I can't believe you've left this on such a cliffhanger!  Please don't have abandoned this forever. 

I'd really like Hailey to have been pregnant by someone else, or something!! 

Thank you for your work on The Secret Gift and Deceptions.  Both stories contain terrific character development, detailed and well organized plot lines, and compelling emotional writing.  Max's pain in The Secret Gift when she decides to let Alec go so he can realize his dream of a family was so poignant.  And I love the way it was mirrored in Alec's pain in Deceptions as he sat at Logan's computer figuring out what had happened and that it had cost him Max.  I also found your Logan character convincing - you managed to draw on his evident paranoia about the Max/Alec subtexts in the show to create a believable villian without making him over the top crazy.I do hope that you decide to continue Deceptions to its conclusion, as I would be very interested in reading to see how Alec and Max deal with the revelations of betrayal.  Appreciatively - Heather

Author's Response: OH, boy, it's bad Shay day! I only just noticed this (and your other - Dark Obsession) comments and I feel like a real heel. I hope you can forgive me. I assure you it wasn't an intentional oversight.

And, aw! Thank you, Heather! You're very welcome :) I had to bullied into writing Deceptions, actually, but I am not sorry I did - I'm only sorry that I haven't finished it yet. *sigh* But I've been working on it again this past month and last month I was surprised with the epilogue (my muse was in a sharing, caring mood) so there really isn't all that much left and I am very hopeful that it will be done soon :) I hope that is good news :D

Now, about your Logan as a believable villain comment. I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you. You're my new best friend.

Really :) I have had some comments in the past that I 'always make Logan the bad guy' and I was trying to do things a little differently this time around. Instead of making him a completely off base, outrageous, utterly selfish and jealous creature, I tried to keep to character and build upon the little things that were already there - as you put it so well 'drawing on his paranoia about the M/A subtext' in canon. I only hope I don't ruin that with the bits in the epilogue which try to outline (briefly) what happened so that others in TC understand what is happening with Max and Alec when everything is said and done.

I will do my best to continue to deliver believable and emotional story content :) And with only a few thousand words to go, and your wonderful, ego-boosting and positive comments, I'm confident that I can deliver.

Thank you for your wonderful and thoughtful review. You can't begin to understand how much it means. *hugs tight* If only every writer had reviewers like you!

Okay, that's just evil.  What happens next!?  Please, for the love muses everywhere, what happens next?  *winks* great story by the way.

Author's Response:

Hey Gemini! I've been saying this to alot of people *sigh* but I can't help that it's true. I'm so sorry forr the delay in responding to your comments and question, but it's been a difficult few months for me.

Hehehe I don't mean to be evil! Okay, so maybe I do...a little! Stay tuned b/c I hope to update soon and hopefully answer some questions and take care of some unfinished business :D Y'all can come and cheer everyone on :)

Keep a look out and don't give up on me, please! 

I'm trying to quess what Axle has noticed. Has Hailey's mark on his disappeared? They have animal DNA but they're human too. Perhaps when they've been betrayed it's a loop-hole in the mate for life clause. Obviously the mate status is a hormonal thing, since it can ward off rivals. Alec's have changed? I loved the depth you put into this feelings and thoughts. Also how Hailey feels about Kaie and Alec. Also, after re-reading I'm loooking forward to the Hailey/Alec encounter more than Max's now. I wonder if Hailey'll notice the change just seeing him too. If so, even if Alec doesn't leave her, which I doubt, she's lost her status among her peers. Then I'm just speculating again. I could be way off base. And you're welcome for the feedback. It's the least I can do to show you I appreciate your efforts. I hope you recovered well. *hugs*

Shame on me for not reviewing earlier. Mea culpa. Of course I already told oyu how much I liked this when you first showed me, but that is not the same.

As ever when you write I can see the scene unfolding before my inner eye, like a film. GREAT stuff. Love it when that happens and not every author can pull it off. 

That was gr8, but how can you leave us hanging there.... I just have to know what Axel is grinning about!

Author's Response: *giggle* Oh, crissy! Think about it a bit and then come back and ask :D I'll try not to let so much time pass between updates, hon, so you don't have to hang on the edge of your seat waiting if you don't figure it out first :P *hugs* Thanks for reviewing, sweetie!

I just read this story again including The Secret Gift, I think it's my favourite by you. It's just got everything, love, angst, friendship, heartbreak, UST, betrayal and obsession, I can't wait to see what comes next. Also it's one of the many WIPs you have that shows the most promise of seeing completion. ;)

What a way to leave us hanging. Can I guess what Eli suggested? The way Axle reacted before learning the truth? Alec reacting with cool calm despite being slightly intoxicated and being hit with the worst truths in the space of a few short hours? How he would repay Hailey's manipulations? You're right, Karma has a way of dealing out better than anything we can cook up in the immediate.

I loved everything that was revealed in this chapter. Alec and OC, Mena/Max/Axle and finally everything coming out. I guess that just leaves Hailey and something tells me Max is going to run into her real soon. She had to have recognised her voice on the recording, if not the reference to Alec being her "ticket". Brilliant job Shana. I can't wait for more! I hope there's no case of writer's block or time constraints for this. What can I do to bribe you? I'm still speculating about Kaie's paternity too. I don't think he's Alec's but when everything's through, I think Max and Alec will make sure he's theirs.

And the 'Maxie' is back.

My heart is aching for them both. Kaie should have been theirs, could have been theirs, if it wasn't for one supremely selfish git calling himself Logan. God he pisses me off sometimes.

I often asked myself the same question. Yes, Logan had money, but even if the aprtment was his then it still cost taxes and stuff, his equipment can't have been cheap. not to mention pre-pulse wine and chicken on a regular basis. Unless one of his uncles was a chicken farmer.

Anyway, it makes sense to wonder what else he was doing to fund his actions.

And the plot thickens. Poor Max.

I am so glad I am rereading this. Well worth it.