Unchained Instinct ( Complete)

Okay! Okay! Okay! Jaden, relax a little and enjoy the story. Just for you and since I can't sleep tonight, I'm editing a few more chapters and posting.


Chapter 45

“Chere, Ah don’t know what else we can do tonight. It dark and all we got ahead is a long road ta nowhere.”

Gambit and Rogue sat in his car on the side of that road, Rogue training a flashlight on the quadrant map.

“Ah know.” Rogue pushed hair from her face and rubbed hard. “Ah...Ah...oh hell,” she choked and finally let the tears fall.

“Hey,” Gambit said, reaching out and gently rubbing her back. “Ah’m sorry, Rogue. Please don’t cry.”

“Ah’ll cry if Ah want to,” Rogue shot back, but without vehemence.

Gambit let out a sigh. “All right. Cry all ya want. Ah’ll head us back ta the mansion.”

The day had been a complete bust and Rogue was certain that if any of her fellow teammates had turned anything up they’d have alerted her by now. And that meant Logan would remain Mystique’s prisoner another night, enduring whatever the crazy woman thought up to do to him.

“No,” Rogue said, grabbing Gambit’s arm just as he was about to turn the Roadster around. “Let’s see what’s down that road ta nowhere. Ah heard there was some old abandoned factory way down that way. Might be nothin’, but there’s even ghost stories about the place.”

Gambit’s scarlet eyes flared and latched onto her gaze. “Sounds like the sorta place Mystique might like ta haunt. Might make a good hide out...and prison. Gambit game if Rogue is.”

Rogue let a smile pull at her mouth, a wave of adrenalin injecting her with renewed stamina. “Let’s do it.”

“Ya gonna call the others?” he asked, throwing the car into gear, squealing tires throwing rocks and dust up behind them. They were doing seventy in a matter of seconds, fast for a two lane blacktop, but the speed exhilarated Rogue and she turned to gaze on her companion with a new found fondness.

“Not yet,” she yelled into the wind. “If we find anythin’ suspicious, Ah’ll give ‘em a call.”

A grin stole across Gambit’s handsome face and his previous fatigue seemed to have fallen away as well.

They raced towards a sliver of moonlight, stars bright out over the Spring sown fields. The Roadster ate up miles and Rogue began to doubt herself. Maybe this factory had been nothing but a tall tale. She certainly wasn’t familiar with the local history. Maybe they were chasing their own tails again...just like they’d done all day.

‘Rogue? Where are you?’ Jean’s voice sounded in Rogue’s head.

‘Out in the middle of bumfuck Egypt, chasin’ ghost stories. Where are you?’

‘Home. We thought you’d be back by now and the Professor asked me to check in with you. He’s going over all the data we’ve collected so far. Don’t you think you ought to come on in? It’s getting pretty late, Rogue. It’s heading towards midnight fast.’

‘Ah know. We just want to check out one more place.’

Jean mentally sighed in Rogue’s head. ‘You’re as bad as Kurt. I practically had to threaten to put him out again to get him home.’

‘He okay?’ Rogue asked, her concern for her adopted brother rising with her concern for Logan.

‘Not really. Kitty’s getting him to eat something. Come on in, Rogue. We all need to rest so we can start again early in the morning.’

‘We will. We just gotta check this one place and if it’s a bust we’ll head home.’

‘Everything going okay with Gambit?’

‘It’s...goin’ fine. He’s real supportive. Ah...still don’t know what ta think a him, but he’s bein’ a trooper right now and that’s all Ah can ask for.’

‘Okay. Let us know right away if you find anything. We’ll be there in a flash.’

‘Right.’

Jean’s mental touch faded away and Rogue shook her head, always disoriented by Jean or the Professor inside her mind.

“Rogue all right?” Gambit asked.

“Yeah, just peachy. Jean made contact. Wanted to know where we were. Wanted us to come home.”

“Too late,” Gambit drawled. “We just about there. Saw an old sign, all faded an’ ‘bout ta fall over. The factory only two miles away.”

A new surge of adrenalin shot through Rogue and she leaned forward into the wind, scanning the darkness ahead. In the distance loomed the outline of buildings, dark against the night sky. No sign of life broke the skyline. No sound cut through the silence of abandonment and decay.

Gambit pulled up to the broken down gate and offered the place a dubious expression. “Don’t look all that promisin’, chere, but then Ah suppose Mystique won’t be hangin’ out no welcome sign neither.”

Rogue climbed from the car and flicked on her flashlight. The beam roamed the fence line then back to the gate. It was hanging on its hinges, open enough for a small vehicle to maneuver. She felt Gambit beside her with his own flashlight trailing the opposite fence line then up to the gate to meet hers.

Tracks showed in the broken up concrete and layers of dust. Gambit knelt and ran a finger through the track.

“This be fresh, mon ami. These tracks look like a motorcycle...maybe a trail bike. Could be kids usin’ the place for practice.”

“Or it could be Mystique.”

Gambit nodded.

“Time to call the others,” Rogue stated. “Ah think we just may have somethin’ here.”

******************

Kurt paced the floor, his mind refusing to quiet, refusing to allow his body rest. Throwing open the balcony doors, he hopped up on the railing and scanned the stars, willing them to tell him where Logan was.

But the stars were silent, mocking his need, uncaring of the pain in his heart or the despair ravaging his mind. A sliver of moon shone high in the midnight sky, doing little to light the darkness of night...or the darkness inside Kurt’s soul.

The desire to teleport somewhere was a constant battle within Kurt, the only thing keeping him here in this room, the knowledge that he had no idea where to go...where to find Logan.

“Damn you, Mystique,” he whispered to the night. “I’ll never forgive you for this...for so much, but not for this.”

‘Everyone,’ the Professor said in his head. ‘Rogue has found something. Gather in the community room immediately.’

Kurt’s breath caught in his throat. Perhaps the stars had heard his silent prayer after all. Perhaps God had not abandoned him completely.

He teleported, not having taken a shower or changed out of his uniform. Only a few of the others were gathered yet, Jean and Scott and the Professor. Others straggled in still in pajamas, rubbing their eyes and trying to look awake after only an hour’s or so’s sleep and a fourteen hour day of nonstop searching.

“What’s going on?” Bobby asked. “What’s Rogue found? I thought we were looking for who not what.”

“Hush, Bobby,” Ororo said. “The Professor will tell us.”

Bobby crossed his arms against his chest, his expression sullen, but he turned to the Professor with an expectant gaze.

Kitty sidled up to Kurt and hooked her arm with his, offering him a hopeful half smile. Kurt put on a stoic expression and gave her a nod.

Scott pointed to a section of the map laid out on the table, his finger circling an area. “There’s an old smelting factory, abandoned now. It’s not even on the map anymore or we might have considered it sooner.” Scott glanced up, meeting gazes, lingering on Kurt. “It’s several miles out of town, but within Rogue’s and Gambit’s quadrant radius. They’re checking it out now and have found some signs of life...motorcycle tracks. Could be Mystique...could be nothing. We won’t know until we check it out further.”

“Let’s go,” Kurt said. “If it is the place, Rogue and Gambit shouldn’t face Mystique alone. She could have traps set.”

“Kurt has a point,” The Professor stated. “I’ll contact Rogue and tell her to wait for the team to arrive.”

A grim smile touched Scott’s mouth. “Then let’s get suited up, people. We’ve got a team mate to rescue.”

*********************

“Ah’m not waitin’,” Rogue stated. “They can just catch up with us.”

“But, you said Xavier told ya ta wait.” Rogue flung Gambit her coldest expression and he put up his hands and took a step back. “Fine. We walk inta a trap, we get ourselves out.”

Striding off, Rogue heard Gambit run to catch up with her. “You’re the thief, Cajun. Thought you’d know somethin’ about detectin’ traps and such. Here, I thought you’d be an asset, not just excess luggage.”

“Those be cruel words, chere. Does Gambit really deserve that from you?”

“Aw hush. You any good at defusin’ traps or not?”

Rogue sensed humor from her companion and she glanced over at him, his face hidden in the darkness.

“Gambit been known ta make ‘is way around some pretty tricky places. Give ‘im a chance to prove hisself, will ya?”

“You’ll get your chance soon enough,” Rogue murmured.

They approached the buildings with caution, looking for signs of life or recent activity. Gambit’s flashlight beam followed the bike tracks on around a building that once may have been offices. Another bigger building loomed high, walls thick and still looking strong after many years of no use. The tracks stopped twenty feet from a row of loading docks and bays.

Rogue’s flashlight beam worked its way along the bay doors. “What’dya think?” she said.

“As good a place ta start as any.” Gambit moved forward with an easy grace that belied his careful steps. “Keep your eyes open for trip wires, chere. With Mystique, ya never know what sorta nastiness she might think up.”

Rogue bit her lip and followed, her flashlight beam, ever moving, searching for the unknown.

Stairs at the side of the building led up to the loading dock. Gambit took them with a stealthy step, feeling for stable footing. He stopped just below the top step, his body going still as a statue.

Nudging him from behind, Rogue said, “what’s the matter? What’dya waitin’ for?”

“Ya hear a buzzin’ sound?” Gambit asked.

Rogue listened to the silent night, reaching out with her hearing. A low buzz finally reached her ears. “Yeah. What is it?”

“Electricity, chere,” Gambit said, turning enough to offer her a smile illuminated in her flashlight beam. “Why would there be electricity in a place this long abandoned?”

“How would she get power? Generator?”

“Rogue one smart lady...as smart as she is pretty.”

Rogue replied with a derisive snort. “Smooth as silk, Cajun. You’re so smooth, someday yer gonna melt away.”

Gambit chuckled and moved on up to the loading dock

“So far, so good,” Gambit stated, then added. “At least as far as we know.”

Rogue rolled her eyes towards her companion. “What’dya mean by that?”

“Maybe Mystique just got her a warnin’ system. Maybe she already know we here.”

“What a comfortin’ thought,”Rogue said with a sigh. “Thanks.”

“Just tryin’ to think the angles, mon ami. That’s what ya brought Gambit along for...right?”

“Ya think so? Ya think this is only about what you can do for me?”

Gambit stepped closer, his hand sliding down Rogue’s arm and taking her gloved hand in his. “Why ya trustin’ me so much, chere? Gambit could be leadin’ Rogue inta a trap. Maybe he workin’ for Mystique?”

Rogue’s heart thumped hard in her chest and her breath caught, clogging up in her throat. “Ya better not be, Cajun or Ah’ll put ya down so fast, ya won’t get up for days...maybe longer.”

“So maybe ya don’t trust Gambit so much.” He put her hand to his lips and kissed her glove, scarlet eyes glowing in the darkness.

“Why ya doin’ this, Remy? Why now?”

“Cause Ah need to know ya trust me, Rogue. We ‘bout to go in that buildin’ and we don’t know what we gonna find. Ah need ta know ya trustin’ me no matter what happens. No matter what Mystique might do or say. She’ll try to get inta your head. She’ll try ta twist words and make ya doubt me. Don’t let her do that, chere.”

“Ah wanna trust ya,” Rogue said. “Ah’m givin’ ya that chance and so are the rest of the X-Men. We’re worth it, Remy. Do the right things and you’ll earn ma trust...and everybody elses’.”

Gambit nodded. “That be good enough for me, chere. Let’s go see if we can find Wolverine and see what sorta mood the old boy in.”