Reunion
Chapter 2
by
D'Jean
Kurt stirred the soup in the pan while Jean made another pot of coffee.
"You mean you can't read her mind at all?"
"It's more than that, Kurt. I can't even sense her presence. It's as if she weren't there. Either she has some of the best psychic shields I've ever come across or she's not really there and we're all sharing some sort of delusion."
"I don't think a delusion could bleed that much." Kurt offered dryly.
"As for what she did to Logan's eyes, I have no idea how she managed it. I couldn't find any evidence of psychic tampering. Somehow, she just shorted them out. I'm not sure I would have ever been able to undo what she did. I'm glad she fixed them."
"That makes two of us, Red." Logan added from the hallway.
"Hey Logan, how are you feeling?"
"I been worse. Hope that's high-test yer brewin' there."
"You'd better believe it. I think a few of us were shortchanged in the sleep department last night. Grab a mug."
Jean wished that the Professor were here already. She had contacted him an hour ago while he was still on the plane from DC. Not being able to get a reading on the woman made her nervous. She hoped he would have better luck.
"So how's the patient, Kurt?"
"Much better this morning than she was last night. Her vitals are good and with food and rest she should be fine soon. Did she talk to you about why she did what she did last night?" "Not much, keeps goin' on about how she didn't expect me to be me but now that she knows I'm me she's happy to see me. Doesn't make much sense. I thought I'd give her some time to rest before I tried to talk to her again."
"Why don't you and Jean come down in about a half-an-hour? She should be done with her breakfast by then and perhaps we can get to the bottom of some of this."
"Sounds good, do you need help with that tray?" Jean asked.
Kurt raised an eyebrow at Jean as he used his tail to open the door. "Really Jean, you should know me better by now." He winked at her and spun around, catching the door with one hand while hoisting the tray up in the other. Not a drop of soup slopped out of the bowl on the tray.
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"JÛ Ètv·gyat, Lena." Kurt presented the tray with a flourish. Lena eyes flashed angrily up at Kurt.
"What did you say?"
"Sorry, you were speaking in Hungarian last night. I thought well, it doesn't matter. You don't like Hungarian? You spoke it like a native."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. That language has bad associations for me. Can we just stick to English?"
"Certainly. Enjoy, then."
God, Lena, she thought to herself, you gotta get a hold of yourself. The events of the last evening had left her drained and overwhelmed. Hearing that language, the Doctor's language, in a lab with no windows was too close to the past and she had panicked without thinking. It wasn't good for her to feel strong emotions when she was this weak. It could affect her shields. Other people could get hurt. She could get hurt. As she slurped the soup, she tried to relax and center herself. The soup was helping. But still she was nervous.
"Now that you're finished with breakfast, would you mind having some visitors?"
"I guess not. Can I ask you what happened to my clothes and stuff?"
"Well I'm afraid that your clothes are pretty much ruined. We can find something for you to wear until you get home, I'm sure. I can bring the rest of it to you if you'd like."
"Please. I really need my cell phone. There are people who might be worried about me."
"I'll get it after I take the dishes back to the kitchen." Kurt saw Jean and Logan approaching the door. "Ah, here they are. You know Logan and this is Jean Grey. Jean this is Lena Jones."
Lena, Logan thought, did that sound right? Was it familiar? He looked closely at her for the first time. She was small, her body was lost in the hospital gown. Her blonde hair was disheveled and her ears poked out between the strands. She had a heart-shaped face that was dominated by her large gray eyes and full lips. All together it gave her an elf-like quality. Bruises had blossomed on her arms where the restraining straps had been. She was still pale from the loss of blood.
"How are you doing Lena?" Jean asked.
"A lot better, Miss Grey. I should be able to get out of your hair pretty soon now."
"Call me Jean, please. There's no hurry, you can stay as long as you like."
"Thanks, but I have to get back home as soon as I can."
"Well sure, we won't keep you."
Lena only nodded in response. For a moment, no one spoke. Then Jean broke the silence.
"You gave us quite a scare there last night."
"Sorry about that." Lena said, staring off into the distance.
Right, Jean thought, this is really going well. I can see what Kurt was talking about. Lena doesn't seem very interested in sharing information.
<Professor, are you here yet?>
<Yes Jean. The woman is with you now?>
<Yes. Can you feel anything?>
<Only the slightest presence. Now that I'm not on the road, I can concentrate better. I'm going to try and make contact.>
<Well good luck, we're not getting very far with talking.>
"What no GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" Lena screamed. She bolted up to a standing position on the bed, waving her hands in front of her and shaking her head. "Nooooo!"
"It's alright Lena, he's only trying to help. You tried to hurt yourself last night and we're worried about you." Jean tried to get closer to Lena but the smaller woman was swinging her arms wildly.
"Jeannie, ya better tell the Professor to get out of there. This ain't helping her." Logan moved in to grab Lena.
"Noooooo!" Lena's head snapped back as if she had been shot and she fell to the bed.
"Oh God, Logan, she's done something to the Professor. He's hurt!"
"I didn't! I wouldn't!" Lena jumped to the floor and had to grab the bed to steady herself. "He shouldn't have been in there. He's hemorrhaging now. I've got to get to him right now or he's going to die. Where is he?"
"Kurt, get Hank and take him to the Professor's study right away."
"No me, take me to the Professor. I can save him." Lena said.
"Haven't you done enough already?"
"I DIDN'T DO IT, JEAN." Lena screamed. She grabbed Jean's arm. "The man who messed with me, made me what I am, he didn't like people playing with his toys. He did this. Your Professor tripped one of his mines. He's going to die if I don't get to him. Please!"
"Take her up, Kurt." Jean hoped she was doing the right thing.
"Thank you." Lena squeezed Jean's arm. "I'll make this right. I promise."
Kurt teleported himself and Lena to the Professor's study. By the time Hank, Jean and Logan had made it up to the room, Lena was already working on the Professor.
"Jean, you're a telepath like the Professor, right?"
"Yes Lena."
"I need your help." Lena grabbed Jean's bare arm and instantly, Jean saw a display in front of her eyes. "Okay, this chart is my vitals, that one is his." Each chart was highlighted briefly as she spoke. "The acceptable ranges for both are these. If any of this gets out of whack or goes beyond the range, let me know right away. If you can get into his mind, let him know that the cavalry is coming."
"Got it."
"Lena, wait, your neck, it's bleeding." Jean pointed to the bandage on Lena's neck. It was saturated and beginning to drip with blood.
"What? Oh Hell. Hang on a sec." Lena's hand flew up to the cut on her neck. She ripped the bandage off and pressed into the wound. "Unnnh!" She grunted as her brow furrowed with the effort. On the charts Jean was monitoring, Lena's reading blossomed like a mushroom cloud, then steadied. When Lena moved her hand away, the wound was gone. "Can't save him if I don't stay alive." She rubbed her hand down the front of her gown to get the blood off of it and placed her hand gently against Xavier's neck. Then she bent her head to his shoulder and closed her eyes.
An hour later, the Professor was stable. Lena held onto him now, waiting for him to wake, using the time to rest herself. Teleporting was definitely nothing she wanted to try again anytime soon. She couldn't remember when she'd felt this drained.
Dammit, dammit, dammit, she fumed to herself. That wasn't anything but luck. Some of those mines are powerful enough to blast right through bone. Wouldn't have been anything left of him but meat. What kind of maniac just blindly goes into a stranger's head? Fucking telepaths!
He was stirring now. "Hey there, welcome back from the dead." She cupped his jaw and pulled his face up to look in his eyes. She followed the path of the visual input feeding the data from his eyes to his brain, watched over the synapses as they processed. Damage all gone, she thought, thank God. "How do you feel?"
"Much better thanks to you, I suppose."
"Yeah well, you wouldn't have been hurt if it hadn't been for me. I felt kinda responsible."
"How did you?"
She covered his mouth with her hand. "You just rest okay?"
She stood up from the crouching position she had held for nearly an hour, waited for the room to stop spinning and tried to stretch the stiffness out of her body. She walked over to the windows of the study and looked over the grounds. Looked like it was going to be a beautiful day. If anybody else plans on getting blown up or cut, she mused to herself, I hope they realize they're on their own. She was bone tired and freezing. Her arms hugged her sides and she shivered visibly.
"Are you okay, Lena?" Jean asked. She had come back from the kitchen with tea for the Professor.
"I'll be fine, Jean." She snapped and instantly regretted her tone. "Aw jeeze, I'm sorry. It's just been a long night. I will be fine though. I know I owe you guys some answers. But," she gestured to her bloodstained gown, "can I catch a shower and maybe get some clothes on first?"
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Lena sat in a big chair in the study, her legs drawn up underneath her. The shower and change of clothes had done her good. She was more comfortable now, wearing sweats and sneakers. The clothes were still a bit big for her but they were at least a lot warmer than the gown. All of the work she'd been doing was beginning to wear on her. Overusing her powers caused her systems to fail and the first thing to go was usually her metabolism.
She looked at the rest of the people gathered around the room. The Professor had noticeably improved from when she'd left. He was sitting up and drinking his tea without aid. Jean was sitting next to him, ready to help if he should need it. Even with her red hair tied back and her face creased with worry, she was still one of the most beautiful women Lena had ever seen. Kurt and Henry sat directly in front of her, Henry in a chair like her own and Kurt perched on a divan. Both blue, furry and possessed of an unnatural grace. She wondered if they were related. Logan leaned against the wall beside her chair, his arms crossed over his chest. She could hardly see him out of the corner of her eye but she could feel his dark eyes upon her. They were all looking at her. They were all waiting for her to speak.
If Logan had chosen to call them friends she couldn't really suspect that she was unsafe here. About the worst she could accuse them of was a startling naivetÈ. But she had made it this far in her life by trusting very few people and this wasn't easy for her. She took a deep breath and began.
"My name is Lena, it's short for something. I just don't know what and I have no idea at all what my real last name is. I picked Jones 'cause it's common. I was born in Hungary or Romania in 1969 or maybe '70. I lived in a Romanian orphanage until I was 5 or 6 years old. Then I was 'recruited' (their word, not mine) into the Program. I broke out of the Program's compound in 1984 and I've been on the run since then. Not much of a history but it's all I have."
"What was the Program?" Hank asked.
"Practical applications of mutant powers to modern security and covert ops. They were trying to create super soldiers and super spies. But what the guy who ran it really wanted to concentrate on was the tech arm of the program. That was me and other mutants like me. The soldiers and spies just kept the money coming in."
"What was a tech?" Xavier prompted.
"Mutants with telekinetic and projective talents. You've seen some of what I can do. I don't only heal people; I can hurt them just as easily. I can change them. I can improve them. In the end they made me into a machine that could turn out super mutants or super humans or whatever you wanted." She stared down at her crossed arms, hating to have to share these memories.
"How do you know Logan?" Jean asked.
She looked briefly from Logan to Jean. "Look, Jean, I know Logan doesn't remember this and I'd rather not get into it until I've had a chance to tell him privately first."
"Why do I only remember your eyes?" Logan asked. He appreciated her respect for his privacy but he couldn't wait any longer to figure this part out.
"Because that was the only part of me that you could see through the faceplate of my rig."
"Rig?" Kurt asked.
"The machine I was built into." She looked around at a room full of confused statements and sighed. "When I said they turned me into a machine, I wasn't being metaphorical." She swept her long hair away from her neck, tugged the back of her sweatshirt down and turned her back to the group. "See, this used to be where I was attached." A ragged cross of scar tissue decorated her neck and shoulders. She could hear gasps of shock coming from her audience. "I kept one I/O port. It comes in handy. " She passed her hand across the nape of her neck and a small flap of skin popped up to reveal something that looked like a computer port.
"Oh my stars and garters." Henry exclaimed. He got up to take a closer look. The scar ran up and down from the nape of her neck to just below the shoulder blades and about three inches in either direction where it crossed side to side at the top of her back. He could see small, regular, round depressions that he guessed had been other ports. It looked like something had been ripped out from under the skin.
Logan wondered how she had gotten the other ports out. From the looks of the scar, it couldn't have been pleasant. Lena's face was turned away from everyone but him. He was the only one who saw the single tear slide down her cheek as Henry examined her. When she turned back to the group, her face was composed and the tear was gone.
"I hope this helps you all to understand, why I was willing to die before I let them get me." She smiled wistfully. "I don't really want to die but I can't let myself be used like that ever again."
She turned to the Professor. "So is that good enough? Can I trust you not to go roaming through my head now that I've opened up to you?" She smiled wanly.
"Believe me, we'll make sure that none of the telepaths make that mistake."
"Great. Now I still need to make some phone calls. Is there somewhere I could go to get some privacy?"
"There's a conference room down the hall. Feel free to use it."
"Thank you, Professor." Lena grabbed her cell phone and headed to the conference room.
She was stopped at the door by a tall man in red glasses. "Are you Lena Jones?"
"Yes what is it?"
"We just received some information that the police are looking for you in connection with last night's attack. Apparently they're circulating this sketch based on the girl's description of you." Scott held up a fax of the sketch. It was a fairly accurate likeness.
What little color Lena had managed to gather, drained from her face. Without looking at the phone, she hit the speed-dial and brought it up to her ear.
<"Hola.">
"Cay Cay, it's me. Are you in the apartment?"
< "LANIE, thank-freekin'-god. Where the hell are jou?" >
"ARE YOU IN THE APARTMENT?" She screamed into the phone. Her hands were shaking.
< "No I'm outside Mayview Center." >
"Mayview? What's going on?"
< "It's Annie, Lena. She Jesus she tried to hurt herself. She took some pills. I don't know if she did it on purpose or not. But now they've got her an' they won't let me see her. Jou gotta get down here right now." >
"Oh God!" Lena tried to think of what to do. "Caleb, listen to me. Go to Travis' place and wait for me there. Don't go back to the apartment. You hear me? Stay away from our place, okay?"
< "Travis is still in Tokyo, M'ija. He ain't goin' to help." >
"SHIT! Okay meet me at the place we met Tico and promise me that you won't go back to the apartment until I get there."
< "Okay Lanie. Jeeze, enough with the apartment already, I'll stay away. When jou gonna be at the meet?" >
"Logan, how far are we from New York City?"
"'Bout an hour."
"I'll be there in an hour. Hang tight, M'ijo." Lena closed the phone and looked up at the Professor. She hated asking for favors but she didn't really have a choice.
"Professor, I need some help. You've all said that I'm welcome to stay here if I want. What if I brought two more mutants with me? They're just kids and if anyone's looking for me they might be in danger."
"Lena, you don't need to explain. That's what we're here for. Are you going to need help getting them down here?" He could puzzle enough out of her side of the phone conversation to realize that there was danger involved already.
"Yes, I need a van and two people. Does anyone here know how to pick locks?"
That was Logan's cue. "I got this one Charlie. Somebody call Gumbo and tell him to meet us in the garage. C'mon Lena." He took her arm and steered her out of the room. He'd been able to hear both sides of the conversation and shared her concerns. "Who are these kids?"
"They're my sister and brother. They live with me. If the wrong people notice the police search, they're in as much danger as I am. Annie's in trouble enough already and now she's a sitting duck trapped in that hospital."
"Don't worry Lena. We'll get them out." Logan assured her.
By now they had gotten to the garage. A tall man was waiting for them looking disheveled.
"Dis betta be good mon homme. Jeanie woke me from a soun' sleep."
"Lena, this is Remy. Remy, this is Lena. C'mon Cajun, we'll fill you in on the way."
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Caleb checked his pocket watch again. She still had five minutes. He scanned the sidewalk from his table. It was in the outdoor seating of a small coffee shop. Still no Lanie. He rubbed his face and took another sip of coffee. Come on Lanie, he wondered to himself, where are you?
He'd been on the phone since the morning. When he couldn't find Lena, he'd decided to work on the problem himself. That had led him to track down a friend who had laid wiring for the network at Mayview. From him, Cay had gotten a fairly good idea of how the psychiatric hospital was laid out. He also knew where the network terminals were. He sighed and pulled the pen out from behind his ear and started writing on the napkin. Better sketch it out while it's still fresh in my mind, he thought.
She saw him as she rounded the corner. He was busy jotting something down so he didn't notice her right away. There were circles under his eyes and day's growth of stubble on his chin. Most of his long, wavy, brown hair was caught up in a ponytail but a few ragged strands were simply tucked behind his ears. His thin frame slumped in the chair. She knew he probably hadn't slept last night. His standard uniform of baggy khakis, white tank top and open, silk shirt was even more wrinkled than usual. She was glad that she had made the guys wait in the van. He looked like one more surprise would have done him in.
"Hey, amigo. This seat taken?"
"Lanie! Madre de Dios! Lena, wha' happened to you?" Caleb often teased his big sister about her fair skin but he had never seen her looking so pale. "Sit down before you fall down, M'ija."
"I'm fine Cay Cay. I just had a bad night."
"Jah, there's a lotta that goin' round right now."
"What are you working on?"
"I tracked down some info on how Mayview is laid out."
She squeezed his hand. "Good work, M'ijo. You can show me what you've come up with in the van."
"What van?"
"I um ran into someone last night. That's why I didn't come home. He's a guy I know from a long time ago." She tried to sneak a look at his face but he was staring right at her. His statement was hard.
"I thought it was supposed to be just us, Lanie?"
"Yeah well, we aren't all here right now. If Travis or Goto were here, we wouldn't need any help but they aren't and we doAnd not just for getting Annie either."
"What's goin' on, Lanie?" His voice was as controlled as his statement; neither of them betrayed the panic rising in him. Lanie was in trouble. He'd been so busy worrying about Annie that he hadn't had time to think of the implications of Lena's absence.
She didn't know a good way of telling him that his life was about to change drastically. She'd been dreading this moment from the time she had taken him in. "Remember how I told you that people were after me? How someday, we'd probably have to run?"
"Jes. Wha' happened, Lanie. Is this guy one of them?"
"No, no he's a friend it's just that I ran into something I couldn't walk away from yesterday. Someone's life was in danger and I had to use my power and now I guess now the police are looking for me. I'm sorry, but we can't stay here."
"Well les go then." He stuffed the napkin in his shirt pocket and grabbed his bag.
"Okay, M'ijo." She squeezed his arm again but he wouldn't look at her. She couldn't tell if he was angry or if he was trying to be strong for her. She hoped that he would be okay.
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They were all at the apartment now. Lena and Caleb were packing as Lena went over the plan of action for getting Annie. "We need to get her and we need to make sure all electronic and hardcopy files on her are destroyed. We'll break into two teams. Remy and I will get in the back entrance by the loading docks. There's a system terminal in a small office near the laundry room that's used mostly for inventory. This time of night, it should be pretty empty. I'll go in and get rid of anything they have on Annie. Remy can watch my back while I work."
"Caleb, you'll go in the front entrance with Logan, you need to get Annie and all of her charts. Check the nurse's station too. When you're done, this stairway," she pointed to the floor plan they had transposed from the napkin to a large white board, "goes straight to the back entrance. We'll regroup there and then leave together. Questions?"
"Lena, why don't you let the kid stay in the van? I can take care of all that by myself. No sense putting another person at risk." And Logan didn't feel like babysitting. The kid had a real attitude problem. Logan didn't want to put up with it while he was trying to take care of a little girl too. He didn't much like the idea of Lena going in either, now that he thought about it. She looked awfully pale and tired.
"How jou gonna find her huh, Jefe? Jou don' even know what she look like. Why don't jou stay in the damn van." Caleb didn't need this right now. He wondered who this guy thought he was.
"I don't need ta know what she looks like, kid." He growled. "I can get her scent from her clothes."
"Lena, really, the Cajun and I can handle this whole thing. You two can stay safe in the van."
"No we can't, Logan. I'm sure you and Remy could handle this but it'll take you a lot longer and we don't have time. Caleb can take care of himself. So can I. We both have talents that will come in handy. Trust me."
"Jah, Ese, jou ain't got no call to ac' like you babysittin'."
"Look, kid, I've about had it with you."
"Jou about had it wit' me, huh? Oh that's good. Who the hell do you think you are, Jefe?" They were about three feet apart and closing fast. Lena stepped between them.
"That's it you two, I mean it. I've got to a little girl to save and if you can't help me then you'd better stay the hell out of my way."
"Jeeze Lanie, I din' say I wasn't gonna help. She's my sister too you know." Caleb stomped angrily to the computer room and began shoving gear into a duffel bag.
"Dammit," Lena whispered under her breath. She walked over to Caleb. "Look, Cay, I know you're upset too. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be yelling at you. I'm the one who taught you not to trust anyone and here I am bringing two strangers into the fold. All I can say is, we really do need their help." She put her hand on his shoulder. "In the end, it's not about whether or not you trust them; it's about whether or not you trust me.
He didn't look at her but he said, "C'mon Lanie, let's go get hermanita. If jou think these guys can help I guess we better take 'em."
She squeezed his arm. "Thanks, Caleb. She turned back to the men in the living room. "Alright, gentlemen. If everybody carries something, we can be out of here in one trip. Let's move out."
As they carried bags and gear down the stairs, Lena whispered to Logan, "He's a good kid, Logan. Give him a chance, please?"
The most important thing to her right now was the little girl. He knew that and he knew that whatever was between him and the boy could be taken up later. So he let it go for the time being. "It'll be okay, Lena. Caleb and I, we'll get Annie back. Don't worry."
Once the van was packed, they headed to the hospital.
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