DISCLAIMER: in first part.
A Laying On Of Hands: Part Seven
by Cascade
Miraculously, the pancakes turned out edible. This was truly incredible considering Dana's attention wasn't really on cooking. It was on Sam's every move.
She took some ribbing at the breakfast table about her sudden change in cooking ability. Theories about her being possessed or being an impostor were thrown about the table. She sighed and took it like an X-Man.
After breakfast Scott pulled her aside.
"Crimson Feather isn't selling weapons," he whispered to her.
She wheeled around to face him fully. "What do you mean?" she asked, anger tinging her voice.
"We've been checking it out. The money's going somewhere else."
"You're absolutely positive?" she looked at him seriously.
Scott nodded.
Dana muttered a curse and went to find a phone.
"Marc?... Yeah, this is Dana. Can you do me a big favor?... I need you to spy for me... No, you can't introduce yourself as Hawkes, Marcus Hawkes! This is serious! Listen! I need you to check out some things about Hawkes Inc...."
"Who was that on the phone?" Sam asked, coming into the room.
"I called Marc about something." Dana replied.
Sam frowned. She looked concerned about something. Her brow was furrowed, a sure sign she was thinking hard about a problem.
"So, is he gonna come n' kill me?" he asked, a smile on his lips.
He moved over to her to try to catch her eye.
She glanced up at him, actually looking at him for the first time since he'd come into the room. She broke herself out of her reverie and returned his smile.
"Oh, that... We didn't talk about it." She started to move away from the phone.
He followed her. "So... why are ya so serious lookin'?"
She shook her head. "I just asked Marc to do some checking on Dad's donation for me." She bit on her thumb nail, another sign that she was thinking hard.
"Things aren't addin' up?"
She nodded. "Dad wouldn't give all that money for nothin'...
Something's going on and I don't like not knowing what it is."
"Sam... how come we always talk about my messed up family life instead of about you?" Dana asked from her seat on Sam's bed.
He paused and turned away from the closet where he was hanging up his clothes. "Ah dunno, what do ya wanna know?"
She shrugged. "What did you do before joining the X-Men?"
"Ah was on a different team: X-Force." He began digging around in his closet and pulled out a shoe box. "Here we go."
He sat next to her on the bed, opened the box to reveal a pile of photographs. He pulled one out that showed a group of teenagers and an older man.
"That's the team." He handed the photo to her. "There's me, Boomer, Feral, Warpath, Rictor..."
"Who's that?" she interrupted, pointing at the older, gray haired man in the picture.
Sam smiled. "That's Cable."
"Cable." She repeated the word. "He looks familiar..."
"He's Scott's son."
She looked at him disbelievingly. "Scott Summers? That's Cyclops' son!? But he's older than Scott!"
Sam sighed. "Great, no one's told ya this story... O.K. Scott had a son, the kid got infected with a deadly virus, so he sent him to the future to be cured of it. Unfortunately, they couldn't cure him in the future either, so he learned to control it with his mutant power. Anyway, Scott's kid grew up in the future an' then came back to help us."
She nodded, still looking rather confused.
He smiled. "Ah still don't understand the whole story myself."
Dana picked up the box and set it on her lap. She began going through the box.
"Oh. There's a lovely one of you!" she said sarcastically holding out a picture to him. He glanced at it. It was just after he'd woken up one morning. His hair was a mess and he had shadows under his eyes.
*Boomer and her blasted camera!* he thought darkly. "Maybe Ah should look at those first... There could be some... uh... compromisin' pictures in there."
She giggled and put the box on the other side of her, out of his reach. "That's what I'm counting on."
He pressed his lips together in mock annoyance and sighed.
She was sorting the pictures into two piles. All the pictures that he was in she put in one pile. The rest went in the other. He watched her hands move.
She really had beautiful hands. She had long, tapered fingers that gave her hands an elegant quality. Her nails were unpainted, but well cared for, cut at a length that looked nice, but was short enough not to get in the way. He reached out and took one of her hands in his own. He brought it to his lips and kissed it.
"Well! What's gotten into you?" She turned to look at him.
"Just admirin'," he said drawing closer to her in order to kiss her on the lips.
"They glow too," she whispered in the moment before their lips touched.
She wrapped her arms around him as he deepened the kiss.
*That's right...they do...* he thought to himself. He pulled away from her and made a little gasping sound.
"What is it?" She asked worried.
"Ah just thought of something. Could ya heal a chronic condition?"
"Yeah, I should be able to. Why?"
He found a picture of Cable by himself. "It's called a Techno-Organic virus. Here, see? It replaced his arm."
"You want me to rebuild his arm?" she asked. She wasn't sure she could do something that major.
He shook his head. "The virus is more than that. It goes through his whole body." He saw her concern. "Look, as a favor to me. He's really important to me. If Ah could somehow give back to him in a little way by introducin' ya two..."
"Look, Sam, you know I'd do anything for you, but this..." She looked at the photograph again. "It's too much. I don't think I have the power. Even if I did, I'd be putting myself in danger pushing myself that hard."
"Ya healed Rogue, and she was dyin'!"
"She had minimal internal damage compared to this. This is a virus, too. It fights back. It doesn't want the body healed."
She looked at him. He looked disappointed. She didn't want to be forced into a dangerous position. Plus, she didn't like the way she felt after she healed someone.
She sighed. "I'm not promising anything, but I'll see if it's possible, and if it is I'll give it my best shot."
He smiled and hugged her.
"You're gonna owe me big, Guthrie."
"Ah'll try to make it up to ya." He said, leaning into another kiss.
"You can start," she said, pulling away from him. "by giving me this." She held out a particularly nasty picture of him.
"Ah thought Ah burned that one," he muttered. "What do ya want that one for, anyway."
"Leverage in future... discussions." She smiled and leaned into his kiss.
Sam got in touch with Cable and asked him to come make a visit. He didn't tell Cable about Dana's powers, he wanted to explain things to him in person. Sam hoped that Dana would be able to help him repay some of what Cable had given him.
Cable dropped by the next week. He exchanged greetings with the occupants of the mansion. Finally he got to Sam. They exchanged a handshake.
"So, this must be Dana." He said glancing at the tall brunette that had stayed near Sam during the small homecoming celebration.
Sam nodded. "Cable, this is Dana Hawkes. Dana, meet Cable."
Dana extended her hand and Cable took it and shook it firmly. She had picked up on the T-O virus as soon as he'd come in the room. She suppressed her gift so it wouldn't automatically kick in the moment they met, but as soon as he touched her she went a little pale. She fought hard to maintain a warm appearance. She tried to sort out the impressions she got from him. It was like he was constantly at war with himself. The T-O virus made up more of him than just his arm. It was everywhere, just below the skin. She felt all the power he was diverting just to hold his body together. It was a little painful just to be in the same room with him. She really needed to work on her shielding.
Cable picked up on her poorly hidden thoughts. He glanced at the girl, concerned, then looked back at Sam. #What's her power, Sam?#
Sam swallowed. *She's a healer.*
Cable nodded. *That explains a little of it,* he thought to himself. "Come on, Sam, let's get reacquainted," he said aloud, motioning for Sam and Dana to join him in the living room. "And I can get to know this Dana you keep talking about."
"So, what did you find out, Dana?" Cable asked. He had shielded himself from her somewhat to prevent further discomfort on her part.
Dana glanced at Sam. "I can't do anything," she said apologetically. She turned back to Cable. "It's a part of you. If I had more power I could probably remove it, but that would probably kill you. It's taken over many of your internal organs. It's keeping you alive, but at the same time it's trying to kill you. The most I could do is what you're doing now: I could keep it where it is. I'd wait for it to advance and then heal where it moved to and push it back. I could keep that up for maybe... at the most a half hour. Plus, it diverts a huge amount of power. If I were to take it away... It would take a while to get used to all that extra raw power. You're the most powerful mutant I think I've ever been around. If you were to to put that on top of all the power you already have at your disposal...I don't know what that would do to you."
"I figured the prognosis would be something like that." Cable smiled. "I do want to thank you for thinking of me, however. It is the thought that counts." He turned to Dana. "And I'd like to thank you for your willingness to put yourself on the line for a friend of a friend. There aren't many people who would do something like this for someone they don't know. I know it must be driving you crazy just to be the in the same room with me."
"It's not..." Dana started.
"Yes it is." He chuckled at her politeness. "You can feel my body try to hold itself together. That can't be pleasant." She looked rather shocked that he knew. "I'm a Psi," he explained.
"Oh." *That would explain it,* she thought to herself.
"Sam, you've got a great girl in Dana. Don't screw it up." Cable and Sam sat late in the kitchen talking.
"Ah know, and Ah won't. Ah'm glad ya like her."
"Who could hate her? She's intelligent, kind, AND a healer... She'll probably be very important to this team. She could use some help with her shielding, though. I can tell she's not used to being around people that can read her thoughts. I'm surprised Jean hasn't worked with her more."
"What'd you overhear?" Sam asked casually.
Cable chuckled at his desire to know. "Ordinarily, I wouldn't tell you, but in this case I think I can. I think you need to know. That girl would face hell for you. All she was thinking about was you. I'm guessing she has some family problems, because she's attached to you more than I would expect after knowing you for such a relatively short time. I think you took advantage of that in getting her to see me. Don't do it again. You've got something really good here, and if you mess it up by using her, well... I'll be a little mad, because I like her."
A few days later Marc came to the mansion. He and Dana sat in private, for what Marc intended to say was for Dana's ears only.
"So, Marc, what's he up to?"
"D..." Marc paused not sure how to continue. "He's not up to anything. Crimson Feather does make robots. That ammunition report you read was about law enforcement aiding robots, or something like that. It's a legitimate gift... If anything turns bad because of it, it'll be because of the groups that get the money, not dad."
Dana stood and paced the room. "I can't believe that... I won't.
You didn't hear what he said... what I said...."
"It's not without precedent," he said quietly. Marc lowered his head. He couldn't believe the story was finally coming out now.
"What do you mean?" She whirled to face him.
He paused, his mouth open, unsure on how to proceed. He took a breath and decided. "What do you remember about mom?"
"What does that have to do with anything?" she breathed. Her eyes narrowed, she didn't like the way this conversation was going.
"It has to do with everything," He paused, tears in his eyes.
"Mom... she was a... mutant."
Dana leaned on her chair for support and swallowed. "No... How is that possible? I don't remember..."
"Mom didn't want anyone to find out... but she used to use her powers to entertain Doug. She had powers like Jean... She could move stuff with her mind... but she wasn't very powerful. She'd make his toys come alive for him..." he shook his head. "He loved it."
This changed everything. Her mother was turning into a completely different person. "Wha... what happened?" Dana choked out.
"Dad found out. I don't know how. He sent her away. He said that she was sick and that she was going to a clinic to get better." Marc was crying now, the tears streaming down his face as he revealed the long buried family secrets. "When she came back, she was different. Her powers were gone, but she seemed so sad. A year later she was diagnosed with cancer."
Dana put her hands to her face, she couldn't comprehend what she'd just been told. It was like reliving her mother's death all over again.
*You're just like your mother, trying to undermine me and the company. I will not have a mutant for a daughter.* It was her father again. That remark suddenly made more sense than it ever had before. *Guess you didn't want a mutant for a wife either...*
"So you're saying the clinic gave her cancer?"
"I don't know. I was just a kid."
She crossed the room to her big brother. He took her in his arms, and they held each other while they cried.
Sam watched Marc leave. Marc hadn't spoken a word and had avoided contact with any of the X-men. Dana still hadn't come out of her room, where she'd been talking with her brother. Sam ran up the stairs and slowly opened Dana's door. She was sitting on her bed. Her hands were in front of her mouth in a thoughtful position. She was staring blankly at the wall. She had made no motion that indicated that she knew he was there, yet she spoke to him.
"Sam, could you fly me somewhere?" The request had been made in a businesslike tone. She didn't even flick her eyes towards him.
He nodded. "Yeah, sure. When do you want to go?"
"Now."
The cemetery was empty except for the two figures standing by an almost six-year old grave.
"Mom... why didn't anyone tell me sooner?" Dana knelt in front of the headstone. She laid a handful of wild flowers in at the foot of the tall slab of stone. She glared angrily at the words in front of her through her tears. She wished she could scratch them away. *Beloved wife...* She didn't want any stranger to ever pass by the grave and believe that lie.
Sam watched the wind sweep Dana's hair across her shoulders from a respectful distance. She'd told him about her mother in so many words. He didn't know what to say or do.
Dana broke into tears. She had thought she'd dealt with all the grief of her mother's death.
Sam couldn't take it. He needed to touch her, to remind her that she wasn't alone. He knelt next to her and took her in his arms. She clung to him and sobbed into his chest. He couldn't help but think of all of the loved one's he'd lost over the years. *It never gets any easier.*
"Remy, I need you to help me."
"Sure t'ing, petite. What y' need?"
Dana brought her voice down to a whisper. "I need you to teach me how to pick a lock."
Remy LeBeau glanced at Dana strangely. "Now why y' need to know dat?"
"I just do... can you teach me?"
He nodded. "But a t'ing like dat... Y' can' learn overnight..."
Dana muttered a curse. "I don't have any time."
"Chere, you wanna tell Gambit what's goin' on?"
"Can you keep a secret?"
"Hey, Dana..." Sam opened the door to Dana's room. She was just pulling a tight black shirt over her head.
Dana finished the motion quickly. "Sam, you wanna learn how to knock?"
Sam blushed furiously. "Ah... Ah'm sorry. Ah didn't mean..."
"It's O.K." she said curtly. She tried to smile reassuringly but it didn't touch her eyes. Sam knew something was wrong.
"What're ya doin'?" he asked her, suspicious.
"Nothin'," she said unconvincingly. "Look, can I finish changing?"
Sam looked at the outfit she intended to change into. It was entirely black. He didn't think it was for mourning purposes.
He crossed to her and put his hands on her shoulders, making her look at him.
"Yeah, ya can change, just as soon as ya tell me what you're gonna do."
She looked at the floor. She couldn't lie to him. He broke down all her walls, she couldn't act around him.
"I'm going to go find some answers... I s'pose you'll want to come along."
He crossed his arms on his chest and nodded. "Ah'm not lettin' ya outta my sight!"
Logan sat outside enjoying the cloudless Autumn night. He took a long drink from his can of beer. As he swallowed he caught three familiar scents on the breeze.
"Where you headed this late, Dana?" he asked aloud. "And why're Gumbo and Cannonball comin' with?"
He drained the can with one last drink. "Hope you can stand one more fella taggin' along, kid, 'cause I ain't gonna hang around here and wait for you to get back."
He stood and stretched, took one last whiff of the air and jogged to the garage to get his Harley.
Dana rubbed her arms. The adrenaline had stopped surging through her now. She was starting to get a bit nervous.
Sam leaned towards her. "We can go home right now, if you want." he whispered to her as he watched Gambit work on the lock of the door.
"No!" she hissed. The violent noise almost made Gambit drop his tools. "I'm not leaving until I find some answers."
"Ya might want ta listen to the kid, Dana." Wolverine strode up behind them, his sudden appearance making them all jump. "FoH headquarters isn't exactly a safe place for mutants to be. Why are ya here, anyway?"
"I want to find out where that money is going, and I want to know EXACTLY what kind of 'research' is going on."
The door clicked. "We're in," Gambit whispered.
She glanced at Logan and strode to the front of the group to show her resolve.
"Let's go in then."
Remy went to the computer, while Dana, Sam, and Logan went to the filing cabinets.
"Holy..." Dana breathed, glancing at the files she'd run across.
There were full medical reports on hundreds of mutants. She opened one at random. Along with pictures and the report, there was a list. Her eyes glanced down the list. They were all medical procedures... ones that would get your license taken away. There were unnecessary operations, inhumane experimentation... her stomach turned. She quickly put the file back. She scanned through the files glancing quickly at each of the names.
She heard a growl from across the room. Logan was at another cabinet. For him, this was all too reminiscent of the Weapon X project. He extended his claws. He'd love to get his hands on the people responsible for this.
"Dana..." Sam whispered to Dana. "What did ya say your mother's name was?"
"Monica... Why?" Dana shuddered as Sam held a file out towards her.
She took it from him with shaking hands. *If these bastards are responsible for mom's death...* She took a breath and detached herself as much as possible before opening the manila file folder. She flipped quickly to where the list of procedures was in the back.
Surgery was performed to implant inhibitor in subject's brain.
Inhibitor worked as desired, but subject developed inoperable brain tumor.
Autopsy was inconclusive...
She clenched her fist. It was all about revenge now, but there was no time for this now. She needed to find where these experiments were being performed first, then she could exact some payback.
"Remy, we need an address. Have you found anything?"
"Non, petite. Can' get past de passwords. Did find some mention of somet'in called de Institution. Gambit guess dis is all set up in an asylum."
"That'll help, but we need..."
"Quiet!" Logan hissed and extended his claws. "Somebody's comin'..." He sniffed again and listened carefully. "Make that a lot of somebodies."
The other three muffled potent curses.
Dana moved near Remy. "Are you sure we didn't set off any alarms?"
Gambit nodded.
"How're we gonna get outta here?"
"Me 'n' Gumbo'll fight our way out. Sam, you take care of Dana.
Blast out through the roof if you have to."
Sam nodded and quickly swept Dana into his arms. His blast shield formed around them both, but then vanished.
"Dana, are ya blockin' me?"
"No."
Gambit took a card out of his pocket. "Merde! De whole place is some kinda giant inhibitor. Dey must've just turned it on."
"There's no other way out but the front door. I can't claw through the walls fast enough. They're already in the front room. Let's take 'em by surprise. Cannonball, you get Dana out that door and gone, understand?"
Logan lead the charge into the front hall of the building. It was packed with angry looking men.
"There's the mutie scum! Take 'em out!"
A chair came flying into the wall next to them. Dana's eyes went wide. Simulations were one thing... there were no do-overs in real life.
Sam grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her towards the exit. He tried the path of least resistance, but there was still plenty of it. A man approached him brandishing a knife. He and Dana were back to back as she faced an opponent from the other side.
She sent her man to the floor soon after Sam got rid of his. She turned to face him and flinched seeing blood dripping from a knife wound in his arm. He gave her a serious look and motioned her to their next roadblock.
She took a step forward only to feel a fist make contact between her shoulder blades. It took her by surprise and she tumbled to the floor.
She rolled back up to her feet as Sam exacted his revenge on the man who'd just hit the woman he loved.
Suddenly, she was surrounded. She fought her hardest, but there were just too many of them. A punch finally connected with her jaw and she tumbled to the floor, blackness greeting her as she fell.
Wolverine got a brief reprieve from his fighting. There was no way they were all gonna get out of this. He glanced to where Dana had just fallen to the floor. Even on his best day, he'd be hard pressed to get to her and get out of there safely with her as dead weight. Sometimes it was just better to cut your losses. He fought his way to the door.