--
Darin watched Max pace the floor with Hannah. His movements were sure and practiced… but the baby was only four months old. He'd probably had practice on Amanda… That's when Darin put the pieces of the puzzle together. Rik had been doing it all along and he'd just learned how. Isabel's kids had never been on the road before. This was a grand adventure for them. Kyle and his kids had just joined up. The only kids on the road were Michael's daughter and now Max's two.
"Does it just happen?" Darin asked softly.
"What's that?" Max tore his eyes away from his daughter to set on his son.
"Instinctual download of what to do when you have a baby?"
"Oh no. Definitely not." Max shook his head. "She was born early. I missed it. I tried to get home as quickly as possible."
"Home?"
"Well, home is Liz, wherever she is... I was trying to get to that house you found us in. That's where Hannah was born. I was terrified when I first picked her up. I'd never handled a baby that young before. When you came to me you were already almost a year old. You mom handed you to me and it was all I could do to take you. To not say I couldn't because there you were and you were smiling, like you knew who I was even though you'd never seen me before."
“Then—“ Darin was quickly cut off by a look from Max.
“You’ll understand when you have your own kids. There’s a moment of absolute terror when you first hold a baby. Then once you get comfortable, it’s easier… because you know this little person depends on you to get things done. To make it safe. You never lose that feeling. Never.” Max gently returned his daughter to her crib. "No matter how helpful the child becomes."
Michael crept into the apartment and sank down on a mattress where Maria was snoozing. He waved off Max when he tossed him a questioning look. "Took care of Steve's problem with his mom." When Max didn't stop questioning with his eyes, Michael rolled his and sighed. "Mandy's got a little crush on the punk."
"I'm sure it's not serious." Max smirked. “What with Steve having a girlfriend and Mandy being seven.”
"I just don't want him here." Michael settled himself and then suddenly whirled around. It was just Rik. The boy slipped out the door with barely a sound and Kyle, who had the decency to wave at them before shutting the door, followed a moment later. Michael turned his head to Max, who only shrugged. "You don't wonder what the hell they’re up to?"
"The kid was a great deal more calm after they came back earlier. Maybe they're going to finish their talk."
"That kid worries me."
"More than my kid?"
"No."
Max just shook his head and directed Darin to the empty half of the mattress Liz had claimed. "Get some sleep. I'm going to stay up."
"Kay. She won't mind?"
"No." Max shook his head. "Get some sleep."
The second Darin had gotten himself settled to sleep, Liz rolled over and wrapped an arm over him. He glanced at Max, who just shook his head and turned to the window.
--
Kyle set a candle on the tar and lit the wick. “So, don’t look directly at it but maybe through it, the invisible part at the top. Just imagine whatever it is that you need to. When I feel that you’ve gone to that place, I’ll hook up and push it out. The easy part will be that I can focus in a single direction since we know where he’s not.”
Rik sat and tried to relax. Kyle kept talking about technique and meditation but soon all the teen felt was heat. Wet heat all around a dark room. He could see a blonde head on the ground near by. She was breathing but not moving. He kept drumming his fingers on his knee, right where the fabric was frayed. He picked up a cup of water and looked into it, strange how he couldn’t feel the cup in his hand… almost like the hand wasn’t his. After a moment, his father’s face was reflected in its surface. He sneered at his reflection. “Outta my head. No vacancies.”
“Dad?”
“Rik?” He peered closer into the cup of water, his own mouth moving when his son spoke.
“Can you hear me? Where are you?”
“Nice seat in the close place to hell on earth.”
“Tell me where you are. We’ll come get you.”
“No dice, kid. Once I work the drugs out, I’m torching this place. Me inside if I cant get out.”
“No. Don’t. We’ll come. We need you.”
“Like a hole in the head.”
“I’m serious. If you die now, I swear Mom’s gonna hate you the rest of your life.”
“You’re both better off.”
“For the two of us, we’re fine but when that baby comes, we’re screwed. She can’t afford to take off work for that long and if I have to get a job, I’ll lose my scholarship if I don’t get in all my extracurriculars.”
“What are you talkin’ ‘bout?” He peered into the cup harder.
“I’m talking about you knocked up my mom… again and you better be here to take care of it or I swear that any love I got for you goes out the window. Where the hell are you?”
tbc
In Search of... (Zan, CC / Mature) (Complete)
Moderators: Itzstacie, Forum Moderators
Part 28
Part 28
Darin woke still encased in Liz's arms. She was awake and watching Max pace the floor with a cranky Hannah. "Did I squeeze you too hard last night?" He barely shook his head. "Max says I squeeze too hard sometimes." A shrug. "He tricked me. He said he was coming to bed last night."
"You both lie a lot." He murmured almost to himself.
"Only the good lies."
"Is there such a thing?"
"Sometimes. Run to the corner? Grab some eggs. Maybe some bread. Butter… Jelly." Liz rolled away and produced some money from her pocket. "Just keep in mind how many people we've got here."
"You really think he's going to let me out of the apartment by myself?"
"Go quick. I trust you."
Darin waited until Max was facing the window before grabbing his shoes and shooting out the door. He could hear them talking still. "One of those good lies, Mrs. Evans?"
"He's right. You don't trust him. He's small for his age but older than he looks."
"It's not that…" Max sighed heavily and turned back to the window.
"I am." Darin said to himself as he sat down on the stairs to put his shoes on.
"Ey." A girl's voice caught him by surprise.
"Hey." He looked up and she seemed familiar but he didn't know why.
"You Rik's lil bro?"
"His cousin."
"Right. That's coo. I'm Janey. Steve's my brother. Where you goin’?"
"Store." He pointed down the stairs, trying to keep his eyes off her bared stomach. Behind her were four pairs of eyes peeking out of the doorframe. "Is Steve around?"
"Nah. Mom sent him with Dari to get her a new pair of shoes. She threw her last one out the window when he ducked. What you want him for anyway? He's a jerk." Janey bopped the little heads back into the apartment and shut the door behind her. When Darin stood and descended the stairs, she followed.
"Steve's not a jerk. He's pretty cool. He and Rik were teaching me to wrestle." He shrugged and moved a little faster but she followed him every step of the way.
"You talk funny. Where you from?"
"Uptown." Darin paused to look at her. "You ask a lot of questions."
"Ain't nothin' excitin' ever happens here and then all of a sudden they's new people and they's hidin'. I never get to do nothin'." Janey explained and led the way to the store. "What you need?"
"Breakfast stuff for 20."
"That's coo. Follow me."
--
Max's head snapped up when Rik spoke. He glanced at Michael and Isabel and looked to the boy again. "Say that again. One more time… Only this time not crazy."
"I contacted Zan last night." Rik repeated.
"How?"
"Kyle helped." Four pairs of eyes turned on the man while he played with his children. He ignored them as he was regaled with a story from his oldest on what the youngest had done while he was away. Rik had to get their attention again. "I practically forced him. I had to do it. He was gonna let himself die in that hell hole. That's what they were doin’ until I contacted him, waitin’ to die. He had water and he wouldn't drink it. They're overheatin’ and I think Tess is pretty far gone. He said he'd meet us."
"How is he going to meet us if he's trapped?" Michael demanded.
"Do you really think they can hold him? Knowin’ what he does about himself? He went to them to die. To kill the sin, to be done with it. He's not gonna go down without a fight. Not now." Rik shook his head.
"Why not now? What's different than before?" Max growled, mostly to himself but watched as Liz, Kyle, and Rik all avoided everyone's eyes. "What's different than before?"
"Max. Lower your voice." Liz whispered, her eyes still not on his or anyone else's.
--
"I can't wait to start high school." Janey confided in Darin as they moved down the aisles collecting what they could for the money they had. "How bout you?"
"I'm a sophomore." He shrugged, a little embarrassed to admit it. It meant that he was smart. Very smart and he didn't like to brag.
"No you're not."
"Skipped a grade or two."
"No shit. So you're all smart like Rik. That's coo." She smiled and looked him over. "How old are you?"
"14."
"Me too. You go to that fancy school that stole Rik?"
"That's where we met." Just months ago. They had been there just two weeks ago? How long? It felt like a whole other lifetime. "We thought we were brothers, too."
"My mom says that Rik's dad was in deep with like the mob or somethin' because he came and went with the shadows. No one could pin him down ever. No one knows where he went. Is he back? Is that why all this shit is goin' down that no one's talkin' bout? The Feds downtown and they say there's this big fire in the middle of nowhere but that it's all a big cover up."
"You talk really fast… and a lot."
"Steve always tells me that. Says I gotta slow down if anyone's gonna understand me but I got so much in my head that I gotta get it all out as it comes to me or else I lose it. Use or lose it, my momma always says." She went on and on, talking about Steve and her mom and all her brothers and sisters. "Don't tell him I said it but Steve's my favorite brother… and it ain't cause we got the same dad. Mom swears up and down we don't but he's coo. He's always coo wit us. Grandma says it's cause Steve's dad is such a dick that Steve is twice the sweetheart to make up for it."
"What did he do?"
"Mom ain't never said but I think Steve's dad used to hit her. Steve don't 'member him at all. We got some dickhead dads from time to time but none of them ever got dropped off the face of the planet like Steve's dad… so it must have been pretty bad." She turned to him. They were in the middle of the juice aisle and the cold crept out onto their skin, making them crawl with gooseflesh. "I gotta do this cause if Steve catches me, he'll throw Mom's shoes at me himself."
Darin couldn't even respond before a pair of very soft, cherry lip-glossed lips were pressed against his. A lump stuck in his throat and he thought his heart had stopped. No girl had never done that before. Here this one was very pretty and probably had kissed dozens of guys before and she kissed him. He'd seen kissing done; in movies, on the street, his parents, Max and Liz, Rik and Dari, Steve and Dari… but even as tame as this kiss was, it felt like fire to him. "Um…"
"Don't say it was bad. I ain't never kissed a boy and I always dreamed that Rik would kiss me first but here you was and yous my age and it's like you got dreamed up just for me because you s'like this… better guy cause you ain't never had to live here with us in the hood…" Her eyes teared up so fast, Darin almost panicked.
"It was good." Darin blushed and grabbed a jug of juice. "Thank you." He had just gotten his first kiss in the refrigerated aisle at the corner market in the 'hood'. Mom would be so proud. Had he just thanked her for it? Oh God, what planet was he from? ... Shut up. "I haven't ever kissed anyone, either."
"For reals?" She dried her eyes and slid her hand around his elbow as he led the way to the check out. "You ain't lyin' to me? I'll ask Rik. He'll tell me the truth. I don't believe you. No boy as cute as you don't get kissed all the time."
--
Max took a deep drag off the cigarette and offered to Rik who refused it. "I understand what you tried to do. I understand why but… shit."
"I know that you see he sacrificed himself and now he's gotta live with it but I thought about it. I took a whole lot of time to think about it and when it comes down to… it… He's my dad. Maybe I figured he'd get himself out but when I found out about my mom… I couldn’t let him to that do her twice." Rik fought to get the words out.
"That's not what I was thinking."
Michael cut in before Max had to put his thoughts into words. "They took Max before. Locked him up in a white room and did all kinds of unspeakable things to him. He had to get you back to your mom so that we could make a plan to get him back."
"You was gonna go without me?" Rik turned hurt eyes on his uncle. Then it became blazingly clear what Kyle had tried to tell him last night. "You don't run the world Max… especially not this one. He's my dad. I have power and we have to go. I'm the only one of us who can heal and not get drained."
"Hey. It's not like I can’t heal whatever they did to him." Max barked. His powers did not hold up as well as they used to but then he had never gone so long without rest and down time.
"Well, whatever they do to him won't be as bad as what Kivar did to him. Those guys can't even begin to hurt him. That's why he went there to die. To take as many down with him as possible. You can't make me stay. Not after what I've said to him. If he's not gonna make it back I gotta be there." Rik sniffed loudly. "He's your clone but you don't know him. He's my dad. He showed me more love in the time before he died than I ever thought to show him when he came back from the dead. I'm a bad son but I'm worse if I don't go."
"It doesn't make you bad or worse." Max placed his hands on the teen's shoulders. "It makes you safe. If you go with us and there's a fight, we could lose you too and then what do we tell your mother? 'I'm sorry, Erika. I tried to save them both but they caught us unawares. You have to raise your baby all alone.'"
Rik shook his head. "That's where you're wrong. I won't die. I won't even get a scratch. You're not going without me. You can't even know what's going on with him?"
"No?" Max got in the boy's face, flicking away the cigarette. "I died. Died. My soul left my body and I died. With everyone on the planet pissed at me. I died to save my friends and I got dragged back by one thing. Love. I know that it will save your dad but you have to stay safe. Coming back… is not pleasant. I had the misfortune to share a body with a dying old man who was mentally gone. He tried to kill Liz with my hands. I had to tell her to kill me. Your dad had it just a smidge easier with his own body and coming out of the pods all over again. He didn't try to kill your Mom."
"Maxwell." Michael called softly.
"Sorry." Max released his hold on the boy. "I'm a king who died twice, Rik. It never gets easy and I… I'll bring him back but you need to stay here. I'm leaving Liz and Hannah and Isaiah… and Darin. He'll listen to you."
"I have to go." Rik insisted, hanging limply in his own skin, just a little afraid of Max and his outburst. “I have to.”
It stayed quiet until Darin ran up to fetch them for breakfast. The kid provided much needed laughter when Max handed him a handkerchief for his lips, which were coated with cherry-flavored lip gloss. Max turned to Rik. "See you have to stay. I don’t know who he’s been kissing but… chances are high that the girl has a father or a brother and I’d like to still have a son when I get back."
Rik glanced at Darin, who was red-faced and still wiping at his lips. It only took a moment to deduce who the girl was. "Right… Steve might try to kill him. Or I might… Janey’s a little young."
"We’re the same age." Darin protested.
"You see her ID?" Michael asked as he held the door open for them to troop down for food. Darin shook his head. "Always check the ID, best advice you’ll ever get."
"That and remember her birthday." Max clapped Darin on the back and ushered him inside the building. "Always say please and thank you. Girls like polite men. Responsible men. If they even think you’re gonna break their hearts, they’ll never let you forget it."
"It was just one kiss. Three tops." Darin tried not to sound like he was whining.
"You became her property the second her lips touched yours. It’s all over pal."
tbc
Far from home but not netless. '-)
Darin woke still encased in Liz's arms. She was awake and watching Max pace the floor with a cranky Hannah. "Did I squeeze you too hard last night?" He barely shook his head. "Max says I squeeze too hard sometimes." A shrug. "He tricked me. He said he was coming to bed last night."
"You both lie a lot." He murmured almost to himself.
"Only the good lies."
"Is there such a thing?"
"Sometimes. Run to the corner? Grab some eggs. Maybe some bread. Butter… Jelly." Liz rolled away and produced some money from her pocket. "Just keep in mind how many people we've got here."
"You really think he's going to let me out of the apartment by myself?"
"Go quick. I trust you."
Darin waited until Max was facing the window before grabbing his shoes and shooting out the door. He could hear them talking still. "One of those good lies, Mrs. Evans?"
"He's right. You don't trust him. He's small for his age but older than he looks."
"It's not that…" Max sighed heavily and turned back to the window.
"I am." Darin said to himself as he sat down on the stairs to put his shoes on.
"Ey." A girl's voice caught him by surprise.
"Hey." He looked up and she seemed familiar but he didn't know why.
"You Rik's lil bro?"
"His cousin."
"Right. That's coo. I'm Janey. Steve's my brother. Where you goin’?"
"Store." He pointed down the stairs, trying to keep his eyes off her bared stomach. Behind her were four pairs of eyes peeking out of the doorframe. "Is Steve around?"
"Nah. Mom sent him with Dari to get her a new pair of shoes. She threw her last one out the window when he ducked. What you want him for anyway? He's a jerk." Janey bopped the little heads back into the apartment and shut the door behind her. When Darin stood and descended the stairs, she followed.
"Steve's not a jerk. He's pretty cool. He and Rik were teaching me to wrestle." He shrugged and moved a little faster but she followed him every step of the way.
"You talk funny. Where you from?"
"Uptown." Darin paused to look at her. "You ask a lot of questions."
"Ain't nothin' excitin' ever happens here and then all of a sudden they's new people and they's hidin'. I never get to do nothin'." Janey explained and led the way to the store. "What you need?"
"Breakfast stuff for 20."
"That's coo. Follow me."
--
Max's head snapped up when Rik spoke. He glanced at Michael and Isabel and looked to the boy again. "Say that again. One more time… Only this time not crazy."
"I contacted Zan last night." Rik repeated.
"How?"
"Kyle helped." Four pairs of eyes turned on the man while he played with his children. He ignored them as he was regaled with a story from his oldest on what the youngest had done while he was away. Rik had to get their attention again. "I practically forced him. I had to do it. He was gonna let himself die in that hell hole. That's what they were doin’ until I contacted him, waitin’ to die. He had water and he wouldn't drink it. They're overheatin’ and I think Tess is pretty far gone. He said he'd meet us."
"How is he going to meet us if he's trapped?" Michael demanded.
"Do you really think they can hold him? Knowin’ what he does about himself? He went to them to die. To kill the sin, to be done with it. He's not gonna go down without a fight. Not now." Rik shook his head.
"Why not now? What's different than before?" Max growled, mostly to himself but watched as Liz, Kyle, and Rik all avoided everyone's eyes. "What's different than before?"
"Max. Lower your voice." Liz whispered, her eyes still not on his or anyone else's.
--
"I can't wait to start high school." Janey confided in Darin as they moved down the aisles collecting what they could for the money they had. "How bout you?"
"I'm a sophomore." He shrugged, a little embarrassed to admit it. It meant that he was smart. Very smart and he didn't like to brag.
"No you're not."
"Skipped a grade or two."
"No shit. So you're all smart like Rik. That's coo." She smiled and looked him over. "How old are you?"
"14."
"Me too. You go to that fancy school that stole Rik?"
"That's where we met." Just months ago. They had been there just two weeks ago? How long? It felt like a whole other lifetime. "We thought we were brothers, too."
"My mom says that Rik's dad was in deep with like the mob or somethin' because he came and went with the shadows. No one could pin him down ever. No one knows where he went. Is he back? Is that why all this shit is goin' down that no one's talkin' bout? The Feds downtown and they say there's this big fire in the middle of nowhere but that it's all a big cover up."
"You talk really fast… and a lot."
"Steve always tells me that. Says I gotta slow down if anyone's gonna understand me but I got so much in my head that I gotta get it all out as it comes to me or else I lose it. Use or lose it, my momma always says." She went on and on, talking about Steve and her mom and all her brothers and sisters. "Don't tell him I said it but Steve's my favorite brother… and it ain't cause we got the same dad. Mom swears up and down we don't but he's coo. He's always coo wit us. Grandma says it's cause Steve's dad is such a dick that Steve is twice the sweetheart to make up for it."
"What did he do?"
"Mom ain't never said but I think Steve's dad used to hit her. Steve don't 'member him at all. We got some dickhead dads from time to time but none of them ever got dropped off the face of the planet like Steve's dad… so it must have been pretty bad." She turned to him. They were in the middle of the juice aisle and the cold crept out onto their skin, making them crawl with gooseflesh. "I gotta do this cause if Steve catches me, he'll throw Mom's shoes at me himself."
Darin couldn't even respond before a pair of very soft, cherry lip-glossed lips were pressed against his. A lump stuck in his throat and he thought his heart had stopped. No girl had never done that before. Here this one was very pretty and probably had kissed dozens of guys before and she kissed him. He'd seen kissing done; in movies, on the street, his parents, Max and Liz, Rik and Dari, Steve and Dari… but even as tame as this kiss was, it felt like fire to him. "Um…"
"Don't say it was bad. I ain't never kissed a boy and I always dreamed that Rik would kiss me first but here you was and yous my age and it's like you got dreamed up just for me because you s'like this… better guy cause you ain't never had to live here with us in the hood…" Her eyes teared up so fast, Darin almost panicked.
"It was good." Darin blushed and grabbed a jug of juice. "Thank you." He had just gotten his first kiss in the refrigerated aisle at the corner market in the 'hood'. Mom would be so proud. Had he just thanked her for it? Oh God, what planet was he from? ... Shut up. "I haven't ever kissed anyone, either."
"For reals?" She dried her eyes and slid her hand around his elbow as he led the way to the check out. "You ain't lyin' to me? I'll ask Rik. He'll tell me the truth. I don't believe you. No boy as cute as you don't get kissed all the time."
--
Max took a deep drag off the cigarette and offered to Rik who refused it. "I understand what you tried to do. I understand why but… shit."
"I know that you see he sacrificed himself and now he's gotta live with it but I thought about it. I took a whole lot of time to think about it and when it comes down to… it… He's my dad. Maybe I figured he'd get himself out but when I found out about my mom… I couldn’t let him to that do her twice." Rik fought to get the words out.
"That's not what I was thinking."
Michael cut in before Max had to put his thoughts into words. "They took Max before. Locked him up in a white room and did all kinds of unspeakable things to him. He had to get you back to your mom so that we could make a plan to get him back."
"You was gonna go without me?" Rik turned hurt eyes on his uncle. Then it became blazingly clear what Kyle had tried to tell him last night. "You don't run the world Max… especially not this one. He's my dad. I have power and we have to go. I'm the only one of us who can heal and not get drained."
"Hey. It's not like I can’t heal whatever they did to him." Max barked. His powers did not hold up as well as they used to but then he had never gone so long without rest and down time.
"Well, whatever they do to him won't be as bad as what Kivar did to him. Those guys can't even begin to hurt him. That's why he went there to die. To take as many down with him as possible. You can't make me stay. Not after what I've said to him. If he's not gonna make it back I gotta be there." Rik sniffed loudly. "He's your clone but you don't know him. He's my dad. He showed me more love in the time before he died than I ever thought to show him when he came back from the dead. I'm a bad son but I'm worse if I don't go."
"It doesn't make you bad or worse." Max placed his hands on the teen's shoulders. "It makes you safe. If you go with us and there's a fight, we could lose you too and then what do we tell your mother? 'I'm sorry, Erika. I tried to save them both but they caught us unawares. You have to raise your baby all alone.'"
Rik shook his head. "That's where you're wrong. I won't die. I won't even get a scratch. You're not going without me. You can't even know what's going on with him?"
"No?" Max got in the boy's face, flicking away the cigarette. "I died. Died. My soul left my body and I died. With everyone on the planet pissed at me. I died to save my friends and I got dragged back by one thing. Love. I know that it will save your dad but you have to stay safe. Coming back… is not pleasant. I had the misfortune to share a body with a dying old man who was mentally gone. He tried to kill Liz with my hands. I had to tell her to kill me. Your dad had it just a smidge easier with his own body and coming out of the pods all over again. He didn't try to kill your Mom."
"Maxwell." Michael called softly.
"Sorry." Max released his hold on the boy. "I'm a king who died twice, Rik. It never gets easy and I… I'll bring him back but you need to stay here. I'm leaving Liz and Hannah and Isaiah… and Darin. He'll listen to you."
"I have to go." Rik insisted, hanging limply in his own skin, just a little afraid of Max and his outburst. “I have to.”
It stayed quiet until Darin ran up to fetch them for breakfast. The kid provided much needed laughter when Max handed him a handkerchief for his lips, which were coated with cherry-flavored lip gloss. Max turned to Rik. "See you have to stay. I don’t know who he’s been kissing but… chances are high that the girl has a father or a brother and I’d like to still have a son when I get back."
Rik glanced at Darin, who was red-faced and still wiping at his lips. It only took a moment to deduce who the girl was. "Right… Steve might try to kill him. Or I might… Janey’s a little young."
"We’re the same age." Darin protested.
"You see her ID?" Michael asked as he held the door open for them to troop down for food. Darin shook his head. "Always check the ID, best advice you’ll ever get."
"That and remember her birthday." Max clapped Darin on the back and ushered him inside the building. "Always say please and thank you. Girls like polite men. Responsible men. If they even think you’re gonna break their hearts, they’ll never let you forget it."
"It was just one kiss. Three tops." Darin tried not to sound like he was whining.
"You became her property the second her lips touched yours. It’s all over pal."
tbc
Far from home but not netless. '-)
Part 29
Part 29
Rik sat on the fire escape and watched his city go about its business. Steve sat underneath him on the ladder, fiddling with a broken toy. "Do you think it's fair?"
"What?"
"Lot of this shit. He's my dad. I made the contact, I found him still alive and now I can't go get him. I can't tell my mom about the baby inside her. I can't… what kind of life am I gonna have now? I cain't just go back to that prep school knowing what I know now. What if I want to meet a girl? Do I tell her before or after I think she's the one? Before or after I sleep wit her?"
"You worry too much, man." Steve shook his head. "And about the wrong things?"
"What?"
"We're couple of bad asses, man. We 17 and the times are different from when our moms was skankin' around school. My dad killed someone. My grandma says so. One somebody and now I don't know what he looks like because he's probably in prison. Your pops… we watched him kill two guys with his bare hands and I don't think it was the first time. Your aunt ain't killed no one but remember what she said about not wantin' lil dude to see some stuff… She goes in thinkin'… 'maybe this is the day I kill someone.' If they goin' to get your dad back… I'm bettin' they gonna kill someone or a lot of someones… and your uncle might seem uptight but I think he's a bigger bad ass than you and me ever thought we was. Your dad ain't comin back without blood on his hands."
Rik just stared at Steve for the longest time so Steve went on. "I ain't sayin' you gotta kill somebody so you can be a man but… That's gotta be the last thing on the list that I would ever do. T ain't kilt nobody but one of these days man… you know he will. Of all of us… I don't want you to be the one with the blood on your hands."
--
"So. Is she pretty?" Liz teased Darin as they cleaned up the kitchen. He only shrugged his shoulders a little and held open a trash bag for her to deposit her handfuls of napkins and paper plates. "What's wrong?"
"I miss my mom." He fought the wetness that crept into his eyes. "I just… I figured when I got my first kiss… I'd be talking about it to her. It's not like I can't but Aunt Isabel wouldn’t let me call her."
"It's not safe yet but it will be soon."
Darin nodded and wiped his eyes and just in time because Max swung into the room. "Hey there. I heard there was a MILF in here."
"Max Evans!" Liz snapped a dish towel at him. "I cannot believe you just said that in front of your son."
"He did it!" Michael bursting out laughing from the next room.
"Dammit!" Kyle burst out.
"Daddy!" Valerie scolded her father.
"Do you see what you started?" Liz smacked Max again. "You better be splitting the money with me."
"It wasn't for money." He kissed her neck, trying to butter her up. "It was for a night off when this craziness is dealt with. Kyle will watch the kids so you and I can… explore that MILF thing."
"The alternative being we watch his kids so he and Ava can… explore the reverse of that?"
"Something like that."
"They need it more than we do, give it back."
"Liz…" Max leaned in, trying to coerce her into changing her mind. "Please?"
"He's only with us until we get this resolved and they deserve another night before they have to figure out something else to do about it." She chided again but pressed a kiss to his lips and sent him out the door with another snap of her dish towel. "Go check on your daughter… and where's Isaiah? Hmm?"
"Okay, okay." Max nodded and started to escape.
"Hold on." Liz reached out to catch him. "Don't you have something to say to your son?"
Max took in a deep breath and stepped back into the kitchen. "It is never polite to refer to any woman as a MILF. If you don't know what that is… good for you. If you do… you'll forgive me."
"Max!" Liz smacked him again and this time he ran out of the kitchen. She cleared her throat and turned to her stepson. "I'm just going to assume your mother raised you to be a gentleman."
"I’m almost fifteen and I JUST got my first kiss." Darin bemoaned quietly.
"Well, your dad," Liz smacked her lips together. "he was sixteen and a half."
"No way!"
"Yep."
--
Rik saw the girls walking by in their fashionably ripped clothes but he didn't see them. Flashes of skin, curves in tight clothes but he focused on reaching out to his father. Trying to reach him without anybody's help. This time it was Michael who came to check on him.
"I know you got all sorts of ideas about Max and where he can shove his game plan but there's a reason we're all still alive and that's because we trust Max's instincts and if he says you need to stay here, then that's what you need to do."
"Yeah, okay."
"I interpret that as a 'yeah, whatever.’" Michael sat on the window sill and took a look around. "I used to that to him too and you know where it landed me most of the time? Usually in a situation that he'd have to bust me out of."
"You ever come to blows?"
"A time or two over the years. Yeah. We get frustrated but… sometimes waiting for the cover of night is best. Sometimes strengthening your second line really counts when it comes down to it."
That was confusing. "What?"
Michael shrugged his shoulders and looked around. "This is a tactically bad place to set up camp for any reason. It's comfortable though. Something we haven't had in two weeks. We try to keep the kids in a semi-normal existence but the truth is… while we go fight the bad guys, the kids are vulnerable. You wouldn't know the bad guys were coming until they hit the third stairwell and that's if you were listening for them."
"So, you're gonna lay that line on me about how I'm needed here more because of the pregnant women and children?"
"Something like that… only… you've got that gift. That thing where you know what's behind closed doors. If… you're going to meditate on any of your powers, right now… it's that one. If you can tell when people are going at it… maybe you can tell when people are doing other things." He jerked his thumb into the apartment. "That's a lot of kids. They move slower than you'd like when they're scared. Isabel sometimes loses her head in the heat of things when she's hormonal."
"You're talkin’ like you're not coming back."
"I do that sometimes. It's why Maria's not talking to me right now. This is it. The end. Maybe you don't get to party with us when the bad guys are dead but you'll be here to protect them if they aren't and we are." Michael cleared his throat. "Do you understand?"
“You ain’t just puttin’ me where I don’t make people worry?”
“Talk to your mom. You ask her if she don’t worry about you when you’re sitting right in front of her safe and sound. Always going to be people who worry about you if you live your life even half right. Max and me have our problems and they’re mostly the same problems he’s got with the rest of the people he’s got to deal with. Difference is, you don’t know him yet.” Michael slid off the sill to get busy but Rik stopped him. “What?”
“Maybe you tell him the same thing about me.”
“Maybe.” He shrugged. “We were your age when the shit first hit the fan. But… we still think maybe you’re younger than we were.”
“Maybe you start thinkin’ that I’m not. I’m capable. I’m new to this but I’m able.”
“May be.”
--
Darin wanted to pace the room but everyone was quiet. Max was asleep finally. Something he didn’t do often but was needed before they headed out. Isaiah was napping next to him, Hannah on his chest, and Liz tucked under one arm. Sleeping as a family. Jesse sat nearby with his son napping in his arms. “You look antsy.”
“I don’t like sitting still.”
“Gotta be from your other parents. Max can sit still for hours.” Jesse shifted uncomfortably. Isabel had herded the kids into the bedroom for story time. A giggle seeped out from under the door from time to time. Maria had gone up to the roof to yell at Michael and Rik had yet to crawl back into the apartment. Kyle was nowhere to be seen.
“I’m just…”
“Scared.” The older man nodded. “It happens. I’m about as used to this as you are.”
“How… I mean… if Aunt Isabel is always running, how do your kids…?”
“Sometimes they’re shy with her but she visits them in their dreams fairly often so they know who she is.” Jesse nodded sadly, rocking ever so slightly with his young son. “It’s a little confusing, I know. They goof off so much that it’s frustrating with all that’s going on but it’s the only way to cope sometimes. I only hear stories through Isabel but they have to keep from going crazy somehow.”
“Like this morning?”
“Yeah. Michael and Kyle are fond of making Max cut loose every once in a while. Really… embarrass the heck out of him. He was never what you would call a social butterfly and if he had his way, he wouldn’t be leading anyone anywhere.”
“Are you about to tell me how much he loved me and how hard it was to give me up?” Darin took a seat on the couch so they could lower their voices.
“I guess you’ve heard that a lot. I won’t say it again, then. Your grandparents loved you to death. There was a lot of ruckus going on when you came back. My in-laws were investigating your dad and Isabel but the second your grandma got her hands on you, she completely shifted into a supportive grandma. They had known you existed for awhile but they didn’t know you were an alien or about Max and Isabel.” Jesse smiled broadly as he remembered. “Philip, your grandpa, he uh… decided he was going to change you while Max was at school and… mind you, he’d never changed a diaper in his whole life. He only turned away for a second but before I would warn him, he turned back and you peed all over his favorite tie. I thought I was going to die laughing.”
“Were you there when I was?”
“Yeah, it was a very hectic week. I was there for the diaper lessons. Isabel couldn’t leave your dad alone for a minute while you were there. She was always helping but mostly getting in the way. She’d babysat before but never a baby… so your grandma ordered her to watch and learn because someday she’d have to know how. The first time your dad changed your diaper, I thought he was going to throw up. He actually turned green.”
“Really?”
“He’s a little squeamish for an alien king. He was arrested once. Did you know that?”
“Arrested?”
“For armed robbery. He didn’t actually rob anything but he did hold up a convenience store while looking for a space ship to go rescue you. He almost lost Liz for good over it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s never been easy for them. Liz had this journal and we all read it after they took off at their high school graduation. It has always been a struggle and they have always tried to do what’s right. You know… all this time, they didn’t think they’d have kids together. It’s probably the main reason Max let Liz keep Isaiah. He could never deny her anything and that little woman is full of love.”
“Yeah, I know.” Darin nodded to himself. “She doesn’t have to be nice to me but… I think she really likes me.”
“You’re a nice kid. What’s not to like?”
“You never knew my mom?”
“Just met her the once. I’ve only heard stories… and not all of them bad.”
“You’re not just saying that?”
“Of all the people in this? I’m probably the one she affected the least… Isabel told me that once the two of them put the whammy on a couple of college guys. Had them talking to themselves and making fools of themselves in front of half the Varsity squad at RU.”
“You mean what I did… making people see what isn’t there.”
“It isn’t always evil… not if it saves your life.”
--
Rik poked his head back inside when he heard the singing. Maria had gathered the kiddies for a sing-along, she even managed to get Darin into it… it probably helped that she was sitting with her legs wrapped around his middle, unable to escape. Max was changing a diaper and chatting with Isaiah who couldn’t seem to focus on anything else when Max was in a room. Liz seemed to be giving Michael a pep talk. Kyle and Ava seemed suspiciously cheery seeing as no one had seen them all afternoon. Jesse and Isabel were putting together a cooler for Max and Michael.
Then he saw his mother, watching them and looking left out. So he climbed in and wrapped an arm over her shoulder. “They’s all cornball.”
“I was thinking the same thing.” She whispered. “I talked to Max for a bit. You ain’t leavin’ me.”
“No. I’m stayin’. They’ll bring him back.”
“I hope so. I can’t take my heart breaking again.”
“You still love him?”
“Maybe I never stopped. I got you to look at everyday, reminding me all the time.” She cleared her throat and coughed a bit. “I don’t feel so good. Promise me you’ll stay.”
“Something wrong?”
“Just… feel dizzy.”
“Mom?”
“I’ll be okay. Just… dizzy.”
Rik barely had time to catch her as she slithered to the ground. Silence rang through the room as all eyes focused on him. Hefting her into his arms, Kyle rushed to open the door to the bedroom so they could lay her on the bed. She was sweating and unconscious. Max followed a moment later, handing Hannah to Darin when the boy followed. “What happened?”
“Don’t know. Listen. You were not wrong about my powers not being as strong. I need everything I’ve got to get your dad back.” Max looked her over. “I need you to do this. You need to put your hand on her abdomen and the other hand on her head. You have to connect to her. I suspect that it’s the baby.”
“Don’t think. Just do it.” Darin offered.
Right. Rik did as told and being an emergency, he just did it. He saw memories and past events and then he saw brain matter and blood vessels and a very small grouping of cells that he assumed to be his unborn sibling. “It’s not the baby.” He kept looking hoping something would leap out at him. “Wait.”
“What?” Max prompted.
“Did anyone see her eat today?”
Max snapped his fingers at Darin, who promptly rushed out to ask somebody. Nobody could remember. Max turned his attention back to Rik. “It’s probably low blood sugar and the demands of an alien baby on her metabolism. Back up carefully. Get out gently and I need you to wake her up.” He turned back to Darin. “Get some juice from the kitchen. See if anyone’s got lifesavers… or… ask um… Isaiah if he’s got some raisins left.”
Carefully, Rik extricated himself from his mother’s body and mind. “Mom? Mom?” She moaned a little but didn’t wake up. “Does this happen a lot?”
“Don’t know about a lot but Kyle’s wife did it and Maria did it. It’s got to be the human factor. Liz was pretty meticulous about her diet but she knew right away. She had a vision. Isabel didn’t have to deal with it and Kyle’s girlfriend had other ideas about her diet…” He caught Rik’s confused look. “She had a sweet tooth, which worked out. We compared stories." He took the cup of juice from Darin.
“Mom, wake up.” Rik shook her gently and moved aside when Max motioned to get her sitting up.
“Erika, you need to drink some juice.” Max spoke softly. She tilted her head forward and took a little sip, coming to a bit, swallowing on instinct. “That’s good. I need you to wake up a bit more than that.”
“What happened?” She whispered, her eyes still closed.
“You haven’t been eating. Even on the run, you have to take care of yourself.” Max gave her a little more juice and turned when Isaiah tugged on his sleeve. “What you got buddy?”
“Some raisins.” He held up the box.
“Do you mind sharing with Erika?”
“You can hab some.” He turned the box to the blonde on the bed. “How come you fall down?”
“Thank you, sweetie.” Erika hated raisins but she supposed there was a reason for her to eat them. “Why did I fall down?”
“Low blood sugar.” Max handed the cup to someone else and pulled Isaiah into his lap. “She didn’t eat all her lunch or her breakfast, I suspect.”
“Wasn’t feeling too well, today. Stress, I guess.” Erika chewed the raisins with a slight grimace and turned her head to her son. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Well, we’re about to leave. Isabel’s in the kitchen making you something. You will eat it. All of it. If I’m bringing Zan back, you’d better be in shape to run after him. I hear he’s not one to sit still.”
“I’ll get Rik to sit on him long enough for me to get there.” She managed a wink at her acting-doctor. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to cause a fuss.”
“Day’s not complete without a scare.” Max handed Isaiah off to Darin, kissed both their heads. “I gotta go.”
“Bye Daddy.” Isaiah seemed not to know that Daddy might not come back.
“Come back…” Darin managed to get the words out.
“I don’t want to do a big scene. I’ll come back.” Max patted him on the back. “You know the rules. Watch after the family and the little ones.”
“I will.” Darin followed him with his eyes as Max kissed Hannah’s cheek and tenderly kissed Liz goodbye. Michael was already holding the door open. Maria seemed to ignore them exiting men until just before the door closed. She whipped her head to the door, and the door paused just enough for Michael to see through.
“Be careful.”
And then they were gone… and Liz was in charge once more. Instead of telling them not to worry, she kissed her wedding ring and sank into a chair with her daughter. Maria quickly resumed her sing along but her daughter was no longer into it. Isabel stared at the door for a good long while before taking a seat next to her daughter on the floor to listen to the choir of little voices. When Darin spotted Kyle, that was when he realized Ava had left without saying bye to anyone.
tbc
Rik sat on the fire escape and watched his city go about its business. Steve sat underneath him on the ladder, fiddling with a broken toy. "Do you think it's fair?"
"What?"
"Lot of this shit. He's my dad. I made the contact, I found him still alive and now I can't go get him. I can't tell my mom about the baby inside her. I can't… what kind of life am I gonna have now? I cain't just go back to that prep school knowing what I know now. What if I want to meet a girl? Do I tell her before or after I think she's the one? Before or after I sleep wit her?"
"You worry too much, man." Steve shook his head. "And about the wrong things?"
"What?"
"We're couple of bad asses, man. We 17 and the times are different from when our moms was skankin' around school. My dad killed someone. My grandma says so. One somebody and now I don't know what he looks like because he's probably in prison. Your pops… we watched him kill two guys with his bare hands and I don't think it was the first time. Your aunt ain't killed no one but remember what she said about not wantin' lil dude to see some stuff… She goes in thinkin'… 'maybe this is the day I kill someone.' If they goin' to get your dad back… I'm bettin' they gonna kill someone or a lot of someones… and your uncle might seem uptight but I think he's a bigger bad ass than you and me ever thought we was. Your dad ain't comin back without blood on his hands."
Rik just stared at Steve for the longest time so Steve went on. "I ain't sayin' you gotta kill somebody so you can be a man but… That's gotta be the last thing on the list that I would ever do. T ain't kilt nobody but one of these days man… you know he will. Of all of us… I don't want you to be the one with the blood on your hands."
--
"So. Is she pretty?" Liz teased Darin as they cleaned up the kitchen. He only shrugged his shoulders a little and held open a trash bag for her to deposit her handfuls of napkins and paper plates. "What's wrong?"
"I miss my mom." He fought the wetness that crept into his eyes. "I just… I figured when I got my first kiss… I'd be talking about it to her. It's not like I can't but Aunt Isabel wouldn’t let me call her."
"It's not safe yet but it will be soon."
Darin nodded and wiped his eyes and just in time because Max swung into the room. "Hey there. I heard there was a MILF in here."
"Max Evans!" Liz snapped a dish towel at him. "I cannot believe you just said that in front of your son."
"He did it!" Michael bursting out laughing from the next room.
"Dammit!" Kyle burst out.
"Daddy!" Valerie scolded her father.
"Do you see what you started?" Liz smacked Max again. "You better be splitting the money with me."
"It wasn't for money." He kissed her neck, trying to butter her up. "It was for a night off when this craziness is dealt with. Kyle will watch the kids so you and I can… explore that MILF thing."
"The alternative being we watch his kids so he and Ava can… explore the reverse of that?"
"Something like that."
"They need it more than we do, give it back."
"Liz…" Max leaned in, trying to coerce her into changing her mind. "Please?"
"He's only with us until we get this resolved and they deserve another night before they have to figure out something else to do about it." She chided again but pressed a kiss to his lips and sent him out the door with another snap of her dish towel. "Go check on your daughter… and where's Isaiah? Hmm?"
"Okay, okay." Max nodded and started to escape.
"Hold on." Liz reached out to catch him. "Don't you have something to say to your son?"
Max took in a deep breath and stepped back into the kitchen. "It is never polite to refer to any woman as a MILF. If you don't know what that is… good for you. If you do… you'll forgive me."
"Max!" Liz smacked him again and this time he ran out of the kitchen. She cleared her throat and turned to her stepson. "I'm just going to assume your mother raised you to be a gentleman."
"I’m almost fifteen and I JUST got my first kiss." Darin bemoaned quietly.
"Well, your dad," Liz smacked her lips together. "he was sixteen and a half."
"No way!"
"Yep."
--
Rik saw the girls walking by in their fashionably ripped clothes but he didn't see them. Flashes of skin, curves in tight clothes but he focused on reaching out to his father. Trying to reach him without anybody's help. This time it was Michael who came to check on him.
"I know you got all sorts of ideas about Max and where he can shove his game plan but there's a reason we're all still alive and that's because we trust Max's instincts and if he says you need to stay here, then that's what you need to do."
"Yeah, okay."
"I interpret that as a 'yeah, whatever.’" Michael sat on the window sill and took a look around. "I used to that to him too and you know where it landed me most of the time? Usually in a situation that he'd have to bust me out of."
"You ever come to blows?"
"A time or two over the years. Yeah. We get frustrated but… sometimes waiting for the cover of night is best. Sometimes strengthening your second line really counts when it comes down to it."
That was confusing. "What?"
Michael shrugged his shoulders and looked around. "This is a tactically bad place to set up camp for any reason. It's comfortable though. Something we haven't had in two weeks. We try to keep the kids in a semi-normal existence but the truth is… while we go fight the bad guys, the kids are vulnerable. You wouldn't know the bad guys were coming until they hit the third stairwell and that's if you were listening for them."
"So, you're gonna lay that line on me about how I'm needed here more because of the pregnant women and children?"
"Something like that… only… you've got that gift. That thing where you know what's behind closed doors. If… you're going to meditate on any of your powers, right now… it's that one. If you can tell when people are going at it… maybe you can tell when people are doing other things." He jerked his thumb into the apartment. "That's a lot of kids. They move slower than you'd like when they're scared. Isabel sometimes loses her head in the heat of things when she's hormonal."
"You're talkin’ like you're not coming back."
"I do that sometimes. It's why Maria's not talking to me right now. This is it. The end. Maybe you don't get to party with us when the bad guys are dead but you'll be here to protect them if they aren't and we are." Michael cleared his throat. "Do you understand?"
“You ain’t just puttin’ me where I don’t make people worry?”
“Talk to your mom. You ask her if she don’t worry about you when you’re sitting right in front of her safe and sound. Always going to be people who worry about you if you live your life even half right. Max and me have our problems and they’re mostly the same problems he’s got with the rest of the people he’s got to deal with. Difference is, you don’t know him yet.” Michael slid off the sill to get busy but Rik stopped him. “What?”
“Maybe you tell him the same thing about me.”
“Maybe.” He shrugged. “We were your age when the shit first hit the fan. But… we still think maybe you’re younger than we were.”
“Maybe you start thinkin’ that I’m not. I’m capable. I’m new to this but I’m able.”
“May be.”
--
Darin wanted to pace the room but everyone was quiet. Max was asleep finally. Something he didn’t do often but was needed before they headed out. Isaiah was napping next to him, Hannah on his chest, and Liz tucked under one arm. Sleeping as a family. Jesse sat nearby with his son napping in his arms. “You look antsy.”
“I don’t like sitting still.”
“Gotta be from your other parents. Max can sit still for hours.” Jesse shifted uncomfortably. Isabel had herded the kids into the bedroom for story time. A giggle seeped out from under the door from time to time. Maria had gone up to the roof to yell at Michael and Rik had yet to crawl back into the apartment. Kyle was nowhere to be seen.
“I’m just…”
“Scared.” The older man nodded. “It happens. I’m about as used to this as you are.”
“How… I mean… if Aunt Isabel is always running, how do your kids…?”
“Sometimes they’re shy with her but she visits them in their dreams fairly often so they know who she is.” Jesse nodded sadly, rocking ever so slightly with his young son. “It’s a little confusing, I know. They goof off so much that it’s frustrating with all that’s going on but it’s the only way to cope sometimes. I only hear stories through Isabel but they have to keep from going crazy somehow.”
“Like this morning?”
“Yeah. Michael and Kyle are fond of making Max cut loose every once in a while. Really… embarrass the heck out of him. He was never what you would call a social butterfly and if he had his way, he wouldn’t be leading anyone anywhere.”
“Are you about to tell me how much he loved me and how hard it was to give me up?” Darin took a seat on the couch so they could lower their voices.
“I guess you’ve heard that a lot. I won’t say it again, then. Your grandparents loved you to death. There was a lot of ruckus going on when you came back. My in-laws were investigating your dad and Isabel but the second your grandma got her hands on you, she completely shifted into a supportive grandma. They had known you existed for awhile but they didn’t know you were an alien or about Max and Isabel.” Jesse smiled broadly as he remembered. “Philip, your grandpa, he uh… decided he was going to change you while Max was at school and… mind you, he’d never changed a diaper in his whole life. He only turned away for a second but before I would warn him, he turned back and you peed all over his favorite tie. I thought I was going to die laughing.”
“Were you there when I was?”
“Yeah, it was a very hectic week. I was there for the diaper lessons. Isabel couldn’t leave your dad alone for a minute while you were there. She was always helping but mostly getting in the way. She’d babysat before but never a baby… so your grandma ordered her to watch and learn because someday she’d have to know how. The first time your dad changed your diaper, I thought he was going to throw up. He actually turned green.”
“Really?”
“He’s a little squeamish for an alien king. He was arrested once. Did you know that?”
“Arrested?”
“For armed robbery. He didn’t actually rob anything but he did hold up a convenience store while looking for a space ship to go rescue you. He almost lost Liz for good over it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s never been easy for them. Liz had this journal and we all read it after they took off at their high school graduation. It has always been a struggle and they have always tried to do what’s right. You know… all this time, they didn’t think they’d have kids together. It’s probably the main reason Max let Liz keep Isaiah. He could never deny her anything and that little woman is full of love.”
“Yeah, I know.” Darin nodded to himself. “She doesn’t have to be nice to me but… I think she really likes me.”
“You’re a nice kid. What’s not to like?”
“You never knew my mom?”
“Just met her the once. I’ve only heard stories… and not all of them bad.”
“You’re not just saying that?”
“Of all the people in this? I’m probably the one she affected the least… Isabel told me that once the two of them put the whammy on a couple of college guys. Had them talking to themselves and making fools of themselves in front of half the Varsity squad at RU.”
“You mean what I did… making people see what isn’t there.”
“It isn’t always evil… not if it saves your life.”
--
Rik poked his head back inside when he heard the singing. Maria had gathered the kiddies for a sing-along, she even managed to get Darin into it… it probably helped that she was sitting with her legs wrapped around his middle, unable to escape. Max was changing a diaper and chatting with Isaiah who couldn’t seem to focus on anything else when Max was in a room. Liz seemed to be giving Michael a pep talk. Kyle and Ava seemed suspiciously cheery seeing as no one had seen them all afternoon. Jesse and Isabel were putting together a cooler for Max and Michael.
Then he saw his mother, watching them and looking left out. So he climbed in and wrapped an arm over her shoulder. “They’s all cornball.”
“I was thinking the same thing.” She whispered. “I talked to Max for a bit. You ain’t leavin’ me.”
“No. I’m stayin’. They’ll bring him back.”
“I hope so. I can’t take my heart breaking again.”
“You still love him?”
“Maybe I never stopped. I got you to look at everyday, reminding me all the time.” She cleared her throat and coughed a bit. “I don’t feel so good. Promise me you’ll stay.”
“Something wrong?”
“Just… feel dizzy.”
“Mom?”
“I’ll be okay. Just… dizzy.”
Rik barely had time to catch her as she slithered to the ground. Silence rang through the room as all eyes focused on him. Hefting her into his arms, Kyle rushed to open the door to the bedroom so they could lay her on the bed. She was sweating and unconscious. Max followed a moment later, handing Hannah to Darin when the boy followed. “What happened?”
“Don’t know. Listen. You were not wrong about my powers not being as strong. I need everything I’ve got to get your dad back.” Max looked her over. “I need you to do this. You need to put your hand on her abdomen and the other hand on her head. You have to connect to her. I suspect that it’s the baby.”
“Don’t think. Just do it.” Darin offered.
Right. Rik did as told and being an emergency, he just did it. He saw memories and past events and then he saw brain matter and blood vessels and a very small grouping of cells that he assumed to be his unborn sibling. “It’s not the baby.” He kept looking hoping something would leap out at him. “Wait.”
“What?” Max prompted.
“Did anyone see her eat today?”
Max snapped his fingers at Darin, who promptly rushed out to ask somebody. Nobody could remember. Max turned his attention back to Rik. “It’s probably low blood sugar and the demands of an alien baby on her metabolism. Back up carefully. Get out gently and I need you to wake her up.” He turned back to Darin. “Get some juice from the kitchen. See if anyone’s got lifesavers… or… ask um… Isaiah if he’s got some raisins left.”
Carefully, Rik extricated himself from his mother’s body and mind. “Mom? Mom?” She moaned a little but didn’t wake up. “Does this happen a lot?”
“Don’t know about a lot but Kyle’s wife did it and Maria did it. It’s got to be the human factor. Liz was pretty meticulous about her diet but she knew right away. She had a vision. Isabel didn’t have to deal with it and Kyle’s girlfriend had other ideas about her diet…” He caught Rik’s confused look. “She had a sweet tooth, which worked out. We compared stories." He took the cup of juice from Darin.
“Mom, wake up.” Rik shook her gently and moved aside when Max motioned to get her sitting up.
“Erika, you need to drink some juice.” Max spoke softly. She tilted her head forward and took a little sip, coming to a bit, swallowing on instinct. “That’s good. I need you to wake up a bit more than that.”
“What happened?” She whispered, her eyes still closed.
“You haven’t been eating. Even on the run, you have to take care of yourself.” Max gave her a little more juice and turned when Isaiah tugged on his sleeve. “What you got buddy?”
“Some raisins.” He held up the box.
“Do you mind sharing with Erika?”
“You can hab some.” He turned the box to the blonde on the bed. “How come you fall down?”
“Thank you, sweetie.” Erika hated raisins but she supposed there was a reason for her to eat them. “Why did I fall down?”
“Low blood sugar.” Max handed the cup to someone else and pulled Isaiah into his lap. “She didn’t eat all her lunch or her breakfast, I suspect.”
“Wasn’t feeling too well, today. Stress, I guess.” Erika chewed the raisins with a slight grimace and turned her head to her son. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Well, we’re about to leave. Isabel’s in the kitchen making you something. You will eat it. All of it. If I’m bringing Zan back, you’d better be in shape to run after him. I hear he’s not one to sit still.”
“I’ll get Rik to sit on him long enough for me to get there.” She managed a wink at her acting-doctor. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to cause a fuss.”
“Day’s not complete without a scare.” Max handed Isaiah off to Darin, kissed both their heads. “I gotta go.”
“Bye Daddy.” Isaiah seemed not to know that Daddy might not come back.
“Come back…” Darin managed to get the words out.
“I don’t want to do a big scene. I’ll come back.” Max patted him on the back. “You know the rules. Watch after the family and the little ones.”
“I will.” Darin followed him with his eyes as Max kissed Hannah’s cheek and tenderly kissed Liz goodbye. Michael was already holding the door open. Maria seemed to ignore them exiting men until just before the door closed. She whipped her head to the door, and the door paused just enough for Michael to see through.
“Be careful.”
And then they were gone… and Liz was in charge once more. Instead of telling them not to worry, she kissed her wedding ring and sank into a chair with her daughter. Maria quickly resumed her sing along but her daughter was no longer into it. Isabel stared at the door for a good long while before taking a seat next to her daughter on the floor to listen to the choir of little voices. When Darin spotted Kyle, that was when he realized Ava had left without saying bye to anyone.
tbc
Part 30
Part 30
Liz sipped her coffee slowly and waited until Rik took his seat across from her. He held out his hand, palm up on the table. "Read my future." She just smiled and raised the cup to her lips, both hands on the cup. "Please?" Another Mona Lisa smile. "Come on. I'm dyin’ here."
"She'll have red hair. Hair like… red velvet. I think she dyes it." Liz said finally, hiding her mouth behind the steaming cup. "She'd have to for that color. I've never seen it in nature. It looks good on her but she'll never wear pink."
He let his hand fall on the table with a slap. "Red hair, huh."
"Six kids."
"Six?" His eyes widened.
"But not all of them are yours… or hers…"
"Aunt Liz?"
"Yes?"
"Are you fuckin' wit me?"
Another Mona Lisa smile before she lifted her cup again. "Watch your mouth."
"How do you do it? Live with it?"
"Seeing stuff I shouldn't see?"
"Well… yeah. I mean… I can't look at you and Uncle Max without seein’ stuff I really shouldn't." Just a hint of a blush graced his cheeks.
"How much do you see?" She asked softly, setting her cup down and reaching for a box of cookies on the far end of the table.
"Enough to pick up technique… and… or… scar me for life."
"Oh. I see. You're not just sensing these things anymore, are you?" She picked up her cup again. "Max and Zan don't have this gift and I'm not sure why. Max wasn't always aware of what all he could do. It was after he healed me, he developed his shield… almost a year later. Maybe this ability would have surfaced later if he hadn't healed me. Everything else came to me in time to one extent or another… just like with Kyle. Kyle and I… our powers complement Max's specifically. I'm actually afraid of what would happen if the three of us hooked up in battle. It could have something to do with them dying. Max gets weak easily now… well, in the last couple of years or so. I don't know if it's natural or because he took the seal back or because his body is old… so much older than it should be."
"That old man." Things started clicking in his head. Puzzle pieces falling into place and more of the picture becoming clearer only to show him that the picture was still bigger than he thought it was.
"Yeah."
"He was tellin’ me but I didn't get the whole story."
"If I understand what happened… Max's body died saving Clayton's. But Clayton was so old and so sick, it took all of Max's alien energy to rejuvenate, transforming Clayton into Max physically, like a preset in his alien energy… both of them sharing the mind, Clayton probably had some form of dementia."
"Clayton tried to kill you… and he looked like Max." Rik finally understood what Max had been trying to say on the roof that morning. Max had to live with the memory of his hands around Liz's neck. Hands he recognized as his own that had once only touched her with love. Knowing that if she died, the last face she saw would be his with murder in his eyes.
"Right. When we fell from the tower, Max used his powers to break my fall and let himself go, killing the body again, forcing them both to die… but because of his alien energy, still… active just a bit… I…" Liz covered her mouth with her hand as she fought the emotion. When it had happened, her focus had been on making sure Max was alright with what had happened. After he was okay she'd remember how she felt when she was sitting beside his still body, loving him more for his sacrifice. "I thought he was dead. I kissed him goodbye, a little piece of me hoping that he would just… open his eyes."
"And he did… his energy was reactivated by his… signature inside you."
"I guess that's the closest explanation we've ever had for it. Scientifically, that's probably true… Max and I tend to use the more romantic notion that I still loved him so much…"
"It's most likely all true."
"Clayton died is what I'm getting at. His soul went away. Max's soul, his essence, his alien energy took over, reshaped and reformed an old body for Max's use. Maybe his energy can't rejuvenate that body forever. It pains me to see Max with so much gray hair when I know exactly how old he is. I mean… he looks…"
"45."
"Don’t tell him you said that." Liz laughed a little. "But yeah, he looks more than old enough to have a son Darin's age… but he's only 33."
"Zan's doin’ somethin’." Rik blurted out. He didn't know how he knew. He didn't have any details but he could… feel the power.
"He got started early." She nodded.
"Is that what you were doin’ when I walked in? Watchin’ the battle?"
"If you could call it that… It looks more like a massacre to me." Her tone was even. Nothing to give away if she approved or disapproved of what was happening somewhere in the same state.
"But if you could see it… why did I need Kyle to reach him?"
"I'm just watching and he wouldn't have let me in if I had tried anyway. That reflection trick was pretty neat." Liz nodded to herself, her eyes watching something that Rik couldn't see or even sense. "Max had been planning to go back for him since we left the forest… this whole time, Rik. He wanted you, Kyle and me someplace safe because… it's ugly right now but it's going to get uglier."
"And he had to recharge."
"That too. He wanted to say goodbye… just in case. A few more memories to hold him from the brink that threatens to swallow him every couple of years."
"Nobody else knows about Max?" More and more he was realizing the burden that Liz lived with. All on her own she had a load. With Max she had more. With each person she had to deal with and each new circumstance and what each person should know… he wouldn't be surprised if she were bitter and cynical but she wasn't. She was open and caring and realistically hopeful.
"Just Michael and me know the details."
"He hides it?"
"Doesn't share it."
He wanted to say more but he was assaulted once more by images from other people. "Liz, seriously. How can I block out stuff I don't want to see?"
"Get used to it. To seeing it. Get desensitized." She shrugged. There wasn't much more than that she could tell him.
"But Steve and Dari are upstairs goin’ at it like bunnies."
"I'm sorry, sweetie." Liz reached over to lay her hand on his and for once, he let her. He calmed and the visions dissipated like a mirage. Maybe they were still there on the farthest limits of his mind but in a place he didn't active use. Hidden but waiting.
"Why do you tell me so much when other adults don't know so much?" Rik took a cookie when she offered it.
"I see you for what you are because I'm not your mother or your father or even really your aunt… even though I know you need to call me that for your own peace of mind." Liz drained her cup and rose to rinse it out. "I don't know if I developed this on my own or if it's residual Max stuff… from the original Zan… but I'm getting really good at strategizing and putting the toy soldiers where they need to be."
"Was that your non-morbid way of tellin’ me you were passin’ on the knowledge so generation two would have it? In case generation one suddenly kicks it?"
"I took an English class once. I get tone and mood." She winked at him and winced suddenly at something. "Max and Michael must have been speeding. Maybe they let Ava drive."
They sat in silence for a long ten minutes before Rik could open his mouth again. “I don’t want details but… we’re all gonna be alright… right?”
“You just take care of your mom, okay? She needs plenty of rest and to eat when she’s supposed to.”
“Okay. You’re keepin’ watch then?”
“I’ll let you know how it ends.”
“Aunt Liz?” Rik asked from the doorway.
“Yeah?”
“Why didn’t you know before? When Uncle Max and Michael got hurt?” He turned fully to her. “Or know where to find us when Uncle Max was looking?”
“I’m just getting my powers back to normal, Rik. For the last year they've been unreliable and next to useless…” She didn’t turn. “Isabel’s powers are going to go all wacky for the next seven or eight months. Mine have been coming back to me slowly. Like everything else, giving birth takes a period of recovery. My powers didn’t just rush back into me the second Hannah was born. I had to work to get them back and I have to work to keep them under control. I’m still working on it.”
“That’s another reason Max got mad because you went after him.”
“Maybe.”
“Okay. Good night.”
“Get some sleep Rik. Just in case we have to stage a rescue.”
--
Rain pelted the windows and the kids were all laying around, staring listlessly. No one wanted to build a fort. No one wanted to sing songs. No one wanted a story. No one wanted to draw and absolutely no one wanted the asparagus soup that Aunt Liz promised was yummy.
Erika hated being confined to bed but absolutely no one wanted her getting out of it, forcing napping children to pile onto the other bed or to sleep out in the main room. Rik brought her a cup of something greenish and promised it would be good. He lied… but she drank it anyway because she needed to eat something. She hadn’t felt this awful in years.
She amused herself by watched everyone else. Kids flopping around, groaning and moaning that they were bored. Little Janey sneaking in to see Darin, watching them blush together. And then she spotted Liz through the doorway, sitting perfectly still and staring off at nothing. Every so often, Rik would stop and talk to her, she only nodded or shook her head in response. She saw Isabel trying to calm Eddie down but he fought her, screaming at the top of his lungs. Then Jesse swooped in, calming the boy, making Isabel burst into tears herself. It was Maria who took Isabel to a chair to calm down. Eddie didn’t go down for his nap without shorting out the corner lamp but he did go down.
Kyle bumbled around with Kyle Jr. on his hip, telling a story to Valerie and Sara about their mother. His other daughter lay with Isaiah on the other bed, flipping through a book without reading it. Finally, she’d had enough. “Baby! I’m getting up.”
“No.” Rik rushed into the room and shook his head. “Dr. Max says bed rest. Plenty of fruit and carbs.”
“I’m starving and I’m not eating the green soup again. Take me to Rita’s. She’ll make me something decent.”
"We'll go bring you something." Darin offered, Janey not half a step behind him when he appeared in the doorway.
"I'm fine. I need to walk, get the blood out of my ass." Erika rose slowly, just to make sure she could make the trip through the apartment and down the hall to Rita's. Rik followed dutifully, not letting her out of his sight. Rita fawned over them both, grabbing whatever she could to make a meal. When Steve appeared, the old lady smacked him upside the head for sleeping late, for coming home so late, for being lazy and for being his father's son. Rik barely said two words to Steve and even his mother noticed. "Sweetie, I'll be fine here. Go see if your aunts need help."
"And tell that girl to get back over here. She's got chores." Rita griped over Rik, swatting Steve again for good measure. When the boy was gone, the old woman set more food in front of the younger blonde. "Eat. It'll be good for the baby."
"Rita…" Erika shook her head at the woman. "I'm not having a baby. You always say that."
"My fortune teller said there would be a baby and my baby isn't pregnant so it's you." She sat back to go back to her knitting. "I remember you was pregnant before, just down the hall and you was always running around with those bad boys… giving your daddy a heart attack."
"I know."
"She says you was going to have two babies and I've been waiting for the second one for years."
"Rita." Erika protested around a mouthful of food. "I'm not pregnant."
"Steve says your man is back."
"I didn't say that." Steve cursed under his breath. He looked to Erika, who understood, having dealt with Rita all of her adult life. "I didn't."
"Maybe." Erika whispered.
"Then you gotta eat if he gonna give you another baby. We all thought he must have died. I remember. I saw him. Sneaking around when he thought nobody was looking. Handsome but dangerous."
"Rita."
"Shut up and eat."
--
Darin watched in amusement as Kyle styled his daughter's hair. "What are you staring at?"
"Nothing."
"You wait til you have kids and see if you won't be brushing hair." Kyle muttered. Then his head whipped around. Liz was sparkling. Her head whipping from side to side, her hands up protecting her face. "Shit!" he dropped the brush and leapt over to where Liz was fending off an invisible attack. "Liz! Come back! Liz!"
"Fire! Fire!" Liz screamed.
"Liz!" Kyle tried to grip her face but her hands beat him off.
"Kyle…" Darin crossed to them and without realizing it, gripped Liz's hands. His mind flashed with memories so old and long forgotten that Liz probably didn't even know she had them.
Kyle slipped out of the way and watched mini-Max go. He hoped the kid knew what he was doing. Burns appeared on Liz's face and arms but Darin didn't let go. Then Liz fell limp, unconscious. Darin let go of one hand and concentrated hard. The burns slowly reversed themselves but Darin could only get them to a sunburned consistency before his powers wore out.
Jesse pulled him away and made him lay down on the mattress. "It's okay. It's okay. She's fine. Rest."
Isabel cuddled Isaiah to her body, the boy's eyes wide with fear. "She's okay, honey. Mommy is just sleeping."
Maria held Hannah against her chest as she sat next to Liz where Kyle had laid her out. "What do you think happened?"
"She's pushing herself too hard. It's just like what happened back out in the country. She was watching them for us… then she lost control." Kyle shook his head. "I couldn't pull her out."
"So, she's okay? How did she get burned?"
"She astral projected herself out there to a minor level. Just enough so she could see and not be seen. I think maybe… she's stronger than she lets on sometimes. Maybe she was… more there than she had ever been before."
"You think they're okay?"
"I guess we'll know when she wakes up."
tbc
sorry it took forever it just wouldn't come and now it has. hopefully the next part won't take as long.
Liz sipped her coffee slowly and waited until Rik took his seat across from her. He held out his hand, palm up on the table. "Read my future." She just smiled and raised the cup to her lips, both hands on the cup. "Please?" Another Mona Lisa smile. "Come on. I'm dyin’ here."
"She'll have red hair. Hair like… red velvet. I think she dyes it." Liz said finally, hiding her mouth behind the steaming cup. "She'd have to for that color. I've never seen it in nature. It looks good on her but she'll never wear pink."
He let his hand fall on the table with a slap. "Red hair, huh."
"Six kids."
"Six?" His eyes widened.
"But not all of them are yours… or hers…"
"Aunt Liz?"
"Yes?"
"Are you fuckin' wit me?"
Another Mona Lisa smile before she lifted her cup again. "Watch your mouth."
"How do you do it? Live with it?"
"Seeing stuff I shouldn't see?"
"Well… yeah. I mean… I can't look at you and Uncle Max without seein’ stuff I really shouldn't." Just a hint of a blush graced his cheeks.
"How much do you see?" She asked softly, setting her cup down and reaching for a box of cookies on the far end of the table.
"Enough to pick up technique… and… or… scar me for life."
"Oh. I see. You're not just sensing these things anymore, are you?" She picked up her cup again. "Max and Zan don't have this gift and I'm not sure why. Max wasn't always aware of what all he could do. It was after he healed me, he developed his shield… almost a year later. Maybe this ability would have surfaced later if he hadn't healed me. Everything else came to me in time to one extent or another… just like with Kyle. Kyle and I… our powers complement Max's specifically. I'm actually afraid of what would happen if the three of us hooked up in battle. It could have something to do with them dying. Max gets weak easily now… well, in the last couple of years or so. I don't know if it's natural or because he took the seal back or because his body is old… so much older than it should be."
"That old man." Things started clicking in his head. Puzzle pieces falling into place and more of the picture becoming clearer only to show him that the picture was still bigger than he thought it was.
"Yeah."
"He was tellin’ me but I didn't get the whole story."
"If I understand what happened… Max's body died saving Clayton's. But Clayton was so old and so sick, it took all of Max's alien energy to rejuvenate, transforming Clayton into Max physically, like a preset in his alien energy… both of them sharing the mind, Clayton probably had some form of dementia."
"Clayton tried to kill you… and he looked like Max." Rik finally understood what Max had been trying to say on the roof that morning. Max had to live with the memory of his hands around Liz's neck. Hands he recognized as his own that had once only touched her with love. Knowing that if she died, the last face she saw would be his with murder in his eyes.
"Right. When we fell from the tower, Max used his powers to break my fall and let himself go, killing the body again, forcing them both to die… but because of his alien energy, still… active just a bit… I…" Liz covered her mouth with her hand as she fought the emotion. When it had happened, her focus had been on making sure Max was alright with what had happened. After he was okay she'd remember how she felt when she was sitting beside his still body, loving him more for his sacrifice. "I thought he was dead. I kissed him goodbye, a little piece of me hoping that he would just… open his eyes."
"And he did… his energy was reactivated by his… signature inside you."
"I guess that's the closest explanation we've ever had for it. Scientifically, that's probably true… Max and I tend to use the more romantic notion that I still loved him so much…"
"It's most likely all true."
"Clayton died is what I'm getting at. His soul went away. Max's soul, his essence, his alien energy took over, reshaped and reformed an old body for Max's use. Maybe his energy can't rejuvenate that body forever. It pains me to see Max with so much gray hair when I know exactly how old he is. I mean… he looks…"
"45."
"Don’t tell him you said that." Liz laughed a little. "But yeah, he looks more than old enough to have a son Darin's age… but he's only 33."
"Zan's doin’ somethin’." Rik blurted out. He didn't know how he knew. He didn't have any details but he could… feel the power.
"He got started early." She nodded.
"Is that what you were doin’ when I walked in? Watchin’ the battle?"
"If you could call it that… It looks more like a massacre to me." Her tone was even. Nothing to give away if she approved or disapproved of what was happening somewhere in the same state.
"But if you could see it… why did I need Kyle to reach him?"
"I'm just watching and he wouldn't have let me in if I had tried anyway. That reflection trick was pretty neat." Liz nodded to herself, her eyes watching something that Rik couldn't see or even sense. "Max had been planning to go back for him since we left the forest… this whole time, Rik. He wanted you, Kyle and me someplace safe because… it's ugly right now but it's going to get uglier."
"And he had to recharge."
"That too. He wanted to say goodbye… just in case. A few more memories to hold him from the brink that threatens to swallow him every couple of years."
"Nobody else knows about Max?" More and more he was realizing the burden that Liz lived with. All on her own she had a load. With Max she had more. With each person she had to deal with and each new circumstance and what each person should know… he wouldn't be surprised if she were bitter and cynical but she wasn't. She was open and caring and realistically hopeful.
"Just Michael and me know the details."
"He hides it?"
"Doesn't share it."
He wanted to say more but he was assaulted once more by images from other people. "Liz, seriously. How can I block out stuff I don't want to see?"
"Get used to it. To seeing it. Get desensitized." She shrugged. There wasn't much more than that she could tell him.
"But Steve and Dari are upstairs goin’ at it like bunnies."
"I'm sorry, sweetie." Liz reached over to lay her hand on his and for once, he let her. He calmed and the visions dissipated like a mirage. Maybe they were still there on the farthest limits of his mind but in a place he didn't active use. Hidden but waiting.
"Why do you tell me so much when other adults don't know so much?" Rik took a cookie when she offered it.
"I see you for what you are because I'm not your mother or your father or even really your aunt… even though I know you need to call me that for your own peace of mind." Liz drained her cup and rose to rinse it out. "I don't know if I developed this on my own or if it's residual Max stuff… from the original Zan… but I'm getting really good at strategizing and putting the toy soldiers where they need to be."
"Was that your non-morbid way of tellin’ me you were passin’ on the knowledge so generation two would have it? In case generation one suddenly kicks it?"
"I took an English class once. I get tone and mood." She winked at him and winced suddenly at something. "Max and Michael must have been speeding. Maybe they let Ava drive."
They sat in silence for a long ten minutes before Rik could open his mouth again. “I don’t want details but… we’re all gonna be alright… right?”
“You just take care of your mom, okay? She needs plenty of rest and to eat when she’s supposed to.”
“Okay. You’re keepin’ watch then?”
“I’ll let you know how it ends.”
“Aunt Liz?” Rik asked from the doorway.
“Yeah?”
“Why didn’t you know before? When Uncle Max and Michael got hurt?” He turned fully to her. “Or know where to find us when Uncle Max was looking?”
“I’m just getting my powers back to normal, Rik. For the last year they've been unreliable and next to useless…” She didn’t turn. “Isabel’s powers are going to go all wacky for the next seven or eight months. Mine have been coming back to me slowly. Like everything else, giving birth takes a period of recovery. My powers didn’t just rush back into me the second Hannah was born. I had to work to get them back and I have to work to keep them under control. I’m still working on it.”
“That’s another reason Max got mad because you went after him.”
“Maybe.”
“Okay. Good night.”
“Get some sleep Rik. Just in case we have to stage a rescue.”
--
Rain pelted the windows and the kids were all laying around, staring listlessly. No one wanted to build a fort. No one wanted to sing songs. No one wanted a story. No one wanted to draw and absolutely no one wanted the asparagus soup that Aunt Liz promised was yummy.
Erika hated being confined to bed but absolutely no one wanted her getting out of it, forcing napping children to pile onto the other bed or to sleep out in the main room. Rik brought her a cup of something greenish and promised it would be good. He lied… but she drank it anyway because she needed to eat something. She hadn’t felt this awful in years.
She amused herself by watched everyone else. Kids flopping around, groaning and moaning that they were bored. Little Janey sneaking in to see Darin, watching them blush together. And then she spotted Liz through the doorway, sitting perfectly still and staring off at nothing. Every so often, Rik would stop and talk to her, she only nodded or shook her head in response. She saw Isabel trying to calm Eddie down but he fought her, screaming at the top of his lungs. Then Jesse swooped in, calming the boy, making Isabel burst into tears herself. It was Maria who took Isabel to a chair to calm down. Eddie didn’t go down for his nap without shorting out the corner lamp but he did go down.
Kyle bumbled around with Kyle Jr. on his hip, telling a story to Valerie and Sara about their mother. His other daughter lay with Isaiah on the other bed, flipping through a book without reading it. Finally, she’d had enough. “Baby! I’m getting up.”
“No.” Rik rushed into the room and shook his head. “Dr. Max says bed rest. Plenty of fruit and carbs.”
“I’m starving and I’m not eating the green soup again. Take me to Rita’s. She’ll make me something decent.”
"We'll go bring you something." Darin offered, Janey not half a step behind him when he appeared in the doorway.
"I'm fine. I need to walk, get the blood out of my ass." Erika rose slowly, just to make sure she could make the trip through the apartment and down the hall to Rita's. Rik followed dutifully, not letting her out of his sight. Rita fawned over them both, grabbing whatever she could to make a meal. When Steve appeared, the old lady smacked him upside the head for sleeping late, for coming home so late, for being lazy and for being his father's son. Rik barely said two words to Steve and even his mother noticed. "Sweetie, I'll be fine here. Go see if your aunts need help."
"And tell that girl to get back over here. She's got chores." Rita griped over Rik, swatting Steve again for good measure. When the boy was gone, the old woman set more food in front of the younger blonde. "Eat. It'll be good for the baby."
"Rita…" Erika shook her head at the woman. "I'm not having a baby. You always say that."
"My fortune teller said there would be a baby and my baby isn't pregnant so it's you." She sat back to go back to her knitting. "I remember you was pregnant before, just down the hall and you was always running around with those bad boys… giving your daddy a heart attack."
"I know."
"She says you was going to have two babies and I've been waiting for the second one for years."
"Rita." Erika protested around a mouthful of food. "I'm not pregnant."
"Steve says your man is back."
"I didn't say that." Steve cursed under his breath. He looked to Erika, who understood, having dealt with Rita all of her adult life. "I didn't."
"Maybe." Erika whispered.
"Then you gotta eat if he gonna give you another baby. We all thought he must have died. I remember. I saw him. Sneaking around when he thought nobody was looking. Handsome but dangerous."
"Rita."
"Shut up and eat."
--
Darin watched in amusement as Kyle styled his daughter's hair. "What are you staring at?"
"Nothing."
"You wait til you have kids and see if you won't be brushing hair." Kyle muttered. Then his head whipped around. Liz was sparkling. Her head whipping from side to side, her hands up protecting her face. "Shit!" he dropped the brush and leapt over to where Liz was fending off an invisible attack. "Liz! Come back! Liz!"
"Fire! Fire!" Liz screamed.
"Liz!" Kyle tried to grip her face but her hands beat him off.
"Kyle…" Darin crossed to them and without realizing it, gripped Liz's hands. His mind flashed with memories so old and long forgotten that Liz probably didn't even know she had them.
Kyle slipped out of the way and watched mini-Max go. He hoped the kid knew what he was doing. Burns appeared on Liz's face and arms but Darin didn't let go. Then Liz fell limp, unconscious. Darin let go of one hand and concentrated hard. The burns slowly reversed themselves but Darin could only get them to a sunburned consistency before his powers wore out.
Jesse pulled him away and made him lay down on the mattress. "It's okay. It's okay. She's fine. Rest."
Isabel cuddled Isaiah to her body, the boy's eyes wide with fear. "She's okay, honey. Mommy is just sleeping."
Maria held Hannah against her chest as she sat next to Liz where Kyle had laid her out. "What do you think happened?"
"She's pushing herself too hard. It's just like what happened back out in the country. She was watching them for us… then she lost control." Kyle shook his head. "I couldn't pull her out."
"So, she's okay? How did she get burned?"
"She astral projected herself out there to a minor level. Just enough so she could see and not be seen. I think maybe… she's stronger than she lets on sometimes. Maybe she was… more there than she had ever been before."
"You think they're okay?"
"I guess we'll know when she wakes up."
tbc
sorry it took forever it just wouldn't come and now it has. hopefully the next part won't take as long.
Part 31
Part 31
Rik appointed himself sentry… watching the street but trying to reach out to his father, his uncle, Michael or Ava… any of them. He couldn’t do it by himself and he knew Kyle wasn't going to help. Kyle was busy keeping everyone else calm. All Rik could get were a series of erotic images… and none of them his own. He heard the feet on the fire escape above him but he didn’t look up.
"Come on, man. Talk to me." Steve pleaded but got no response from his friend. "You said you were okay."
"I thought I was…"
"Then what changed?"
"I don't know… you screwing her brains out last night…"
"What are you talkin' 'bout?"
"I saw you." Rik looked up. "All this shit that I can do… I can't block it out. I saw you and her… and I can't be okay with it when I can see it in my head… all right?"
"Sorry… I…"
"What are you sorry for? Screwing her?" Rik stood up to go back inside. "The fact was… you knew I was still seein' her when I could. Fact was… I thought maybe I could love her… Fact was… neither one of you could tell me the truth and you owed me that. You owed me that."
"You didn't own her. You only saw her on the weekends. Did you even care what was goin' on at her house?"
"I couldn't care. She never told me." Rik ducked into the window and felt so very old. Isabel gingerly applied burn cream to Liz's face and arms but the woman didn't stir. She breathed but she wasn't close to waking. Jesse had the baby but all the other kids were scared and quiet. His mom held Isaiah on her lap, reassuring the boy. He could go out and stage a rescue but without Liz, he wouldn't know where to go. "Where's Darin?"
He didn't know where the question came from but they soon discovered the boy was not in the apartment, nor was he down the hall neither was he on the roof and definitely not hanging out with Janey.
--
"Mom?" Darin whispered into the phone.
"Darin?" Her voice sounded so sweet, he almost cried.
"Mom…" He wanted to cry tears of relief and sadness but he held them in. "I'm scared."
"Are you okay?" Tears in her voice too.
"Yeah." If you could call finding out you're an alien born of an alien king who might or might not be dead okay.
"Why are you scared?"
"Cause Dad's gone and Max isn't home and Liz is sick… and I don't know what to do if nobody can help me."
"Are you by yourself?"
"No but… I know I have to stay until it's safe but I want to go home and be with you. I miss you and I want Dad to still be alive."
"Honey… how did you know that?"
"I read it in the newspaper."
"Are you in the city?"
"Yes."
"Honey, I've missed you so much. Are they hurting you?"
"No. Everyone's great."
"Who are Max and Liz?"
"Max is my real dad… and Liz is his wife." Darin felt better just answering her questions though a part of him, a small part, wondered why she asked so many. "I have a half sister and an adopted brother."
"What about that boy from school?"
"He's my… cousin, I guess. He's nice. He looks out for me."
"So you're okay?"
"Yes, I'm okay."
"Why are you scared?"
"Because… Max left to make it safe and he hasn't come back or contacted anyone yet. Liz got sick and the baby's crying all the time and Isaiah is upset and I don't know what to do or how to help."
"What have you been doing?"
"What I can. Helping with the baby and the other kids. Getting to know everyone."
"Who is everyone?"
"Rik's mom, Erika. You met her. She's really nice. I have an aunt. She's married and she's got two kids. They have a friend, Michael… he went with Max… he's married, I think, and has a daughter. Another friend Kyle…. He's got four kids."
"So you're really okay?"
"Just homesick and worried." Darin sighed, able to clear the tears from his voice. If he wanted to be strong, he had to act strong. For Mom, for Liz, for Max. He wasn't so scared anymore anyway. "I met a girl."
"Oh?" Surprise in her voice but then she relaxed some, too. "Is she pretty?"
"Yeah. Her name is Janey. She's Rik's best friend's little sister. She's my age."
"I think you're blushing, Darin. Do you like her?"
"She kissed me."
"Oh my. My little boy is growing up." Tears clogged up her voice once more. "Is Max going to let you come home?"
"When it's safe."
"When is that?"
"When all the bad people are gone… like the ones who shot at us in the school."
"What are you doing?" Kyle's voice reached his ears and he spun around.
"I'm sorry. I had to call my mom." He kept the phone to his ear. "She hasn't heard from me in over two weeks…"
"Okay. Let me talk to her." Kyle took the phone and took a very deep breath. "Mrs. Maples, my name is Kyle Valenti… I realize that… I'd apologize but Darin's dad wants to talk to you in person when he gets back and I am not so sure he'd apologize… He's a great kid. You and your husband did a great job and I think I speak for him when I say he'd hesitate to take him away from you… He is. He helps out a bunch… I can't speak for him, ma'am… I can't tell you that… Yes, Max will sit down with you when he gets back… We are sorry for your loss. I'm sure he was a great man," He turned to Darin. "The greatest if Darin is any indication."
--
Rik held onto Hannah while everyone was busy. His mother sat next to him with a plate of food from Rita’s. “They don’t do much, do they…”
“No, they’re pretty helpless.” She leaned over him to stroke the baby’s face. “Soon, she’ll be babblin’ and sittin’ up and crawling around… then she’ll be tearin’ up the place, runnin’ on these little legs.” She kissed his forehead. “I always wanted more kids but I thought I’d find a nice guy first… maybe it’s better this way.”
“You gonna take him back?”
“I want to… so bad…”
“Cause he looks my age?”
“Part of it. These… weeks in this… world… this isn’t who I am… I’m not the person he knew back when and he’s not the person I thought he was. If we try it… it’s gonna be a lot of work and I don’t know if I can do it.”
“Will you try?” He asked, his eyes on his young cousin.
“I thought you hated him.”
“I thought I did too… but as weird as it was for me when you were dating guys… it’s a little weirder for you to be into my dad… but… I guess I’d rather you be with Dad than with anyone else.”
--
Darin sat next to Liz when she woke. Kyle motioned for him to keep quiet that he knew. Kyle just whispered softly to Liz what had happened and Liz only nodded. It took her a few minutes to gather her wits and begin talking. “When they got there, everything was already in one degree of destruction or another. Zan was really doing a number on that place…” Her voice was raspy and her words came like a machine gun… Darin could tell she was fighting not to go back under. “Rambo-style. Max and Michael and Ava separated to cover more ground.”
“They killed everyone there, didn’t they.” Kyle stroked her hair back and waited for her nod.
“I think so. Michael started a fire to dispose of the bodies. They were throwing the bodies into a pit… to contain the evidence.”
“He made it too big, didn’t he.”
“He… just burned it too hot. He was trying to cremate all the bodies… so even the bones turned to ash.”
“But… the buildings had flammables in them and the heat got away from him… they started exploding and the fire spread. So hot and too fast.”
“Who were you following when it got to be too much?”
“Max.” She slipped back under and Darin took Kyle’s hand off of Liz’s.
“My mom’s dead.” Darin whispered softly and did what he could for the remainder of Liz’s burns. They weren’t so bad now and he had refreshed a bit after talking to his mother on the phone. “But I guess I wasn’t ever meant to know her… It’s okay. They’ll come back to us and it’ll be over.”
“You’re optimistic.”
“Maybe… but I have to believe Max will come back or else I’ll go crazy.”
“You sound like Liz.” Kyle rose from the bed and scooped up a child to feed.
Darin smoothed Liz’s hair back. “There are worse things.”
--
Isabel pulled Rik into the bedroom and grasped his hands in hers. "Okay. We do this quick. They'll kill me for risking it."
"Could something bad happen?" Rik hesitated.
"Only if you screw it up. I only hope you're as strong as you've been making out. Listen to Aunt Isabel and we'll be fine." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "You blank out and I'll do the work."
Rik shut his eyes and tried to clear his mind but he kept thinking about his dad. They reached and reached but they didn't get anything.
"Damn it!" Isabel broke away and speared her fingers into her hair. "Nothing."
"No… not nothing." Rik kept his eyes closed and reached. There was something but it was blocking them out. "They're coming home… well… here anyway."
TBC
Rik appointed himself sentry… watching the street but trying to reach out to his father, his uncle, Michael or Ava… any of them. He couldn’t do it by himself and he knew Kyle wasn't going to help. Kyle was busy keeping everyone else calm. All Rik could get were a series of erotic images… and none of them his own. He heard the feet on the fire escape above him but he didn’t look up.
"Come on, man. Talk to me." Steve pleaded but got no response from his friend. "You said you were okay."
"I thought I was…"
"Then what changed?"
"I don't know… you screwing her brains out last night…"
"What are you talkin' 'bout?"
"I saw you." Rik looked up. "All this shit that I can do… I can't block it out. I saw you and her… and I can't be okay with it when I can see it in my head… all right?"
"Sorry… I…"
"What are you sorry for? Screwing her?" Rik stood up to go back inside. "The fact was… you knew I was still seein' her when I could. Fact was… I thought maybe I could love her… Fact was… neither one of you could tell me the truth and you owed me that. You owed me that."
"You didn't own her. You only saw her on the weekends. Did you even care what was goin' on at her house?"
"I couldn't care. She never told me." Rik ducked into the window and felt so very old. Isabel gingerly applied burn cream to Liz's face and arms but the woman didn't stir. She breathed but she wasn't close to waking. Jesse had the baby but all the other kids were scared and quiet. His mom held Isaiah on her lap, reassuring the boy. He could go out and stage a rescue but without Liz, he wouldn't know where to go. "Where's Darin?"
He didn't know where the question came from but they soon discovered the boy was not in the apartment, nor was he down the hall neither was he on the roof and definitely not hanging out with Janey.
--
"Mom?" Darin whispered into the phone.
"Darin?" Her voice sounded so sweet, he almost cried.
"Mom…" He wanted to cry tears of relief and sadness but he held them in. "I'm scared."
"Are you okay?" Tears in her voice too.
"Yeah." If you could call finding out you're an alien born of an alien king who might or might not be dead okay.
"Why are you scared?"
"Cause Dad's gone and Max isn't home and Liz is sick… and I don't know what to do if nobody can help me."
"Are you by yourself?"
"No but… I know I have to stay until it's safe but I want to go home and be with you. I miss you and I want Dad to still be alive."
"Honey… how did you know that?"
"I read it in the newspaper."
"Are you in the city?"
"Yes."
"Honey, I've missed you so much. Are they hurting you?"
"No. Everyone's great."
"Who are Max and Liz?"
"Max is my real dad… and Liz is his wife." Darin felt better just answering her questions though a part of him, a small part, wondered why she asked so many. "I have a half sister and an adopted brother."
"What about that boy from school?"
"He's my… cousin, I guess. He's nice. He looks out for me."
"So you're okay?"
"Yes, I'm okay."
"Why are you scared?"
"Because… Max left to make it safe and he hasn't come back or contacted anyone yet. Liz got sick and the baby's crying all the time and Isaiah is upset and I don't know what to do or how to help."
"What have you been doing?"
"What I can. Helping with the baby and the other kids. Getting to know everyone."
"Who is everyone?"
"Rik's mom, Erika. You met her. She's really nice. I have an aunt. She's married and she's got two kids. They have a friend, Michael… he went with Max… he's married, I think, and has a daughter. Another friend Kyle…. He's got four kids."
"So you're really okay?"
"Just homesick and worried." Darin sighed, able to clear the tears from his voice. If he wanted to be strong, he had to act strong. For Mom, for Liz, for Max. He wasn't so scared anymore anyway. "I met a girl."
"Oh?" Surprise in her voice but then she relaxed some, too. "Is she pretty?"
"Yeah. Her name is Janey. She's Rik's best friend's little sister. She's my age."
"I think you're blushing, Darin. Do you like her?"
"She kissed me."
"Oh my. My little boy is growing up." Tears clogged up her voice once more. "Is Max going to let you come home?"
"When it's safe."
"When is that?"
"When all the bad people are gone… like the ones who shot at us in the school."
"What are you doing?" Kyle's voice reached his ears and he spun around.
"I'm sorry. I had to call my mom." He kept the phone to his ear. "She hasn't heard from me in over two weeks…"
"Okay. Let me talk to her." Kyle took the phone and took a very deep breath. "Mrs. Maples, my name is Kyle Valenti… I realize that… I'd apologize but Darin's dad wants to talk to you in person when he gets back and I am not so sure he'd apologize… He's a great kid. You and your husband did a great job and I think I speak for him when I say he'd hesitate to take him away from you… He is. He helps out a bunch… I can't speak for him, ma'am… I can't tell you that… Yes, Max will sit down with you when he gets back… We are sorry for your loss. I'm sure he was a great man," He turned to Darin. "The greatest if Darin is any indication."
--
Rik held onto Hannah while everyone was busy. His mother sat next to him with a plate of food from Rita’s. “They don’t do much, do they…”
“No, they’re pretty helpless.” She leaned over him to stroke the baby’s face. “Soon, she’ll be babblin’ and sittin’ up and crawling around… then she’ll be tearin’ up the place, runnin’ on these little legs.” She kissed his forehead. “I always wanted more kids but I thought I’d find a nice guy first… maybe it’s better this way.”
“You gonna take him back?”
“I want to… so bad…”
“Cause he looks my age?”
“Part of it. These… weeks in this… world… this isn’t who I am… I’m not the person he knew back when and he’s not the person I thought he was. If we try it… it’s gonna be a lot of work and I don’t know if I can do it.”
“Will you try?” He asked, his eyes on his young cousin.
“I thought you hated him.”
“I thought I did too… but as weird as it was for me when you were dating guys… it’s a little weirder for you to be into my dad… but… I guess I’d rather you be with Dad than with anyone else.”
--
Darin sat next to Liz when she woke. Kyle motioned for him to keep quiet that he knew. Kyle just whispered softly to Liz what had happened and Liz only nodded. It took her a few minutes to gather her wits and begin talking. “When they got there, everything was already in one degree of destruction or another. Zan was really doing a number on that place…” Her voice was raspy and her words came like a machine gun… Darin could tell she was fighting not to go back under. “Rambo-style. Max and Michael and Ava separated to cover more ground.”
“They killed everyone there, didn’t they.” Kyle stroked her hair back and waited for her nod.
“I think so. Michael started a fire to dispose of the bodies. They were throwing the bodies into a pit… to contain the evidence.”
“He made it too big, didn’t he.”
“He… just burned it too hot. He was trying to cremate all the bodies… so even the bones turned to ash.”
“But… the buildings had flammables in them and the heat got away from him… they started exploding and the fire spread. So hot and too fast.”
“Who were you following when it got to be too much?”
“Max.” She slipped back under and Darin took Kyle’s hand off of Liz’s.
“My mom’s dead.” Darin whispered softly and did what he could for the remainder of Liz’s burns. They weren’t so bad now and he had refreshed a bit after talking to his mother on the phone. “But I guess I wasn’t ever meant to know her… It’s okay. They’ll come back to us and it’ll be over.”
“You’re optimistic.”
“Maybe… but I have to believe Max will come back or else I’ll go crazy.”
“You sound like Liz.” Kyle rose from the bed and scooped up a child to feed.
Darin smoothed Liz’s hair back. “There are worse things.”
--
Isabel pulled Rik into the bedroom and grasped his hands in hers. "Okay. We do this quick. They'll kill me for risking it."
"Could something bad happen?" Rik hesitated.
"Only if you screw it up. I only hope you're as strong as you've been making out. Listen to Aunt Isabel and we'll be fine." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "You blank out and I'll do the work."
Rik shut his eyes and tried to clear his mind but he kept thinking about his dad. They reached and reached but they didn't get anything.
"Damn it!" Isabel broke away and speared her fingers into her hair. "Nothing."
"No… not nothing." Rik kept his eyes closed and reached. There was something but it was blocking them out. "They're coming home… well… here anyway."
TBC
Part 32
Part 32
Jesse returned from the landlord's with a new key and after he entered the new apartment, Darin heard the knock and found the spot. Kyle and Isabel created a door linking the apartments and then Isabel went to town cleaning their extension up. It wasn't until it was done that Darin fully understood. Their loved ones were coming back injured and the children didn't need to see.
The day was gloomy, as if it knew. Isaiah was bound and determined to make his mommy feel better just by kissing her forehead every five minutes. At first Darin tried to stop him but eventually he just gave up on it. Liz looked like she was fully healed and it kept Isaiah busy while Hannah screamed her head off. Maria helped a little but she was in charge of all the little ones while Kyle, Jesse and Isabel were busy.
--
Rik and his mother spearheaded the meal department, spinning out quick meals to feed their army of busy adults and cranky children. While he was making the macaroni, he felt the sudden desire to be back in chemistry. Back at that stupid school so he could graduate and be done with this mess. They were sitting the kids down when they heard it. Doors slammed shut up and down the building. Jesse raced for the door and a few minutes later, stomping and grunting accompanied the troop of alien warriors. Jesse guided them down to the other door to keep the injured out of the sights of the little ones. Surprisingly, it was Kal who entered the apartment to placate the worried significant others.
"Max is banged up pretty bad. Michael's not in great condition either… You…" He pointed to Rik. "You fix up Michael. Your pops will see to Max. No one goes in there until it's done."
"Where's Ava?" Kyle demanded.
"Parking the car." Kal turned his eyes onto Darin. "My condolences. Your mom didn't make it. Technically no one killed her." The boy only nodded and took a seat next to Liz, who was more or less awake. Kal knelt in front of her. "You stay out of there, you hear? No snooping around."
"I couldn't if I wanted to. I'm sapped." Liz took Isaiah into her lap for a kiss and wearily opened her eyes to search for her other child. "Kal, just… take care of them in there."
--
Rik carefully closed the burns on Michael's body. Then he worked on reinvigorating the flesh the way his father has instructed just the week before. The patient kept coughing but the burns were worse just now.
Both stopped moving at the same time. Something was in the air. The airs on Rik's arms stood up straight. Michael lifted his head to look in the direction of the bedroom Zan and Max occupied. Kal had risen and had his palm open towards the door but he didn't get any closer.
--
Darin stood up with Hannah in his arms. His flesh had gone cold for a moment and Hannah had gone silent all of a sudden after fussing all day. Isabel, Kyle and Liz had turned their heads in the direction of the new door. Something powerful was happening on the other side of that wall. The kids had all gone silent. A pin could drop in that dead calm. It was Maria who broke the quiet. "What?! What is it? Is it Michael?"
--
Kal sniffed the door but didn't touch it. A glow emanated from its edges. "Someone's doing something stupid in there… or heroic… depends on what species you are, I guess."
The glow brightened and Rik prayed that room didn't have a window. Just how badly was Max hurt? What in the hell was Zan doing in there?
--
Darin could feel Liz struggling not to reach out and find out just what was going on in the next apartment. The air seemed to shimmer with the light that was creeping around the corners of the door and at the seams of the walls. Liz's breathing picked up, so Darin reached back for her hand, to keep her in the room. To stop her from doing what could damage whatever was going on in there.
--
Ava entered the room and put her hand on Rik's shoulder. "It's cool, kid. He knows what he's doin'… hell of a light show from outside though."
"What is he…" Rik couldn't take his eyes off the light. It was warm and felt like… home.
"Reparation." She shrugged. "That's what he called it."
Suddenly the light faded and the room felt dark and cold even though the overhead light was on and it was a warm night. Zan emerged first. He blinked rapidly and moved straight for his son. Rik shut his eyes. It was strange to be hugged after all that had happened but the embrace felt just like that light had. Then it was gone and his father was moving for the door that separated the two apartments. That's when Rik's vision cleared and he could see the differences in his father.
Erika looked up when the door opened. Zan took a minute to find her but then he was crossing the room and sinking to his knees at her feet. He lifted her shirt and pressed his lips to her stomach. "What are you doing?"
"She's gonna be beautiful." He whispered to her abdomen, inhaling her scent.
"What are you talking about?" The blood ran from her face as pieces started falling together. Rita's babbling, Rik's behavior, Max's orders for her to stay in bed…
Zan turned to Rik, who was watching with intense scrutiny. "You didn't tell her."
"What?"
"Erika… you're pregnant."
"No." She shook her head. "Why does everyone say that?"
"Erika." Liz shook her head. "He's telling the truth." She wanted to get up and see to her husband but she was afraid of what she was going to find.
"Is Michael in there?" Maria demanded of Rik, who nodded but didn't take his eyes off his parents. "Is he okay?" The boy shrugged. "Well?"
"I'm working on it… I'd better finish." Rik backed away and nearly ran into Max who was stumbling his way to the apartment with Ava to help.
Liz rose and took his face in her hands. He looked his age for once since they were 25. "How?"
"I'll be okay in a couple of days. I need to rest." He pressed his forehead to hers. "And we can. We can stay here and rest."
"He's right. Nice big fire. Wiped out a good chunk of woods, federal bozos and a chunk of my hair." Ava nodded, arms crossed leaning in the doorway. “I’m gon sleep still next week in one of these beds. Don’t bother me unless you gon make it worth my time.” The statement was made to the room but Rik could hear it was intended for Kyle.
“Max?” Isabel fell onto her brother in tears of relief. “Really?”
“You can head home if you want with you family but I’m thinking my family will stay right here for a while.” Max hugged his sister tightly before turning his attention to his wife and children. “Until we figure out what we’re going to do with ourselves.”
“God! Rik, is he dying?” Maria called into the other apartment with her hands on her hips.
“No.”
“Then hurry it up so I can kill him.”
TBC
little weird part. It's oddly transitory but I'll be moving on shortly.
Jesse returned from the landlord's with a new key and after he entered the new apartment, Darin heard the knock and found the spot. Kyle and Isabel created a door linking the apartments and then Isabel went to town cleaning their extension up. It wasn't until it was done that Darin fully understood. Their loved ones were coming back injured and the children didn't need to see.
The day was gloomy, as if it knew. Isaiah was bound and determined to make his mommy feel better just by kissing her forehead every five minutes. At first Darin tried to stop him but eventually he just gave up on it. Liz looked like she was fully healed and it kept Isaiah busy while Hannah screamed her head off. Maria helped a little but she was in charge of all the little ones while Kyle, Jesse and Isabel were busy.
--
Rik and his mother spearheaded the meal department, spinning out quick meals to feed their army of busy adults and cranky children. While he was making the macaroni, he felt the sudden desire to be back in chemistry. Back at that stupid school so he could graduate and be done with this mess. They were sitting the kids down when they heard it. Doors slammed shut up and down the building. Jesse raced for the door and a few minutes later, stomping and grunting accompanied the troop of alien warriors. Jesse guided them down to the other door to keep the injured out of the sights of the little ones. Surprisingly, it was Kal who entered the apartment to placate the worried significant others.
"Max is banged up pretty bad. Michael's not in great condition either… You…" He pointed to Rik. "You fix up Michael. Your pops will see to Max. No one goes in there until it's done."
"Where's Ava?" Kyle demanded.
"Parking the car." Kal turned his eyes onto Darin. "My condolences. Your mom didn't make it. Technically no one killed her." The boy only nodded and took a seat next to Liz, who was more or less awake. Kal knelt in front of her. "You stay out of there, you hear? No snooping around."
"I couldn't if I wanted to. I'm sapped." Liz took Isaiah into her lap for a kiss and wearily opened her eyes to search for her other child. "Kal, just… take care of them in there."
--
Rik carefully closed the burns on Michael's body. Then he worked on reinvigorating the flesh the way his father has instructed just the week before. The patient kept coughing but the burns were worse just now.
Both stopped moving at the same time. Something was in the air. The airs on Rik's arms stood up straight. Michael lifted his head to look in the direction of the bedroom Zan and Max occupied. Kal had risen and had his palm open towards the door but he didn't get any closer.
--
Darin stood up with Hannah in his arms. His flesh had gone cold for a moment and Hannah had gone silent all of a sudden after fussing all day. Isabel, Kyle and Liz had turned their heads in the direction of the new door. Something powerful was happening on the other side of that wall. The kids had all gone silent. A pin could drop in that dead calm. It was Maria who broke the quiet. "What?! What is it? Is it Michael?"
--
Kal sniffed the door but didn't touch it. A glow emanated from its edges. "Someone's doing something stupid in there… or heroic… depends on what species you are, I guess."
The glow brightened and Rik prayed that room didn't have a window. Just how badly was Max hurt? What in the hell was Zan doing in there?
--
Darin could feel Liz struggling not to reach out and find out just what was going on in the next apartment. The air seemed to shimmer with the light that was creeping around the corners of the door and at the seams of the walls. Liz's breathing picked up, so Darin reached back for her hand, to keep her in the room. To stop her from doing what could damage whatever was going on in there.
--
Ava entered the room and put her hand on Rik's shoulder. "It's cool, kid. He knows what he's doin'… hell of a light show from outside though."
"What is he…" Rik couldn't take his eyes off the light. It was warm and felt like… home.
"Reparation." She shrugged. "That's what he called it."
Suddenly the light faded and the room felt dark and cold even though the overhead light was on and it was a warm night. Zan emerged first. He blinked rapidly and moved straight for his son. Rik shut his eyes. It was strange to be hugged after all that had happened but the embrace felt just like that light had. Then it was gone and his father was moving for the door that separated the two apartments. That's when Rik's vision cleared and he could see the differences in his father.
Erika looked up when the door opened. Zan took a minute to find her but then he was crossing the room and sinking to his knees at her feet. He lifted her shirt and pressed his lips to her stomach. "What are you doing?"
"She's gonna be beautiful." He whispered to her abdomen, inhaling her scent.
"What are you talking about?" The blood ran from her face as pieces started falling together. Rita's babbling, Rik's behavior, Max's orders for her to stay in bed…
Zan turned to Rik, who was watching with intense scrutiny. "You didn't tell her."
"What?"
"Erika… you're pregnant."
"No." She shook her head. "Why does everyone say that?"
"Erika." Liz shook her head. "He's telling the truth." She wanted to get up and see to her husband but she was afraid of what she was going to find.
"Is Michael in there?" Maria demanded of Rik, who nodded but didn't take his eyes off his parents. "Is he okay?" The boy shrugged. "Well?"
"I'm working on it… I'd better finish." Rik backed away and nearly ran into Max who was stumbling his way to the apartment with Ava to help.
Liz rose and took his face in her hands. He looked his age for once since they were 25. "How?"
"I'll be okay in a couple of days. I need to rest." He pressed his forehead to hers. "And we can. We can stay here and rest."
"He's right. Nice big fire. Wiped out a good chunk of woods, federal bozos and a chunk of my hair." Ava nodded, arms crossed leaning in the doorway. “I’m gon sleep still next week in one of these beds. Don’t bother me unless you gon make it worth my time.” The statement was made to the room but Rik could hear it was intended for Kyle.
“Max?” Isabel fell onto her brother in tears of relief. “Really?”
“You can head home if you want with you family but I’m thinking my family will stay right here for a while.” Max hugged his sister tightly before turning his attention to his wife and children. “Until we figure out what we’re going to do with ourselves.”
“God! Rik, is he dying?” Maria called into the other apartment with her hands on her hips.
“No.”
“Then hurry it up so I can kill him.”
TBC
little weird part. It's oddly transitory but I'll be moving on shortly.
Part 33
Part 33
Darin watched Max hold Hannah in bed. He was weak but that was to be expected. He had almost died the day before. In the course of a few months, Darin had gained two parents and lost two. He didn't know what he would do if he had been left with only one… and Liz. Liz was way too cool to be considered as his mother, ever.
He did look more like Darin had envisioned when he had initially pondered his birth father. Roguish and a little world weary. Then Darin had to go and ruin the moment. "I called my Mom." Then he rushed to fix it. "I didn't want you to find out from Kyle and get the wrong idea. I didn't tell her much. But... it was right after Liz… and I just.."
"It's okay." Max held his daughter against his chest and motioned for Darin to take a seat on the bed. "You were upset and it's only natural to want to talk to her and I commend you on not asking her to come and get you. I know it's hard."
"What am I… when… I…" Darin reached over to take Hannah's tiny hand in his and to order his thoughts. "I don't want to leave but I miss my mom and she needs me right now."
Max's heart seemed to be breaking but he put on a brave face. "I'll go talk to her. Liz and I have to decide what we're going to do. Maybe… we can work something out. So we can stay within reach… right?”
“Yeah.”
--
Rik handed his mother a bagel and took a seat next to her. She had been sitting by the window since he woke up. Zan was still sleeping off the exertions of the previous night. "Mom? Are you mad that I didn't tell you?"
"No… but you told him without telling me. I would have figured it out eventually." Erika pulled a chunk off the bread and shoved it into her mouth. "I'm the mother, you understand? You let me do the worrying. You put too much sugar on it, sweetie."
"Uncle Max says it wouldn't hurt." Rik bowed his head but felt relieved when she put her hand on his shoulder. She wasn't too mad at him, probably.
"You're my son, Ronald Israel Kasey. I know you better than I know myself most days. You focus on the things you can't control and you don't always look at the big picture. This is a big burden for you."
"Being a brother?"
"No and not just being an alien." She turned his head up so she could see his father in his face. "Besides the alien stuff and the baby stuff…" She cupped his face in her hands. "You can heal people. Some people might think you're a gift from God. Some people might think maybe you can hurt people, too. You know… the same way… Some people might think your power is more than it is. That's why you can't tell anyone. Do what you can but be sly about it. Once everyone finds out, you're a target. For the greedy, for the malicious, for those who are afraid of what's different." Her little boy had changed quite a bit in the last few weeks but he was still her little boy. "I'm your mama and I love you and I would never ask you to do anything to hurt yourself. Steve ain't said nothing about it. Not even to Rita and you know she's sick."
"You just sayin' people find out, they want me to lay hands or take me apart?"
"That sums it up." Kyle cleared his throat from where he leaned in the doorway. He motioned to Liz behind him. "I like this kid. He gets to the point. Come on out. It's time for my favorite game."
"Don't we need Max in here for that?" Liz sighed and took a seat at the kitchen table with Erika and Rik. "He's resting."
"No. We established long before I left the first time that 'What are we going to do, now, Max?' could be played without Max even in the same state. All we need are representatives from the families." Kyle hopped up on the counter with Jesse.
"What?" Rik blinked at the shorter man.
"'What are we going to do, now, Max?' Classic game we've always played. Only this time we play to see whether we stick around or if we can go about our lives like semi-normal people." Kyle looked to Liz. "I'd really like to go home and see what's left of Roswell. Maybe look up my mom."
"I'd like to call Mom and Dad." Liz nodded to him that she understood.
Erika nodded that she understood the game. "I just want to see my baby graduate high school and go to college."
"Yeah. I want that." Rik agreed with her. "Do we just… go to school like that day never happened? Won't people ask questions?"
"They've all been answered." Kal announced from the doorway. "Next week you'll go back to school. No worries. You just catch up so you can actually get your diploma… not like the rest of these schmucks."
"Hey. I graduated, with honors… I just… don't have proof of that. I'm sure my parents have it." Liz scoffed at the alien.
--
Darin leaned out the door and hissed at Maria, who had to stop in the middle of her assault on Michael. “My dad’s still tired… do you think you can keep it down?”
“Whatever.” Maria rolled her head and kicked Michael’s shin. “Don’t ever make me worry like that again!”
The teen just shut the door and turned to his father. “Can I do anything?”
“No, I’m fine.” Max shook his head and rubbed Hannah’s belly as she kicked her feet and waved her hands around. Then suddenly her hand collided with her foot and she stopped and repeated, her baby face splitting in a smile. “What’s that you found? Are these your feet? Are these your feet?”
“She’s pretty quiet.” Darin commented.
“Yeah… now. The first time I saw her, she was screaming her head off. It was gorgeous… for all of five minutes. I only vaguely remembered how to hold a baby and you had been so much older when I finally saw you.” He smiled down at his only daughter. “Having a child teaches you patience. I thought I was patient before… I wasn’t.”
“What are you going to do now?”
Max shrugged with a smile. “Get a job, maybe. I… want to stay near you. It’s my fault… you don’t have a dad so I should be here so we can have all those talks that we’re supposed to have.”
“Aren’t many left.” Darin shrugged. “I have to learn to shave eventually… but that could be years from now.”
“I had a five o’clock shadow as a sophomore.” He tried to reassure his son. “Actually… it was more of a three o’clock shadow. Sometimes I’d take a razor to school if I could get away with it. I didn’t like Liz to see me with a scruffy face in chem.”
“You make big promises. I’ll be your height in a year, and shave every five minutes but Tess was short. What if I don’t get that tall? What if I never get any taller?”
“Then you don’t get any taller. Some things can’t be helped.” Then he met his son’s eyes. “I’m still the King of Antar. You are the prince and maybe someday you’ll have to answer to someone on the Summit. We’re long-distance correspondents at this point.”
“So, I’m going to lead some double life? High school student by day and alien prince by night?”
“Nothing so time consuming and I’ll be around. I promise.”
“How did she die?”
“I don’t know. She was already dead when I got there.”
--
Rik found Zan hogging one of the bathrooms examining his lined face. There were some slight wrinkles and a few gray hairs. His eyes were the same though. He looked thirty rather than twenty and it set Rik’s mind at ease. Zan saw his son in the reflection. “Do we have to have a talk or somethin’?” Rik shrugged. “You mind if I hang ‘round? Do all the daddy things I ain’t get to do before?” Another shrug. “You ever gonna talk to me?”
“Maybe.”
“Look… I know we got issues and I’ll try to stay outta your hair but I wanna say… thanks… cause I went out there to get out the way permanently and you gave me a reason to come back.”
“And I wasn’t good enough a reason?”
“You asked me.” Zan shook his head. “You told me to come back. I ain’t even think you want me ‘round.”
“I ain’t gonna be able to take care of her forever. School lets out and I gotta get a job and get ready for college. I don’t want her to be alone.” The teen lowered his eyes to his shoes. “Not with a baby like that.”
“Hey kid.” Zan turned finally. “We gon be okay?”
“So long as she’s happy? We’ll be cool.” Rik raised his gaze finally. “Be the guy you wanted to be for me… for her… whoever she turns out to be.”
“You ain’t gon take off on me, are ya?”
Another shrug. “Depends where I go to school.”
“So… we’re cool.”
“Cool as we can be.”
--
Isabel burst into the room with a baby on hip and her daughter in hand. “We are here to make sure you’re really alive.”
“I’m alive.” Max smiled and then smiled broader when Isabel pinched Darin’s cheek and left a lipstick smear on his other cheek. “Leave him some of his early manhood when you leave, will you?”
“Well, he’d better get used to it.” Isabel sat on the bed with her brother and tears shone in her eyes for a bit. “We’ve been playing Kyle’s game in the kitchen.”
Max groaned aloud but took a breath and waited for his sister’s reason for disturbing his rest. “What are you and Jesse going to do?”
“We’re going to his place and then after we rest and recuperate and… get our family together… we were thinking about visiting Mom and Dad.” She took a breath and waited.
“If you go sooner, rather than later… tell them, I may visit in the summer.” Max flicked his eyes to Darin for a second. An implication that he would wait until Darin could go with him. “I want to get settled around here first.”
“Here?” Isabel wrinkled her nose but tilted her head as she thought about it. She hadn’t been away from her brother for any real length of time in years. During her pregnancies, she spent some time away but he was always nearby. “Okay. Shall I pass on the same message to your in-laws?”
“Depends on how settled we get. We might give them a call.” Max blinked at his sister. “Could you imagine? Calling our parents on the phone. They might die on the spot.”
“Max… is it really that safe?”
“Go ask Kal. He did all the running around fixing things will we were tearing up the countryside.” Max lay back and waved to his nephew where he hung off Isabel’s shoulder. “Hey… I’ve got another kid out there somewhere. Do you know where he is?”
“He’s fingerpainting for you.” Isabel helped Jenny onto the bed where she could see the baby. “He wants it to be a surprise and he’s trying to be quiet for you.”
“I see.” Max nodded to himself. “And my wife?”
“Is cooking for you. It looks suspiciously like those stupid burgers you used to order from the Crashdown.” She gathered herself up and rose to leave. “I hear you’re looking for reasons to stick around. Lectures being the top on the list… birds and the bees is always prime bonding.”
When Jenny had closed the door behind herself and her mother, Darin cleared his throat and crossed his arms. “Already got the talk from my dad. He edited.”
“Want the real thing?”
“Um… Rik took care of that… and I kind of got a demonstration from… I saw… I know.” Darin flamed bright red.
“What’d you do, walk in on someone?”
“Kind of.” Darin cleared his throat. “It was right before we showed up at the house in the country. I went looking for our waitress… anyway.”
“Could have been worse… you could have walked in on your parents… or your sister.” Max shuddered. “Shit happens.” He took a deep breath. “It’s not how I learned about it… it just happened. That thing Rik does would come in handy, actually.”
“I don’t know. He’s… we’re both getting stronger and he’s seeing things now without wanting to.” He reached over and grabbed the diaper bag.
Max blinked at the diaper bag and patted Hannah’s diaper and then sniffed her. “I think you called that one early… but we’ll find some sort of control for you, two. It’ll be okay. I promise.”
“Can I call my Mom? Tell her I’ll be home soon?”
“Actually, let me talk to Kyle first and then we’ll make arrangements… but I promise that you will see her soon.”
TBC
Darin watched Max hold Hannah in bed. He was weak but that was to be expected. He had almost died the day before. In the course of a few months, Darin had gained two parents and lost two. He didn't know what he would do if he had been left with only one… and Liz. Liz was way too cool to be considered as his mother, ever.
He did look more like Darin had envisioned when he had initially pondered his birth father. Roguish and a little world weary. Then Darin had to go and ruin the moment. "I called my Mom." Then he rushed to fix it. "I didn't want you to find out from Kyle and get the wrong idea. I didn't tell her much. But... it was right after Liz… and I just.."
"It's okay." Max held his daughter against his chest and motioned for Darin to take a seat on the bed. "You were upset and it's only natural to want to talk to her and I commend you on not asking her to come and get you. I know it's hard."
"What am I… when… I…" Darin reached over to take Hannah's tiny hand in his and to order his thoughts. "I don't want to leave but I miss my mom and she needs me right now."
Max's heart seemed to be breaking but he put on a brave face. "I'll go talk to her. Liz and I have to decide what we're going to do. Maybe… we can work something out. So we can stay within reach… right?”
“Yeah.”
--
Rik handed his mother a bagel and took a seat next to her. She had been sitting by the window since he woke up. Zan was still sleeping off the exertions of the previous night. "Mom? Are you mad that I didn't tell you?"
"No… but you told him without telling me. I would have figured it out eventually." Erika pulled a chunk off the bread and shoved it into her mouth. "I'm the mother, you understand? You let me do the worrying. You put too much sugar on it, sweetie."
"Uncle Max says it wouldn't hurt." Rik bowed his head but felt relieved when she put her hand on his shoulder. She wasn't too mad at him, probably.
"You're my son, Ronald Israel Kasey. I know you better than I know myself most days. You focus on the things you can't control and you don't always look at the big picture. This is a big burden for you."
"Being a brother?"
"No and not just being an alien." She turned his head up so she could see his father in his face. "Besides the alien stuff and the baby stuff…" She cupped his face in her hands. "You can heal people. Some people might think you're a gift from God. Some people might think maybe you can hurt people, too. You know… the same way… Some people might think your power is more than it is. That's why you can't tell anyone. Do what you can but be sly about it. Once everyone finds out, you're a target. For the greedy, for the malicious, for those who are afraid of what's different." Her little boy had changed quite a bit in the last few weeks but he was still her little boy. "I'm your mama and I love you and I would never ask you to do anything to hurt yourself. Steve ain't said nothing about it. Not even to Rita and you know she's sick."
"You just sayin' people find out, they want me to lay hands or take me apart?"
"That sums it up." Kyle cleared his throat from where he leaned in the doorway. He motioned to Liz behind him. "I like this kid. He gets to the point. Come on out. It's time for my favorite game."
"Don't we need Max in here for that?" Liz sighed and took a seat at the kitchen table with Erika and Rik. "He's resting."
"No. We established long before I left the first time that 'What are we going to do, now, Max?' could be played without Max even in the same state. All we need are representatives from the families." Kyle hopped up on the counter with Jesse.
"What?" Rik blinked at the shorter man.
"'What are we going to do, now, Max?' Classic game we've always played. Only this time we play to see whether we stick around or if we can go about our lives like semi-normal people." Kyle looked to Liz. "I'd really like to go home and see what's left of Roswell. Maybe look up my mom."
"I'd like to call Mom and Dad." Liz nodded to him that she understood.
Erika nodded that she understood the game. "I just want to see my baby graduate high school and go to college."
"Yeah. I want that." Rik agreed with her. "Do we just… go to school like that day never happened? Won't people ask questions?"
"They've all been answered." Kal announced from the doorway. "Next week you'll go back to school. No worries. You just catch up so you can actually get your diploma… not like the rest of these schmucks."
"Hey. I graduated, with honors… I just… don't have proof of that. I'm sure my parents have it." Liz scoffed at the alien.
--
Darin leaned out the door and hissed at Maria, who had to stop in the middle of her assault on Michael. “My dad’s still tired… do you think you can keep it down?”
“Whatever.” Maria rolled her head and kicked Michael’s shin. “Don’t ever make me worry like that again!”
The teen just shut the door and turned to his father. “Can I do anything?”
“No, I’m fine.” Max shook his head and rubbed Hannah’s belly as she kicked her feet and waved her hands around. Then suddenly her hand collided with her foot and she stopped and repeated, her baby face splitting in a smile. “What’s that you found? Are these your feet? Are these your feet?”
“She’s pretty quiet.” Darin commented.
“Yeah… now. The first time I saw her, she was screaming her head off. It was gorgeous… for all of five minutes. I only vaguely remembered how to hold a baby and you had been so much older when I finally saw you.” He smiled down at his only daughter. “Having a child teaches you patience. I thought I was patient before… I wasn’t.”
“What are you going to do now?”
Max shrugged with a smile. “Get a job, maybe. I… want to stay near you. It’s my fault… you don’t have a dad so I should be here so we can have all those talks that we’re supposed to have.”
“Aren’t many left.” Darin shrugged. “I have to learn to shave eventually… but that could be years from now.”
“I had a five o’clock shadow as a sophomore.” He tried to reassure his son. “Actually… it was more of a three o’clock shadow. Sometimes I’d take a razor to school if I could get away with it. I didn’t like Liz to see me with a scruffy face in chem.”
“You make big promises. I’ll be your height in a year, and shave every five minutes but Tess was short. What if I don’t get that tall? What if I never get any taller?”
“Then you don’t get any taller. Some things can’t be helped.” Then he met his son’s eyes. “I’m still the King of Antar. You are the prince and maybe someday you’ll have to answer to someone on the Summit. We’re long-distance correspondents at this point.”
“So, I’m going to lead some double life? High school student by day and alien prince by night?”
“Nothing so time consuming and I’ll be around. I promise.”
“How did she die?”
“I don’t know. She was already dead when I got there.”
--
Rik found Zan hogging one of the bathrooms examining his lined face. There were some slight wrinkles and a few gray hairs. His eyes were the same though. He looked thirty rather than twenty and it set Rik’s mind at ease. Zan saw his son in the reflection. “Do we have to have a talk or somethin’?” Rik shrugged. “You mind if I hang ‘round? Do all the daddy things I ain’t get to do before?” Another shrug. “You ever gonna talk to me?”
“Maybe.”
“Look… I know we got issues and I’ll try to stay outta your hair but I wanna say… thanks… cause I went out there to get out the way permanently and you gave me a reason to come back.”
“And I wasn’t good enough a reason?”
“You asked me.” Zan shook his head. “You told me to come back. I ain’t even think you want me ‘round.”
“I ain’t gonna be able to take care of her forever. School lets out and I gotta get a job and get ready for college. I don’t want her to be alone.” The teen lowered his eyes to his shoes. “Not with a baby like that.”
“Hey kid.” Zan turned finally. “We gon be okay?”
“So long as she’s happy? We’ll be cool.” Rik raised his gaze finally. “Be the guy you wanted to be for me… for her… whoever she turns out to be.”
“You ain’t gon take off on me, are ya?”
Another shrug. “Depends where I go to school.”
“So… we’re cool.”
“Cool as we can be.”
--
Isabel burst into the room with a baby on hip and her daughter in hand. “We are here to make sure you’re really alive.”
“I’m alive.” Max smiled and then smiled broader when Isabel pinched Darin’s cheek and left a lipstick smear on his other cheek. “Leave him some of his early manhood when you leave, will you?”
“Well, he’d better get used to it.” Isabel sat on the bed with her brother and tears shone in her eyes for a bit. “We’ve been playing Kyle’s game in the kitchen.”
Max groaned aloud but took a breath and waited for his sister’s reason for disturbing his rest. “What are you and Jesse going to do?”
“We’re going to his place and then after we rest and recuperate and… get our family together… we were thinking about visiting Mom and Dad.” She took a breath and waited.
“If you go sooner, rather than later… tell them, I may visit in the summer.” Max flicked his eyes to Darin for a second. An implication that he would wait until Darin could go with him. “I want to get settled around here first.”
“Here?” Isabel wrinkled her nose but tilted her head as she thought about it. She hadn’t been away from her brother for any real length of time in years. During her pregnancies, she spent some time away but he was always nearby. “Okay. Shall I pass on the same message to your in-laws?”
“Depends on how settled we get. We might give them a call.” Max blinked at his sister. “Could you imagine? Calling our parents on the phone. They might die on the spot.”
“Max… is it really that safe?”
“Go ask Kal. He did all the running around fixing things will we were tearing up the countryside.” Max lay back and waved to his nephew where he hung off Isabel’s shoulder. “Hey… I’ve got another kid out there somewhere. Do you know where he is?”
“He’s fingerpainting for you.” Isabel helped Jenny onto the bed where she could see the baby. “He wants it to be a surprise and he’s trying to be quiet for you.”
“I see.” Max nodded to himself. “And my wife?”
“Is cooking for you. It looks suspiciously like those stupid burgers you used to order from the Crashdown.” She gathered herself up and rose to leave. “I hear you’re looking for reasons to stick around. Lectures being the top on the list… birds and the bees is always prime bonding.”
When Jenny had closed the door behind herself and her mother, Darin cleared his throat and crossed his arms. “Already got the talk from my dad. He edited.”
“Want the real thing?”
“Um… Rik took care of that… and I kind of got a demonstration from… I saw… I know.” Darin flamed bright red.
“What’d you do, walk in on someone?”
“Kind of.” Darin cleared his throat. “It was right before we showed up at the house in the country. I went looking for our waitress… anyway.”
“Could have been worse… you could have walked in on your parents… or your sister.” Max shuddered. “Shit happens.” He took a deep breath. “It’s not how I learned about it… it just happened. That thing Rik does would come in handy, actually.”
“I don’t know. He’s… we’re both getting stronger and he’s seeing things now without wanting to.” He reached over and grabbed the diaper bag.
Max blinked at the diaper bag and patted Hannah’s diaper and then sniffed her. “I think you called that one early… but we’ll find some sort of control for you, two. It’ll be okay. I promise.”
“Can I call my Mom? Tell her I’ll be home soon?”
“Actually, let me talk to Kyle first and then we’ll make arrangements… but I promise that you will see her soon.”
TBC
Part 34
Part 34
Darin was just sitting on the fire escape, pondering what his new existence would be like when a pair of heavy boots landed beside him. After a few jerky movements, he saw the filter. "You want one?" he shook his head. "You mind if I do?"
"I don't care."
"Cool." Zan lit up and savored that first puff. "Bad for you, I know… but some addictions survive even death." After a few moments, the cigarette had quite a bit of ash hanging off the end. "I know you don't know me… and you ain't lookin' to me for anythin' the way my boy looks to Max but I gotta tell you some stuff… bout your mom."
"You don't have to make excuses for her."
"Who's makin' excuses? I knew her… and prolly better than anyone in there." Zan gestured behind them to the apartment. "Maybe she ain't do things right but she did what she thought she had to. The shapeshifters don't see humans the way we do. That's who raised her and taught her how to look at humans. Maybe we's aliens but I think we forget we's humans too. Half of each, favorin' alien a bit more sometimes."
"Did she tell you anything?"
"In a way. Just… think about it. She killed a person. The first time ever a human being. She got caught. Pregnant and scared, she went to Antar to save her own life. Then she gets this baby and she loves it and understands what she cain't have with… what's-his-face in there. When the bad guys decide to kill you, she steals a ship and comes here… to a place where she knows the good guys all want her dead. She wanted to keep you safe. So she lied. Thinkin' she the only one who can protect you, she lies to him again bout how you might die… cause she knows he'd never kill an innocent baby, especially not his own."
"Sounds like a lot of manipulation."
"And you'd be right. She could've run off into the desert, the safest way… and prolly killed you both but she ran to the people who wanted her dead for you. And then… she realized that if you was gonna have any kind of life… she'd be better to let him have you and she'd take care of the mess she made. She killed a lot of humans cause she knew what they did to him and she didn't want that for you."
"You mean the FBI… and what they did to Max?"
"Yeah. Just… she meant well with all regards to you."
"How did she die?"
Zan put out his cigarette and lit another. "We don't react to heat so well. It disrupts our inner balance. Our energy gets displaced and we go up in smoke… though not always literally. They kept us in a dark room but with the heat up all the way. We had water but not much… and she wouldn't drink hers. She let it happen."
"Let what happen?"
"She was already webbin' over when Rik contacted me that they was comin' for me. I could save her or I could get out. So if you're gonna blame anyone, blame me… but she wouldn't take the water no matter what. She did some bad things in her life. The first and the second and she didn't see hope in a third… not for herself."
"She gave up."
"By the time I put my plan into action, she was past the point of no return. I'm convinced the last explosion was her, dyin'." Zan turned to look at the boy. "She died for you, twice. Not many parents get to do that."
"Your mom died and there was this bright light…"
Zan's eyes shone. "I bet it was brilliant. She was a cool lady. I wish I could've remembered her better… but least I got more of that than Max did. I got some good impressions of her."
"I guess that's all we need."
--
Rik sat outside Steve’s window all morning. Steve couldn’t get away until noon. “How sick is your grandma?”
“Sick.” Steve shrugged.
“I’m sorry, man. I get all wrapped up in my shit.”
“Well… your shit is pretty heavy these days.” The ball teen leaned in his window frame. “We cool?”
“Don’t know.” Rik answered honestly. “I don’t like it… but it’s not really for me to like.”
“You played it cool with me and you should have played it straight.”
“I know.”
“You want me to stop seein’ her?”
“No… cause you wouldn’t’ve done it if you didn’t feel you had to…” He shook his head. “Doesn’t mean I like it… but I guess if I tried, I’d understand. It’s not like I was married to her.”
“I feel you slippin’ away and I don’t want you to… but if you gotta forget about us to… go to college and be whatever it is that you gotta be now that you know where you come from… I’m cool with that. I don’t like it but… I can deal.”
“I won’t go far away…”
“Don’t promise nothin’ you can’t keep. But if I see your face on TV cause you made peace… I’ll know what it was all about.”
“This ain’t goodbye, man.” Rik sniffed and stared up at the smog-dusted sky. “I’ll be around…”
“Well, I won’t be surprised if you fade away. Ghetto’s not the place for princes, man.”
--
Max opened his eyes to see Liz feeding Hannah. Isaiah pounced on him the second his eyes were fully opened. “Morning, Daddy!”
“Good morning.” He had to force himself into a sitting position but he was feeling a great deal more rested than he had the day before. “What’s that you got?”
“Our book.” The boy wiggled his way between his parents and opened it up. “These stars… are mine. These stars… are yours, too.”
“Somebody’s been helping you.” Max kissed his head and helped him to turn the page.
“Darin teeched me.”
“You and Darin read our book?”
“Yuh-huh. These wings are mine. I can share my wings so you can fly, too. If you like me, you can come back and I will teach you to fly, too. I will show you where your wings hide.” His little voice read clearly and cleanly from his little book. “He didn’t know the story and I had to tell him what happens next.”
“Did he like the story?”
“Yuh-huh. He gots another mommy and daddy like me but his other mommy didn’t go to heaven.”
“I know.”
“Hey Max…” Liz interrupted as she pulled the bottle from her sleeping daughter’s mouth. “What would you think if I revised our book and showed it to a publisher? Jesse was telling me his firm handles a lot of that stuff.”
“I’d ask you to talk to my mom, first.” Darin cleared his throat from the doorway, where he stood with a lunch tray. “She’d know which publishers specialize in children’s books. She could probably find you a good illustrator.”
“I don’t know… I think the illustrations are fine.” Max protested. Liz giggled silently and exchanged a look with Darin.
“Sure but if every book had those illustrations, this copy would be less special. First edition.” Darin covered nicely. He hadn’t realized Max had drawn the pictures himself.
Max smoothed the bed so they could set the tray down. “What do you think? Your biological dad is a kept man. His wife is going to make millions writing children's’ books.”
“I don’t know if I’m going to do it…” Liz picked up the book and looked at it. “But I had fun making it. It’s a possibility, right? We still have to decide where we’re going to live and…” She trailed off as Max and Darin lowered their eyes to the tray. “How often we’re going to vacation in Roswell… We need to see who is going to hire two people who have no job skills whatsoever and graduated over a decade ago… huh… I wonder who showed up at the ten year reunion.”
“This could go on a while.” Max cleared his throat and handed Darin a biscuit. “Just eat and ignore her.”
Liz whapped him on the shoulder and opened her mouth to say something but Isaiah beat her to it. “Mommy, no hitting.”
--
“So, you’re gonna stay here?” Ava rolled her shoulders and with a quick swipe, her platinum tresses turned black.
“I think so.” Zan nodded. “I cain’t leave… I don’t want to.”
“Used to be you and me…roamin’ the streets. Even when we wasn’t… you know…”
“Yeah.” He took a breath and stared at his feet. “You got that guy…”
“He don’t know what he wants. It’s cool when he gets away from the kiddies but… when they’s around… I can’t be me.”
“You tryin’ to be you?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I ain’t been around long but I see. I got eyes. It ain’t just him. You all closed off. What you been doin’ all this time I been dead?” His eyes fixed on her face but her eyes were far off. “You like his kids?” A shrug. “You tried?” Shrug. “You afraid they ain’t gonna like you?” Hesitation before the shrug that time. “You think maybe he don’t bring you round his kids cause he thinks maybe you ain’t gonna stick around and he don’t want them getting attached.”
“Yeah, now you’re observant.” She scoffed at him and got to her feet. “Maybe you’re right but… Those kids already lost one mama and their other one walked out on ‘em and I don’t know if I could be a mama… but I’m gettin’ tired of wanderin’ round by myself, lookin’ over my shoulder, wonderin’ which shadow is gonna jump out at me next… I just don’t know if I could sit tight in one place forever.”
The rooftops of the city glared back at her. Then she turned to him with a slight smile. “How you gonna handle it? Livin’ bove ground. Wakin’ up to the same face ev’ry mornin’…” She nudged his foot with hers. “Eatin’ food out of packages instead of outta garbage cans? Makin’ money for stuff instead of stealin’ it?”
“I’ll figure somethin’ out.”
They stayed that way for a long time before she nudged his foot again. “Hey, Zan.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re gonna be a daddy again.”
“Yeah.”
“Maybe you send me some pictures this time.”
“I could do that… I need an address to send ‘em to.”
“I’ll figure somethin’ out… I got nine months.”
“You ever think about havin’ some of your own?”
“Gotta trust some guy first… ain’t that the way it goes?” She shrugged and shoved her hands into her pockets. “I don’t do that so well.”
TBC
Darin was just sitting on the fire escape, pondering what his new existence would be like when a pair of heavy boots landed beside him. After a few jerky movements, he saw the filter. "You want one?" he shook his head. "You mind if I do?"
"I don't care."
"Cool." Zan lit up and savored that first puff. "Bad for you, I know… but some addictions survive even death." After a few moments, the cigarette had quite a bit of ash hanging off the end. "I know you don't know me… and you ain't lookin' to me for anythin' the way my boy looks to Max but I gotta tell you some stuff… bout your mom."
"You don't have to make excuses for her."
"Who's makin' excuses? I knew her… and prolly better than anyone in there." Zan gestured behind them to the apartment. "Maybe she ain't do things right but she did what she thought she had to. The shapeshifters don't see humans the way we do. That's who raised her and taught her how to look at humans. Maybe we's aliens but I think we forget we's humans too. Half of each, favorin' alien a bit more sometimes."
"Did she tell you anything?"
"In a way. Just… think about it. She killed a person. The first time ever a human being. She got caught. Pregnant and scared, she went to Antar to save her own life. Then she gets this baby and she loves it and understands what she cain't have with… what's-his-face in there. When the bad guys decide to kill you, she steals a ship and comes here… to a place where she knows the good guys all want her dead. She wanted to keep you safe. So she lied. Thinkin' she the only one who can protect you, she lies to him again bout how you might die… cause she knows he'd never kill an innocent baby, especially not his own."
"Sounds like a lot of manipulation."
"And you'd be right. She could've run off into the desert, the safest way… and prolly killed you both but she ran to the people who wanted her dead for you. And then… she realized that if you was gonna have any kind of life… she'd be better to let him have you and she'd take care of the mess she made. She killed a lot of humans cause she knew what they did to him and she didn't want that for you."
"You mean the FBI… and what they did to Max?"
"Yeah. Just… she meant well with all regards to you."
"How did she die?"
Zan put out his cigarette and lit another. "We don't react to heat so well. It disrupts our inner balance. Our energy gets displaced and we go up in smoke… though not always literally. They kept us in a dark room but with the heat up all the way. We had water but not much… and she wouldn't drink hers. She let it happen."
"Let what happen?"
"She was already webbin' over when Rik contacted me that they was comin' for me. I could save her or I could get out. So if you're gonna blame anyone, blame me… but she wouldn't take the water no matter what. She did some bad things in her life. The first and the second and she didn't see hope in a third… not for herself."
"She gave up."
"By the time I put my plan into action, she was past the point of no return. I'm convinced the last explosion was her, dyin'." Zan turned to look at the boy. "She died for you, twice. Not many parents get to do that."
"Your mom died and there was this bright light…"
Zan's eyes shone. "I bet it was brilliant. She was a cool lady. I wish I could've remembered her better… but least I got more of that than Max did. I got some good impressions of her."
"I guess that's all we need."
--
Rik sat outside Steve’s window all morning. Steve couldn’t get away until noon. “How sick is your grandma?”
“Sick.” Steve shrugged.
“I’m sorry, man. I get all wrapped up in my shit.”
“Well… your shit is pretty heavy these days.” The ball teen leaned in his window frame. “We cool?”
“Don’t know.” Rik answered honestly. “I don’t like it… but it’s not really for me to like.”
“You played it cool with me and you should have played it straight.”
“I know.”
“You want me to stop seein’ her?”
“No… cause you wouldn’t’ve done it if you didn’t feel you had to…” He shook his head. “Doesn’t mean I like it… but I guess if I tried, I’d understand. It’s not like I was married to her.”
“I feel you slippin’ away and I don’t want you to… but if you gotta forget about us to… go to college and be whatever it is that you gotta be now that you know where you come from… I’m cool with that. I don’t like it but… I can deal.”
“I won’t go far away…”
“Don’t promise nothin’ you can’t keep. But if I see your face on TV cause you made peace… I’ll know what it was all about.”
“This ain’t goodbye, man.” Rik sniffed and stared up at the smog-dusted sky. “I’ll be around…”
“Well, I won’t be surprised if you fade away. Ghetto’s not the place for princes, man.”
--
Max opened his eyes to see Liz feeding Hannah. Isaiah pounced on him the second his eyes were fully opened. “Morning, Daddy!”
“Good morning.” He had to force himself into a sitting position but he was feeling a great deal more rested than he had the day before. “What’s that you got?”
“Our book.” The boy wiggled his way between his parents and opened it up. “These stars… are mine. These stars… are yours, too.”
“Somebody’s been helping you.” Max kissed his head and helped him to turn the page.
“Darin teeched me.”
“You and Darin read our book?”
“Yuh-huh. These wings are mine. I can share my wings so you can fly, too. If you like me, you can come back and I will teach you to fly, too. I will show you where your wings hide.” His little voice read clearly and cleanly from his little book. “He didn’t know the story and I had to tell him what happens next.”
“Did he like the story?”
“Yuh-huh. He gots another mommy and daddy like me but his other mommy didn’t go to heaven.”
“I know.”
“Hey Max…” Liz interrupted as she pulled the bottle from her sleeping daughter’s mouth. “What would you think if I revised our book and showed it to a publisher? Jesse was telling me his firm handles a lot of that stuff.”
“I’d ask you to talk to my mom, first.” Darin cleared his throat from the doorway, where he stood with a lunch tray. “She’d know which publishers specialize in children’s books. She could probably find you a good illustrator.”
“I don’t know… I think the illustrations are fine.” Max protested. Liz giggled silently and exchanged a look with Darin.
“Sure but if every book had those illustrations, this copy would be less special. First edition.” Darin covered nicely. He hadn’t realized Max had drawn the pictures himself.
Max smoothed the bed so they could set the tray down. “What do you think? Your biological dad is a kept man. His wife is going to make millions writing children's’ books.”
“I don’t know if I’m going to do it…” Liz picked up the book and looked at it. “But I had fun making it. It’s a possibility, right? We still have to decide where we’re going to live and…” She trailed off as Max and Darin lowered their eyes to the tray. “How often we’re going to vacation in Roswell… We need to see who is going to hire two people who have no job skills whatsoever and graduated over a decade ago… huh… I wonder who showed up at the ten year reunion.”
“This could go on a while.” Max cleared his throat and handed Darin a biscuit. “Just eat and ignore her.”
Liz whapped him on the shoulder and opened her mouth to say something but Isaiah beat her to it. “Mommy, no hitting.”
--
“So, you’re gonna stay here?” Ava rolled her shoulders and with a quick swipe, her platinum tresses turned black.
“I think so.” Zan nodded. “I cain’t leave… I don’t want to.”
“Used to be you and me…roamin’ the streets. Even when we wasn’t… you know…”
“Yeah.” He took a breath and stared at his feet. “You got that guy…”
“He don’t know what he wants. It’s cool when he gets away from the kiddies but… when they’s around… I can’t be me.”
“You tryin’ to be you?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I ain’t been around long but I see. I got eyes. It ain’t just him. You all closed off. What you been doin’ all this time I been dead?” His eyes fixed on her face but her eyes were far off. “You like his kids?” A shrug. “You tried?” Shrug. “You afraid they ain’t gonna like you?” Hesitation before the shrug that time. “You think maybe he don’t bring you round his kids cause he thinks maybe you ain’t gonna stick around and he don’t want them getting attached.”
“Yeah, now you’re observant.” She scoffed at him and got to her feet. “Maybe you’re right but… Those kids already lost one mama and their other one walked out on ‘em and I don’t know if I could be a mama… but I’m gettin’ tired of wanderin’ round by myself, lookin’ over my shoulder, wonderin’ which shadow is gonna jump out at me next… I just don’t know if I could sit tight in one place forever.”
The rooftops of the city glared back at her. Then she turned to him with a slight smile. “How you gonna handle it? Livin’ bove ground. Wakin’ up to the same face ev’ry mornin’…” She nudged his foot with hers. “Eatin’ food out of packages instead of outta garbage cans? Makin’ money for stuff instead of stealin’ it?”
“I’ll figure somethin’ out.”
They stayed that way for a long time before she nudged his foot again. “Hey, Zan.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re gonna be a daddy again.”
“Yeah.”
“Maybe you send me some pictures this time.”
“I could do that… I need an address to send ‘em to.”
“I’ll figure somethin’ out… I got nine months.”
“You ever think about havin’ some of your own?”
“Gotta trust some guy first… ain’t that the way it goes?” She shrugged and shoved her hands into her pockets. “I don’t do that so well.”
TBC
Part 35
Part 35
The knock seemed to boom through the entire apartment. Finally, Darin pulled open the door and helped Max inside. “Mom?”
“Darin?” The shattered woman barreled around a corner and swept her son into a hug. “I’ve missed you.”
Max stood just inside the doorway and waited as, sure enough, the click of a hammer sliding into place reached his ears. “I’m not armed.”
Darin lifted his head to see the uniformed policeman pointing a gun at Max. Darin leapt away and threw his body in front of Max’s. “He didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Darin.” Max cleared his throat. “It’s okay. They don’t understand yet. Officer? Mind if I take a seat? I’m not feeling too well.” The officer straightened and motioned to the couch. Darin let Max lean on him as they traveled the short distance. “I can explain.”
“I’ll give my statement!” Darin announced. “If I give my statement, you can decide for yourself if he needs to be arrested.”
“Yes, that’s fine.” Mrs. Maples nodded and took a seat across from them.
“My name is Officer Daniels. This is unofficial, mind you but the police chief is doing a favor for the Maples family.” He holstered his gun and pulled out an electronic notepad. “I’ll ask the questions, you just answer honestly.” He waited for Darin to nod. “What happened after you, Erika Kasey and Ronald Kasey climbed out of the storage shed on campus at the Adarma facility?”
“We ran down the street three blocks and then down five. There was a car waiting for us. We got in and then when it looked like we were going to get stuck, we left the car and went to Rik’s friend’s house. We changed and waited there for a while.”
“Why didn’t you stay there? Weren’t you safe there?”
“Rik had some problems and we didn’t think it would be safe. If the FBI knew where we went to school, they probably knew where we lived and who our friends were.”
“You believed these men to be with the FBI?”
“Yes, they didn’t say that, though.”
“We contacted the FBI about this matter. They had no clue about it.”
“Then who was chasing us?”
“I was hoping you’d tell me. Where did you go?”
“We slept in a sewer and when we woke up, there were soldiers on all the corners, they chased us onto the subway. When the train stopped, we followed the tracks away from the city and got stuck in a tunnel, far, far out. Some men helped us out and when we came up top, we were miles away from the city.”
“Miles away, you say?”
“Windfall.” Max supplied. “There’s where they found me.”
“You were never in the city.” Officer Daniels made a note on with his stylus.
“No. I haven’t been to New York City in… 15 or 16 years, when I was 17 myself.”
“Did you know what young Darin Maples was living in New York?”
“I knew he was in the state, I did not know which city. At least, I knew he was in the state when I gave him up. I didn’t know his name or his parents’ names.” Max answered honestly, his throat going dry.
“When happened when you got to Windfall?”
“We walked, just trying to get as far away as possible. Erika and I fell asleep and when we woke up, Rik had come back with m… Max. We’ve been with him and his family and his friends ever since. Safe.”
Officer Daniels looked to Mrs. Maples, who sat wringing her hands. “He didn’t take Darin out of the city and he was with Ms. Kasey the whole time.”
“Exactly right.” Darin nodded. “This is strictly a domestic issue, Officer Daniels. He was… bringing me home to stay.”
“Would you like me to stay, Mrs. Maples?”
“No, I suppose that none of this has been necessary.” Her eyes filled with tears.
“Maybe we should start again.” Max rose from his seat. “Hello, Mrs. Maples. I’m Max Evans.”
--
Rik watch Zan move around the room, examining the apartment. “Smaller than the old place.”
“Yeah.” Zan nodded that he remembered. “Old man Kasey had that place since your mama was a baby.”
“How do you know that?”
“He told me. We mostly stayed out of each other’s hair but I made sure we got along when we couldn’t.” Zan sank onto the couch, the same couch that had been in the old place. “She got a job when she dropped out but she couldn’t work towards the end and even that didn’t help because you was still sick when you came. I took care of her bout as good as I could. I’ll do the same for her now.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
“What’s she doin’ now?”
“Workin’ at the club, same as always. She got her GED done, took some courses when I was little. She’s doin’ the books and talkin’ to the agents now.” Rik shrugged. “Keeps this place, food in our mouths… out to eat once a month.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I wanted to get a job when I turned 16 but Mom said no.”
“Keep your head in them books. Help me teach the baby. Make sure she’s as smart as you.”
“Rik, get in here. We gotta throw this stuff out.” Erika called out to them. “Milk is cottage cheese and if the cheese is turned to Brie or something, I’m gonna puke.”
--
Mrs. Maples hand had not left her throat in an hour as they talked and explained the nature of things and the exact situation in which she had found herself. Max was a passionate young man, convinced of his ideals and the path he wanted to take. She could see her son was smitten with this man. None of it meant she was comfortable having him in her life.
"I won't take him from you." Max insisted, shooting a look at Darin, who had been pacing the length of the room for the last ten minutes. "I'd like to get to know him though, but only with your permission."
"Do you plan to live in New York City?"
"If that works out. At the very least, I'd want to be able to write him letters. Visit every once in a while. He's got a little brother and sister that would love having his kind of influence. You've raised him better than I could have hoped for." Max lowered his eyes to his clasped hands. "I don't want to leave here without being sure that I've made myself clear. Now that the whole mess is done with, we can go about our lives like normal people. Darin doesn't have to be involved at all. He tells me that he's going to be president someday and… I'd like that."
"You can't honestly believe that it's over, Mr. Evans." She whispered.
"For now it is. If the FBI wants another unit, it will be years before they build up another. The crisis on Antar is being taken care of as we speak and it's not as if I can just hop the next shuttle out. If there were ships headed this way, I have a few friends up there that would get word to me. Darin can choose not to have anything to do with it. There are others who can take my place when the time comes. It's not over. It will never be over but there are safer days ahead of us. Safer than the ones just past. I am earnestly sorry about your husband. He was a good man." He lifted his eyes to hers. "I've said my goodbyes to Darin twice already. I don't know that I'm prepared for a third."
"I can't promise you anything today."
"Mom." Darin pleaded.
"No, that's fine." Max nodded to himself and rose to his feet. "He can go back to school on Monday. They're going to let him make up most of the assignments. It won't affect his school records much. If he doesn't get a scholarship for college, I'll see to it, the burden of his education doesn't fall wholly on you."
"It was… good to have met you, Mr. Evans."
--
Zan answered the door when the knock came. There stood a short, petite, girl, pretty and nervous. "Yeah?"
"Is Rik home? I, uh… thought he might want his school uniform… now that he's back."
"I dunno, who're you?" Zan leaned in the doorway.
"I'm… Dari. A… friend of his."
"Jussec." Zan turned, still blocking most of the doorway. "Babe! The kid know a girl named Dari?" He watched both Erika and Rik stiffen where they stood in the kitchen, cleaning the refrigerator of its rancid occupants. The boy's shoulders sagged and his face just melted into a mask of pain. Erika touched his shoulder lightly. "She brought his uniform by."
"Just take it. He's stayin' with friends tonight." Erika lied loud enough for the girl to hear.
"He ain't comin' back tonight. I'll take it." Zan held out his hand for the stack of clothes.
"There's his cousin's there, too. They got left at my place before he took off. I washed them…" She stood there awkwardly under this man's gaze. "You his daddy?"
"That's me." When she didn't leave, he tilted his head at her. "Ain't you Steve's girl? You coulda just given this stuff to Steve, he'd a brung it by."
"I… If you see Rik, tell him I said I'm sorry."
"Yeah, I'll pass it on." He shut the door without ceremony. "That the girl who stepped out on you?"
Rik shrugged and tossed a carton of eggs into his trash bag and gestured to an open pack of lunchmeat. "Is that salami?"
"Baloney." She made a face and tossed it into the bag.
Zan set the uniforms on the couch and crossed the apartment to the tiny kitchen. He watched them chitchat and avoid his question. Like a team… A family. He felt like he was intruding.
"Looks like a takeout night." Erika straightened while Rik closed off the bag. "What do you say, Zan? Pizza? What's that stuff you like to put on it?"
"Yeah, I'm gettin' a taste for that Tabasco thing." Rik rubbed his rumbling stomach.
"Gross. Now I gotta live with two of you." She griped while she washed her hands, then pulled her hair out of her face. "Three of you soon enough. I gotta talk to Liz about what I'm supposed to be eatin' but tomorrow."
"You got cash? I could run out and get something. Ya'll can chill." Zan offered, leaning on the wall.
"Take him with you. He'll show you where to go." Erika pushed Rik along. "A shower, in my own bathroom and my own clothes." She groaned before reaching up to kiss Zan's cheek. Rik grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. She lowered her voice so only Zan could hear. "It's gonna take some gettin' used to. We ain't used to havin' a man around."
--
Darin sat down at the dinner table, freshly showered and dressed in his own clothes. His mother had been quiet since Max had left. Darin had to say something. "You didn't have to make him feel like a leper."
"Have you any idea how crazy it all sounds?" Susan sipped her water slowly.
"Yeah, I do."
"Yes, not yeah."
"Yes, I do know how crazy it sounds because when they told us, we didn't want to believe a word. But I remembered what I did in the dean's office and what I did on the subway and the things that I can do, now that I know I can do them. Sounding crazy does not make it untrue."
"He a murderer."
"Yes, I suppose he is." Darin set down his fork. "The men he murdered were going to capture me and take me to a laboratory somewhere and cut me open to see how I work. The way I understand it, they could choose when to kill me… before, during or after the autopsy."
"Not at the dinner table, Darin."
"He didn't kill Dad." He whispered and fully expected a reprimand about that but it never came. "Can I go see him?"
"He's in the family lot, we can go after you're caught up with your school."
--
Isabel hugged her brother outside the apartment building. "She'll come around. You'll see. It's not written in stone."
"You call Erika as soon as you get in." Max kissed her head. "Be careful. I'll give you a call as soon as I know what we're doing."
"How are you feeling?"
"Remarkably better thanks to our battery charger."
"I prefer Re-Energizer." Kyle broke in as he tossed a bag into the van.
"He keeps goin' and goin'…" Ava trailed off from where she sat on the front steps of the apartment building. The only ones who laughed were his girls and that made Ava smile a little. Max gave her the same look he had given her when he had found out where Liz was getting her bedroom skills.
Isabel bent to kiss Isaiah's cheek. "Bye munchkin, I'm gonna miss you." He just ducked his head a little. "You take care of Mommy and Daddy for me."
"I will."
"And the baby. You make sure Daddy takes lots of pictures."
"Okay."
"We should get going." Jesse squinted at the sky. Everyone ran around doing their last goodbyes until the Ramirezes and the Valentis were all piled up in the van. Michael slapped hands with Kyle one last time. Liz hugged her sister-in-law and wished her well. Soon it was Ava, Liz, Max, Hannah, Isaiah, Michael, Maria and Mandy waving goodbye to the van as it pulled away with nine members of their group.
TBC
The knock seemed to boom through the entire apartment. Finally, Darin pulled open the door and helped Max inside. “Mom?”
“Darin?” The shattered woman barreled around a corner and swept her son into a hug. “I’ve missed you.”
Max stood just inside the doorway and waited as, sure enough, the click of a hammer sliding into place reached his ears. “I’m not armed.”
Darin lifted his head to see the uniformed policeman pointing a gun at Max. Darin leapt away and threw his body in front of Max’s. “He didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Darin.” Max cleared his throat. “It’s okay. They don’t understand yet. Officer? Mind if I take a seat? I’m not feeling too well.” The officer straightened and motioned to the couch. Darin let Max lean on him as they traveled the short distance. “I can explain.”
“I’ll give my statement!” Darin announced. “If I give my statement, you can decide for yourself if he needs to be arrested.”
“Yes, that’s fine.” Mrs. Maples nodded and took a seat across from them.
“My name is Officer Daniels. This is unofficial, mind you but the police chief is doing a favor for the Maples family.” He holstered his gun and pulled out an electronic notepad. “I’ll ask the questions, you just answer honestly.” He waited for Darin to nod. “What happened after you, Erika Kasey and Ronald Kasey climbed out of the storage shed on campus at the Adarma facility?”
“We ran down the street three blocks and then down five. There was a car waiting for us. We got in and then when it looked like we were going to get stuck, we left the car and went to Rik’s friend’s house. We changed and waited there for a while.”
“Why didn’t you stay there? Weren’t you safe there?”
“Rik had some problems and we didn’t think it would be safe. If the FBI knew where we went to school, they probably knew where we lived and who our friends were.”
“You believed these men to be with the FBI?”
“Yes, they didn’t say that, though.”
“We contacted the FBI about this matter. They had no clue about it.”
“Then who was chasing us?”
“I was hoping you’d tell me. Where did you go?”
“We slept in a sewer and when we woke up, there were soldiers on all the corners, they chased us onto the subway. When the train stopped, we followed the tracks away from the city and got stuck in a tunnel, far, far out. Some men helped us out and when we came up top, we were miles away from the city.”
“Miles away, you say?”
“Windfall.” Max supplied. “There’s where they found me.”
“You were never in the city.” Officer Daniels made a note on with his stylus.
“No. I haven’t been to New York City in… 15 or 16 years, when I was 17 myself.”
“Did you know what young Darin Maples was living in New York?”
“I knew he was in the state, I did not know which city. At least, I knew he was in the state when I gave him up. I didn’t know his name or his parents’ names.” Max answered honestly, his throat going dry.
“When happened when you got to Windfall?”
“We walked, just trying to get as far away as possible. Erika and I fell asleep and when we woke up, Rik had come back with m… Max. We’ve been with him and his family and his friends ever since. Safe.”
Officer Daniels looked to Mrs. Maples, who sat wringing her hands. “He didn’t take Darin out of the city and he was with Ms. Kasey the whole time.”
“Exactly right.” Darin nodded. “This is strictly a domestic issue, Officer Daniels. He was… bringing me home to stay.”
“Would you like me to stay, Mrs. Maples?”
“No, I suppose that none of this has been necessary.” Her eyes filled with tears.
“Maybe we should start again.” Max rose from his seat. “Hello, Mrs. Maples. I’m Max Evans.”
--
Rik watch Zan move around the room, examining the apartment. “Smaller than the old place.”
“Yeah.” Zan nodded that he remembered. “Old man Kasey had that place since your mama was a baby.”
“How do you know that?”
“He told me. We mostly stayed out of each other’s hair but I made sure we got along when we couldn’t.” Zan sank onto the couch, the same couch that had been in the old place. “She got a job when she dropped out but she couldn’t work towards the end and even that didn’t help because you was still sick when you came. I took care of her bout as good as I could. I’ll do the same for her now.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
“What’s she doin’ now?”
“Workin’ at the club, same as always. She got her GED done, took some courses when I was little. She’s doin’ the books and talkin’ to the agents now.” Rik shrugged. “Keeps this place, food in our mouths… out to eat once a month.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I wanted to get a job when I turned 16 but Mom said no.”
“Keep your head in them books. Help me teach the baby. Make sure she’s as smart as you.”
“Rik, get in here. We gotta throw this stuff out.” Erika called out to them. “Milk is cottage cheese and if the cheese is turned to Brie or something, I’m gonna puke.”
--
Mrs. Maples hand had not left her throat in an hour as they talked and explained the nature of things and the exact situation in which she had found herself. Max was a passionate young man, convinced of his ideals and the path he wanted to take. She could see her son was smitten with this man. None of it meant she was comfortable having him in her life.
"I won't take him from you." Max insisted, shooting a look at Darin, who had been pacing the length of the room for the last ten minutes. "I'd like to get to know him though, but only with your permission."
"Do you plan to live in New York City?"
"If that works out. At the very least, I'd want to be able to write him letters. Visit every once in a while. He's got a little brother and sister that would love having his kind of influence. You've raised him better than I could have hoped for." Max lowered his eyes to his clasped hands. "I don't want to leave here without being sure that I've made myself clear. Now that the whole mess is done with, we can go about our lives like normal people. Darin doesn't have to be involved at all. He tells me that he's going to be president someday and… I'd like that."
"You can't honestly believe that it's over, Mr. Evans." She whispered.
"For now it is. If the FBI wants another unit, it will be years before they build up another. The crisis on Antar is being taken care of as we speak and it's not as if I can just hop the next shuttle out. If there were ships headed this way, I have a few friends up there that would get word to me. Darin can choose not to have anything to do with it. There are others who can take my place when the time comes. It's not over. It will never be over but there are safer days ahead of us. Safer than the ones just past. I am earnestly sorry about your husband. He was a good man." He lifted his eyes to hers. "I've said my goodbyes to Darin twice already. I don't know that I'm prepared for a third."
"I can't promise you anything today."
"Mom." Darin pleaded.
"No, that's fine." Max nodded to himself and rose to his feet. "He can go back to school on Monday. They're going to let him make up most of the assignments. It won't affect his school records much. If he doesn't get a scholarship for college, I'll see to it, the burden of his education doesn't fall wholly on you."
"It was… good to have met you, Mr. Evans."
--
Zan answered the door when the knock came. There stood a short, petite, girl, pretty and nervous. "Yeah?"
"Is Rik home? I, uh… thought he might want his school uniform… now that he's back."
"I dunno, who're you?" Zan leaned in the doorway.
"I'm… Dari. A… friend of his."
"Jussec." Zan turned, still blocking most of the doorway. "Babe! The kid know a girl named Dari?" He watched both Erika and Rik stiffen where they stood in the kitchen, cleaning the refrigerator of its rancid occupants. The boy's shoulders sagged and his face just melted into a mask of pain. Erika touched his shoulder lightly. "She brought his uniform by."
"Just take it. He's stayin' with friends tonight." Erika lied loud enough for the girl to hear.
"He ain't comin' back tonight. I'll take it." Zan held out his hand for the stack of clothes.
"There's his cousin's there, too. They got left at my place before he took off. I washed them…" She stood there awkwardly under this man's gaze. "You his daddy?"
"That's me." When she didn't leave, he tilted his head at her. "Ain't you Steve's girl? You coulda just given this stuff to Steve, he'd a brung it by."
"I… If you see Rik, tell him I said I'm sorry."
"Yeah, I'll pass it on." He shut the door without ceremony. "That the girl who stepped out on you?"
Rik shrugged and tossed a carton of eggs into his trash bag and gestured to an open pack of lunchmeat. "Is that salami?"
"Baloney." She made a face and tossed it into the bag.
Zan set the uniforms on the couch and crossed the apartment to the tiny kitchen. He watched them chitchat and avoid his question. Like a team… A family. He felt like he was intruding.
"Looks like a takeout night." Erika straightened while Rik closed off the bag. "What do you say, Zan? Pizza? What's that stuff you like to put on it?"
"Yeah, I'm gettin' a taste for that Tabasco thing." Rik rubbed his rumbling stomach.
"Gross. Now I gotta live with two of you." She griped while she washed her hands, then pulled her hair out of her face. "Three of you soon enough. I gotta talk to Liz about what I'm supposed to be eatin' but tomorrow."
"You got cash? I could run out and get something. Ya'll can chill." Zan offered, leaning on the wall.
"Take him with you. He'll show you where to go." Erika pushed Rik along. "A shower, in my own bathroom and my own clothes." She groaned before reaching up to kiss Zan's cheek. Rik grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. She lowered her voice so only Zan could hear. "It's gonna take some gettin' used to. We ain't used to havin' a man around."
--
Darin sat down at the dinner table, freshly showered and dressed in his own clothes. His mother had been quiet since Max had left. Darin had to say something. "You didn't have to make him feel like a leper."
"Have you any idea how crazy it all sounds?" Susan sipped her water slowly.
"Yeah, I do."
"Yes, not yeah."
"Yes, I do know how crazy it sounds because when they told us, we didn't want to believe a word. But I remembered what I did in the dean's office and what I did on the subway and the things that I can do, now that I know I can do them. Sounding crazy does not make it untrue."
"He a murderer."
"Yes, I suppose he is." Darin set down his fork. "The men he murdered were going to capture me and take me to a laboratory somewhere and cut me open to see how I work. The way I understand it, they could choose when to kill me… before, during or after the autopsy."
"Not at the dinner table, Darin."
"He didn't kill Dad." He whispered and fully expected a reprimand about that but it never came. "Can I go see him?"
"He's in the family lot, we can go after you're caught up with your school."
--
Isabel hugged her brother outside the apartment building. "She'll come around. You'll see. It's not written in stone."
"You call Erika as soon as you get in." Max kissed her head. "Be careful. I'll give you a call as soon as I know what we're doing."
"How are you feeling?"
"Remarkably better thanks to our battery charger."
"I prefer Re-Energizer." Kyle broke in as he tossed a bag into the van.
"He keeps goin' and goin'…" Ava trailed off from where she sat on the front steps of the apartment building. The only ones who laughed were his girls and that made Ava smile a little. Max gave her the same look he had given her when he had found out where Liz was getting her bedroom skills.
Isabel bent to kiss Isaiah's cheek. "Bye munchkin, I'm gonna miss you." He just ducked his head a little. "You take care of Mommy and Daddy for me."
"I will."
"And the baby. You make sure Daddy takes lots of pictures."
"Okay."
"We should get going." Jesse squinted at the sky. Everyone ran around doing their last goodbyes until the Ramirezes and the Valentis were all piled up in the van. Michael slapped hands with Kyle one last time. Liz hugged her sister-in-law and wished her well. Soon it was Ava, Liz, Max, Hannah, Isaiah, Michael, Maria and Mandy waving goodbye to the van as it pulled away with nine members of their group.
TBC
Part 36
Part 36
Rik shucked his tie, school jacket and shirt and tossed them over his bag. He grabbed the roller and dipped it in paint before rolling the slick mess over the graffiti on the wall surrounding Adarma. Just a thin coat. If it was going to stick and cover, he had to let a thin coat dry first and then apply a thicker coat. Behind him, he could hear someone collecting garbage from the sidewalk. Turning, he saw his cousin. "Hey."
"Hey." Darin didn't even look up. "Who stayed?"
"Your dad and his family. Michael and his… Aunt Isabel went with Jesse back to his place, wherever that is and then I think Kyle said he was headin' home to the big empty." Rik covered the vulgarities and watched his cousin poke through street trash to get it in the bag. "Talked to Steve. Janey's been buggin' him about you." No response. "You gonna be a dick and leave her high and dry?"
"Guess so."
"Your dad stopped by last night. To get rent estimates and job leads… sounds like he's going to stick around. They kinda look the same age now." Rik turned back to his wall. "It's weird having him around, now." Silence. "He told us about what happened."
"She's out of her mind."
"She's your mom, man. You was gone for like… two weeks. She was worried as all hell and then he went and told her the truth about us. I'll bet she's freaked."
"You know… I lost two of my four parents in the same two weeks, you'd think she'd cut me a little slack…"
"Slack cuts on both ends, there." He cleared his throat. "She didn't just have a kid disappear on her, you know. Her husband died in front of her. He wasn't just some guy. She was married to him for years. Everyday sharing all the same stuff, lovin stronger all the time…"
Silence. That kid was really holding it all in. Finally Darin spoke up, changing the subject altogether. "I was thinking about taking extra classes next term, and some during summer session. Get ahead. Get started on college earlier…"
"You gonna be stressed out. I gotta take summer session just to get caught up to the rest of these jokers and graduate on time."
"I could get basics covered by the time I turn 18. Line up scholarships…"
"And what? Run away from rich-mommy's home to live with your broke-ass alien family just cause she's over protective?" He scoffed and turned to the boy. "You're the one whose nuts."
"Keeping my options open."
--
Zan lifted box after box from the truck and onto the dolly. Then he took a short break while that stack went away and a new dolly came to replace it. His arms were sore, his abs burned, his big toe throbbed from a dropped box earlier in the day and his legs were about to give out on him. Max had taken a long time to build his strength back up but it was sticking around. His strength had come back right away but his stamina was still weak.
"Kasey! That's the last of this order." Came the shout and not a minute too soon. He put way the runners and shut the hatch door before hopping up front with his partner, the driver, a big guy who called himself Angelo. "What's up wit you? Out of shape?"
"Been laid up a while, gettin' my strength back."
Angelo seemed like a good guy but he couldn't stop talking. He pulled the long truck out onto the street and headed for the next stop. "Kasey… with a 'K'?"
"Yeah."
"There's an old guy used to work wit the company back when I first started. His name was Kasey, spelled the same way. Any relation?"
"Dunno. What's his name?"
"Rafe. Rafferty, I think it was. Had a daughter, no sons, though."
"Yeah. My father-in-law." It was only a little stretch of the truth.
"Huh… what?" Angelo snapped his head around in confusion.
"Took his name cause I took his daughter."
"So you're the son of a bitch who knocked her up, eh?" He shook his head. "Heard some guys did that but I never thought I'd meet one. Takin' the woman's name. Last I heard, you run off on her. Old Rafe loved to rag on the son of a bitch who knocked up his girl and run off on the kid." He laughed to himself for a moment before he sobered. "You know how he died? They never told us. Hell, didn't even know he was dead til we asked the boss and he ain't give no details."
"Kid said it was a heart attack." Zan slouched in his seat.
"How is that kid? Cute as a button last I saw."
"Regular lady-killer." He had to crack a smile. He liked talking about the kid. "He got into that fancy prep-school. Goin' to college and the whole bit. He's got girls callin' all the time wit names like… Muffin and Penni… with an 'i' if you can believe that."
"Maybe he'll marry one of them rich gals and set you up for life."
"We can pray, right?" Zan stared out at the city. "Maybe all I'll ask him for is a college fund for his little sister."
"You got another one?"
"Not yet. Soon."
"Bun in the oven. I got it."
"Hopin' this one takes after her momma."
--
Max paced the sidewalk with Hannah. Isaiah had long since bored with keeping up with his daddy and taken a seat on the nearby bench to wait. Liz and Kal were in a meeting with an agent for Liz, who had stayed up all night scribbling out her ideas to get them in form to show.
"When's Mommy gonna be done?" Isaiah pouted and crossed his arms.
"Soon."
"I'm bored."
"I know but…" Max sank onto the bench. "Mommy's showing some nice men and women your book. If they like it, they're gonna make sure every little boy and girl in the world gets to read it."
"I don't wanna share my book."
Max stifled a laugh. "If they like it, they're going to make a copy of it."
"Oh. Okay. I don't wanna share my book. It's mine. Mommy made it for me."
"Okay, Mr. Cranky, let's go see if we've got enough for an ice cream." He took the little hand and marched his family to the corner vender where he paid an exorbitant amount for a single scoop of vanilla. "This better have beans imported from Peru blended in."
"Inflation, buddy, slaps us all."
"It's robbery. I paid a buck, tops, for ice cream when I was a kid."
"Well, that's been a long time, buddy." The vendor cracked and handed Isaiah the dish. The boy eagerly dug in. "Well, what's the report, little man? Is it the best ice cream you ever had?"
"Yes!"
"Alright. We'll let it slide." Max shook his head and led Isaiah back down the street to their bench. He had to smile at the little boy enjoying his ice cream and swinging his feet on that bench. "Well, you still bored?"
"Nope."
"Good." He took the spoonful of ice cream when it was offered. Very sweet, very vanillay but needed Tabasco. "Are we ready to share our book with the rest of the world?"
"I suppose."
"You suppose?" Too much of Isabel's influence. "Well I guess that will have to be good enough."
"What a darling?" An exclamation from his other side caught his attention. "Oh… Mr. Evans." Mrs. Maples pulled herself back under control. "I presume the darling is your daughter."
"Yes and my son." He gestured to Isaiah, happily eating his melting ice cream.
"Looking for work?" She coolly asked him, clutching her purse to her side.
"Actually, my wife is inside." He gestured to the building. "She's showing an agent her book. She's hoping to get signed to a publisher."
"Wait a minute." Susan stared at him and turned her body to face him fully. "Elizabeth Evans. These Stars of Ours."
"Yes, that would be her."
"You're going to be waiting out here for quite a while, Mr. Evans. She was signed to an agent an hour ago and they've got her in discussions with the publisher on her other ideas." She stared at him for quite a while. "She said her husband did the illustrations."
"Yeah but I'm told that she should opt for a professional illustrator. Darin seems to think my scribblings aren't up to snuff." Max dug into his bag for a bottle, which he shook up and slid into his hungry daughter's mouth.
"The proceedings are going to take a few more hours. They ordered in for lunch… Would you like to join me for lunch? It's just around the corner."
--
Zan sank down at the dinner table in absolute pain. “I don’t know what it is… I never get this tired.”
“Well, according to recent changes… you are not a teenager anymore, Zan.” Erika shook her head and ate quickly. She had an hour before she had to be at work. “You think you can handle it?”
He stared at her, then at Rik. “Yeah, I can handle it.”
“Let me get most of my homework done, and I’ll do something for you.” Rik never paused as he shoveled food into his mouth.
“You work late?” Zan tried to ask casually as he pushed food around on his plate.
Rik hid his grin by shoving a huge forkful of potatoes into his mouth. Erika sipped her water, oblivious to her men. “No later than usual. I’ll be in by three. I’m just lucky I still have a job. Kal is a good name to have in your cell phone.”
“You gonna tell the boss?” Rik asked her, eyes glinting evilly.
“Tell him what?” She looked up finally. “Oh, he’s harmless.”
“Say what?” Zan sat up.
“The new boss had a little thing for me. I told him long time ago it would never happen.” She shook her head.
“I could walk you to work.”
“You’re tired.”
“Not that tired.”
“I do it all the time, it’s not a big deal.”
“Just want to see where you work.”
“You know where I work, we met there.”
“I ain’t seen the club in 18 years. Just wanna see the old haunt.”
“Are you guys gonna fight like this all the time?” Rik gestured to each with his fork, a chuckle in his words. “Cause I could sell seats to this.”
“What’s that they say? About kids bein’ seen but never heard?” Zan whacked him with a napkin. “You gonna call back the one that called today? Christy or something?” Both of them made a face. “What? What’s wrong with that one?”
“She’s a dirty girl. At the very least, the first string of the Varsity football team.”
“Cause you’re pure as driven snow, right.” Zan pointed his fork at the boy.
“I’m not and I’m not saying that a girl should be but it’s one thing when a girl sleeps with guys she cares about and it’s another when she’s counting notches on her bed post.” Rik defended himself.
“It’s a little unfair when you can tell about them but they can’t tell about you.” Erika rose to put her plate away and to brush her teeth.
“It’s not like I can keep from knowing that stuff. It’s also about the attitude. Robbie was up front about it.”
“You’re not gonna see her again, are you?” Erika called from the bathroom.
“No, I’m just saying. She was honest about what she was doin’ and I can respect that. Christy does the same thing only she wants everyone to think she’s innocent and never kissed a boy before.”
“What about the other one?” Zan asked, carefully. “The one that was here before.”
“She’s one who only sleeps with guys she really, really cares about.” Rik shrugged, suddenly not hungry anymore. “It used to be the thing I liked about her.”
“So… uh…”
“Yeah.”
“They don’t got girls like that at your school?”
“Those girls don’t talk to me.” Rik rolled his shoulders before helping himself to seconds. “Especially since that whole mess in the dean’s office. He’s still in the hospital, too. Heard his secretary tellin’ one of the teachers about it.”
“You overhear anythin’ else?”
“My science professor told my counselor that my project was the most original work he’d seen in a decade.”
“You gon do somethin’ wit that?”
“Don’t know. Uncle Jesse kind of… impressed me with his suits and the way he negotiated with Grandma Rita’s landlord…” His cheeks colored a bit, his eyes lowered to his plate. “I don’t know. Next year I can take some college courses so long as I get caught up this summer. See if I like it.”
“That’s cool, man.”
“Hey… um…”
“S’up, chief?”
“Steve’s grandma…”
“She’s just old. Ain’t nothin’ you could do for her. Even takin’ her pain would take a lot outta you… and she’d go when she was supposed to anyway.” Zan finished up his meal without taking his eyes off his son. “You attached to her?”
“She was my babysitter for years.”
“She’s got a whole tribe of kids to take care of her.”
“Okay, I am off to work. You be good.” Erika kissed Rik’s head and crossed to kiss Zan’s forehead and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “Keep the bed warm for me and I’ll wake you up for work… the way you used to put me to sleep…”
“I can hear you.” Rik stood up with his plate, disgusted.
--
Darin sat at the dinner table, happily for once since his return home. Hannah dozed while everyone else ate. His mom and Liz were very much involved in a discussion about publishing rights. Max had his hands full with Isaiah. “Cut it smaller, Daddy.”
“They told me it could take a while. Getting an illustrator that I like and we have to pick fonts but they said once we know how well this one does, we can move forward with my other ideas. I’m going to be filling up notebooks with details.”
“What made you write that story? It was adorable. I loved it.”
“It’s um… based on Max and I.” Liz blushed a little. “Just a little.”
“Well, I’m absolutely certain that it wasn’t quite that simple.” Susan winked at Liz. “Was writing something you always wanted to do?”
“No, actually. When my high school guidance counselor sat me down, I was absolutely convinced I would become no less than head of the department of microbiology at Harvard.” Liz admitted with a smile. “I mean, I kept a journal when I was younger and I used to tell stories to our friends’ children. When we got Isaiah, I needed something he could focus on because of… his circumstances. I just… Max found me a blank book and I filled up. He drew the pictures and Isaiah always has to know just where the book is. When I realized just how much he loved it, I would think, I could do it again but there was hardly any opportunity to do so.”
“Until now.”
“Right, until now.”
“So, Max, what are you going to do?”
Max looked up from cutting Isaiah’s dinner into near miniscule pieces. “Oh, I’m working for our landlord for now. Doing maintenance and that sort of thing until I can find something better. This way I can be home with the kids while Liz will be off working things out with the publishing agent.”
“Keeping them out of my hair while I write.” Liz flipped her hair over her shoulder. “I can’t believe today went so well.”
“It doesn’t always go so well. Your book is very good and should be published but… to tell the truth if Mr. Langley hadn’t vouched for you, it could be years before you would have seen that book published. He took the time to introduce you and so they took the time to look it over. Sometimes that’s just the way it works. He’s an important man and his name opens doors in this city.”
“Mom.” Darin sighed.
“What?”
“You just met him three weeks ago. You really don’t know Kal.” He laughed a little. “I know Kal better than you do and I don’t know him well at all except that he’s not as funny as he thinks.”
“That’s pretty much all there is to know about Kal.” Max nodded to himself. “He’s really a very hateful man. He’s good if you need a favor and you have some leverage over him but he'd really rather not help anyone but himself.”
“I’m sure that’s not true.” Susan shook her head.
“Mom, he picked up one of Rik’s friends to take care of Max’s mother because he didn’t want to and to provide an extra target if someone were to take a shot at the heir to Antar… to lessen the odds of someone actually killing one of us.” Darin exclaimed as he polished off his dinner. “The only reason he even really helped at all was because Max ordered him to.”
“You’re kidding.” She turned to Liz.
“He’s a crotchety old fellow but he comes through when you need him.” She agreed with Darin and Max.
“And how old?”
“Oh, we have no clue. At the very least he’s… 70 but we don’t know how old he was when he arrived on Earth.” Liz sighed a little. “He’s like the in-law uncle that I never wanted.”
“Daddy, my hands.”
TBC
Rik shucked his tie, school jacket and shirt and tossed them over his bag. He grabbed the roller and dipped it in paint before rolling the slick mess over the graffiti on the wall surrounding Adarma. Just a thin coat. If it was going to stick and cover, he had to let a thin coat dry first and then apply a thicker coat. Behind him, he could hear someone collecting garbage from the sidewalk. Turning, he saw his cousin. "Hey."
"Hey." Darin didn't even look up. "Who stayed?"
"Your dad and his family. Michael and his… Aunt Isabel went with Jesse back to his place, wherever that is and then I think Kyle said he was headin' home to the big empty." Rik covered the vulgarities and watched his cousin poke through street trash to get it in the bag. "Talked to Steve. Janey's been buggin' him about you." No response. "You gonna be a dick and leave her high and dry?"
"Guess so."
"Your dad stopped by last night. To get rent estimates and job leads… sounds like he's going to stick around. They kinda look the same age now." Rik turned back to his wall. "It's weird having him around, now." Silence. "He told us about what happened."
"She's out of her mind."
"She's your mom, man. You was gone for like… two weeks. She was worried as all hell and then he went and told her the truth about us. I'll bet she's freaked."
"You know… I lost two of my four parents in the same two weeks, you'd think she'd cut me a little slack…"
"Slack cuts on both ends, there." He cleared his throat. "She didn't just have a kid disappear on her, you know. Her husband died in front of her. He wasn't just some guy. She was married to him for years. Everyday sharing all the same stuff, lovin stronger all the time…"
Silence. That kid was really holding it all in. Finally Darin spoke up, changing the subject altogether. "I was thinking about taking extra classes next term, and some during summer session. Get ahead. Get started on college earlier…"
"You gonna be stressed out. I gotta take summer session just to get caught up to the rest of these jokers and graduate on time."
"I could get basics covered by the time I turn 18. Line up scholarships…"
"And what? Run away from rich-mommy's home to live with your broke-ass alien family just cause she's over protective?" He scoffed and turned to the boy. "You're the one whose nuts."
"Keeping my options open."
--
Zan lifted box after box from the truck and onto the dolly. Then he took a short break while that stack went away and a new dolly came to replace it. His arms were sore, his abs burned, his big toe throbbed from a dropped box earlier in the day and his legs were about to give out on him. Max had taken a long time to build his strength back up but it was sticking around. His strength had come back right away but his stamina was still weak.
"Kasey! That's the last of this order." Came the shout and not a minute too soon. He put way the runners and shut the hatch door before hopping up front with his partner, the driver, a big guy who called himself Angelo. "What's up wit you? Out of shape?"
"Been laid up a while, gettin' my strength back."
Angelo seemed like a good guy but he couldn't stop talking. He pulled the long truck out onto the street and headed for the next stop. "Kasey… with a 'K'?"
"Yeah."
"There's an old guy used to work wit the company back when I first started. His name was Kasey, spelled the same way. Any relation?"
"Dunno. What's his name?"
"Rafe. Rafferty, I think it was. Had a daughter, no sons, though."
"Yeah. My father-in-law." It was only a little stretch of the truth.
"Huh… what?" Angelo snapped his head around in confusion.
"Took his name cause I took his daughter."
"So you're the son of a bitch who knocked her up, eh?" He shook his head. "Heard some guys did that but I never thought I'd meet one. Takin' the woman's name. Last I heard, you run off on her. Old Rafe loved to rag on the son of a bitch who knocked up his girl and run off on the kid." He laughed to himself for a moment before he sobered. "You know how he died? They never told us. Hell, didn't even know he was dead til we asked the boss and he ain't give no details."
"Kid said it was a heart attack." Zan slouched in his seat.
"How is that kid? Cute as a button last I saw."
"Regular lady-killer." He had to crack a smile. He liked talking about the kid. "He got into that fancy prep-school. Goin' to college and the whole bit. He's got girls callin' all the time wit names like… Muffin and Penni… with an 'i' if you can believe that."
"Maybe he'll marry one of them rich gals and set you up for life."
"We can pray, right?" Zan stared out at the city. "Maybe all I'll ask him for is a college fund for his little sister."
"You got another one?"
"Not yet. Soon."
"Bun in the oven. I got it."
"Hopin' this one takes after her momma."
--
Max paced the sidewalk with Hannah. Isaiah had long since bored with keeping up with his daddy and taken a seat on the nearby bench to wait. Liz and Kal were in a meeting with an agent for Liz, who had stayed up all night scribbling out her ideas to get them in form to show.
"When's Mommy gonna be done?" Isaiah pouted and crossed his arms.
"Soon."
"I'm bored."
"I know but…" Max sank onto the bench. "Mommy's showing some nice men and women your book. If they like it, they're gonna make sure every little boy and girl in the world gets to read it."
"I don't wanna share my book."
Max stifled a laugh. "If they like it, they're going to make a copy of it."
"Oh. Okay. I don't wanna share my book. It's mine. Mommy made it for me."
"Okay, Mr. Cranky, let's go see if we've got enough for an ice cream." He took the little hand and marched his family to the corner vender where he paid an exorbitant amount for a single scoop of vanilla. "This better have beans imported from Peru blended in."
"Inflation, buddy, slaps us all."
"It's robbery. I paid a buck, tops, for ice cream when I was a kid."
"Well, that's been a long time, buddy." The vendor cracked and handed Isaiah the dish. The boy eagerly dug in. "Well, what's the report, little man? Is it the best ice cream you ever had?"
"Yes!"
"Alright. We'll let it slide." Max shook his head and led Isaiah back down the street to their bench. He had to smile at the little boy enjoying his ice cream and swinging his feet on that bench. "Well, you still bored?"
"Nope."
"Good." He took the spoonful of ice cream when it was offered. Very sweet, very vanillay but needed Tabasco. "Are we ready to share our book with the rest of the world?"
"I suppose."
"You suppose?" Too much of Isabel's influence. "Well I guess that will have to be good enough."
"What a darling?" An exclamation from his other side caught his attention. "Oh… Mr. Evans." Mrs. Maples pulled herself back under control. "I presume the darling is your daughter."
"Yes and my son." He gestured to Isaiah, happily eating his melting ice cream.
"Looking for work?" She coolly asked him, clutching her purse to her side.
"Actually, my wife is inside." He gestured to the building. "She's showing an agent her book. She's hoping to get signed to a publisher."
"Wait a minute." Susan stared at him and turned her body to face him fully. "Elizabeth Evans. These Stars of Ours."
"Yes, that would be her."
"You're going to be waiting out here for quite a while, Mr. Evans. She was signed to an agent an hour ago and they've got her in discussions with the publisher on her other ideas." She stared at him for quite a while. "She said her husband did the illustrations."
"Yeah but I'm told that she should opt for a professional illustrator. Darin seems to think my scribblings aren't up to snuff." Max dug into his bag for a bottle, which he shook up and slid into his hungry daughter's mouth.
"The proceedings are going to take a few more hours. They ordered in for lunch… Would you like to join me for lunch? It's just around the corner."
--
Zan sank down at the dinner table in absolute pain. “I don’t know what it is… I never get this tired.”
“Well, according to recent changes… you are not a teenager anymore, Zan.” Erika shook her head and ate quickly. She had an hour before she had to be at work. “You think you can handle it?”
He stared at her, then at Rik. “Yeah, I can handle it.”
“Let me get most of my homework done, and I’ll do something for you.” Rik never paused as he shoveled food into his mouth.
“You work late?” Zan tried to ask casually as he pushed food around on his plate.
Rik hid his grin by shoving a huge forkful of potatoes into his mouth. Erika sipped her water, oblivious to her men. “No later than usual. I’ll be in by three. I’m just lucky I still have a job. Kal is a good name to have in your cell phone.”
“You gonna tell the boss?” Rik asked her, eyes glinting evilly.
“Tell him what?” She looked up finally. “Oh, he’s harmless.”
“Say what?” Zan sat up.
“The new boss had a little thing for me. I told him long time ago it would never happen.” She shook her head.
“I could walk you to work.”
“You’re tired.”
“Not that tired.”
“I do it all the time, it’s not a big deal.”
“Just want to see where you work.”
“You know where I work, we met there.”
“I ain’t seen the club in 18 years. Just wanna see the old haunt.”
“Are you guys gonna fight like this all the time?” Rik gestured to each with his fork, a chuckle in his words. “Cause I could sell seats to this.”
“What’s that they say? About kids bein’ seen but never heard?” Zan whacked him with a napkin. “You gonna call back the one that called today? Christy or something?” Both of them made a face. “What? What’s wrong with that one?”
“She’s a dirty girl. At the very least, the first string of the Varsity football team.”
“Cause you’re pure as driven snow, right.” Zan pointed his fork at the boy.
“I’m not and I’m not saying that a girl should be but it’s one thing when a girl sleeps with guys she cares about and it’s another when she’s counting notches on her bed post.” Rik defended himself.
“It’s a little unfair when you can tell about them but they can’t tell about you.” Erika rose to put her plate away and to brush her teeth.
“It’s not like I can keep from knowing that stuff. It’s also about the attitude. Robbie was up front about it.”
“You’re not gonna see her again, are you?” Erika called from the bathroom.
“No, I’m just saying. She was honest about what she was doin’ and I can respect that. Christy does the same thing only she wants everyone to think she’s innocent and never kissed a boy before.”
“What about the other one?” Zan asked, carefully. “The one that was here before.”
“She’s one who only sleeps with guys she really, really cares about.” Rik shrugged, suddenly not hungry anymore. “It used to be the thing I liked about her.”
“So… uh…”
“Yeah.”
“They don’t got girls like that at your school?”
“Those girls don’t talk to me.” Rik rolled his shoulders before helping himself to seconds. “Especially since that whole mess in the dean’s office. He’s still in the hospital, too. Heard his secretary tellin’ one of the teachers about it.”
“You overhear anythin’ else?”
“My science professor told my counselor that my project was the most original work he’d seen in a decade.”
“You gon do somethin’ wit that?”
“Don’t know. Uncle Jesse kind of… impressed me with his suits and the way he negotiated with Grandma Rita’s landlord…” His cheeks colored a bit, his eyes lowered to his plate. “I don’t know. Next year I can take some college courses so long as I get caught up this summer. See if I like it.”
“That’s cool, man.”
“Hey… um…”
“S’up, chief?”
“Steve’s grandma…”
“She’s just old. Ain’t nothin’ you could do for her. Even takin’ her pain would take a lot outta you… and she’d go when she was supposed to anyway.” Zan finished up his meal without taking his eyes off his son. “You attached to her?”
“She was my babysitter for years.”
“She’s got a whole tribe of kids to take care of her.”
“Okay, I am off to work. You be good.” Erika kissed Rik’s head and crossed to kiss Zan’s forehead and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “Keep the bed warm for me and I’ll wake you up for work… the way you used to put me to sleep…”
“I can hear you.” Rik stood up with his plate, disgusted.
--
Darin sat at the dinner table, happily for once since his return home. Hannah dozed while everyone else ate. His mom and Liz were very much involved in a discussion about publishing rights. Max had his hands full with Isaiah. “Cut it smaller, Daddy.”
“They told me it could take a while. Getting an illustrator that I like and we have to pick fonts but they said once we know how well this one does, we can move forward with my other ideas. I’m going to be filling up notebooks with details.”
“What made you write that story? It was adorable. I loved it.”
“It’s um… based on Max and I.” Liz blushed a little. “Just a little.”
“Well, I’m absolutely certain that it wasn’t quite that simple.” Susan winked at Liz. “Was writing something you always wanted to do?”
“No, actually. When my high school guidance counselor sat me down, I was absolutely convinced I would become no less than head of the department of microbiology at Harvard.” Liz admitted with a smile. “I mean, I kept a journal when I was younger and I used to tell stories to our friends’ children. When we got Isaiah, I needed something he could focus on because of… his circumstances. I just… Max found me a blank book and I filled up. He drew the pictures and Isaiah always has to know just where the book is. When I realized just how much he loved it, I would think, I could do it again but there was hardly any opportunity to do so.”
“Until now.”
“Right, until now.”
“So, Max, what are you going to do?”
Max looked up from cutting Isaiah’s dinner into near miniscule pieces. “Oh, I’m working for our landlord for now. Doing maintenance and that sort of thing until I can find something better. This way I can be home with the kids while Liz will be off working things out with the publishing agent.”
“Keeping them out of my hair while I write.” Liz flipped her hair over her shoulder. “I can’t believe today went so well.”
“It doesn’t always go so well. Your book is very good and should be published but… to tell the truth if Mr. Langley hadn’t vouched for you, it could be years before you would have seen that book published. He took the time to introduce you and so they took the time to look it over. Sometimes that’s just the way it works. He’s an important man and his name opens doors in this city.”
“Mom.” Darin sighed.
“What?”
“You just met him three weeks ago. You really don’t know Kal.” He laughed a little. “I know Kal better than you do and I don’t know him well at all except that he’s not as funny as he thinks.”
“That’s pretty much all there is to know about Kal.” Max nodded to himself. “He’s really a very hateful man. He’s good if you need a favor and you have some leverage over him but he'd really rather not help anyone but himself.”
“I’m sure that’s not true.” Susan shook her head.
“Mom, he picked up one of Rik’s friends to take care of Max’s mother because he didn’t want to and to provide an extra target if someone were to take a shot at the heir to Antar… to lessen the odds of someone actually killing one of us.” Darin exclaimed as he polished off his dinner. “The only reason he even really helped at all was because Max ordered him to.”
“You’re kidding.” She turned to Liz.
“He’s a crotchety old fellow but he comes through when you need him.” She agreed with Darin and Max.
“And how old?”
“Oh, we have no clue. At the very least he’s… 70 but we don’t know how old he was when he arrived on Earth.” Liz sighed a little. “He’s like the in-law uncle that I never wanted.”
“Daddy, my hands.”
TBC
Last edited by DMartinez on Mon Jan 09, 2006 5:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.