Gambit and Cadie stood together in the lab as Sinister began to inspect syringes and equipment. "Cougar, I wish you to place yourself on that table, Gambit, the other please. It is time to find out exactly why the two of you are so adaptable to the powers I have grafted onto your DNA."

Cadie glanced over at Gambit, who had gone white. She was shaking as their eyes met. *Can' do dis, frere, too scared.*

His eyes widened as he picked up her agitation with his empathy and he forced himself to calm somewhat, knowing she was reading his. They seemed to be feeding each other's fear. He shrugged at her and moved to the table indicated.

She took her cue from him and did the same, shaking. "I am pleased with your new-found obedience, children," Sinister purred as he approached Gambit "Perhaps I should have done this sooner." He gestured and restraints closed about both of their limbs. He placed a hand on Gambit's brow and smiled evilly down at him. "I much prefer you this way, LeBeau. The perfect specimen."

"Gambit wish he could get his hands on you, homme," he spat. "Don' care what y' t'ink y' gon' do t' us. Gambit not a Marauder!"

"Oh you poor, foolish, deluded child," Sinister purred. "You will be." Abruptly he turned to Cadie, who was shivering violently in her restraints. "And you, little one. You are the enigma of the day. I wonder what you would say if I told you I was aware of your son's parentage?"

She paled even further. "Non, please," she whispered. "Don' want t' 'member dat, please." Her words fell on deaf ears.

"Oh, yes, and the father is now also aware he has a son. Doesn't that please you?"

She threw herself against the restraints, cursing him violently, crying. The straps cut into her arms until she bled, but still she didn't stop until a look from Sinister silenced her. "As a matter of fact, the boy had already developed a relationship of sorts with Scalphunter. Imagine his joy when he discovered the man he enjoyed being with was actually his father."

She slumped back down onto the table, all the fight gone from her. Gambit watched her, fury written on his face. "Gambit don' know what y' tryin t' do t' de petite, homme, but y' better hope Gambit don' get free," he snarled.

"It don' matter, Remy," she whispered. "It's too late. If Scalphunter's been wit' Paul dat much, he be too far gone fo' us t' bring back, Cadie 'fraid. Too late."

Sinister rumbled laughter. "LeBeau, I have no fear tht you will free yourself. Those restraints were designed to hold Sabretooth, and you are in no way comparable to him." He paused, considering. "Which is actually quite puzzling, conisdering Victor Creed's rather major role in your existence."

Both captives stiffened. "Oh yes," Sinister rumbled again. "He is in fact the one responsible for bringing the both of you into this world." Cadie shrieked in despair. *Non, non, can' be true! Logan never fo'give Cadie now!*

Abruptly her sorrow turned to rage. *Sinister done took ever't'in Cadie had. He gon' pay, Cougar promise dat.* But before she could act on it, even as she felt the restraints start to give way, she heard the roar from the doorway.

"_Sinister!_" Sabretooth's voice was full of rage. He threw himself on the other man while Cadie struggled and Gambit cursed. "How long have you known? How long have you kept it from me that I had kids other than that worthless slug?" He had both hands around Sinister's neck, choking him, until Sinister simply shrugged and threw him across the room. Creed landed hard against a wall and crashed to the floor, bleeding slightly from a gash in his back where he'd landed on a sharp edge.

The scent of blood was enough to drive Cadie over the edge and allow the rage to take control again. With a hoarse scream, she snapped the restraints and rose from the table, throwing herself toward Sinister, even as Sabretooth rose and attacked from the other direction.

Gambit struggled harder, almost breaking free, his arms bleeding as the straps tore into his flesh. Then abruptly, Sinister was gone and Cougar and Sabretooth crashed together.

*Mon Dieu, not a good t'ing, dat. Got t' get loose, stop Cadie b'fore she piss him off nuff t' kill her.* Then the decision was taken from his hands as he felt Phoenix touch his mind.

#Remy where are you? We have Paul safe, now we need to get you two out of here. Where are you?#

#Follow m' mind, chere, an hurry! Cadie outmatched big, an Gambit can' help her none. Hurry!#

#Hold on, Remy, we're almost there!#

Creed delivered a ringing slap to Cougar's face and she went down in a heap, but not unconscious. He then turned his attention to Gambit. "Ah, quit shakin, Cajun," he growled as he ripped the restraints loose and helped him up. "If I wanted ta kill ya I'd'a done it already. Take her, get yerselves outta here. I'm goin after the boy."

Before Gambit could answer the door was blown open and Wolverine and Bishop hurtled through. Gambit quickly charged a piece of the metal strap and tossed it at Bishop, making his shot go wild. He wasn't however, quick enough to stop Wolverine from launching himself at Creed, murder in his eyes. "Wolverine, non!" he shouted, trying to get between them. Creed thrust him aside hard enough to make even the agile Cajun stagger and Gambit was forced once more to deflect Bishop's shot when he saw the man take aim at Creed.

He grabbed the barrel of the plasma rifle, forcing it upward. "Non, Bishop! He _helpin_ us, Pup! Drop it!" he said intensely as the man met his eyes. Bishop staggered back, off balance, then lowered the weapon.

"All right, Gambit, but how do we stop _him_?" he shouted as he indicated Wolverine. He and Creed had locked together, although to give him credit, Creed was doing no more than defending himself and trying to stay alive.

"Damn it, runt, will ya _listen_ ta yer friends?" Sabretooth snarled as he defelcted yet another blow intended to injure badly, if not kill. "I ain't the one ya want this time!"

Wolverine wasn't listening to reason. He threw himself forward again, claws ready, intending to gut Creed, when a slim body rocketed between them and slashed at both of them. Wolverine was too close to change direction and his claws bit deep.

Two howls of anguish filled the room as Cougar went down hard, bleeding badly. Wolverine dropped to his knees beside her, his face filled with sorrow as he gathered her into his arms, not even blinking when Creed knelt beside him.

"Now's yer chance, Creed," he whispered as he held her apparently lifeless body against him. Bishop had his communicator out, giving a report to Cyclops, Gambit was watching them closely, ready to intervene if necessary. "I won't stop you. Do it."

"Much as I'd like to, runt, not this time," the big man said softly as he touched Cadie's hair. "Consider it a gift." He leaned closer to Wolverine, so that no one else could hear his words. "But runt, if ya ever hurt her again, I'm comin for ya. And nobody'll stop me then till yer dead."

"If I ever hurt her again, Creed, ya won't have ta find me. I'll come to you." He looked over at the big man, then down again when Cadie moaned slightly. The other X-Men were gathered around them loosely as Sabretooth rose slowly and began to walk away. He stopped before Gambit, looking him over, and Gambit spoke softly.

"Don' worry none bout Paul. De oders, dey done took him someplace safe."

"Thanks kid," Creed replied as he turned and stalked out of the room.

"Logan?" Cadie murmured as she stirred a little. She didn't open her eyes.

"Right here, darlin," he whispered. "I got ya. You're okay."

She raised a hand slowly and placed it on his cheek as she opened her eyes and gazed into his. "Yeah, Cadie okay, mon amour," she said softly. He helped her to stand, and she looked around at the assembled X-Men, not quite sure how they'd come to be there, but glad anyway. "Cadie want t' go home, mes amies, but she got t' do somet'in first."

"How y' find us, anyway," Gambit asked idly as he lit a cigarette. Rogue snatched it from his fingers and ground it under her heel. He looked outraged.

"Y'all said ya'd quit, Swamp Rat, so I'm jus helpin ya a lil bit," she said sweetly. "An thank Scott an Wolverine fer keepin track of ya."

"Hehn?!" Both Cajuns turned to look at the men in question, who had the good grace to look sheepish.

"Well, it seemed like a good idea to slip a tracking device into your coat, Remy," Cyclops said as he looked at the floor. "And apparently great minds work alike, because Wolverine did the same to Cadie. We both knew that if anyone could hide from us, it'd be you two, so we took precautions to keep you from disappearing completely. We didn't want you to get hurt."

"Little late fo' dat, homme," Cadie said from her seat behind a computer terminal. a few more keystrokes and the printer started whirring. "Least dis time he don' do not'in Hank can' fix, non?" She gave a final glance to the printer and rose from her seat to make her way toward Wolverine.

Wolverine stood his ground, watching her approach. The others, seeing the look on her face, wisely fell back, giving the two of them some room. Gambit took hold of Bishop's arm when he would have stopped her.

"Let her be, Pup," he told the big man. "Dis between dem, non? We jus go out here in de hallway an let em talk fo' a bit, okay?" And they followed the others out of the room.

She moved close enough to wrap her arms around him and hold him close, looking up into his face and placing a gentle kiss on his lips. Then she leaned back a little and her hands fell to her sides as he continued to hold her.

He gave a sigh of relief. "Darlin, ya had the ol Canucklehead worried," he said softly. "Thought you'd be mad at me, to say the least."

"Mad? Mon amour, Cadie not mad. Glad y' here, glad y' came after Cadie. But Logan?"

"Yeah, darlin?" He looked down at her.

He never saw her move. Suddenly, he was on his back on the floor, seeing stars, and she was sitting on him, her face a mere inch from his. "Y' ever do dat 'gain, mon amour, Cadie gon' do worse den jus lay y' out. Unnerstand? Why y' not jus talk t' me, tell me what y' wanted t' do, hehn? Ever t'ink o' dat?"

A crash sounded from the hallway and Cadie grinned down at him. "Sound t' Cadie like Remy be feelin de same way, non? T'ink dat was Scott hittin de wall."

"Sure sounded like it, darlin. Now, ya gonna let me up any time soon?"

She cocked her head to one side, seemingly thinking it over. "T'ink I better," she said softly. "Dis place, it give Cadie de shivers. An not de same kind she get from you, compris? 'Sides, Cadie want t' see her son."

They rose together and left the room, passing the others in the hall, and Wolverine lent Scott a hand up from his seat by the wall. A large purple bruise was starting on his jaw and the eye had already swelled shut under his visor. "Let's go, Slim," he said with a chuckle. "We'll get you some ice for yer eye, an me some salve fer my pride. Sure we can find some somewhere."

The sound of laughter filled the ruined lab as they walked into the sunshine, toward the blackbird, and home.