What's Next? -- Chapter 13

Disclaimer:  The TV show Dark Angel, all of the characters that appeared on it (Max, Zack, Alec, etc.), and everything else that has to do with the show belong to their respective owners, not to me.  No money is being made off of this fic.  I only own the original characters (Becky/X6-405, etc.).

Notes:  You might not understand most of this chapter if you haven't read my fic "A Taste of Everyday" first.

"I'm so damn nervous," Rena said the next day as she looked out the window as the plane started to land.

"Now are you glad that I came along for moral support?" Zane teased.

Rena rolled her eyes.  "You know that I am glad that you came along with me, but you do have a business that you're starting up."

"I know that," Zane said.  "But I also know how important this is to you and so does Krit.  He won't need me back in Seattle for at least another three days.  If I have to get back there then, I'll fly back and I promise to pick you up at the airport when you come back next week.  Rena, don't worry about it."

"Okay, fine," Rena said.  She smiled and leaned over and kissed Zane.  "I'm sorry I'm being bitchy."

"No wonder I didn't notice a difference in your behavior," Zane teased.

"If I didn't love you, I would twist you up in so many positions until you were screaming for mercy," Rena said.

Zane's eyes lit up and he grinned.  "Do you have any clue how much you turned me on just now?"

Rena smiled seductively.  "If you play nice during the day, I can guarantee you that we won't be playing nice at night."

The plane landed and got to the gate.  Rena and Zane got off the plane and retrieved their bags and rented a car and left the airport.  Zane looked over his shoulder as they got onto the highway.  "You know where we're going?"

"Yeah," Rena said, looking around.  "I've been away from here for more than nine-and-a-half years, but I feel like I've never left.  I just hope that Brianne hasn't moved."

"We'll find her if she did," Zane assured her.  "Which exit do we have to get off at?"

"I'll tell you," Rena said.  "It's not for another few miles."

They drove silently until they reached the exit and even then, they were both relatively quiet until they finally pulled up to the side of the street a few houses away from Rena's old foster home.  There wasn't a car in the driveway so they both sat there and watched and waited until a car drove by them, slowed down, and turned into the driveway.  Zane saw Rena's eyes widen.  "Is that your foster mom?"

"That's Brianne," Rena confirmed.  She watched Brianne as she got out of the car and entered the house.  "That's even the same car that I used when I had to bail from here."

Zane nodded and started the engine again and drove the car down the street and pulled up in front of Brianne's house.  "Do you want me to go in with you or do you want me to wait here in the car?"

"Wait here in the car for now," Rena said.  "I'll let you know when I want you to come in."  She took a deep breath and took off her seat belt.  "Wish me luck, Zane."

"Good luck in there, Rena," Zane said.  He gave Rena a kiss.

Rena smiled back at him and got out of the car and walked up to the front door.  "Here goes nothing," she said to herself.  She took another deep breath and rang the doorbell.

Brianne Griffith put her briefcase down and sighed.  "Just another long day at the office," she said as she walked to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator and got herself some bottled water.  She closed the refrigerator door and sighed sadly when she saw the picture of herself, Vincent, and Rena that was still attached to the front of it.

Janie looked so happy that day, she recalled.  She was so touched by the party that Vincent and I surprised her with for her twelfth birthday.  The first birthday since her parents died.  I'm glad we were able to make it so happy for her.

She sat down at the kitchen table.  I miss Vincent and Janie so much.  It's been so many years both since Vincent died and Janie disappeared, but I still sometimes anticipate seeing Vincent getting out of our bathroom just as I'm waking up or seeing Janie with one of her friends in her room, laughing as they were at least pretending to do their homework!

Brianne took a sip of her water and frowned.  I've accepted Vincent's death, I really have accepted it by now, but that did make sense in a way.  He did have a history of strokes in his family.  Heck, that was one of the reasons that we decided not to have children of our own but become foster parents instead.  But Janie's disappearance, that makes absolutely no sense at all.  She really was happy here and she was doing so well.  She had been a little reserved when she first got here, but her parents had just died.  The last two years she was here especially, she was so outgoing and friendly and she was laughing so much of the time and she was just a happy, well-adjusted girl.

She put the water aside and continued to sit at the table, lost in her thoughts.  The only thing that I can think of that comes the closest to making any kind of sense is that Nathan had something to do with her leaving so suddenly.  Brianne frowned.  Janie didn't give any kind of sign that she would run away.  Nothing.  Then she opens the door for Nathan when he comes by to pick me up and they were alone for a minute and I didn't hear anything happen, but something must have!  And before we broke up the following week, whenever I'd mention Janie, he get a weird look on his face for a moment before he'd try to cover it up.  He has to have something to do with Janie's leaving!

The doorbell rang and Brianne stood up, confused.  "Who the heck could that be?"  She walked back into the living room and opened the door and her jaw dropped.

"I'm sorry it took me so long," Rena said nervously.

"Janie?  Thank goodness that you're all right!" Brianne said.  She hugged Rena.  "Where have you been?  Do you have any idea how much I've worried about you and how much I missed you?"

More than you can imagine.  "I know.  I've missed you so much too, Brianne," Rena said.

"Come inside," Brianne said.  She waited until Rena had stepped inside the house before she shut the door.  "I can't believe that you're finally home!  I have to call the police, I have to call Sandra, I have to call--"

"Wait, Brianne," Rena said, cutting Brianne off.  "Before you call anybody, we really need to talk."

"Of course," Brianne said.  She and Rena walked to the couch and sat down.  "What is it?"

Rena bit her lip.  Please don't let her hate me because I'm transgenic!  Please don't hate me!  "You've heard about the transgenics, right?"

"Of course," Brianne said.  "It's been all over the news."  She shook her head.  "I can't believe that they would do such a thing, that people would create children and train them as soldiers since infancy?  Those poor kids!  I'm glad they got free and they stopped those horrible people from releasing that virus."

"Me too," Rena said honestly.  She took a deep breath.  "Brianne...my name isn't Janie.  Jane Michelle Richardson never existed.  My name is Rena, my barcode number is 331487456120, my designation is X5-120, and I'm a transgenic.  I was born in the Manticore facility in Gillette, Wyoming on May 19th, 1997, not December 29th, 1997.  I escaped from Gillette in March of 2009 with my unit, whom I consider to be my family, my brothers and sisters even though I'm not biologically related to them, and I've been on the run until the transgenics were officially declared free and given their citizenship and rights and everything."

Brianne stared at Rena for several moments silently.  "You're a transgenic?"

Rena nodded and pulled her hair away from her neck and turned so that Brianne could see her barcode.  "I used to sneak out of the house every few weeks and go into Dallas to get this removed.  It would always come back so I kept on having to do this.  I haven't gotten it burned off since this past March, though."

"Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" Brianne asked.

"I couldn't tell you this when I was living here because it wasn't safe," Rena explained.  "I was on the run from Manticore back then.  I had to be careful.  The only reason I had to leave was because of dumb luck."

"Was it Nathan?" Brianne asked.  "I always had a feeling that he had something to do with you leaving like you did.  It was the only thing that made any kind of sense to me."

"It was Nathan," Rena confirmed.  "You heard that there were also Manticore facilities in Seattle and Syracuse, right?  I have an identical twin sister who was separated from me when we were two days old and she was transferred to the facility in Seattle.  Nathan was a guard from that facility so he saw my sister there all of the time and he eventually did recognize me.  I didn't find that out until later.  All I saw was a guy in a military uniform and I panicked and fled."  She shook her head for a moment before she looked back at Brianne.  "There were other people here looking for me, weren't there?  Maybe military, but almost certainly a guy in his forties, short dirty blond hair, about medium-ish height, acted like he had a stick up his ass?"

Brianne couldn't help the chuckle at Rena's description of Lydecker.  "Yes, that man was here the day after you left.  He and the people that he had brought with him spent a lot of time looking through your room.  They didn't take too much from there, though."

"That would have been the now publicly infamous Colonel Donald Lydecker," Rena said.

"Oh," Brianne said.

"Brianne...what do you think?" Rena asked quietly.

Brianne was quiet as well for a few moments before she started speaking again.  "Honestly?  I'm just happy that you're alive and well.  I don't care who you really are.  You're--I wanted you to be my daughter for real, Rena, and maybe it's too late to legally adopt you now, but I never stopped considering you to be my daughter and I won't stop now."

"I'll never stop considering you to be my mom," Rena said.  She and Brianne hugged each other and cried tears of happiness.

TBC