tequathisy
mary mary
L-J-L 76
destinyc
nibbles2
keepsmiling7
Chapter 10
Things back in the States were moving, but there wasn’t much joy in the people who were associated with the aliens. Well, maybe, Kyle was happier. Serena had moved in with him. He, finally, was able to return to school. He visited with the Evans family at least once a week. So far, he had never brought Serena around to meet them. Jim was slowing down even more. His joints were in pain every time he moved. Kyle stopped to see his father several times a week.
Every time Kyle went to see the Evans family, they always talked about what happened. They had had their house rebuilt. The builders were curious as to what had happened to it. There were several walls that had to be taken out. Something had destroyed the structure and the walls no longer had any strength. Jesse called once a week to let the Evans know what little news he had. He reported that the church had sent a second doctor to assist Max in the clinic up river from the mission. Every time he inquired about Isabel, Max always answered the same way. “Jesse, we do not have any direct information about her, but the natives keep saying to not give up hope. I know that it seems that you just got her back from the time we ran from the FBI and now, she is taken, again. You will have to make your own decision as I have to do with the curse that has been given to Liz.” Max always sighed the letter, “Your Brother-in-Law, Max.”
Diane Evans had lost all her children and now, it seemed like she had also, lost her hope for grandchildren. Kyle coming to see her every week was looking like he was now the remaining person in her family. Diane knew of the problems Jim Valenti was in physically. She knew that since Amy had died, Jim just seemed to quit living. “Kyle, how important is Serena Troy to you?” Diane asked almost out of the blue.
Kyle hadn’t been thinking about that, but Diane questions made him consider. “She is getting to be pretty important. She helped me through the time when I was hurt and is now staying with me,” he answered.
“Well if she is to be part of your family don’t you think you should tell her the secret. It isn’t as if people knowing our secret will bring anything more down on my children. If you are with Serena, you should start bringing her over to the house.
Now, Kyle had a big problem. He knew that Serena had been curious. Kyle had been careful to notice if she was going with him to satisfy curiosity or did Serena have a thing for him as he was getting for her. One night as they lay together in bed, “Serena, you have asked questions that I couldn’t answer. If you want to talk about them, now, I can tell you a little.”
Serena propped herself by her elbow and stared at Kyle. “What made you change your mind?” she asked.
Kyle replied, “Most of the secret is not mine to give. I was given permission that if I had feelings for you, to include you in what has been happening since high school and even before.”
“Whose secret is it, anyway?” Serena inquired.
“It is a secret that belongs to several of us, but originally, it was a secret of the Evans family,” Kyle stated.
Kyle started as if telling a story. “Once there were four children. They were left, without parents, to just grow up the best way they could. They were hidden in Roswell.
When he got to Tess in high school. Serena stated, “Yes, my sister talked about her. She was known as being pretty fast with the boys. Pam said that she never could find a boy who had really slept with her but she had that reputation.”
Kyle made a face, “Well, she stayed with us for a long time and she never slept with me. I liked her, but she had an obsession with Max Evans. She murdered, Alex Whitman though she said it was an accident.”
Serena interrupted, “Hey, I remembered him. He was that real smart kid who organized a band. Yea, my sister always talked about him. She didn’t like him very much, but then, Pam didn’t like anyone.”
Kyle smiled, “If you keep interrupting, it will be tomorrow and we will have to go to work and I still won’t have finished the story.” He turned a little to get comfortable. Then, he continued. “Tess left. She claimed she was pregnant with Max Evans’ baby.” Serena started to say something and Kyle placed his finger against her lips. “I do not know what happened to the baby, but I am pretty sure Tess was killed somewhere. After that, Max, Liz Parker, Maria DeLuca, Isabel Evans now Ramirez, Michael Guerin and myself went on a road trip. You see, the FBI wanted to investigate us. It took a while to settle with them and get free. Now, someone has kidnapped Isabel, and something has happened to Liz and we are, again, up to our necks in trouble.”
Serena, sensing a stop, said, “What made your group be of interest to the FBI?”
Kyle looked at Serena, “You see, Max, Isabel and Michael are aliens. They look just like humans, but they can do strange things.”
Kyle wasn’t sure what Serena was expecting, but this wasn’t it. She said nothing. She just looked at him. “The man who kidnapped Isabel was an alien and he tried to kill me with alien powers. I have been healed before by alien powers so they do not have that much effect on me. Max was near by and he started the healing process immediately,” Kyle told her.
“Does that mean you are now part alien?” she asked.
Kyle had to laugh, “Maybe, just a little bit. It seems that when we are healed, they put some of themselves into us. Max knew he was going to go after Isabel so he helped me to learn to heal myself.”
For once, Serena was quiet. Whatever her sister had imagined, this was much further out than anything that Serena had thought. The way Kyle talked about the aliens was so straight-forward, so true sounding.
Kyle continued after a time, “Diane Evans, Max and Isabel’s Earth mother,6 wants me to bring you over for dinner this weekend.”
“Serena did a double take, “Why me?”
“Diane said that if you were important to me, should entrust the secret to you. If you are with me she wants to include you as family,” Kyle explained.
This was a lot for Serena to consider. Her sister would give her arm to know about Max Evans. Serena laughed to herself. Why should Pam be told any of this. She had made fun of Serena when Serena announced she was moving in with Kyle. Serena had never seen anything in Pam to show concern about anyone except herself. Now, Serena had been handed partial care of the Roswell aliens. Serena leaned over and kissed Kyle, “I think I would like to be included in your family. It might be a lot nicer than mine.”
It was Sunday afternoon. Serena, of course, knew Mr. and Mrs. Evans by sight. Roswell wasn’t so big that two important lawyers wouldn’t be well known. Serena had never met them in person. She wasn’t sure what to expect. Diane Evans was a woman in her fifties, as was Philip her husband. They both had degrees, but Diane hadn’t practiced law for years. Now Philip had taken on the position of being a consultant. His experience was more valuable than any skill he had shown in practice. They both talked about their son-in-law who practiced law back east. He was married to their daughter, Isabel.
The talk that afternoon was about Kyle’s father, Jim. Both the Evans were concerned about his health. Kyle, again, said that since Amy had died, his father just didn’t have any interest in anything.
Kyle finally turned to Philip, “Any word from Max?”
Philip put down his glass of iced tea, “No, Jesse heard that they were making headway at finding Kivar, but Max said nothing about Isabel. Jesse did say that Max said a little more about Liz. Apparently, she has caught something and they won’t be able to come home for a while.”
Serena wondered at the candor of the conversation. “Aren’t you very worried about Max and Isabel? I think my father would have the government officials both in the States and in Brazil working overtime.”
Diane smiled, “True, if this had been a human-caused problem. As it is, the less either government pays attention to them, the better chance Max and Isabel have of getting out.”
Then, Philip sadly said, “That is, if Isabel is still alive. Max was talking about there being some difficulty understanding what happened to her. There is also that problem with Liz. Max is very unclear about that.”
The dinner and after dinner conversation went like that. They told Serena a lot about the group as individuals. But of the present actions of any of those in South America, they didn’t know much so they told her they just hoped for something good.
When Kyle and Serena got back to his apartment, she turned to him, “And you mean to tell me that all of this was happening while you were in high school?”
Kyle looked at Serena, “Yeah, and we even got through school and made passing grades.”
Serena was shaking her head, “I remember Pam always talking about your secrets. She was sure you were all dealing in drugs.”
“There were a few times when I wish it had only been drugs. Some of those aliens surely play rough. Like this time when I go to the door and Wham!! I am flat on my back watching smoke rise off my chest. That Kivar fellow was a mean one.”
Why did he follow Max, Isabel and Michael all the way to Earth?” Serena asked.
“Well, he had a thing for the girl, Vilandra, who gave her DNA to make Isabel. Of course he also killed Vilandra. Then, he was mad because his sister didn’t marry Max. He was looking for power. He thinks the power will be there for him if he controls the three from Roswell.”
Serena had a thought. She found it very disturbing. “Are there more of these creatures around? I mean, can I expect to be fighting aliens any day with you?”
Kyle sort of laughed, well he expected it. He was a Jonah, a person who was expected to attract trouble. Oh well, it had been fun while it lasted. Kyle was used to losing to the alien invasion. He sat down on a kitchen chair. “Well, when do you want to move out?” he asked.
“Move out! Why?” Serena inquired.
“Well you see how dangerous it is around me. I would imagine you would want to move out. I wouldn’t want to stay someplace where I was told it was going to be dangerous,” Kyle stated.
“But, you have always stayed, even though, you knew there was danger. Why do you think I would be any different? Don’t you dare go holding something of my sister over me,” Serena stated.
Serena sat in Kyle’s lap and took his head in both her hands. “I am in this for the long haul. Don’t you think that if I am with you, I need to know as much as possible so I can protect myself?”
Kyle hadn’t believed things would end like this in his wildest imagination.
---------------------
Special Unit different from canon but follows some of the events of the series.
Curse of the Cat (CC,MATURE) COMPLETE - 7/12/09
Moderators: Anniepoo98, Rowedog, ISLANDGIRL5, Itzstacie, truelovepooh, FSU/MSW-94, Forum Moderators
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 6 ch 9 Feb 8 2009
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 7 ch 10 Feb 16 2009
paper
destinyc
mary mary
keepsmiling7
Chapter 11
When Liz had changed and Max had cleaned her up, the Indians opened the cage. Charlie walked down the path. He spoke to everyone he met. Max saw that Charlie was taking to heart what Max had said about learning from all around him. Charlie had already learned many words in the language of the villagers.
Entering the cage, Charlie began to clear things away and prepare for the morning patients. Max and Liz had also cleared the breakfast dishes away and were waiting. It was strange. Usually as soon as the cage was cleared the villagers brought in those who had come from afar. Today, there was no one waiting.
There was a commotion from the edge of the village. Several of the villagers were lifting a long box and carrying it on their shoulders. From the side, it appeared to be a coffin. They brought the box into the cage and placed it on the table where Max and Charlie usually sat their patients as they were treating them.
The men surrounding the box pulled some pegs and the cedar box fell open. Liz ran to the side of the cage. She was vomiting. Max was white as his blood retreated from his face. Charlie was just shocked. Inside the box was the body of a woman. She was covered with blood. Her throat had been ripped out and her chest laid bare. There on the table was the body of Isabel.
Isabel had been killed almost a year ago. Maybe, it had been longer. Max couldn’t think clearly. Max reached out and touched her. He couldn’t help himself. Blood which should have been dried and the body, which should have been putrefying, causing stench that would cover the whole village, had the appearance of something that had happened just a few minutes ago.
Charlie was shocked, but not knowing that this was Max’s sister, he didn’t yet understand the effect this had on Max. Charlie had seen death many times. He was sure that Max had done likewise. Max sat down, his legs weak, his mind blank. All that he had ever learned, both as an alien and in medical school, left him. Max sat as one who knew nothing. It was Charlie who prepared to clean the body and check for signs of life. In the chest cavity there were leaves and mold, things that Charlie believed would bring infection to the body if it was alive.
Maria and Michael heard the noise outside. They quickly came into the cage. Maria saw Liz retching at the side of the cage so she quickly went to her. Michael walked up to the table, which was surrounded by villagers, the missing shaman and the two doctors. Michael should have known something was different this day. For the first time since he had come to live with them, Esteban hadn’t fixed the morning coffee. When they got up Esteban was nowhere to be seen.
As Michael walked up to the table, Max stood and turned to him. Max placed his hand against Michael’s chest to warn him not to advance. Michael was one who never allowed himself to be intimidated or limited by any one, just brushed the hand aside. When he stepped up to the table, the shock that they were trying to protect Michael from seeing, set in. Michael thought of Isabel as his sister, just the same as Max did. They were told that the ones who had given DNA to both Michael and Isabel had been lovers or, at least were in a legal relationship. Michael wasn’t viewing Isabel dead, he was seeing her ripped and torn lying on the table with the blood still fresh. This wasn’t the prepared body that a person rememberes as the body is readied for burial, but it was a body freshly pulled, from where no one knew, and viewed as one entering an emergency room.
There was further commotion when Esteban entered the group. He was dressed in a Jaguar skin. No one had seen this on him before. All the Indians made way for him, including the other shaman. Esteban was carrying a white doeskin bag. It had been so carefully tanned that it looked like it was made from velvet. He held the bag aloft. The Indians all called out some yell. They raised their hands and chanted something. Carlos couldn’t understand any of it. Estaben lifted the bag and said in perfect English, “The false god is here.” He turned so everyone could see the bag. Then, he repeated the same statement or at least Michael believed it was the same, in Spanish.
Esteban plunged his hand into the bag and withdrew the shrunken head. It was about the size of a large lemon. The skin had been held over a smoky fire so much that it was black. The lips were tightly tied to prevent the spirit from speaking and so were the eyes, to keep the spirit from seeing who was holding it. The identifying marks were the golden curls of hair that sprung from the head.
This was the head of the Prince of Antar, the head of Kivar. Maria breathed, “He is now dead, dead, dead.”
Esteban turned so swiftly that it surprised every one. “No, he may be dead, dead, but he is not gone forever.” It seamed that the more deads you put with the description, the closer it came to what the gone forever was.
Esteban grabbed Max’s arm and pushed him toward the body of Isabel. He, also, grabbed the surprised Charlie and pushed him also. When the two doctors looked at the body, they could see the bright flowing red blood. Esteban handed Charlie a swab and antiseptic he pointed to the opened body. Then, the shaman grabbed Max’s hands. He held them out over Isabel’s body and frowning at Max, he shook the shrunken head over his hands. Max’s hands started to glow. Charlie stepped back as he saw the phenomenon. “No, get back to work,” were the sharp words of the old Indian.
Isabel’s eyes fluttered open. This time Esteban was prepared for the young doctor. He held Charlie so he couldn’t move. Esteban held on until Charlie went back to what he was told to do.
As soon as Isabel’s eyes were opened, even though they looked glazed, Max bent to look into them. As Max bent his head, the shaman shook the remaining relic of Kivar over their heads. Max saw into Isabel, through her eyes. The last thing Isabel knew was the attack of the cat. Max also saw that she was silently cursing Kivar for making her fight against Liz.
Max had two young men who were studying to be shaman, but had requested to be trained, also, by Max in the ways of progress. “Rico, José, bring more antiseptic solution,” Max called.
Charlie now called out, “Rico start an intravenous line with that saline solution over there on the shelf.”
Rico ran to comply and he quickly had a line into Isabel’s arm. Charlie thought that if this wasn’t so impossible, it would make the talk shows and conventions for the rest of his life. Two trained doctors working on a lady who was lacerated by a big cat, almost a year ago. Their assistants who would, tomorrow, use native poultices and herbs, were standing by. Maybe, they would use a little witchcraft along the way. All along, the chief shaman, a possible Brujo or witch, was swinging a freshly-cured, shrunken head.
Max put his hand on the freshly stitched chest of Isabel. The chest started to heal and also, started to heave as a labored breathing started up. Isabel coughed and spit. There was a terrible taste in her mouth. Max turned her on her side. Even with the pain she must be in from her freshly sutured chest, she heaved and up came a dark foul-smelling fluid. One of the shaman quickly ran to clean this up. Apparently, they were expecting all that was happening.
Now for Max, it was what he always did best. Follow the wounds, clean the old blood and repair. Charlie made sure the saline solution kept running. Charlie was the only one surprised. Everyone else expected just what was happening. Soon, Isabel was breathing on her own. She was terribly weak and she still could have a relapse.
As soon as Max had done all he could, Isabel, under the care of Charlie along with the helpers, Rico and José, took her to a place outside of he cage. Esteban ushered everyone out of the cage. Bringing Isabel back to life had taken almost the whole day. It was getting on toward evening. Liz would soon face her challenge.
Max was surprised when Esteban locked himself inside the cage along with Max and Liz. They took Liz into the small house. She was in Max’s arms. As Max looked out the door and saw the last rays of sunlight fading away, Esteban was standing in front of Max. Liz convulsed several times as she lay in Max’s embrace. Her hands were bleeding, but as the old brujo chanted the convulsions subsided. As the sun set, and Esteban was swinging the head above them, Max was left holding his bride. Holding the woman, Liz, as night came for the first time in more than a year.
The next morning, Maria learned that she no more could count on the coffee of Esteban. From now on, he would remain close to Liz and Max. He was satisfied that the spell had been broken, but he wanted to be there to help if any strange feelings returned to her.
Isabel woke up. She was in a hut that she had never seen before. She was surrounded by four Indians who were all wearing very little more than cord breechclouts. Her chest hurt so badly that she began to cry with every breath. She was naked, lying on a bed made out of poles with a woven mattress to support her. Isabel couldn’t help it. She looked down at her chest. There were red welts showing stitching marks all across her chest. As she was concentrating on her pain, she also found that her throat was raw. Every breath was a labor from the time it entered her mouth and nose as it circulated through her tortured lungs and again, as it was exhaled.
The pain was so bad that Isabel held her breath. The act of not breathing brought relief, but one of the Indian men said something. Then, he poked Isabel’s naked stomach with a bony finger. The surprise of feeling the strange hand on her naked body made Isabel convulse slightly and she resumed her breathing. Now that she could think about it, Isabel was disturbed. She was lying on a very sparse bed, totally naked, in the presence of four primitive men. There were candles all around her. They were not the usual candles. These were badly smoking. The smoke was very aromatic. The smoke made her cough and sneeze. Each cough brought up sputum and each sneeze blew out mucus which the men quickly wiped away with some sort of dampen cloth. She could smell the dampness when they cleaned her. The room was filled with a sweet smell that made her head spin.
Being naked in the presence of these strange men bothered Isabel. She could hardly move her limbs so there was nothing she could do about it. Isabel had always been vain about her body. Growing up, she flaunted her body to make the boys go wild. When she met Alex, he convinced her that her beautiful body was not a weapon to be flaunted, but an offering prepared for some lucky man who she would allow to fully explore as a gift. Isabel hadn’t been able to carry this through since Tess killed Alex just too soon. Tess didn’t have anything against Alex or against Isabel. Alex was just a tool to Tess and one she dulled until it broke.
Isabel shuddered, by the looks of her body, bikinis would be out for the future. Her chest was covered in the red welts. She couldn’t imagine what her throat looked like. A village woman came in carrying a bark bowl. The bowl was filled with some steaming liquid. One of the men took the bowl from the woman and the woman quickly left. The man brought the bowl to Isabel’s body and all the men stood up. They each had a scrap of some sort of material and they began to dip the material into the liquid. Now Isabel had four strange men bathing her body. The liquid gave off a strong smell and soon, Isabel just faded away into sleep. Now that she couldn’t fight it, the aroma of the hut made her breathing deeper and more steady. The men turned her over and rubbed the aromatic liquid into her backside. When they had finally coated her entire body they returned her to her face up position and covered her with leaves. The leaves were freshly picked. They stuck to her still slightly wet body and her sleep deepened.
It was three days before the shaman brought Max in to see Isabel. They scrapped the leaves off her body and Max felt a twinge of sibling shame gazing on his sister. Quickly, that was replaced with his feelings as a doctor. Esteban entered and, taking Max’s hands, he held them over Isabel. Esteban gently slapped Isabel to awaken her. When her eyes opened, Max quickly looked into them and again, began to make repairs on her body. Repairing an alien body was a lot easier than it had been when he healed the bullet in Liz. Alien bodies were made for this. There was no resistance.
With Esteban shaking the shrunken head of Kivar over Max and Isabel, Max was able to work on the external scars. Max, also, was looking for things that were causing Isabel pain as she breathed. Isabel became more than just awake. She became aware of her nakedness and was trying to tell Max. She couldn’t speak yet, but Esteban understood her and he gave Max a felted bark cloth cloak to spread over her.
As soon as Max left, a woman came into the hut and began to spoon a broth into Isabel. Isabel fought it for a brief time and then, she just lay listless. When they spooned the broth, she just opened her mouth and swallowed. Soon, the shaman bathed again her body in the slightly sticky liquid and covered her with leaves. Isabel was again fast asleep.
Liz and Maria were talking. Except for the few brief times he visited Isabel Esteban was always close to Liz. It bothered Max that Esteban always carried the poisoned darts in their cane case, even without his blow gun when he was in Liz’s presence. Max knew that Esteban was taking no chance with Liz reverting. One prick of those darts, and Liz would slip into a gentle sleep from which she would never recover.
One day when Liz was entertaining Maria, Max and Carlos were sitting in the shade, Esteban began talking. It was difficult, but with Esteban’s bad English and Max’s equally bad Spanish with Carlos trying to figure out what each was saying, Max learned of the curse his wife was still under.
“Señor, if the cat comes back, there will be nothing I can do. You must be with her every night because that is when the call of the cat will be strongest. If the cat breaks free and returns, she will become a vicious and a true killer. As long as we keep the soul of Kivar imprisoned within the head, I think we can keep the cat away,” Esteban informed Max.
“Does that mean we can never return home?” Max asked.
“No, I do not think it means that. I think there will be a time when both your sister and your wife will do better at home. You must arrange that I always be close. I am the keeper of the head,” Esteban said.
“Won’t you be sorry to leave the jungle?” Max asked again,
“No, I will be sorry only if I leave…” Estaben said a word that Carlos didn’t understand.
Carlos and Esteban chatted for several minutes as Carlos was trying to understand. Finally, Carlos turned to Max, “As far as I can make out, he is trying to say his life’s purpose or sort of like his vocation, but I think it means something stronger than that.”
Max looked at Carlos, “Maybe, his reason to be?” he asked.
“Yes, that is closer than anything I could think of. His reason to be,” Carlos responded.
Max shrugged. He would have to get word to Jesse. How do you get a native shaman and his shrunken head through customs even when you get him a visa? Max turned to Carlos, “What will you do when we go back, Carlos?”
Carlos smiled, “First, go buy some more songs sung by Maria. I will fill up my ipod and when I listen to them, I will think of the huntress who chopped off the head of the evil jaguar god.”
At this, Max had to laugh. He wasn’t sure how Maria would take this. But, he imagined, the practical side of Maria would say, “Anything that sells records, babe, anything that sells records.”
Liz was explaining to Maria, “Esteban says that I can return home soon. He says that it will be good for both of us, Isabel and myself, to be back where we know people.”
“Have you talked to Isabel, yet?” Maria asked.
Liz’s gaze dropped to her hands in her lap. “I just keep wondering if she will be willing to see me? After all, I did do terrible damage to her when I was a cat.” Liz whispered.
“Chica, Isabel was under a spell, herself. Both of you must come to an understanding.” Maria stated.
“Max says she can’t see anyone yet. She is still recovering form what I did to her and the long time she was laid up before she was healed.” Liz said.
Maria frowned, “You are going to have to quit saying what you did to her. You are no more responsible for what the cat did, than she would have been, if she had hurt you. Neither of you were under your own control.”
Max got a message out to Jesse. He knew that Jesse would want to see Isabel immediately, but Max cautioned that they needed to find a way to get Esteban and the head out and into the United States. They were taking care of Isabel, but Max couldn’t insist strongly enough that getting Esteban back to the states at the same time as the two women was imperative.
Max did convince Jesse to send complete sets of clothing for both Isabel and Liz, shorts, slacks, shirts and underwear not to mention shoes. Liz hadn’t been able to wear any of these for over a year. By the time the clothes arrived, Isabel was able to sit up and no longer had to undergo the indignity of the sticky baths and burial in leaves. Maria was the first to visit Isabel.
“How do you feel? You are like a Lazarus raised up from the dead.” Maria stated.
Isabel shook her head. “Esteban and Carlos insist that I was not dead and gone for ever. They say I was just preserved until they had the means to heal me and bring me back.”
“How do you feel about me killing Kivar or whatever I did to him? I am confused as to what he held over you,” Maria said.
Isabel looked down, “One part of me hates that you took my lord away from me, but I imagine that this part is a residual of the spell Kivar held me with. The other part is delighted that you freed me to return to Jesse and the rest of you.”
“What do you remember of Liz?” Maria asked. That was the reason for most of her visit to Isabel.
Isabel shook her head, “Maria, I remember very little after I put the desert down on the dining room table and went in the living room intending to answer the door. Somewhere, I seem to hear, ‘Liz, you were a friend to all of us,’ but none of that is very clear.”
“Are you willing to see Liz?” Maria asked simply.
“Is Liz here? I guess, I imagined that you, Max and Michael were the only ones from home here,” Isabel said. Then, she continued, “Where is Liz? Why hasn’t she been by to see me?” Isabel was now full of questions.
“Kivar hurt Liz almost as badly as you were hurt. Maybe even more since she is able to recall many of the things that were done to her,” Maria stated. Maria left because Isabel was becoming tired. She had achieved what she wanted. Liz and Isabel did not have clear ideas of what went on between them, but they needed to clear the air and come to understandings.
As Isabel dressed this morning, she noticed the scars on her chest were disappearing. She knew that Max came by every day. Though he was a bit embarrassed seeing his sister half naked, he had worked on her body. Isabel had no idea what her throat looked like, but it felt better and when she touched it with her hand, the welts she felt at first, seemed to be disappearing. When Max came by, Isabel asked, “When can I see Liz? I did not know she was here.”
Max hesitated, “Liz has been under a stress. If you see her, you must promise not to increase the stress. I am not sure she can take that.”
Isabel frowned. She had assumed she was the only one who had been hurt. “Max what happened to Liz?”
Max sat and twiddled with his medical bag. “Liz was cursed by Kivar and she was changed into a cat. The natives were able to bring her to me quickly and we were able to control the curse. Until Kivar was dispatched, she had to live in a cage. Of course, I stayed with her the whole time.”
Isabel was now pleading with Max. “Why did Kivar take me? What possible use did he have of me?”
“Isabel, we do not know. Probably, it was for revenge. There is more than a passing resemblance between Kivar and Tess. Maybe, she really was his sister,” Max explained. “Maybe, he was angry that I did not marry her. Maybe, he was angry that the heir was human and he did not have a little alien about him.
It was afternoon when Max led Isabel to the hut where he and Liz lived. The first thing Isabel saw was that Esteban stayed very close to Liz. Liz stood, but remained where she was leaving the first move to Isabel. Isabel held out her arms, but she still had to walk to where Liz stood. Isabel took Liz in her arms in embrace. “I wasn’t sure you would want to see me, Isabel,” Liz said.
“Why wouldn’t I want to see the wife of my brother? She asked.
“Isabel, how much do you remember of the last two years?” Liz asked.
Isabel shook her head, “Very little.”
“Do you remember anything you were doing with Kivar?” Liz inquired.
Again, Isabel just shook her head.
“Kivar was turning the villagers into killer beasts, some sort of panthers or jaguars. The cursed people were killing the other villagers,” Liz stated.
“And, I was doing that?” inquired Isabel.
“No, not consciously. As far as we can tell, you were just keeping company with him. You were using your powers because the villagers said that your eyes were black.” Liz explained. “He probably was tapping into your power to do these things.
Isabel still had a frown, “There is something else. I need to know what it was.”
Liz looked down. She wondered why she would do this? Was she afraid to meet the eyes of Isabel or did she fear the scorn and anger she might find there? “Kivar turned me into a cat and was holding me when I slashed him with my claws.”
Isabel was thoughtful, “All right, what else happened?”
Liz, in a voice so low you could almost not hear it, “I also slashed at you. I am responsible for your wounds that should have killed you.”
This time, Isabel frowned. She stood, turned, and walked out. Liz sunk back into her chair and sobbed. Max and Esteban were trying to comfort her.
Isabel went to her hut. She sat down and was thinking. She couldn’t decide if she was angry at Liz or what. Isabel unbuttoned her blouse and examined her chest; what she could see of it. The scars and welts were disappearing, thanks to the ability of her brother. Why would Liz strike out at her?
Isabel heard a noise and clutching her opened blouse, she turned. Maria was standing in the door of the hut. Maria walked to Isabel and taking the blouse out of Izzy’s hands, she opened it and looked up and down at Isabel’s bare chest. “The wounds are getting better. Max says that Esteban told him that you probably won’t have a scar at all. Liz, on the other hand, is terribly scared. Her scars are all inside. Kivar, using your power to help him, was changing villagers into cats and allowing them to attack other villagers.”
“Isabel, I shot over 20 big cats, jaguars or panthers, which all had something about them, a mark or jewelry that said they used to be people of the villages,” Maria continued. “I shot them because they were killing others. Once we found a cat that had killed some children. When we examined the body of the cat, it wore a necklace that had belonged to the mother of the dead children.”
“For a year, Liz had to live as a cat at night and a woman in the day. For a year, she lived in fear that she would kill Max some night when she had no control. Izzy, she had no control, just like you didn’t have any control when Kivar used your power to help him. Kivar wanted you to help transform Liz, but Liz has memories that you refused. That is probably why Liz was only a cat at night and not the whole time. When the cat slashed you, Liz had no control. That is also when Kivar abandoned you and the natives were able to preserve your body. Don’t ask me how they did that. They had to wait until I killed Kivar, first shooting him and then, finally hacking off his head with a machete,” Maria explained.
Isabel just sat there. “Why did Liz come?” she asked.
“Because Liz was able to set up the friendships with the villagers. She was able to convince Max to listen to everything they said. That is how we tracked you down.” Maria was trying to convince Isabel what Liz had done for everyone. Liz lost even more than Isabel, in a way. Liz’s scars were all inside and you couldn’t tell if they could be repaired. Maria had done all she could. She left to seek out Michael. If this destroyed Liz, Maria didn’t know what she would do.
It was more than an hour when Isabel got her courage up enough to return to the Hut where Max and Liz lived. As she entered, Max started to stop her, but Esteban caught his arm. Pointing to the door, he led Max out of the hut. Liz was lying on her bed sobbing. Esteban had told Max that this might be bad. If she kept this up until night fall, Liz might fall again, into the world of the cat.
“Liz,” Isabel called softly. Liz looked up her face was streamed with tears.
“Liz, I am sorry. We were both abused, by Kivar. Both of us have scars that are going to be difficult to heal. I guess we both owe Maria a lot. Who would have thought that the singer, DeLuca, would become a big game huntress and save her friends?” Isabel sat beside Liz. “Liz we have to be friends. How else can we plan out Max’s life for him, if we aren’t?”
Liz’s fingers were tracing the faint scars on Isabel’s throat. “I just feel so bad that I did that to you.”
Isabel said, “Maybe, I should say I am so sorry that knowing aliens did this to you, also. We have come a long way together and we still have a long way to go.”
Esteban nodded, then he and Max went back into the hut. Now, all they had to do was wait out Jesse.
Charlie helped them move back to the main mission. The two men, José and Rico, who they had trained, would stay and maintain an emergency clinic. They could take care of simple medical problems. They always had the training of the curendaro or the witchcraft of the brujo, to fall back on, if things got out of hand. They could always call on the men from the west, men from the forest of Equidor, who made big problems small. They shrunk the problems down to the size where they could be carried around in a pouch.
destinyc
mary mary
keepsmiling7
Chapter 11
When Liz had changed and Max had cleaned her up, the Indians opened the cage. Charlie walked down the path. He spoke to everyone he met. Max saw that Charlie was taking to heart what Max had said about learning from all around him. Charlie had already learned many words in the language of the villagers.
Entering the cage, Charlie began to clear things away and prepare for the morning patients. Max and Liz had also cleared the breakfast dishes away and were waiting. It was strange. Usually as soon as the cage was cleared the villagers brought in those who had come from afar. Today, there was no one waiting.
There was a commotion from the edge of the village. Several of the villagers were lifting a long box and carrying it on their shoulders. From the side, it appeared to be a coffin. They brought the box into the cage and placed it on the table where Max and Charlie usually sat their patients as they were treating them.
The men surrounding the box pulled some pegs and the cedar box fell open. Liz ran to the side of the cage. She was vomiting. Max was white as his blood retreated from his face. Charlie was just shocked. Inside the box was the body of a woman. She was covered with blood. Her throat had been ripped out and her chest laid bare. There on the table was the body of Isabel.
Isabel had been killed almost a year ago. Maybe, it had been longer. Max couldn’t think clearly. Max reached out and touched her. He couldn’t help himself. Blood which should have been dried and the body, which should have been putrefying, causing stench that would cover the whole village, had the appearance of something that had happened just a few minutes ago.
Charlie was shocked, but not knowing that this was Max’s sister, he didn’t yet understand the effect this had on Max. Charlie had seen death many times. He was sure that Max had done likewise. Max sat down, his legs weak, his mind blank. All that he had ever learned, both as an alien and in medical school, left him. Max sat as one who knew nothing. It was Charlie who prepared to clean the body and check for signs of life. In the chest cavity there were leaves and mold, things that Charlie believed would bring infection to the body if it was alive.
Maria and Michael heard the noise outside. They quickly came into the cage. Maria saw Liz retching at the side of the cage so she quickly went to her. Michael walked up to the table, which was surrounded by villagers, the missing shaman and the two doctors. Michael should have known something was different this day. For the first time since he had come to live with them, Esteban hadn’t fixed the morning coffee. When they got up Esteban was nowhere to be seen.
As Michael walked up to the table, Max stood and turned to him. Max placed his hand against Michael’s chest to warn him not to advance. Michael was one who never allowed himself to be intimidated or limited by any one, just brushed the hand aside. When he stepped up to the table, the shock that they were trying to protect Michael from seeing, set in. Michael thought of Isabel as his sister, just the same as Max did. They were told that the ones who had given DNA to both Michael and Isabel had been lovers or, at least were in a legal relationship. Michael wasn’t viewing Isabel dead, he was seeing her ripped and torn lying on the table with the blood still fresh. This wasn’t the prepared body that a person rememberes as the body is readied for burial, but it was a body freshly pulled, from where no one knew, and viewed as one entering an emergency room.
There was further commotion when Esteban entered the group. He was dressed in a Jaguar skin. No one had seen this on him before. All the Indians made way for him, including the other shaman. Esteban was carrying a white doeskin bag. It had been so carefully tanned that it looked like it was made from velvet. He held the bag aloft. The Indians all called out some yell. They raised their hands and chanted something. Carlos couldn’t understand any of it. Estaben lifted the bag and said in perfect English, “The false god is here.” He turned so everyone could see the bag. Then, he repeated the same statement or at least Michael believed it was the same, in Spanish.
Esteban plunged his hand into the bag and withdrew the shrunken head. It was about the size of a large lemon. The skin had been held over a smoky fire so much that it was black. The lips were tightly tied to prevent the spirit from speaking and so were the eyes, to keep the spirit from seeing who was holding it. The identifying marks were the golden curls of hair that sprung from the head.
This was the head of the Prince of Antar, the head of Kivar. Maria breathed, “He is now dead, dead, dead.”
Esteban turned so swiftly that it surprised every one. “No, he may be dead, dead, but he is not gone forever.” It seamed that the more deads you put with the description, the closer it came to what the gone forever was.
Esteban grabbed Max’s arm and pushed him toward the body of Isabel. He, also, grabbed the surprised Charlie and pushed him also. When the two doctors looked at the body, they could see the bright flowing red blood. Esteban handed Charlie a swab and antiseptic he pointed to the opened body. Then, the shaman grabbed Max’s hands. He held them out over Isabel’s body and frowning at Max, he shook the shrunken head over his hands. Max’s hands started to glow. Charlie stepped back as he saw the phenomenon. “No, get back to work,” were the sharp words of the old Indian.
Isabel’s eyes fluttered open. This time Esteban was prepared for the young doctor. He held Charlie so he couldn’t move. Esteban held on until Charlie went back to what he was told to do.
As soon as Isabel’s eyes were opened, even though they looked glazed, Max bent to look into them. As Max bent his head, the shaman shook the remaining relic of Kivar over their heads. Max saw into Isabel, through her eyes. The last thing Isabel knew was the attack of the cat. Max also saw that she was silently cursing Kivar for making her fight against Liz.
Max had two young men who were studying to be shaman, but had requested to be trained, also, by Max in the ways of progress. “Rico, José, bring more antiseptic solution,” Max called.
Charlie now called out, “Rico start an intravenous line with that saline solution over there on the shelf.”
Rico ran to comply and he quickly had a line into Isabel’s arm. Charlie thought that if this wasn’t so impossible, it would make the talk shows and conventions for the rest of his life. Two trained doctors working on a lady who was lacerated by a big cat, almost a year ago. Their assistants who would, tomorrow, use native poultices and herbs, were standing by. Maybe, they would use a little witchcraft along the way. All along, the chief shaman, a possible Brujo or witch, was swinging a freshly-cured, shrunken head.
Max put his hand on the freshly stitched chest of Isabel. The chest started to heal and also, started to heave as a labored breathing started up. Isabel coughed and spit. There was a terrible taste in her mouth. Max turned her on her side. Even with the pain she must be in from her freshly sutured chest, she heaved and up came a dark foul-smelling fluid. One of the shaman quickly ran to clean this up. Apparently, they were expecting all that was happening.
Now for Max, it was what he always did best. Follow the wounds, clean the old blood and repair. Charlie made sure the saline solution kept running. Charlie was the only one surprised. Everyone else expected just what was happening. Soon, Isabel was breathing on her own. She was terribly weak and she still could have a relapse.
As soon as Max had done all he could, Isabel, under the care of Charlie along with the helpers, Rico and José, took her to a place outside of he cage. Esteban ushered everyone out of the cage. Bringing Isabel back to life had taken almost the whole day. It was getting on toward evening. Liz would soon face her challenge.
Max was surprised when Esteban locked himself inside the cage along with Max and Liz. They took Liz into the small house. She was in Max’s arms. As Max looked out the door and saw the last rays of sunlight fading away, Esteban was standing in front of Max. Liz convulsed several times as she lay in Max’s embrace. Her hands were bleeding, but as the old brujo chanted the convulsions subsided. As the sun set, and Esteban was swinging the head above them, Max was left holding his bride. Holding the woman, Liz, as night came for the first time in more than a year.
The next morning, Maria learned that she no more could count on the coffee of Esteban. From now on, he would remain close to Liz and Max. He was satisfied that the spell had been broken, but he wanted to be there to help if any strange feelings returned to her.
Isabel woke up. She was in a hut that she had never seen before. She was surrounded by four Indians who were all wearing very little more than cord breechclouts. Her chest hurt so badly that she began to cry with every breath. She was naked, lying on a bed made out of poles with a woven mattress to support her. Isabel couldn’t help it. She looked down at her chest. There were red welts showing stitching marks all across her chest. As she was concentrating on her pain, she also found that her throat was raw. Every breath was a labor from the time it entered her mouth and nose as it circulated through her tortured lungs and again, as it was exhaled.
The pain was so bad that Isabel held her breath. The act of not breathing brought relief, but one of the Indian men said something. Then, he poked Isabel’s naked stomach with a bony finger. The surprise of feeling the strange hand on her naked body made Isabel convulse slightly and she resumed her breathing. Now that she could think about it, Isabel was disturbed. She was lying on a very sparse bed, totally naked, in the presence of four primitive men. There were candles all around her. They were not the usual candles. These were badly smoking. The smoke was very aromatic. The smoke made her cough and sneeze. Each cough brought up sputum and each sneeze blew out mucus which the men quickly wiped away with some sort of dampen cloth. She could smell the dampness when they cleaned her. The room was filled with a sweet smell that made her head spin.
Being naked in the presence of these strange men bothered Isabel. She could hardly move her limbs so there was nothing she could do about it. Isabel had always been vain about her body. Growing up, she flaunted her body to make the boys go wild. When she met Alex, he convinced her that her beautiful body was not a weapon to be flaunted, but an offering prepared for some lucky man who she would allow to fully explore as a gift. Isabel hadn’t been able to carry this through since Tess killed Alex just too soon. Tess didn’t have anything against Alex or against Isabel. Alex was just a tool to Tess and one she dulled until it broke.
Isabel shuddered, by the looks of her body, bikinis would be out for the future. Her chest was covered in the red welts. She couldn’t imagine what her throat looked like. A village woman came in carrying a bark bowl. The bowl was filled with some steaming liquid. One of the men took the bowl from the woman and the woman quickly left. The man brought the bowl to Isabel’s body and all the men stood up. They each had a scrap of some sort of material and they began to dip the material into the liquid. Now Isabel had four strange men bathing her body. The liquid gave off a strong smell and soon, Isabel just faded away into sleep. Now that she couldn’t fight it, the aroma of the hut made her breathing deeper and more steady. The men turned her over and rubbed the aromatic liquid into her backside. When they had finally coated her entire body they returned her to her face up position and covered her with leaves. The leaves were freshly picked. They stuck to her still slightly wet body and her sleep deepened.
It was three days before the shaman brought Max in to see Isabel. They scrapped the leaves off her body and Max felt a twinge of sibling shame gazing on his sister. Quickly, that was replaced with his feelings as a doctor. Esteban entered and, taking Max’s hands, he held them over Isabel. Esteban gently slapped Isabel to awaken her. When her eyes opened, Max quickly looked into them and again, began to make repairs on her body. Repairing an alien body was a lot easier than it had been when he healed the bullet in Liz. Alien bodies were made for this. There was no resistance.
With Esteban shaking the shrunken head of Kivar over Max and Isabel, Max was able to work on the external scars. Max, also, was looking for things that were causing Isabel pain as she breathed. Isabel became more than just awake. She became aware of her nakedness and was trying to tell Max. She couldn’t speak yet, but Esteban understood her and he gave Max a felted bark cloth cloak to spread over her.
As soon as Max left, a woman came into the hut and began to spoon a broth into Isabel. Isabel fought it for a brief time and then, she just lay listless. When they spooned the broth, she just opened her mouth and swallowed. Soon, the shaman bathed again her body in the slightly sticky liquid and covered her with leaves. Isabel was again fast asleep.
Liz and Maria were talking. Except for the few brief times he visited Isabel Esteban was always close to Liz. It bothered Max that Esteban always carried the poisoned darts in their cane case, even without his blow gun when he was in Liz’s presence. Max knew that Esteban was taking no chance with Liz reverting. One prick of those darts, and Liz would slip into a gentle sleep from which she would never recover.
One day when Liz was entertaining Maria, Max and Carlos were sitting in the shade, Esteban began talking. It was difficult, but with Esteban’s bad English and Max’s equally bad Spanish with Carlos trying to figure out what each was saying, Max learned of the curse his wife was still under.
“Señor, if the cat comes back, there will be nothing I can do. You must be with her every night because that is when the call of the cat will be strongest. If the cat breaks free and returns, she will become a vicious and a true killer. As long as we keep the soul of Kivar imprisoned within the head, I think we can keep the cat away,” Esteban informed Max.
“Does that mean we can never return home?” Max asked.
“No, I do not think it means that. I think there will be a time when both your sister and your wife will do better at home. You must arrange that I always be close. I am the keeper of the head,” Esteban said.
“Won’t you be sorry to leave the jungle?” Max asked again,
“No, I will be sorry only if I leave…” Estaben said a word that Carlos didn’t understand.
Carlos and Esteban chatted for several minutes as Carlos was trying to understand. Finally, Carlos turned to Max, “As far as I can make out, he is trying to say his life’s purpose or sort of like his vocation, but I think it means something stronger than that.”
Max looked at Carlos, “Maybe, his reason to be?” he asked.
“Yes, that is closer than anything I could think of. His reason to be,” Carlos responded.
Max shrugged. He would have to get word to Jesse. How do you get a native shaman and his shrunken head through customs even when you get him a visa? Max turned to Carlos, “What will you do when we go back, Carlos?”
Carlos smiled, “First, go buy some more songs sung by Maria. I will fill up my ipod and when I listen to them, I will think of the huntress who chopped off the head of the evil jaguar god.”
At this, Max had to laugh. He wasn’t sure how Maria would take this. But, he imagined, the practical side of Maria would say, “Anything that sells records, babe, anything that sells records.”
Liz was explaining to Maria, “Esteban says that I can return home soon. He says that it will be good for both of us, Isabel and myself, to be back where we know people.”
“Have you talked to Isabel, yet?” Maria asked.
Liz’s gaze dropped to her hands in her lap. “I just keep wondering if she will be willing to see me? After all, I did do terrible damage to her when I was a cat.” Liz whispered.
“Chica, Isabel was under a spell, herself. Both of you must come to an understanding.” Maria stated.
“Max says she can’t see anyone yet. She is still recovering form what I did to her and the long time she was laid up before she was healed.” Liz said.
Maria frowned, “You are going to have to quit saying what you did to her. You are no more responsible for what the cat did, than she would have been, if she had hurt you. Neither of you were under your own control.”
Max got a message out to Jesse. He knew that Jesse would want to see Isabel immediately, but Max cautioned that they needed to find a way to get Esteban and the head out and into the United States. They were taking care of Isabel, but Max couldn’t insist strongly enough that getting Esteban back to the states at the same time as the two women was imperative.
Max did convince Jesse to send complete sets of clothing for both Isabel and Liz, shorts, slacks, shirts and underwear not to mention shoes. Liz hadn’t been able to wear any of these for over a year. By the time the clothes arrived, Isabel was able to sit up and no longer had to undergo the indignity of the sticky baths and burial in leaves. Maria was the first to visit Isabel.
“How do you feel? You are like a Lazarus raised up from the dead.” Maria stated.
Isabel shook her head. “Esteban and Carlos insist that I was not dead and gone for ever. They say I was just preserved until they had the means to heal me and bring me back.”
“How do you feel about me killing Kivar or whatever I did to him? I am confused as to what he held over you,” Maria said.
Isabel looked down, “One part of me hates that you took my lord away from me, but I imagine that this part is a residual of the spell Kivar held me with. The other part is delighted that you freed me to return to Jesse and the rest of you.”
“What do you remember of Liz?” Maria asked. That was the reason for most of her visit to Isabel.
Isabel shook her head, “Maria, I remember very little after I put the desert down on the dining room table and went in the living room intending to answer the door. Somewhere, I seem to hear, ‘Liz, you were a friend to all of us,’ but none of that is very clear.”
“Are you willing to see Liz?” Maria asked simply.
“Is Liz here? I guess, I imagined that you, Max and Michael were the only ones from home here,” Isabel said. Then, she continued, “Where is Liz? Why hasn’t she been by to see me?” Isabel was now full of questions.
“Kivar hurt Liz almost as badly as you were hurt. Maybe even more since she is able to recall many of the things that were done to her,” Maria stated. Maria left because Isabel was becoming tired. She had achieved what she wanted. Liz and Isabel did not have clear ideas of what went on between them, but they needed to clear the air and come to understandings.
As Isabel dressed this morning, she noticed the scars on her chest were disappearing. She knew that Max came by every day. Though he was a bit embarrassed seeing his sister half naked, he had worked on her body. Isabel had no idea what her throat looked like, but it felt better and when she touched it with her hand, the welts she felt at first, seemed to be disappearing. When Max came by, Isabel asked, “When can I see Liz? I did not know she was here.”
Max hesitated, “Liz has been under a stress. If you see her, you must promise not to increase the stress. I am not sure she can take that.”
Isabel frowned. She had assumed she was the only one who had been hurt. “Max what happened to Liz?”
Max sat and twiddled with his medical bag. “Liz was cursed by Kivar and she was changed into a cat. The natives were able to bring her to me quickly and we were able to control the curse. Until Kivar was dispatched, she had to live in a cage. Of course, I stayed with her the whole time.”
Isabel was now pleading with Max. “Why did Kivar take me? What possible use did he have of me?”
“Isabel, we do not know. Probably, it was for revenge. There is more than a passing resemblance between Kivar and Tess. Maybe, she really was his sister,” Max explained. “Maybe, he was angry that I did not marry her. Maybe, he was angry that the heir was human and he did not have a little alien about him.
It was afternoon when Max led Isabel to the hut where he and Liz lived. The first thing Isabel saw was that Esteban stayed very close to Liz. Liz stood, but remained where she was leaving the first move to Isabel. Isabel held out her arms, but she still had to walk to where Liz stood. Isabel took Liz in her arms in embrace. “I wasn’t sure you would want to see me, Isabel,” Liz said.
“Why wouldn’t I want to see the wife of my brother? She asked.
“Isabel, how much do you remember of the last two years?” Liz asked.
Isabel shook her head, “Very little.”
“Do you remember anything you were doing with Kivar?” Liz inquired.
Again, Isabel just shook her head.
“Kivar was turning the villagers into killer beasts, some sort of panthers or jaguars. The cursed people were killing the other villagers,” Liz stated.
“And, I was doing that?” inquired Isabel.
“No, not consciously. As far as we can tell, you were just keeping company with him. You were using your powers because the villagers said that your eyes were black.” Liz explained. “He probably was tapping into your power to do these things.
Isabel still had a frown, “There is something else. I need to know what it was.”
Liz looked down. She wondered why she would do this? Was she afraid to meet the eyes of Isabel or did she fear the scorn and anger she might find there? “Kivar turned me into a cat and was holding me when I slashed him with my claws.”
Isabel was thoughtful, “All right, what else happened?”
Liz, in a voice so low you could almost not hear it, “I also slashed at you. I am responsible for your wounds that should have killed you.”
This time, Isabel frowned. She stood, turned, and walked out. Liz sunk back into her chair and sobbed. Max and Esteban were trying to comfort her.
Isabel went to her hut. She sat down and was thinking. She couldn’t decide if she was angry at Liz or what. Isabel unbuttoned her blouse and examined her chest; what she could see of it. The scars and welts were disappearing, thanks to the ability of her brother. Why would Liz strike out at her?
Isabel heard a noise and clutching her opened blouse, she turned. Maria was standing in the door of the hut. Maria walked to Isabel and taking the blouse out of Izzy’s hands, she opened it and looked up and down at Isabel’s bare chest. “The wounds are getting better. Max says that Esteban told him that you probably won’t have a scar at all. Liz, on the other hand, is terribly scared. Her scars are all inside. Kivar, using your power to help him, was changing villagers into cats and allowing them to attack other villagers.”
“Isabel, I shot over 20 big cats, jaguars or panthers, which all had something about them, a mark or jewelry that said they used to be people of the villages,” Maria continued. “I shot them because they were killing others. Once we found a cat that had killed some children. When we examined the body of the cat, it wore a necklace that had belonged to the mother of the dead children.”
“For a year, Liz had to live as a cat at night and a woman in the day. For a year, she lived in fear that she would kill Max some night when she had no control. Izzy, she had no control, just like you didn’t have any control when Kivar used your power to help him. Kivar wanted you to help transform Liz, but Liz has memories that you refused. That is probably why Liz was only a cat at night and not the whole time. When the cat slashed you, Liz had no control. That is also when Kivar abandoned you and the natives were able to preserve your body. Don’t ask me how they did that. They had to wait until I killed Kivar, first shooting him and then, finally hacking off his head with a machete,” Maria explained.
Isabel just sat there. “Why did Liz come?” she asked.
“Because Liz was able to set up the friendships with the villagers. She was able to convince Max to listen to everything they said. That is how we tracked you down.” Maria was trying to convince Isabel what Liz had done for everyone. Liz lost even more than Isabel, in a way. Liz’s scars were all inside and you couldn’t tell if they could be repaired. Maria had done all she could. She left to seek out Michael. If this destroyed Liz, Maria didn’t know what she would do.
It was more than an hour when Isabel got her courage up enough to return to the Hut where Max and Liz lived. As she entered, Max started to stop her, but Esteban caught his arm. Pointing to the door, he led Max out of the hut. Liz was lying on her bed sobbing. Esteban had told Max that this might be bad. If she kept this up until night fall, Liz might fall again, into the world of the cat.
“Liz,” Isabel called softly. Liz looked up her face was streamed with tears.
“Liz, I am sorry. We were both abused, by Kivar. Both of us have scars that are going to be difficult to heal. I guess we both owe Maria a lot. Who would have thought that the singer, DeLuca, would become a big game huntress and save her friends?” Isabel sat beside Liz. “Liz we have to be friends. How else can we plan out Max’s life for him, if we aren’t?”
Liz’s fingers were tracing the faint scars on Isabel’s throat. “I just feel so bad that I did that to you.”
Isabel said, “Maybe, I should say I am so sorry that knowing aliens did this to you, also. We have come a long way together and we still have a long way to go.”
Esteban nodded, then he and Max went back into the hut. Now, all they had to do was wait out Jesse.
Charlie helped them move back to the main mission. The two men, José and Rico, who they had trained, would stay and maintain an emergency clinic. They could take care of simple medical problems. They always had the training of the curendaro or the witchcraft of the brujo, to fall back on, if things got out of hand. They could always call on the men from the west, men from the forest of Equidor, who made big problems small. They shrunk the problems down to the size where they could be carried around in a pouch.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 7 ch 11 Feb 22 2009
destinyc
mary mary
nibbles2
keepsmiling7
Author note: The cat spirit is not something to be worshipped. Estaban says that there are things in the world that many men do not recognize. Remember Kivar could always heal himself. They way they treated his body and head made this impossible. Esteban again says that he has trapped the soul of Kivar in the only remaining relic of Kivar, the head. European and near eastern religions tend to worship that which they do not understand. According to Esteban help from these spirits is no more than if you asked a friend to give you a ride to work.
Chapter 12
Serena and Kyle were having dinner at the Evans’ home. Jesse called. Jesse was filled with joy, but he was guarded also. Isabel had been rescued. Liz could be removed from quarantine and the five from Roswell were ready to return as soon as Jesse arranged it. Jesse didn’t explain what that meant. He was just happy to tell the Evans’ that Isabel was alive and able to return.
Later when Kyle and Serena had returned to their apartment from visiting the Evans family, Serena asked, “Kyle were you always comfortable with knowing aliens?”
“No, as far as I could tell, Max had just stolen my girlfriend. I didn’t know what power he had over her, but I felt angry that she went to him so easily,” Kyle replied.
“Were you and Liz all that close?” Serena inquired.
Kyle chuckled, “I thought we were. I thought that it was just a matter of days when the Valenti charm would bring her to my bed. I even had that adolescent fantasy of, maybe, being married. This wasn’t ever that clear, but I surely thought we would be very close. It just was a matter of time.”
“Then, how did you get over it?” Serena was really curious about Kyle’s connection with this group.
“Well, I was hurt in a basketball game. Nothing much, but I had several days of “Daytime TV” to muse over. Before that time, getting a girl into bed was barely beyond the locker room conquest. With my feelings toward Liz, there also was the fear of losing my freedom. Sitting at home where I didn’t have to hear any of the brags of my friends, I started thinking. What was Liz to me? What did we have in common? I still really liked Liz, but I saw that she went so readily to Max and with me, she was always so defensive. That is when I started thinking that he had something I didn’t. At the time, I didn’t know that what he had included, saving her life and allowing her to peer into his soul. I also, saw that Liz didn’t like many of my friends. Now, I think she might have been right. Some of them were slobs. At the time, I was seeing that Liz and I could be friends, but did we have anything else?”
“So, big bad Kyle Valenti found a girl he couldn’t get?” Serena teased.
“Aw, come on,” Kyle pleaded, “I dated a lot, but I wasn’t like that.”
“Ha, you should have heard the stories Pam told,” Serena laughed.
“Well, your sister sort of got around a little herself, you know,” Kyle returned.
Serena leaned back on the couch where they had fallen after entering the apartment, “Yeah, that I know and she was mad that she couldn’t get you to go out with her again. Pam is like that. She, sometimes, makes up tales when she doesn’t get her way.”
Kyle leaned over Serena, “The Pam I knew was a piranha. That is why I only took her out once. She scared the hell out of me.”
Serena was looking at Kyle’s face as he approached her lips, “I never let her know when I liked some boy. She wouldn’t stop until she took him away.”
Kyle said, as he closed on her lips, “Now, you have a man who would quit her for you, any day.”
Right on the couch, they began to make out. After tender nothings were said, Kyle stood and picking up Serena’s hand, he led her into their bedroom. Serena now had a boy turned into a man who was “Pam” proofed.
Jesse had a challenge. Getting people from South America to the States with visas or work permits was not easy. Esteban Morales was not a scholar. Jesse wasn’t even sure he could even speak English. Getting the shrunken head into the country would be even harder. Customs frowned at human artifacts unless they were held by an professional institution. Max made it clear that even if they had to smuggle Esteban and the head across the border, they would have to do it. Jesse wasn’t clear, but Max stated that Isabel’s health, as well as Liz’s, depended on this.
Jesse knew how to get the head imported into the states. Now he just had to figure how to get Esteban across the custom line. He wrote Max:
Dear Max;
We could smuggle the head in a large box of fake shrunken heads. There would be a very good chance of getting it across as a shipment of curios. Your brother-in-law, Jesse.
Dear Jesse;
I can’t explain it, but Esteban says that if he is not in charge of the head at all times, Liz might revert back. That is something we can’t allow. Putting the head in a large box of fakes might make him loose control. We still haven’t got him into the States. We need another idea.
Your brother-in-law, Max.
Jesse was allowed to wonder Liz revert to what? It must have something to do with her illness. Not being there with Max was so confusing.
Dear Max;
Is there any way we could bring Esteban into the states on an educational visa?
Your brother-in-law, Jesse.
Dear Jesse;
Esteban doesn’t speak much English or Spanish. I don’t know if you could arrange something about him coming to help in a language study. You might check this out. We would still need the head.
Your brother-in-law, Max.
Dear Max;
There is a way that is illegal and I do not want to discuss it much. As an officer of the court, I can’t be a party to that. You will be approached by a man, who might get you through as contraband. Split your party so as many of you as possible can enter the States the normal, legal way. It will be up to you to make arrangements for those who have to enter the other way.
Your brother-in-law, Jesse.
The correspondence went on this way for several months
Chapter 13
Neither Maria nor Isabel wanted to leave Max and Liz. Max feared Isabel being too far away from his healing ability or Esteban and the power of the head of Kivar. Michael felt he had a responsibility to take care of the group who could return legally, so he had no comment in anything.
“Max, why can’t Liz go with us? She has a visa and passport. She is well. Why does she have to sneak back into her own country?” Maria worried.
“I told you before, Maria. We are not sure how cured Liz is. Esteban is the only one who knows anything about what happened to her. Jesse tried, but he can’t find a legal way to get Esteban and Kivar’s head across the border,” Max explained for the upteenth time.
It was a sad day when Maria, Isabel and Michael left for civilization. Max was still worried about Isabel’s health. Esteban said she could survive for a while, unlike Liz who could change back to the cat anytime. Charlie was now in charge of the clinic. He had instituted a program of taking on some of the young shaman in training and helping them to understand modern medicine. The church, still supporting the clinic, had sent several more doctors. They had decided to use, “Missionary by example,” in their program. Max, Liz and Esteban were still living at the main mission. The plan Jesse had come up with was to smuggle them through Mexico and across the border into the United States. Max didn’t like that program, but that was all they had so far. Max was to meet a strange man who sent a message that he was from Jesse tomorrow. He would start them on their way. The man’s name was Delbert Symns. He was an American but that was all Max knew. An American down here, meeting them to do something illegal sounded like spook talk to Max. Max was sure that Jesse had found someone in US intelligence who would set this up.
Jesse had kept himself separate from the politics he found in the east. He dealt with men in the legislature because Jesse had a reputation for being good and also, honest. There were many good lawyers in this area but few honest ones. There was just so much room for graft.
Senator Claudio Alvarez was from New Mexico. This was his second term. The senator had come to congress on a reform ticket. He was watched, constantly, by his opposition, just waiting for a mistake. The Maryland State Police raided a house of ill repute. In checking the records, Claudio’s name was found along with his credit card number. Now, many congressmen would just cry their sorrow and beg for forgiveness, making a spectacle of themselves. Many times, this would garner even more votes next election. Claudio was from a small town in New Mexico. If they had wanted to send their senator to a brothel, they could have sent him to Las Vegas, Nevada or Juarez, Mexico. That would have been a lot cheaper. The problem was that Claudio had never been to that place and he had no idea how his credit card was used for services.
Claudio appeared at Jesse’s office right when Jesse was trying to rack his brain how to help his in-laws. The CIA connection Jesse had instigated was not to his liking. It was the only way so far. There were so many ways it could go wrong and Max had been so adamant about the seriousness of what he needed. With Isabel now heading to the states it was even more important to get Esteban and the head there. Jesse knew that he would loose a lot of his family if the spooks pulled out of the deal, as they had the habit of doing if something went wrong.
Jesse almost refused to see Claudio. Senators had a very bad habit of digging very deep holes and wanting others to get them out of the holes. Claudio was very similar to Jesse in many ways. Where Jesse had gone east on scholarship, Claudio had stayed at the University of New Mexico. They both came from poor but progressive Hispanic families. Jesse’s secretary, Linda, a matronly woman who felt she must always keep her boss informed about the ins and outs of congress, came into Jesse’s office.
“Boss,” Jesse had tried and tried to make her quit saying that, “this guy Claudio is one of the few senators who I would believe. At least hear him. If he is being set up, then he needs help. I know you are working on getting your family back home, but this man still needs to be listened to.”
Jesse did listen to Claudio. He took the case on the day that Isabel returned to him. Linda kept saying that this was a sign.
Isabel was very disturbed. She was now back with Jesse, but her brother and sister-in-law were still lost somewhere down in Brazil. That first night when she came to his bed, Isabel was frightened. She had been gone two years. That was longer than she had been gone when they all took off on the road trip running from the FBI. At that time, Isabel had wondered if Jesse would take her back. Now, she had returned and she had very few answers for Jesse. She told him that as soon as they got Max and Liz back, they would all get together and try to figure out the story. At first, Isabel stood before Jesse, “I have no idea where I have been and I have no idea what I have been doing. I am here if you still want me.”
Jesse looked at Isabel. She was so beautiful to him standing in her black nightgown. He noticed she clutched the front of the gown as if she dreaded to open it. Jesse knew that the first time she’d left intentionally. She even gave him several outs if he wanted a divorce. Isabel felt that, for the safety of all concerned, she had to leave. Her father, Philip Evans and Jesse himself had attacked the FBI and freed forever the Roswell aliens. Now, Jesse was sure there had been no intention in what she did. Jesse welcomed Isabel back to his arms and his bed.
Usually, like many couples, they made love in the dark. This time when he started to turn out the lamp beside the bed, Isabel stopped him. “Jesse, I do not want anything between us. I want you to see what you are getting,” she stated.
Jesse was baffled. He did not know what she was getting at. Jesse knew every line and curve in Isabel’s body. They may have had several interruptions in their marriage, but the times they were together, Jesse had taken full advantage of. Isabel stood and stepped back. She loosened the straps that held her gown to her body. The gown fell to gather at her feet. The first time Jesse had seen her naked was when they were making love play just after they were married. It was part of the couple getting used to each other. Jesse had marveled at her perfect body. Not a blemish, not a imperfection any where.
Of course at the same time, Isabel gazed upon the darker body of Jesse. To her, he was a Greek god sculptured in dark marble. Isabel hadn’t seen a naked male in the light, since she and her brother had grown into adolescence. She and Jesse had already had their honeymoon night. The second night was about becoming comfortable with each other.
Now, Jesse was under the covers, at least his lower body was. Isabel wanted him to accept her body that she was to bring. As she stood before him, her eyes cast down, Jesse saw the remnants of her scars.
Sitting in bed Jesse drew her body to him. His fingers traced the faint red lines across her chest. He reached to the ones on her neck. His love had suffered so much. He roughly pulled her into bed with him and, kissing her face and body, he proclaimed how much he missed her. “Isabel, I do not have the power of Max to erase your scars. I assume he has been working on them. I do want to make you forget them. Kivar took you from me. Someday, you must tell me how you were returned. Now, I just want you close. I can’t erase them from your body, that is for Max, but I will try to erase any results of them from your mind.” Jesse might not have been the hottest of Latin lovers, but tonight he intended to be the most passionate. It was very late when they finally, curled up together and fell asleep.
Jesse was up early the next day. He wanted to get into the office early. Claudio had his signature on a register at the whorehouse and though it was only a misdemeanor it could well spell the end of his career. Jesse had hired a detective that he used a lot to investigate. The guy was good even though he insisted on dressing like Mike Hammer from a Mickey Spillane novel. That was probably why the guy got away with what he did. No one dressed like he did could be for real. From the trench coat even in the summer, to the fedora pulled down over his eyes, people might laugh at him, but they seldom paid attention to what he did.
Arthur Johnson, going by the name of “Art J,” handed Jesse a report. Art J had taken a set of photographs to the madam of the whorehouse. Telling her that he wanted to bring a congressman down, he asked her to identify any one in the photographs. She did. There was a problem in Claudio’s staff. Albert Church, had been identified at the brothel and the madam identified him as Claudio Alvarez. With this in hand, Jesse contacted Claudio and met him in his office.
Claudio needed to fire a man and to place a complaint about the use of the Alvarez name. This needed to be done publicly so Claudio’s name could be cleared. Claudio knew that Jesse was expensive. Jesse had had a solid reputation since the time when he had represented, in absencia, a group of clients in a suit against the FBI. The case was very hush, hush, but Jesse won and got a respectable settlement.
Jesse leaned back. “I would have represented you, no matter, because my secretary told me to, but I need some help.”
Claudio stiffened. This was how it always started. “Look, I am willing to pay what you charge, but I draw the line letting things influence me in the senate.”
Jesse grimaced, “I hope this wouldn’t go that far. I need a man and an artifact brought into the United States. The artifact couldn’t pass customs, but it isn’t stolen or part of its countries heritage. It is just needed to keep two people mentally safe. The man is its keeper. He is an Indian from the Amazon. He is willing to come and you can check on him anyway you want. The artifact is a shrunken head.
Claudio rose, “Look, Jesse, you have the reputation of always being honest. I don’t think this sounds right. I am sorry, but I would rather pay my bill than get involved in something like this. What would possess you to be doing this?”
Jesse shrugged, “Here is the bill for the detective I used. Just pay Linda on the way out. Oh, one of the women involved is my wife. She and her sister-in-law were badly hurt in the Amazon. My wife was kidnapped. They got her released, but her sister-in-law and brother are still down there. They can’t come back without the shaman and the artifact. I can’t explain it, but I have to keep trying until I get them back home.” Jesse sighed. He would have to try something else. The CIA man was down there. Maybe, he would be the only way.
Claudio left wondering if he was right to refuse helping Jesse. Jesse had been quick enough to solve his problem. Did he owe something to just human decency? The thought that Jesse’s wife had been kidnapped bothered him. It seems he had heard something about that. Caudio would have his staff look up the story.
Jesse was running out of ideas. He might have the spook just take Max, Liz and the shaman and smuggle them as illegals. Smuggle them across the Mexican border, just like they did farm workers. Jesse knew that Max was very distrustful of government men. They had just gotten out of the clutches of he FBI and now, Jesse was trying to put their trust in a spook who was not that much different from the Bureau of Investigation.
Jesse owed Max a message. Max was now at the city of Macapa right at the mouth of the Amazon River. It was only a matter of a few days to get mail to him, much easier than when Max and company were all back up the river.
It was two days later. Jesse received a call form Senator Alvarez’s office. “We are sending you an envelop. Return, as quickly as possible, the forms all filled out. Give us a phone number where we can get in touch with Doctor Max Evans, if possible.
That is all there was to it. Esteban was legally in the United States along the Doctor and Mrs. Evans within four days. Jesse was his sponsor and Claudio Alvarez had signed on as another sponsor. They landed in El Paso, Texas where Claudio briefly met them. They took another plane to Roswell where Jesse and Isabel, along with the rest of the group, were waiting for them.
----------------------
What will liz do when she finds out who the aliens are? Special Unit
coming soon:
if you believe in powers is it any harder to believe in magic? Liz and Max use their skills fighting their enemies. "Aliens and Witches
What were the Antarians like? Tess wants to know so badly she endangers everyone. "Genes of the King
mary mary
nibbles2
keepsmiling7
Author note: The cat spirit is not something to be worshipped. Estaban says that there are things in the world that many men do not recognize. Remember Kivar could always heal himself. They way they treated his body and head made this impossible. Esteban again says that he has trapped the soul of Kivar in the only remaining relic of Kivar, the head. European and near eastern religions tend to worship that which they do not understand. According to Esteban help from these spirits is no more than if you asked a friend to give you a ride to work.
Chapter 12
Serena and Kyle were having dinner at the Evans’ home. Jesse called. Jesse was filled with joy, but he was guarded also. Isabel had been rescued. Liz could be removed from quarantine and the five from Roswell were ready to return as soon as Jesse arranged it. Jesse didn’t explain what that meant. He was just happy to tell the Evans’ that Isabel was alive and able to return.
Later when Kyle and Serena had returned to their apartment from visiting the Evans family, Serena asked, “Kyle were you always comfortable with knowing aliens?”
“No, as far as I could tell, Max had just stolen my girlfriend. I didn’t know what power he had over her, but I felt angry that she went to him so easily,” Kyle replied.
“Were you and Liz all that close?” Serena inquired.
Kyle chuckled, “I thought we were. I thought that it was just a matter of days when the Valenti charm would bring her to my bed. I even had that adolescent fantasy of, maybe, being married. This wasn’t ever that clear, but I surely thought we would be very close. It just was a matter of time.”
“Then, how did you get over it?” Serena was really curious about Kyle’s connection with this group.
“Well, I was hurt in a basketball game. Nothing much, but I had several days of “Daytime TV” to muse over. Before that time, getting a girl into bed was barely beyond the locker room conquest. With my feelings toward Liz, there also was the fear of losing my freedom. Sitting at home where I didn’t have to hear any of the brags of my friends, I started thinking. What was Liz to me? What did we have in common? I still really liked Liz, but I saw that she went so readily to Max and with me, she was always so defensive. That is when I started thinking that he had something I didn’t. At the time, I didn’t know that what he had included, saving her life and allowing her to peer into his soul. I also, saw that Liz didn’t like many of my friends. Now, I think she might have been right. Some of them were slobs. At the time, I was seeing that Liz and I could be friends, but did we have anything else?”
“So, big bad Kyle Valenti found a girl he couldn’t get?” Serena teased.
“Aw, come on,” Kyle pleaded, “I dated a lot, but I wasn’t like that.”
“Ha, you should have heard the stories Pam told,” Serena laughed.
“Well, your sister sort of got around a little herself, you know,” Kyle returned.
Serena leaned back on the couch where they had fallen after entering the apartment, “Yeah, that I know and she was mad that she couldn’t get you to go out with her again. Pam is like that. She, sometimes, makes up tales when she doesn’t get her way.”
Kyle leaned over Serena, “The Pam I knew was a piranha. That is why I only took her out once. She scared the hell out of me.”
Serena was looking at Kyle’s face as he approached her lips, “I never let her know when I liked some boy. She wouldn’t stop until she took him away.”
Kyle said, as he closed on her lips, “Now, you have a man who would quit her for you, any day.”
Right on the couch, they began to make out. After tender nothings were said, Kyle stood and picking up Serena’s hand, he led her into their bedroom. Serena now had a boy turned into a man who was “Pam” proofed.
Jesse had a challenge. Getting people from South America to the States with visas or work permits was not easy. Esteban Morales was not a scholar. Jesse wasn’t even sure he could even speak English. Getting the shrunken head into the country would be even harder. Customs frowned at human artifacts unless they were held by an professional institution. Max made it clear that even if they had to smuggle Esteban and the head across the border, they would have to do it. Jesse wasn’t clear, but Max stated that Isabel’s health, as well as Liz’s, depended on this.
Jesse knew how to get the head imported into the states. Now he just had to figure how to get Esteban across the custom line. He wrote Max:
Dear Max;
We could smuggle the head in a large box of fake shrunken heads. There would be a very good chance of getting it across as a shipment of curios. Your brother-in-law, Jesse.
Dear Jesse;
I can’t explain it, but Esteban says that if he is not in charge of the head at all times, Liz might revert back. That is something we can’t allow. Putting the head in a large box of fakes might make him loose control. We still haven’t got him into the States. We need another idea.
Your brother-in-law, Max.
Jesse was allowed to wonder Liz revert to what? It must have something to do with her illness. Not being there with Max was so confusing.
Dear Max;
Is there any way we could bring Esteban into the states on an educational visa?
Your brother-in-law, Jesse.
Dear Jesse;
Esteban doesn’t speak much English or Spanish. I don’t know if you could arrange something about him coming to help in a language study. You might check this out. We would still need the head.
Your brother-in-law, Max.
Dear Max;
There is a way that is illegal and I do not want to discuss it much. As an officer of the court, I can’t be a party to that. You will be approached by a man, who might get you through as contraband. Split your party so as many of you as possible can enter the States the normal, legal way. It will be up to you to make arrangements for those who have to enter the other way.
Your brother-in-law, Jesse.
The correspondence went on this way for several months
Chapter 13
Neither Maria nor Isabel wanted to leave Max and Liz. Max feared Isabel being too far away from his healing ability or Esteban and the power of the head of Kivar. Michael felt he had a responsibility to take care of the group who could return legally, so he had no comment in anything.
“Max, why can’t Liz go with us? She has a visa and passport. She is well. Why does she have to sneak back into her own country?” Maria worried.
“I told you before, Maria. We are not sure how cured Liz is. Esteban is the only one who knows anything about what happened to her. Jesse tried, but he can’t find a legal way to get Esteban and Kivar’s head across the border,” Max explained for the upteenth time.
It was a sad day when Maria, Isabel and Michael left for civilization. Max was still worried about Isabel’s health. Esteban said she could survive for a while, unlike Liz who could change back to the cat anytime. Charlie was now in charge of the clinic. He had instituted a program of taking on some of the young shaman in training and helping them to understand modern medicine. The church, still supporting the clinic, had sent several more doctors. They had decided to use, “Missionary by example,” in their program. Max, Liz and Esteban were still living at the main mission. The plan Jesse had come up with was to smuggle them through Mexico and across the border into the United States. Max didn’t like that program, but that was all they had so far. Max was to meet a strange man who sent a message that he was from Jesse tomorrow. He would start them on their way. The man’s name was Delbert Symns. He was an American but that was all Max knew. An American down here, meeting them to do something illegal sounded like spook talk to Max. Max was sure that Jesse had found someone in US intelligence who would set this up.
Jesse had kept himself separate from the politics he found in the east. He dealt with men in the legislature because Jesse had a reputation for being good and also, honest. There were many good lawyers in this area but few honest ones. There was just so much room for graft.
Senator Claudio Alvarez was from New Mexico. This was his second term. The senator had come to congress on a reform ticket. He was watched, constantly, by his opposition, just waiting for a mistake. The Maryland State Police raided a house of ill repute. In checking the records, Claudio’s name was found along with his credit card number. Now, many congressmen would just cry their sorrow and beg for forgiveness, making a spectacle of themselves. Many times, this would garner even more votes next election. Claudio was from a small town in New Mexico. If they had wanted to send their senator to a brothel, they could have sent him to Las Vegas, Nevada or Juarez, Mexico. That would have been a lot cheaper. The problem was that Claudio had never been to that place and he had no idea how his credit card was used for services.
Claudio appeared at Jesse’s office right when Jesse was trying to rack his brain how to help his in-laws. The CIA connection Jesse had instigated was not to his liking. It was the only way so far. There were so many ways it could go wrong and Max had been so adamant about the seriousness of what he needed. With Isabel now heading to the states it was even more important to get Esteban and the head there. Jesse knew that he would loose a lot of his family if the spooks pulled out of the deal, as they had the habit of doing if something went wrong.
Jesse almost refused to see Claudio. Senators had a very bad habit of digging very deep holes and wanting others to get them out of the holes. Claudio was very similar to Jesse in many ways. Where Jesse had gone east on scholarship, Claudio had stayed at the University of New Mexico. They both came from poor but progressive Hispanic families. Jesse’s secretary, Linda, a matronly woman who felt she must always keep her boss informed about the ins and outs of congress, came into Jesse’s office.
“Boss,” Jesse had tried and tried to make her quit saying that, “this guy Claudio is one of the few senators who I would believe. At least hear him. If he is being set up, then he needs help. I know you are working on getting your family back home, but this man still needs to be listened to.”
Jesse did listen to Claudio. He took the case on the day that Isabel returned to him. Linda kept saying that this was a sign.
Isabel was very disturbed. She was now back with Jesse, but her brother and sister-in-law were still lost somewhere down in Brazil. That first night when she came to his bed, Isabel was frightened. She had been gone two years. That was longer than she had been gone when they all took off on the road trip running from the FBI. At that time, Isabel had wondered if Jesse would take her back. Now, she had returned and she had very few answers for Jesse. She told him that as soon as they got Max and Liz back, they would all get together and try to figure out the story. At first, Isabel stood before Jesse, “I have no idea where I have been and I have no idea what I have been doing. I am here if you still want me.”
Jesse looked at Isabel. She was so beautiful to him standing in her black nightgown. He noticed she clutched the front of the gown as if she dreaded to open it. Jesse knew that the first time she’d left intentionally. She even gave him several outs if he wanted a divorce. Isabel felt that, for the safety of all concerned, she had to leave. Her father, Philip Evans and Jesse himself had attacked the FBI and freed forever the Roswell aliens. Now, Jesse was sure there had been no intention in what she did. Jesse welcomed Isabel back to his arms and his bed.
Usually, like many couples, they made love in the dark. This time when he started to turn out the lamp beside the bed, Isabel stopped him. “Jesse, I do not want anything between us. I want you to see what you are getting,” she stated.
Jesse was baffled. He did not know what she was getting at. Jesse knew every line and curve in Isabel’s body. They may have had several interruptions in their marriage, but the times they were together, Jesse had taken full advantage of. Isabel stood and stepped back. She loosened the straps that held her gown to her body. The gown fell to gather at her feet. The first time Jesse had seen her naked was when they were making love play just after they were married. It was part of the couple getting used to each other. Jesse had marveled at her perfect body. Not a blemish, not a imperfection any where.
Of course at the same time, Isabel gazed upon the darker body of Jesse. To her, he was a Greek god sculptured in dark marble. Isabel hadn’t seen a naked male in the light, since she and her brother had grown into adolescence. She and Jesse had already had their honeymoon night. The second night was about becoming comfortable with each other.
Now, Jesse was under the covers, at least his lower body was. Isabel wanted him to accept her body that she was to bring. As she stood before him, her eyes cast down, Jesse saw the remnants of her scars.
Sitting in bed Jesse drew her body to him. His fingers traced the faint red lines across her chest. He reached to the ones on her neck. His love had suffered so much. He roughly pulled her into bed with him and, kissing her face and body, he proclaimed how much he missed her. “Isabel, I do not have the power of Max to erase your scars. I assume he has been working on them. I do want to make you forget them. Kivar took you from me. Someday, you must tell me how you were returned. Now, I just want you close. I can’t erase them from your body, that is for Max, but I will try to erase any results of them from your mind.” Jesse might not have been the hottest of Latin lovers, but tonight he intended to be the most passionate. It was very late when they finally, curled up together and fell asleep.
Jesse was up early the next day. He wanted to get into the office early. Claudio had his signature on a register at the whorehouse and though it was only a misdemeanor it could well spell the end of his career. Jesse had hired a detective that he used a lot to investigate. The guy was good even though he insisted on dressing like Mike Hammer from a Mickey Spillane novel. That was probably why the guy got away with what he did. No one dressed like he did could be for real. From the trench coat even in the summer, to the fedora pulled down over his eyes, people might laugh at him, but they seldom paid attention to what he did.
Arthur Johnson, going by the name of “Art J,” handed Jesse a report. Art J had taken a set of photographs to the madam of the whorehouse. Telling her that he wanted to bring a congressman down, he asked her to identify any one in the photographs. She did. There was a problem in Claudio’s staff. Albert Church, had been identified at the brothel and the madam identified him as Claudio Alvarez. With this in hand, Jesse contacted Claudio and met him in his office.
Claudio needed to fire a man and to place a complaint about the use of the Alvarez name. This needed to be done publicly so Claudio’s name could be cleared. Claudio knew that Jesse was expensive. Jesse had had a solid reputation since the time when he had represented, in absencia, a group of clients in a suit against the FBI. The case was very hush, hush, but Jesse won and got a respectable settlement.
Jesse leaned back. “I would have represented you, no matter, because my secretary told me to, but I need some help.”
Claudio stiffened. This was how it always started. “Look, I am willing to pay what you charge, but I draw the line letting things influence me in the senate.”
Jesse grimaced, “I hope this wouldn’t go that far. I need a man and an artifact brought into the United States. The artifact couldn’t pass customs, but it isn’t stolen or part of its countries heritage. It is just needed to keep two people mentally safe. The man is its keeper. He is an Indian from the Amazon. He is willing to come and you can check on him anyway you want. The artifact is a shrunken head.
Claudio rose, “Look, Jesse, you have the reputation of always being honest. I don’t think this sounds right. I am sorry, but I would rather pay my bill than get involved in something like this. What would possess you to be doing this?”
Jesse shrugged, “Here is the bill for the detective I used. Just pay Linda on the way out. Oh, one of the women involved is my wife. She and her sister-in-law were badly hurt in the Amazon. My wife was kidnapped. They got her released, but her sister-in-law and brother are still down there. They can’t come back without the shaman and the artifact. I can’t explain it, but I have to keep trying until I get them back home.” Jesse sighed. He would have to try something else. The CIA man was down there. Maybe, he would be the only way.
Claudio left wondering if he was right to refuse helping Jesse. Jesse had been quick enough to solve his problem. Did he owe something to just human decency? The thought that Jesse’s wife had been kidnapped bothered him. It seems he had heard something about that. Caudio would have his staff look up the story.
Jesse was running out of ideas. He might have the spook just take Max, Liz and the shaman and smuggle them as illegals. Smuggle them across the Mexican border, just like they did farm workers. Jesse knew that Max was very distrustful of government men. They had just gotten out of the clutches of he FBI and now, Jesse was trying to put their trust in a spook who was not that much different from the Bureau of Investigation.
Jesse owed Max a message. Max was now at the city of Macapa right at the mouth of the Amazon River. It was only a matter of a few days to get mail to him, much easier than when Max and company were all back up the river.
It was two days later. Jesse received a call form Senator Alvarez’s office. “We are sending you an envelop. Return, as quickly as possible, the forms all filled out. Give us a phone number where we can get in touch with Doctor Max Evans, if possible.
That is all there was to it. Esteban was legally in the United States along the Doctor and Mrs. Evans within four days. Jesse was his sponsor and Claudio Alvarez had signed on as another sponsor. They landed in El Paso, Texas where Claudio briefly met them. They took another plane to Roswell where Jesse and Isabel, along with the rest of the group, were waiting for them.
----------------------
What will liz do when she finds out who the aliens are? Special Unit
coming soon:
if you believe in powers is it any harder to believe in magic? Liz and Max use their skills fighting their enemies. "Aliens and Witches
What were the Antarians like? Tess wants to know so badly she endangers everyone. "Genes of the King
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 8 ch 13 Mar 2 2009
paper
mary mary
destinyc
keepsmiling7
Chapter 14
Jesse and Isabel could only afford a week before Jesse had to return to his practice. Liz wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She had been going to school, but eventually you have to do more than just go to school. You have to do something with the education you have obtained if it is only to find a vocation in spite of your studies.
Max wanted to keep close to home. It was his choice and not the designs of Liz or his mother. Isabel hadn’t even tried to talk them into coming back east. She knew that when he had made this decision, his desire to remain close to home was not entirely rational. Maybe, it was something he learned in the jungle about community as he cared for the villagers. Max wanted to get into a residency program someway. His resume, now, read the operation of an emergency clinic in the Amazon. He was hoping that this would help him get back into the medical program.
Maria surprisingly enough, was not as anxious to get back on the concert road as she thought she’d be. She and Michael were living in Roswell and for the moment, that was enough. Maria was going to spend a lot of time just writing for the immediate future. She had many ideas of songs she had thought up while in the forest. No, she wasn’t going to write about killing powerful princes, but she might write about the care the shaman dealt her while they were traveling. Something about changing into a bird to see what lay ahead was rattling around in her mind. Michael was flirting with painting again. His only masterpiece had been that geodesic dome he painted while in high school. Now, he had themes of the jungle that were bothering him. Some of the things he had put down on canvas were disturbing. There were paintings of the jungle, as realistic as he could make them, except when under close examination, it could be seen that there were outlines of savage cats and tattooed figures hidden within the foliage.
Something both terrible and wonderful had happened to them in the forest. Maria had always found strength in Michael’s arms. She had come to expect that. When she felt the arms of Carlos around her she was confused. Carlos had told her to close her eyes. She knew that the shaman wanted her to do something that she probably wouldn’t have wanted to do in another world. The shaman were convinced that what they wanted from Maria would help both Liz and Isabel. Maria had just killed a man. She shot him in cold blood; well, maybe not that cold. He was trying to kill Michael. Maria remembered how hard it was to shoot the first cat they found. Taking of life, any life, has to be learned unless, it is immediately defensive. The jaguar its head held low, started out slowly and then, it was in a gallop. The leaps were twenty feet or so at a time. The shaman had either hit the dirt or they had moved to the side getting out their blowguns. When Maria lifted the rifle to her shoulder, she saw the beauty of the cat through the sights. There was no time for conversation. Maria shot and the cat collapsed. From then on, Maria had no trouble killing cats who were killing and eating the villagers. When she fired on Kivar, it took all that she had to pull that trigger the first time. The other shots were just automatic like she had practiced.
Cutting off the head had been as necessary as the shooting, in the eyes of the shaman. Now, she would write her songs. The birds who were supposed to be the shaman would fly in her lyrics as well as in her mind. Maria would look at Michael’s pictures. Maria knew what the symbolism he painted meant. In Michael’s arms, Maria would push all these visions out of her mind. To the spirit of her mother, she would whisper, “Mom I was strong enough for the task. Please be proud of me.” Maria at night would think about the strength of Michael’s arms, but she also had received strength in the arms of Carlos as he guided that last swing. Michael had no jealously about this. He was so proud that Maria could rise to the occasion. Maria could be a powerful woman and the men who worked with her, loved and respected her. Michael could only think, was there a reason he had been so lucky?
When the three remaining travelers first came home, Jesse and Isabel, of course, were there to meet them along with the elder Evans family. Kyle and Serena were there. This was a surprise. Most of them, in their high school days, had crossed Pam Troy, in one way or the other. When they all graduated, Serena was still on middle school. Max was guarded when Kyle introduced Serena. It wasn’t until his mother announced that Kyle and Serena were now part of the weekly dinners that Max got down to the business of learning about the younger sister. He was surprised that his mom had been so open to Serena about the stories of the Roswell aliens.
“Max, unless you are going to banish Kyle, you are going to have to accept Serena. She has supported him the whole time you were gone. Kyle and I talked considerably before he told her about everybody. I think she will be as supportive as anyone Kyle could find,” Diane explained.
Their first meeting since returning was held two days after they had all arrived. Just like last time, it was held at the home of Diane and Philip Evans. There was considerably less banter between Kyle and Maria. Kyle wasn’t as caustic nor was Maria as touchy. They were all sitting in the living room while Liz and Isabel, again, were helping Diane with the meal. Isabel called into the living room, “If the door bell rings, yell out that there is no one at home.”
Kyle shouted back, “If I answer it, I am not going to give warning when I hit whoever it is.”
Philip dryly stated, “Be careful, Kyle, I think Diane might have invited Reverend Warren to stop over, sometime.”
Kyle responded, “Then the good reverend better keep his dukes up, ‘cause I am going to open the door fighting.”
Reverend Warren was an elderly man, balding, with a soft voice. The thought of Kyle starting a fight with him, without provocation, was just not imaginable.
“Maybe, Serena better answer the door,” suggested Philip.
Kyle pulled her closer to him, “No, if the bell rings, I am going to send her out of the room. I am just going to ask Michael to blast whoever is on the other side without opening the door. We can afford to put up a new door, better than we can do the repairs you all had last time.”
Michael said, “Maybe, I should just send a little pulse through the door, every so often, just to keep people away.”
About this time, the newest member of their family entered. Esteban had proven quick to pick up English. He told Liz that English was so simple compared to his language. He could be wrong in so many ways and still be understood. Where as in the Indian language he normally spoke, one missing inflection could, and had, brought down wars upon the speakers.
Esteban still made the best coffee. He had to rely on the coffee beans that were bought from the store He complained bitterly that they were not picked at the right time. He had crawled up on Diane’s sinktop and taking down all her spices from the top shelf, smelled each one, and had saved a collection of spices that he used. They were not a combination that Max would have thought of, but they did do marvelous things to the coffee that Esteban brewed. Esteban was now dressed in loose-fitting jeans, with a blue work shirt. As a concession to the concrete, rocks and pavement of his new world, he was wearing sandals of braded palm. His hair cut was still the bowl-on-the-head type and his face bore the dark tattoos that, sometimes, startled the people who saw him. Explaining Esteban had proven very difficult.
This time, Liz got the roast out of the oven. Isabel finished placing her desert in the individual dishes and Diane finished her incessant washing of dishes to be placed on the table. Liz called them to dinner. Again it was remarked how quickly Esteban learned the proper use of everything at the table. As they gathered around the table, Max went to his mother’s cupboard and removed a small box of corn meal. He handed this to Esteban. Esteban, then, proceeded to open the small bag that he always kept close. Taking a pinch of the meal, Esteban sprinkled it into the bag. He was symbolically feeding the soul of Kivar imprisoned in the head.
After the dinner, they all gathered around in the living room. Max told his story. When he was through, Liz told what she could of what had happened to her. She looked down at her lap when she got to what she, finally, remembered of her encounter with Isabel.
Liz felt some one standing over her and Isabel took Liz’s hands. “We have to get past that time. Neither of us was in control. It was all the act of Kivar, but what you did freed me from him. That was when the villagers obtained my body to save until I could be healed.”
Liz looked up gratefully. Yes, Isabel was helping put this all behind them. The stories must be told tonight, but afterward, they would not be forgotten, but at least, could be put aside.
Isabel told of what she knew. “From the time I entered the room and Kyle opened the door, I remember very little. I think the first time I was in charge of my thoughts was when the shaman were covering me with leaves. Then I would drift off to sleep and the only thing I remember of was that it was a pleasant sleep. I remember very little of Kivar, except for some desire to worship him which has slowly passed.”
Maria told of her adventures. When she was through, it wasn’t the chopping off the Kivar’s head that directed the conversation, but rather Philip. “Michael, the rifle club has a turkey shoot every year. We could enter the singer, Maria DeLuca, and clean up on bets, because this story can’t ever get beyond this room.”
Michael looked at Philip, “That is not a bad idea, but it may be, the singer, Maria Deluca-Guerin. We hope to be married in the next few weeks.”
Of course, this derailed the meeting because all the women turned to Maria. Talk changed to marriage and dresses and things. Finally Max laughed, “Look, we can all get together with Maria and Michael’s wedding, but first, we need to finish the business at hand. Michael, do you have anything to say?”
Michael shook his head. “Kivar said that he could not be killed by a man. I remembered this has been said before in literature. It is an old saw, here in Earth. He should have known that Earthmen would find a way around that. I was the distraction. It was left to Maria and Esteban to kill Kivar. Finally, Kivar died at the hands of Maria, a singer and a woman, who was taught from infancy to make love, not war. It was just that war was brought to her and she answered in kind.”
That was all their story until Esteban stood up. Now, you have to realize that Esteban standing wasn’t that much taller than Esteban sitting in his chair. They were all astounded at his English. “The, so-called Prince, Kivar, committed a grave sin among my people. He used an ancient device to kill for no reason, except his pleasure. We would have destroyed him, no matter what. Having "la niña de la venganza" just made things easier. The daughter of vengeance was sent to us and we used her. There are creatures in the jungle, other than men. We could have used one of them, but none would have been as beautiful as the Singer DeLuca.”
Maria blushed. Selena was surprised. The Maria she knew was a stalker of the mall and the inhabitant of the theater. Here, her story was being told, by this strange man, who had some connection to all of them. When they were talking about killing, it made Serena uneasy. She came from a world where they made threats and posted mean things about each other on the internet, but she had no concept of a world where animals and people got killed. It really got to her when they were talking about the lady who changed into a cat of some sort and the cat killing the lady’s own children. The aliens, along with Liz, seemed to view all of this as circumstance that they had lived with. The hacking off of the head, almost, sent Serena to the bathroom. That was just too gruesome.
Now, their story was out of the way. They could talk about important things such as Maria’s wedding. Kyle was quiet. He had something to talk to Serena about later tonight. He wondered how she would react. Kyle knew that the adventures of the others bothered Serena, not for what they were, but that people, she now knew, were doing those things.
It was seen that the one thing that no one had mentioned was the small bag always in the presence of Esteban. They had all witnessed the ceremonial feeding of the artifact, but no one, outside of the original travelers, had seen the head, recently.
Maria’s wedding had come. Jim Valenti even got out of his chair for this event. He escorted Maria. Jim, being the boyfriend of her mother and all the support he had given them in high school, was, in Maria’s mind, the closest thing she had had as a father. Max and Liz stood with them. Jesse and Isabel flew in for all three days of the wedding.
Liz enjoyed the ceremony for her friend very much. Liz had been married while on the road. She and Max had enjoyed their honeymoon, even before the wedding. The night just before graduation when they were convinced that they would be killed soon, Max by changing the structure of a lump of charcoal into a diamond, professed his love for Liz. At that time they did not believe they would live to see the legal ceremony. What they had was nothing like either Max or Liz had dreamed about. That night on her balcony, Liz and Max had made love for the first time. Later on the road, they were married at the home of a preacher along the way. After they returned, Liz and Max endured a simple ceremony just for Mrs. Parker. It gave her the chance to announce her daughter was now married and she got even with all the relatives who had sent her their children’s wedding invitations. Way back in her head, Liz wondered what it would have been like to have done like Michael and Maria. Oh well, we take what comes our way.
The Guerins settled down in Roswell where Michael studied his painting and Maria continued writing her songs. Everyone told her that the new music had so much more soul since she had returned.
Kyle and Serena’s wedding came up. It was so different from Maria’s. Maria and Michael were so close to all who were invited to her wedding that it was all like family. Serena’s family was slightly estranged from her these last few years. Pam was not pleased that Serena had found a guy, who was Pam-proofed. Pam had even tried to make a play for Kyle, one evening, when Serena was gone. Kyle politely, but firmly put Pam out the door. Pam scorned, at least in her mind, tried to tell Serena that she had scored with Kyle. But, that night, when Serena returned to Kyle’s bed, that very small alien growth that was hidden within Kyle blossomed forth. Kyle was able to conjure a flash for Serena and from then on, Serena trusted Kyle completely.
At this wedding, there was definitely a difference from one side of the church to the other. On the groom’s side Serena was beginning to feel that they were all her friends, also. On the brides side there were mainly family, who knew nothing about the aliens. Also, there were friends of Pam who were watching to see if Pam could take over. The reception was worse. The lines were quickly drawn and it was seen that Serena spent more time with the groom’s people than she did her own family.
Now, accepting Kyle was not all that easy for Serena. She had spent a lot of time talking to Liz and Maria. Serena was frankly scared about all the stories she had heard. Serena was still what she had declared Maria to be, a citizen of the mall. She loved Kyle, but Serena was far from brave when she thought of enemies from outer space coming down to attack. Then, there were those people who arrived just before Kyle and Serena were to sneak away to leave on their honeymoon.
Maria and Michael were sitting at a table with Max and Liz. Isabel and Jesse hadn’t been able to fly back to this wedding. Beside Liz, was sitting the omnipresence of Esteban. Pam had frowned when they arrived at the church. The visage of the tattooed Indian shaman was almost too much for her. She started to say something, but looking at the black eyes of the shaman silenced in her, for the moment, any idea of complaining to her new in-laws. Then there were those really strange people.
mary mary
destinyc
keepsmiling7
Chapter 14
Jesse and Isabel could only afford a week before Jesse had to return to his practice. Liz wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. She had been going to school, but eventually you have to do more than just go to school. You have to do something with the education you have obtained if it is only to find a vocation in spite of your studies.
Max wanted to keep close to home. It was his choice and not the designs of Liz or his mother. Isabel hadn’t even tried to talk them into coming back east. She knew that when he had made this decision, his desire to remain close to home was not entirely rational. Maybe, it was something he learned in the jungle about community as he cared for the villagers. Max wanted to get into a residency program someway. His resume, now, read the operation of an emergency clinic in the Amazon. He was hoping that this would help him get back into the medical program.
Maria surprisingly enough, was not as anxious to get back on the concert road as she thought she’d be. She and Michael were living in Roswell and for the moment, that was enough. Maria was going to spend a lot of time just writing for the immediate future. She had many ideas of songs she had thought up while in the forest. No, she wasn’t going to write about killing powerful princes, but she might write about the care the shaman dealt her while they were traveling. Something about changing into a bird to see what lay ahead was rattling around in her mind. Michael was flirting with painting again. His only masterpiece had been that geodesic dome he painted while in high school. Now, he had themes of the jungle that were bothering him. Some of the things he had put down on canvas were disturbing. There were paintings of the jungle, as realistic as he could make them, except when under close examination, it could be seen that there were outlines of savage cats and tattooed figures hidden within the foliage.
Something both terrible and wonderful had happened to them in the forest. Maria had always found strength in Michael’s arms. She had come to expect that. When she felt the arms of Carlos around her she was confused. Carlos had told her to close her eyes. She knew that the shaman wanted her to do something that she probably wouldn’t have wanted to do in another world. The shaman were convinced that what they wanted from Maria would help both Liz and Isabel. Maria had just killed a man. She shot him in cold blood; well, maybe not that cold. He was trying to kill Michael. Maria remembered how hard it was to shoot the first cat they found. Taking of life, any life, has to be learned unless, it is immediately defensive. The jaguar its head held low, started out slowly and then, it was in a gallop. The leaps were twenty feet or so at a time. The shaman had either hit the dirt or they had moved to the side getting out their blowguns. When Maria lifted the rifle to her shoulder, she saw the beauty of the cat through the sights. There was no time for conversation. Maria shot and the cat collapsed. From then on, Maria had no trouble killing cats who were killing and eating the villagers. When she fired on Kivar, it took all that she had to pull that trigger the first time. The other shots were just automatic like she had practiced.
Cutting off the head had been as necessary as the shooting, in the eyes of the shaman. Now, she would write her songs. The birds who were supposed to be the shaman would fly in her lyrics as well as in her mind. Maria would look at Michael’s pictures. Maria knew what the symbolism he painted meant. In Michael’s arms, Maria would push all these visions out of her mind. To the spirit of her mother, she would whisper, “Mom I was strong enough for the task. Please be proud of me.” Maria at night would think about the strength of Michael’s arms, but she also had received strength in the arms of Carlos as he guided that last swing. Michael had no jealously about this. He was so proud that Maria could rise to the occasion. Maria could be a powerful woman and the men who worked with her, loved and respected her. Michael could only think, was there a reason he had been so lucky?
When the three remaining travelers first came home, Jesse and Isabel, of course, were there to meet them along with the elder Evans family. Kyle and Serena were there. This was a surprise. Most of them, in their high school days, had crossed Pam Troy, in one way or the other. When they all graduated, Serena was still on middle school. Max was guarded when Kyle introduced Serena. It wasn’t until his mother announced that Kyle and Serena were now part of the weekly dinners that Max got down to the business of learning about the younger sister. He was surprised that his mom had been so open to Serena about the stories of the Roswell aliens.
“Max, unless you are going to banish Kyle, you are going to have to accept Serena. She has supported him the whole time you were gone. Kyle and I talked considerably before he told her about everybody. I think she will be as supportive as anyone Kyle could find,” Diane explained.
Their first meeting since returning was held two days after they had all arrived. Just like last time, it was held at the home of Diane and Philip Evans. There was considerably less banter between Kyle and Maria. Kyle wasn’t as caustic nor was Maria as touchy. They were all sitting in the living room while Liz and Isabel, again, were helping Diane with the meal. Isabel called into the living room, “If the door bell rings, yell out that there is no one at home.”
Kyle shouted back, “If I answer it, I am not going to give warning when I hit whoever it is.”
Philip dryly stated, “Be careful, Kyle, I think Diane might have invited Reverend Warren to stop over, sometime.”
Kyle responded, “Then the good reverend better keep his dukes up, ‘cause I am going to open the door fighting.”
Reverend Warren was an elderly man, balding, with a soft voice. The thought of Kyle starting a fight with him, without provocation, was just not imaginable.
“Maybe, Serena better answer the door,” suggested Philip.
Kyle pulled her closer to him, “No, if the bell rings, I am going to send her out of the room. I am just going to ask Michael to blast whoever is on the other side without opening the door. We can afford to put up a new door, better than we can do the repairs you all had last time.”
Michael said, “Maybe, I should just send a little pulse through the door, every so often, just to keep people away.”
About this time, the newest member of their family entered. Esteban had proven quick to pick up English. He told Liz that English was so simple compared to his language. He could be wrong in so many ways and still be understood. Where as in the Indian language he normally spoke, one missing inflection could, and had, brought down wars upon the speakers.
Esteban still made the best coffee. He had to rely on the coffee beans that were bought from the store He complained bitterly that they were not picked at the right time. He had crawled up on Diane’s sinktop and taking down all her spices from the top shelf, smelled each one, and had saved a collection of spices that he used. They were not a combination that Max would have thought of, but they did do marvelous things to the coffee that Esteban brewed. Esteban was now dressed in loose-fitting jeans, with a blue work shirt. As a concession to the concrete, rocks and pavement of his new world, he was wearing sandals of braded palm. His hair cut was still the bowl-on-the-head type and his face bore the dark tattoos that, sometimes, startled the people who saw him. Explaining Esteban had proven very difficult.
This time, Liz got the roast out of the oven. Isabel finished placing her desert in the individual dishes and Diane finished her incessant washing of dishes to be placed on the table. Liz called them to dinner. Again it was remarked how quickly Esteban learned the proper use of everything at the table. As they gathered around the table, Max went to his mother’s cupboard and removed a small box of corn meal. He handed this to Esteban. Esteban, then, proceeded to open the small bag that he always kept close. Taking a pinch of the meal, Esteban sprinkled it into the bag. He was symbolically feeding the soul of Kivar imprisoned in the head.
After the dinner, they all gathered around in the living room. Max told his story. When he was through, Liz told what she could of what had happened to her. She looked down at her lap when she got to what she, finally, remembered of her encounter with Isabel.
Liz felt some one standing over her and Isabel took Liz’s hands. “We have to get past that time. Neither of us was in control. It was all the act of Kivar, but what you did freed me from him. That was when the villagers obtained my body to save until I could be healed.”
Liz looked up gratefully. Yes, Isabel was helping put this all behind them. The stories must be told tonight, but afterward, they would not be forgotten, but at least, could be put aside.
Isabel told of what she knew. “From the time I entered the room and Kyle opened the door, I remember very little. I think the first time I was in charge of my thoughts was when the shaman were covering me with leaves. Then I would drift off to sleep and the only thing I remember of was that it was a pleasant sleep. I remember very little of Kivar, except for some desire to worship him which has slowly passed.”
Maria told of her adventures. When she was through, it wasn’t the chopping off the Kivar’s head that directed the conversation, but rather Philip. “Michael, the rifle club has a turkey shoot every year. We could enter the singer, Maria DeLuca, and clean up on bets, because this story can’t ever get beyond this room.”
Michael looked at Philip, “That is not a bad idea, but it may be, the singer, Maria Deluca-Guerin. We hope to be married in the next few weeks.”
Of course, this derailed the meeting because all the women turned to Maria. Talk changed to marriage and dresses and things. Finally Max laughed, “Look, we can all get together with Maria and Michael’s wedding, but first, we need to finish the business at hand. Michael, do you have anything to say?”
Michael shook his head. “Kivar said that he could not be killed by a man. I remembered this has been said before in literature. It is an old saw, here in Earth. He should have known that Earthmen would find a way around that. I was the distraction. It was left to Maria and Esteban to kill Kivar. Finally, Kivar died at the hands of Maria, a singer and a woman, who was taught from infancy to make love, not war. It was just that war was brought to her and she answered in kind.”
That was all their story until Esteban stood up. Now, you have to realize that Esteban standing wasn’t that much taller than Esteban sitting in his chair. They were all astounded at his English. “The, so-called Prince, Kivar, committed a grave sin among my people. He used an ancient device to kill for no reason, except his pleasure. We would have destroyed him, no matter what. Having "la niña de la venganza" just made things easier. The daughter of vengeance was sent to us and we used her. There are creatures in the jungle, other than men. We could have used one of them, but none would have been as beautiful as the Singer DeLuca.”
Maria blushed. Selena was surprised. The Maria she knew was a stalker of the mall and the inhabitant of the theater. Here, her story was being told, by this strange man, who had some connection to all of them. When they were talking about killing, it made Serena uneasy. She came from a world where they made threats and posted mean things about each other on the internet, but she had no concept of a world where animals and people got killed. It really got to her when they were talking about the lady who changed into a cat of some sort and the cat killing the lady’s own children. The aliens, along with Liz, seemed to view all of this as circumstance that they had lived with. The hacking off of the head, almost, sent Serena to the bathroom. That was just too gruesome.
Now, their story was out of the way. They could talk about important things such as Maria’s wedding. Kyle was quiet. He had something to talk to Serena about later tonight. He wondered how she would react. Kyle knew that the adventures of the others bothered Serena, not for what they were, but that people, she now knew, were doing those things.
It was seen that the one thing that no one had mentioned was the small bag always in the presence of Esteban. They had all witnessed the ceremonial feeding of the artifact, but no one, outside of the original travelers, had seen the head, recently.
Maria’s wedding had come. Jim Valenti even got out of his chair for this event. He escorted Maria. Jim, being the boyfriend of her mother and all the support he had given them in high school, was, in Maria’s mind, the closest thing she had had as a father. Max and Liz stood with them. Jesse and Isabel flew in for all three days of the wedding.
Liz enjoyed the ceremony for her friend very much. Liz had been married while on the road. She and Max had enjoyed their honeymoon, even before the wedding. The night just before graduation when they were convinced that they would be killed soon, Max by changing the structure of a lump of charcoal into a diamond, professed his love for Liz. At that time they did not believe they would live to see the legal ceremony. What they had was nothing like either Max or Liz had dreamed about. That night on her balcony, Liz and Max had made love for the first time. Later on the road, they were married at the home of a preacher along the way. After they returned, Liz and Max endured a simple ceremony just for Mrs. Parker. It gave her the chance to announce her daughter was now married and she got even with all the relatives who had sent her their children’s wedding invitations. Way back in her head, Liz wondered what it would have been like to have done like Michael and Maria. Oh well, we take what comes our way.
The Guerins settled down in Roswell where Michael studied his painting and Maria continued writing her songs. Everyone told her that the new music had so much more soul since she had returned.
Kyle and Serena’s wedding came up. It was so different from Maria’s. Maria and Michael were so close to all who were invited to her wedding that it was all like family. Serena’s family was slightly estranged from her these last few years. Pam was not pleased that Serena had found a guy, who was Pam-proofed. Pam had even tried to make a play for Kyle, one evening, when Serena was gone. Kyle politely, but firmly put Pam out the door. Pam scorned, at least in her mind, tried to tell Serena that she had scored with Kyle. But, that night, when Serena returned to Kyle’s bed, that very small alien growth that was hidden within Kyle blossomed forth. Kyle was able to conjure a flash for Serena and from then on, Serena trusted Kyle completely.
At this wedding, there was definitely a difference from one side of the church to the other. On the groom’s side Serena was beginning to feel that they were all her friends, also. On the brides side there were mainly family, who knew nothing about the aliens. Also, there were friends of Pam who were watching to see if Pam could take over. The reception was worse. The lines were quickly drawn and it was seen that Serena spent more time with the groom’s people than she did her own family.
Now, accepting Kyle was not all that easy for Serena. She had spent a lot of time talking to Liz and Maria. Serena was frankly scared about all the stories she had heard. Serena was still what she had declared Maria to be, a citizen of the mall. She loved Kyle, but Serena was far from brave when she thought of enemies from outer space coming down to attack. Then, there were those people who arrived just before Kyle and Serena were to sneak away to leave on their honeymoon.
Maria and Michael were sitting at a table with Max and Liz. Isabel and Jesse hadn’t been able to fly back to this wedding. Beside Liz, was sitting the omnipresence of Esteban. Pam had frowned when they arrived at the church. The visage of the tattooed Indian shaman was almost too much for her. She started to say something, but looking at the black eyes of the shaman silenced in her, for the moment, any idea of complaining to her new in-laws. Then there were those really strange people.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 8 ch 14 Mar 9 2009
paper
destinyc
nibbles2
mary mary
keepsmiling7
Authors note: I would like the readers watch carefully the character of Esteban. When we think of gifted we usually think of scholars in education. Esteban was a primitive by anyone's standard. He had risen to the top of his vocation as shaman and he would rise where ever he was, to excel. Given a chance he quickly learned to read as well as speak English. He says somewhere that English is a simple language. it is redundant enough that meaning is easy to determine. Watch as he becomes a very important character in the lives of our friends.
Chapter 15
There were three people. They were tall and strangely dressed. They were wearing some sort of body suits. They brushed by the receptionist and approached the table where Max and the rest were sitting. Serena felt Kyle tense up. She felt herself being drawn to a place behind him. Kyle was staring at the new comers. Serena saw Kyle’s eyes. They were dark with anger. The three people stood before Max and Liz. They were saying something and Max was shaking his head. Finally, Max and Michael stood up and the three people retreated. Still worried, Kyle took Serena’s hand. Even if there was to be an alien invasion, Kyle had a honeymoon to attend to. When he returned, he would use all his ability to aid Max and Michael. Now, he had to aid the soul of his love.
When the strangers approached the table where Max and friends were sitting, the one who was the spokesman stated, “We want the remaining relic of our Lord Kivar. He was honorably killed in battle. At least, we will assume that the battle was honorable. His body has been consumed in fire, but there is still a relic which should be returned to his family.”
Max shook his head, “This is a time of celebration, We do not to discuss the cowardly actions of your scurvy Lord.” Max was sure they had no idea of what scurvy meant. Max wasn’t completely sure himself. But, he had winnowed out several other descriptions as not fit to use at Kyle’s wedding. Scurvy was just what he found to be left. Michael stood up and, it could be told that he along with Max, was powering up with a power blast. The three noticed that there was something added from the woman sitting next to the king. They weren’t sure. Max was right. This should be discussed at some other place.
The next morning, Kyle and Serena were out of town. Max had called Isabel. She and Jesse had promised to be in Roswell by nightfall. Right now, it was just the five of them. Maria and Michael, along with Max and Liz, then, also Esteban was present. He held the relic. Esteban was the first to speak. “To release the relic or destroy it might also, release the spirit of the cat. The relic is the only thing that keeps the cat away from Liz. She has been free simply because I hold the soul of he who put the spell upon her.”
That was enough for Max. He wasn’t willing to let anything come back to haunt Liz. This was going to be a war, at least at first with rhetoric. Max was glad that Jesse was returning. It would be Jesse and Philip Evans who dictated the way such a discussion would go.
That night, Liz was in the arms of Max. The next meeting would be in three days. She was shaking. “Max, if we loose the head, will Esteban be able to keep me free or will I revert back to the cat?”
Max was kissing her head and petting her body, “We have to be strong. We have to wait and see how the fight will develop.”
“Max, I would rather be dead than to suffer a return to that other life,” Liz cried.
That night, for Max, love was holding on to someone who he could never bare to loose. For Liz, love was desperation. If she lost her human form, it might be the last time she would feel it.
Maria and Michael were getting ready for bed. Maria hadn’t been able to bring her rifle back from the Amazon, but she had saved the machete she had used to decapitate the fallen prince. The machete still had traces of blood on it. Maria took it out of the closet and placed it on the table. Michael was fearful that they would be in a situation that they wouldn’t be able to handle. He had already expressed his feeling that Maria should stay out of it. That had precipitated a major storm. When Maria came to bed, Michael saw that he had lost his mall crawler again. His arms were around a woman who had defended her family and friends. Michael’s love just added to her resolve to be just as strong and powerful as the aliens, when they faced the Antarians. Michael, not wanting to be second place, just increased his intention to be the strongest soldier. Together, they were a formidable force. As they climaxed together, so would they stand together and they would be victorious.
The meeting was at a small cabin away from Roswell. Max had paid for the use of the cabin. He hoped that he wouldn’t have to pay for its repair afterward.
The cabin had a long table in the main room. Max had moved out the other furniture. Jesse and Philip sat at one end with Max and Liz on one side and Michael, Isabel and Maria on the other. There were places for the antarians at the other end. Esteban was offered a place at the table, but he chose to stand behind Jesse. None of them could read what went on in his silent mind.
The Antarians began, “Lord Kivar, the prince of Antar, having attempted to make peace with the house of Zan had no choice but to return to this backward planet to wage war and obtain payment for the affront he suffered.”
Maria muttered, “Backward, my ass. We kicked his butt with a bunch of primitive Indians and put him in a bag. That makes us pretty advanced in my way of seeing.”
For this, she was awarded sharp glances from the three at the far end of the table. It was true that they didn’t know the whole story yet. Jesse made no motion and the only thing from her own side was a hand on her shoulder from Michael.
Jesse began, “What was the alleged affront to the so called prince?”
The Anterian speaker resonated, “Lord Kivar included his own sister with the clones so they would make an alliance and bring the opposing forces together. The king refused her. In some way, the king is responsible for her death.”
Jesse responded, “The king and the others were brought up in a society where marriage arrangements are not made. The parties have to earn the trust of their partners and she used simple seduction. No trust was ever made, between the king and Kivar’s sister. The sister was allowed to return to Antar with whatever heir she had. It was you who refused him.”
The emissaries had not given any names and Jesse was finding it difficult to address just a position. The three seemed to be speaking as one. The others never addressed anyone, except for the speaker. “The heir was not acceptable. The king should have offered Kivar’s sister another chance if he didn’t want to accompany her.”
Jesse frowned, “What do you mean unacceptable?”
The Antarian straightened as if he could straighten any more, “The child was human. The king owed Ava the chance for a full Antarian child.”
Jesse caught that one quickly, “We are not in the understanding that the King owes this Ava, whom we called Tess, anything. She approached him under false pretenses every time. She did all that she could to wreck the king’s life. Ava, or Tess, took an heir by subterfuge. We do not recognize that we owe anything to anyone from Antar.” You had to admit that in debate, Jesse was good. “Your prince, Kivar, came to Earth to make war on women. To our culture, this is cowardly.”
The emissary looked up surprised, “Women are the strength of any society so making war on them is a direct attack on the resources of the society. Lord Kivar was attacking the resources of your culture.”
Jesse took a deep breath, but before he could get his statement out Maria fumed. again she said, “Resources my ass! Kivar attacked women making them kill their own children. If that is your way of fighting, I guess we showed you something. One of our resources hacked your lord’s head off and burned his body.”
Jesse put his hand out. What Maria said was true. He had just intended to say it a different way and at a different time.
The emissary stated, “Yes, and that is the relic that we want returned. Kivar’s body should have all been completely cremated or returned. You are holding a part of it and you have no right to.”
Jesse turned to the emissary, “Kivar took my wife hostage and was using her power to hurt the people in the jungle. He had no right to do that.”
“Kivar took your wife as a prize of war. He had the right to do with her, as he wanted. He was amusing himself with a primitive race in the hither lands of your world. There was no reason for you to interfere,” the emissary solemnly said.
Max spoke up, “Kivar had no right to take my sister and the people of which, you speak are no less human than we are.”
“Careful my king. You have just grouped yourself with an inferior segment of the inferior race in which you have chosen to live,” the Antarian said.
“Why do you insist in calling me your king when you are clearly in rebellion?” Max asked.
“Your majesty, being in rebellion does not mean you are not king until we depose and execute you,” the emissary explained.”
“Well, let’s just look at the fact that we deposed and executed your so-called Lord Kivar,” Michael stated.
“But, my good fellow, you are just a soldier. Any action you took was in honorable war. You have no right to execute anyone. And that…” the emissary was pointing to Maria,
Michael’s eyes went dark as onyx. “Watch it fellow. The next word that comes out of your mouth better be sweet lady or princess. Anything else and the shooting war starts again, right here.” Michael had taken a stance and you could tell that his body was powering up for a blast. The readiness should have told the Antarians that any blast he would unleash would be powerful indeed. Then, they looked around and they saw that Max and Isabel also were powering up. The woman he had been pointing to had placed a case on the table and she was preparing to open it.
The emissary blinked. These people were so volatile. They had no idea of the sanctity of an emissary. Say the wrong thing and three people who should have diplomatic protection, could be killed by these savages. A king raised in this culture might be difficult to live with. The emissary tried to save face, “Is the Princess, in question, going to serenade us with war music?” he indicated the case that Maria had put on the table.
A strange look came on Maria’s face. “I might make music, but serenade is not quite the word for it.” Maria opened the violin case and removed the machete she had placed inside. “Your foolish lord made the brag that no man could kill him. Idiots have been making that brag on Earth for centuries. The answer is always the same. I am not a man. I am a woman and I killed your lord without any alien hocus pocus. I brought him down with human type bullets and I took his head by womanly strength. He was a coward and we destroyed him.”
“Again, you brag when you should show shame. We will accept our fallen lord and now, simply request that you return the remaining relic. We will overlook the your boorishness and attribute it to the fact that you are primitive,” The emissary held out his hand.
For the first time, a voice was heard. “They do not have the possession of the relic. Your Lord stole the power he used to change people into beasts. He was hurting the forest. He was a disease that had grown in the forest. I used the singer to destroy him because I wanted him to know that he was brought down not by a famous warrior, but by a entertainer.” Esteban withdrew the head from the bag he always held. He held it not by the hair as he normally did, but the head in his hand. “Go back and try to bring peace to your land. The curse of the Jaguar god may follow you. El Tigre will reach all the way into your homes.” Everyone was looking at Esteban.
Esteban could be seen, but he was surrounded by some kind of light show. The short Shaman could be seen. but outside of his form there was a monster, the head of Kivar, was held not in a hand, but in a paw. The claws were extending around and biting into the head. The Antarians, all three of them, were now screaming as they held their own heads. The pain they were feeling was terrible. When Esteban or whatever he now, was, shook the head in front of them, they grabbed their heads and cried louder. The voice of Esteban came from the open mouth of a fanged cat. It was dark yellow brown with darker spots. The eyes were almost black just like Esteban’s were. Suddenly, everything flashed and was as normal. The three Antarians looked at those from Roswell and like disappearing into another dimension, they vanished. Esteban was the quiet shaman that they had always known and everyone was wondering what had happened.
destinyc
nibbles2
mary mary
keepsmiling7
Authors note: I would like the readers watch carefully the character of Esteban. When we think of gifted we usually think of scholars in education. Esteban was a primitive by anyone's standard. He had risen to the top of his vocation as shaman and he would rise where ever he was, to excel. Given a chance he quickly learned to read as well as speak English. He says somewhere that English is a simple language. it is redundant enough that meaning is easy to determine. Watch as he becomes a very important character in the lives of our friends.
Chapter 15
There were three people. They were tall and strangely dressed. They were wearing some sort of body suits. They brushed by the receptionist and approached the table where Max and the rest were sitting. Serena felt Kyle tense up. She felt herself being drawn to a place behind him. Kyle was staring at the new comers. Serena saw Kyle’s eyes. They were dark with anger. The three people stood before Max and Liz. They were saying something and Max was shaking his head. Finally, Max and Michael stood up and the three people retreated. Still worried, Kyle took Serena’s hand. Even if there was to be an alien invasion, Kyle had a honeymoon to attend to. When he returned, he would use all his ability to aid Max and Michael. Now, he had to aid the soul of his love.
When the strangers approached the table where Max and friends were sitting, the one who was the spokesman stated, “We want the remaining relic of our Lord Kivar. He was honorably killed in battle. At least, we will assume that the battle was honorable. His body has been consumed in fire, but there is still a relic which should be returned to his family.”
Max shook his head, “This is a time of celebration, We do not to discuss the cowardly actions of your scurvy Lord.” Max was sure they had no idea of what scurvy meant. Max wasn’t completely sure himself. But, he had winnowed out several other descriptions as not fit to use at Kyle’s wedding. Scurvy was just what he found to be left. Michael stood up and, it could be told that he along with Max, was powering up with a power blast. The three noticed that there was something added from the woman sitting next to the king. They weren’t sure. Max was right. This should be discussed at some other place.
The next morning, Kyle and Serena were out of town. Max had called Isabel. She and Jesse had promised to be in Roswell by nightfall. Right now, it was just the five of them. Maria and Michael, along with Max and Liz, then, also Esteban was present. He held the relic. Esteban was the first to speak. “To release the relic or destroy it might also, release the spirit of the cat. The relic is the only thing that keeps the cat away from Liz. She has been free simply because I hold the soul of he who put the spell upon her.”
That was enough for Max. He wasn’t willing to let anything come back to haunt Liz. This was going to be a war, at least at first with rhetoric. Max was glad that Jesse was returning. It would be Jesse and Philip Evans who dictated the way such a discussion would go.
That night, Liz was in the arms of Max. The next meeting would be in three days. She was shaking. “Max, if we loose the head, will Esteban be able to keep me free or will I revert back to the cat?”
Max was kissing her head and petting her body, “We have to be strong. We have to wait and see how the fight will develop.”
“Max, I would rather be dead than to suffer a return to that other life,” Liz cried.
That night, for Max, love was holding on to someone who he could never bare to loose. For Liz, love was desperation. If she lost her human form, it might be the last time she would feel it.
Maria and Michael were getting ready for bed. Maria hadn’t been able to bring her rifle back from the Amazon, but she had saved the machete she had used to decapitate the fallen prince. The machete still had traces of blood on it. Maria took it out of the closet and placed it on the table. Michael was fearful that they would be in a situation that they wouldn’t be able to handle. He had already expressed his feeling that Maria should stay out of it. That had precipitated a major storm. When Maria came to bed, Michael saw that he had lost his mall crawler again. His arms were around a woman who had defended her family and friends. Michael’s love just added to her resolve to be just as strong and powerful as the aliens, when they faced the Antarians. Michael, not wanting to be second place, just increased his intention to be the strongest soldier. Together, they were a formidable force. As they climaxed together, so would they stand together and they would be victorious.
The meeting was at a small cabin away from Roswell. Max had paid for the use of the cabin. He hoped that he wouldn’t have to pay for its repair afterward.
The cabin had a long table in the main room. Max had moved out the other furniture. Jesse and Philip sat at one end with Max and Liz on one side and Michael, Isabel and Maria on the other. There were places for the antarians at the other end. Esteban was offered a place at the table, but he chose to stand behind Jesse. None of them could read what went on in his silent mind.
The Antarians began, “Lord Kivar, the prince of Antar, having attempted to make peace with the house of Zan had no choice but to return to this backward planet to wage war and obtain payment for the affront he suffered.”
Maria muttered, “Backward, my ass. We kicked his butt with a bunch of primitive Indians and put him in a bag. That makes us pretty advanced in my way of seeing.”
For this, she was awarded sharp glances from the three at the far end of the table. It was true that they didn’t know the whole story yet. Jesse made no motion and the only thing from her own side was a hand on her shoulder from Michael.
Jesse began, “What was the alleged affront to the so called prince?”
The Anterian speaker resonated, “Lord Kivar included his own sister with the clones so they would make an alliance and bring the opposing forces together. The king refused her. In some way, the king is responsible for her death.”
Jesse responded, “The king and the others were brought up in a society where marriage arrangements are not made. The parties have to earn the trust of their partners and she used simple seduction. No trust was ever made, between the king and Kivar’s sister. The sister was allowed to return to Antar with whatever heir she had. It was you who refused him.”
The emissaries had not given any names and Jesse was finding it difficult to address just a position. The three seemed to be speaking as one. The others never addressed anyone, except for the speaker. “The heir was not acceptable. The king should have offered Kivar’s sister another chance if he didn’t want to accompany her.”
Jesse frowned, “What do you mean unacceptable?”
The Antarian straightened as if he could straighten any more, “The child was human. The king owed Ava the chance for a full Antarian child.”
Jesse caught that one quickly, “We are not in the understanding that the King owes this Ava, whom we called Tess, anything. She approached him under false pretenses every time. She did all that she could to wreck the king’s life. Ava, or Tess, took an heir by subterfuge. We do not recognize that we owe anything to anyone from Antar.” You had to admit that in debate, Jesse was good. “Your prince, Kivar, came to Earth to make war on women. To our culture, this is cowardly.”
The emissary looked up surprised, “Women are the strength of any society so making war on them is a direct attack on the resources of the society. Lord Kivar was attacking the resources of your culture.”
Jesse took a deep breath, but before he could get his statement out Maria fumed. again she said, “Resources my ass! Kivar attacked women making them kill their own children. If that is your way of fighting, I guess we showed you something. One of our resources hacked your lord’s head off and burned his body.”
Jesse put his hand out. What Maria said was true. He had just intended to say it a different way and at a different time.
The emissary stated, “Yes, and that is the relic that we want returned. Kivar’s body should have all been completely cremated or returned. You are holding a part of it and you have no right to.”
Jesse turned to the emissary, “Kivar took my wife hostage and was using her power to hurt the people in the jungle. He had no right to do that.”
“Kivar took your wife as a prize of war. He had the right to do with her, as he wanted. He was amusing himself with a primitive race in the hither lands of your world. There was no reason for you to interfere,” the emissary solemnly said.
Max spoke up, “Kivar had no right to take my sister and the people of which, you speak are no less human than we are.”
“Careful my king. You have just grouped yourself with an inferior segment of the inferior race in which you have chosen to live,” the Antarian said.
“Why do you insist in calling me your king when you are clearly in rebellion?” Max asked.
“Your majesty, being in rebellion does not mean you are not king until we depose and execute you,” the emissary explained.”
“Well, let’s just look at the fact that we deposed and executed your so-called Lord Kivar,” Michael stated.
“But, my good fellow, you are just a soldier. Any action you took was in honorable war. You have no right to execute anyone. And that…” the emissary was pointing to Maria,
Michael’s eyes went dark as onyx. “Watch it fellow. The next word that comes out of your mouth better be sweet lady or princess. Anything else and the shooting war starts again, right here.” Michael had taken a stance and you could tell that his body was powering up for a blast. The readiness should have told the Antarians that any blast he would unleash would be powerful indeed. Then, they looked around and they saw that Max and Isabel also were powering up. The woman he had been pointing to had placed a case on the table and she was preparing to open it.
The emissary blinked. These people were so volatile. They had no idea of the sanctity of an emissary. Say the wrong thing and three people who should have diplomatic protection, could be killed by these savages. A king raised in this culture might be difficult to live with. The emissary tried to save face, “Is the Princess, in question, going to serenade us with war music?” he indicated the case that Maria had put on the table.
A strange look came on Maria’s face. “I might make music, but serenade is not quite the word for it.” Maria opened the violin case and removed the machete she had placed inside. “Your foolish lord made the brag that no man could kill him. Idiots have been making that brag on Earth for centuries. The answer is always the same. I am not a man. I am a woman and I killed your lord without any alien hocus pocus. I brought him down with human type bullets and I took his head by womanly strength. He was a coward and we destroyed him.”
“Again, you brag when you should show shame. We will accept our fallen lord and now, simply request that you return the remaining relic. We will overlook the your boorishness and attribute it to the fact that you are primitive,” The emissary held out his hand.
For the first time, a voice was heard. “They do not have the possession of the relic. Your Lord stole the power he used to change people into beasts. He was hurting the forest. He was a disease that had grown in the forest. I used the singer to destroy him because I wanted him to know that he was brought down not by a famous warrior, but by a entertainer.” Esteban withdrew the head from the bag he always held. He held it not by the hair as he normally did, but the head in his hand. “Go back and try to bring peace to your land. The curse of the Jaguar god may follow you. El Tigre will reach all the way into your homes.” Everyone was looking at Esteban.
Esteban could be seen, but he was surrounded by some kind of light show. The short Shaman could be seen. but outside of his form there was a monster, the head of Kivar, was held not in a hand, but in a paw. The claws were extending around and biting into the head. The Antarians, all three of them, were now screaming as they held their own heads. The pain they were feeling was terrible. When Esteban or whatever he now, was, shook the head in front of them, they grabbed their heads and cried louder. The voice of Esteban came from the open mouth of a fanged cat. It was dark yellow brown with darker spots. The eyes were almost black just like Esteban’s were. Suddenly, everything flashed and was as normal. The three Antarians looked at those from Roswell and like disappearing into another dimension, they vanished. Esteban was the quiet shaman that they had always known and everyone was wondering what had happened.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 9 ch 15 Mar 16 2009
mary mary
keepsmiling7
destinyc
Chapter 16
They were all gathered at the Philip Evans’ house. Philip since he hadn’t taken part in any of the arguments, was the most objective in retelling what happened. Jesse and Isabel would leave for Washington, DC, tomorrow morning. Liz and Max, along with Esteban, would return to their home a few streets away as would Maria and Michael. As Philip was telling the story, he was interrupted. Esteban brought in a tray with a large pot of coffee. On the tray were foam cups. Esteban delighted in using many modern conveniences. He also had cream, sugar and mint.
“Chica,” Maria cried out, “this is why I am going to come over to your house every morning before I start writing. We ought to get Esteban a job at the Crashdown. José could sell nothing but coffee and retire a wealthy man.”
Jesse was back at his office. Linda had postponed his appointments from the last three days. She was terribly efficient. Claudio Alvarez stopped by. He had started using Jesse for many legal things. Claudio was impressed at the family ties he saw in Jesse, as well as his reputation for honesty. Claudio had to use a practicing lawyer sometimes, one who had the right to practice in Washington. Why not use one from the old home state? “How is my shaman doing?” Claudio asked.
Jesse shook his head, “Pretty good, we were contacted by the people who were responsible for kidnapping my wife. That is why I was out of town.”
“Did you contact the police?” Claudio asked.
“No, these people were quite a bit beyond the police,” Jesse replied.
“What about homeland security?” was Claudio’s next question.
“No, I think they were beyond even them,” Jesse carefully mused.
“Well, who are these people who could just come in and kidnap your wife?” was Claudio’s final question. “Are they aliens or something?”
Jesse turned to Claudio and said, “Sometime when you are going to be in New Mexico for a time, I would like you to meet the family. They are all in Roswell and they are a bit different.”
“Aw, come on Jesse, they can’t be aliens!” Claudio commented.
“Let’s just say that I would like you to meet the family, sometime,” Jesse said.
Claudio promised that, sometime he would and left the office. Jesse wondered how Max would take what Jesse had just done. Jesse felt that there would come a time when they needed help in the government and Claudio was a man who could be trusted.
Maria was back singing, but she did a lot more writing from home. Michael was working. He had returned to school and from time to time, he would pick up jobs editing papers or cataloging information. Michael had come a long way from the days when he wouldn’t ever let anyone know how much he knew. Maria didn’t like to disrupt his life. She might go on short tours and do specials, but to go on the road for an extended time, just wasn’t that much fun. Maria had been feeling just a little off. When she returned from her doctor, she had an announcement to make. “Everyone listen up. We are going to have a baby.”
Michael almost fell out of his chair. He knew that Maria had talked of starting a family, but the announcement was still a shock. Papa Mike, now that would be a title! Would his son share his video games with him? Would they go to hockey games together? Could they split a grape Snapple?
Michael’s mind was flooded with things. He mentioned having a son and every one laughed. “What if it is a girl, Michael? What then?” Max asked.
Michael frowned, “Then, I will make all them damned little boys stay away from my front porch. She can start dating when she is thirty.”
This prompted Liz to laugh, “Michael, you are barely thirty yourself. Aren’t you going to let your daughter have the same privilege as you had?”
Michael was blushing. How he and Maria had acted, was exactly why he said what he did. He didn’t want his daughter to meet some “guy” and mess around. Look at Maria. Maria had been lucky she had found Michael. Could he believe his daughter could be that lucky? There was something wrong with that sort of thinking, but Michael hadn’t decided what that was, yet.
Maria smiled, “I bet Michael will be the most dotting daddy there is. It won’t matter what the baby is, boy or girl.”
“Don’t you mean, human or alien?” Kyle said. That prompted a pillow to be launched by Maria.
“Kyle, how can you say something like that?” Serena said.
The baby event and Michael’s readiness to be a father fueled the rest of the evening conversation. That night when they were in bed, Liz spoke to Max. “Do you think we can ever start a family?”
Max was holding her tightly. He had been thinking the same thing. They had been so afraid of Liz becoming pregnant when she was changing from woman to cat and back, that he hadn’t brought the subject up for a long time. Tonight proved that the topic wasn’t buried very far in his wife’s thoughts. “We should talk to Esteban. He, after all, is the only one who knows anything about your condition.”
Liz was silent. She thought, “I have to consult a shaman, a brujo, while other women consult their gynecologist.” Liz knew that no western doctor would ever understand her concern about her body. The shaman had said that she would always have a bit of the cat about her. Would this make it difficult to have children? She fell asleep that night with visions of babies, cats and kittens all running through her head. Before he left that morning, Max told Esteban that he and Liz needed to talk to him about something important. Esteban nodded in his usual emotionless way.
After supper, they were sitting in the living room drinking some of his best coffee and talking. Max started, “Is it possible and safe for Liz to have children?”
Esteban looked up. There were still several things he didn’t understand about these Anglos. He did understand that Max wasn’t from around here or any other place that Esteban knew about. He knew that Liz was just a compassionate young woman. Well, she was young for her culture. In his she would have been an old woman by now, unless she had the help of a bruja or curendara to help her. Esteban, being a Brujo himself, knew that he had many more years left unless some accident befell him. In his homeland, there were always true Jaguars; those who didn’t appreciate that Esteban was himself related to them. There were always warring tribes and many other things. Here, there were things way beyond his comprehension. Esteban treated his life here the same as in the jungle. He was careful and he trusted in his power as a jungle god to keep him safe. He just hoped one of those big trucks he saw going down the street understood that.
“It has been some time since Liz fell to the world of the cat. She will always have something of the cat about her. I don’t know how it will appear. If she has children, you both must be prepared to care for them since they, also, will have some of the cat about them,” Estaben expounded.
Liz was frightened, “Does that mean that my children might revert to the cat like I had to?”
Esteban shook his head, “No, but they will need extra help to find their way. We have trapped the soul of the false god in the head and it will stay there for many years. Hopefully, by the time he frees himself, you all will be strong enough to easily defeat him. Remember, he grows weaker every year and you all grow stronger. With children, you will be stronger yet.”
To Liz’s logical mind this was confusing, but everything that happened to her in the last few years hadn’t made sense to a scientific mind. Come to think of it, logic had lost its splendor ever since she had met Max and found out about aliens.
The next few months, Liz, Serena and Diane were excitedly getting ready for Maria’s baby. Isabel was not to be left out and she consulted every day about what was happening. They found out that one of the reasons she was so interested was that she, likewise, was pregnant.
Maria didn’t want to know whether the baby was a boy or girl. She said it should be a surprise. “As long as it is healthy, that is all I care about.”
Michael couldn’t stand it. Should he make a sign which read, “Boys keep out,” or sign himself up to be a coach of the t-ball little league team? The suspense was killing him. Liz reminded Michael that girls played ball, also.
“Why don’t you just ask the doctor to see what it is. You know you can start planning and buying what you need ahead of time,” Liz told Maria.
Maria frowned and laughed at the same time, “You know, he can just wait like the rest of us. Michael is always so impatient. He needs the humility of waiting.”
That didn’t make sense to Liz. If she was lucky enough, she wanted to know everything as soon as possible.
Max made arrangements to be in the delivery room with Maria. If there were any alien complications, Max would be there to try to handle it.
The day finally came. Michael and Maria had taken all the lessons. Maria had made Michael read all the books about babies which irritated him. It wasn’t a hard delivery. Maria was a healthy woman and the exercise she had taken in the last few years made having a baby relatively easy. Easy, that is how Max and Michael said it. Later, Maria would never let either of them forget that they hadn’t had the baby, she had. Easy was a simple word when you were standing there in a gown and masked so your expression couldn’t be seen. When it was over, Maria said she would probably do it again, but she was glad for a time to forget many things.
Little Danny Guerin came into the world with a strong voice and was received by a loving family. Except for an occasional spark or two, when no one was paying attention to him, he was healthy and normal.
Jesse took an extended leave. His office was well run and if there was an emergency he could return. Isabel wanted to be in Roswell for the birth of their child. Just like Maria, she wanted Max nearby in case something happened. Her internal organs had been damaged when she was slashed by the cat. Max had repaired her very well, but there could easily be complications.
Max had healed the external scars, but internally, there might be many things still that could cause Isabel trouble. Again, just like with Maria, Max arranged to be in the delivery room.
It wasn’t as easy for Isabel, but after several hours, she did deliver a strapping baby boy. They named him José Alexander Ramirez. None of the electric sparks were seen to run down his body like they were seen in little Danny Guerin. José was quieter than little Danny. Jesse was so proud of his son. He held him for everyone to see. Liz, who had been following both births closely, saw that the dark eyes of José never seemed to miss anything. Even shortly after birth, his eyes seemed to see all that was around him. No one knew what being under Kivar’s control could have done to Isabel. No one knew what being suspended in time for almost a year after she was hurt might have done. Modern medicine hadn’t researched or even recognized the problems that Isabel had faced.
Little Danny had a father who was at least part alien. He also had a mother who was a strong human woman. The genetics had been cast. Now it remained to see what environment would contribute to his life. The slight sparking from his little fingers only occurred when he was extremely distressed. The rest of him was just baby. He did develop a colic condition that tended to keep his parents awake. It was seen than when the little fellow was really upset, the slight sparking did come back. This produced a electrical display in Michael as he was trying so hard to ease Danny’s pain, that he was stressing himself. Through most of her life, Maria had considered herself high strung but as a mother, she proved to have infinite patience. She took everything in stride and laughed to Liz, “I take care of both my babies and try to keep the sparks down.”
Liz knew that Maria had been a blessing to Michael. What would he do without her comforting? Michael and Danny were doing just fine. They would just take a bit of time before they settled down.
Now looking at little José, Liz thought that he was trying to tell her something. His bright eyes were always following everything around him. He gave his mother and father very little trouble. When they played with him, they were amazed, like most parents, how fast he learned. Jesse and Isabel were sure they had a very bright child. So far, there were no alien traits, they saw, developing yet.
Jesse and Isabel were preparing to go back east. Jesse had had to return several times during their stay. His staff was efficient, but there were some things that demanded his attention. Linda contacted him that he had a message from Claudio Alvarez. Claudio would be in the state of New Mexico for the next few days and he would like to take up Jesse’s invitation to visit the family.
At first, Max was unsure. “Jesse, are you sure this is a good idea, letting someone new in on our secret.”
“Max, he already knows there is something different. We had to ask him to help us get Esteban into the country and he knows about the artifact. He is curious and it would be safer if we control what he learns than to just let him speculate. We might need his help later to protect Esteban’s visa,” Jesse explained.
Max had grown out of a lot of the paranoia of his youth. He, also, had learned that he couldn’t do everything. From time to time, he needed help. Yes, Claudio already knew a lot about them and presenting themselves would probably be safer than letting Claudio mount a private investigation.
keepsmiling7
destinyc
Chapter 16
They were all gathered at the Philip Evans’ house. Philip since he hadn’t taken part in any of the arguments, was the most objective in retelling what happened. Jesse and Isabel would leave for Washington, DC, tomorrow morning. Liz and Max, along with Esteban, would return to their home a few streets away as would Maria and Michael. As Philip was telling the story, he was interrupted. Esteban brought in a tray with a large pot of coffee. On the tray were foam cups. Esteban delighted in using many modern conveniences. He also had cream, sugar and mint.
“Chica,” Maria cried out, “this is why I am going to come over to your house every morning before I start writing. We ought to get Esteban a job at the Crashdown. José could sell nothing but coffee and retire a wealthy man.”
Jesse was back at his office. Linda had postponed his appointments from the last three days. She was terribly efficient. Claudio Alvarez stopped by. He had started using Jesse for many legal things. Claudio was impressed at the family ties he saw in Jesse, as well as his reputation for honesty. Claudio had to use a practicing lawyer sometimes, one who had the right to practice in Washington. Why not use one from the old home state? “How is my shaman doing?” Claudio asked.
Jesse shook his head, “Pretty good, we were contacted by the people who were responsible for kidnapping my wife. That is why I was out of town.”
“Did you contact the police?” Claudio asked.
“No, these people were quite a bit beyond the police,” Jesse replied.
“What about homeland security?” was Claudio’s next question.
“No, I think they were beyond even them,” Jesse carefully mused.
“Well, who are these people who could just come in and kidnap your wife?” was Claudio’s final question. “Are they aliens or something?”
Jesse turned to Claudio and said, “Sometime when you are going to be in New Mexico for a time, I would like you to meet the family. They are all in Roswell and they are a bit different.”
“Aw, come on Jesse, they can’t be aliens!” Claudio commented.
“Let’s just say that I would like you to meet the family, sometime,” Jesse said.
Claudio promised that, sometime he would and left the office. Jesse wondered how Max would take what Jesse had just done. Jesse felt that there would come a time when they needed help in the government and Claudio was a man who could be trusted.
Maria was back singing, but she did a lot more writing from home. Michael was working. He had returned to school and from time to time, he would pick up jobs editing papers or cataloging information. Michael had come a long way from the days when he wouldn’t ever let anyone know how much he knew. Maria didn’t like to disrupt his life. She might go on short tours and do specials, but to go on the road for an extended time, just wasn’t that much fun. Maria had been feeling just a little off. When she returned from her doctor, she had an announcement to make. “Everyone listen up. We are going to have a baby.”
Michael almost fell out of his chair. He knew that Maria had talked of starting a family, but the announcement was still a shock. Papa Mike, now that would be a title! Would his son share his video games with him? Would they go to hockey games together? Could they split a grape Snapple?
Michael’s mind was flooded with things. He mentioned having a son and every one laughed. “What if it is a girl, Michael? What then?” Max asked.
Michael frowned, “Then, I will make all them damned little boys stay away from my front porch. She can start dating when she is thirty.”
This prompted Liz to laugh, “Michael, you are barely thirty yourself. Aren’t you going to let your daughter have the same privilege as you had?”
Michael was blushing. How he and Maria had acted, was exactly why he said what he did. He didn’t want his daughter to meet some “guy” and mess around. Look at Maria. Maria had been lucky she had found Michael. Could he believe his daughter could be that lucky? There was something wrong with that sort of thinking, but Michael hadn’t decided what that was, yet.
Maria smiled, “I bet Michael will be the most dotting daddy there is. It won’t matter what the baby is, boy or girl.”
“Don’t you mean, human or alien?” Kyle said. That prompted a pillow to be launched by Maria.
“Kyle, how can you say something like that?” Serena said.
The baby event and Michael’s readiness to be a father fueled the rest of the evening conversation. That night when they were in bed, Liz spoke to Max. “Do you think we can ever start a family?”
Max was holding her tightly. He had been thinking the same thing. They had been so afraid of Liz becoming pregnant when she was changing from woman to cat and back, that he hadn’t brought the subject up for a long time. Tonight proved that the topic wasn’t buried very far in his wife’s thoughts. “We should talk to Esteban. He, after all, is the only one who knows anything about your condition.”
Liz was silent. She thought, “I have to consult a shaman, a brujo, while other women consult their gynecologist.” Liz knew that no western doctor would ever understand her concern about her body. The shaman had said that she would always have a bit of the cat about her. Would this make it difficult to have children? She fell asleep that night with visions of babies, cats and kittens all running through her head. Before he left that morning, Max told Esteban that he and Liz needed to talk to him about something important. Esteban nodded in his usual emotionless way.
After supper, they were sitting in the living room drinking some of his best coffee and talking. Max started, “Is it possible and safe for Liz to have children?”
Esteban looked up. There were still several things he didn’t understand about these Anglos. He did understand that Max wasn’t from around here or any other place that Esteban knew about. He knew that Liz was just a compassionate young woman. Well, she was young for her culture. In his she would have been an old woman by now, unless she had the help of a bruja or curendara to help her. Esteban, being a Brujo himself, knew that he had many more years left unless some accident befell him. In his homeland, there were always true Jaguars; those who didn’t appreciate that Esteban was himself related to them. There were always warring tribes and many other things. Here, there were things way beyond his comprehension. Esteban treated his life here the same as in the jungle. He was careful and he trusted in his power as a jungle god to keep him safe. He just hoped one of those big trucks he saw going down the street understood that.
“It has been some time since Liz fell to the world of the cat. She will always have something of the cat about her. I don’t know how it will appear. If she has children, you both must be prepared to care for them since they, also, will have some of the cat about them,” Estaben expounded.
Liz was frightened, “Does that mean that my children might revert to the cat like I had to?”
Esteban shook his head, “No, but they will need extra help to find their way. We have trapped the soul of the false god in the head and it will stay there for many years. Hopefully, by the time he frees himself, you all will be strong enough to easily defeat him. Remember, he grows weaker every year and you all grow stronger. With children, you will be stronger yet.”
To Liz’s logical mind this was confusing, but everything that happened to her in the last few years hadn’t made sense to a scientific mind. Come to think of it, logic had lost its splendor ever since she had met Max and found out about aliens.
The next few months, Liz, Serena and Diane were excitedly getting ready for Maria’s baby. Isabel was not to be left out and she consulted every day about what was happening. They found out that one of the reasons she was so interested was that she, likewise, was pregnant.
Maria didn’t want to know whether the baby was a boy or girl. She said it should be a surprise. “As long as it is healthy, that is all I care about.”
Michael couldn’t stand it. Should he make a sign which read, “Boys keep out,” or sign himself up to be a coach of the t-ball little league team? The suspense was killing him. Liz reminded Michael that girls played ball, also.
“Why don’t you just ask the doctor to see what it is. You know you can start planning and buying what you need ahead of time,” Liz told Maria.
Maria frowned and laughed at the same time, “You know, he can just wait like the rest of us. Michael is always so impatient. He needs the humility of waiting.”
That didn’t make sense to Liz. If she was lucky enough, she wanted to know everything as soon as possible.
Max made arrangements to be in the delivery room with Maria. If there were any alien complications, Max would be there to try to handle it.
The day finally came. Michael and Maria had taken all the lessons. Maria had made Michael read all the books about babies which irritated him. It wasn’t a hard delivery. Maria was a healthy woman and the exercise she had taken in the last few years made having a baby relatively easy. Easy, that is how Max and Michael said it. Later, Maria would never let either of them forget that they hadn’t had the baby, she had. Easy was a simple word when you were standing there in a gown and masked so your expression couldn’t be seen. When it was over, Maria said she would probably do it again, but she was glad for a time to forget many things.
Little Danny Guerin came into the world with a strong voice and was received by a loving family. Except for an occasional spark or two, when no one was paying attention to him, he was healthy and normal.
Jesse took an extended leave. His office was well run and if there was an emergency he could return. Isabel wanted to be in Roswell for the birth of their child. Just like Maria, she wanted Max nearby in case something happened. Her internal organs had been damaged when she was slashed by the cat. Max had repaired her very well, but there could easily be complications.
Max had healed the external scars, but internally, there might be many things still that could cause Isabel trouble. Again, just like with Maria, Max arranged to be in the delivery room.
It wasn’t as easy for Isabel, but after several hours, she did deliver a strapping baby boy. They named him José Alexander Ramirez. None of the electric sparks were seen to run down his body like they were seen in little Danny Guerin. José was quieter than little Danny. Jesse was so proud of his son. He held him for everyone to see. Liz, who had been following both births closely, saw that the dark eyes of José never seemed to miss anything. Even shortly after birth, his eyes seemed to see all that was around him. No one knew what being under Kivar’s control could have done to Isabel. No one knew what being suspended in time for almost a year after she was hurt might have done. Modern medicine hadn’t researched or even recognized the problems that Isabel had faced.
Little Danny had a father who was at least part alien. He also had a mother who was a strong human woman. The genetics had been cast. Now it remained to see what environment would contribute to his life. The slight sparking from his little fingers only occurred when he was extremely distressed. The rest of him was just baby. He did develop a colic condition that tended to keep his parents awake. It was seen than when the little fellow was really upset, the slight sparking did come back. This produced a electrical display in Michael as he was trying so hard to ease Danny’s pain, that he was stressing himself. Through most of her life, Maria had considered herself high strung but as a mother, she proved to have infinite patience. She took everything in stride and laughed to Liz, “I take care of both my babies and try to keep the sparks down.”
Liz knew that Maria had been a blessing to Michael. What would he do without her comforting? Michael and Danny were doing just fine. They would just take a bit of time before they settled down.
Now looking at little José, Liz thought that he was trying to tell her something. His bright eyes were always following everything around him. He gave his mother and father very little trouble. When they played with him, they were amazed, like most parents, how fast he learned. Jesse and Isabel were sure they had a very bright child. So far, there were no alien traits, they saw, developing yet.
Jesse and Isabel were preparing to go back east. Jesse had had to return several times during their stay. His staff was efficient, but there were some things that demanded his attention. Linda contacted him that he had a message from Claudio Alvarez. Claudio would be in the state of New Mexico for the next few days and he would like to take up Jesse’s invitation to visit the family.
At first, Max was unsure. “Jesse, are you sure this is a good idea, letting someone new in on our secret.”
“Max, he already knows there is something different. We had to ask him to help us get Esteban into the country and he knows about the artifact. He is curious and it would be safer if we control what he learns than to just let him speculate. We might need his help later to protect Esteban’s visa,” Jesse explained.
Max had grown out of a lot of the paranoia of his youth. He, also, had learned that he couldn’t do everything. From time to time, he needed help. Yes, Claudio already knew a lot about them and presenting themselves would probably be safer than letting Claudio mount a private investigation.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 9 ch 16 Mar 23 2009
destinyc
mary mary
keepsmiling7
Author's note: Of course no one realizes it yet, but the children of the Roswell group will form a group much like their parents did. Each child will bring their talents and destinies to the new group. No one knows what each of these talents will be, not even Esteban who will be their guide. Remember that Liz and Isabel were the most affected by the experience in the Amazon. I started to further explain José's actions but reading ahead i found that Esteban will better explain it in a few chapters.
Chapter 17
Sometimes, it was thought that the Hispanics themselves were two different cultures in New Mexico. In the north, they preserved many of the old “Spanish” traditions. There was one town where the Spanish language they spoke had the lisp of the 18th century Spain. There were religious traditions that could trace themselves right back to Spain. In the south the Hispanics had a lot more of the modern “Mexican” influence. It was said by experts that the way they made chili, that hot fiery dish of the southwest, changed as you got further north. It was said that the spices used and the strength of the peppers could tell exactly where the cook was from. Of course, the southern part of the state declared the chili of the north was watered down and the northern part stated that the southerners had forgotten the true way to cook. If a judge had been selected he would have died from the fiery spices long before the argument would ever be settled.
Claudio spent the first day with Jesse touring the area. He had been raised in northern New Mexico, just south of Taos, that art and celebrity town. His family was as patrician as you could get in the Hispanic culture. As a politician, Claudio had to shake a lot of hands or he felt that he had wasted his day. He was enjoying the Anglo and Hispanic culture of Roswell. That night, they were scheduled to have supper with the Philip Evans family.
Esteban had spoken little English when they arrived in El Paso. He had trusted Max and Liz to get him into the country without question. Now Esteban had mastered the language and was reading both Spanish and English newspapers. He knew who Claudio was and what he could do. He also appreciated that Claudio had helped the couple under his care. No one knew as much as Esteban, the fear of releasing the cat in Liz. He knew the danger both personal to Liz and to any other near her.
When Claudio was presented to Philip Evans, Claudio saw a man entering his elder years who had led a successful career and also was responsible for starting Jesse on his way. “Senator, let me present my wife, Diane,” Philip said. They shook hands and Diane led them into the living room.
Claudio was surprised to see the number of people waiting for him. The first person he recognized was the small shaman. Claudio approached Esteban and extended his hand. Esteban had changed from the polite Hispanic hand shake to the firm one he saw in the Anglos with which he lived. “Señor Senator I am glad to meet you. I have been following your progress with the irrigation bill you have presented. I think you need more advice as you are leaving out the small villages in the south,” Esteban stated.
Claudio was astounded. He had first met, only a few years ago, an Indian from the Amazon, who could only speak a little English. Now, he was being advised, about this very tricky congressional bill, by that same man.
“Maybe, we should talk later and you can give me your views,” Claudio answered.
Philip next presented Max, “Of course, you remember my son, Doctor Evans, who you aided to get back into the country along with his wife Liz.”
Claudio shook hands with Max. It was like an electric shock. He saw several visions of a small boy left in the desert and a fear of anything governmental. Of course, at the same time, Max saw the young man growing up in the mountains of the north and leaving home to attend school in a strange land. Max decided that Claudio’s experience was not that far off from his own.
Then, Claudio took Liz’s hand. Claudio was not sure what to expect. The strange thing was that he felt nothing. Mrs. Max Evans was a charming intelligent woman, looking a lot healthier than he remembered her from before.
About that time, Maria entered carrying Danny. When Claudio pretended to take Danny’s hand, Danny turned and buried his face in his mother’s chest. Danny was not nearly old enough to want any political contact.
Claudio had met Isabel several times in passing, back east at Jesse’s office. He saw her as a tall powerful woman and now, he met Jesse’s son. José didn’t turn away like Danny when Claudio reached out for his hand, José just looked him in the eye. There was a slight jolt of a shock. Claudio wasn’t sure it even happened. The whole time, he was being studied by the quiet eyes of baby José.
The last couple to meet were the Valenti’s. Kyle stood and shook hands. Claudio saw the clear blue eyes of Kyle, but he also, saw some pain that remained there.
The meal was typical country meal of roast beef and several vegetables. There were several bowls of salsa, which is just a Spanish salad, but here the salsa had fiery kick to it. Claudio also, noticed that there were several large bottles of tobasco sauce. That was unusual as tobasco was more common to New Orleans or California. As the meal progressed, Claudio noted that Max, Michael and Isabel made frequent use of the tobasco sauce. He saw that the rest of the people ignored this, except for Kyle who sprinkled his food a little. Claudio noticed that Esteban ate with the family and was treated just like the rest. At the end of the meal, Esteban excused himself and was busy in the kitchen.
The two moms’ dinner was interrupted several times with the fussing of their babies. The event of a stranger was not one either child wanted to be separated from.
Esteban came back carrying the large tray and led them all back to the living room. Here Claudio was treated to the excellent coffee.
“Max, Jesse hasn’t ever been clear about you. How did you know how to find your sister?”
Max shrugged, “Jesse initiated a satellite search for indication of Isabel’s cell phone. Her abductor had no knowledge of things like that, so he didn’t take it away from her. Jesse was able to get a satellite search to show the phone was in the Amazon and find the general location before the phone ran down.”
Claudio next asked, “Why didn’t you call in the officials when your sister was taken? Couldn’t they have helped?”
Max leaned back, “What would you have told me if I called you and said aliens had kidnapped my sister? Would you have listened to me?”
“No, I suppose not, but why do you say that aliens kidnapped her?” Claudio asked.
“When we faced the kidnapper, half of the house was destroyed. Aliens aren’t better than humans, but they are different. We knew how to handle them and the authorities didn’t. The FBI investigated for a while and then, gave up because there was absolutely no evidence. They never believed Jesse when he told them Isabel had been taken to the Amazon,” Max said.
Claudio sat digesting everything for a minute. “What do you mean when you say you know how to handle aliens?”
Max took a breath, he looked at Michael and Isabel. Claudio would either believe what he said next or he would count everything as a hoax and be angry with Jesse. Well, Jesse seemed to know what he was doing so here went nothing. “My sister, Michael and I are aliens. We were brought as immature life forms in the ship that crashed in 1947. We were kept in incubators, someway, until in 1991. We emerged as apparent six-year-old children. We were naked and alone in the desert. The Evans family found Isabel and me, leaving Michael to be found later and turned over to the welfare department. We were raised right here in Roswell. Liz discovered our secret when she was nearly 16 and from there, others learned of us as we grew up. The FBI investigated us, until Jesse and my father shut them down. Everything was going good until Kivar came by a few years ago. Kivar, a rebellious prince from our planet, is the one who took Isabel.”
Claudio waved his hand indicating Liz, Maria, Kyle and Selena. “Are the rest of you aliens, also?”
Liz spoke up. “No, we are all human or we were all human. Kyle and I were healed by Max. When the aliens heal, they put a little of themselves into the person being healed. Maria was my best friend and Serena just joined us as Kyle’s wife. Unless having Kyle’s children someday, changes her some way, she will continue to be human, or if she is healed by Max. Maria has hung around Michael so long there is no telling what she is.”
Claudio thought a minute. He seemed to be doing that with every revelation. He was invited to meet the family and he was doing it. Yes, Jesse did have a strange family. Claudio pointed to Esteban who had been sitting quietly listening to the stories. “How does he figure into your story?”
This time, Michael took up the tale. “When Jesse found out that Kivar had taken Isabel to the Amazon, Max and I decided to follow as soon as possible. To Jesse’s dismay, we needed him to stay and manage our trip from here. Jesse knew how to do things we did not and Jesse couldn’t have fought Kivar as an alien. Liz came along because she has a lot of training with different cultures. Maria refused to be left back here and that was sort of fate. It was Maria who killed Kivar.”
Claudio looked at the singer. Yes, he had known all along who she was. He just hadn’t figured out how she fit with the others.
Maria smiled, “That is about it. Ole’ Kivar said he couldn’t be killed by any man and that was his undoing. I shot him while he was fighting Michael and then, it was little ole’ me who took off his head. It was just like a rooster being prepared for Sunday dinner.”
Liz knew that Maria enjoyed the spot light, but where did she get that rooster for Sunday dinner business. Maria had never seen a chicken that wasn’t in a Colonel Saunders bucket.
Claudio said, “That is the head,” and pointed to Esteban, “that was brought into this country?”
Max nodded and Esteban slowly drew the head out of the bag he always carried. It was seen that he kept it covered in his lap by a towel.
“But, why do you keep it? You killed Kivar. Wasn’t that enough?” Claudio inquired.
Max took a deep breath. “No, there was a lot more. It is just that what comes next is difficult to believe.”
Claudio wondered what more could they tell. They claimed to be aliens. The little singer declared that she had beheaded the alien prince. Max claimed he could heal. Wasn’t that far fetched enough?
It was Liz who continued the tale now. “Every culture has stories about Lycanthropy, the changing of a human into an animal. Sociologist have studied this for years. They have come to the conclusion that this is a phenomenon caused by cultural stress. The animal is usually something familiar to the culture and something that is an adversary or enemy of the culture. The blaming of the “changeling” is the culture’s way of targeting an enemy when they can’t face what is really happening.”
Claudio noticed that Liz was almost like a teacher lecturing to her class. She would make a good teacher and he wondered if someday, she would be interested in that.
Liz continued, “Anthropologists are more likely to look for some sort of event behind stories than their sociological cousins. In this case, the villagers have a rich history about people being turned into big cats of some kind. Someway, Kivar learned of all of this and he learned with his alien mind to accomplish this himself. He was changing villagers into predatory cats who preyed on the other villagers, many times their own families. He was using Isabel to amplify this power. The local natives were frightened because of this, but they also knew that the root, Kivar, had to be removed. When we appeared and they learned to trust us, they made good use of Michael and Maria to track down and dispatch Kivar.”
It was then that Max returned to the tale, “When we located the general area of Kivar, we moved a clinic into this area to treat the wounds left by the cats. We also, learned much about what the natives thought about the cats.” Max paused for several minutes. He was going to tell the next part, but it was painful to tell. He didn’t want Liz to feel that she had to organize her memories into a story, that would be just too hard on her.
Max continued, “When we first moved into the area, Liz was trapped by Kivar, using Isabel to make his curses. They caught Liz alone one evening. This was even before we completely understood what and how he was doing these things. The rest of the story is a lot of speculation, but this is as far as we have understood. Kivar applied the change to Liz. Isabel rebelling from some suppressed memory buried very deep in her soul, refused to lend him her power. As Kivar was changing Liz, he was holding her. Liz, transformed as a cat, struck out at Kivar and also, Isabel, who unfortunately, was also caught by the cat’s onslaught.”
Claudio was watching Liz as Max was telling this story. At first, she was just looking down at her hands in her lap. Then, she bent over and was holding her head in her hands. There was a lot of hurt built up in this story.
Esteban surprisingly took over, “Señora Liz is a strong person. Even changed, she attacked the evil one. He did not expect that. We think he pulled Señora Isabel to act as a shield. The evil prince, because he had never been wounded before, fled. He left both Señoras there. The sister of Doctor Max was badly wounded and the wife of Doctor Max had been cursed. We took both of them. The wife we took to a place where she could stay with Max, hoping that he would bring her back. He did, every morning, but with the evening, she went back to the way of the cat. The sister, we took to a secret place where she would be safe until we could remove the curse.”
Maria took up the story again, “Esteban became like a shadow to Michael and me. We chased every story about big cats attacking until finally we managed to corner Kivar. He had made the brag that no man could kill him. No one knows if this was true, but the shaman took no chances. They set me up to shoot him and then, I took part in the final beheading. They say the soul of Kivar is in the head. I won’t argue. After we had possession of the head, Isabel and Liz were both healed. The aliens approaching us to turn over the head to them, shows that they believe that the head has some power.”
Esteban was standing as Maria finished the story. He withdrew the head from the towel in which it had been covered and held it up. At first Claudio did not think it was even real, never having seen one in real life. The face was molded into a parody of a person. Claudio had not seen the head when he arranged for Esteban to enter the States.
They talked long that night. When Claudio returned to the east he felt, yes, he had met the family and yes, they had many strange tales to tell.
mary mary
keepsmiling7
Author's note: Of course no one realizes it yet, but the children of the Roswell group will form a group much like their parents did. Each child will bring their talents and destinies to the new group. No one knows what each of these talents will be, not even Esteban who will be their guide. Remember that Liz and Isabel were the most affected by the experience in the Amazon. I started to further explain José's actions but reading ahead i found that Esteban will better explain it in a few chapters.
Chapter 17
Sometimes, it was thought that the Hispanics themselves were two different cultures in New Mexico. In the north, they preserved many of the old “Spanish” traditions. There was one town where the Spanish language they spoke had the lisp of the 18th century Spain. There were religious traditions that could trace themselves right back to Spain. In the south the Hispanics had a lot more of the modern “Mexican” influence. It was said by experts that the way they made chili, that hot fiery dish of the southwest, changed as you got further north. It was said that the spices used and the strength of the peppers could tell exactly where the cook was from. Of course, the southern part of the state declared the chili of the north was watered down and the northern part stated that the southerners had forgotten the true way to cook. If a judge had been selected he would have died from the fiery spices long before the argument would ever be settled.
Claudio spent the first day with Jesse touring the area. He had been raised in northern New Mexico, just south of Taos, that art and celebrity town. His family was as patrician as you could get in the Hispanic culture. As a politician, Claudio had to shake a lot of hands or he felt that he had wasted his day. He was enjoying the Anglo and Hispanic culture of Roswell. That night, they were scheduled to have supper with the Philip Evans family.
Esteban had spoken little English when they arrived in El Paso. He had trusted Max and Liz to get him into the country without question. Now Esteban had mastered the language and was reading both Spanish and English newspapers. He knew who Claudio was and what he could do. He also appreciated that Claudio had helped the couple under his care. No one knew as much as Esteban, the fear of releasing the cat in Liz. He knew the danger both personal to Liz and to any other near her.
When Claudio was presented to Philip Evans, Claudio saw a man entering his elder years who had led a successful career and also was responsible for starting Jesse on his way. “Senator, let me present my wife, Diane,” Philip said. They shook hands and Diane led them into the living room.
Claudio was surprised to see the number of people waiting for him. The first person he recognized was the small shaman. Claudio approached Esteban and extended his hand. Esteban had changed from the polite Hispanic hand shake to the firm one he saw in the Anglos with which he lived. “Señor Senator I am glad to meet you. I have been following your progress with the irrigation bill you have presented. I think you need more advice as you are leaving out the small villages in the south,” Esteban stated.
Claudio was astounded. He had first met, only a few years ago, an Indian from the Amazon, who could only speak a little English. Now, he was being advised, about this very tricky congressional bill, by that same man.
“Maybe, we should talk later and you can give me your views,” Claudio answered.
Philip next presented Max, “Of course, you remember my son, Doctor Evans, who you aided to get back into the country along with his wife Liz.”
Claudio shook hands with Max. It was like an electric shock. He saw several visions of a small boy left in the desert and a fear of anything governmental. Of course, at the same time, Max saw the young man growing up in the mountains of the north and leaving home to attend school in a strange land. Max decided that Claudio’s experience was not that far off from his own.
Then, Claudio took Liz’s hand. Claudio was not sure what to expect. The strange thing was that he felt nothing. Mrs. Max Evans was a charming intelligent woman, looking a lot healthier than he remembered her from before.
About that time, Maria entered carrying Danny. When Claudio pretended to take Danny’s hand, Danny turned and buried his face in his mother’s chest. Danny was not nearly old enough to want any political contact.
Claudio had met Isabel several times in passing, back east at Jesse’s office. He saw her as a tall powerful woman and now, he met Jesse’s son. José didn’t turn away like Danny when Claudio reached out for his hand, José just looked him in the eye. There was a slight jolt of a shock. Claudio wasn’t sure it even happened. The whole time, he was being studied by the quiet eyes of baby José.
The last couple to meet were the Valenti’s. Kyle stood and shook hands. Claudio saw the clear blue eyes of Kyle, but he also, saw some pain that remained there.
The meal was typical country meal of roast beef and several vegetables. There were several bowls of salsa, which is just a Spanish salad, but here the salsa had fiery kick to it. Claudio also, noticed that there were several large bottles of tobasco sauce. That was unusual as tobasco was more common to New Orleans or California. As the meal progressed, Claudio noted that Max, Michael and Isabel made frequent use of the tobasco sauce. He saw that the rest of the people ignored this, except for Kyle who sprinkled his food a little. Claudio noticed that Esteban ate with the family and was treated just like the rest. At the end of the meal, Esteban excused himself and was busy in the kitchen.
The two moms’ dinner was interrupted several times with the fussing of their babies. The event of a stranger was not one either child wanted to be separated from.
Esteban came back carrying the large tray and led them all back to the living room. Here Claudio was treated to the excellent coffee.
“Max, Jesse hasn’t ever been clear about you. How did you know how to find your sister?”
Max shrugged, “Jesse initiated a satellite search for indication of Isabel’s cell phone. Her abductor had no knowledge of things like that, so he didn’t take it away from her. Jesse was able to get a satellite search to show the phone was in the Amazon and find the general location before the phone ran down.”
Claudio next asked, “Why didn’t you call in the officials when your sister was taken? Couldn’t they have helped?”
Max leaned back, “What would you have told me if I called you and said aliens had kidnapped my sister? Would you have listened to me?”
“No, I suppose not, but why do you say that aliens kidnapped her?” Claudio asked.
“When we faced the kidnapper, half of the house was destroyed. Aliens aren’t better than humans, but they are different. We knew how to handle them and the authorities didn’t. The FBI investigated for a while and then, gave up because there was absolutely no evidence. They never believed Jesse when he told them Isabel had been taken to the Amazon,” Max said.
Claudio sat digesting everything for a minute. “What do you mean when you say you know how to handle aliens?”
Max took a breath, he looked at Michael and Isabel. Claudio would either believe what he said next or he would count everything as a hoax and be angry with Jesse. Well, Jesse seemed to know what he was doing so here went nothing. “My sister, Michael and I are aliens. We were brought as immature life forms in the ship that crashed in 1947. We were kept in incubators, someway, until in 1991. We emerged as apparent six-year-old children. We were naked and alone in the desert. The Evans family found Isabel and me, leaving Michael to be found later and turned over to the welfare department. We were raised right here in Roswell. Liz discovered our secret when she was nearly 16 and from there, others learned of us as we grew up. The FBI investigated us, until Jesse and my father shut them down. Everything was going good until Kivar came by a few years ago. Kivar, a rebellious prince from our planet, is the one who took Isabel.”
Claudio waved his hand indicating Liz, Maria, Kyle and Selena. “Are the rest of you aliens, also?”
Liz spoke up. “No, we are all human or we were all human. Kyle and I were healed by Max. When the aliens heal, they put a little of themselves into the person being healed. Maria was my best friend and Serena just joined us as Kyle’s wife. Unless having Kyle’s children someday, changes her some way, she will continue to be human, or if she is healed by Max. Maria has hung around Michael so long there is no telling what she is.”
Claudio thought a minute. He seemed to be doing that with every revelation. He was invited to meet the family and he was doing it. Yes, Jesse did have a strange family. Claudio pointed to Esteban who had been sitting quietly listening to the stories. “How does he figure into your story?”
This time, Michael took up the tale. “When Jesse found out that Kivar had taken Isabel to the Amazon, Max and I decided to follow as soon as possible. To Jesse’s dismay, we needed him to stay and manage our trip from here. Jesse knew how to do things we did not and Jesse couldn’t have fought Kivar as an alien. Liz came along because she has a lot of training with different cultures. Maria refused to be left back here and that was sort of fate. It was Maria who killed Kivar.”
Claudio looked at the singer. Yes, he had known all along who she was. He just hadn’t figured out how she fit with the others.
Maria smiled, “That is about it. Ole’ Kivar said he couldn’t be killed by any man and that was his undoing. I shot him while he was fighting Michael and then, it was little ole’ me who took off his head. It was just like a rooster being prepared for Sunday dinner.”
Liz knew that Maria enjoyed the spot light, but where did she get that rooster for Sunday dinner business. Maria had never seen a chicken that wasn’t in a Colonel Saunders bucket.
Claudio said, “That is the head,” and pointed to Esteban, “that was brought into this country?”
Max nodded and Esteban slowly drew the head out of the bag he always carried. It was seen that he kept it covered in his lap by a towel.
“But, why do you keep it? You killed Kivar. Wasn’t that enough?” Claudio inquired.
Max took a deep breath. “No, there was a lot more. It is just that what comes next is difficult to believe.”
Claudio wondered what more could they tell. They claimed to be aliens. The little singer declared that she had beheaded the alien prince. Max claimed he could heal. Wasn’t that far fetched enough?
It was Liz who continued the tale now. “Every culture has stories about Lycanthropy, the changing of a human into an animal. Sociologist have studied this for years. They have come to the conclusion that this is a phenomenon caused by cultural stress. The animal is usually something familiar to the culture and something that is an adversary or enemy of the culture. The blaming of the “changeling” is the culture’s way of targeting an enemy when they can’t face what is really happening.”
Claudio noticed that Liz was almost like a teacher lecturing to her class. She would make a good teacher and he wondered if someday, she would be interested in that.
Liz continued, “Anthropologists are more likely to look for some sort of event behind stories than their sociological cousins. In this case, the villagers have a rich history about people being turned into big cats of some kind. Someway, Kivar learned of all of this and he learned with his alien mind to accomplish this himself. He was changing villagers into predatory cats who preyed on the other villagers, many times their own families. He was using Isabel to amplify this power. The local natives were frightened because of this, but they also knew that the root, Kivar, had to be removed. When we appeared and they learned to trust us, they made good use of Michael and Maria to track down and dispatch Kivar.”
It was then that Max returned to the tale, “When we located the general area of Kivar, we moved a clinic into this area to treat the wounds left by the cats. We also, learned much about what the natives thought about the cats.” Max paused for several minutes. He was going to tell the next part, but it was painful to tell. He didn’t want Liz to feel that she had to organize her memories into a story, that would be just too hard on her.
Max continued, “When we first moved into the area, Liz was trapped by Kivar, using Isabel to make his curses. They caught Liz alone one evening. This was even before we completely understood what and how he was doing these things. The rest of the story is a lot of speculation, but this is as far as we have understood. Kivar applied the change to Liz. Isabel rebelling from some suppressed memory buried very deep in her soul, refused to lend him her power. As Kivar was changing Liz, he was holding her. Liz, transformed as a cat, struck out at Kivar and also, Isabel, who unfortunately, was also caught by the cat’s onslaught.”
Claudio was watching Liz as Max was telling this story. At first, she was just looking down at her hands in her lap. Then, she bent over and was holding her head in her hands. There was a lot of hurt built up in this story.
Esteban surprisingly took over, “Señora Liz is a strong person. Even changed, she attacked the evil one. He did not expect that. We think he pulled Señora Isabel to act as a shield. The evil prince, because he had never been wounded before, fled. He left both Señoras there. The sister of Doctor Max was badly wounded and the wife of Doctor Max had been cursed. We took both of them. The wife we took to a place where she could stay with Max, hoping that he would bring her back. He did, every morning, but with the evening, she went back to the way of the cat. The sister, we took to a secret place where she would be safe until we could remove the curse.”
Maria took up the story again, “Esteban became like a shadow to Michael and me. We chased every story about big cats attacking until finally we managed to corner Kivar. He had made the brag that no man could kill him. No one knows if this was true, but the shaman took no chances. They set me up to shoot him and then, I took part in the final beheading. They say the soul of Kivar is in the head. I won’t argue. After we had possession of the head, Isabel and Liz were both healed. The aliens approaching us to turn over the head to them, shows that they believe that the head has some power.”
Esteban was standing as Maria finished the story. He withdrew the head from the towel in which it had been covered and held it up. At first Claudio did not think it was even real, never having seen one in real life. The face was molded into a parody of a person. Claudio had not seen the head when he arranged for Esteban to enter the States.
They talked long that night. When Claudio returned to the east he felt, yes, he had met the family and yes, they had many strange tales to tell.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 10 ch 17 Mar 30 2009
destinyc
mary mary
nibbles2
keepsmiling7
Chapter 18
Little José was in his small bed. Jesse and Isabel would leave for the airport soon. Isabel came in and found Esteban standing by the bed watching over José. “Señora, he is a strong boy. So thoughtful. He might even be the leader.”
Isabel was surprised, “Leader of What, Esteban?”
Esteban shrugged, “The people from far away now know where you are. They failed at getting the soul of their prince. Some day, it is sure that they will return.”
“We haven’t heard the last of those dreadful people?” Isabel asked.
“No, señora, they both fear us and hate us. Two strong powers cannot exist in the universe at one time. One will always overpower the other.”
To Isabel, this was reminiscent of stories Liz had told of future Max. They had about decided that future Max was a mind warp of Tess. Tess was trying to make Liz feel responsible for the end of the world. If Liz would only give up her claim on Max, even if it was just the fact that they still had feelings for each other, then Liz would save the world. This allowed Tess freedom to drive Alex to translate the book and then, have a break down from fatigue.
Isabel felt she needed to talk to someone, so she turned and left the room. She missed Esteban removing the head and gently, swinging it over the child as he said cryptic incantations.
Danny Guerin, being Michael’s son, was a handful. He was head strong, which wasn’t necessarily all from Michael. There were many traits from his mother, also. When they visited the Evans family someone had to be constantly on the move watching that he didn’t get into trouble. Danny was usually vocal in his activities. Maria was tuned to this sound. When it subsided, she panicked because this was a sure sign that his attention was attracted to something he hadn’t ought to be doing.
The evening was late. Danny should have been in bed thirty minutes earlier. Kyle and Maria were arguing. The rest of the group were enjoying the entertainment of watching the two siblings, who weren’t really siblings. Kyle was about the only person who was allowed to attack Maria without Michael’s interference. No matter how heated the argument got, when it was over, Maria and Kyle like real brothers and sisters, would hug before leaving. Probably, each one of them would whisper a final insult in the other’s ear during this act.
Kyle was getting the better of Maria and this was unusual. Right in the middle of a rebuttal, Maria stopped and froze. She listened. There was silence. Around Danny, that was not normal. All of the group, instantly jumped up. Danny had to be in deep mischief to be this distracted.
There was a call from Liz who was in the kitchen. They all rushed to see Esteban sitting with his legs folded up, yoga fashion, on the floor. In his lap was the ever present bag containing the head and in front of him was Danny. They seemed to be playing some form of patty-cake. They were clapping each other’s hands and Esteban was telling Danny something in a strange language. Now, Danny was just starting to make noises that resembled words like “mommy” and “daddy” which would elicit excitement from Maria and Michael. They knew that this was early, but Danny was almost seven months and the doctor had said he was progressing very quickly. With Esteban, he was repeating, fairly distinctly, the foreign words. They all stood watching Esteban and Danny at play. Privately, Liz wondered if, to Esteban, this was play or something else. Now being the center of attention, Esteban stood and with his out-stretched arms, he lifted Danny and delivered him to his mother. When he lifted Danny, Danny picked up the bag. When Maria took him, Danny reached out and handed the bag back to Esteban who tucked it in the cloth belt that he wore over his slacks. They all laughed at Danny and his new playmate, but after Maria and family had departed, Liz wondered if there was more to this action.
Isabel and Jesse had returned to the Boston area, long ago. Claudio was still getting over the surprise of Jesse’s family. Jesse and Isabel returned to Roswell, from time to time. Isabel felt she should keep closer ties with those in Roswell. Serena was starting to show. They had not confided in the other couples about the impending event, because Serena wasn’t sure exactly where she fit in this group. Liz had said that, maybe, having Kyles children would cause her to change. She had watched both Danny and José grow and they seemed normal. It was almost three years since Danny and José had been born. It wasn’t until it was evident to all that Serena’s pregnancy would be a little different, that Kyle announced that she was expecting twins. When he told the group, of course, they were delighted. Women everywhere are excited about babies. Kyle and Serena were sitting in the Evans living room when Kyle made his announcement.
Of course, Serena didn’t get up. She was at the stage where she, carefully, rationed the gettings up to be as few as possible. She was at the stage where Kyle filled his car with gas every evening before he came home. Even now, she was ready to depart if her time approached on its own.
This was to be the major event in Kyle and Serena’s lives, the birth of their twins. One boy and one girl, they made a handful for the Valenties. This did arouse Jim from his couch. Having grandkids brought back spark into his life.
Max was present in the delivery room, just in case. The delivery was normal and try as he could, Max could see nothing unusual in the two babies. They named them June and Julius. Kyle said they brought the summer’s warmth of June and July into his life and also, into the life of their grandpa, Jim.
Of course, they were shared with the Troy family. Pam tried to spoil them. Serena was a little upset with her sister, but Kyle said let her go. She is just jealous and our kids will have us to straighten them out, anyway.
By the time Julius and June were crawling fairly well, Danny and José were walking every where of course, Danny talking a mile a minute and José still as introspective as ever. Sunday dinners at the Evans’ house were very exciting. It was a rare time when José was with them, when Isabel flew in for a few days visit. It was seen that many times, the four babies would be in the kitchen after dinner playing strange games with Esteban. One game was rolling a ball. Even the little Valenties could stop the ball, but surprisingly enough, Esteban would say something Then they would push the ball to the next person. Esteban, all the time when he was with the little ones, spoke that strange language.
Isabel stated, “When José is alone playing by himself he speaks that language, but if Jesse or I came in, he immediately goes back to the words he learns from us.” Isabel went on to ask if they thought there was any danger in José speaking the strange language.
“Only if he is teaching them dirty words. As it is, Serena won’t know when to get mad at them. She already cautions me constantly to watch my language. Maybe, I should get the babies to teach me that language. Then Serena won’t know if I am using bad words or not,” Kyle remarked. Of course, that quip got him a slap on the back of his head from his wife.
Liz shook her head, “I think it can be shown that very young children can learn other languages easier than they can later in life. As long as they are making progress in their normal speech, I do not think there is any reason to worry.”
June and Julius were three by the time Max and Liz had an announcement. Danny and José were six and in the first grade. Kyle said he did not know how he lasted through the “terrible two’s.” He wasn’t sure what the three’s had in store for him. Maria and Michael had started Danny in preschool the year before. Isabel had called and stated that she. Likewise, was looking for a private school for José. She was unhappy at the public school where they lived. In Roswell, the choices were much simpler. Danny was in public school.
The damage done to Isabel’s body had worried Max. That is why he was close by when José was born. With Liz, he was even more worried. Esteban had always said that Liz would always have a touch of the cat. Combined with whatever alien genes the child inherited from Max, what would the “touch of the cat” mean?
During the pregnancy, Esteban was almost as attentive to Liz as was Max. “Is there anything I should be worried about, Esteban?” Max asked.
Esteban shook his head, “No, Señor Max. I do not think there is anything wrong, but remember, your wife suffered a tremendous strain going between the two worlds for more than a year. There is bound to be some effect.
This frightened Max, but he couldn’t get Esteban to elaborate further. It was almost like, the only a little bit dead, that Max struggled with back in the forest. Max imagined that he would have to wait just like he had to before, but this was even more concerning to him.
Estelle, named because she was a star in the lives of Max and Liz, was born with raven black hair. Lying among the other, mostly bald babies, she stuck out. Her eyes were like blue sapphires. They would later turn to green. She would be accused more than once of wearing colored contacts. Much like José, her cousin, she was a very quiet baby. Diane, of course, had never seen Max when he was a baby. She had no idea of what he was like at that time, was worried with the intenseness of the child. Nancy had always said that Liz was a fussy baby. Liz, remembering her mother’s words, was concerned. Many times, Liz and Max would see Esteban holding the baby while they did other things. Esteban was even more attentive to Estelle than he had been to the other children.
When June and Julius were brought over by the Valentis, to see the baby they both stood beside her bed and were talking that strange language they had learned from Estaben. Estelle’s eyes could be seen following, watching them every minute.
The green eyes bothered Liz. She had brown eyes and so did Max. Of course, they had no idea of what color were the eyes of his true parents. The depictions they had of aliens were all of creatures with large black eyes, but that was scant sightings of aliens seen on Earth, in Earth environment. This brought a good natured comment from Maria, one night, “Don’t worry about it, Liz. You don’t remember what color the mailman’s eyes were.”
That caused Liz to launch a small pillow and that was answered by undying laughter from Maria. Max didn’t know whether to get mad or not. Maria had a lot of privilege in her mirth with Liz being such long friends and such. Liz stated, “Grandmother Parker had blue eyes. Maybe, this is a skipped generation for the gene. Green eyes were difficult genes to identify anyway.”
Liz was scared one evening when she had nursed Estelle and was rocking her. There was a gurgling sound that almost sounded like a purr. As said before, big cats did not purr but purring would be a feline trait.
Max told Liz, “You are looking for something wrong. You are bound to find something. She is a beautiful girl, so don’t worry about anything else.”
Of the group of children, Estelle was the youngest. Danny, and when he was visiting, José, were the oldest, but it was noticed even though Esteban had once said that José might be the leader, it was seen that all the children turned toward Estelle. Even when Danny and José were in elementary school and Kyle’s twins were still in preschool. When Estelle was with them, they all sort of looked to her. By now, they could all talk the strange language they had learned from Esteban. Liz noticed that they never used that language unless they were all together and they thought no one else was paying attention to them. Sometimes, Maria would hear Danny talking in the language when he was alone.
Serena and Kyle heard this more as their twins were almost always together. When the twins were just talking to each other, they used the language.
A problem came up. The Roswell group wouldn’t have know about it except that June told Maria one day. “Hey weirdo!” was the cry from the sixth grader. He was a bully and most of the children avoided him. He had collected a small group of other rough and tumble boys around him.
“Hey weirdo, I am talking to you!” came the sound again. It was from Jacob Easily. Danny calmly looked at the antagonist.
Danny was on the little kid’s side of the playground where he belonged. Jacob and his friends were supposed to be on the big kid’s side. Mostly the children followed the rules. Now, Danny was faced with a crowd of six, or maybe more, of sixth graders who were plainly defying the rules. The minute Jacob first spoke to Danny, June and Julius got up from where they were playing with the other children from the kindergarten and the first grade and walked over to where Danny was standing. The Valenti twins saw that Danny’s hands were sparking. Faint green lines were running back up into his shirtsleeves. Danny knew the rules, but it seemed that he was going to be in very big trouble and rules only work when you can follow them safely.
By the time June and Julius had arrived, the sixth graders had encircled Dannny. It seemed that he was going to “bust out.”
Jacob and the other sixth graders were not certain what happened next. The teachers all saw that there was a commotion on the playground and they hurried out to check on it. The sixth graders were holding each other and Jacob was sitting on the ground looking blank. As soon as the grown ups arrived, the sixth graders all ran to them. Now, this was strange. The sixth graders all knew that they were in trouble for being on the little kid’s playground. When they ran to the adults, they were crying, “Save me from them.”
The teachers looked around and they saw a few of the younger kids standing around. June and Julius were standing beside Danny, but they were some sort of relatives. The teachers didn’t really understand the situation. This day in time, relatives was one of the most difficult collections to define. His, hers and ours made relationships difficult to be accepted at face value.
The sixth graders, including a most quiet Jacob, all went first to the Principal’s office, then to the school nurse. Finally, they were called, individually, into the psychologist’s office.
It is amazing what the indifference of parents does to the world view or vocabulary of children. They all said they had seen lions and tigers on the school ground. Of course, none of these children had ever heard of a Jaguar and didn’t even know how savage they really were. Jacob was complaining of the roaring he was hearing. It didn’t go away for quite a while.
“Aunt Maria, some bad boys were trying to get Danny into trouble the other day,” June said.
This was the first Maria had heard of it. Of course, when asked, “How was school?” Children almost always answered, “Okay, I guess.” At least, that is the way they usually answered their parents. It was for other children to tell the adventures of school. Maria wondered if June had told her mother about any of this. “What happened, dear?” Maria inquired.
“Some of the big boys were going to force Danny to defend himself. We were afraid he would get into trouble, so we made them go away.” June informed her.
Maria had been exposed to, to much science fiction and she also, remembered how the Antarians had left the discussion they had held. She could only imagine getting calls from school that the children had made the big kids go into some other dimension. She could just envision asking the children to return the big kids, when…
“Don’t worry, Aunt Maria, we just caused them to have to go to the office. Maybe, now they will stay on their own side of the playground,” June explained. She offered no other explanation of how they hadaccomplished that.
A few days later, the Roswell elementary school sent a note to the parents. “It has come to our attention that some children might have acquired some sort of hallucinogen. We do not wish to alarm parents, but we ask that you be on the look out for strange substance in your child’s possession and for any behavior that you find strange or bizarre.”
Jacob and his friends did not bother Danny again. Maria, finally, did get him to admit that there had been a problem at school. “But, Mom, I didn’t have to show any of my secrets. June and Julius were there,” Danny told her.
The night, June told her about the situation at school Maria, was listening to Liz. “Maria, it was so strange. For the first time, Estelle was fussy. She was like that all day. Something was bothering her.”
During the weekend, Isabel had called her mom. “José had a bad day, this week. I had to go get him at school. He was complaining of a headache, but once he was home, he sat playing with his video games and said nothing else. Jesse warned me to be careful. He is afraid that José might learn to be manipulative and be using this to get out of going to school. He seems to really like school. It was just that one day.” Isabel was explaining all of this unusual behavior to her mother.
When they were all over at the Evans for Sunday evening dinner, the four children were sitting in a circle talking. Maria didn’t go into the room they were in, but she could hear the strange language. Later, Esteban went in the children’s room to call them to dinner. He talked with them for several minutes.
mary mary
nibbles2
keepsmiling7
Chapter 18
Little José was in his small bed. Jesse and Isabel would leave for the airport soon. Isabel came in and found Esteban standing by the bed watching over José. “Señora, he is a strong boy. So thoughtful. He might even be the leader.”
Isabel was surprised, “Leader of What, Esteban?”
Esteban shrugged, “The people from far away now know where you are. They failed at getting the soul of their prince. Some day, it is sure that they will return.”
“We haven’t heard the last of those dreadful people?” Isabel asked.
“No, señora, they both fear us and hate us. Two strong powers cannot exist in the universe at one time. One will always overpower the other.”
To Isabel, this was reminiscent of stories Liz had told of future Max. They had about decided that future Max was a mind warp of Tess. Tess was trying to make Liz feel responsible for the end of the world. If Liz would only give up her claim on Max, even if it was just the fact that they still had feelings for each other, then Liz would save the world. This allowed Tess freedom to drive Alex to translate the book and then, have a break down from fatigue.
Isabel felt she needed to talk to someone, so she turned and left the room. She missed Esteban removing the head and gently, swinging it over the child as he said cryptic incantations.
Danny Guerin, being Michael’s son, was a handful. He was head strong, which wasn’t necessarily all from Michael. There were many traits from his mother, also. When they visited the Evans family someone had to be constantly on the move watching that he didn’t get into trouble. Danny was usually vocal in his activities. Maria was tuned to this sound. When it subsided, she panicked because this was a sure sign that his attention was attracted to something he hadn’t ought to be doing.
The evening was late. Danny should have been in bed thirty minutes earlier. Kyle and Maria were arguing. The rest of the group were enjoying the entertainment of watching the two siblings, who weren’t really siblings. Kyle was about the only person who was allowed to attack Maria without Michael’s interference. No matter how heated the argument got, when it was over, Maria and Kyle like real brothers and sisters, would hug before leaving. Probably, each one of them would whisper a final insult in the other’s ear during this act.
Kyle was getting the better of Maria and this was unusual. Right in the middle of a rebuttal, Maria stopped and froze. She listened. There was silence. Around Danny, that was not normal. All of the group, instantly jumped up. Danny had to be in deep mischief to be this distracted.
There was a call from Liz who was in the kitchen. They all rushed to see Esteban sitting with his legs folded up, yoga fashion, on the floor. In his lap was the ever present bag containing the head and in front of him was Danny. They seemed to be playing some form of patty-cake. They were clapping each other’s hands and Esteban was telling Danny something in a strange language. Now, Danny was just starting to make noises that resembled words like “mommy” and “daddy” which would elicit excitement from Maria and Michael. They knew that this was early, but Danny was almost seven months and the doctor had said he was progressing very quickly. With Esteban, he was repeating, fairly distinctly, the foreign words. They all stood watching Esteban and Danny at play. Privately, Liz wondered if, to Esteban, this was play or something else. Now being the center of attention, Esteban stood and with his out-stretched arms, he lifted Danny and delivered him to his mother. When he lifted Danny, Danny picked up the bag. When Maria took him, Danny reached out and handed the bag back to Esteban who tucked it in the cloth belt that he wore over his slacks. They all laughed at Danny and his new playmate, but after Maria and family had departed, Liz wondered if there was more to this action.
Isabel and Jesse had returned to the Boston area, long ago. Claudio was still getting over the surprise of Jesse’s family. Jesse and Isabel returned to Roswell, from time to time. Isabel felt she should keep closer ties with those in Roswell. Serena was starting to show. They had not confided in the other couples about the impending event, because Serena wasn’t sure exactly where she fit in this group. Liz had said that, maybe, having Kyles children would cause her to change. She had watched both Danny and José grow and they seemed normal. It was almost three years since Danny and José had been born. It wasn’t until it was evident to all that Serena’s pregnancy would be a little different, that Kyle announced that she was expecting twins. When he told the group, of course, they were delighted. Women everywhere are excited about babies. Kyle and Serena were sitting in the Evans living room when Kyle made his announcement.
Of course, Serena didn’t get up. She was at the stage where she, carefully, rationed the gettings up to be as few as possible. She was at the stage where Kyle filled his car with gas every evening before he came home. Even now, she was ready to depart if her time approached on its own.
This was to be the major event in Kyle and Serena’s lives, the birth of their twins. One boy and one girl, they made a handful for the Valenties. This did arouse Jim from his couch. Having grandkids brought back spark into his life.
Max was present in the delivery room, just in case. The delivery was normal and try as he could, Max could see nothing unusual in the two babies. They named them June and Julius. Kyle said they brought the summer’s warmth of June and July into his life and also, into the life of their grandpa, Jim.
Of course, they were shared with the Troy family. Pam tried to spoil them. Serena was a little upset with her sister, but Kyle said let her go. She is just jealous and our kids will have us to straighten them out, anyway.
By the time Julius and June were crawling fairly well, Danny and José were walking every where of course, Danny talking a mile a minute and José still as introspective as ever. Sunday dinners at the Evans’ house were very exciting. It was a rare time when José was with them, when Isabel flew in for a few days visit. It was seen that many times, the four babies would be in the kitchen after dinner playing strange games with Esteban. One game was rolling a ball. Even the little Valenties could stop the ball, but surprisingly enough, Esteban would say something Then they would push the ball to the next person. Esteban, all the time when he was with the little ones, spoke that strange language.
Isabel stated, “When José is alone playing by himself he speaks that language, but if Jesse or I came in, he immediately goes back to the words he learns from us.” Isabel went on to ask if they thought there was any danger in José speaking the strange language.
“Only if he is teaching them dirty words. As it is, Serena won’t know when to get mad at them. She already cautions me constantly to watch my language. Maybe, I should get the babies to teach me that language. Then Serena won’t know if I am using bad words or not,” Kyle remarked. Of course, that quip got him a slap on the back of his head from his wife.
Liz shook her head, “I think it can be shown that very young children can learn other languages easier than they can later in life. As long as they are making progress in their normal speech, I do not think there is any reason to worry.”
June and Julius were three by the time Max and Liz had an announcement. Danny and José were six and in the first grade. Kyle said he did not know how he lasted through the “terrible two’s.” He wasn’t sure what the three’s had in store for him. Maria and Michael had started Danny in preschool the year before. Isabel had called and stated that she. Likewise, was looking for a private school for José. She was unhappy at the public school where they lived. In Roswell, the choices were much simpler. Danny was in public school.
The damage done to Isabel’s body had worried Max. That is why he was close by when José was born. With Liz, he was even more worried. Esteban had always said that Liz would always have a touch of the cat. Combined with whatever alien genes the child inherited from Max, what would the “touch of the cat” mean?
During the pregnancy, Esteban was almost as attentive to Liz as was Max. “Is there anything I should be worried about, Esteban?” Max asked.
Esteban shook his head, “No, Señor Max. I do not think there is anything wrong, but remember, your wife suffered a tremendous strain going between the two worlds for more than a year. There is bound to be some effect.
This frightened Max, but he couldn’t get Esteban to elaborate further. It was almost like, the only a little bit dead, that Max struggled with back in the forest. Max imagined that he would have to wait just like he had to before, but this was even more concerning to him.
Estelle, named because she was a star in the lives of Max and Liz, was born with raven black hair. Lying among the other, mostly bald babies, she stuck out. Her eyes were like blue sapphires. They would later turn to green. She would be accused more than once of wearing colored contacts. Much like José, her cousin, she was a very quiet baby. Diane, of course, had never seen Max when he was a baby. She had no idea of what he was like at that time, was worried with the intenseness of the child. Nancy had always said that Liz was a fussy baby. Liz, remembering her mother’s words, was concerned. Many times, Liz and Max would see Esteban holding the baby while they did other things. Esteban was even more attentive to Estelle than he had been to the other children.
When June and Julius were brought over by the Valentis, to see the baby they both stood beside her bed and were talking that strange language they had learned from Estaben. Estelle’s eyes could be seen following, watching them every minute.
The green eyes bothered Liz. She had brown eyes and so did Max. Of course, they had no idea of what color were the eyes of his true parents. The depictions they had of aliens were all of creatures with large black eyes, but that was scant sightings of aliens seen on Earth, in Earth environment. This brought a good natured comment from Maria, one night, “Don’t worry about it, Liz. You don’t remember what color the mailman’s eyes were.”
That caused Liz to launch a small pillow and that was answered by undying laughter from Maria. Max didn’t know whether to get mad or not. Maria had a lot of privilege in her mirth with Liz being such long friends and such. Liz stated, “Grandmother Parker had blue eyes. Maybe, this is a skipped generation for the gene. Green eyes were difficult genes to identify anyway.”
Liz was scared one evening when she had nursed Estelle and was rocking her. There was a gurgling sound that almost sounded like a purr. As said before, big cats did not purr but purring would be a feline trait.
Max told Liz, “You are looking for something wrong. You are bound to find something. She is a beautiful girl, so don’t worry about anything else.”
Of the group of children, Estelle was the youngest. Danny, and when he was visiting, José, were the oldest, but it was noticed even though Esteban had once said that José might be the leader, it was seen that all the children turned toward Estelle. Even when Danny and José were in elementary school and Kyle’s twins were still in preschool. When Estelle was with them, they all sort of looked to her. By now, they could all talk the strange language they had learned from Esteban. Liz noticed that they never used that language unless they were all together and they thought no one else was paying attention to them. Sometimes, Maria would hear Danny talking in the language when he was alone.
Serena and Kyle heard this more as their twins were almost always together. When the twins were just talking to each other, they used the language.
A problem came up. The Roswell group wouldn’t have know about it except that June told Maria one day. “Hey weirdo!” was the cry from the sixth grader. He was a bully and most of the children avoided him. He had collected a small group of other rough and tumble boys around him.
“Hey weirdo, I am talking to you!” came the sound again. It was from Jacob Easily. Danny calmly looked at the antagonist.
Danny was on the little kid’s side of the playground where he belonged. Jacob and his friends were supposed to be on the big kid’s side. Mostly the children followed the rules. Now, Danny was faced with a crowd of six, or maybe more, of sixth graders who were plainly defying the rules. The minute Jacob first spoke to Danny, June and Julius got up from where they were playing with the other children from the kindergarten and the first grade and walked over to where Danny was standing. The Valenti twins saw that Danny’s hands were sparking. Faint green lines were running back up into his shirtsleeves. Danny knew the rules, but it seemed that he was going to be in very big trouble and rules only work when you can follow them safely.
By the time June and Julius had arrived, the sixth graders had encircled Dannny. It seemed that he was going to “bust out.”
Jacob and the other sixth graders were not certain what happened next. The teachers all saw that there was a commotion on the playground and they hurried out to check on it. The sixth graders were holding each other and Jacob was sitting on the ground looking blank. As soon as the grown ups arrived, the sixth graders all ran to them. Now, this was strange. The sixth graders all knew that they were in trouble for being on the little kid’s playground. When they ran to the adults, they were crying, “Save me from them.”
The teachers looked around and they saw a few of the younger kids standing around. June and Julius were standing beside Danny, but they were some sort of relatives. The teachers didn’t really understand the situation. This day in time, relatives was one of the most difficult collections to define. His, hers and ours made relationships difficult to be accepted at face value.
The sixth graders, including a most quiet Jacob, all went first to the Principal’s office, then to the school nurse. Finally, they were called, individually, into the psychologist’s office.
It is amazing what the indifference of parents does to the world view or vocabulary of children. They all said they had seen lions and tigers on the school ground. Of course, none of these children had ever heard of a Jaguar and didn’t even know how savage they really were. Jacob was complaining of the roaring he was hearing. It didn’t go away for quite a while.
“Aunt Maria, some bad boys were trying to get Danny into trouble the other day,” June said.
This was the first Maria had heard of it. Of course, when asked, “How was school?” Children almost always answered, “Okay, I guess.” At least, that is the way they usually answered their parents. It was for other children to tell the adventures of school. Maria wondered if June had told her mother about any of this. “What happened, dear?” Maria inquired.
“Some of the big boys were going to force Danny to defend himself. We were afraid he would get into trouble, so we made them go away.” June informed her.
Maria had been exposed to, to much science fiction and she also, remembered how the Antarians had left the discussion they had held. She could only imagine getting calls from school that the children had made the big kids go into some other dimension. She could just envision asking the children to return the big kids, when…
“Don’t worry, Aunt Maria, we just caused them to have to go to the office. Maybe, now they will stay on their own side of the playground,” June explained. She offered no other explanation of how they hadaccomplished that.
A few days later, the Roswell elementary school sent a note to the parents. “It has come to our attention that some children might have acquired some sort of hallucinogen. We do not wish to alarm parents, but we ask that you be on the look out for strange substance in your child’s possession and for any behavior that you find strange or bizarre.”
Jacob and his friends did not bother Danny again. Maria, finally, did get him to admit that there had been a problem at school. “But, Mom, I didn’t have to show any of my secrets. June and Julius were there,” Danny told her.
The night, June told her about the situation at school Maria, was listening to Liz. “Maria, it was so strange. For the first time, Estelle was fussy. She was like that all day. Something was bothering her.”
During the weekend, Isabel had called her mom. “José had a bad day, this week. I had to go get him at school. He was complaining of a headache, but once he was home, he sat playing with his video games and said nothing else. Jesse warned me to be careful. He is afraid that José might learn to be manipulative and be using this to get out of going to school. He seems to really like school. It was just that one day.” Isabel was explaining all of this unusual behavior to her mother.
When they were all over at the Evans for Sunday evening dinner, the four children were sitting in a circle talking. Maria didn’t go into the room they were in, but she could hear the strange language. Later, Esteban went in the children’s room to call them to dinner. He talked with them for several minutes.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 10 ch 18 april 6 2009
Keepsmmiling7
mary mary
destinyc
Chapter 19
Michael had business in Albuquerque. They decided to drive a day early and stay two days, letting Danny and Maria see the sights and go shopping. One of the places Danny wanted to see was the Albuquerque Bio-Park. Danny and his mother spent most of the day there while Michael attended to his business. The Bio-Park was a very good zoo as zoos went. As they entered the gates, they were greeted by, the Flamingo exhibit. The beautiful birds were standing all around and coming right up to the people. There was only a rope to keep people out and birds in.
They followed the path and soon, entered the Reptile house. “Oh Mamma, did you see spiders like this one when you were in the jungle?” Danny asked.
Inwardly, Maria cringed. Now, she couldn’t see how she had made it. Who was that girl who took up a rifle and marched through jungle stepping on bugs and was always prepared to shoot a charging cat or maybe, a foreign prince? Like so many little boys, the revulsion he sees in the fair sex makes him like the snakes and reptiles even more. Maria thought, “What the hell did they have those spiders in the reptile house for, anyway?”
Walking out of the reptile house, they entered the tropic room. This was a room full of plants with birds and small mammals running around among the people visiting. There was not a direct theme balance. There were new world plants and animals running right along with the African variety. The main venture the room offered was the oppressive heat and humidity. That brought back instant memories of the Amazon. There were too many things to look at to interest a child like Danny. Soon, he was tired of the almost chaotic atmosphere of the tropic room. Back outside, they walked over the artificial hill where there were wolves and then, bears until you got to the white concrete area set off for the polar bears. The polar bears had changed from ferocious beast to clowns. The path wound around the park approaching the huge lake where weekly concerts were held. They saw a sign which read, “to the Big cats.”
Maria would just as soon have forgone this part. The big cats in cages all brought so many conflicting feelings that she couldn’t control them. Danny, though was in heaven. The African Lions interested him a lot. Next, he passed the tigers. Maria heard him mumble. There was no way that those sixth graders could have see those animals. Danny stood a long time before the tiger exhibit. He was, mostly, just shaking his head. The cages of cats made Maria think of Liz. Liz had explained to Maria that while she was a cat, eating and resting were about her only sensations. As a cat, she just didn’t have the abstract notions of freedom or anything else. Liz had been in a cage much bigger than the ones here. But, Maria thought, it was still a cage. She kept putting her own feelings on the animals. Were they content to just eat and rest their lives away?
The next exhibit was a large male jaguar. This gave Maria the shivers. She had never been that close to a jaguar without her rifle. Danny became almost fixated with the creature. When they first walked up, the jaguar was sleeping. He showed he was clearly bored with the passing of the people. Danny just stood there. He was mumbling that strange language. Suddenly, the jaguar sat up. He stared directly at Danny. The jaguar, gracefully, stood up. He stretched and you could see him extending, then, retracting his claws. He lazily growled. Shaking his head and making guttural sounds, he softly walked over to the edge of the exhibit so he could better look at Danny.
This, frankly, creeped Maria out. Her son appeared to be conversing with the large beast. Maria pulled at Danny’s hand, but he refused to leave. Maria had never been into demanding parenting, so she just moved a few feet back and sat on a bench as her son stood and mumbled at the cat. The Cat, in return, made several sounds down in his throat.
It was a full thirty minutes before Danny showed the desire to leave the jaguar exhibit. They passed the cougar exhibit and Maria, almost, turned her head. She was reminded so much of the captivity of Liz. The North American mountain lion was a much lighter color than had been the cat who was Liz. Maria just couldn’t bare the memories. She was so thankful that Danny showed no interest in the cougar. In fact, Danny was pulling at his mother’s hand and pleading for a hamburger at the restaurant, in the middle of the park. After eating, Danny made it clear that he was tired and wanted to do something else. They left in the early afternoon and Danny was content to follow his mother as she went shopping. She had picked up a stuffed Jaguar that he wanted at the gift shop at the exit of the park. Danny was content for the day. He had seen all that he wanted to see.
The next weekend when all the children were together, Danny was heard to be talking in the strange language. The other children were sitting around him listening to everything he said.
Danny had made the biggest fuss in the world about getting the stuffed jaguar. He had played with it every minute of the rest of the trip. That weekend when the children were all together, Danny gave the stuffed toy to Estelle. He showed no regret and later, Maria was watching to see if he missed the toy. It was just as if Danny had picked out the toy for Estelle. He just played with it until he could pass it on.
Esteban had embraced many things he found in America. He wore jeans. He wore polo shirts, he especially like ones with writing on them, advertising some product or such. No one knew if he read the logo or if he just liked the pattern. He did not wear shoes. He had tried a pair of Nikes. He wore them for a day, but that night his feet, so unused to the confinement, were hurting. Esteban went back to his sandals. Esteban also liked WWF wrestling. No one understood what he saw in it, but that was the evening he looked forward to. That was the night Maria wanted to have a meeting at Philip and Diane Evans’ house.
“It was just so weird,” she started. “I am sitting there and my son is talking to a jaguar.”
“Maria, are you sure the jaguar wasn’t just watching Danny out of curiosity?” Max asked.
“Look, Max, I have seen enough of those cats to know when they are just curious and when they are serious. This one couldn’t have been more attentive to Danny if he had been running for office,” Maria stated. Max noticed that she didn’t say if it was Danny running for office or was the jaguar. He didn’t say anything about the lack of completeness of Maria’s statement. Her temper wasn’t about to be tried.
“Did the cat make any sound?” Liz inquired.
“Yes, he made that low growling you hear when one of them is prowling about the camp in the jungle,” Maria answered.
“Cats don’t have a regular conversation,” Liz said. “It is more like they communicate that they are content or displeased or something simple. The way you describe it, the cat was content. Maybe, it just liked hearing Danny’s voice.”
“No, the cat looked right at Danny like he was holding to every word Danny was saying,” Maria said.
“Aw, what’s the difference? The kids talk in some strange language. We all did it. I remember when we talked pig-Latin thinking that our parents couldn’t understand us. It didn’t hurt us,” Kyle said.
Maria froze him with an icy stare, “We didn’t talk to the pigs themselves. We weren’t inciting the pigs to rise up and riot.”
“And Danny wasn’t inciting the jaguar to do anything, either,” Max stated. I think we should talk to Esteban and get more information about this language he has taught the children. So far, it doesn’t seem to have hurt them. Until Esteban tells us more, I think we just have to watch and be careful. Maria, did you ever ask Danny what he was talking to the jaguar about?”
Maria sort of looked sheepish, “No, I guess I assumed it was private because he was using a language I didn’t understand. Maybe, I should talk to him. Maybe, you should talk to him, Max. You know not bring the parent card down on him, but approach him man to man.”
Liz spoke up, “We have been most concerned about Estelle and José. I was under the spell of the cat for so long and Isabel was under the spell of Kivar. We have been worried that we would be the carriers of something to our children. We should ask Esteban directly. Did any of the others with us catch anything? What is this influence that seems to effect our children? What is it with the twins? Kyle wasn’t anywhere near the jungle. Why are they talking this language and what did they do to the children at school who were bullying Danny?”
Serena didn’t say anything. She was very concerned with the things that seemed to be attacking her new family. Was this what Kyle had warned her about? Was she seeing the start of some attack which would endanger her children? Kyle didn’t seem to be too worried, but Kyle seldom worried about anything, publicly. Privately, she knew that he was every bit as concerned about their children as she was.
Michael didn’t say anything, either. He was just listening. As the soldier, he had always let Max handle the problems as he, Michael, thought what to do if everything blew up in their face. Michael had gladly gone on the expedition to save Isabel. He had allowed Maria to come along, but if he admitted that, Maria would have his head. Maria didn’t have to be allowed to do anything. She did what she wanted. That woman was getting too wrapped up in the mystic that the shaman had created for her. Now Michael had concern for the children, but he wasn’t yet clear that there was a problem.
Philip and Diane just listened to all the discussion. Much of what their children had faced since they were in school was still strange to the elder Evans. Even though Philip had helped Jesse shut down the FBI special Unit, he didn’t understand all the things the unit had tried to do to his children. Now he was faced with something else. Something not clear like the Special Unit, but something nebulous that might be affecting his grandchild.
Max stood up, “I will have a personal talk with Danny this weekend. Also, I will talk to Esteban about more information concerning what is happening to the children.” With that, the meeting broke up and they all went to their respective homes.
Saturday, Maria, Liz and Estelle had a ladies day. They were going shopping for dresses and things that excited them. Michael was working so Danny stayed with his Uncle Max. Max was in the back yard trying to assemble a swing set. “I hear you went to the Zoo in Albuquerque,” Max said.
Danny was looking at the directions which Max had, stubbornly, refused to do. He picked up the next part that needed to be assembled and replied, “Yeah, it is a pretty nice place. There was a spider that totally grossed Mom out,” Danny said with a smile.
“Don’t doubt your mom too much, Danny. When we were in the jungle, she put up with some pretty bad customers. Spiders were just one of the things she disliked the most vocally,” Max said with a grin.
“I can almost see mom screaming and then, beating the poor arachnid to a pulp. I guess, she is pretty brave even if she screams like a girl at some things,” Danny replied thoughtfully.
“Don’t forget that moms are girls. They let us know about things they dislike in manners that girls have done for centuries. She, also, is very resourceful. Your mom is pretty tough when she needs to be,” Max told him.
Danny looked up from the directions he was holding. “I guess, she was pretty brave chasing that man who hurt Aunti Liz and Aunt Isabel,” Danny said almost with wonder.
“You never met your grandmother. She was tough, raising a child all alone, but she was a woman of the city. She brought your mother up to appreciate the comforts of the city. We were just having so much trouble, first with the FBI and then, Kivar taking your Aunt Isabel. Your mom decided that she was going to draw a line. Do you know what that means?” Max asked Dannny.
“Yes, it means you take a stand and don’t retreat from it, doesn’t it?” Danny asked. “We were studying about that. I believe that general at the Alamo did that.”
“Something like that. At the Alamo, they drew a line and said all who would stand fast and not run, should cross the line. Here it means Maria, your mom, wouldn’t let anyone else push her around. Kivar had attacked her friends and your mom, even though she had seldom been outside a city, was determined to help stop him,” Max told. Then Max chuckled, “A mighty fine thing she did. Ultimately, it was your mom who stopped Kivar. Yes, Danny she is a pretty brave person, so I guess, we can let her have a little scream at some spider.”
Danny was proud of his folks. His mom was a puzzle. He once mentioned that to his father and Michael had laughed. “Welcome to the world of women, son. You ever understand them, come back and teach the old man.” Danny had talked to Michael about his powers. Danny knew that all the children were concerned about their powers. He was the oldest and his were developing the fastest. Danny hadn’t seen José for some time, but the last time they were together, José was experiencing similar feelings. The twins had talked to Danny after the school ground episode and every time he was with Estelle, Danny felt what was in her growing. Of course, none of them really understood themselves. Just like their folks, they would have to learn what they could do.
Max grunted. He had just pushed two pipes together. He surely hoped that he had done the correct thing. He would not be happy if he had to take those pipes apart. “What else did you see?”
Danny had sorted out bolts and lock nuts. He handed them to Max to hold the pipes from coming apart. “We saw the polar bears. They were funny. They have been given large pieces of Styrofoam and they think they are ice. They play on those pieces. Oh yeah, I talked to a jaguar.”
Max almost dropped the two pieces of pipe. He had been trying to figure a way to broach the subject of the jaguar. He didn’t want to do that directly because he thought that he might scare Danny to where he wouldn’t respond. “You know your mom killed many jaguars in the jungle?”
“Yes, and that is why I wanted to talk to this jaguar. He wasn’t anything like those Mom talks about. He isn’t mad at anyone. He has plenty to eat and he doesn’t have to work too hard. The ones mom talked about were always angry and trying to kill everyone they could. I asked the cat at the zoo about that and he was confused. He kept asking were the cats in the jungle hungry? Were they scared? Why did they go to all that effort if it didn’t do something for them? He was a confused cat after we talked. He did ask me to come back. I think he is lonesome and I was the first one to talk to him for a long time,” Danny related.
“Do you think the other children would like to see the jaguar?” Max asked.
“I don’t know about the other children, but I think the jaguar would like to see them. I think he would, especially, like to see Esteban. Esteban could understand him better than I did,” Danny concluded.
mary mary
destinyc
Chapter 19
Michael had business in Albuquerque. They decided to drive a day early and stay two days, letting Danny and Maria see the sights and go shopping. One of the places Danny wanted to see was the Albuquerque Bio-Park. Danny and his mother spent most of the day there while Michael attended to his business. The Bio-Park was a very good zoo as zoos went. As they entered the gates, they were greeted by, the Flamingo exhibit. The beautiful birds were standing all around and coming right up to the people. There was only a rope to keep people out and birds in.
They followed the path and soon, entered the Reptile house. “Oh Mamma, did you see spiders like this one when you were in the jungle?” Danny asked.
Inwardly, Maria cringed. Now, she couldn’t see how she had made it. Who was that girl who took up a rifle and marched through jungle stepping on bugs and was always prepared to shoot a charging cat or maybe, a foreign prince? Like so many little boys, the revulsion he sees in the fair sex makes him like the snakes and reptiles even more. Maria thought, “What the hell did they have those spiders in the reptile house for, anyway?”
Walking out of the reptile house, they entered the tropic room. This was a room full of plants with birds and small mammals running around among the people visiting. There was not a direct theme balance. There were new world plants and animals running right along with the African variety. The main venture the room offered was the oppressive heat and humidity. That brought back instant memories of the Amazon. There were too many things to look at to interest a child like Danny. Soon, he was tired of the almost chaotic atmosphere of the tropic room. Back outside, they walked over the artificial hill where there were wolves and then, bears until you got to the white concrete area set off for the polar bears. The polar bears had changed from ferocious beast to clowns. The path wound around the park approaching the huge lake where weekly concerts were held. They saw a sign which read, “to the Big cats.”
Maria would just as soon have forgone this part. The big cats in cages all brought so many conflicting feelings that she couldn’t control them. Danny, though was in heaven. The African Lions interested him a lot. Next, he passed the tigers. Maria heard him mumble. There was no way that those sixth graders could have see those animals. Danny stood a long time before the tiger exhibit. He was, mostly, just shaking his head. The cages of cats made Maria think of Liz. Liz had explained to Maria that while she was a cat, eating and resting were about her only sensations. As a cat, she just didn’t have the abstract notions of freedom or anything else. Liz had been in a cage much bigger than the ones here. But, Maria thought, it was still a cage. She kept putting her own feelings on the animals. Were they content to just eat and rest their lives away?
The next exhibit was a large male jaguar. This gave Maria the shivers. She had never been that close to a jaguar without her rifle. Danny became almost fixated with the creature. When they first walked up, the jaguar was sleeping. He showed he was clearly bored with the passing of the people. Danny just stood there. He was mumbling that strange language. Suddenly, the jaguar sat up. He stared directly at Danny. The jaguar, gracefully, stood up. He stretched and you could see him extending, then, retracting his claws. He lazily growled. Shaking his head and making guttural sounds, he softly walked over to the edge of the exhibit so he could better look at Danny.
This, frankly, creeped Maria out. Her son appeared to be conversing with the large beast. Maria pulled at Danny’s hand, but he refused to leave. Maria had never been into demanding parenting, so she just moved a few feet back and sat on a bench as her son stood and mumbled at the cat. The Cat, in return, made several sounds down in his throat.
It was a full thirty minutes before Danny showed the desire to leave the jaguar exhibit. They passed the cougar exhibit and Maria, almost, turned her head. She was reminded so much of the captivity of Liz. The North American mountain lion was a much lighter color than had been the cat who was Liz. Maria just couldn’t bare the memories. She was so thankful that Danny showed no interest in the cougar. In fact, Danny was pulling at his mother’s hand and pleading for a hamburger at the restaurant, in the middle of the park. After eating, Danny made it clear that he was tired and wanted to do something else. They left in the early afternoon and Danny was content to follow his mother as she went shopping. She had picked up a stuffed Jaguar that he wanted at the gift shop at the exit of the park. Danny was content for the day. He had seen all that he wanted to see.
The next weekend when all the children were together, Danny was heard to be talking in the strange language. The other children were sitting around him listening to everything he said.
Danny had made the biggest fuss in the world about getting the stuffed jaguar. He had played with it every minute of the rest of the trip. That weekend when the children were all together, Danny gave the stuffed toy to Estelle. He showed no regret and later, Maria was watching to see if he missed the toy. It was just as if Danny had picked out the toy for Estelle. He just played with it until he could pass it on.
Esteban had embraced many things he found in America. He wore jeans. He wore polo shirts, he especially like ones with writing on them, advertising some product or such. No one knew if he read the logo or if he just liked the pattern. He did not wear shoes. He had tried a pair of Nikes. He wore them for a day, but that night his feet, so unused to the confinement, were hurting. Esteban went back to his sandals. Esteban also liked WWF wrestling. No one understood what he saw in it, but that was the evening he looked forward to. That was the night Maria wanted to have a meeting at Philip and Diane Evans’ house.
“It was just so weird,” she started. “I am sitting there and my son is talking to a jaguar.”
“Maria, are you sure the jaguar wasn’t just watching Danny out of curiosity?” Max asked.
“Look, Max, I have seen enough of those cats to know when they are just curious and when they are serious. This one couldn’t have been more attentive to Danny if he had been running for office,” Maria stated. Max noticed that she didn’t say if it was Danny running for office or was the jaguar. He didn’t say anything about the lack of completeness of Maria’s statement. Her temper wasn’t about to be tried.
“Did the cat make any sound?” Liz inquired.
“Yes, he made that low growling you hear when one of them is prowling about the camp in the jungle,” Maria answered.
“Cats don’t have a regular conversation,” Liz said. “It is more like they communicate that they are content or displeased or something simple. The way you describe it, the cat was content. Maybe, it just liked hearing Danny’s voice.”
“No, the cat looked right at Danny like he was holding to every word Danny was saying,” Maria said.
“Aw, what’s the difference? The kids talk in some strange language. We all did it. I remember when we talked pig-Latin thinking that our parents couldn’t understand us. It didn’t hurt us,” Kyle said.
Maria froze him with an icy stare, “We didn’t talk to the pigs themselves. We weren’t inciting the pigs to rise up and riot.”
“And Danny wasn’t inciting the jaguar to do anything, either,” Max stated. I think we should talk to Esteban and get more information about this language he has taught the children. So far, it doesn’t seem to have hurt them. Until Esteban tells us more, I think we just have to watch and be careful. Maria, did you ever ask Danny what he was talking to the jaguar about?”
Maria sort of looked sheepish, “No, I guess I assumed it was private because he was using a language I didn’t understand. Maybe, I should talk to him. Maybe, you should talk to him, Max. You know not bring the parent card down on him, but approach him man to man.”
Liz spoke up, “We have been most concerned about Estelle and José. I was under the spell of the cat for so long and Isabel was under the spell of Kivar. We have been worried that we would be the carriers of something to our children. We should ask Esteban directly. Did any of the others with us catch anything? What is this influence that seems to effect our children? What is it with the twins? Kyle wasn’t anywhere near the jungle. Why are they talking this language and what did they do to the children at school who were bullying Danny?”
Serena didn’t say anything. She was very concerned with the things that seemed to be attacking her new family. Was this what Kyle had warned her about? Was she seeing the start of some attack which would endanger her children? Kyle didn’t seem to be too worried, but Kyle seldom worried about anything, publicly. Privately, she knew that he was every bit as concerned about their children as she was.
Michael didn’t say anything, either. He was just listening. As the soldier, he had always let Max handle the problems as he, Michael, thought what to do if everything blew up in their face. Michael had gladly gone on the expedition to save Isabel. He had allowed Maria to come along, but if he admitted that, Maria would have his head. Maria didn’t have to be allowed to do anything. She did what she wanted. That woman was getting too wrapped up in the mystic that the shaman had created for her. Now Michael had concern for the children, but he wasn’t yet clear that there was a problem.
Philip and Diane just listened to all the discussion. Much of what their children had faced since they were in school was still strange to the elder Evans. Even though Philip had helped Jesse shut down the FBI special Unit, he didn’t understand all the things the unit had tried to do to his children. Now he was faced with something else. Something not clear like the Special Unit, but something nebulous that might be affecting his grandchild.
Max stood up, “I will have a personal talk with Danny this weekend. Also, I will talk to Esteban about more information concerning what is happening to the children.” With that, the meeting broke up and they all went to their respective homes.
Saturday, Maria, Liz and Estelle had a ladies day. They were going shopping for dresses and things that excited them. Michael was working so Danny stayed with his Uncle Max. Max was in the back yard trying to assemble a swing set. “I hear you went to the Zoo in Albuquerque,” Max said.
Danny was looking at the directions which Max had, stubbornly, refused to do. He picked up the next part that needed to be assembled and replied, “Yeah, it is a pretty nice place. There was a spider that totally grossed Mom out,” Danny said with a smile.
“Don’t doubt your mom too much, Danny. When we were in the jungle, she put up with some pretty bad customers. Spiders were just one of the things she disliked the most vocally,” Max said with a grin.
“I can almost see mom screaming and then, beating the poor arachnid to a pulp. I guess, she is pretty brave even if she screams like a girl at some things,” Danny replied thoughtfully.
“Don’t forget that moms are girls. They let us know about things they dislike in manners that girls have done for centuries. She, also, is very resourceful. Your mom is pretty tough when she needs to be,” Max told him.
Danny looked up from the directions he was holding. “I guess, she was pretty brave chasing that man who hurt Aunti Liz and Aunt Isabel,” Danny said almost with wonder.
“You never met your grandmother. She was tough, raising a child all alone, but she was a woman of the city. She brought your mother up to appreciate the comforts of the city. We were just having so much trouble, first with the FBI and then, Kivar taking your Aunt Isabel. Your mom decided that she was going to draw a line. Do you know what that means?” Max asked Dannny.
“Yes, it means you take a stand and don’t retreat from it, doesn’t it?” Danny asked. “We were studying about that. I believe that general at the Alamo did that.”
“Something like that. At the Alamo, they drew a line and said all who would stand fast and not run, should cross the line. Here it means Maria, your mom, wouldn’t let anyone else push her around. Kivar had attacked her friends and your mom, even though she had seldom been outside a city, was determined to help stop him,” Max told. Then Max chuckled, “A mighty fine thing she did. Ultimately, it was your mom who stopped Kivar. Yes, Danny she is a pretty brave person, so I guess, we can let her have a little scream at some spider.”
Danny was proud of his folks. His mom was a puzzle. He once mentioned that to his father and Michael had laughed. “Welcome to the world of women, son. You ever understand them, come back and teach the old man.” Danny had talked to Michael about his powers. Danny knew that all the children were concerned about their powers. He was the oldest and his were developing the fastest. Danny hadn’t seen José for some time, but the last time they were together, José was experiencing similar feelings. The twins had talked to Danny after the school ground episode and every time he was with Estelle, Danny felt what was in her growing. Of course, none of them really understood themselves. Just like their folks, they would have to learn what they could do.
Max grunted. He had just pushed two pipes together. He surely hoped that he had done the correct thing. He would not be happy if he had to take those pipes apart. “What else did you see?”
Danny had sorted out bolts and lock nuts. He handed them to Max to hold the pipes from coming apart. “We saw the polar bears. They were funny. They have been given large pieces of Styrofoam and they think they are ice. They play on those pieces. Oh yeah, I talked to a jaguar.”
Max almost dropped the two pieces of pipe. He had been trying to figure a way to broach the subject of the jaguar. He didn’t want to do that directly because he thought that he might scare Danny to where he wouldn’t respond. “You know your mom killed many jaguars in the jungle?”
“Yes, and that is why I wanted to talk to this jaguar. He wasn’t anything like those Mom talks about. He isn’t mad at anyone. He has plenty to eat and he doesn’t have to work too hard. The ones mom talked about were always angry and trying to kill everyone they could. I asked the cat at the zoo about that and he was confused. He kept asking were the cats in the jungle hungry? Were they scared? Why did they go to all that effort if it didn’t do something for them? He was a confused cat after we talked. He did ask me to come back. I think he is lonesome and I was the first one to talk to him for a long time,” Danny related.
“Do you think the other children would like to see the jaguar?” Max asked.
“I don’t know about the other children, but I think the jaguar would like to see them. I think he would, especially, like to see Esteban. Esteban could understand him better than I did,” Danny concluded.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Re: Curse of the Cat mature cc pg 11 ch 19 april 13 2009
keepsmiling7
mary mary
Chapter 20
Danny had gone home with his mom. Liz and Estelle were inside doing what women and girls do after a day of shopping. Max was having more trouble since Danny had left. Max was still determined not to look at the directions. Now that Danny was not handing him the correct part, the swing set assembly was progressing more slowly. Esteban had no ability to read directions nor did he care about swing sets. He knew that after talking to Danny, Max had questions and Esteban wanted to answer them as best he could. It was not always easy to explain to Anglos the things of the jungle. Esteban had found these people better at understanding, but their educations still got in their way.
Max looked down from his work. “Esteban. What is happening to the children?” Max asked.
“They are growing up, señor,” Esteban replied.
“I mean, are they growing up normally?” Max asked again.
Esteban gave a chuckle, “Señor, you are not of this world. Do you expect your children to be like the others they meet at school?”
“I mean, is there anything else that is happening to them?” Max inquired. Sometimes, he thought Esteban had been a lawyer in another life.
Esteban knew that this was what was troubling Max and the others, also. “Your wife lived in the world of the cat. You can’t expect her not to always have the touch of the cat, a little. Remember, she is safe only because we hold the soul of the evil prince in this bag.” Esteban held up the bag and shook it slightly. Then, he went on. “The singer became a mighty woman warrior. Did you know, señor, that my country was named after women warriors by the first white men who came there?”
Max nodded. He was surprised at the knowledge Esteban had picked up. Like knowing the Amazon was named after the women of ancient times who were reported to be mighty warriors. Max wondered if Esteban was including Maria as an Amazon?
Esteban went on. “Every time she killed a cat who had been cursed, a bit of that cat went into her. We held ceremonies to drive the soul back into the shadow world of men, but as the killer of the beast, Maria, gained a little of them each time. Her husband is like you. He is not of this world. That amplifies the cat that is in Maria. In her son, there is a mighty strength building.”
Estaban continued, “In Señora Isabel, dwells many things. To keep her alive we had to call on many spirits. The spirits did as we asked, but they did demand their toll. She, now, has both. Being not of this world, along with the spirits who possessed her and may still live in her. Her son will be a great leader, as will your child. He will, also, have a strong spiritual ability. He will be able to bring peace to those around him. He might find his soul mate early and she will give him added strength.”
Max put down the pieces of the swing. “Will the children grow up to live healthy lives?” he asked.
Esteban looked at Max, “For me to tell you the children will all grow up and have good lives is beyond any shaman. It is a wise shaman who admits that. Your children have as good a chance of growing up as any other children. They will face adversity and challenges. Maybe, some of the challenges will be harder than those that other children must overcome. But, maybe,they will have more resources to overcome bad things.”
Esteban rose. “Remember, all of the children are a result of the “Curse of the Cat.” And with that, he went back into the house.
Max informed the other alien families of what Esteban said and they discussed it for some time. There didn’t seem to be anything else to do.
The first dream came to Liz. She was in her nightgown. She wasn’t wearing her robe or slippers, just the thin nightgown. She was running through the jungle but it wasn’t a jungle of trees. Rather, it was a jungle of the shops and houses of Roswell. It was raining and dressed only in a thin nightgown, Liz was cold. The rain made the gown stick to her and left her with an almost naked appearance. Liz was running down Main street. She turned to look in the direction she has just come from. There were two burning eyes. A slight breeze brought the musky smell of the cat. It was the same smell she endured every morning when she morphed back into a woman. At first, the streets were deserted and Liz could run very fast, even if she was barefooted. The eyes were always just behind her and sometimes, she heard the guttural sound she remembered from the forest. The cat was chasing her. What did it want? The streets began to fill up. The eyes, and whatever they belonged to, kept coming at the same speed, but Liz had to make way for the crowds of people, now on the streets. She could smell the hot breath on her neck.
Liz woke up. She was in a cold sweat and whimpering. It took Max almost an hour to calm her down. Even when she understood it was only a dream, Liz was still shaking. It was time to get up so she took a hot shower and went in to fix breakfast. As she was getting things together Esteban walked in. “Good morning, señora. I see you are up early.”
“Good Morning, Esteban. I was having bad dreams,” Liz replied.
“Yes, I know. The soul of Kivar was restless last night. He was struggling to get free. I held the bag tightly shut and even as he struggled, he was subdued,” Esteban explained.
That explained things to Liz, but it didn’t help her feel any better. It was still early when there was a knock on the back door and Isabel was standing there. “Isabel this is a surprise?” Liz exclaimed.
“Yes, this trip was not carefully planned`. I left José and Jesse to fend for them selves for a day. I need to see Max,” she stated.
Izzy sat down and was served Esteban’s coffee. She was sitting with Esteban and Liz when Max came in. “I have been having bad dreams recently,” Isabel stated.
Max raised his eye brows, “You too? Liz had a nightmare last night.”
“Well I have been having them for the last three nights,” Isabel said. “They are all about the same. I am in a jungle, but it is not like it was in Brazil. The jungle is in Boston. I am standing on the street beside a tall blond man. All I do is stand, but I feel exhausted as he takes energy from me and all around me, I see people falling. They fall in the streets and get run over. They fall on the sidewalks and get trampled. We just stand there and it keeps happening until I am dead with exhaustion. Then, I fall and I wake up. For three nights it has been the same. The man keeps taking from me until he can take no more and then, I fall. This is the same over and over.”
Esteban sat there, almost impassive. “He is struggling to get out. What you are seeing are promises if he gets free.”
Liz looked up, “Is it just the two of us that he is trying to attack?”
Esteban said, “In his condition, he could never attack the king. He is terrified of Maria. She still possesses the blade with his blood on it. He is hoping that with the two of you, at least one, will fall back under his spell.”
Isabel, then, started talking about José. “He is doing well in school, but the other children are afraid of him. Sometimes he mumbles in that strange language the children speak to each other.”
“The language of the cat,” interjected Esteban. “They speak the language of the cat. They all knew it from birth. I just helped them learn it better. It is a powerful language and when they get older, I will show them what it can do.”
“They already can do some things with the language,” Liz explained. She went on to tell of Danny and the bullies at school. “The bullies went running to the principal crying that lions and tigers were coming after them.”
“They didn’t hurt Danny, did they?” Isabel asked.
“No, and what is more he didn’t have to use his powers. Apparently Kyle’s twins were there. They may have been the ones making the illusion of the lions and tiger. Michael is working with Danny. Along with practices, go many lectures on not using the powers. So far, Estelle has not shown much use of her power, a little sparking now and then. When the bullies were bothering Danny, she was very agitated and sparking just at her finger tips. We talked to her. She has a similar personality to José. She is now starting school, so we will have to watch her closely.”
Max spoke up, “Maria took Danny to the zoo in Albuquerque. Danny enjoyed the experience. He most enjoyed a conversation he had with the male jaguar they have on exhibit.”
Isabel wrinkled her nose. “Conversation, that is a pretty far-fetched story, even for Maria.”
“No, it was Danny who told me. He just asked the jaguar if he was angry. He told me that the cats his mother had faced must have been very angry. Danny says the cat told him that he wasn’t hungry or scared. He was bored and he would like Danny to come back and visit him. That is their story, take for what you want,” Max told her.
Isabel flew back that night to Boston. She hadn’t seen fit to mention that José had been asking to visit the zoo.
When Isabel got home, and in bed with Jesse, she told him about the trials of Kivar trying to get free. She, also, told of the trip Danny made to the Zoo. “Isabel, how can they be sure about Danny talking to the Cat? It sounds like a tall tale to me.”
“No, Max said he talked carefully to Danny. Danny was sure that the cat talked to him. There are some things to think about because Liz said when she was in the form of a cat, she didn’t think clearly. Esteban says that there were many things in the forest and that might have been what Danny was talking to,” Isabel informed Jesse. They were both quiet for a few minutes. Then, Isabel said, “Esteban said that there were many different spirits in me, while they were keeping me after I was hurt. He says that there will be many spirits in José.”
This kind of talk always bothered Jesse. He wanted to always believe that his son was just like all other children. He had a hard enough time understanding that his wife wasn’t completely human. Isabel knew of his fears. At times like these, she remembered the time when they were first married. Isabel turned toward Jesse. Her nightgown was fastened at the front by a series of bows. As Isabel put her arm around Jesse, she pulled at the first two bows. As Jesse leaned to meet her, he felt the gown opening. He proceeded to pull the other bows. Soon, he had his wife with all her alien genetics and foreign spirits in his arms. The total Isabel made him realize how lucky he was. As his hands went over her body, exploring just like he imagined Michael and Maria had done in the wilderness looking for signs of Isabel, Jesse found what he was looking for. Love with a woman like this couldn’t help but make a strong, wonderful son.
Max was considering taking all the children to the zoo. He wanted to see what their reaction would be. He included Esteban. The closest zoo was the Bio-Park in Albuquerque. Since Danny already had made acquaintance with the jaguar there, Max thought that might be the place to start. Isabel was back east with her husband and José. The Guerins and the Valentis, along with the Evans family, would spend the weekend at the park. It was a four-hour drive for the three families. Since each of the children needed the safety seats it was necessary to take all three cars. They arrived late Friday night. After a Mexican dinner, they went back to the motel. The kids went to one room while the adults gathered in another to watch their own style movies. They got to the Bio-Park at ten o’clock Saturday morning.
Danny was the experienced one. He directed everyone as to what they would see first. Once in the park, the families seemed to string out. Danny was in a hurry to get to the big cats. The twins were in awe of all they saw. They ooed and awed at the flamingos. The reptile house was interesting since it grossed out Serena. Of course, Kyle didn’t help. He made crawly motions up her back while they were watching the python writhing its way through its habitat. That earned him a slap up the back of his head, after she screamed from the feeling. Danny had already left the tropical room by the time the Valentis and the Evans got there. Max had been watching Estelle and forgot. for a minute, Liz. He turned and she was as white as a sheet. Her normal golden skin was like bleached parchment. She was becoming unsteady. Max hurried her through the tropical room and once outside, they talked.
“Max, I can’t do it. I can’t go near those cages. I lived in a cage for long enough. I do not want to see others who will live their lives out that way. Max saw Maria and Michael up ahead. He quickly called Maria on his cell phone. “Maria, can you wait a minute. Liz is getting sick. Could you stay with her? I need to see the children with the cat, but you have already seen Danny’s reaction. I don’t want to leave Liz alone.”
He saw the Guerins stop and to Danny’s unhappiness, they walked over to a table and sat waiting for the Evans and the Valentis to catch up.
“I just don’t want to leave her alone, Maria. If you could wait for us, maybe, it won’t be so hard,” Max repeated again. Just then one of the big cats let out a roar. Liz was shaken visibly. “Maria, why don’t you take our car and just take Liz someplace. Go shopping or go over to the museum or something. You have your own set of keys to your car, don’t you? Put our child seat in yours and Michael’s car. Estelle and I will ride back with Michael and Danny.” Liz went with Maria. She was still clearly shaken. Max hoped this didn’t cause her problems. He just couldn’t get over the feeling that it was important to see how the children behaved at the cage of the jaguar. The seven of them, including Esteban, all followed Danny as he proudly led them along the path. Danny was narrating on all the things they were passing. Now that he was playing tour guide, he had slowed down.
Finally, they got to the big cat exhibit. The twins were in awe of everything they saw. This was the first time they had seen real wild animals. Julius nudged June, “That tiger doesn’t look anything like the creature you made for the sixth graders. They just didn’t know what they were talking about.”
June turned to him, “Maybe, I smudged the spots a bit, but I agree those kids were not really smart. Danny was proudly standing before the jaguar cage. It wasn’t really a cage. It was a high wall with a deep ditch inside it. It had been calculated so that no one believed the cat could jump out of it. True, in California a tiger had been teased and the tiger with super adrenalin had made it out of the pit and immediately, set upon its tormentors.
The jaguar was sitting where he could see the children. He was looking first at Danny. Danny had pointed to each of the children and using the strange language, he was saying something. The twins were responding in kind. Max had been lagging. He thought of himself as a young man, but taking a group of elementary school aged kids somewhere quickly makes your age a reality. He was puffing by the time he arrived holding the hand of Estelle. She turned to Max and indicated she wanted to be held up where she could see. The minute the jaguar saw her, his manner changed. He became nervous and started pacing. The other children, he had accepted as he did Danny but the girl child in her daddy’s arms bothered him greatly. Then Esteban, who upto this time had remained quiet, said something. The jaguar stopped his pacing and growled several times. Then, he approached as close as he could to Max and let out a roar. That made Max nervous. He jumped, but Estelle had her arms around his neck.
“Daddy, he is just telling me that he knows who I am. He isn’t angry.” Max just couldn’t be sure. Did he take the word of his almost preschool daughter in things of this importance? She clearly intended that he do so. The children chatted in front of the jaguar for some time. Soon though, they tired of this and they wanted to move on. Esteban said to Max, “Señor, let me catch up with you. Wait for me at the tables where we left the señoras, Liz and Maria. I want to talk to my brother, el gato.” The children were pleased to be moving and they went to the plains animal exhibits. They saw a real giraffe for the first time. They went on the elephant ride. By the time they got to the table, Esteban was sitting patiently, waiting for them.
Liz was quite shaken as she led Maria to the Evans’ car. Maria took the child seat and put it in the Guerin car. Then she and Liz left. Maria was driving. Liz said she didn’t want to think about that. “Chica, it will be okay. Max will tell you all about it and you do not want to have to see those wretched cages, anyhow.”
“Oh, the cages are quite fine as cages go. I just do not to have to face anything like that again. I don’t want to face a big cat again, either,” Liz almost whispered.
“That is fine, Chica. I don’t like being that close to those cats without my rifle, either,” Maria explained. There were a series of man made lakes near the river and the road wound around them. Maria stopped and she and Liz got out and sat at a picnic table while they watched the ducks. Ducks are very soothing as they swim aimlessly trying to look pathetic as they obtained tidbits from other people at the tables.
“I was just hoping that this would all be over. The dreams and seeing the cages just brought it all back.” Liz turned to Maria, “What do we do if Kivar breaks free from the head? He is afraid of you. You took off his head the last time you met. What will I do if he comes after me?” Liz mused.
“Chica, you weren’t too gentle when you were near him either. You hurt him and you took his prize, Isabel, away from him. He might not be as willing to fight you, either. Esteban says he will progressively get weaker as time goes by. Esteban said that we can’t hope to keep him imprisoned forever, but the longer we do the weaker he gets. Esteban has some major plan that he hasn’t completely told us yet,” Maria explained.
Max called Liz and they arranged to meet at a restaurant. They had stopped at the store just at the gate of the park. All the children got tee shirts which had animals printed on them and stuffed animals to carry until they tired and then, would give to their parents to carry. Esteban was quieter than normal. Soon they were with Liz and Maria. The trip home was quieter for all the cars as the children were worn out. So were the adults, but they had to keep going.
Liz was speaking in a low tone. Esteban and Estelle were asleep in the back. “What happened, Max,” Liz inquired.
“The children did stand there and talk in the strange language to the jaguar. When Danny introduced Estelle, the cat was very upset. Esteban came up then, and talked for a long time in front of the big cat. The cat, finally, came to where he could see Estelle clearly and they he gave out a mighty roar. Estelle said he was just recognizing who she was. Whatever that meant. Esteban stayed for some time at the big cat exhibit, but the rest of us visited some of the rest of the zoo. The children seemed satisfied that they’d had a good time and I saw that what Maria saw was true.” Max was assured that the trip was a success.
mary mary
Chapter 20
Danny had gone home with his mom. Liz and Estelle were inside doing what women and girls do after a day of shopping. Max was having more trouble since Danny had left. Max was still determined not to look at the directions. Now that Danny was not handing him the correct part, the swing set assembly was progressing more slowly. Esteban had no ability to read directions nor did he care about swing sets. He knew that after talking to Danny, Max had questions and Esteban wanted to answer them as best he could. It was not always easy to explain to Anglos the things of the jungle. Esteban had found these people better at understanding, but their educations still got in their way.
Max looked down from his work. “Esteban. What is happening to the children?” Max asked.
“They are growing up, señor,” Esteban replied.
“I mean, are they growing up normally?” Max asked again.
Esteban gave a chuckle, “Señor, you are not of this world. Do you expect your children to be like the others they meet at school?”
“I mean, is there anything else that is happening to them?” Max inquired. Sometimes, he thought Esteban had been a lawyer in another life.
Esteban knew that this was what was troubling Max and the others, also. “Your wife lived in the world of the cat. You can’t expect her not to always have the touch of the cat, a little. Remember, she is safe only because we hold the soul of the evil prince in this bag.” Esteban held up the bag and shook it slightly. Then, he went on. “The singer became a mighty woman warrior. Did you know, señor, that my country was named after women warriors by the first white men who came there?”
Max nodded. He was surprised at the knowledge Esteban had picked up. Like knowing the Amazon was named after the women of ancient times who were reported to be mighty warriors. Max wondered if Esteban was including Maria as an Amazon?
Esteban went on. “Every time she killed a cat who had been cursed, a bit of that cat went into her. We held ceremonies to drive the soul back into the shadow world of men, but as the killer of the beast, Maria, gained a little of them each time. Her husband is like you. He is not of this world. That amplifies the cat that is in Maria. In her son, there is a mighty strength building.”
Estaban continued, “In Señora Isabel, dwells many things. To keep her alive we had to call on many spirits. The spirits did as we asked, but they did demand their toll. She, now, has both. Being not of this world, along with the spirits who possessed her and may still live in her. Her son will be a great leader, as will your child. He will, also, have a strong spiritual ability. He will be able to bring peace to those around him. He might find his soul mate early and she will give him added strength.”
Max put down the pieces of the swing. “Will the children grow up to live healthy lives?” he asked.
Esteban looked at Max, “For me to tell you the children will all grow up and have good lives is beyond any shaman. It is a wise shaman who admits that. Your children have as good a chance of growing up as any other children. They will face adversity and challenges. Maybe, some of the challenges will be harder than those that other children must overcome. But, maybe,they will have more resources to overcome bad things.”
Esteban rose. “Remember, all of the children are a result of the “Curse of the Cat.” And with that, he went back into the house.
Max informed the other alien families of what Esteban said and they discussed it for some time. There didn’t seem to be anything else to do.
The first dream came to Liz. She was in her nightgown. She wasn’t wearing her robe or slippers, just the thin nightgown. She was running through the jungle but it wasn’t a jungle of trees. Rather, it was a jungle of the shops and houses of Roswell. It was raining and dressed only in a thin nightgown, Liz was cold. The rain made the gown stick to her and left her with an almost naked appearance. Liz was running down Main street. She turned to look in the direction she has just come from. There were two burning eyes. A slight breeze brought the musky smell of the cat. It was the same smell she endured every morning when she morphed back into a woman. At first, the streets were deserted and Liz could run very fast, even if she was barefooted. The eyes were always just behind her and sometimes, she heard the guttural sound she remembered from the forest. The cat was chasing her. What did it want? The streets began to fill up. The eyes, and whatever they belonged to, kept coming at the same speed, but Liz had to make way for the crowds of people, now on the streets. She could smell the hot breath on her neck.
Liz woke up. She was in a cold sweat and whimpering. It took Max almost an hour to calm her down. Even when she understood it was only a dream, Liz was still shaking. It was time to get up so she took a hot shower and went in to fix breakfast. As she was getting things together Esteban walked in. “Good morning, señora. I see you are up early.”
“Good Morning, Esteban. I was having bad dreams,” Liz replied.
“Yes, I know. The soul of Kivar was restless last night. He was struggling to get free. I held the bag tightly shut and even as he struggled, he was subdued,” Esteban explained.
That explained things to Liz, but it didn’t help her feel any better. It was still early when there was a knock on the back door and Isabel was standing there. “Isabel this is a surprise?” Liz exclaimed.
“Yes, this trip was not carefully planned`. I left José and Jesse to fend for them selves for a day. I need to see Max,” she stated.
Izzy sat down and was served Esteban’s coffee. She was sitting with Esteban and Liz when Max came in. “I have been having bad dreams recently,” Isabel stated.
Max raised his eye brows, “You too? Liz had a nightmare last night.”
“Well I have been having them for the last three nights,” Isabel said. “They are all about the same. I am in a jungle, but it is not like it was in Brazil. The jungle is in Boston. I am standing on the street beside a tall blond man. All I do is stand, but I feel exhausted as he takes energy from me and all around me, I see people falling. They fall in the streets and get run over. They fall on the sidewalks and get trampled. We just stand there and it keeps happening until I am dead with exhaustion. Then, I fall and I wake up. For three nights it has been the same. The man keeps taking from me until he can take no more and then, I fall. This is the same over and over.”
Esteban sat there, almost impassive. “He is struggling to get out. What you are seeing are promises if he gets free.”
Liz looked up, “Is it just the two of us that he is trying to attack?”
Esteban said, “In his condition, he could never attack the king. He is terrified of Maria. She still possesses the blade with his blood on it. He is hoping that with the two of you, at least one, will fall back under his spell.”
Isabel, then, started talking about José. “He is doing well in school, but the other children are afraid of him. Sometimes he mumbles in that strange language the children speak to each other.”
“The language of the cat,” interjected Esteban. “They speak the language of the cat. They all knew it from birth. I just helped them learn it better. It is a powerful language and when they get older, I will show them what it can do.”
“They already can do some things with the language,” Liz explained. She went on to tell of Danny and the bullies at school. “The bullies went running to the principal crying that lions and tigers were coming after them.”
“They didn’t hurt Danny, did they?” Isabel asked.
“No, and what is more he didn’t have to use his powers. Apparently Kyle’s twins were there. They may have been the ones making the illusion of the lions and tiger. Michael is working with Danny. Along with practices, go many lectures on not using the powers. So far, Estelle has not shown much use of her power, a little sparking now and then. When the bullies were bothering Danny, she was very agitated and sparking just at her finger tips. We talked to her. She has a similar personality to José. She is now starting school, so we will have to watch her closely.”
Max spoke up, “Maria took Danny to the zoo in Albuquerque. Danny enjoyed the experience. He most enjoyed a conversation he had with the male jaguar they have on exhibit.”
Isabel wrinkled her nose. “Conversation, that is a pretty far-fetched story, even for Maria.”
“No, it was Danny who told me. He just asked the jaguar if he was angry. He told me that the cats his mother had faced must have been very angry. Danny says the cat told him that he wasn’t hungry or scared. He was bored and he would like Danny to come back and visit him. That is their story, take for what you want,” Max told her.
Isabel flew back that night to Boston. She hadn’t seen fit to mention that José had been asking to visit the zoo.
When Isabel got home, and in bed with Jesse, she told him about the trials of Kivar trying to get free. She, also, told of the trip Danny made to the Zoo. “Isabel, how can they be sure about Danny talking to the Cat? It sounds like a tall tale to me.”
“No, Max said he talked carefully to Danny. Danny was sure that the cat talked to him. There are some things to think about because Liz said when she was in the form of a cat, she didn’t think clearly. Esteban says that there were many things in the forest and that might have been what Danny was talking to,” Isabel informed Jesse. They were both quiet for a few minutes. Then, Isabel said, “Esteban said that there were many different spirits in me, while they were keeping me after I was hurt. He says that there will be many spirits in José.”
This kind of talk always bothered Jesse. He wanted to always believe that his son was just like all other children. He had a hard enough time understanding that his wife wasn’t completely human. Isabel knew of his fears. At times like these, she remembered the time when they were first married. Isabel turned toward Jesse. Her nightgown was fastened at the front by a series of bows. As Isabel put her arm around Jesse, she pulled at the first two bows. As Jesse leaned to meet her, he felt the gown opening. He proceeded to pull the other bows. Soon, he had his wife with all her alien genetics and foreign spirits in his arms. The total Isabel made him realize how lucky he was. As his hands went over her body, exploring just like he imagined Michael and Maria had done in the wilderness looking for signs of Isabel, Jesse found what he was looking for. Love with a woman like this couldn’t help but make a strong, wonderful son.
Max was considering taking all the children to the zoo. He wanted to see what their reaction would be. He included Esteban. The closest zoo was the Bio-Park in Albuquerque. Since Danny already had made acquaintance with the jaguar there, Max thought that might be the place to start. Isabel was back east with her husband and José. The Guerins and the Valentis, along with the Evans family, would spend the weekend at the park. It was a four-hour drive for the three families. Since each of the children needed the safety seats it was necessary to take all three cars. They arrived late Friday night. After a Mexican dinner, they went back to the motel. The kids went to one room while the adults gathered in another to watch their own style movies. They got to the Bio-Park at ten o’clock Saturday morning.
Danny was the experienced one. He directed everyone as to what they would see first. Once in the park, the families seemed to string out. Danny was in a hurry to get to the big cats. The twins were in awe of all they saw. They ooed and awed at the flamingos. The reptile house was interesting since it grossed out Serena. Of course, Kyle didn’t help. He made crawly motions up her back while they were watching the python writhing its way through its habitat. That earned him a slap up the back of his head, after she screamed from the feeling. Danny had already left the tropical room by the time the Valentis and the Evans got there. Max had been watching Estelle and forgot. for a minute, Liz. He turned and she was as white as a sheet. Her normal golden skin was like bleached parchment. She was becoming unsteady. Max hurried her through the tropical room and once outside, they talked.
“Max, I can’t do it. I can’t go near those cages. I lived in a cage for long enough. I do not want to see others who will live their lives out that way. Max saw Maria and Michael up ahead. He quickly called Maria on his cell phone. “Maria, can you wait a minute. Liz is getting sick. Could you stay with her? I need to see the children with the cat, but you have already seen Danny’s reaction. I don’t want to leave Liz alone.”
He saw the Guerins stop and to Danny’s unhappiness, they walked over to a table and sat waiting for the Evans and the Valentis to catch up.
“I just don’t want to leave her alone, Maria. If you could wait for us, maybe, it won’t be so hard,” Max repeated again. Just then one of the big cats let out a roar. Liz was shaken visibly. “Maria, why don’t you take our car and just take Liz someplace. Go shopping or go over to the museum or something. You have your own set of keys to your car, don’t you? Put our child seat in yours and Michael’s car. Estelle and I will ride back with Michael and Danny.” Liz went with Maria. She was still clearly shaken. Max hoped this didn’t cause her problems. He just couldn’t get over the feeling that it was important to see how the children behaved at the cage of the jaguar. The seven of them, including Esteban, all followed Danny as he proudly led them along the path. Danny was narrating on all the things they were passing. Now that he was playing tour guide, he had slowed down.
Finally, they got to the big cat exhibit. The twins were in awe of everything they saw. This was the first time they had seen real wild animals. Julius nudged June, “That tiger doesn’t look anything like the creature you made for the sixth graders. They just didn’t know what they were talking about.”
June turned to him, “Maybe, I smudged the spots a bit, but I agree those kids were not really smart. Danny was proudly standing before the jaguar cage. It wasn’t really a cage. It was a high wall with a deep ditch inside it. It had been calculated so that no one believed the cat could jump out of it. True, in California a tiger had been teased and the tiger with super adrenalin had made it out of the pit and immediately, set upon its tormentors.
The jaguar was sitting where he could see the children. He was looking first at Danny. Danny had pointed to each of the children and using the strange language, he was saying something. The twins were responding in kind. Max had been lagging. He thought of himself as a young man, but taking a group of elementary school aged kids somewhere quickly makes your age a reality. He was puffing by the time he arrived holding the hand of Estelle. She turned to Max and indicated she wanted to be held up where she could see. The minute the jaguar saw her, his manner changed. He became nervous and started pacing. The other children, he had accepted as he did Danny but the girl child in her daddy’s arms bothered him greatly. Then Esteban, who upto this time had remained quiet, said something. The jaguar stopped his pacing and growled several times. Then, he approached as close as he could to Max and let out a roar. That made Max nervous. He jumped, but Estelle had her arms around his neck.
“Daddy, he is just telling me that he knows who I am. He isn’t angry.” Max just couldn’t be sure. Did he take the word of his almost preschool daughter in things of this importance? She clearly intended that he do so. The children chatted in front of the jaguar for some time. Soon though, they tired of this and they wanted to move on. Esteban said to Max, “Señor, let me catch up with you. Wait for me at the tables where we left the señoras, Liz and Maria. I want to talk to my brother, el gato.” The children were pleased to be moving and they went to the plains animal exhibits. They saw a real giraffe for the first time. They went on the elephant ride. By the time they got to the table, Esteban was sitting patiently, waiting for them.
Liz was quite shaken as she led Maria to the Evans’ car. Maria took the child seat and put it in the Guerin car. Then she and Liz left. Maria was driving. Liz said she didn’t want to think about that. “Chica, it will be okay. Max will tell you all about it and you do not want to have to see those wretched cages, anyhow.”
“Oh, the cages are quite fine as cages go. I just do not to have to face anything like that again. I don’t want to face a big cat again, either,” Liz almost whispered.
“That is fine, Chica. I don’t like being that close to those cats without my rifle, either,” Maria explained. There were a series of man made lakes near the river and the road wound around them. Maria stopped and she and Liz got out and sat at a picnic table while they watched the ducks. Ducks are very soothing as they swim aimlessly trying to look pathetic as they obtained tidbits from other people at the tables.
“I was just hoping that this would all be over. The dreams and seeing the cages just brought it all back.” Liz turned to Maria, “What do we do if Kivar breaks free from the head? He is afraid of you. You took off his head the last time you met. What will I do if he comes after me?” Liz mused.
“Chica, you weren’t too gentle when you were near him either. You hurt him and you took his prize, Isabel, away from him. He might not be as willing to fight you, either. Esteban says he will progressively get weaker as time goes by. Esteban said that we can’t hope to keep him imprisoned forever, but the longer we do the weaker he gets. Esteban has some major plan that he hasn’t completely told us yet,” Maria explained.
Max called Liz and they arranged to meet at a restaurant. They had stopped at the store just at the gate of the park. All the children got tee shirts which had animals printed on them and stuffed animals to carry until they tired and then, would give to their parents to carry. Esteban was quieter than normal. Soon they were with Liz and Maria. The trip home was quieter for all the cars as the children were worn out. So were the adults, but they had to keep going.
Liz was speaking in a low tone. Esteban and Estelle were asleep in the back. “What happened, Max,” Liz inquired.
“The children did stand there and talk in the strange language to the jaguar. When Danny introduced Estelle, the cat was very upset. Esteban came up then, and talked for a long time in front of the big cat. The cat, finally, came to where he could see Estelle clearly and they he gave out a mighty roar. Estelle said he was just recognizing who she was. Whatever that meant. Esteban stayed for some time at the big cat exhibit, but the rest of us visited some of the rest of the zoo. The children seemed satisfied that they’d had a good time and I saw that what Maria saw was true.” Max was assured that the trip was a success.
Good teachers are born that way, not made. No! Good human beings, are born that way. Some of them become teachers.
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-
Of course, life is not fair. You shouldn't expect it to be fair, but you should expect it to be ironic.
JKR 1981-2001
History is made of wars, recovering from wars and preparing for the next war.
JJR 1975-