Roswell Fanatics

Chapter 31

“Hey!” Liz exclaimed excitedly when she picked up the phone and heard Max’s voice on the other end, “I was starting to get scared that you might not call at all this afternoon.”

“Only if both my arms had fallen off and even then I’d probably use my tongue to dial,” Max teased in return, absently fingering the newfound scar tissue at the back of his neck, the same mysterious brand that had emerged on Michael’s back earlier that morning. The skin felt sensitive and raw but oddly natural, too.

Unaware of Max’s latent thoughts, Liz laughed over his avowal. “That’s a gross thought but I appreciate the sentiment,” she kidded him sweetly, “So what took you so long anyway? I’ve been back in my dorm room since eleven.”

“I wanted to give you time to study,” he replied, “I imagine your opportunities for peace and quiet are few and far between these days.”

Liz didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. After all, he was being held in federal custody so what did it matter that people were slipping nasty notes beneath her dorm room door and talking behind their hands whenever she walked by? What did it matter that she couldn’t stand in line at the drugstore without someone approaching with the same inane question? “Aren’t you that girl who’s in love with the alien king?”

Her presence had become so much of a disruption in one class that her professor had made the subtle suggestion that she drop. And then there were also the gossipmongers; those looking for a tasty tidbit of juiciness just so they could fall on it like rapid dogs. Yes, she was having problems but what were they compared to his?

“This isn’t a contest, Liz,” Max remarked softly, “I’m not comparing which of us has the bigger problems. If you need to vent, then vent. I want to listen to you.”

His quiet response to her unspoken thought unnerved Liz. “What did you say?” she asked in a careful whisper.

“You just told me you didn’t think your problems compared to mine,” he reiterated, “And I told you that this isn’t a contest. Let me be there for you just like you’ve been there for me.”

“But I didn’t say anything, Max,” Liz gasped out in disbelief, “I never said anything out loud.”

Her dismayed reaction caused Max to inhale a jerky gasp of astonishment. Even while his mind was rebelling against the possibility his heart was already accepting the truth. Yet, Max tried to laugh off her response even as his heart was beginning a slow thump. “I just heard you, Liz,” he said, “Clear as a bell. You said that your problems weren’t anything compared to mine.”

“You might have heard me, Max,” Liz conceded, “but I definitely wasn’t talking when you did.”

Max quieted, his fingers once again drifting to the circular patch of skin at the base of his neck. He felt a pulse from the area and a shiver generated down his entire body as he received a brief mental picture of Liz on the other end. She was pale, trembling and clutching the phone in a white knuckled grip. The vision lasted only a few seconds before it dissipated but Max didn’t doubt that what he’d seen was real.

“Max?” Liz questioned tentatively, “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know,” he murmured, swallowing hard, “Something weird is going on with me. I’ve got some kind of rash on the back of my neck. I don’t understand what it is.”

“Are you still getting the headaches?” she asked worriedly.

“Not so much now,” he said, “But my senses are still heightened and my body feels different…like it’s changing on the inside or something. I don’t know…maybe I’m just being too self-conscious.”

“Have you asked anyone about it?” Liz considered, “Diadne or…or maybe Kadon or Razba? Surely they know what’s happening to you.”

“Diadne will be here with Kyle later this afternoon,” Max murmured absently, “Maybe I’ll ask her then. In the meantime…you think we could try that again?”

“Try what?” She was still distracted with Max’s sudden and insistent metamorphosis.

“You think of something and I’ll see if I can figure out what it is.”

Liz closed her eyes, but felt conspicuous over his on the spot request. She didn’t know if she could just think on cue. A few moments later she blew out a sigh of disgust. “I don’t know what to think about,” she muttered plaintively, “I can’t do it when I know you’re expecting it, Max.”

“Please?” he cajoled.

Again she tried but was only met with a blank wall because she knew what he was trying to take a walk through her mind and Liz felt self-conscious and very aware of that fact. “Maybe we should just let it happen naturally,” she suggested.

“Okay,” he agreed, “I didn’t mean to put you on the spot.”

“No problem,” Liz whispered, “So you say you’re expecting Kyle and Diadne later tonight. That’s an odd pair. I thought Kyle was avoiding all things Antarian…er…with the exception of his friends, I mean.”

“Yeah, well she’s becoming too much for my parents to handle alone,” Max sighed, “So she’s going to stay with Kyle and Valenti until we figure out something different.”

“How does Kyle feel about that?” Liz wondered. She couldn’t imagine he was over the moon about it, not after the disaster with Tess.

“Well, he doesn’t know yet,” Max hedged, “I’m hoping I can sway him over to my side of things when he gets here.”

“Just don’t pull the king card,” Liz warned him.

“I won’t,” Max promised, “I’ll wheedle and beg like a good, little friend.”

Liz laughed at the image of a wheedling, begging Max. “So what exactly do you mean by ‘too much to handle,’” Liz queried, “What has she done?”

“Nothing specific but I think her bitterness is getting the best of her,” he explained, “Until now they haven’t even let her visit me here. Some tripe about swapping secrets and planning escapes… But it’s been three weeks now so I guess they’re ready to trust me with alien visitors.” And we all know their trust means so much, Liz thought caustically. On the other end, Max grinned from ear to ear, “I heard that.”

“Well, that’s just great,” Liz applauded weakly, “Now you can read my mind.”

“Not if you don’t want me, too,” Max reassured her, sensing her unspoken unease at the idea, “Whatever you want private will stay private, Liz. I’d never overstep myself that way.”

Liz smiled at his sweet reply. “I don’t have any secrets from you, Max,” she whispered, “It’s just that it seems you become a little more alien every day.”

“Does that bother you?” he asked.

“No,” she said, “I’m just afraid of what the changes will mean for you…and us.”

They talked a little longer, about school and other lighthearted matters before reluctantly saying their goodbyes. It was so relaxing being able to chat that it was easy to forget their conversations were being bugged.

After she hung up, Liz stared at the phone for a moment before shifting her gaze to the C- she’d received on her Biology pop quiz that morning. Not for the first time Liz wondered what she was doing. She could barely focus in school for her constant worry over Max and her general homesickness. Why the hell did she insist on remaining in Boston when her heart and mind were clearly in Roswell, New Mexico?

Deciding to debate about it no further, Liz whirled for the closet and pulled out her suitcase.

********************

Isabel stood nude before the full-length mirror on the back of her door and touched the puckered symbol just above her hip. It was the shape of a backwards L with a dot in the center space. The mark had seemingly come up on her skin overnight and with very little warning. Isabel frowned at her reflection. “Next thing you know my skin will be turning green and my eyes will be bugging out of my head,” she muttered grimly.

With another shudder of disgust Isabel turned away from her image and began to pull on her clothes. She wasn’t going to class today. She’d had her fill of the gawking and pointing and whispering behind her back. Isabel was tired of having to hide from the press. Today she was going to have a normal day if it killed her.

After using her powers to darken her hair and change her features slightly, Isabel slapped on a baseball cap and headed downstairs. As usual there was a group of reporters camped outside waiting for her, but she managed to glide past them undetected. Once she was safely a block away, Isabel quickly restored her hair and hoped a bus for the mall. As a rule Isabel didn’t usually care for public transportation but the ride provided a moment of quiet clarity for her and she relished it.

She’d been going over and over in her head whether she should return home or not. Max was in federal custody, her parents’ lives were a wreck and Michael had more responsibility than he could possibly handle. Yet, Isabel continued to hesitate. Public reaction in New Haven had been bad enough. Isabel couldn’t imagine the reaction in Roswell. Though she’d heard the picketing and protest stories from her parents she had a feeling they were shielding her from the worst of it.

Isabel knew the responsible thing to do was probably to return but she seriously doubted she would. For the moment Max was fine and her parents were handling everything so she wasn’t especially needed. And, as out of her element as she felt in New Haven, Isabel still had relative peace there and she didn’t want to give that up.

When she finally made it to the mall Isabel headed straight for the department stores, prepared to spend as much as her father’s credit card would allow. Four shopping bags and three hundred dollars later she was seated in the food court enjoying a steaming slice of pizza laced with hot sauce. She hadn’t even taken a bite before someone was tweaking the bill of her hat.

“That’s a really pathetic disguise,” David teased, “I could tell who you were a mile away.” Isabel yelped a startled trill of laughter when she threw back her head and found David McKee grinning down at her. “Hello there,” he greeted, pulling her cap low over her eyes once more before taking the empty seat adjacent to her.

Isabel frowned up at him with a half smile. He was dressed in a ribbed black turtleneck and pleated gray slacks. There was definitely a part of Isabel that thought he looked utterly divine, however, she was careful to school her facial expression not to reveal it.

“I’m really starting to believe you’re following me,” she remarked thoughtfully. In the past three weeks she’d run into him at the student center, the library, the coffee house across town and Western Union. This last time was too convenient to be coincidence. “Tell me the truth, David,” she admonished, bracing her elbows against the table and resting her chin atop her hands, “You’re stalking me, aren’t you?”

“Okay, I’ll admit that all the other times weren’t an accident,” David laughed, “But I didn’t follow you this time. I just happen to be a mall brat.” He nodded in amusement towards the various bags surrounding her. “So, apparently, are you.”

“That doesn’t excuse the fact that you’ve been following me,” Isabel accused, but her words lacked heat.

“You’re right,” he confessed, “I have been following you but only because I wanted to make sure you were safe. I’ve seen how people have been reacting on campus. I know you’ve had a hard time with it.”

“I have,” she agreed softly.

“Well, there you have it,” David concluded as if it were the simplest thing in the world, “I have a Sir Galahad complex. So sue me.”

“I still don’t get it,” Isabel considered, “Why do you care, David? You barely know me.”

“I’m a humanitarian,” he prevaricated.

“But I’m not human,” Isabel reminded him with a smirk, “So try a new excuse, please.”

David scratched his head thoughtfully. “Okay. What if I told you, quite simply, that I like you, Isabel Evans?” he challenged finally.

“Like me?” Isabel parroted, “Define like.”

He was made self-conscious by her verbal scrutiny but persevered nonetheless. “Like as in…intrigued, fascinated…infatuated,” he expounded softly.

“You’re infatuated with me?” Isabel replied with a measure of disbelief.

“You say that like it’s an incredible thing,” he declared.

“Again, I don’t get it,” Isabel reiterated, “I’m a half alien, half human girl and you know next to nothing about me besides that. My life is chaos and misery right now. What could possibly be attractive about that…unless…” She trailed off her sentence meaningfully. “Are you interested in me, David, or is this all about Liz?”

“Liz?” he guffawed.

“Yes. Liz,” she emphasized, “You remember her, right? She’s your ex-lover, the one you’re still in love with.”

“I was in love with her,” David clarified, “Past tense.”

Isabel shook her head in denial. “People don’t fall out of love that quickly, David,” she argued, “I should know.”

“So I should live the rest of my life in lonely misery because I have feelings for a girl who doesn’t have feelings for me?” he asked sardonically, “Is that what you’re getting at, Isabel?”

“I’m not saying you should pine,” Isabel replied sagely, “By all means, move on with your life…but it can’t be with me, David.”

He frowned at her pensively. “I’m sorry. Did I miss the part where I proposed marriage to you?”

Isabel snapped upright at his mocking retort. “What?”

“Friendship,” he explained, “I would like to be your friend, Isabel. I don’t have many here and…I suspect you don’t either.” She didn’t offer any commentary on his assumption and David took her silence as encouragement to continue. “I was just thinking that life at Yale would be a great deal less lonely for us both if we had each other. What do you say?” He extended his hand towards her. “Can we be friends?”

Isabel smiled at him, as intrigued by his engaging smile and storm colored eyes as she had been during their first meeting. She could admit that he made a compelling argument and she was tired of being alone. Pushing aside her lingering doubts, Isabel leaned across the table and shook his hand.

“Friends.”

Chapter 32

“…so Diadne says the changes you’re experiencing are the direct result of your people being here,” Maria explained to Michael later that night while she lay in his bed in Roswell and he lay in a hotel room in D.C., “She said it’s as if their being so near is waking something up inside you guys.”

“I kind of figured out that much for myself,” Michael mumbled distractedly. Five doors down someone was smoking a cigarette out on the balcony. The intoxicating scent of tobacco tickled Michael’s sensitive nose and awakened his craving for nicotine. He didn’t want to break his promise to Maria but kicking the addiction was harder than he’d imagined. Michael tried to content himself with the secondhand experience. And, when that didn’t work, he tried diversion. “How are things going at home?” he asked.

“Well, somebody egged my Mom’s car this afternoon,” Maria informed him casually, “But other than that life’s pretty peachy.”

“What?”

“And Razba, God bless him, sent the poor guy flying across the street,” she went on, “The guy didn’t know what hit him. If you could have only seen his face, Michael--,”

“Oh God,” her fiancé groaned, “Just please tell me that no one got hurt.”

“No one got hurt,” Maria confirmed, “That guy got a few bruises and lacerations and one helluva bruised ego but he’ll be fine.”

“What happened to Razba?” Michael demanded deliberately.

“Well,” she hedged, “Jim had to throw him in the tank overnight.”

At that Michael bolted upright, his temples pounding with blood. “Are you telling me my brother’s in jail?”

“Just for the night,” Maria reassured him, “It was the safest place for him after what happened. That mob wanted a piece of his ass! Jim took him to the jail to prevent further violence and to mollify the crowd.” She paused to take a breath. “Michael, you know Razba’s just fine. He could walk out of there if he wanted.”

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Michael hissed under his breath, “Who the hell is staying with you in the meantime?”

“I’m not alone,” Maria rushed to comfort him, “My mom’s here and Kyle and Diadne. Who could not feel safe with Diadne around? The girl’s got the stamina of an ox.”

“Maria, this isn’t the time for jokes,” Michael snapped, “You were attacked today and my brother is in jail.”

“First of all, I wasn’t attacked,” Maria sighed in exasperation, “Some whack-job threw an egg at my mother’s car. We were not harmed in any way. As for Razba being in jail…he’s at the precinct learning how to play poker with Jim and his deputies. He’s barely doing hard time, Michael, so give it a rest.”

“Can I help it if I worry,” he asked softly, “I just wanna keep you safe, Deluca.”

“I know you do,” she sighed, “That’s why I love you so much.” He grunted in response, which was to be expected. “Are you sleepy?” she asked him gently, “You sound really tired, babe.”

“Long, exhausting day,” he answered, “And I have no desire to rehash it.”

“Done and done,” she agreed, “What do you want to talk about?”

“Max,” he replied immediately, “I’m worried about him being in that place.”

“Max says they’re treating him well there.”

“They are,” Michael agreed, “That’s the thing. He’s got like six army soldiers at his constant beck and call. They’re so easy with him. Plus he gets weekly calls from the President…it’s like they’re trying to butter him up or something.”

“You sound suspicious, Michael,” Maria remarked.

“I am.”

“But they already know everything so what else could they want,” she reasoned, “Max being an alien was the biggest secret of all and that’s already out.”

“They don’t know what happened to Pierce,” Michael reminded her ominously.

Maria’s voice dropped to a bare whisper when she responded. “The lieutenant doesn’t know anything about that,” she said, “He thinks his brother fell into a depression and then fell off the face of the earth. He doesn’t suspect us of anything.”

“I don’t believe that for a single second,” Michael replied fiercely, “That Pierce guy knows something. I see it in his eyes whenever I visit Max at the base. He’s biding his time, Maria. Something’s just not right.”

“Then we’ll keep on guard,” she told him, “Pierce can’t get us for anything if we don’t admit to anything. As far as we know Agent Pierce disappeared into the wild blue yonder after he was outed on C-SPAN for being a crook and a fraud. That’s our story and we’re sticking to it, my dear.”

********************

Kyle watched Diadne mediate on the living room floor from the kitchen as he made himself a sandwich. Amy had long since bedded down for the night in the spare bedroom and Maria, to his knowledge, was still chattering away on the phone with Michael. He and Diadne hadn’t spoken two words to each other.

He didn’t know what to make of her. When the melee had broken out that afternoon at the local Wal-Mart she and Razba had done everything in their power to protect the three humans. Kyle suspected that Diadne would have taken on that entire mob single handedly if need be. She would have died for them. Yet it was evident that she didn’t have a very high opinion of humans at all.

The other day when she’d inadvertently learned about his powers she’d made some flippant comment about how he wasn’t as weak as she first supposed. Afterwards they had traded insults back and forth only to have the confrontation end abruptly when Diadne zapped him across the room. He had learned the hard way that for someone so small Diadne had one explosive temper. Kyle rubbed at the sore spot on his shoulder in remembrance.

“I did not hurt you, human,” Diadne declared suddenly, snapping Kyle from his reverie, “You are much too soft if that tiny blow caused you pain.”

“You electrocuted me!” Kyle bellowed incredulously, “Of course it hurt, you sadist!”

Diadne frowned. “Sadist? I do not think I am familiar with this word.”

“You should be,” Kyle muttered, “It’s a perfect description for you.”

“Are you insulting me again, human?” Diadne queried warningly.

“Hey, rein it in, sister!” he tossed back, “I’m just making an observation. And, by the way, my name is Kyle Valenti. Start using it.” Diadne stared at him mutely. In frustration, Kyle took a massive bite of his sandwich and chewed the bite mechanically. Diadne watched him with fervid interest.

“What is that you eat?” she asked after a moment.

“Roast beef,” Kyle answered around a mouthful, “Why?”

“Is it as good as pizza?” Diadne countered, answering his question with a question.

Ahh, so she had a vice after all. Kyle filed that tasty tidbit away in the back of his mind. “You like pizza, Pippi?” he queried with some surprise.

Diadne nodded solemnly. “The pepperoni is my favorite,” she revealed, “Although I am fond of the sausage as well. And the onions and the peppers and the olives. But I must have it with the sauce that makes it very spicy.”

“You mean Tabasco?”

“Yes,” Diadne said, smacking her lips, “Tabasco is very good.” When she realized that Kyle was smiling at her with an almost bemused expression Diadne felt an odd emotion expand in her chest. It was something she had never experienced before but she had the compelling need, the inexplicable urge to…apologize? “Kyle Valenti,” she said and she frowned at the foreign feel his name brought to her lips, “The other day… I meant only to tap you. I did not realize the human body was so frail and I would cause you serious injury.”

“I’m not frail,” Kyle retorted in affront, “But that’s not the point. You can’t just go around blasting people because they say things you don’t like, Pippi.”

Diadne nodded her understanding. “I am trying to…as you say on this planet…cope with my situation,” she explained.

Kyle felt much of his animosity towards her cool in that moment. He was reminded then that Diadne was an orphan in the world and on her own for the first time on a strange planet. That was enough to freak out even the strongest soldier a little. “Yeah, I’m sorry about your dad,” he grunted sympathetically, “He was a real help to us.”

“He was a warrior,” Diadne stated proudly, “And the bravest Antarian I have ever known.”

“What about your mom?” he wondered curiously, “Why did she decide to stay on Antar instead of accompanying you? Was it to be with your father?”

“My mother served with Khivar’s unit,” she replied coldly, “She was a traitor. She betrayed her king, her people and her family.”

“I’m sorry,” Kyle murmured.

“I am not,” Diadne replied, “I never knew her. She had left my father when I was still in the pod. Larek was the only parent I had ever known and he was a good one. I did not lack for anything.”

“Same here,” Kyle revealed softly, “My mother walked out on my dad and me when I was a kid as well.” The corners of his mouth turned up in an ironic smirk. “Who knew we had that in common?”

“No, we are different,” Diadne protested, “You miss your mother. You pine for her. I do not feel these things. I am glad my mother is dead.”

Kyle glanced up at her in startled dismay. She was right, of course. Even after he’d tracked down Deborah Valenti at fifteen and received a very unwelcoming reaction for his trouble Kyle hadn’t stopped yearning for her, despite his rebelling pride. “How did you know that?” his expression asked.

“Your thoughts are not so difficult to read,” she replied to his implicit question.

“Yeah…well…I don’t want you walking around in my brain, okay,” he muttered.

“No walk was necessary,” Diadne said, “Your thoughts are plain on your face. Your continued affection for your mother is a tangible thing.”

Kyle almost missed the veiled scolding in her tone because Diadne looked almost sympathetic as she made that statement. It was the most emotion he’d ever seen her display. Kyle had to do a doubletake just to make sure. “You’re alright, Diadne,” he said after a long pause, “For an Antarian.”

“As are you, Kyle Valenti,” she replied demurely, “For a human.”

********************

“Oh Liz,” Nancy Parker murmured sadly when she found Liz standing outside the front door, soaked in rain. “What are you doing here?” she asked as her daughter fell into her open arms.

“I had to come home,” Liz choked hoarsely, “Everything is falling apart, Mom. Max needs me.”

Clucking softly, Nancy ushered her daughter inside and began peeling away Liz’s wet layers of clothing. “Your father isn’t going to be happy about this,” she warned, “Did you drop out?” She disappeared briefly to retrieve a towel from the bathroom. When she returned she began briskly drying Liz’s head, face, and hands.

“I took an incomplete in my classes,” Liz explained absently as her mother went about her task, “I was probably going to flunk out if I stayed anyway. All I could think about was getting back here to Roswell and to Max.” She glanced around the empty living room as she fell into a nearby chair. “Where’s Dad?”

“He had some business in Hondo this afternoon,” Nancy told her, tossing the towel onto the nearest chair, “He might spend the night due to the rain. It’s coming down pretty heavy out there.”

“Rain?” Liz snorted, “When was the last time that happened…and in September no less?”

“Well, things are weird all over,” Nancy murmured, “You look tired, Lizzie.”

“I am,” she agreed, “I’ve been going nonstop since this morning and in between I’ve been worrying myself sick over Max. This whole thing has just gotten so crazy so fast.” She leveled her mother with a hopeful glance. “Were you and Dad able to go by and see him?”

Nancy shook her head as she sank down onto the sofa. “They’ve restricted his visitors to family only and a few close friends,” she explained, “But I’ve spoken to him on the phone a few times since they took him into custody. He seems in good spirits.”

“Thank you, Mom,” Liz whispered sincerely, “It means a lot to me that you would do that considering how you feel about him.”

“I think what the government is doing to him is outrageous,” her mother declared, “Anyone with half a brain can see he’s not a threat. He’s just a boy. Holding him without cause is just…wrong.”

“Do you really mean that?”

Nancy nodded slowly. “I’m still scared for you, Liz,” her mother sighed, “I always will be but… I understand why you feel you have to be with him and I understand why you love him so much.” Nancy swallowed several times in fitful emotion before she could go on. “He’s an extraordinary young man, baby.”

“Yes, he is, Mom,” Liz murmured in smiling agreement, “He certainly is.”

Warning: NC-17 ahead. Now it's been a while since I've written it so I might be a bit rusty, lol. I'm so nervous I just want to post it and get it over with.

For those of you who want to skip over it, just find the star demarcation and read from there.

Chapter 33

Max caught a familiar scent as he stepped from the shower and perked into instantaneous awareness. His skin prickled, his eyes dilated in anticipation and he knew. Liz had come home. He was certain of her presence, even before he wrapped a towel around his lower half and began barreling through the apartment with the impetus of a rushing locomotive. By the time he burst into the living room she was already there, having been escorted inside by one of the guards.

“Don’t be mad,” she rushed in a whisper when she saw him standing there half nude and dripping wet, “I had to come home.”

His features inscrutable, Max flicked his guard with a steely stare. “Leave,” he ordered softly. Max didn’t address Liz again until the front door clicked shut and they were totally alone. “I’m not mad at you,” he confessed tenderly, taking several halting steps towards her, “I’m too damned happy to see you right now.” Sagging with relief, Liz flung herself into his open arms, seemingly oblivious to the dripping slickness of his body as she hugged him hard.

They stood like that for a long time, clinging together, the contours of their bodies conforming. Very gradually, however, their fingers began their timid exploration. His shoulder, the pulse beating at the base of her throat, the smooth rivulets of water running down his temples, the intoxicating softness of her hair. They touched like ones blind, sensing emotion and conveying it through their fingertips.

“God, I missed you so much,” Liz murmured into the crook of his neck. He smelled good, like soap and aftershave and Max. She darted her tongue out to lash his wet skin, wanting to discover if he tasted as delectably as he smelled.

Max whispered her name over and over, his hands skating over her back and shoulders, his fingers plunging into her hair as if he could hardly believe he was touching her. All the while Liz continued her nibbling endeavor, raining kisses across his collarbone, deliberately lapping at the water collecting in the hollow of his throat. Max groaned and buried his lips into her hair, kissing her wherever and however he could.

His body felt alive with her nearness, his skin tingling with anticipation wherever they touched. He pressed her body full against him, reacquainting himself with the subtle curves and lines of her form. Every fiber of him curved around her, enveloping her into his embrace, his heart, his skin.

In echoing need Liz pressed her palms into the smooth flesh of his back, unconsciously grinding her lower body against him even as she sucked at the underside of his chin. She could feel his desire for her swell prominently between them and the sensation intensified the yearning ache in her belly.

Max cupped her face in his hands, his lips coasting over her skin in breathy forays. “Is this a dream?” he wondered hoarsely, “When did you get here? I just spoke with you this afternoon.”

“I couldn’t stay away, Max,” she whispered, “I needed you.” She whisked her tongue across his trembling lower lip. “You needed me.”

Their mouths crushed together then, ravenous and fierce. Max swept his tongue within the warm recesses of Liz’s mouth, shivering with the intoxicating taste of her. He dipped inside again and again, his rapacity growing with each daring foray, his insatiable appetite feeding hers. Liz rose up onto her toes and pressed closer to his quivering body, her tongue dueling with his for dominance as their breath came in harsh, staccato pants.

When his towel fell away between them, neither of them noticed even as it pooled at their feet in a puddle of soft terry clothe. The heat of his body permeated her clothes, her skin and ignited a fire of need that made Liz quiver. She sandwiched her hand between their straining bodies, her fingers playing over the taut peaks of his nipples only to dip lower down the firm plain of his abdomen to stroke the silken skin of his swollen cock.

Max gasped into her mouth, shivering anew. It had been a while since they had touched this way, not since before she left for Harvard. Five weeks ago…a lifetime ago and he felt it. His body was starved for her.

Never breaking their kiss, Max hooked one forearm about Liz’s waist and bore her towards the sofa. In a perfect world he might have swept her into his arms and carried her off for the bedroom, but he couldn’t wait. Liz echoed his need, allowing her thighs to fall apart with coaxing and firmly pulling his demanding body between them. They rocked against each other a few, desperate times before the barrier of her clothing became too much of a hindrance.

Panting hard, they broke apart only long enough to free her from the nuisance and toss the various articles aside. When they were finally flesh-to-flesh, naked bodies heaving with need, Max kissed her again, fusing his mouth to hers even as he fused their flesh into one. The first plunge into her tight, wet passage was a head rush. It was the first time he’d ever been inside her without latex between them and the sensation was intoxicating. Max couldn’t believe the slippery wetness of her or the stunning heat. He was seduced deeper within even as his mind demanded that he stop and retrieve protection.

“Liz, Liz,” Max groaned, trying to force the shallow dipping of his hips to stop. But sweet God was she hot… And it didn’t help matters that Liz clamped him between her thighs and lifted her hips higher to urge him deeper. His thrusts became longer, more concentrated, as his sex-starved body paid no attention to the demands of his will. “God, Liz!” he gritted, “tell me to stop! I’m not…I don’t…”

Liz knew what he was trying to tell her and she was past caring. She ground up against him shamelessly, forcing his erection ever deeper. She needed him buried deep inside her almost as much as he needed to be. “I don’t care,” she gasped, gripping his clenching buttocks in an effort to bring him closer, “Just don’t stop, Max! Please don’t stop!”

Her fevered pleas were his undoing. Max didn’t hold back any longer. He pressed his forehead to hers and drove into her hard, eliciting a low scream of pleasure from Liz. His thrusts weren’t gentle. There was no rhythm, no sense of finesse as he hammered inside her. Burying his face into the crook of her throat, Max stroked her long and hard, burying himself deep, touching as far as he could.

Liz urged him on, whispering scorching words of encouragement in his ear. Faster, Max. Harder, Max. Don’t stop. Don’t ever stop. And with each thrust he sought to give her what she asked for, to bathe his cock in her again and again and again. Their bodies became slick with perspiration, their harsh, passionate gasps piercing the still quiet of the apartment.

Max could feel the connection between them opening, natural and easy and unbidden. In those spectacular seconds as he teetered on the edge of orgasm, he felt as if he were no longer in his own skin, but somehow he had become a part of Liz as well. He had become Liz…feeling each thrilling plunge of his penis as he drove her closer and closer to the precipice of ecstasy. He could feel what she wanted. To take him deep and hold him there, to feel the heated rush of his climax inside of her. And he gave her what she wanted…what they both wanted so when the orgasm burst upon them and Max couldn’t be sure where his began and hers ended.

It was a long time before he finally stopped trembling and even longer before he could lift his head and stare down into her luminous eyes. “Liz,” he whispered mournfully against her cheek as reality slowly set in, “Dammit.”

Liz twirled her fingers in the damp, curling tendrils of his hair. “It’s okay,” she whispered, “Don’t freak out. I’m on the pill now.”

He popped up, his beginning panic receding with a wave of surprise. “When?”

“Right after I arrived in Boston,” she said, “I wanted to surprise you.” He didn’t reply but his incredulous expression was more than answer enough. “Surprise,” she exclaimed weakly.

“Thank you, God,” he breathed, lowering himself against her warmth once more.

“Would it be so bad?” Liz wondered in a whisper as he kissed and nuzzled along her jaw line. She arched her neck to give him better access, however, at her question Max fell perfectly still. Their languid gazes met in the darkness. “Don’t you want to have another baby, Max?”

He smiled and brushed her hair back from her forehead. “Someday,” he replied faintly, “But I don’t think either of us is ready now, Liz.” At present, the sting of Zan’s death was still too raw. Contemplating having another child now seemed too much like trying to establish a replacement for Zan and Max didn’t want that. He didn’t want to have a baby with Liz just to fill up the hole in his heart.

“You’re right,” she murmured, but the longing remained evident in her tone. She trailed her fingers down the corrugated smoothness of his abdomen, smiling a bit when his muscles flinched in reaction. “But it’s nice to think about…you know?”

Max sighed and brushed her forehead in a light kiss. “Yes. I do know,” he murmured. He leaned back to stare into her face because he still couldn’t get over the fact that she was actually there. “What were you thinking?” he whispered, “I thought we agreed that you would stay in Boston.”

“You sounded so lonely and scared,” she said, “I couldn’t stay knowing you needed me.”

“What about school?”

“It can wait a year or two,” she replied softly.

“You say that but then you won’t go back,” he predicted.

However, Liz only shrugged. “Then I won’t go back,” she said, “The only thing I care about right now is being with you, Max. You’re all I want.” She curved her fingers around his nape, intending to bring him down for a kiss when she felt the ridged scar there. Max exhaled a sharp gasp of pleasure. Liz frowned. “What is that?”

He yielded to the slight pressure of her fingers so that she could get a closer look. Liz had never seen anything like it. The mark resembled a brand almost, raised and pink and puckered, a flesh colored replica of the whirlwind symbol. She traced her fingers lightly over the swirling pattern of the scar, acutely aware of Max’s convulsive shivers whenever she glanced it.

“Does it hurt?” she whispered fearfully.

“No,” he whispered back.

She scraped her fingers across it once more and he groaned. “Then why?”

“It feels…so good,” he gasped, his erection growing hot and heavy against her thigh. He leaned his head down into the soft cushion of her breasts. “Don’t stop touching me there,” he implored shakily.

She did as he requested, stroking her fingers across the marking, blowing her breath against it softly, but it was only when she dared to touch her tongue to the sensitive flesh that Max lost all control. He groaned loud and long as his body exploded, jerking stiffly as the hot streams of his orgasm spurted between their bodies. “God…oh God…Liz…” he moaned into her neck, “I’m sorry, Liz. I couldn’t control it.”

“It’s okay,” she murmured into his hair, “What was that, Max?” His semen felt sticky and moist between their bodies but Liz didn’t find the sensation wholly unpleasant.

“I don’t know,” he moaned, darting his tongue hungrily across her collarbone, “It’s like you were inside my skin… I could hear you…feel you… We were one.”

“What did you feel, Max?” Liz asked breathlessly.

“How badly you want me to touch you right now,” he whispered, right before he fastened his mouth onto one rigid nipple and sucked hard. Liz groaned in response and arched into him, all further questions skittering from her head as his fingers did a slow, deliberate creep down her quivering belly.

She held her breath as his fingers plunged into the coarse hair at the apex of her thighs and then disappeared between them. Max toyed with her vaginal lips, smearing her creamy wetness across the swollen nub of her clitoris. All the while he laved her nipple with his tongue, bathed and baptized it in the warm confines of his mouth. His fingers did a slow teasing dance, igniting a burning tingle between her legs, and then, without warning, he plunged them deep, spearing so hard that Liz’s body bowed off the sofa.

Liz let her thighs fall open as he pierced her again and again, his fingers caressing her moist inner walls. She ground against his hand in wanton abandon, her body spurred on by the untamed flicking of his tongue. Seconds later Liz was trembling with the force of her climax. She buried her face in the top Max’s tousled hair and rode it out with a silent sob of pleasure. When her body finally ceased in its palsied shaking Liz felt Max’s satisfied smile against her breasts.

“You’re always so quiet when you come,” he observed in an intimate murmur.

Liz emitted a throaty laugh at that. “And you’re not,” she returned wryly, seeking out his lips for a sleepy kiss.

They were still kissing, their mouths sliding over one another’s in sluggish exploration when Max swung them upright so that Liz straddled his lap and his growing erection was wedged firmly beneath her weeping sex. “I want to make you scream tonight,” he said, pulling her down for avidly torrid kiss. All too soon the heat between them had raged again and Max began probing at her opening with the blunt tip of his cock. By the time they surfaced from their voracious kiss Max was already buried deep inside the silky cavity of Liz’s body.

“Aren’t you tired yet?” she gasped into his shoulder as he began to roll his hips in answer to her insistent rocking. Using his shoulders as leverage, Liz pushed herself down on him hard, taking him deep and riding him in the slow, circled strokes she knew he liked.

“Hmm…never,” he moaned into the salty flesh of her throat, “Want you too much.”

After that there were no further words between them, only mutual grunts of satisfaction. Max bracketed her hips, holding her captive to his spearing thrusts. Liz curled her fingers into his slippery wet skin, biting her lip against the pleasure-pain as he pounded at the gate of her womb. His fingers pressed into the supple flesh at the small of her back as he gave her all of him, every inch and she received him gladly.

And Max was as good as his word. He didn’t stop until he’d made her scream.

********************

Agent Jonathan Torres shut off the video monitor, his cheeks flaming with a hot blush. “I can’t watch any more of this,” he announced to his partner, “That poor kid deserves some privacy.” Frankly, he thought that further surveillance was unnecessary. The kid obviously wasn’t dangerous. Nothing he’d seen in the last three weeks gave him any indication otherwise. However, it was Kesley’s call end it, even though Pierce did like to prance around thinking he was the one in charge. Damned prick.

His partner, Agent Bill Canton, was inclined to agree with him but he still had his misgivings. “You know Pierce is gonna give us shit for this, right? We supposed to keep a continual watch on him,” he reminded, “Even Kesley expects it.”

“Who the hell cares what Pierce thinks?” Torres demanded, “That asshole isn’t my fucking superior. I don’t answer to him! And besides, Kesley told us to take it easy on the kid, didn’t he?” Canton nodded, unwittingly providing more ammunition for his friend’s tirade. “For three weeks now I’ve watched this kid do everything from eating breakfast to beating himself off in the shower,” Torres declared with some disgust, “No more. I say let the kid, at least, get laid in peace. He deserves a friggin break.”

Nodding his head in concurrence, Canton clicked off his monitor as well.

You guys are too kind. Lelle, sorry about your mom there, lol. My husband walked in on me while I was writing the scene so talk about awkward. I couldn't minimize the screen quick enough.



Chapter 34

When Max awoke the next morning his first awareness was that he ached all over, his back, his arms, but especially his thighs. But it was a good sort of pain so he could barely squelch the smile that came to his face. His second awareness was that he was in bed…alone. With a sleepy yawn he rolled over, his smile stretching languidly at the tempting image that greeted him. His girlfriend sat curled in the window seat of his bedroom, her knees pulled tightly to her chest, with nothing to adorn her nudity except for her gloriously dark hair. It fell across her shoulders and back like an inky river, shielding most of her face from his view.

“Good morning,” he said, frowning a bit when he heard the gruff texture to his voice.

“Good morning,” Liz replied cheerfully, sliding from her perch to rejoin him amid the rumpled sheets. She leaned over and kissed the tip of his nose. “You look like you slept well.”

“Evidently better than you did,” he observed tenderly, “Why are you up so early? It’s barely dawn.”

“I heard the army tankers pulling out and the sound woke me up,” she said, “It’s so easy to forget where we are…” She trailed off sadly and strummed her thumb along his lower lip. “I wish you didn’t have to stay here, Max.”

Max stroked her bare thigh and then replaced his hand with his lips, placing a fervid kiss to her flushed skin. “It’s only a temporary situation,” he said, a way of reassuring both her and himself, “When all the ships have landed…they’ll let me go.”

“What about Lieutenant Pierce?” Liz asked tentatively, “I think his presence here on this base is too much of a coincidence, Max.”

“I’ve been over this same thing with Michael,” Max sighed as he nibbled his way up the curve of her hip, “And I’ll tell you the same thing I told him. I’ll be careful. Pierce isn’t a threat to me unless I let him be a threat.” He snaked his tongue through the valley of her groin and Liz shivered.

“B…But if he finds out what really happened--,” she panted in protest.

He silenced her protests with the pads of his fingers. “Nothing happened,” he insisted in a whisper, “All we know of Agent Daniel Pierce is what we saw on C-SPAN. Agreed?”

Liz nodded slowly. “Agreed.”

However, when he tried to pull her down with him and give her a proper kiss good morning Liz rolled away with a regretful grunt. “I can’t, Max,” she told him, “My mother didn’t know I planned to spend the entire night with you. I’ve got to get back home before she starts to worry, if she hasn’t already.”

Max hugged her hard about the waist, burying his face in her stomach. “I feel like you just got here,” he moaned petulantly.

“I’m coming back,” she promised, “As soon as I talk to my dad about my plans for school. I should be the one to explain the situation to him, not my mother.”

Max groaned in response to that and flopped over onto his back. “Great,” he muttered, “Just one more thing to hate me for.”

“They’re not going to blame you, Max,” she vowed, “I won’t let them.” But his crestfallen expression didn’t alter a single bit and, as a result, Liz was compelled to straddle his waist, pinning his wrists down into the mattress. “Listen up, Evans!” she ordered sharply, but with a smile to soften the blow, “My decision to drop out of school is my decision. You didn’t influence that in any way. I wanted to come back here to be with you because I needed to be with you. You need to understand that and so do my parents.

“I’m not some mindless puppet, Max. I’m the one who decides what’s best for me and I don’t make those decisions lightly,” she told him fiercely, “I didn’t fight so hard to rebuild our friendship just so we could spend our time apart. Got it?”

“Yes maam,” Max replied respectfully.

“Good,” she commended saucily, “Now I don’t want to here any more of this maudlin talk. Comprendes amigo?”

“Comprendo perfecto mi chica bonita,” he murmured. Liz bestowed him with an “oh brother” look. “What can I say?” he teased huskily, “Your love makes me bilingual.”

“Ugh…whatever. Just shut up and kiss me, you idiot.”

Liz leaned down to kiss his mouth briefly. However, as she did, her nipples scraped enticingly against his bare chest. Electrical currents of desire sparked between them instantly. What began as something playful quickly became something heated and charged. Their kiss soon turned blatantly sexual as Liz released Max’s wrists to frame his face in her hands and his arms banded around her delicate body, his hands stroking ceaselessly up and down her back. Moments later his fingers found her slippery soft center and set a delicious, penetrating rhythm.

It wasn’t long before his straining fingers weren’t enough and Liz sought to replace them with the throbbing tip of his arousal. Their mutual moans of pleasure mingled as Max rocked inside her. He thrust upwards once, twice before he shuddered with a hoarse cry, bathing her with the warm stream of his orgasm. Liz collapsed atop of him, exhausted in the aftermath of his tumultuous climax, her body shivering with the shared experience.

“Max?” she whispered after a satiated silence had passed between them, “Why does it feel so different now?”

Max tipped his head down at her drowsy question, twisting to better see her face. “What do you mean by different?”

“It’s…intense,” Liz struggled to explain, “But then it’s always been intense between us… I guess I’m trying to say that…I feel more of you. Not just your body but your mind and your heart, too. And right now, even though it’s over I feel like you’re still inside of me.”

Max shivered at her explanation, both unnerved and fascinated all at once. She managed to convey perfectly, although haltingly, the very emotions rocking through his body right then. Inexplicably, the strength of what Max was feeling filled him with self-conscious anxiety and he sought to play it off. “I am still inside of you, Liz,” he teased huskily, rocking his hips and unwittingly stirring his sleeping penis to life within her. “See?”

Liz lifted up onto her elbows and stared down at him. “I don’t mean that way, gutter mind,” she whispered in exasperation, “I just feel like we have this new awareness of one another. Like last night, for instance. How did you know it was me before the guard even announced my presence?”

“I smelled you,” Max explained tentatively, tapping the tip of his nose for emphasis.

“Wow,” Liz breathed in awe, “Your sense of smell must be pretty incredible if you could smell my perfume all the way from the bathroom.”

Max grinned crookedly at that. “Um, no…I didn’t smell your perfume,” he whispered provocatively.

Something in his tone caused Liz to narrow her eyes in suspicion. “Well, what did you smell?” Max let his fingers drift down to where their bodies were still connected, where she contracted and quickened around his growing erection. Liz’s eyes went wide with the implication. “Eww gross! You’re kidding me!” she burst out in dubious mortification.

Max shook his head and shrugged. “It’s your own unique scent,” he murmured, “What makes you who you are, Liz.” He pulled her down against him and brushed her shell-shocked mouth in a tender kiss. “Frankly, I think it’s a turn on.”

Liz scrunched up her nose in dismay. “Somehow I don’t think it’s normal that you should be able to smell me…you know…down there…” she concluded in a hushed whisper. By the time she was finished her cheeks were flaming with brilliant color.

“Well, I’m not a normal person, Liz,” Max considered, “And…this isn’t a question of hygiene, okay. It isn’t a bad smell…just distinctive and characteristic of you. It’s like something instinctive, okay…I can’t really explain it.”

“Can you smell…everybody’s?” Liz grimaced in disgust at the idea and Max burst out laughing over her expression.

“No! Thank God!” he exclaimed, “You’re the only one I smell that strongly and I think that has a lot to do with this deepened connection we seem to share. I can sense you in a whole new way now. It’s like…primal or something…or like we’ve forged some weird kind of bond where you’re in my skin. I can feel you…everywhere and it’s like we’ve…like we’ve…” He fell into silence, groping for the right words.

“…like we’ve mated for life,” Liz finished quietly.

“Yeah,” Max agreed softly, tumbling into the limpid pools of her eyes, “Exactly like that.”

********************

“Why the hell are these monitors off?” Lieutenant William Pierce demanded when he strode into the control room the next morning and found Agents Torres and Canton discussing a recent football game over coffee and donuts. Both agents froze with the lieutenant’s arrival, acutely aware of the fact that every single bit of surveillance equipment in the room had been turned off. Canton, at least, was chastened by the knowledge. Torres didn’t give a rat’s ass and his expression said so.

“The kid’s where he’s supposed to be,” Torres replied around a mouthful of donut, “He’s got six guards posted on him twenty-four/seven. He’s not going anywhere.”

“That’s not the point,” Pierce snapped back rigidly, “He is to be observed around the clock. Around the clock! How are you gentlemen accomplishing that if these monitors aren’t even on?” He made a frantic round about the room, clicking various screens and listening devices to life.

“He’s being taped whether the monitors are on or not,” Torres reasoned dryly, “Besides this is just a formality. I doubt we’ll be doing this much longer.” Pierce seemed to ignore him as he continued on in his task. Torres rolled his eyes. “Look, Lieutenant, I know you’ve got a personal stake in this. I get that, but… The kid’s with his girl. The last thing he’s thinking about right now is confessing to your brother’s murder.” Canton snickered under his breath with his partner’s last comment and Pierce colored in response.

As if to back up Torres’ declaration the small room was suddenly filled with the sound of husky giggles and harsh breathing. The monitors revealed that, evidently while attempting to say goodbye, Max and Liz had gotten sidetracked in the living room. Currently, they were rolling around together on the living room floor. Torres flicked a triumphant glance at the screen before clicking it off once more. “See what I mean?”

Pierce wanted to break his face for that smug comment. In a perfect world, he might have just for the hell of it. But he was a military man and he’d been taught rigorous discipline during his career. This was not the time to reveal himself. He would not beat Agent Torres senseless no matter how much the insolent man deserved it.

But his calm reasoning of the situation didn’t keep Pierce’s ire from blazing. It seemed that everyone in control of this operation viewed it as nothing more than an amusing game. It didn’t seem to matter to them that they were observing the potential killer of one of their own. They seemed only to see a nineteen-year-old alien/human hybrid. He was fascinating to study and perhaps a bit bizarre, but it was evident that none of them saw a murderer there…not even Kesley.

Pierce knew that Kesley would be as good as his word. If no evidence was found incriminating Max Evans in his brother’s death by the last alien landing he would let the boy go. After all, Kesley really didn’t have much choice in the matter. His orders came directly from the President. The U.S. Government was interested in establishing peace, not solving a two-year-old missing persons case. Besides that, Pierce knew Kesley really didn’t give a damn about what had happened to his brother in spite of his indulgence. But William Pierce could not let his brother’s disappearance be swept so easily aside. Though all he had was a partial file given to him by one of his brother’s special unit associates Pierce suspected in his gut that Max Evans was in it up to his neck.

Despite all his avowals to the contrary, Pierce suspected that Max Evans knew much more about his brother’s disappearance than he was letting on. He could not forget how the boy had whitened with the mere mention of Daniel’s name. Later he had made a valiant effort to cover saying he had seen the coverage on Daniel during his trial but Pierce believed otherwise. He had seen for himself the riotous fear in Max Evans eyes, the fear that was always present whenever William made his weekly visits to the boy.

Through the salvaged file retrieved from the special unit vaults before they’d been utterly destroyed in the investigation, Pierce learned that his brother had acquired a specimen. There had been no names mentioned, but Subject A had been described as a Caucasian male in his late teens. Daniel had noted that, in spite of Subject A’s outward human façade, his internal genetic makeup was something else entirely.

The information was limited but for William Pierce it had been enough. By Max Evans’ own admission there were only three other hybrid males like himself. He believed that two of those males were dead, which left only himself and his friend, Michael Guerin.

Now it was possible that one of the two dead hybrids had been Subject A but Pierce sincerely doubted it. Both those suspects had been located on the other side of the country. His brother’s specific branch of the FBI wasn’t located far from Austin, Texas and there was a reason for that. Roswell, New Mexico had been flagged as a hotspot and, as a result, there were agents posted there constantly.

That knowledge significantly narrowed Pierce’s search. Now all he had to do was root out the real culprit. However, his mission was significantly hindered by those who didn’t assign as much importance to this assignment as he did. And they were men who should have shared his quest for justice, too. That realization infuriated them.

Tearing his eyes from the blank monitor screen with a frustrated, inward growl, Lieutenant Pierce ordered, “I don’t care if Max Evans is doing nothing more than taking a crap. You watch him do it!”

Torres drew himself up straight and tall, not to be intimidated by the lieutenant, even if he was a key player in this operation. “You have a problem with me, Lieutenant,” he said, coming to his feet and crossing the room so that he and Pierce stood nose to nose, “Take it up with my superior. In the meantime, don’t you ever talk to me like that again.”

“I will definitely bring this to Kesley’s attention, Torres,” Pierce warned softly, “I won’t tolerate impertinence on my base. I don’t care how far up your orders go.”

His nemesis only shrugged. “Do what you have to do,” he invited, taking a step back, “But you should remember something, Lieutenant. You’re only riding on Kesley’s coattails here. If he or his superiors even suspect that your personal feelings are interfering with the tentative truce he’s got going with Max Evans and his people he’ll boot you out of this operation so fast you won’t know your head from your ass. You might want to keep that in mind next time you decide to get in my face.”

Chapter 35

Liz crept carefully through her bedroom window and nearly had a heart attack when she found her parents patiently awaiting her arrival. She stopped short upon seeing them, knowing without a doubt that she had been busted.

“Hey, guys,” she greeted weakly, preparing herself for the mother of all explosions. She didn’t get one.

“How is Max doing?” her mother asked calmly.

Her eyes were fairly bugging out of her head at that point and she was sure that she’d just walked into some strange alternate dimension but Liz still managed to stammer, “He’s…uh…he’s fine.”

“That’s good,” Jeff interjected, “We hear reports on the news all the time that they’re not keeping him in a real prison but you never really know with the government.”

“It’s not a traditional prison,” Liz answered, carefully scrutinizing her parents’ faces, “But it’s still a prison.” She processed their grave nods of agreement with incredulous astonishment. Where was the storm she’d expected? Liz almost thought she’d stepped into the wrong house. Finally, she couldn’t stand it any more. “What’s with you two?” she asked, “I just snuck in at--,” Liz paused and made a quick glance over to her nightstand clock, “—8:15 in the morning and you’re acting like it’s no big deal.”

“We knew where you were,” Nancy replied, “Although we weren’t expecting you to spend the entire night.”

“I thought you were in Hondo, Dad,” Liz evaded shrewdly. They might not be yelling and screaming but they were definitely trying to put her on the defensive.

“Apparently, I got home only a few minutes after you left,” her father explained quietly, “Why don’t you sit down, Lizzie? Your mother tells me that we have a lot to discuss.”

Liz groaned inwardly at the invitation but obediently dropped into her desk chair. Her mother and father sat down on her bed. Liz really didn’t know what to make of her father right then. She had seen Jeff Parker display many emotions these last few months. There had been sadness and fear and anger. She had seen him loving and supportive and compassionate as well. The expression on his face right then, however, Liz didn’t recognize it. If she had to venture a guess she would probably say…resignation.

“I suppose Mom’s already informed you of my plans?”

“She said you came home to support Max,” Jeff said, “I’m just trying to understand if you’re meaning only to take a couple of months off or if you mean to quit entirely.”

“For the time being I’m going to quit,” Liz explained cautiously.

“And how does Max feel about your plan?” Jeff wondered.

“He doesn’t like it,” Liz revealed, “But he knows that it’s my decision to make. I promised him I would stand by his side and I can’t very well do that halfway across the country, now can I?”

“But I thought that was a given,” Nancy said, “Your father and I were under the impression that you and Max had discussed the risks and possible results of his people coming here. We’re just a little surprised that you’re singing a different tune now that they’ve arrived. It’s barely been a month.”

“I never expected Max to be taken into federal custody, that’s why!” Liz snapped irritably, “How am I supposed to focus on my classes when I know that?”

“But you’ve seen him now,” her father interjected softly, “You’ve seen for yourself that he’s safe and well. You’ve even had the opportunity to spend some time with him. Maybe that’s all you needed to get you through the semester…just a little reassurance.”

“I’m not going back,” Liz intoned firmly, “I don’t get it.” She threw her mother a desperate glance. “Mom, if Dad were in prison, and who cares how cushy it is, wouldn’t you want to be by his side every waking minute?”

Nancy stared down at her husband in naked caring and curled her fingers over his shoulder. Jeff, in turn, took hold of her fingers and brought them to his lips. “I wouldn’t leave him,” her mother sighed finally before lifting her gaze to Liz again, “Not for a single second.”

“That’s how I feel about Max,” Liz whispered, “I can’t leave him…not again.”

“So you’ve obviously made up your mind about this,” Jeff sighed in resignation, “What are you going to do in the meantime?”

“I thought I could stay here with you guys,” Liz replied hopefully, “Work in the Crashdown just like always. I’m going to save my money so that…once Max is released from custody maybe we can get a place together.”

“You’re going to live together,” Jeff declared with a disapproving frown, “But you’re not going to get married?”

Liz had to laugh a little over that. Here she and Max shared the most incredible bond imaginable. Even at that moment she was aware of his thoughts and emotions. He was on edge about her confrontation with her parents and worried that they might make her feel guilty or, at the very least, hand her another ultimatum about seeing him. Liz did what she could to soothe his thoughts, transmitting her love and comfort across space. She smiled inwardly. When two people shared a connection as profound as that marriage seemed a little trite.

However, Liz could understand where her father was coming from. She was his baby girl and no man ever liked the idea of his baby girl shacking up. “Dad, I’m sure Max and I will get married someday,” Liz reassured him, “We haven’t really talked about it though.”

“Oh,” Jeff said.

“And if we did,” Liz prodded, “If Max and I decided to get married, then what? Would we have your blessing?”

Her parents traded another look that let Liz know they were struggling to put aside their own misgivings and think of her happiness first. “Yes,” Jeff agreed hoarsely after a pregnant moment, “Yes, you’d have our blessing, Lizzie.”

********************

Max wilted with relief when he received Liz’s mental reassurance. Before that his imagination had been running wild. He just knew Jeff and Nancy Parker were reading her the riot act about dropping out of school. Coupled with his misgivings about Liz confronting them when she was so exhausted and her emotions were so close to the surface, Max felt like a nervous wreck.

He’d come as close as he’d ever had to chucking his deal with the federal government and walking out of there. Max had started to do exactly that when he’d suddenly felt Liz’s whispered thoughts curl around his brain like gossamer tendrils. She spoke to him as if there weren’t fifteen miles of distance between them, promising that all would work out and declaring her love.

Max knew with just as much certainty that she was on her way back to him as well. With that knowledge to spur him on Max was able to get on with his day. He showered, dressed and had a quick breakfast. After a brief glance outside he decided it was a beautiful day for a walk. Max had some energy to burn before Liz got back and he knew he’d go stir crazy if he tried to wait for her in the apartment.

However, he hadn’t taken two steps towards the intercom to buzz the guards of his intentions when he was buzzed instead. His parents had come to visit. Sighing with resignation, Max shrugged out of his jacket and went to meet them in the foyer.

The moment they were inside Diane Evans shoved her casserole dish into her husband’s unsuspecting arms and ran forward to pepper her son’s face with kisses. “Look at you,” she clucked, running her fingers through Max’s still damp hair, “You’re looking so thin. Are you sure they’re feeding you enough here?”

“How much weight could he have lost, Diane?” Philip reasoned dryly as he set her dish aside on the coffee table, “We were just here three days ago.”

“A lot can change in three days, Philip,” Diane remarked as father and son stepped forward to embrace one another. Max couldn’t squelch the ironic thought that she didn’t know the half of it. “So have you eaten breakfast?” his mother asked when he and Philip had finished. “I can whip you up something quick.”

“I’ve already had some cereal and milk, Mom,” Max replied, “I’m fine.”

“That’s no kind of breakfast for a growing boy,” Diane said, heading off for the kitchen, “I’m going to make you some bacon and eggs. You do have bacon and eggs, don’t you?”

“In the fridge,” Max relented weakly.

“Let her do it,” his father advised in a whisper as he and Max folded themselves down onto the sofa, “She needs to feel useful somehow.”

“Max, would you like cheese in your eggs, honey?” Diane called over to him.

“Pile it on, Mom,” Max said with mock enthusiasm. When he was sure she was busy he eyed her casserole dish with wary revulsion. “What’s that?” he asked his father.

“Green bean delight,” Philip answered with a shudder.

“You’ve had it?” Max surmised.

“I have,” Philip informed him gravely, “And son? There’s no green beans in it.” Father and son shared a full-bellied laugh while Diane worked on obliviously in the kitchen. “So you’re looking good,” Philip remarked when their mirth had died down, “Much better than the last time we visited. Your mom and I could tell you were starting to get depressed.”

“I was,” Max confessed.

“So what changed,” Philip wondered, “What’s got you glowing like it’s Christmas morning?”

“Liz came home last night.” Philip Evans’ smile faltered immediately though he made a good effort to cover over his disappointment. “Just save it, Dad,” Max interjected softly, “I know how you feel about Liz but I have to tell you that I don’t think you’re being fair.”

“How do you figure?”

“Well, you’ve never taken the time to get to know her,” Max replied quietly, “If you did you’d realize what a beautiful person she is and how good she is for me.”

“I’m sorry, Max,” his father replied, “I simply can’t get over how broken you were the last time you two split up. Your reaction was hardly a healthy one. I can’t stop being afraid that it might happen again.”

“Dad, Liz and I are together,” Max told him firmly, “For keeps this time. We’ve learned a lot from our past mistakes and we’re not going down that road again.”

Philip accepted his son at his word. Really there was nothing else he could do. The only reason he and Max had been able to maintain relative peace between them was by avoiding the subject of Liz Parker altogether. But Philip recognized that couldn’t go on indefinitely. Liz was obviously a very important part of his son’s life. If Philip couldn’t find a way to accept her then it would be just as Diane had been predicting all along: he would lose Max for good.

“Okay,” Philip sighed gruffly, “I’ll give her a chance.”

“That’s all I’m asking for, Dad,” Max replied.

A short while later Diane finished with breakfast and the three sat down to a meal together. It was a quasi-normal moment in an existence that had become wholly abnormal in the last month. These family meals were Diane Evans’ way of tenaciously holding on to the life they’d had before the arrival of Max’s people. Max felt that, since he was the one to upset her perfectly balanced world in the first place, he could at least indulge her in this.

Diane was clearing away the remnants from their breakfast when the intercom abruptly buzzed to life. “That’s Liz,” Max said, already striding for the front door and leaving his father to make the explanation to his mother.

The moment Liz cleared the door she grabbed the back of Max’s head and pulled him down for a thorough kiss. Her hands roamed free and hungry over his body. “I missed you so much,” she whispered into his mouth, “I couldn’t get away soon enough.”

Max blushed to the tips of his ears; extremely cognizant of the show they were putting on for his parents. “Liz, my parents are here,” he informed her delicately. Still, Liz jumped back from him as if he had screamed the words in her face.

“Hello, Liz,” his mother greeted graciously, stepping forward to take hold of Liz’s hands, “It’s so good to see you again, sweetheart. How are your classes going?”

Max and Liz exchanged wary looks before Liz answered tentatively, “Er…they were fine when I left.”

“Surely Harvard isn’t breaking already,” Philip asked with a frown. He had been under the impression that none of them would have the opportunity for a break until the Thanksgiving Holidays.

“No, I’m not on a break,” Liz replied carefully, “I quit.”

“You quit?” Max’s parents echoed simultaneously.

“She quit,” Max clarified, “Because she wants to be here to support me.”

Philip Evans’ speculative stare ricocheted to Liz’s face. She might have squirmed under his intense scrutiny if she didn’t glimpse something akin to approval lurking there in his eyes. “So you’re planning to stay here for the long haul then?” he prodded evenly.

“Yes sir,” Liz answered, looping her arm around Max’s waist in a show of solidarity, “For as long as it takes.”

To Liz’s surprise Philip bestowed her with a smile, the first genuine smile he’d ever given her. “Welcome home, Liz.”

And she was…she felt welcome, indeed.

No M/L in this part, guys but I'm going somewhere with all this. Trust me. We're about to pick up the momentum.

Chapter 36

Michael stumbled over the assorted bodies littering his living room floor with a hushed curse of annoyance. A chorus of disjointed snores bubbled up from his sleeping guests, muffling Michael’s footsteps as he made his way back to the bedroom. Sometime during the night his brother had obviously been released from jail. Razba, Kyle and Diadne now all lay about the living room in haphazard directions, leaving Michael with little choice but to leap over their prone bodies. He banged his knee against the edge of the couch for his careful effort.

By the time he reached the bedroom Michael was more than a little disgruntled but when he saw Maria’s sleeping form, twisted so beautifully in his bed sheets he forgot his annoyance. He could barely make her out beneath the disheveled covers, only the flash of her blond hair at the top and her bare toes peeking out at the bottom. Smiling at the sight, Michael began stripping off his tie and suit jacket, discarding various articles of clothing until he was completely nude upon approaching the bed. He climbed in behind Maria and placed a warm kiss to the nape of her neck.

“Hmm…I missed you,” he murmured into her hair when she started to stir.

“When did you get in?” Maria asked in a sleepy yawn, shifting around in his arms for the moment unaware of his nudity.

Michael leaned down to nuzzle her nose. “Exactly two minutes ago,” he said, “Why is my living room full of people?”

“You said you didn’t want me to be alone,” Maria teased him wryly, “So I decided to have a party.” However, she quickly became aware of the dark circles of fatigue beneath his eyes and her laughter faded. “Oh poor baby,” she crooned, cradling his face in her hands, “You look exhausted.”

“I am exhausted,” Michael confirmed, “Do you have any idea how much people hate us out there?”

Maria rolled her lips inward at the thought. “I have a general idea…yes.”

“There were endless picket lines and death threats and hate mail…and I was only gone for a friggin day,” he sighed, “I think Max is the lucky one being in federal custody like he is.” Michael blew out another weary sigh. “I can’t wait for this all to be over.”

“What can I do to make it better?” Maria murmured. Rather than answer her directly, Michael hooked an arm around her and reversed their positions so that he lay flat on his back and Maria was straddling him. That’s when she was made aware of his nakedness, namely his cock stirring to life against her inner thigh. Maria giggled at his implication. “Oh, it’s like that, is it?” she whispered seductively.

“Do you mind?” he asked, plucking at the waistband of her panties, “You’re all I could think about all night.”

“Is that so?” she whispered in challenge.

“I need to be inside you.” Maria’s response to that was nothing more than a feline smile.

Their coupling was hard and demanding. Michael palmed her breasts, abraded her sensitive nipples with his palms. Maria arched into his hands, encouraging him with her body to scrape, to knead, to suck… He nibbled lustfully at the base of her throat, scoured the delicate skin there with his teeth. Maria responded with equal ferocity, embedding her nails in his back as she bit down on her lip to hold back her ecstatic cries of passion. The moment of climax was mutual and electrifying, pounding through their blood streams like liquid fire.

An hour later they lay amid hopelessly tangled sheets, sated and breathless. “Thank you,” Michael sighed, pressing a kiss to her sweaty temple, “I definitely needed that after the week I’ve had.”

“This isn’t going to get any easier, is it?” she murmured sympathetically.

“People are naturally threatened,” Michael said, “I get that, you know. I mean, look at me. I’ve gone from fry cook to diplomat in a matter of weeks. I’m nineteen years old but I’m getting mad money from the government to interact with a people I know next to nothing about. No wonder people are going around asking, ‘What the fuck is going on?’ Hell, so would I.”

“But that doesn’t make how they’re treating you fair,” Maria considered, “You didn’t ask the government for anything, Michael…not for yourself at least. And your people didn’t ask to come here. They had no place else to go.”

“And America doesn’t give a shit. The general consensus seems to be that we should all be put away in camps and studied,” Michael lamented, “The public can’t help but see us as a threat.”

Maria caressed his jaw, letting her fingers drift down the curve of his throat down to the smooth skin of his chest. “Maybe you can change that,” she whispered.

As she took her sultry exploration lower, Michael captured her hand before it could disappear beneath the covers and brought it to his lips. “I want to marry you,” he murmured solemnly.

She grinned at his unexpected avowal. “Haven’t we already established this, Spaceboy,” she teased, “I said yes, remember?”

“I’m not talking about months from now or some crap like that,” Michael clarified, “I mean now. Marry me now, Maria. Let’s go to Vegas today, just you and me, and let’s get married.”

Maria’s mouth fell open. “Oh good Lord, you’re serious,” she breathed, “I…I need my oils.” She rolled out of his embrace and began wildly searching the nightstand drawer for the tiny vial. A moment later she was sniffing cypress oil almost maniacally. Michael watched her antics with open amusement. “Okay,” she sighed when she was somewhat calmer, “Run that by me one more time.”

“I said,” he stressed again, “Let’s run off to Vegas and get married.”

“Michael, don’t you think that’s a bit rash?” she queried, surprising both of them with her practical approach. Maria was never practical when it came to Michael Guerin. “I mean…everything’s a mess right now. Max is in custody. Liz and Isabel are away at school. The world hates your people. Your brothers hate me. And, don’t forget, if we actually went through with it Isabel would gut us. Our lives are a freaking mess!”

“So what?” was Michael’s indifferent reply.

“So what?” Maria echoed blankly.

“Yeah…so what?”

“Eh…maybe you missed the point I’m trying to make here,” she reiterated with some exasperation, “This is not a good time, Spaceboy.”

“I’m an alien, DeLuca,” Michael reasoned casually, “My life is always going to involve some kind of melodrama. If you’re waiting for the day when our world is normal then you and I will never get married.” He pushed upright, causing the sheets to pool in his lap. “So let’s be impulsive! Let’s get married, DeLuca,” he said again, “What’s more…let’s make babies together.”

“Babies!” Maria cried. She scrambled out of the bed, unmindful to her naked state. “Michael? Are you smoking again?”

“I’m not high on nicotine if that’s what you’re asking,” he said with a smirk, “I’m high on you.”

“You’re crazy,” she whispered, wildly shaking her head, “You’re out of your mind!” Her hands flew in all different directions as she began pacing the floor in maddened circles. “This whole thing is just crazy!”

Michael stacked his hands behind his head and leaned back against his pillows, enjoying the buck-naked show she was putting on for him. Maria belatedly realized the reason for the wolfish gleam in his eye and yanked a fistful of covers from the bed with an exasperated cry. After wrapping the sheets securely around her body, she leveled him with a quelling glare. “Will you be serious?” she exclaimed, “Why are you doing this to me, Michael?”

“How about I ask you a question,” he countered, “Why are you always freaking out every time I ask you to marry me?”

Maria opened her mouth to retort only to snap it closed at the last moment only to open it again. “You didn’t just ask me to marry you,” she defended weakly, “You asked me to bear your children, Michael.”

“Yeah, I did,” he agreed, “But you’re acting as if I asked you to perform satanic rites.”

That smart comment earned him a smack in the face with a pillow. “You’re being entirely too nonchalant about this,” Maria informed him calmly.

“Why?” he challenged, “Because the idea of marrying you doesn’t bring me to a precipice of terror?”

“No. Because you’re not thinking about the repercussions of said marriage.”

“What repercussions?” Michael asked, “We get married and what? You annoy me for the rest of my life and I annoy you for the rest of yours. It’s the same thing we’re doing now.”

“But you won’t be able to get out of it,” she warned.

“I don’t want to get out of it!” he shouted. And then he sighed, his annoyance fading into an affectionate smile. “It’s simple enough, DeLuca,” he said, “Do you want to spend the rest of your life with me?”

“Yes,” she whispered without hesitation.

“Then let’s go to Vegas,” he invited, holding out his arms to her. Maria ran into them with a glad, yelping cry. “Okay,” she agreed, cuddling against him, “Let’s go to Vegas.”

********************

“I think you’re cheating.”

Isabel’s eyes flared wide with the accusation. “Why would you say that?”

“Are you denying it?” David challenged.

“Me? Cheat for a measly hand of I Declare War?” Isabel brazened, “I don’t think so.”

“Oh, I think so,” David pressed, “You absolutely hate to lose, Isabel Evans.”

“How would you know anything about me?” Isabel asked, “You’ve hardly known me a month.”

Isabel made the statement with haughty disdain yet she felt entirely different. Despite the short time she and David had known each other she suspected he knew a great deal about her, much more than she would have cared for him to. David seemed to have little trouble discerning her inner most secret thoughts without her having to say a word. The only other person she had shared a connection with like that, besides her brothers, had been Alex. The fact that she and David related to one another so effortlessly made Isabel feel a bit skittish.

He made her heart flutter and no one had done that since Alex either. Even knowing who she was and what she was he hadn’t turned away. In fact, the knowledge seemed to intrigue him and Isabel was intrigued by his intrigue. However, that didn’t completely dispel her uneasiness around him and it wasn’t merely due to the fact he was still a virtual stranger either.

This was Liz Parker’s ex-boyfriend, her ex-lover. The reality was a little hard for Isabel to swallow. She had never envisioned herself with one of Liz Parker’s exes and thus far she’d already found herself attracted to both of them. Thank God the last was her brother! She couldn’t even finish that thought without gagging.

And yet Isabel couldn’t deny that there was a part of her unexplainably fascinated by David McKee. Her infatuation went deeper than his looks, which Isabel had to admit didn’t hurt matters, but she was looking beyond. He was truly a good and decent person on the inside as well, someone capable of tremendous love and loyalty. He had shown her but a bare glimpse of it.

“So you think I don’t know you,” David prodded knowingly.

“You don’t have the faintest clue, McKee,” Isabel replied, playing along, “But if you think you know so much, try me.”

She did like the casual flirtation they had going on. And, seated at a park bench situated amid a cluster of trees in relative seclusion, the moment between them felt right. There was no one to look on and judge, no gawkers, no dissenters, no brothers telling her to be careful. There was only she and David and the twittering birds above their heads.

“You’re spoiled,” David declared, “Willful and with a tendency towards extreme selfishness--,”

“Flattery won’t get you anywhere with me,” Isabel mocked.

“--But you’re also beautiful and vulnerable with a fierce protective streak that’s utterly amazing,” he pressed on stubbornly, “You like to be in control but sometimes you like to lose it as well.” Isabel fell silent, a bit shocked that he had recognized all that about her during their very limited acquaintance. “How did I do?” he murmured knowingly.

“Not bad,” she said with a touch of bravado, “I’ll have to try harder to be more mysterious in the future.” David chuckled over her cool reply. “Now it’s my turn.” Wanting to unruffle him a bit as he had her Isabel offered to tell David a few things about himself.

“Oh, do you think you can?” he invited, clearly of the mind that she would not rise to the challenge.

“You’re spoiled, willful, and very used to getting your way,” Isabel declared succinctly, “You don’t like to lose. That’s why you took your break-up with Liz so hard. You weren’t really in love with her. Infatuated maybe, but it wasn’t love. She was a prize to you and when you lost her, you couldn’t stand the idea of being second best.”

David reared back in mild affront. “Wow, that was cold, Isabel,” he murmured, “You just had to bring Liz into it.”

“I don’t mean for it to come off that way,” Isabel replied gently, “I guess I just want you to understand that it would have never worked out for you and Liz. You’re pining for something that was never meant to be in the first place.”

“Because she’s in love with your brother,” David concluded grimly.

“No, David. Because you deserve to be loved whole-souled and give that same kind of love in return,” Isabel contradicted sweetly, “And Liz could not have given that to you and because she couldn’t, you would have never completely given yourself over either. You guys never really connected. If so, you would have established a bond long before she got pregnant.”

“Then why did she sleep with me?” David considered pensively, “She was a virgin, you know. I thought the fact that she wanted me to be the first meant something.”

“I think that had more to do with my brother than you,” Isabel sighed, “He sorta squandered away his virginity on a totally undeserving bitch and I guess Liz was…”

“…looking for payback?” David finished flatly.

“I don’t presume to know what she was thinking,” Isabel said, “But I know one thing about Liz Parker…she’s not a user. If she slept with you that day it was because she thought she could build a relationship with you, David.”

David offered her a lopsided grin. “Thanks for saying that, Isabel.”

“You’re welcome,” she murmured in reply.

David reached for the deck and reshuffled the cards with cardsharp like efficiency. “So then do you think I’ll ever find the right woman for me,” he asked casually as he dealt out their new hands.

Isabel offered him a deliberately coy smile over the top of her cards. “You never know.”

Chapter 37

The shrill ringing of his telephone awakened Max from a deep, contented slumber. With a sleepy grunt he untangled his arms from around Liz and blindly groped over her prone form to pluck up the receiver. “Hello?” he answered groggily.

“Max, I’m going to kill you!”

At the sound of his sister’s irate, strident voice Max jerked upright, his forehead furrowing in a deep frown of drowsy confusion. “Isabel?”

“Don’t you ‘Isabel’ me!” she snapped, “Who asked you to appoint a watchdog for me, huh? Do you think I’m not getting enough scrutiny as it is?”

Max scrubbed the remnants of sleep from his eyes and stifled a broad yawn. “Isabel, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replied blearily, “I’m still half asleep.” He glanced at the clock on his nightstand. It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet. “You do know we have a two hour time difference, right?” he informed his sister crossly.

Beside him Liz began to stir. She rolled into his body, looping her arm loosely about his waist. He could feel her pressing breathy little kisses against his stomach and he nearly moaned with the sensation. It took every ounce of willpower he had to concentrate on Isabel and her disjointed rant. Currently she was railing at him about how she didn’t give a damn what the time difference was.

Max flinched away from the phone. “Now why are you pissed off at me again?” he asked blankly, “Did I miss something?”

“Kadon!” Isabel fairly spat, “Who asked you to send him, huh? Did I say I needed a bodyguard? No, I didn’t and yet here he is! He follows me to class, to lunch and, as we speak, he’s camped outside my dorm room like some big, dumb sheep! All he’s managing to do is bring on more unwanted attention! Why Max?” she cried in frustration, “Why did you do it?”

Max only half heard her screaming lamentation. Liz had deepened her exploration of his abdomen, darting her tongue sweetly into shallow cavern of his navel. Only inches away from Liz’s chin Max felt his body twitch with arousal. He was acutely aware of Liz’s fingernails lightly grazing the sensitive skin of his testicles.

He bit down against the moan that bubbled to his lips, forcing himself to focus on his sister. “Look, Isabel,” he choked out as evenly as he could, “I didn’t send Kadon to New Haven to be a nuisance. The situation around here is getting pretty dangerous. I can’t believe it’s that much different for you either. Michael and I thought it would be better if you had someone there to keep an eye on you.”

“I can keep an eye on myself!” Isabel huffed angrily, “So next time don’t bother!”

He was so distracted by Liz’s nibbling kisses and teasing caresses that it took Max a moment to realize Isabel had hung up. He expelled a disgusted sigh, clicked off the phone and tossed it onto the floor. “Isabel’s pissed at me,” he said, leaning back onto the pillows so that Liz could have greater access in her ministrations. He buried his fingers in her hair, massaging her tender scalp as she continued to nip over his body.

Liz kissed an indolent path up his chest, letting her tongue skate seductively over his skin. “So I heard,” she chuckled.

“I don’t get it,” he muttered, “You try to do a good thing and…” He drifted off in his thought as Liz began swirling her tongue over his rigid nipple.

Impudently aware of the affect she was having, Liz lifted her head briefly to grin at him. “You were saying?” she purred innocently.

Max fixed her with a mock frown of censure. “You didn’t help matters, you know,” he scolded.

“That’s good,” Liz returned, her plucky smile unrepentant as she pressed her lips to his chest once more, “Because I wasn’t trying to.”

“Smart ass,” Max whispered right before lifting her head to capture her lips in a slow, tantalizing good morning kiss.

Just like that, his consternation and confusion over Isabel’s early morning rant was forgotten. Max gradually flipped their positions so that he and Liz lay face to face without ever taking his mouth from hers. He coasted his fingers over her bare shoulder, dipping inexorably lower to cup the full softness of her breast when the intercom beside his bed buzzed to life. They froze simultaneously, as if they thought by being perfectly still they could go undetected. Unfortunately, the buzzing continued. Finally, Max rolled away from Liz with a long-suffering groan and punched the receiver button.

“What,” he growled unpleasantly.

“Agent Kesley is here to see you, Max,” one of his guards informed him.

Max closed his eyes for a moment, cursing fluidly under his breath. When he was somewhat composed, he said, “Give me ten minutes.”

“Who’s Agent Kesley,” Liz queried as he rolled from the bed to shimmy into his jeans and t-shirt.

“He’s the one running the operation here,” Max explained as he combed his fingers through his unruly hair, “He hardly ever comes here at all. He’s got like a billion flunkies under him so he doesn’t have to put in a personal appearance. I wonder what he wants.”

Liz swung upright in bed, carefully tucking the sheet around her body. “Do you think it’s bad?” she asked fearfully.

“I doubt it,” Max replied, “He’s pretty predictable when he does show. We usually just talk about the landings and how my people are progressing in society. He gives me the whole political spiel about freedom and equality and how he admires my self-sacrificing spirit and then he’s off. He’ll be here maybe twenty minutes and that’s it.”

Max suspected Liz had her misgivings about that, but she was so desperate to believe and so was he that neither of them made a big deal out of it. “What should I do in the meantime?” she asked him.

“Why don’t you take a shower,” he suggested, “Hang out in here until he’s gone. Afterwards we’ll have breakfast together. Sound good?”

“Sounds great,” Liz said with a smile as he leaned down to kiss her goodbye.

“Twenty minutes,” he promised again and then he was out the door.

Yet, once Max made it out into the hallway and shut the door behind him a worried frown began to crease his forehead. He had seen Kesley exactly two times since he’d been taken into custody. Max had been sure that, having gathered all the pertinent information he could, Kesley wouldn’t return again until it was time for his release. So with that conclusion drawn Max couldn’t fathom what had prompted his unexpected visit today and he couldn’t banish the gnawing feeling in his gut that the reason wasn’t good.

When he stepped into the living room Agent Kesley was waiting for him. Despite himself, Max felt his step falter at the sight of the burly, older man.

“I hope I didn’t wake you,” Kesley opened cordially.

Max shook his head. “I was awake already.”

“That’s good,” Kesley said, “I’m glad to see that you’re adjusting here, Max.”

“I guess you can call it that,” Max muttered in reply, “I can’t complain.”

“It may help to keep in mind that this situation is only temporary,” Kesley advised, “How it plays out is completely up to you. The President has even talked about releasing you earlier if the next few landings go smoothly. He feels your cooperation thus far has been a sound gesture of good faith.”

“Really?” Max perked.

“We’re not looking to punish you, Max,” Kesley replied, “The President hates this situation as much as you do. But it’s his responsibility to make sure that the American people are cared for first and my responsibility to carry out that desire. It’s nothing personal, I assure you.”

“Is that why you came here today?” Max asked, “To give me a pep talk?”

“Actually I have some rather important business I’d like to discuss with you, Max.” He would have elaborated then but he caught sight of Liz in the hallway, standing just beyond Max’s shoulder. He inclined a nod in her direction. “Who’s your friend?”

Max whipped around, startled to realize Liz had crept out into the hall. As she came to stand beside him, however, he couldn’t be sorry that she had. “This is Liz Parker,” Max told Kesley, “She’s going to be spending a few days with me.”

“So this is the infamous Liz Parker,” Kesley murmured, “We’ve been keeping a file on you, young lady.”

For some reason his words filled Liz with an incredible sense of discomfort. She couldn’t be sure if he meant a file his department had started recently or the one that had been kept on her prior to the Special Unit’s dismantling. The waves of tension rolling off Max’s rigid body right then told her that he was wondering the same thing. However, Kesley’s expression remained cordial and open, as if he’d meant nothing by the comment at all.

“I hope that file is full of good things,” Liz brazened with a hollow laugh.

“Nothing but,” Kesley replied, “I hope it doesn’t make you uncomfortable knowing we have a file. We’ve made one for each of Max’s friends and family members. It’s merely a precaution.”

“Of course,” Liz murmured, pressing even closer against Max’s side.

“You came by for a reason, Agent Kesley?” Max prompted. He wanted to get to the heart of the matter and then conclude their business as quickly as possible.

“Well, I’m actually here at Lieutenant Pierce’s behest. He’s recently brought some information to my attention,” Kesley explained, producing a pristine manila folder from his briefcase. He passed it to Max. “I was hoping that you could help to shed a little light on it.”

“What is it?” Max asked, turning the file folder over in his hands suspiciously.

“It’s a classified document confiscated from the Special Unit branch of the FBI,” Kesley answered succinctly. Max nearly dropped the folder and, though he managed to cover the trembling of his hands, he could not mask the rapid whitening of his face.

“B…But I thought all the Special Unit documents were confiscated and destroyed,” Max stammered.

“Most of them were,” Kesley explained, “But, as you can see, a few were salvaged. This file proves that Agent Daniel Pierce did indeed have an alien being in his possession prior to his disappearance. Lieutenant Pierce seems to believe there’s some correlation between the two.”

“What?” Liz breathed when Max seemed incapable of speech.

“Is…Is that what you think?” Max asked tentatively.

“I’m not here to investigate Pierce’s disappearance,” Kesley said, “My assignment is establishing peace between your people and mine. Everything else is secondary.”

“Then what’s with the file?”

“Pierce is making something of a stink,” Kesley explained vaguely, “We do want this transition to be a smooth as possible…for everyone. And…Daniel Pierce was a federal agent so…” He stared at Max and Liz’s stricken expressions for a thoughtful moment. “Why don’t you read the file for yourself,” he invited.

Max opened the file but he didn’t need to read a word to know exactly what it said. The file was about him. He didn’t doubt it. “Do you see?” Kesley interjected as Max’s eyes scanned the page, “Pierce did have an alien in custody…an alien like you, Max. Subject A is described as a Caucasian male with certain human characteristics but with an alien genetic makeup.” Kesley paused to take a dramatic breath. “Don’t you see, Max? Pierce obviously captured a hybrid.”

By this time Liz and Max were visibly shaking but Kesley showed no awareness of the fact. His gaze remained as unassuming and as inscrutable as always. “Perhaps we may learn, once and for all, what became of Agent Pierce.”

“I don’t understand,” Max croaked gruffly and hopefully convincingly. He passed the file folder back to Kesley, anxious to be rid of it. “How do I fit into this?”

“Max, you told us there were four others, remember?” Kesley prodded, “Only four other males on the planet like you. Pierce could have only taken one of those four. This is all speculation, of course,” he added quickly, “But I would be remiss if I didn’t try to follow up on this lead. Do you have any idea which one this hybrid might have been?”

“How am I to know?” Max cried defensively, “I didn’t even know Daniel Pierce.”

“Of course not,” Kesley replied smoothly, “We’ve already established that, have we not?” He inclined his head in another cordial nod. “I was hoping that you might help us to locate this alien in the file,” he continued officially, “…this Subject A. I believe if we find him we will find Agent Pierce and finally put an end to all this controversy.”

“I can’t help you,” Max whispered tersely. He became aware then that Liz was standing beside him, her features blank with terror and dread. At that particular moment she was too upset to adequately cover her fear and Max realized her inability would only serve to make things worse for them.

Kissing her temple lightly, he murmured, “Why don’t you go back into the bedroom, okay? I’ll be there in a little while.”

“Max, I can’t leave you,” she whispered fiercely so that only he could hear her, “He’s trying to trap you.”

“He won’t,” Max promised in a low tone, “But you have to go into the bedroom now because you’ve got guilt written all over your face, Liz. If he doesn’t suspect something already then he very soon will. Please just wait for me in the bedroom.” With a stiff nod and one last wary glance at Kesley Liz did what he asked.

Once Max and the agent were alone he stated curtly, “Our deal was simple enough. I agree to stay here until all my people have landed and you benefit from our technology in the meantime. So far I’ve kept my end of the deal, Agent Kesley, but that’s as far as it goes. I’m not here to help you hunt down aliens or find out what became of Agent Pierce. I’m here only to safeguard the well-being of my people,” he finished concisely, “Beyond that I owe you nothing.”

Kesley snapped upright in surprise and managed to bite back his approving smile. “I didn’t mean to give you the impression I meant to force you, Max,” he said, “I thought, perhaps, that you would want to help us.”

“I don’t,” Max replied brusquely.

“Very well,” Kesley conceded, “I’m sorry I wasted your time.”

The agent left shortly after, pausing at his car door to place a call on his cell. “Tell Pierce I’m done playing his game. I’ve asked his damned questions and the boy knew nothing. The surveillance ends now. We have no further need for it. Max Evans isn’t a threat to us. Yes…well, if he doesn’t agree…make plans to move Evans to another facility, preferably one near Washington. I think the lieutenant has served his purpose.”

The front door had barely shut behind Agent Kesley before Liz came flying back into the living room in a full-fledged panic and pitched herself into his arms. “Max, he knows,” she fretted, “He was toying with you the entire time! He knows!”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Max conceded gruffly, “Kesley has never struck me as the enemy. He’s just trying to do his job. Besides he has no proof. And, even if he did, he couldn’t connect me to Pierce’s disappearance.”

“Max, this is getting dangerous,” Liz whispered into his chest, “You can’t keep on staying here.”

“Just a few more weeks, Liz,” he murmured gently, “Kesley even said that the President is thinking about an early release. I don’t think they want to keep me here anymore than I want to be kept. This is going to work out the way it’s supposed to.”

Max had no idea that while he was making his fervent promise to Liz, William Pierce, despite the explicit orders he’d just received, was already making alternative plans for him.

Chapter 38

“I thought I’d find you here,” Kyle said, “Don’t you know that all work and no play makes Pippi a very, very dull alien?” She didn’t laugh at his lame joke and Kyle hadn’t really expected her to. “You know one day, when you actually do decide to hazard a smile, you’re going to pull a muscle.”

Diadne paused in her target practice to level Kyle with an unsmiling look. “How did you know to find me here?” she asked simply.

“It wasn’t so hard,” he replied with a shrug, “I’m beginning to see that you and I think a lot alike.” Diadne’s responding expression clearly stated that she doubted that statement. Kyle chuckled a bit and explained himself. “Not too long ago I was preparing for war myself,” he admitted softly, “I didn’t think we could trust your people.” Back then the desert landscape had become his haven, his friend, much the way it was becoming a sanctuary to Diadne now.

“That is ironic, indeed,” Diadne replied slowly, “For I do not believe we can trust your people.” Again Kyle laughed but, as always, Diadne didn’t crack even a glimmer of a smile. She turned away from him to blast a nearby boulder into crumbling dust. “This is a strange planet,” she remarked when she was done, “The elements are so easy to manipulate…and destroy.”

However, Kyle looked beyond the menacing veneer of her declaration to the vulnerability that lurked beneath it. “You miss your home, don’t you, Diadne?” he surmised quietly.

Diadne glanced away, as if she were ashamed of the fact. “I miss my father,” she confessed meekly, “I am lost in this world without him.”

“That’s not true,” Kyle told her, “You have Max and Michael and…me. You’re not alone.”

“I am alone, Kyle Valenti,” she insisted, “When my father appointed me Royal Advisor he did so with much opposition. There were many more qualified soldiers to accept the position yet he chose me. Many resented him for it and resent me all the more because they feel I am unworthy.” She uttered a self-deprecating snort beneath her breath. “Perhaps I am unworthy,” she considered bitterly, “Our king is imprisoned and I have done nothing to prevent it. I have failed my father. I have failed the royal house.”

Kyle wanted to touch her, to pull her into his arms and comfort her as he knew most girls liked but he couldn’t be sure how the gesture would go over with Diadne. She was no girl. She might very well take offense at his attempt to touch her. Uncertainty keeping him at bay, Kyle instead tried to convey his empathy through his words.

“It’s not your fault that Max is in custody right now,” he told her, “He made that decision himself and for the good of you and your people. You couldn’t have talked him out of it once he made up his mind. Believe me, I know. Besides he won’t be in custody much longer…the feds are going to let him go once the rest of your people land.”

Diadne stared at him with hopeful blue eyes. “Do you really believe that?”

“I don’t really have much choice in the matter, Pippi,” he sighed wearily, “Contemplating anything otherwise…well, I just don’t want to think about it.”

“If they do not release him, we will fight,” Diadne declared softly.

“I know.”

“And you will lose,” she concluded grimly.

“It won’t have to come to that,” Kyle promised. But Diadne seemed less than convinced. “What will happen?” he asked tentatively, “I mean…if you decide to go to war?”

“I can spare no one who threatens the life of my king,” Diadne answered without remorse.

“And you can just do that?” Kyle asked, repulsed, “You can just kill without compunction?”

“I must protect my king,” Diadne told him. She mistook his appalled expression for alarm. “You have no reason to fear, Kyle Valenti,” she assured him, “You are loyal to our king. For that reason my people will protect you with their lives.”

“Diadne, you just escaped from a war torn planet,” Kyle reasoned bravely, “Is that really an existence you want to live through again?”

“Life is war,” she declared, “There is no happiness without struggle and pain.”

“Well, that’s a sucky existence, Pippi,” Kyle griped.

“I do not understand this word ‘sucky,’” Diadne replied with a concentrated frown.

“It means it bites. It blows. It stinks.” When she still appeared confused Kyle sighed in clarification, “It’s not pleasant.”

“Ahh,” Diadne said with dawned understanding, “You are right. At times, it is not.”

“You know what you need to do?” Kyle suggested on the spur, “You need to let your hair down a little.”

“No, I cannot do that,” Diadne protested, unconsciously fingering the tight ponytail at her nape, “It is a horror to subdue. I cannot fathom why human females find it to be so glamorous. Personally, I think it is a nuisance and very hot.”

Kyle groaned a laugh. He’d have to remember that figures of speech weren’t Diadne’s thing. “I don’t mean the hair on your head,” he clarified in amusement, “I meant that you should try relaxing some time.”

“I do not relax,” Diadne replied.

“Apparently,” Kyle muttered, “But that doesn’t mean you can’t start.”

“Relaxing leaves you open for attack,” she said, “It makes you weak and vulnerable. I am the Royal Advisor and I cannot afford to leave myself weak and vulnerable.”

“I like to relax,” Kyle retorted in affront, “Do you think I’m weak and vulnerable?” She didn’t make a verbal reply but the pitying look she gave him made her feelings plain enough. “Well, there went the ol’ ego,” he muttered to himself.

“You are a caring and compassionate individual,” Diadne soothed, “Which I am sure are qualities valued highly on this planet--,”

“Why don’t you just call me a wimp and be done with it?”

“—However, they are not necessarily the qualities an Antarian values.”

“And what qualities does an Antarian value?”

“Strength, power, courage and honor…”

“You don’t think humans possess these qualities,” Kyle challenged hotly.

“Of course they do,” Diadne considered, “Just not in abundance.” When Kyle began to sputter in offended reaction she tacked on helpfully, “It is no fault of your own. You are an inferior species.”

“Well, tell me this then, Diadne,” he fairly spat, “If your people are so strong then why are they always preying on the weak and helpless? If they’re so powerful then why couldn’t they save their planet from destruction? If they’re so courageous then why have so many in your ranks acted with cowardice? And if they’re so honorable then what happened with your beloved queen and Khivar and even your own mother?” Kyle could tell he was piercing her with each word, breaching that indifferent suit of emotional armor around her. He knew he was hurting her, whether she would admit to it or not, and still he couldn’t stop.

“Face it,” he finished coldly, “Your race isn’t infallible. They’re weak and governed by their emotions the same as humans. The only difference between my race and yours is that we’re brave enough to admit it!”

He stalked away from her then, the desert sand billowing at his heels.

********************

“You think they’re missing us by now,” Maria wondered as she and Michael sank deeper into the warm Jacuzzi water.

The romantic tryst they presently shared was a far cry from the near fiasco that had been their wedding ceremony. An Elvis impersonator had married them that afternoon. Maria had walked down the aisle with the jaunty instrumental tune to “Blue Suede Shoes” playing in the background. It hadn’t exactly been the wedding she’d envisioned for herself but Michael more than made up for it that evening. He had spared no expense renting them a room at one of Vegas’ most premier hotels. Maria felt much like a pampered little princess with the room service and five start treatment but, as was life, she was only able to hold off the real world for so long before worry and self-doubt started to creep in.

She had thought marrying Michael would help to alleviate some of her fears but ironically Maria felt like they had increased. Now so much more was at stake. Maria desperately wanted things to work out for the best.

“I’m pretty sure Razba is having a fit by now,” Michael chuckled into her neck, “He’ll get over it.”

“Speaking of Razba,” Maria mentioned timidly as Michael repositioned their bodies so that she lay back against his chest and her head rested against his shoulder. “How do you think he and Kadon will react?”

Michael went curiously still behind her, his stroking fingers coming to rest on her midriff. “What are you asking me, Maria?” he asked after a telltale pause of silence.

Maria twisted around in his arms so that she could see his face. “I know Razba and Kadon aren’t especially fond of me, Michael.”

“What makes you say that?” he brazened.

“I may be many things, Michael Guerin, but stupid isn’t one of them,” Maria returned dryly, “The only reason they even try is out of loyalty to you.”

“They’re still getting to know you,” he argued.

“They hate my guts,” she countered.

Michael pressed a heartening kiss to her forehead. “They don’t hate you, Maria,” he insisted softly “They just don’t know what to make of you yet.”

“What in hell is that supposed to mean?” she demanded querulously.

“Only that they don’t know you very well.”

“They don’t know you very well either,” Maria considered, “But I haven’t noticed them giving you the cold shoulder because of it. They seem perfecting willing to get to know you better.”

“Maria, you know that’s different.”

Maria shook her head in lamentation. “They’ll never accept us being together, Michael,” she predicted glumly, “So you can just prepare yourself for the mother of all blowouts.”

“Maria, you’re being entirely too pessimistic about this,” Michael told her.

“That’s a laugh coming from you,” she retorted.

“Try putting yourself in their position for a little while,” Michael suggested wisely, “They are unwanted guests stranded on a strange planet. Their only link with their old life is via Max, Isabel and me. They’ve recently had to deal with the following life changing facts: the knowledge that their queen was a lying betrayer, the complete destruction of their planet, and the realization that their beloved king is in love with a human girl.

“And they’re dealing with that,” Michael pressed on, “They’re riding out this wave of confusion and then…their king is taken into federal custody, held there just so they can have some basic rights in a strange country on an equally strange planet. So what’s the only thing they have left? Me and Isabel. They hope and pray that I can love her the way Rath loved Vilandra…but I don’t. I can’t.” He brushed his knuckles across the smooth skin of Maria’s cheek. “I’m in love with you, Guerin…no one else.”

By the time he was done Maria had tears smarting in her eyes over his sweet words. “So what are you telling me here, Michael,” she asked hoarsely.

“You need to give Kadon and Razba all time, Maria,” he replied, “They’ve taken a lot of hits lately and this last one with Isabel and me is really throwing them.”

“But they seem okay with Max loving Liz,” Maria protested, “So why can’t they be okay about us?”

“There’s a general lack of respect where Tess is concerned,” Michael explained, “No one really expected Max to be loyal to her memory after the crap she pulled. But Isabel’s not a traitor… They see her as Khivar’s dupe but not his accomplice like Tess was. In Kadon and Razba’s minds I don’t have a valid reason for not being with her.”

“So how do we fix that? Maria demanded anxiously, “How do we make them see?”

“We don’t,” Michael replied.

Maria reared upright. “What?”

However, before she could begin her rant Michael pulled her back down against his chest and slid his hands up and down her forearms in long, sensuous strokes. “Maria,” he began patiently, “Kadon and Razba have to accept on their own that Isabel and I aren’t Rath and Vilandra. Don’t get me wrong. I consider them my brothers. We do share the same genetic makeup, after all, but… I’m not Rath. Sooner or later they will see that.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“They’re already beginning to see it,” Michael answered, “At first they were expecting me to be Rath, but as time has gone on they’ve come to appreciate me more and more as Michael. It will be the same for you. Right now they see you as an interloper but that will change gradually once they see how much I love you, Maria. How much you love me…”

Maria sandwiched his cheeks between her hands and brought their lips together for a sound kiss. “How did you get so wise, huh?” she murmured in wonder.

Michael smiled at her and leaned forward to kiss her again, this time letting his lips linger. “I gotta tell you…I learned everything I know from you.”

Chapter 39

“I told you…I don’t know where the hell they are!” Kyle exclaimed.

It had been a long, exhausting morning thus far. Max had woken him up at the butt crack of dawn demanding audience. Kyle’s first reaction had been to tell his highness to take his demands and stick them where the sun don’t shine, but he’d quelled the impulse. All too soon he learned the reason for Max’s highhanded request. He thought that Michael and Maria were in danger.

Afterwards Kyle had wasted no time waking Diadne and together the two made their way out to the base to see Max. He hadn’t thought much of their absence before but Max’s paranoia had quickly fed into his. By the time he and Diadne reached the secret army base Kyle was torturing himself with a myriad of possibilities.

Presently, Kyle was going just as crazy as Max by this point. When he’d first received Maria’s vague message about taking some time away with Michael, Kyle hadn’t given it much thought. With all the craziness going on it had made sense that Michael and Maria would need to get away for a little while. A little while, Kyle thought hysterically, not two days! Two days of wondering and waiting. Two days with no word at all. Now Kyle was beginning to panic, which was the very reason he didn’t get annoyed when Max grilled him yet another time about exactly what Maria’s letter had said.

Max paused in his agitated pacing. “Do you have it with you?” he asked, “Maybe I should read it again.”

Liz placed a soothing hand on his shoulder. “Max, it’s not going to say anything different than the last four times you read it,” she whispered, “Stop working yourself up this way.” He slumped under her hand, knowing she was right but feeling all the more helpless because of it. As impulsive and headstrong as Michael could be sometimes Max couldn’t believe he would just pick up and leave without any explanation. Something had to be wrong.

“Do…Do you think this has anything to do with the situation we talked about earlier?” Kyle wondered carefully.

Max had given both he and Diadne a complete rundown of the situation going on between him and the feds. Obviously Agent Kesley and his cronies had some suspicions or they wouldn’t be scrutinizing Max so closely. It was Kyle’s humble opinion that Max should get the hell out of there before they discovered the truth and, not surprisingly, Diadne wholeheartedly concurred. Now with Michael and Maria missing Kyle didn’t know what to think.

“We should leave, my lord,” Diadne advised softly and not for the first time that morning either, “It is becoming much too dangerous for you to remain here. The humans are most likely trying to trap you.”

“I think that, too, Max,” Liz breathed shakily, “None of us are safe here…especially you.”

“B…But what about the other ships?” “Max stammered, “I can’t just leave! No matter how scared I am right now I have a responsibility to my people! The negotiations are almost over. Who knows what the government will do to them if I back out of our deal now.”

“Or what they’ll do to the government,” Kyle muttered under his breath. He couldn’t help but think back on the warning Diadne had given him just the day before.

Ignoring Kyle for the moment, Diadne said, “Our people will care for themselves, my lord. They know your primary concern is keeping yourself safe and preserving the throne.”

“Max would never do that,” Liz interjected softly, “That’s not who he is.” She said the words with the utmost confidence because she knew that they were the exact words in Max’s heart. Liz wasn’t surprised nor was she offended by the expression of mild disgust that came to Diadne’s face. The girl was an enigma to be sure. Liz found herself somewhat speechless and a little dumbfounded to see the scrappy girl take such definitive charge. Of course, Liz had to remind herself that Diadne was hardly a girl in the traditional sense but what she saw with her eyes was warring with the logical part of her brain.

“This is no time for human sentiment,” Diadne advised, “Your life could be at stake.”

“I won’t save it at the risk of endangering hundreds of others,” Max persisted intractably.

“That is not a wise decision, my lord,” Diadne pressed, “I do not feel that this is a safe place to remain. We should leave immediately.”

“If I do that then they’ll definitely get suspicious,” Max reasoned.

“Besides that, there’s not a whole lot of places to run,” Kyle interjected practically, “Not even the podchamber is a safe haven for us anymore…so where the hell could we go?”

“I do not have all the answers,” Diadne ventured again, “But there is something here that does not feel right. Something that is strange in this apartment…on this base. I do not understand the feeling but nor can I dispel it either.”

Since arriving Diadne had been sniffing about the apartment, her eyes narrowed with concentration. Clearly, she sensed something but, as she admitted, she was unable to discover the reason for her unease. She fixed Max with a deferential stare. “Of course I would never presume to dictate to you, my lord, but I feel I would be remiss if I did not voice my opinion.”

“I’m not offended,” Max reassured her, “I know you’re only speaking in my best interests right now but…leaving just doesn’t seem like an option, for so many reasons but most especially because we have no idea where Michael and Maria are right now. I’m not leaving without them.”

Just then the kitchen intercom buzzed causing everyone, except Diadne, to jump in nervous fright. Three pairs of anxious eyes swung in that direction. “Max, you’ve got some visitors,” his guard announced. The tension created from that statement burst apart, however, when Michael and Maria came tripping through the front door a few seconds later looking sun-kissed and stunning and…alive.

“Where the hell have you been?” Max demanded before they’d even stepped into the living room completely.

Michael stopped short and frowned at bit at his friend’s tone. “Well, hello to you, too, Maxwell,” he replied sardonically. He refrained from further sarcasm, though, when he recognized that nearly everyone was present. “Is this a party?” he asked blankly, “Do you guys know already?”

“Know what?” Kyle demanded, but his question was drowned out by Maria’s delighted squeal when she caught sight of Liz.

“Chica!” she cried, running for her friend, “You’re home! When did you get back? Are you visiting or what?”

Liz returned Maria’s hug tightly. “A few days ago actually,” she admitted sheepishly, “And no, I’m not visiting.” Her eyes connected with Max over Maria’s shoulder. “I’m here to stay. I have been trying to call you with the news though,” Liz added when Maria pulled back to scold her, “but you’ve been MIA.”

“I have a good reason,” Maria declared happily.

“And what’s that?” Max wanted to know.

“We got married,” Michael provided quietly.

“You got what?” Max, Liz and Kyle exclaimed in unison.

“We got married,” Maria clarified giddily, flashing her wedding ring around the room for all to see, “In Vegas. I am officially Mrs. Michael Guerin.”

Now it was Liz’s turn to squeal with happiness. “Ooh congratulations, Maria!” she cried, squeezing Maria in another hug, “That’s so awesome!”

“You got married,” Max echoed in disbelief, “That’s just…wow…”

“Look, don’t give me a hard time about it, Maxwell,” Michael warned, “For right now I’m happy, okay…so don’t spoil it for me.”

“I won’t spoil it,” Max uttered, “I’m just…shocked.” He stepped forward to offer Michael a manly hug, as did Kyle. “Congratulations, man.”

“And best wishes,” Kyle chimed, “You’re going to need them being married to Maria.” He missed the dirty look Maria shot in his direction for that comment.

However, their quiet rejoicing was subdued a moment later when Diadne asked, “But what about Vilandra, my lord?”

All five friends turned to her in unison but Michael was the one to answer her. “Vilandra doesn’t exist anymore, Diadne,” he replied evenly, “Neither does Rath. Who you see before you now is Michael Guerin. I’m a nineteen-year-old grill cook turned intergalactic politician. That’s all. What you see is what you get. And this lady…” He reached out to pull Maria alongside him and press a lingering, loving kiss to her lips. “This is my wife Maria. She’s the love of my life. You either take us or leave us.”

Diadne appeared dismayed by his words but had no other alternative but to accept his decision. “Congratulations, my lord,” she joined in softly.

“And enough with this ‘my lord’ crap!” he ordered, “I’m Michael and this is Max. If you can’t think of us as your friends at least think of us as your equals.”

“Yes…” Diadne agreed haltingly, “Michael.”

Once that was settled Michael turned his attention back towards Max. “Okay, so if you guys didn’t know Maria and I had gotten married then why are you all gathered together here?” he asked. He appraised their funereal expressions with a deepening frown. “You look like somebody died.”

“We didn’t know where you were and we were worried,” Max explained, “We thought something might have happened to you two.”

Michael frowned. “Didn’t Valenti get the note?”

“Yeah, I got the note,” Kyle confirmed, “But it sure as hell didn’t say anything about you being gone for two days! You kinda left that part out.”

“Spur of the moment decision,” Maria explained with an impish smile, “Spaceboy and I just needed some more time away. It was just nice being normal for a change. We didn’t want to give it up.”

“I totally understand that,” Max empathized, “But this is a really dangerous time for us to be separated.”

“Dangerous?” Michael echoed sharply, “Why? What’s happened?”

“Agent Kesley came to see Max yesterday morning,” Liz answered softly, “He was asking questions about Pierce’s disappearance.”

Michael blanched with the revelation and actually weaved a bit. Maria flanked him in an instant, letting his rest his weight against her. “What does he know?” he whispered shakily.

“Nothing really,” Max replied, “He has this file, apparently, which documents the fact that Pierce briefly had a hybrid in his custody.”

“Do they know who it was?” Michael asked tentatively.

“Evidently not,” Max replied, “Otherwise they would have been all over me.” Yet, Michael never had a moment to expel his sigh of relief because Max followed quickly with, “But they are definitely suspicious, Michael. I saw Kesley’s face the other day when he was asking me all those questions. It’s like he was fishing or something.”

“But he doesn’t really know anything?” Maria latched on desperately.

“Nothing significant anyway,” Kyle interjected.

“You shouldn’t stay here, Max,” Michael advised quickly, “You’ve definitely got to leave. There’s no other choice now!”

“And if I run, then what?” Max demanded, “I’d be admitting my guilt if I did that.”

“And you’d be handing yourself over like a lamb to the slaughter if you stayed,” Michael argued obstinately.

The two young men squared off, their women taking their respective sides while Kyle rode the fence. “I can see where you both are coming from,” he said, “but we can’t turn on each other. This is where our sticking together really counts! There’s just no easy decision here at all.”

While the five argued it out amongst themselves Diadne crept about the apartment unnoticed, her instincts on high alert. She couldn’t shake her feelings of discomfort. There was definitely something not right about the apartment. She had felt the unnerving disquietude when she’d visited earlier that week and she was absolutely certain that her instincts weren’t wrong.

Unaware of Diadne’s perusal, Michael declared belligerently, “I say we put it to a vote! All those in favor of running say ‘aye’.”

“Michael, you know that’s not fair,” Liz told him, “Max is trying to make the best decision for everyone.”

“Yeah, well maybe he should stop thinking about everyone and start thinking about himself!” Michael retorted, “Save your own ass, Max!”

“All this yelling isn’t getting us anywhere,” Kyle interceded, “We need to make a decision and we need to make it now.”

They never made it that far. Diadne claimed all the tension in the room when she abruptly shattered a decorative mirror hanging on the living room wall. A momentary hush fell over everyone as they stared down at the glittering shards of glass spilled across the floor. No one dared to say a word…except for Michael.

“What the hell’s the matter with you?” he demanded shortly.

“Come look,” Diadne invited with equal aplomb.

The five friends gathered around slowly, a collective gasp going up among them as they drew closer. And then, one by one, they all began to tremble.

Nestled neatly in the wall and plain for all to see was a very compact, very secret video camera.

Chapter 40

Private Robert Getty listened to the arguing teens with a halfhearted ear. He’d only been doing this a day and a half and already his conscience was beginning to prickle. He didn’t like being privy to people’s private conversations. But he had his orders, straight from his lieutenant. Of course, those orders were in direct conflict with Agent Kesley’s orders that their surveillance cease and desist. Petty felt as if he were stuck between a rock and a hard place.

What was worse, these alien creatures made him jumpy. He’d only seen a little of what they were capable of and just that much had thoroughly freaked him out. At present all his nervous attention was directed towards the alien girl. She was sniffing around the apartment like she sensed something. When she came up on the camera he actually began to sweat. In that second it seemed as if she were looking right at him.

Petty came half out of his seat minutes later when she broke the mirror. Seconds later, however, he was seized by full-fledged panic when the five others gathered around the camera and began peering into the lens. Getty groped blindly off to his left for the phone and put in a call to his superior.

“Lieutenant Pierce,” he said shakily, “I think we might have a problem.”

********************

“I don’t believe this.”

Max stared down at the tiny camera embedded in the wall in a state of gathering rage. His mind was littered with a dozen thoughts but only one seemed to resound in his ears. Those sons of bitches had been videotaping him. All that time and with Kesley spouting on about having his best interests at heart and the bastard had been double-crossing him. As if taping his phone conversations hadn’t been enough! But this…this was a complete invasion of his privacy. Here he’d spent nearly a month in this apartment and they had been taping him the entire time.

He thought about all his activities over the past few weeks. Showering, eating, meeting with his friends and family, just attending to his daily biological needs. His most intimate and private moments, especially those nights when missing Liz had been like a fire inside of him. And then Max thought about events more recent, the last few days he’d spent making love to Liz again and again…all over the apartment…and they had seen. They had seen it all. Max felt his chest fill with cold fury.

Why hadn’t he suspected it? Why hadn’t he known? Truthfully, he hadn’t wanted to know. He hadn’t wanted to think they would violate his civil rights so thoroughly. He hadn’t wanted to think he had made a grave mistake in agreeing to stay there.

“Toss the place,” he ordered Diadne woodenly, “I want every camera in this apartment found. We’ll find out exactly what those bastards have seen.”

The six barreled through the tiny apartment, ransacking everything in their paths. The cameras were carefully hidden, in places they would have never suspected. It wasn’t very long before they uncovered quite a plethora of surveillance devices situated all over the small apartment. They made a pile of their findings in the middle of the living room floor and together, Max, Michael, Kyle, Diadne and Liz zapped the devices to a crispy cinder with the use of their powers.

“I can’t believe they’ve been taping you this whole time, Max!” Michael spat in disgust, “This definitely means our deal with Kesley is over. If he wants a fight…he’ll get one.”

“We don’t have a choice anymore,” Liz declared quietly, swinging her gaze around the room, “We have to leave.”

********************

When the monitors became blank with snow and the listening devices fizzled out into static William Pierce felt as if someone had pumped ice water into his veins. It was too soon for everything to end now. He had no evidence gathered, no witnesses to the confession. All he had was a handful of suspicions and conjecture and Max Evans was just seconds away from slipping through his fingers. He knew he had to move fast.

“Don’t make a move without backup!” Pierce ordered his officers sharply over the walkie-talkie, “Do what you must to keep them from leaving but don’t engage them directly otherwise!”

“You can’t do anything without Kesley’s authority,” Torres intoned when Pierce swung around, “This is a federal matter, Pierce. You’ve already got enough to answer for as it is so don’t make things worse on yourself. If Max Evans wants to leave then you shouldn’t try and stop him.”

“It’s my unit’s job to handle situations like this,” Pierce barked, “That makes it a military matter!”

“Then inform your superior! You’ve seen what Max Evans and his people are capable of,” Torres warned him, “He’ll flatten you in two seconds. Haven’t you screwed things up enough already? Kesley ordered us to sit tight. If you choose to ignore these latest orders then I will be forced to arrest you.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” Pierce sneered.

Torres shrugged. “Fine. It’s your funeral. Lead your men to slaughter if that’s what you want but know this…you’re paying for it with your career.”

“I don’t care! He’s just one person,” Pierce spat out, “And my men heard him! You heard him! He all but admitted to murdering my brother. Where’s your sense of justice? You talk about arresting me but he’s the criminal! There’s no way in hell I’m letting him get away with that!”

********************

They hadn’t even swung the front door open fully before the two guards standing outside had their M-16’s cocked and ready. Max fell back a step, clutching Liz’s hand tightly. Against his forearm he could feel the fluttering patter of her agitated heartbeat. He could do little to comfort her, not with an M-16 trained directly at his head.

“We can’t let you leave, Max,” the guard to his left stated, “All of you step back inside and no one will get hurt.”

After that everything unfolded in a terrifying blur of confusion. While the others were panic stricken, Diadne acted on pure instinct. With the flashing blaze of her hand she sent both soldiers flying out into the dirt courtyard. A cascade of bullets went up as they sailed through the air, a delayed reaction to an attack they had not been expecting. Kyle, Max and Michael froze in horror while Maria and Liz screamed but Diadne didn’t even blink an eye.

“We must move,” she advised succinctly, “More will come.” Left with little choice, the five appalled teens followed her as she ran for the cluster of army vehicles on the other side of the field. For the most part, they ignored the lifeless bodies of the soldiers lying in the dust as they passed even as they could hear the roar of approaching vehicles.

“Where are we supposed to go?” Kyle cried as they ran, “We don’t even know how we got out here or even where here is!”

“Kyle’s right,” Maria panicked, stumbling alongside Michael as she struggled to keep up with gazelle like strides, “We’re trapped like rats!”

“We’re not trapped!” Michael claimed, easily swinging Maria up into his arms mid-run. He didn’t seem to notice his own fluid, animal like grace when doing so, but Maria did and it freaked her out. However, left with little choice, she buried her face in Michael’s neck and held on for dear life.

“I know the way out of here and so does Diadne!” Michael yelled as he darted through the clearing, “Just follow our lead!”

“How do you know?” Kyle demanded, “We were blindfolded on the way out here!”

“Trust me, dammit!”

Really it wasn’t the time to argue about it. Another wave of gunfire had ensued and the bullets were whizzing dangerously close to their ears. They zigzagged across the open courtyard, ducking gunfire while Diadne alternately returning ion blasts to slow their pursuers. Max, Liz, Michael, Maria and Kyle were so intent on making it to the fenced area that housed the jeeps that they didn’t realize Diadne had thrown up a protective shield around them, deflecting most of the bullets back at their attackers. They didn’t realize that she’d already killed five soldiers and seriously wounded four others.

By the time they reached the jeep paddock most of the bullet fire had died down considerably. With the others fidgeting nervously at his back, Michael shifted Maria in his arms and dissolved the lock to the jeep gate before kicking it open. Once inside, they went scrambling for the nearest vehicle for cover, a massive army tanker, when another round of bullets showered over their heads.

“Don’t move another step,” Lieutenant Pierce warned calmly through a bullhorn, “We have you completely surrounded. If you surrender now we’ll make this easy for you, Max.”

Michael hunkered down beside Max, breathing hard. “It’s your call,” he whispered, “What do you want to do?”

“I’m not going back,” Max replied, shaking his head, “It was a mistake to trust them to help us. They’ll kill me for sure.” He looked around at the anxious faces of his friends and loved ones. “They’ll kill us all,” he concluded with certainty.

“We can take them, Max,” Kyle whispered, “But it’s not going to be pretty…not for any of us.”

Max looked over at Liz, needing her silent reassurance for strength. He knew that attacking those soldiers would be seen as nothing less than an act of war and for that there would be hell to pay. Liz stared up at him with an open, trusting gaze, her brown eyes tender and reassuring. “Do what you have to, Max,” she murmured, “I’m behind you…whatever you decide.”

Jerking his head in a nod, Max swallowed and addressed the group once more. “We do what we have to…whatever it takes to get off this base alive.”

“Whatever it takes,” the others agreed.

Growing irritated with Max’s continued silence, Pierce threw out another ultimatum. “This can only end badly for you, Max,” he considered smoothly, “Several of my soldiers are already dead. You’ll have to answer for that as it is. Don’t make the situation harder on yourself.”

“Go to hell!” Kyle shouted defiantly.

“We know you found the cameras,” Pierce continued, “And that’s unfortunate. We tried to make your stay with us as pleasant as possible but things didn’t work out that way. However, you’re only succeeding in making the situation worse now. There’s no way off the base, Max. You and your friends don’t even know where you are. You’re sitting ducks. After what you’ve done to my soldiers the American people wouldn’t fault me if I killed you now. You have two options: surrender or die.”

His heart pounding with the threat, Max swiveled around to face Diadne. “What can you do?” he asked anxiously, “I want to avoid more death but… I don’t doubt he’ll try to kill us the moment we step from behind this tanker.”

“I can manipulate their minds,” Diadne said, “I can make them think we are surrendering when we are really escaping. But there are many soldiers, Max…I will be unable to hold it very long. It will only buy us enough time to scramble into a getaway vehicle but no more.”

“Do it,” Max told her.

Diadne caught hold of his arm as he turned away. “There is one more thing,” she added, “Doing this will weaken my body considerably. It will take some time for my powers to restore fully. I will be useless to you. You may need to leave me behind.”

“Like hell!” Kyle barked.

“He’s right,” Max replied softly, “No one’s getting left behind, Diadne. We’re going to work together to get out of this mess.”

“I will slow you down,” she whispered fiercely, “You must leave me behind.”

“We’re not fucking doing that!” Kyle snapped harshly, “You don’t have to do this alone, Pippi. Michael, Liz and I will pick up the slack. Let’s just get it over with.”

“Max!” Pierce called out to him, “You have five seconds to make your decision and then my men will begin firing. What will it be?” Just as he made the last of his threat Diadne’s eyes glazed over as she entered fully into the warp. She projected the image of the six of them walking forward, hands thrown up in surrender as the others waited in breathless anticipation to see if it worked. A few seconds later they realized it had when Pierce ordered his men to hold their fire.

Recognizing that they were operating on borrowed time, Max ordered the others to run ahead to a nearby jeep. However, as Michael, Maria and Kyle scattered, Liz lingered behind when she realized that Max didn’t have any intention of following.

“What about you?” she asked anxiously, “Aren’t you coming?”

“Diadne will be too weak to make it to the jeep on her own,” Max explained quickly, “She’ll need someone to stay behind and help her.”

Liz’s eyes flared wide with his implication. “No, Max,” she cried, “No! I’m not leaving you! We’re going together or not at all!”

“Liz, I can’t argue with you about this! You have to go now! Please,” Max pleaded, “I’ll be along soon…I swear it.” She hesitated still, throwing a desperate glance between his face and her departing friends, her brown eyes glimmering with tears of dread.

“I can’t go,” she whispered tremulously.

In the end, Max had to pry her bloodless fingers from his forearm. “Liz, you have to go,” he urged hoarsely, “Please, Liz…”

She leaned forward and pressed his lips in a fervent kiss full of desperate hope. “You promise that you’re coming right behind us? You promise?”

Max fingered her quivering lower lip, forcing a smile. “I’ll be right behind you. I promise.”

After giving him one last anxious kiss Liz hurtled in the direction that the others had already taken. Max followed her by mere seconds, dragging along a disoriented Diadne in his wake. They were halfway to their safety when the mindwarp collapsed completely and Pierce shouted for his men to fire. The bullets zipped around them again, too fast to outmaneuver. They were halfway to safety when Max felt something hot rip through the fleshy part of his thigh. He stumbled and fell to the ground, taking Diadne with him as gunfire and Liz’s horrified screams echoed through the morning air.

Max reflexively covered the wound with his hand, but the blood spurted warmly through his fingers in great gushes. He suspected the bullet might have hit an artery. His consciousness rapidly fading, Max ordered Diadne to leave him there but he should have known better than to expect her to obey. She staunchly refused and sent back a few charged blasts of return fire before stooping down to assist Max to his feet. Liz, Michael and Kyle also joined in the attack, rocking the ground so fiercely that the earth began to crack open with great gaping fissures. Some of the soldiers fell into the land pits while others, realizing that they were no match for such an assault, turned and ran.

When he saw the struggle Diadne was having getting Max safely to the jeep Kyle ran out to offer his assistance, all the while maintaining fire coverage with Liz and Michael. By the time he reached them Diadne had collapsed under the strain of holding Max upright. The ground around them was soaked through with his blood. Kyle quickly flanked Max’s other side, distributing most of Max’s dead weight onto himself because he knew Diadne couldn’t handle more in her weakened state.

As Max shuffled along between them Kyle grunted under the demands of his weight. “Dammit, Evans,” he groaned as he and Diadne lugged Max’s limp form towards the idling jeep, “What have you been eating these last four weeks? Cookies and donuts? Is that chocolate milk and cream filling you’re bleeding right now cuz you weigh a friggin ton!”

“Screw you, Valenti,” Max groused woozily, “Just get me to the jeep before I pass out.”

“God forbid,” Kyle muttered, “Or we’ll never make it.”

“This isn’t the time to make jokes,” Diadne scolded as another round of bullet fire rained behind them.

“This is the perfect time to make jokes,” Kyle argued glibly, “We’re about to probably get our asses fried. I’d like to go down laughing if at all possible.”

Thankfully, however, they made it to the jeep in one piece and, with a last shower of energy discharges from Michael that sent most of the soldiers diving for cover, Liz, Maria and Kyle helped to heave Max’s near unconscious body into the jeep as Diadne climbed onto the back. A worried grimace twisted over Liz’s pale features as she lovingly cradled her boyfriend’s head in her lap and sifted her fingers through his perspiration soaked hair. Seconds later, Kyle jumped behind the steering wheel and floored the accelerator, leaving their attackers choking on dust and scrambling in confusion.

“See…I told you I was right behind you, Liz,” Max whispered weakly as he slipped off into oblivion, “I kept my promise after all.”