Gaz, but this is the best way to do it. Tell you what, when this is all over, you and Iggy can set off some homemade fireworks to celebrate."

"Alright!" he cheered, pumping his fist into the air.

"Do you really think getting Fang back from them is really going to be that easy?" Nudge asked while she ran a brush through her hair, desperately trying to get the knots out.

"Well, it may be difficult to convince them that we're his family, but as soon as Fang sees us, he'll be happy and will be more then glad to come home. Besides, when has lying ever been a problem for us?" I asked, looking at everyone. I stopped when I got to Iggy, seeing he had his eyebrow raised at me. "What?" I questioned, getting slightly annoyed.

"Max, what have you been smoking, and where can I get some?" he wiped his mouth and hands before continuing. "Do you honestly believe that it's going to be that easy to just walk up the porch, ask for Fang, and have everything be "A Okay"?"

"Well…yea. I kinda did. Why not?"

"Did you ever stop to think this could be a trap?" he asked, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "What if the School's just trying to flush us out by pretending they have him? What if Jeb's the one who put that ad in the paper? What if they're just trying to use Fang to get to us while our two best fighters are out of commission?"

Ok, to be honest, I hadn't really thought about that. Lately I've been more preoccupied with everything else like getting them all back to normal. But that doesn't mean that I was just gonna let Iggy be a smart ass and get away with it. That's not the Max way, and the fact that my emotions are even more out of whack because of the pregnancy hormones was just going to make it worse for him.

"So, what, are you saying we shouldn't go? That we shouldn't even check to see it's its legitimate?" I questioned as I feel my blood starting to boil from anger.

"No, that's not what I'm saying. What I am saying is that we need to careful, especially you."

"And what exactly is that supposed to me?" I demanded.

"Max, in case you haven't notice or are just brain dead, YOU'RE PREGNANT! And due in a matter of days! If we get ambushed, you're a sitting duck, and we'd be screwed beyond belief! Think about it!" Iggy shouted, standing to his feet and slamming his hands on the table. Iggy's never been one to challenge me when it came to things like this. In fact, no one has, not even Fang. The Flock knew that when Max made an order, you'd best do it unless you wanted to be on the wrong end of a serious butt kicking.

My face must have been redder then a tomato because I was ready to kill Iggy. Here he was, undermining me in front of the rest of the Flock. If he was nervous, he was hiding it well.

I feel my nostrils flaring as I tried to keep my cool and not grab the nearest object I had to hit him with. In my peripheral, I saw Nudge as she rushed Angel and the Gasman outside, not wanting them to be there with all the tension that was going on, just in case it got bad. Smart girl because I was ready to send a stream of curse words so bad, it would probably kill some poor old person if they heard them.

"Ok. So I hadn't thought everything out."

"Phff, nothing new there, right Max?" Iggy said, rolling his eyes.

I clenched my fist a couple of times, wishing I had one of those stress balls Ella was telling me about. "Listen Iggy," I said, standing to my feet and grabbing a hold of his shirt. "Don't think just because I'm pregnant that I won't get and kick your ass. I'm not in the mood for your smart mouth. I understand where you're coming from, but let me explain to you what the last couple of weeks have been for me. I've been running around, trying to help mom and Jeb come up with an antidote to save you guys. I've been trying to keep all of you well fed and protected, by myself. I am walking around with a kid, in my stomach, who is now doomed to deal with all this bullshit that we call a life. I have gone through more than any teenager ever should and in half the time. I've experienced pregnancy at an accelerated rate, and I'm not even fifteen yet. And then, when things start to get better, when I finally feel like maybe, just maybe, my life is going to get better, you come in here, undermining my leadership over some details that I've over looked?" I shout in his face as I let the tears flow freely. "Well you know what? That's just too bad, isn't it?" I said, letting him go and falling back into my chair where I proceeded to ball up and cry. I hate being pregnant.

"Max, I-" he stuttered, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I-I…I just…I guess I just forgot. It's just…all of this is so frustrating, and seems like it's too good to be true. I guess, it's just that, I'm scared about something happening to you. To Fang. To all of us. And trust me, I'm the last one to be talking about over looking things. I was barely able to handle it when it was just me and Gazzy when they had captured Angel. I was pissed you left us, sure. But I was scared. I was scared that, if they attacked, and I didn't think, that something was going to happen to Gazzy. If it did, I'd never be able to forgive myself." He stopped and walked over, wrapping me in a tight hug.

"I don't know how you and Fang do it. It's like you've got it down perfectly."

"That's because I always had Fang there to help me," I sniffled. "Whenever I planned something, if I overlooked or forgot something, Fang was always there to remind me. When we had split up the Flock and you guys left, it was hard trying to only have to worry about Nudge, Angel, Total and Ari. You guys were always on my mind, and whenever we were setting up camp or flying, I would always look back, expecting you guys to be there, but you weren't. After that, I vowed I'd never lose sight of you guys again. Then this all happens, and I lose a Fang. I'm a horrible leader."

"Max, shut up, ok?" Iggy said, grabbing my face and forcing me to look at him. "The way you're talking right now, you don't sound anything like Maximum Ride. You need to get your head in the game, and get over all that stuff that happened. Yea, you overlooked stuff. Big deal. You're the leader of the Flock. You have to put up with a lot more than any of us do, just so that we don't have to worry about it. You're the greatest leader, mother, and sister any of us could ever ask for."

I stared at him for a couple of seconds before I let a smile come to my face. "Thanks Ig."

"Well, someone's gotta cheer you up since Fang's not here," he chuckled. "But Max," he said, all seriousness coming back to his voice.

"Yea?"

"I need you to promise me something."

"Um…ok. What is it?"

"…If this whole thing turns out to be a trap, promise me you won't try to stay and fight."

My breath caught in my throat. Did he really just ask me to do what I knew was impossible?

"Iggy, I-"

"Max. Just, promise me you won't fight. I know that that seems like its not possible for you, but I need you to do this. If anything, I want you to grab your mom, Angel and the Gasman, and get out of there. If I can hold them off, I'll send Nudge with you too, but I can't promise anything about her or me for that matter. I'll fight them off as long as I can, but you need to take the time I give you to run. I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you or the baby, and I know Fang would never forgive me either. Please, promise me, and mean it, Max."

I stayed silent, letting more tears run down my face. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Iggy had just told me, plain and simple, that he was going to sacrifice himself to save all of us so that I could run away like a coward. I couldn't do it. I couldn't lie to him. I've never lied to him before when it came to important things like this, and I wasn't going to start now.

"Iggy…I…I can't promise you that I won't do anything. I can't just let you get yourself killed like that. I understand that you want me to protect the others and be sure that everyone is safe, but that includes you. But, I will make you a promise. If you promise me that if it's a trap, and you or any of the others stay behind, that you will get out of there, all of you, alive, and make it back to me, than I won't fight. Deal?"

Iggy smiled a small smile before hugging me again. "Deal. I'll do all I can to make it back in one, still breathing piece."

I laughed at this. "Good because if you don't, you're gonna have hell to pay cuz I'll bring you back and kill you myself."

"I'd take that over your cooking any day. I feel bad for that kid right now. Actually, I feel bad for everyone in the Flock. If you're gonna be cooking, everyone's gonna starve before they can track you ad find you."

And of course, Iggy always knows how to take a really sweet, sentimental moment, and ruin it. Of course, I do too. I grabbed my glass of orange juice off the table, and poured it all over his head.

"Hey!" he shouted, wiping juice from face as it dripped from his hair. "What the heck Max?"

"Oops. Sorry. You know pregnant girls; hormones and all that."

"Jee, that's such a great excuse," he said as he rolled his eyes and headed for the stairs. "I'm gonna go take my second shower of the day. Just remember Max," he said, turning around toward me. "You've just started a war that you can't possibly win." He then proceeded to make his way up the stairs.

"Yea, I'll remember that," I said as I attempted to soak up the remaining juice from the table and floor.

"What happened to Iggy?" Ella asked as she walked into the kitchen to pout herself a glass of orange juice.

"I dumped a glass of orange juice on him."

"…Why?" she asked slowly, looking at me suspiciously.

"We were having a sentimental moment and he ruined it, so I dumped it on him."

"Oookay. Well, in that case, I'm gonna go watch TV before you decide to hit me with a frying pan or something."
I rolled my eyes. "Yea, you do that," I called after her just as my mom walked into the kitchen, groceries in hand.

"Max, why did were Nudge, Angel and the Gasman outside, looking terrified for their lives, and why did Nudge just warn me that World War 3 or a bloody massacre was going on in my kitchen? And why is there orange juice everywhere?"

"I don't know. I think she's being over dramatic. And as for the juice, Iggy spilled it all over the floor."

"No I didn't!" He yelled from the bathroom. "Your daughter has no sense of humor. And that was before the pregnancy, which also, is not a reason to pour juice on my head!"

Stool pigeon. No pun intended.

My mom let out a small sigh with a smile. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"Make me and your grandchild a special batch of cookies?" I suggested with a smile. We both staretd laughing as she started to put the groceries away. Though, I was series about those cookies.

"Maybe later, after we get Fang back."

"Deal."

30 minutes later, we were all gathered in the living room, finalizing our plan.

"Ok. When we get there, stay close and stay together." I instructed. "We'll all walk up to the door together. When we get there, stay alert, but nobody make any sudden or suspicious movements. We don't wanna cause a panic."

"Right." They all chimed together.

"Nudge?" Iggy called from his seat. "I want you to stay close to me. If this turns out to be a trap, I want you there to help me, but if I tell you to get out of there, you go. No arguing, no backtracking, just go."

"Ok…ok," she whispered, looking uncertain about the whole situation.

" Gazzy, I want you to watch out for Max. I want you to get her out of there safe and sound. If something happens to me and Nudge, you're gonna have to be the protector of the Flock. You're gonna be the man of the group, got it?"

"Sir, yes sir," he said, saluting Iggy the best he could, trying to put on a brave face.

"Angel, I want constant surveillance. If you suspect anything, let us know," I said.

"Right!"

"Also, it's gonna be your job to get Dr. Martinez out of there if anything happens," Iggy added.

"Alright people. We don't know what we're up against or what we'll see. But what we do know is that when we get there, we Fang might be there. We need to get there, get this done, and get him out as fast as we can so we can get him the antidote. Don't make stupid mistakes. We can't risk them. Got it?" I got a simple nod from everyone. "Alright. Mom, we're ready when you are."

"Alright. Let's get going," she said, opening the front door, all of us filing out behind her. The Flock opted to fly while I rode with my mom. I made sure they stayed in view by checking my mirror every couple of minutes. It was a quiet car ride. We were both too nervous about this to be excited. When we arrived, the Flock was on the roof, scouting for anything strange. Soon as they figured everything was ok, they all dropped down, hiding their wings in the process.

"You ready for this?" Iggy asked from behind me.

"About as ready as I'm ever gonna me."

"Yea. It'll be nice to have Fang back. Even if he is all quiet and emo."

I smiled a little at his joke. "You know when he's back to normal he's gonna kick your butt for callin him emo."

"Well at least now I'll be able to see his punches coming for me."

"Not if he's blending into his surroundings," I said, grabbing a hold of the railing and ascending the stairs.

"Great. Now I gotta worry about that too," he said, rolling his eyes.

I smiled, turning toward the door. This was it. Either we were going to find Fang or it was all going to be for nothing. I turned around to look at the Flock and my mom one or time before ringing the doorbell.