Title: Storm
Author: JaqueDark
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Roswell belongs to Fox.
Summary: Yeah I know it's another baby Zan story. But it's one I couldn't get out of my head. Zan Edison is having trouble sleeping; he can't quite figure out what's keeping him up at night. He's living a happy life with his wife Marie and their two twin boys Alex and Charlie. He knows he's adopted, Marie points out that that might be the reason he's having trouble sleeping. So the young couple investigate and find more than they ever bargained for...
Pairings: CC of course. M/L, M/M, I/J and Zan with an original character Marie.
***
I zipped the suitcase up then sat on the bed just watching her talk to the kids until she hung up the phone and put it back in it’s cradle
“Hey” I began and she looked up at me “Are you okay, love?” this was difficult for me but this was also difficult for her, I had to know that she was okay with all this before we took on any more unanswered questions.
“I will be when this is all over and we can go home and be a family again” she said, I stood up moving to hold her
“We could just forget this you know. If you want to go home we can do”
“But this matters to you Zan” she said, I tipped her chin with my fingers so her eyes met mine
“You matter to me Marie. I would do anything to make you happy and if going home and being a family is what will make you happy then let’s do that”
“No. Not yet, you need your answers and it’s unfair to take that away from you. Besides if we went home now you’d still face sleepless nights and I want to be able to take you home and not have this hanging over us. So c’mon” she said with a sigh “Let’s go to Roswell and find your real parents” she said. I nodded and felt my love for this woman grow with each second I spent with her.
We checked out of the hotel and I paid using up some of the money I’d saved over the years since I’d become a paediatrician straight out of college. I’d never really spent my pay checks on anything other than necessary house hold things that the kids needed. Marie pulled in so much more money than me because she worked in New York as a top psychiatrist; she was one of the best in her field and pulled in so many clients because she was so young.
The flight was stressful, I had a fear of flying even though I’d never been in helicopters and planes in the past. I don’t know where it came from because my parents had never been afraid of flying yet I just had this innate sense of fear that we would crash.
“It’s going to be fine Zan” she said as we boarded the plane “There’s no reason for you to be scared. Travelling in a plane is one of the safest ways to travel and it’s not going to be that long! We’ll be there soon enough”
“I know it’s just I keep thinking about when I was little. I remember being on a plane and it crashed and there were all these people who were hurt then…” I shook my head
“You were in a plane crash? When you were a kid?” she sounded surprised
“Yes. No. I don’t know, it’s something I can remember from a long time ago. I don’t know if it’s something I dreamed or imagined but it’s something that’s always been with me” I said
“Have you ever asked your parents about it?” she asked as we sat down, I shook my head as I fastened my belt. She just glanced at me like I was being silly but I didn’t really care
“They said that we’ve never been involved in a plane crash. In fact the first time they took me on a plane was when I was ten and we went to visit family in Italy” I told her and she nodded slowly
“Do you think… that’s how your real mother died?” she said quietly, as she pieced things together “If it’s something you remember but it was before you came to be with your parents then maybe you were in a crash and that’s how she died? It would explain things and it would explain your fear of flying” I thought about it and it did make sense but it didn’t sound quite right, I wanted to get to Roswell so I could find out the answers myself.
Thankfully the plane didn’t crash, no matter how panicky I got it continued to be a smooth flight and when we touched down in Albuquerque I couldn’t get off the plane fast enough. I felt sick after flying and I immediately rushed to a bathroom as soon as I got into the terminal and threw up. Marie, being Marie, came with me into the men’s toilets while I threw up; she stroked my back while I leaned over the bowl and stayed with me until I stopped.
“Ugh” I groaned as my stomach protested at me emptying it. I bought a bottle of water once we got into the duty free section of the airport while Marie went and rented a car so we could drive to Roswell. I waited to collect our luggage from the bag carousel and met her near the car rental office
“Are you ready baby?” I asked as I came over, putting my arms around her waist. The man behind the counter looked flustered and he cleared his throat
“Here you go. I’ll have someone bring the car round the front for you” he said as he handed her the keys. Marie just smirked as she picked up her bag and pulled her suitcase behind her
“That guy was flirting with me before you came in. I think you scared the hell out of him” she said, I glared over my shoulder at the man at the counter and I suddenly had the urge to go back in there and beat the crap out of him from trying to flirt with my wife! “But the second he saw you I’m sure he crapped his pants. You’re built like one of those wrestles on those fake wrestling shows” she said leaning against my arm
“Don’t exaggerate, Marie, I’m not built like those guys” I said but felt a little pride that she thought I looked cut
“Okay maybe not exactly like them but you’re still my big strong hero!” she giggled and I roared then lifted her up into my arms making her laugh out loud as I carried her through the airport to the door where our car was indeed waiting “Where’s our first port of call?”
“I’m thinking we should stop at a hotel first. Make sure we’ve got somewhere to stay before we start bugging people” I said and she nodded
“I want to pay for it this time. You paid for the one in New York and the airplane tickets, we both know that I make more than you do”
“But this is my search. I don’t want you have to be shelling out for it” I said, she just came over and looped her arms around my neck
“Hmm” she said as she went into deep in thought “If you let me pay for it I’ll make love to you when we get there” I had to agree with her terms when she came up with that.
I couldn’t wait to get to the hotel so we could get checked in, I felt like breaking the speed limit as we left Albuquerque city limits, she seemed as desperate and as turned on as I was. I tried to keep my attention on the road and the sparse traffic but when she undid the zip on her jeans I couldn’t concentrate. I was going to end up killing us both if I didn’t pull over now, I couldn’t wait for the hotel! I turned off the road not really caring that I was pulling onto desert, I killed the engine and dragged her into the back seat.
It felt wild and dangerous like when we were college and we didn’t want anyone to know about us being together yet. We crept around for almost a four months and this moment felt like it did back then; I loved the danger and the thrill of being caught and doing something so open
“Ahh” she whimpered as she leaned against me, I knew she was close by the way she was clinging to me. I knew her body and how she moved like second nature; I’d been with her for so long, I knew what made her fall apart at the seams. Just like she knew how to do that to me
“Marie!” I couldn’t help but gasp as she nibbled at my neck and tugged at my hair
“Yeah that’s it baby” she whispered into my ear “I want you to come. Come for me Zan, come inside me” I was powerless to resist and I came hard inside her. After that we parted and pulled our clothes back on, we blushing as we climbed back into the front and continued driving. She leaned closer to me and I put my arm around her shoulder as I drove and I felt a strange calmness come over when I saw the sign saying we were entering Roswell City Limits; it felt like I was coming home after being gone for a long time, I tried to shake this feeling but the more and more we moved closer to the main drag of the city the more I felt like I never wanted to leave like this was where I belonged. That if I had Marie and the kids and we lived here I would be the happiest person who ever lived.
Marie pointed out a hotel, just across the road from a strange but decent sized diner, called the Tumbleweed Inn. We stopped there and it was nice enough, there was even several pictures up on the wall of past conventions and there was a picture of Jonathan Frakes who used to be in Star Trek years ago before it had truly sold out and made all these films with different people; I’d seen the reruns that were well before my time and the classics were always the best.
Our room was the hundredth room they’d rented out this month, according to the guy at the check in desk business was booming. It had been like that for the last ten years, ever since there was a sighting out in the desert. There had been dry lightning and then suddenly this glowing symbol appears in the sky and several people came forward having seen a UFO… it was a big thing. Turns out that a reported UFO had crashed out in the desert but when film crews came it had vanished.
“This place is kooky” said Marie as she saw the blow up alien doll sitting on the bed when we got into the hotel room “Put that thing in the bathroom it’s freaking me out. I hope that all the people here aren’t alien mad”
“Don’t worry I’m sure they’re not. There’s got to be some sensible people here, I mean this is probably where I was born and I’m sensible right?” I said and she just gave me that look like I was being silly. I grinned and shook my head, some of my hair flopped forward and I brushed it back behind my ear “Let’s unpack later. I’m starving, I didn’t really eat any of that plane food because I was too nervous and I did… throw up my breakfast” I mumbled, I hated throwing up; not because it was disgusting but because it made me feel like a kid
“Sure but let me get changed first” she said and I blushed, she got changed and I changed my shorts because they were kinda sticky.
***
The diner was alien themed and looked like it could change for occasions; there was a corner near the till that could hold a band, there was a counter, tables and booths and despite it being alien themed it seemed nice enough. There was a large mural on the wall to the right and behind the small bandstand was a very thorough and in-depth bulletin board full of newspaper articles and clippings about ‘mysterious’ events that had happened ever since the very first crash back in 1947. There was even a small section dedicated to the disappearance of six teens on the night of Graduation; I went over and read some of the interviews from witnesses and there was one saying that one of the kids who disappeared was an alien.
“Ya like it?” someone asked and I turned to see a man in his sixties with salt and pepper hair who stood behind the counter
“Oh uhh I was just looking” I said and I stepped back
“It’s okay. A lot of tourists come here because of the disappearance back then, a lot of them believe that they were abducted” he said sounding proud “You see her? That’s my daughter”
“Oh” I said “I’m sorry. You must miss her a lot”
“Not really” he said and I gave him a weird look, how could he not miss his daughter “Because I know what really happened to her”
“What happened? Did she really disappear?” I wanted to know, why had six kids just disappeared? She probably eloped and got married, nothing weird about it.
“She was abducting by an alien” he said, he sounded way to happy about it. If his daughter had been abducted then should he have been worried
“Okay” I said then backed away to where Marie was sitting waiting “I’m sure that guy behind the counter is nuts. He kept saying that his daughter was abducted by an alien and that’s he’s proud of it”
“You’re right that guy does sound nuts” she said, she slid closer to the wall “This place is creepy, there’s a weird atmosphere here. I’m not sure I like it”
“Don’t worry, we won’t stay here long. I don’t like it either but this looks like the main hang out, so it’d be a good place to get a lay of the land” I told her and she nodded. I grabbed a menu and looked it over, they were designed with pictures of strange symbols at the top of the page and there was a special section called Antarian Take Off near the back that had things with people’s names on it. I was about to put it down when I saw the name Max Evans next to Orbit Rings “Shit!”
“What?”
“Marie, look at this” I said pointing to the menu
“That’s… that’s your dad’s name” she whispered, she glanced round the café then back to me “What do you think it means?”
“I don’t know but I’m going to ask that whack-job” I said and got up from the booth leaving her alone sitting there
“Hey” I said as I stood up at the counter section
“Yeah, what’ll it be?” he asked as he stood there holding a little note pad and pencil. He assumed I was ordering because I had a menu
“I’m not ordering. I want to know why you have people’s names on your menu” I demanded holding it out and pointing at ‘Max Evans’ “I’m adopted and this guy…” his face went pale and his jaw threatened to fall open in surprise then he quickly plastered on a fake grin
“Would you like Tabasco with your meal?” he asked rather loudly
“What? No! I don’t want Tabasco and I’m not ordering anything!” I snapped, someone got up from their chair and came over. The person was a sheriff and he laid his hat down on the counter
“Is everything okay here Jeff?” he asked gruffly, he must have been the same age as the guy behind the counter. During this point Marie got up and came over to me
“Every thing’s fine. This customer’s from out of town and he was just ordering” he said
“I was not” I said firmly, I was growing irritated with this guy
“Calm down honey” said Marie and I sighed deeply as she put her hand on my shoulder
“Look, I came over to ask about your menu…” I began
“Yeah and I’ve got you down for Orbit Rings, Cherry Cola and Tabasco see?” he said then ripped the piece of paper off his order book and handed it to me. I read it and Marie leaned over my shoulder to read it too but it definitely didn’t mention food ‘Are you Zan?’ it read and I looked up surprised. Marie glanced back and forth between me and him; he knew something about my father
“Yeah, yeah that’s what I ordered” I said going along with them. I nodded my head and I watched Jeff and the Sheriff exchange a glance before “But I’m not really that hungry anymore”
“Why don’t you take a tour of the UFO centre across the street? It’s a good place for tourists” he suggested and I nodded. I took hold of Marie’s hand and we left the diner and went across the road to the UFO Centre
“What was all that about?” she asked
“I don’t know but I do know that that guy knew about my father. I think we should wait here until I figure out what to do next. Maybe he’s coming to meet us?” I said
“Okay” she replied “We don’t have to go inside do we? The diner spooked me enough, this place is probably going to be worse!”
“No baby we don’t have to go inside” I said and pulled her into my arms “Maybe we should go back to the hotel. I don’t like where this is going, it really could be dangerous?” we were about to leave when the Sheriff’s cruiser pulled up and he got out and came over to us
“Zan?” he whispered as he looked around like he was looking for the boogie man hiding in the shadows
“Yeah?” I replied slowly “What’s going on? What’s with all this secrecy?”
“Get in. Both of you” he said opening the back door to his cruiser “And don’t talk. My car is bugged. If they know you’re here then it’ll be all over for you”
“Where are we going?” Marie demanded
“Just get in” he said again then climbed into the front. She looked scared but my instincts were telling me to trust him, they’d never been wrong before so I climbed in. Marie looked hesitant
“Trust me babe. I have a feeling” I told her and she got in and slammed the door shut. We didn’t even have time to buckle our belts before he was off speeding along the road. He drove out into the desert and Marie clung to me as we moved further and further from the city and civilisation
“I’m scared” she whispered, I nodded and stroked her hair to try and calm her down
“It’s going to be okay” I told her and I had to make myself believe it; yeah I had my instincts but I also had my rational beliefs that were telling me that this was a bad idea and that we should have never gotten in the car to begin with.
He pulled off the high way and drove towards an outcropping of rocks that looked like a beautiful landscape; I could sense a strange energy coming from the place that seemed so familiar. I’d never felt it before and I wondered what was up there. The sheriff gunned the engine then got out, he walked away from the vehicle and we quickly climbed out to follow him. He walked up the incline then stopped and waited for us
“Stay here. The others will be here soon, it’s not safe for me to stay here. If there are still agents they’re going to get onto me if I spend too much time away from work”
“What’s going on? Who are the others? Why isn’t it safe?” I demanded but he was already walking back down the incline. We tried to follow after him but we weren’t as used to the land as he was and he got a head start. I reached the bottom and he was already driving off
“Zan!” cried Marie and I turned to see her trip over and hit the ground hard. I rushed back over to her and saw blood on her leg
“Shit!” I cried, I assessed the damage and saw that while she’d broken it the blood was just from a graze. It didn’t look like it had misplaced, she was lucky “Here, lift it up so it doesn’t swell too much” I said as I put my hand under her ankle and lifted up her leg. It was all my fault, I wish she hadn’t gotten hurt! Then suddenly the strangest thing seemed to happen; my hand began to glow and she whimpered
“Zan” she said softly and I watched the blood over the graze disappear until it was like she’d never gotten hurt in the first place “What just happened?”
“I-I don’t know” I mumbled, I touched her leg where she broke it and it was fine. She slowly leaned her strength on me then stood up and tested her leg, I expected her to cry out in pain but nothing happened. She walked a few steps before turning round to stare at me
“You… healed me” she said quietly, I shook my head and went over to her. It was physically impossible for me to heal like that just by touch! I was about to tell her that when another car appeared, it was not far away but it was coming from a different direction than where the sheriff had gone
“I think we should hide” I said, she grabbed my hand and we went and hide behind a copse of bushes and old bits of tumble weed and waited for the car to get here.
It was a people carrier and when it stopped two people got out, a woman who had greying brownish hair and the man was tall with dirty grey hair and a gruff face. I was wary of them, my instincts were up in the air. The woman got a picnic basket out from the back of the car and tried to look inconspicuous.
TBC...
