Max's Faith & Fury [COMPLETE]

Chapter 2

Max's hand was tense as she applied black mascara on her dark lashes. She didn't often wear makeup, and she questioned herself every second she spent in front of the mirror. Her father's comment about a date the night before had plagued her mind. Not even the soft rock music playing in the background could make her forget it. She hated that part of the reason she was wearing makeup was because she was going to see Sean. Even if it wasn't a date.

After placing the mascara down and inspecting the soft tones of eyeshadow she had applied, she couldn't help the thought of how stupid all of this was. Not as skilled as either of her sisters, Max could hardly tell there was anything shadowing her eyelids. The mascara was bolding her eyes more than anything. Good. She'd rather that than walking out of there looking like a clown.

Her soul melted with the singing screaming through her, and she frowned at her reflection. Her lips were a little dry, so she pulled a peach scented ChapStick from her drawer. Good enough. She smacked her lips against each other before gazing back at the mirror.

Black. Maybe too much black. At least her hair was white-blonde.

Max pulled it up to see how her straight long hair would look in a ponytail. She scrunched her nose at her reflection before dropping her hair back down, strands sliding across her black shirt. Looking down at the items on her dresser, she decided to snap a black elastic around one wrist in case she wanted to use it later.

Taking her sweet time, Max decided to clean off her dresser and put everything away. Her fingers grazed the corner of a letter-sized orange folder that her father had slipped beneath her door early that morning while she was still in bed. She knew it had information about the new case he was working on. Which meant it was important, and for her eyes only. So, she opened her top drawer, where her undergarments went, and put the envelope inside to forget about it until later.

With nothing else to put away, Max looked at her reflection one more time. Her heart skipped painfully when she realized she was ready to go. She felt sick now and was half tempted to call it off. If not for her beautiful new handgun she might've dived back into bed for the day and told Sean to go by himself. But she wanted to go. She wanted to try the golden gun.

Max clung to that fact, allowing the excitement to build back up inside of her. With renewed interest, she grabbed her phone, keys and the black case holding her new precious thing. Out in the foyer she could hear her father working in his office. Either talking on the phone or with someone, she didn't know. She didn't care to know either and she left without saying goodbye.

The headlights of her sparkling gray Mitsubishi lancer flashed as she unlocked the car. After settling into the driver's seat, she plugged the key into the ignition and the engine purred. She knew it was loud enough for her father to hear, so he'd know she was leaving. Max waited for a minute in case he stepped out to talk, but he didn't.

So, she left.

***

Sean was late with no explanation, but Max didn't let it get to her. He was a police officer. He probably had a last-minute call. Unconcerned, she used his tardiness to her advantage to practice shooting her new gun. The first few shots were off center as she got used to the weight, grip and kickback of the lethal weapon. After a few rounds though, she was smiling and completely satisfied with her new toy. She'd have to thank her father again later.

When Sean finally arrived, thirty minutes later than the planned time, Max was standing at a tall table putting her new gun away. He didn't seem too interested in it, or her. He was distracted. Which gave her a chance to really look him over, despite her brain telling her to let it go.

He was tall, but everyone was to Max. She stood at a height of five feet, while everyone else towered over her. She pegged him at five foot six, or somewhere around there.