Personal :: Fanfiction :: Before the Beginning

Out of Roswell :: Chapter 4 :: Up and Away

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Maria snuggled up to Michael after they settled down on the ground, their backs against the van. Maria heard Michael sigh softly and felt his head rest on top of hers as his hand automatically circled around her shoulders. She waited expectantly for some conversation, but Michael was obstinately silent. She restrained her natural desire to prod him into talking about their conversation in front of Serena's house for a good five minutes. But finally, she couldn't stand the silence anymore.

"So, Michael, have you done any more thinking?" She put forth the effort to keep her voice bright and cheery.

"Nnng?" Michael didn't even bother to form a word. Maria allowed an annoyed frown to cross her lips...he couldn't see them, after all.

"Michael? Are you listening to me?"

"Mmmmmhmmm..."

"Well then, if you are, could you at least say "Yes," or something? I feel like you're not paying attention when you mumble like that." Maria's hands twisted in her lap. Michael's hand on her shoulder relaxed, as if that was the only place it belonged, and it would never move. She allowed herself an indulgent smile and placed one of her hands over his. "It's nice to be separated from all the others for a bit. I love Liz dearly, but a week with almost no time alone with you is driving me crazy." She leaned back and sighed happily. "If you don't want to talk about anything, that's fine, Michael. If you're still thinking about things, I mean." The weight of his head on hers became heavier, uncomfortably so. She squirmed over to the side a little. "Hey, are you alright? Michael?" As she began to slide out from underneath him, the full force of his weight came crashing down on her. She fell on her side. "Michael!"

"Huh?" Michael raised his head and blinked, the side of his face covered with dust.

"What's wrong with you? I try to hold a serious conversation in our few precious minutes alone together, and you fall asleep?!?"

Michael slapped the roadside dust off his face, his eyes still bleary and confused. "What?" He sat up and held out his hand to help her up.

"I was talking to you, and you just collapsed!" Maria was too angry to accept his proffered help. She struggled up to her feet without assistance and brushed dust off her shirt and shorts as she collected her thoughts. "It's the first time we're not crowded in with at least four other people in days! I wanted to have a serious conversation!"

Michael groaned and ran his hand over his face. "Oh god, please, no relationship cra-" he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Uh...stuff. Not now. I've been awake for the last two days and used my powers like crazy. If someone came along to kill us right now, I'd probably be grateful to them for the chance to rest." He ran his hand through his hair, sprinkling more dust over himself. "I can't deal with it right now, Maria."

Maria stamped her foot, then stalked away, walking to the front of the van. She rested her hands on the hood of the van and glared at the ugly turquoise color Isabelle had chosen for the van. Her finger found a spot of rust and she picked absently at it with her fingernail as she glared at the ground. How could he? She was being more than patient with him. She'd even forgiven his behavior when he'd borne the seal of Antar. She'd waited calmly for days, and when they finally got a chance to have a real conversation, he fell asleep!

She heard a small sound. Her eyes leapt up to look at Michael, who was pulling himself to his feet. He leaned wearily against the van as he brushed the dust off his arms. He truly did look exhausted. And it had been a long last couple of days, full of excitement and tension.

Maria jerked her hands away from their absent-minded grip on the van's hood and walked back over toward Michael. His eyes were wary as she walked up. He was probably worried because her expression was still angry. Now she was frustrated with herself, though, not him. She began to brush the pale roadside dust off him, starting with his head. "I can't believe you got this dirty," Maria said in a conversational tone.

She couldn't quite bring herself to apologize for her explosion, but she had to acknowledge that her timing had been unfair. Michael, miracle of miracles, seemed to recognize her oblique apology for what it was. He smiled, a little hesitantly, and shrugged. "I dunno. It just happened." He yawned. "I can't wait for a chance at a shower." He suddenly reached out and pulled her against him.

"Hey! First you say you need to shower, than you hug me close! Maybe I don't want to get dirty!"

The hint of a smirk on Michael's face showed her that he realized her protest was a joke. He reached up with one hand and tousled her hair, still holding her close with the other. A cloud of fine dust fell over them. He grinned. "Too late." He was looking at her lips. Maria smiled a little as she stood on her tiptoes, closed her eyes and kissed him. Their kiss started out tentative, almost fearful, but quickly deepened as they both began to drop their barriers.

Flashes of Michael's life skittered across her mind. Coming out of the pods. Fear, as he looked at Max and Isabelle, newly emerged from the pods themselves. Loneliness. Hank, standing over him and shouting, his hand raised for a blow. The relief of finding Max and Isabelle again. Constant fear of discovery. His confusion over how to make her happy. The love that forced him to give up his dreams of returning to Antar, and brought him back to her. The pain of her breaking up with him. The rush of power as he realized he was the new king.

The intensity of the feelings that washed over her from Michael made Maria weak in the knees. He hadn't been this open to her since the night before he thought he'd leave for Antar. She could feel how hard it was for him to let her see him like this. His self doubt and loathing underlay everything he showed her, as well as the never-ending fear of rejection.

Maria didn't really know how these "flashes" worked, but she seemed to be picking through his most intense memories and emotions. She desperately wanted him to understand that whatever his faults were, and whatever hers were, they wouldn't change the way she felt about him. She tried to push that thought at him, toward whatever flashes he might be receiving from her. Unconsciously, she also increased the intensity of an already intense kiss.

There was a hollow thud as Michael collapsed against the side of the van. It rocked heavily on its tires, and metal screeched against metal as the van shook back and forth. Maria broke off the kiss with a breathless giggle. "Are you alright?"

"Fine." Michael's chest was heaving. He seemed to have had the same trouble breathing. "That was a little...uh..."

Maria sighed, letting her hands fall slowly from his shoulders. "Yeah." She looked down at herself, light dust forming a fine layer over her clothing, then she raised her eyes to look back at Michael. He looked even worse. She stretched her lips into a crooked smile. "Well, don't we look beautiful," she cracked. Michael shrugged. He looked uncomfortable. Maria grabbed his hand. "Look, Michael, I'm sorry I hurt you."

His grip suddenly clenched her hand tightly. His eyes seemed deeper than normal. "I'm sorry for the times I hurt you, too."

Her smile widened. "That's good to hear." She sidled over next to him and leaned her back against the van too, still holding his hand. He looked at her out of the corner of his eyes and shifted from foot to foot. He seemed to be searching for something to say. As she watched him, she noticed a tow truck coming down the road in their direction. She patted him on the shoulder with her free hand, sending another cloud of grit into the air around them. "Don't worry, you don't have to talk about relationship crap anymore." She nodded in the direction of the tow truck. "We don't have the time, anyway." Michael turned to look in the direction of her gaze and saw the truck. He pushed himself away from the van with a heave, and pulled her along behind him, waving toward the truck with his other hand.

"Hey! Over here!"

The tow truck pulled ahead of the van and backed up close to it, and then the driver got out. He grinned at the two of them. "Well aren't you a pretty sight! What, the cops wouldn't even give you a ride into town?"

Maria brushed ineffectually at the dust on her clothes again. The driver's grin widened. Michael strode up to him. "No, our friends rode with the officer, but there were too many of us, so he told us to catch a ride with you."

The driver looked at Michael, sizing him up, then he stabbed his thumb back over his shoulder toward the cab of the truck. "You look completely exhausted. Go sit in the truck, I'll get your van hooked up and we'll go into town." Michael began to walk toward the passenger door without another word, his fingers sliding over Maria's as he let go of her hand.

Maria looked at the man. "Er, the officer said he was taking everyone to someplace called Joanne's."

He smiled and nodded as he began to pull some harness thing down toward the front of the van. "Yeah, it's the best place to go to get something to eat while you wait. You guys look like you drove all night."

Maria strived to keep the tone of the conversation light and open. "Yeah, well, it's cheaper than getting a hotel, and with seven of us, we switched the driving." She yawned. "I guess we'll have to stop tonight, though. Another night like that would be hard to take."

The man shook his head, still grinning. "Oh, to be young again. Well, go on into the truck. I won't be more than a couple minutes." Maria nodded and crawled up into the passenger seat. Michael wrapped his arm around her shoulder as she settled in.

"What were you talking about?" He sounded worried and paranoid. Maria jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow.

"Don't be like that. I just told him we drove through the night because we're too cheap to pay a hotel bill. Stupid kids, on a roadtrip before starting college or something, you know."

"Mmm..fine." He sounded about ready to collapse. She sighed and reached up, pulling him against her.

"You are a tired, stupid kid. Just relax and shut up. I can handle this." After he leaned against her without a word of protest, she knew he wasn't faking the exhaustion. He didn't even pretend to be stubborn and put up a fight. His breathing slowed as his head rested on her shoulder. The truck suddenly shook, and Maria looked in the side mirror. The van was being lifted onto its rear wheels. They'd be ready to go in a second. A minute later the man climbed up into the driver's seat. He looked Michael, already snoring softly, and grinned. Maria smiled back.

"You said Joanne's, right?"

"Yeah." He reached down and started the truck. Maria leaned against the passenger door of the truck and dozed off herself.

*****

"So, what are we going to do when we get to Boston?" Liz asked once the pleasant feeling of having her trust in Serena vindicated began to wear off. She looked around at her friends, three old ones, and one new. They all looked exhausted. Serena was the most alert of them, but despite their growing trust in her, no one, not even Liz herself, was reckless enough to let her drive them. Paranoia was a hard habit to break. "We're not going to be much good to Jesse if we all collapse once we find him. No offense, but you guys all look awful."

Kyle gave her a dirty look. Isabelle snorted, but the good cheer that had washed over her once hope for rescuing Jesse had reemerged didn't seem to have been dampened by Liz's insulting comment. "You're not looking so great there yourself, Liz."

Max rushed to her defense. "What are you talking about? She's never looked more beautiful!" He leaned over to give her a kiss. She dodged him with a giggle, and his lips landed on her cheek.

"Oh, stop it. I know I look horrible. But the point is, we have to rest. How long will the flight to Boston be? Not enough for a full night's sleep, I bet. And once we get Jesse away from the government, we're going to be chased even more closely than we are now."

Isabelle looked disturbed at Liz's comment. Liz heard a creak as Max leaned in toward her again. "We don't have a choice, Liz. The flight will have to be enough. We can't leave Jesse in their hands a moment longer than necessary." He shrugged, then reached forward and took a drink of orange juice from his glass. "We can pick up some sort of ‘No-Doz' or something, but we don't dare leave him there while we catch up on our sleep. He's already been in their hands for a day longer than I was. He's human, they'll probably go easier on him, but I wouldn't want to depend too much on that." She felt a tremor run through him, and she unconsciously raised her hand to cover his. He smiled at her, then looked at Isabelle. "Don't worry, Iz, we'll get him back. Soon." His sister smiled back at him.

"I know." She looked around at everyone. "Thank you, guys."

Kyle looked gratified when she included him in her thanks. Suddenly he perked up as he looked over Liz's shoulder. "Oh! Look what the cat dragged in!" He raised his hand and waved it a bit. "Hey guys, over here! What the hell happened to you?" Liz craned her head around. Michael and Maria came in, much in need of a bath. Maria was carrying a small bundle under one arm. Her other one was wrapped around Michael's waist. Michael's eyes had dark rings under them, and he yawned hugely as he plopped down in the seat next to Max.

Maria smiled and slapped Michael on the shoulder. "Our resident genius here decided on a roadside nap."

"Seems you agreed with him," Serena teased with a significant look at Maria's own dirty clothing. Maria shrugged and sat down next to Serena, putting her bundle on her lap as she did so.

"He took me with him." She brushed at her clothes, raising a dust cloud over the booth. Serena covered her glass of orange juice with one hand, and her mouth and nose with the other.

"Please! Not here!" her muffled voice protested from behind her cupped fingers. Kyle sneezed, then nodded agreement. Maria sniffed and snagged a menu off the table. After leafing through it for a few seconds, she placed it back down.

"I'll have some coffee and the two eggs and bacon platter, with...um...wheat toast. The eggs...over easy." Maria looked beyond Serena at Kyle. "What are you getting?" Kyle opened the menu to the first page and pointed at something titled the "Super Breakfast Plate". Maria shrugged. "That looks about right, I guess." She looked at Michael, who was already nodding away. "Michael'll have that, I think."

"Why? Where are you going?" Isabelle asked curiously.

Maria stood and stepped up next to Michael, pulling him to his feet again with a grunt. He made a small groan of protest, but stood. "Space Boy and I are going to clean up. C'mon, Michael," she said, her voice suddenly kind and soft, losing its brisk tone, "let's go make ourselves a little more presentable." She lifted the bundle she'd carried in off the seat and separated part of it out, giving it to Michael. "Here's a clean shirt." She took his hand. "The bathrooms are over here," her voice faded as she led him toward the restrooms.

Liz shook her head. "Michael's practically passed out."

"He did a lot last night, and drove for quite a while before that," Max said. "He's going to be out like a light on the plane. He's good at sleeping, no matter what the circumstance. He'll be fine in a bit." He looked up as Liz felt a shadow fall over them. The waitress was back.

"Were those the friends you were waiting for? Are you ready to order?" Max smiled and picked up his menu, ordering his and Michael's breakfasts. Everyone ordered, then waited for the waitress to leave again before picking up their conversation.

Serena leaned in. There was still no one seated near them in the diner, but she lowered her voice a bit anyway. "Do you guys have some sort of plan for getting Jesse back?"

"How could we?" Max asked reasonably. "We don't know a thing about where he's being held, except it's in Boston."

"How can you be so confident about getting him out, then?"

"They got me out more than two years ago, when we knew a lot less about how to use our powers effectively. We had a little help back then too, of course, but that's not available to us now. We're used to working on our own now, so it's nothing to worry about."

"Help? What kind of help?"

Isabelle waved her hand. "He's dead." She looked a little upset at the reminder of Nasedo. No wonder, now that they knew he'd been planning with Tess on handing them over to Khevar. "Good riddance."

Serena just looked confused. Liz looked at her and offered a little explanation. "He was a friend of Tess's. One of the full aliens." She shuddered, remembering when he'd kidnapped her, and indirectly got Max taken to the White Room. "Don't worry, Serena. We'll have to be careful, but we've got a big advantage over them. There's no way they can know we're coming. And they don't know much about our abilities." Max squeezed her shoulder. She looked up at him and suddenly noticed a line of worry on his forehead. "What is it, Max?"

"Agent Pierce gave me an injection that dampened my powers. They know a little about them."

"They don't have that black pentagon that cancels our power though, Max. It's hard to get close enough to us to inject us, even if they still know about that chemical."

"That's true."

"Besides, I'm sure Nasedo purged their files and personnel as much as he could during his time as Agent Pierce."

"So...er...if you don't mind telling me, what can you guys do?" Serena asked, curiosity on her face.

"Well, you've seen the telekinesis already."

"And you saw how I can change my appearance. Michael can do that too."

"Change your appearance?"

"Remember when Liz and I first met you? I changed my appearance to follow you. I was that Hispanic woman."

Serena's mouth opened wide in surprise. "Oh!"

"Max creates a force field that can stop bullets. And he can heal, of course. Liz sees the future sometimes, though that's a pretty new power. You know about Kyle." As Serena's eyes followed Isabelle's gesture toward Kyle, Michael and Maria walked back to the booth and sat down, each on the end of one of the booth's benches. Isabelle continued her catalogue of abilities. "And we three can alter submolecular structures, up to a point."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Michael growled. He seemed more alert, his face red from scrubbing, and his old shirt exchanged for a clean t-shirt. Maria stuffed the bundle she'd made of her dirty shirt and Michael's between her and Serena.

"I was giving Serena an idea of what we could do, Michael. We were talking about what we're going to do when we get to Boston."

Michael's appearance had improved, but it seemed his mood had not. "What do you mean, ‘what we're going to do'? We're going to break in where Jesse's being held, get him out of there, and blast anyone who gets in our way in the process." Isabelle looked pleased with his determination to get her husband out. Michael cracked a knuckle as he looked around. He scowled. "Where are the menus? I want to order something to eat. I'm starving."

Maria looked annoyed at his change in attitude. Max just slapped a friendly hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Maria took care of it while you were dozing. I believe you got the largest breakfast available on the menu."

Michael looked nonplussed. "Oh. Well." He looked over at Maria, who stuck her tongue out at him. He seemed completely at a loss for a second, then he looked at Max again. "You ordered the eggs sunny-side up, right? I don't like it when-" He suddenly jumped, then looked across the table at Maria again as he reached down toward his leg. "Er...I mean...thanks."

"I ordered them scrambled. Sorry."

Michael was still rubbing his shin. "No...no, that's okay." Liz looked over at Maria and barely restrained a giggle. Maria caught her eye and winked at her.

Everyone was silent for a second, then something occurred to Liz. "Oh, that's right. You didn't hear about how Serena's going to help us, did you, Michael, Maria?"

Maria looked at Serena. "No. What are you going to do?"

Serena reached into her large handbag and pulled out a wallet. Inside were a couple of credit cards. "We can get the tickets and rent a vehicle with these. Using cash would look really suspicious."

Michael looked a little wary. "But won't they just be able to trace the tickets back to you, then?"

Serena pulled out three cards and tossed them across the table to Michael. "What do you think?" she asked with a smile. He picked them up, looked for a second, then whistled, impressed.

"They're all good?"

"What? Show me!" Maria said, reaching out for the cards. Michael handed them over to her. "Oh! They're in different names! You have three identities?"

Serena raised her finger to her lips, but nodded. "Those are what I happened to have on me when you guys suddenly interrupted my life." The smile on her face belied the sting in her words. She reached out to take her cards back from Maria. "And I can help you guys with yours too. That way we can find a place to settle down for a bit, keep out of sight while you decide what to do with your life."

Isabelle was idly stirring the coffee in her cup, her chin resting in her hand. "That reminds me, before everything went to hell in California, Kyle had a great idea for when we settle down."

Liz watched as everyone seemed to perk up. Just the hint of the hope of a normal life cheered everyone up enormously, even herself. She listened as Isabelle began talking about opening a car garage. It seemed kind of crazy to her, but Kyle's flushed face spoke of his excitement at the idea, and Isabelle seemed taken with it too, surprisingly. "Just think," Isabelle was practically gushing, "we could use our powers to do paint and detail work almost instantly. It'd be fast to set up a place, and it'd give us source of legal income!" Liz felt Max shifting in his seat next to her, and looked over at him. He seemed interested, if not excited. But Michael, over on the other side, was listening with rapt attention. She remembered when he'd worked on Maria's car. Maybe something like that interested him too. It'd probably be a good idea, at least for a temporary solution.

As Liz gazed at Michael and considered their long-term options she noticed the waitress making her way toward them. She elbowed Max and nodded toward their approaching food. Max cleared his throat and sat up straight to smile at the waitress. She began handing out their food. Michael watched as she handed a food-laden plate to Kyle. "Hey!" he said suddenly, "You got that big platter too? Are your eggs sunny-side up?" He looked down at his own scrambled eggs.

"Mi-chaeeeeeel!" Maria said in a dangerous voice, but he ignored her.

"No, no, Maria, it's okay. Yeah, they are." The waitress was finished handing out the food, but was slow to leave the table. She seemed to be interested in the little tiff unfolding before her. Kyle held up his plate. "Want to trade? I don't mind scrambled."

Michael nodded eagerly. "Hell yes. Here." He grabbed his own plate and handed it to Kyle. As Kyle took Michael's plate he suddenly began to shake. Liz saw the first hints of green lightning run along his arms. Serena must have seen it too. She gasped and snatched the plate Michael had just handed Kyle out of Kyle's hands. Kyle closed his eyes and gripped the edge of the table with his now free hand. As the little sparks ran up his fingers, Michael reached out and grabbed Kyle's plate with the sunny side up eggs. Maria turned to the waitress and thanked her for their food, in an attempt to distract her.

The waitress was concerned, however. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked Kyle nervously. Kyle's hand on the table was white as bone, and his jaw was clenched. He opened his eyes and relaxed with a slow sigh. Serena set his plate down gently in front of him.

"Yeah, I'm fine...just tired. I was...er...up all night driving." He pressed his hands to his forehead. Liz saw a slight tremor in his fingers. He was not feeling well. "You guys, I'm not driving again until I get some sleep..." Kyle mumbled.

"Yeah, that's all right Kyle. We'll be stopping tonight at a motel, I think," Maria continued brightly. The waitress smiled hesitantly and began to move away.

Michael looked over at Kyle. "Thanks for the eggs," he said as he picked up a piece of bacon. "Damn!" The waitress turned at the surprise in his voice. He'd dropped the bacon back on the plate. "This is ice cold!"

"It can't be!" the waitress said. Her eyes were sharp with suspicion. "I just handed them out, the plates were all hot!" She reached out and touched the edge of the plate, then jerked her fingers back with a squeak of surprise. "It is cold! How'd that happen?!?" She rubbed her fingers over her clothes to warm them as she shot a suspicious look at Michael. "Is this some kind of joke?"

Michael shot Kyle a dirty look, which was wasted, as Kyle was still staring down at the table and shivering, then looked back at the waitress. "No. Look, I don't know what happened, but could I please have another plate? I can't eat this."

Max reached out and picked up the plate, holding it up for the waitress. "Here you go. Please, could he have another?"

The waitress slowly brought her fingers into contact with the plate again. She flinched as the touched the plate, the blinked in surprise and grasped it firmly. "It's not so cold now."

Isabelle laughed weakly. "It must have been your imagination. Maybe it just cooled off on the way from the kitchen."

The waitress didn't look much mollified, but she nodded slowly and backed away a couple steps. "Must be." She looked at Michael. "I'll be back with another plate. Sunny side up, right?"

"Please," Michael said politely and they all watched her walk off.

Max was rubbing his fingers with his other hand. "That plate was so cold it hurt!" he muttered. "You wouldn't believe how much heat I had to put into it to make it room temperature! We're lucky the thing didn't shatter!"

Liz let out a sigh as the waitress entered the door to the kitchen. "Whew! That was crazy!" She laughed nervously as the tension slowly left her.

"Jesus, Kyle, you scared the shit out of me!" Michael hissed.

"Sorry," Kyle apologized faintly, his eyes closed again. Serena was looking at him with concern and maybe a little fear. She hesitantly reached up and patted him on the shoulder.

"Er...are you alright?"

Kyle opened his eyes and looked around the table. "Yeah." He took a shaky breath. "I think so. Damn, that's inconvenient!" He shook his head.

"You're telling me," Michael muttered, eyeing Kyle's plate hungrily. Maria shot him a look and Liz heard a dull thud under the table again. Michael bit back a curse and winced.

Liz leaned forward and reached out to take Kyle's hand. "It'll calm down in a day or two. You'll be fine, Kyle." He gave her a lopsided smile, then reached for his fork.

"Well, I don't feel much like eating anymore, but..." He began to dig in. He seemed to be mostly back to normal. Everyone sighed with relief and began to eat as Michael looked on with jealousy. The waitress came back in a couple minutes Michael's food, and bustled off again, obviously nervous around them. The rest of breakfast was a tense affair, and Liz was glad when they all finished, paid the waitress, and hurried out of the diner.

Max began leading them in the direction the deputy had pointed when he dropped them off. Isabelle pulled bills out her purse. "How much do you think this is going to cost us?" she asked as they approached the garage.

Kyle shrugged. "I don't know. It could be almost anything." He absently rubbed one of his arms, and Liz heard a few faint fizzes and crackles. He was sparking again. "I don't know what I did. I just hope it's fixable." He sounded so apologetic. Liz wished she could help him through this, but she couldn't think of anything she could do except encourage him. She could only do that so many times before she'd start to sound stupid.

Isabelle clapped him on the back, ignoring the shock it must have given her as the green lightnings crawled over her hand. "Don't worry about it, Kyle. We all have things like that happen. You should've seen some of the stuff Michael did, as recently as two year ago." Michael started to mutter something, but then he looked at Maria stopped. "We'll be fine," Isabelle continued. "It's probably good this happend, because it forced us to stop and get a good meal." The cheeriness in her voice was a little forced, but Liz appreciated the effort she put into it. It couldn't be easy for her. The delay had to be driving her insane.

"Ah, here we are," Max sounded relieved. He looked back, then reached out and pulled Kyle over to him. "Why don't you come with me. You know more about cars, you can tell if they're trying to scam us." Kyle looked relieved at the vote of confidence. He nodded and followed Max up to the counter as the others settled down in the waiting room. Max and Kyle stood for a few minutes at the counter as a mechanic talked to them. Liz heard Max chuckle at something, then nod and wave at the mechanic casually has he turned toward the group. Kyle and Max walked back over to them.

"Well, it's a little expensive, but we're lucky, they were able to fix the problem, and had the parts right here."

Isabelle sighed. "We've had such a run of bad luck, and now someone seems to be watching out for us. First the deputy came along and helped us, and now the repair is quick too." She looked at Max. "How much money do you need?"

"What was it? Three hundred eighty something."

Isabelle nodded, rifling through her bills. "We'll need four hundred, then. Find your prettiest bills, everyone, I'm going to make hundreds." She got a real hundred dollar bill from Michael, and frowned in concentration as she transformed four of the crisper ones into hundreds. After a few seconds she nodded with satisfaction. "There. That should do it. Here you go." Max took the money and walked back to the mechanic. Everyone else got up as Max paid the mechanic and followed him to where their van was waiting. Max drove the van to the front door of the garage, then got out as everyone came out of the waiting room. "I'm too tired still to drive safely. Maria, could you get us to Alburquerque?" Maria nodded. Everyone else piled into the van.

Liz couldn't suppress a grimace of distaste as she climbed into the back seat. Max caught a glimpse of her and laughed. "It's getting annoying, isn't it? I think we need another vehicle." She smiled, leaned against him, and nodded.

"Yeah. But it'll do. We have more important things to consider right now."

She shivered as he kissed the top of her head and pulled her close. "I'm so glad you're here with me, Liz."

Her eyelids were so heavy. They began to close as she leaned against her husband, but she was able to murmur a sleepy "I love you," before she sank into the welcoming darkness.

*****

Serena watched as Maria stifled another yawn. "Are you sure it's safe for you to drive?" She was a little embarrassed to be pestering Maria, but she was worried her newfound friend would put them all in danger by refusing to admit she was too tired to drive. Maria gave her an annoyed look out of the corner of her eyes before bringing her gaze back to the road.

"Yes, I'll be fine." Oh dear, she sounded upset. "Stop asking that!"

"But-" Serena bit her lip. They seemed kind, and willing to let her in. Far more willing than was strictly wise, actually. She meant them no harm, but they really had no way of knowing that yet. She didn't dare push too much, though. They would only take so much from her. She turned her head to look out the passenger window.

"We're only another fifteen minutes from town. I'm going to find a large covered lot for us to park in, and get Isabelle to change the look of the van. I'll let someone else take over driving then." Serena looked down at her hands at the apologetic tone of Maria's voice. She understood why Maria wouldn't-couldn't-allow her to drive, but it still bothered her. Maria continued, her voice lower. "It's the most I can do." One her hands rose unconsciously to finger her hair. "Liz and Kyle can now help them out more. Even you, without any alien magic, have important ways you can help us. But me? I'm excess baggage." Serena looked at her and gaped like an idiot. Maria shot her another look, and her lips turned up in a sardonic smile as her eyes met Serena's. Her voice was still casual. There was no anger or bitterness that Serena could detect. "Why do you look so surprised? It's true, isn't it? I'm practically useless to them. I'll help however I can. The least I can do is give them a little extra time to rest. They'll need all their energy when we get to Boston."

Serena was struck nearly speechless. Finally her thoughts settled enough for her force intelligible words out. "What are you talking about? Maria, you're the emotional anchor of this entire group!"

"What?" She looked confused.

"No, listen to me! I'm not really a part of you guys yet, but I've seen the dynamics. Liz depends on you, and to a lesser degree, Max. I can see how they both look to you sometimes. And anybody can tell you center Michael when he's about to lose it."

Maria snorted derisively. "What are you talking about?"

Serena shrugged. "I'm no psychologist, but when their emotions get out of whack, everyone else seems to wait for you to settle them. I'd say that's pretty important."

Maria was silent for a moment, both hands on the steering wheel as she moved the van over into the right lane. They passed a slightly faded green sign that read "Albuquerque - 5 miles". Serena watched Maria's eyes follow the sign for a second, then turn to look at Serena. "You think so?"

Serena couldn't resist a grin at the uncertainty in Maria's voice. "Of course." She turned and looked out the window as she saw more houses along the highway. "Don't underestimate yourself." Her eyes began burn as she remembered all the times Dad had said that selfsame thing to her. "If you do that, you can't rise to your full potential." Serena waited for the stinging in her eyes to fade before she trusted herself to look forward again.

Maria pulled off onto the exit ramp. "This looks promising. Help me find a parking garage or something, Serena. Then we can wake the others."

Serena scratched he head. God, she was looking forward to a long soak in the tub. They'd been on the road way too long. "I'd suggest going toward the center of town. That's your best bet for finding something large." A few seconds later, Serena spotted a sign and pointed. "There, Maria, the University of New Mexico. Universities have parking garages most of the time. That should be great." Maria nodded and followed the signs. They drove up to a three story parking garage and breathed a sigh of relief when they saw it was open to the public. Maria grabbed a timed ticket at the automated booth and drove in. An idea occurred to Serena. She turned to Maria. "Try to park near another van, Maria. If Isabelle's going to change the appearance of the van, we might as well try to match one that already exists. The confusion might buy us a little time if they try to identify us."

Maria nodded. "That's a great idea. I bet they'll love it."

Serena basked in the glow of her praise for a split second, then wrenched her attention back to the situation at hand. "I'll wake the others." She unbuckled her belt and turned around in her seat. Michael and Isabelle were in the seat directly behind her. She reached out and tentatively and shook Isabelle's knee. "Isabelle," she said, keeping her voice low, "Isabelle, wake up, we're in Albuquerque." Isabelle stirred with a soft groan, and her eyes fluttered open. "Isabelle, could you wake them up in the back seat?" Isabelle's eyes were blank and full of sleep. "Isabelle, could you wake them back there?" She blinked a couple of times, then seemed to rouse herself and nodded. She levered herself up and turned around to wake her brother, his wife and Kyle. Serena stretched out to shake Michael's leg. "Michael! Michael! We're there!" Michael jerked suddenly and sat up, looking around. "We're there. We're parking the van so Isabelle can change the way it looks, then we're heading to airport."

"Nnnngph. Okay, okay." Michael rubbed his face and yawned, then looked around. Isabelle was still waking the others. As Serena faced forward Maria pulled into a spot.

"We're there already?" Max's voice was a little slurred with sleep. Maria shut off the van and turned around.

"We're in a parking garage in middle of Albuquerque. Serena had a cool idea, to find another van and try to copy it, license plate and all." Serena fidgeted. She could feel everyone's eyes on her. Despite everything she'd seen about their kindness and...well...humanity, she still felt uncomfortable under the aliens' gazes. She heard rustling behind her. "There's a van that looks similar to ours a couple of spaces to the left."

"That's a great idea," she heard Max say.

"Yeah," Isabelle's voice was muffled. Serena turned to look. Isabelle was rubbing her eyes and yawning. She reached out and pulled open the side door of the van with a grunt. "Let's get this taken care of so we can get to the airport." She hopped out.

Serena turned and got out too, walking to the front of the van so Isabelle and the others could snake out between the van and the car next to them. As soon as there was space for the others to move, Serena stopped and allowed herself a luxurious stretch. The others behind her followed suit, Max and Liz standing close to each other and whispering something. She heard a faint giggle from Liz as they broke apart. Isabelle shot them an annoyed look before setting off to see the van Maria'd found. The sound of a door slamming caught Serena's attention. Maria had gotten out of the driver's side of their van and walked up to Michael, wrapping her arms around him. Serena couldn't help wondering exactly what it was about these aliens with their human partners. As Maria backed off a step from Michael, she pulled him in the direction Isabelle had already gone. "Maybe you can help Isabelle by taking care of the license plate," Maria said as she pulled him after her. Serena started to walk casually in the same direction, scanning their floor of the garage for anyone who might be a witness to the van's change. Isabelle had her hand on the dark blue paint of the van, and Michael was crouching down, his hand reaching out to finger the van's license plates.

"You're lucky that guy doesn't have an alarm hooked up," Kyle commented, his hands in his pockets. He looked much better for the sleep he'd gotten, but Serena couldn't prevent an unconscious step back from him as he came up to stand beside her. His eyes flickered in her direction at her movement, and his expression seemed to tighten a bit, but then he was looking at Isabelle and Michael again.

"Who says he doesn't?" Isabelle asked. "I was able to short it before it made any noise, that's all."

Kyle's mouth moved for a second, then he shook his head and smiled. "My god, you guys would make the best car thieves the world's ever seen."

"I like your other idea for making money better, Kyle," Max said, his arm thrown around Liz's shoulders. He and Liz both seemed tired, still, but were smiling and joking freely. Serena couldn't believe how much difference an hour and half of sleep had made. "The last thing we need is more attention from law enforcement!" Kyle grinned back at him, then suddenly closed his eyes and took a step back. His hand came out of his pocket and rose to his forehead. Liz reached around Max and grabbed his arm just below the shoulder.

"Kyle, are you alright?"

"Yeah," Kyle sighed. "Just a little dizzy. Everything sounds funny too."

Liz held his arm with both hands as he steadied on his feet and shook his head back and forth a few times. "It'll pass Kyle. It happened to me too."

"No, I feel better. It just lasted for a second, is all." Kyle opened his eyes and smiled at Liz. "See, better already."

Liz looked him over intently with narrowed eyes, then smiled and patted his arm. "Yeah, you look better. Hang in there."

"Hey!" Michael stood up from his crouched position in front of the van's license plate. "Let's stop standing around like we're all part of a freakshow. Get back in the van, everyone, we're going to be able to take off soon."

Maria rolled her eyes as she snagged Liz's arm in the crook of one elbow, and Serena's with her other. "My boyfriend is so charming. Mr. Suave, that what's we like to call him." She began to pull them back toward the van. Isabelle was already there, her hand on the hood of the van. Serena gaped as the turquoise paint under Isabelle's hand turned navy blue. Tentacles of the dark color spread over the front of the van, then over the rest of its body. Maria let go of Serena's arm long enough to pull the door of the van open. Serena blankly raised a hand touched the outside of the van, then lifted her fingers away. None of the color came off. It felt like she'd touched the original paint of the van. Serena couldn't help feeling amazement.

"I didn't repaint it, you know." Serena jumped as Isabelle's voice, coming from directly behind her head, intruded on her thoughts. "It won't come off on you." Serena turned to look at her with wide, blank eyes. "I just changed the light reflecting properties of the paint. Didn't have to do much at all." Isabelle placed a gentle hand on Serena's back. "Don't worry about it." She gave Serena a little push. "Get in."

Serena stumbled a little as she climbed into the back seat of the van. Kyle plopped down in the seat next to her as Isabelle sat down next to Liz and Maria in the very back. Kyle reached out and shut the van door as Michael came around from the back of the van and climbed into the passenger seat. Max looked at Michael as he started the van. "Is it all taken care of?"

"Yeah, I changed the plate. Let's get to the airport." Max pulled out of the parking spot and began driving slowly toward the exit. "How much is it going to cost, Maria?" Max reached into his pocket with his free hand and began pulling change out of his pocket.

The seat creaked as Isabelle pulled herself forward. "Don't put the card back in, Max, just lift the lever. We didn't go to all this trouble to have them be able to trace us by the stupid parking ticket."

Max mumbled something to himself as they pulled up to the exit, then lifted his hand toward the machine that controlled the exit lever. Some sparks flew out from the machine and the lever shot up. Max gunned the van and shot out of the parking garage. "Okay, now where to?"

Maria spoke up from the rear seat. "The airport's south of here. Turn right up here, it's the direction I came from. I saw some signs pointing the way to the airport, we'll just have to keep our eyes open." Max drove for a few minutes before they spotted their first sign and began to make their way to the airport. Serena knew there was no reason they should be stopped, but she couldn't help breathing a relieved sigh when as they parked their van in the airport parking lot. Everyone piled out of the van and gathered up their bags.

"Do we take everything with us, or leave what we don't need in the van?" Serena asked. She had more things than the others, and it was a little much to handle.

Max looked at the others. "I - I can't say for certain we'll be back here. We may decide it's too much of a risk after getting Jesse away from the FBI." Liz slipped in next to Max and grabbed ahold of his hand as he continued speaking. "Take everything. We may end up leaving this van here for good, if we're being followed too closely."

"What about the airport...do you think security might be on the lookout for us?" Serena was nervous. The way it sounded the FBI was really gunning for the aliens and humans in this group. "Albuquerque's quite close to Roswell. If they're going to choose an airport to watch..." she let her voice trail off uncertainly.

Michael thrust his hands deeply into his pockets. "You may have a point, but I think we're pretty much stuck at this point." He looked around. "Actually, having you join us is probably the biggest help for avoiding notice we could have. If we split into two or three groups, and each group has a girl with one of your cards, we can pretend to be total strangers to each other."

Maria smiled with delight. "That's a great idea, Michael!"

"Yeah," Isabelle sounded slightly surprised. "It is a good idea! I can't believe it!" She smiled as Michael shot her a sour look. "Can our signatures pass? That's the only danger I see."

Serena dug through her purse and pulled out the three Visas she had. "This one hasn't been signed. One of you should take it. Sign it here, then your signature will match the card without a problem." Serena examined the other two, then shook her head and sighed. "I've used these before, they've both been signed by me. I guess the best quick solution is for you guys to look and see whose writing is closest to mine." The others all gathered around her as she turned over the other two cards. "Anyone?" Maria reached out for the card for a Terri Heller, holding it closer as she looked.

"I might be able to pull this one off okay," she said. Liz looked at Serena's writing and shook her head, holding her hands out. Isabelle looked at both cards with pursed lips, but then she looked at Maria.

"Let's go with that, then. I don't think I could write like that and make it flow naturally. My writing is a lot more loopy." She cocked her head. "Max should travel with Kyle...well, for obvious reasons. So one of us has to go with Max and Kyle." Isabelle looked at Maria. "I think you should. We should really try to split up our usual...er...pairings. Hopefully, it will make identification more difficult." Isabelle reached out and, without even a nod of thanks, snatched the unsigned card out of Serena's hands, then handed it to Liz. Serena wrinkled her nose in annoyance, but made no other move. "Liz and Michael can fly together." Isabelle turned her eyes to Serena. Her gaze was intent. Serena couldn't help swallowing at the look in Isabelle's eyes. "That leaves Serena and me." Isabelle looked around at everyone. "Well? Any objections?" Serena was relieved when everyone else shook their heads in silence. At least she wasn't the only one cowed by Isabelle's brisk manner. "Good! Serena and I will go in first. The girls should hang out in the bathroom nearest the door we enter at the airport. Serena and I will find a flight, then give you guys the details for the flight in the restroom...hopefully that will keep us from attracting too much attention in the airport." Isabelle reached for one of Serena's bags as she hefted her own in her other hand. She jerked her head toward the terminal. "C'mon then, Serena. Let's get going."

Serena followed after Isabelle, looking over her shoulder once at the others. She'd really rather be going with Maria, or even Liz. Serena hurried to keep up with Isabelle's fast stride, grimacing as she jogged to keep up. Isabelle could at least take into account that fact that Serena wasn't immensely tall like she was. Serena couldn't help feeling like a child hurrying after her mother. Isabelle brisk stride shortened a bit as they entered the airport. Serena looked around and spotted the restrooms first. She pointed. "There. Those are the nearest restrooms."

"Yes, good, they're easy to spot. Let's get a ticket to Boston!" Isabelle was almost running to the nearest travel agency counter. Serena jogged after her.

"Isabelle! Isabelle!" Isabelle didn't slow down. If anything, her stride lengthened. Serena reached out and grabbed Isabelle by the arm. "Isabelle! Stop!"

The taller woman whirled on her with fury in her eyes. "What!?!"

"You're running. Stop it, you're attracting way too much attention."

"I'm in a hurry."

"Maybe, but the last thing you want to do is make us stick in everyone's mind. Calm down." Serena hissed, then let go of Isabelle's arm.

Isabelle looked at her for a second, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she turned and began to calmly walk the rest of the distance to the travel agency's desk. When she reached the desk there was no line forming yet, so Isabelle took one of the two chairs for guests and calmly sat down. She looked like an entirely different person than the one Serena had faced down a few seconds ago. Serena sat down at the other chair as the woman at the desk looked up from her computer screen with a smile.

"Yes?" the woman asked, a polite smile on her face. "Can I help you?"

"We want to get to Boston. Could you get us on the next flight there?"

"Hmmm..." The woman typed something on her computer, and some text appeared on the screen. "There're no direct flights to Boston from here," Serena saw Isabelle clench her hand into a fist under the lip of the desk, out of the woman's sight. "But that's not a big problem. There's a flight that connects at Dallas. It leaves in half an hour. Is that too soon?"

Isabelle opened her mouth to say something, but Serena quickly inserted herself into the conversation. "How full is that flight?" She ignored the daggers Isabelle shot in her direction.

"Quite full, I'm afraid. There are...let's see here...five more seats on that flight...well, three, after you two board." She shot the girls another smile. "Shall I sign you up for that flight?"

Isabelle cleared her throat. "When does the next flight for Boston leave?"

"Mmmmm...not for another hour. You fly to Chicago and get another flight at O'Hare for Boston."

Isabelle studiously avoided looking at Serena as she asked "And how full is that flight?"

"Hmmmm...only about half full."

Serena nodded. "That's much better. I have a thing about crowded flights. We'll take that one." Serena smiled and handed the woman her credit card. The woman quickly set about getting their tickets ready. After about fifteen minutes, Serena couldn't help getting nervous. If this took too long, there wouldn't be time for the others to set up and catch this flight. Finally, the woman finished her typing and handed them each some tickets. They sped away from the counter and toward the restrooms as quickly as possible. Maria and Liz were already waiting in the restroom, chatting happily. Isabelle impatiently waited for an older woman to finish washing and drying her hands before she placed her hand on the swinging restroom door. There was a small flash, and Isabelle removed her hand from the door with a satisfied nod.

"There, now no one will disturb us." She showed her tickets to Liz and Maria. "Here's the flight we got. There's an hour and a half layover at O'Hare, then we fly to Boston. We'll meet in the lobby at O'Hare again, okay?" She waited impatiently for the girls to write down the pertinent information. "Hurry you guys, you won't have long to catch the flight."

Serena interjected. "One of you should go to that travel agency desk, and maybe the other should go to the airline counter," she suggested. Liz and Maria nodded and moved to leave the restroom, then stopped as they remembered that Isabelle had sealed the door. Serena ducked into a stall as Isabelle went to let the girls out. It was going to be a long time in the plane, and she hated airplane toilets with a passion.

*****

It was so comfortable here. Kyle didn't ever want to move. A small distraction kept him from being completely content, but he strove to ignore it. The crystal clarity of the sky was almost too perfect, and the robin's egg blue of the sky was intense and piercing, relieved only by the wisps of cotton candy clouds over his head. That small, annoying buzzing kept interfering with his attempt to relax completely.

"...up...yle...."

He flicked his hand impatiently at the muddled sound.

"We're...ere...icago...ake..UP!"

It was more insistent. Kyle closed his eyes and pressed his hands to his ears.

"Kyle!!!"

"Wha-?" Kyle sat up, totally disoriented, and looked around. Max's hand was on his shoulder. Maria was leaning forward in her seat and watching his face as he blinked and slowly got his bearings. He must look like an idiot...he felt so confused. The events of the past few days flooded back into his mind, and he settled back in his seat with a resigned sigh. "Hey. Thanks. I'm up now." Max was watching him carefully. Kyle could tell Max was sitting next to him in the capacity of a baby-sitter. He hated it, but he understood the reason. Who knew when he'd next explode in an unpredictable storm of alien power? The last thing they needed was some reaction while they were up in the air. Kyle wasn't a genius, but he was far from stupid. He knew why he was flying next to Max. It was to keep him under control during the flight. He wallowed in self pity for a minute, but then Maria's bright voice jerked him out of his mood.

"We're almost to Chicago. Max and I were just talking, and we had an idea. I thought we should talk it over with you before bringing it up with the others."

Kyle licked his lips. Airplane air was so dry. He was glad he'd slept through most of this flight. "What is it?"

"We were wondering if you think you'd be able to try locating Jesse again."

"You don't think he's in Boston anymore?"

Maria shot him a glance. "No. It's more like...we want you to pinpoint his location better."

Kyle ran a hand through his hair. "How am I supposed to do that? I don't know a damned thing about Boston. There's no way I could - "

Maria rolled her eyes. "We know that. But if you hold Isabelle's hand while she dreamwalks Jesse again, and then we have a map of Boston in front of you...could you tell where he is, exactly?"

Kyle closed his eyes. When he'd felt that Jesse was in Boston, it's been an odd feeling of immediate and total knowledge pulled out of thin air. He had no idea how his new ability worked, no sense of how his mind discovered the information. After a second of self-examination, he sighed and reopened his eyes. Max was eyeing him with concern. "I have no idea. But it's worth a try."

Maria was disappointed. "You don't have a guess as to whether you can..." Maria made some waving motions with her hands as she raised her eyes ceilingward in what she obviously considered to be a descriptive gesture. Max barely restrained a grin at her antics. Kyle barely restrained a growl.

"No, I don't. I have no idea how they work. It's like I get an anonymous letter in my brain. There's no return address. I don't know how this stuff works." He snorted. "I'm still having a hard time believing it does."

Maria sat back in her seat with a huff and pouted at the seat before her. "And here I thought it'd be such a good idea!"

Max shrugged. "Maybe it is. Kyle said he'd give it a try, Maria. That's all any of us can really ask." Max turned to Kyle. "Make sure you give it a good try, though. We're really walking into Boston blind, and Jesse's life depends on us right now."

Kyle shot him a pained smile. "I know." As if he could forget. Isabelle hadn't been normal for a moment since Jesse's capture; her pain was a constant reminder of what they all feared. He looked down at his hands and sighed. "I'll do my best. It's worth an attempt." A hand reached across his vision and he looked up.

"Sir, we're landing. Please fasten your seat belt." Kyle blushed and began to follow her request as he felt the plane assume a downward angle. The flight attendant walked forward a couple more rows and stopped to help another passenger before strapping herself into a seat. Kyle closed his eyes as the plane began to descend, pulling his thoughts together. If he was going to search for Jesse's exact location, he'd have to do it in the airport. They didn't have time to go anywhere else. The plane jarred into the runway, but Kyle was so absorbed in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the touchdown to solid earth, or the solid pressure pushing him forward as the plane braked. He was readying himself for the task ahead. He couldn't collapse in the airport, or shoot green lightning out of his body in front of all those people. He had to keep himself under control.

He jerked as he felt a hand grip his upper arm. "Kyle? Kyle, we're disembarking." The hand shook him. "Can you hear me? Kyle?" He raised his head. "I think something's wrong with him," the voice continued, softer, as if it spoke to someone else.

"I'm okay," Kyle managed as his hands fumbled with his seatbelt. "I was just...concentrating."

"On what?" the voice asked. It was Max speaking.

"On not losing control. I feel like forces are whirling around under my skin, and if I look away for a split second they'll all come bursting out." Kyle shook his head as the seatbelt disengaged, then began to rise to his feet. "I'm so disoriented." He raised his hand to his forehead. "This isn't right."

He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Steady," Max said in a low voice. His hand was hot; Kyle knew Max was healing him in some way, strengthening him. His hands slowly stopped shaking, and he drew a deep breath. "Okay?" Max asked. "We have to get going, people are starting to give us weird looks. The last thing we want is for everyone on the plane to remember us."

"Yeah," Kyle muttered, turning toward the aisle. "I'll be fine. Thanks. Let's get out of here." They began to make their way out of the plane, pushing and shoving like all the rest, doing their best to blend in. Kyle looked around the airport as they exited the ramp. It was huge, and far busier than he could have ever imagined. Maria grabbed his hand with a smile and pulled him forward.

"C'mon, there's a store over there. They're sure to have a map of Boston!" Kyle looked around for Max, but he seemed to have disappeared into the crowds.

"Wait, where's-"

"He's gathering the others. We're meeting at the food court."

Kyle was annoyed at their heavy-handed treatment of him. "I wish you would tell me about what you're planning ahead of time."

Maria looked back at him as she threaded through the crowds of people. "I think you needed the sleep you got more. Besides, you have to learn how to roll with the punches." She tugged his arm harder. "Now stop whining. We only have about an hour until our next flight."

He shrugged and stopped pulling back, letting her lead him where she would. They made it into the little shop and looked around for maps. Maria made an "ah" of discovery and yanked him over toward a stand filled with different maps. They began leafing through them. Most of the maps, by far, were of the Chicago area. Finally, Kyle sighed. ‘I think we're just going to have to get a full U.S. atlas. There's nothing just for Boston here."

Maria's eyes scanned the rack then she picked up a U.S. atlas and began to scan through its index. "Massachusetts...Massa...here it is!" She turned to the correct page. "There, Boston. Hmmm...this looks like an okay map." She looked up at him and grinned. "Good enough for the purposes of our experiment, I think." Kyle shrugged and nodded. He still wasn't convinced it would work, himself. Maria pushed her way to the counter and purchased the large atlas, then turned back to him. "Now, the food court," she said and took off again. Kyle bit back an annoyed curse and struggled through the crowd after her.

"Hey, everyone!" she called out, waving at a couple of small tables pulled together to make a larger surface. Everyone else was already there. Isabelle and Serena were eating some ice cream, the others had drinks. As Kyle took his seat Isabelle pushed a cup of soft-serve chocolate ice cream his way.

"I thought you might like something," she said, shrugging. "Hope you like chocolate."

Kyle smiled as he sat down. "Yeah, that's great. Thanks." She was acting strange. Kyle shrugged and ate a spoonful. It was nice and cool, just what he needed to beat the summer heat. And the sugar gave him a little spurt of energy. Maria was spreading the atlas on the tables as she sipped from a cup Michael had handed her. She smoothed the pages down, and Kyle saw it was already open on the city of Boston.

"Max told you what we were thinking, right?" Maria asked, pointing at the Boston inset on the atlas page. She looked up at Isabelle. "Are you up to it?"

Isabelle's face was hard and determined. "I'm ready for anything we have to do to save Jesse." Maria nodded. Isabelle pushed her half-finished cup of ice cream aside. "Kyle, give me your hand."

Kyle felt obliged to warn Isabelle of his misgivings. "I'm not sure this will work, you know. I may not be able to-"

"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Isabelle flared at him, grabbing his hand. Kyle sat back in his seat as she glared at him. "I know you don't know if it'll work. You just started knowing what your powers were. It'd be stupid of me to expect otherwise. But you'd better do your best!"

Max leaned forward. "Iz, that's not fair."

"But he-"

"He just wanted to be sure you understood he couldn't promise anything. Calm down, Iz. We're almost there. Whether this works or not, we're going to rescue Jesse."

Isabelle's grip on Kyle's hand tightened until it hurt as she stared down at the tabletop. Then she relaxed her hold and looked up again, much calmer. "Alright. I got it." She looked at Kyle. "Sorry. Let's do this."

Kyle nodded, scared to say anything to her now. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She was getting better at this stuff; she didn't even have to lie down first. He watched her, wondering how he would know if she'd made contact with Jesse. Suddenly streets and buildings were flashing through his thoughts, and he knew she had made contact with him, because he was homing in on a location. He closed his eyes to make the visions flashing though his head clearer and blindly reached for the map of Boston. Somehow he knew exactly where he was reaching. As his finger neared the building he was seeing in his mind's eyes, a sense of rightness fell over his thoughts, much as Isabelle had described her understanding of when a particular car part was fixed correctly with her powers. When he felt he was pointing to the correct place on the map, he had the presence of mind to let his friends know. "Here...it's here." Suddenly the picture he had in his head blanked out. He slowly opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was Isabelle's face. Her eyes were still closed, and both of her hands held tightly to his fingers as a tear ran down her cheek. After a second of silence from everyone at the table, she took a deep breath, wiped her face, and opened her eyes.

"Sorry," she muttered with a sniff, reaching for a napkin.

Kyle looked over at his other hand, still resting on the map. Someone had drawn a partial circle around his fingertip. He removed his finger and Liz leaned forward and completed the circle with a blue pen. The spot where he'd pointed was in the northern half of Boston, not far from the water. It wasn't too far from the airport. Max was smiling at Kyle. "I'm glad you were able to help, Kyle. This will make it much easier to get to Jesse quickly."

A wave of exhaustion nearly overwhelmed Kyle. He closed his eyes for a moment, then forced them open and reached with trembling hands for his slowly melting ice cream. He raised a spoonful to his mouth, and the cold shock against his tongue was refreshing. The sugar seemed to help a bit too. Kyle looked over at Isabelle, who was still wiping her nose. He reached out and pushed her ice cream toward her.

"It helps to eat something." Isabelle looked up at him. She seemed doubtful. "Really. It'll take your mind off things for a bit if nothing else. We'll get him back, Isabelle." She looked at him for a moment, then down at what was left of her ice cream. Without any change in expression she reached out and slowly ran her spoon through it, picking up a sloppy spoonful. She raised it to her mouth and ate it mechanically, never saying a word to him. He continued to eat his ice cream without comment, struggling to control his annoyance. He'd done nothing to deserve that kind of treatment from her. After a few minutes of silent fuming he closed his eyes and thought about Buddha. Her snub was a small matter, not really worth this much resentment. He sighed and did his best to let it go. He had enough things to worry about without getting bent out of shape over Isabelle's rudeness.

*****

Liz stretched and yawned. Night was beginning to fall in Boston. She could smell the tang of salt in the air, it was hard to get used to. At least the breeze off the ocean made it much cooler here than it'd been in either Arizona or Illinois. The SUV they'd rented jerked her to the left and her shoulder hit the side of the vehicle.

"Sorry guys!" Maria called out over her shoulder. "Traffic's a little crazy here. It's okay now, though. I think we're in the right lane." She looked over at the passenger seat. "Michael, I'll have to turn left, right?" Michael looked down at the atlas and his finger traced along the page for a second, then he nodded. "Good, we should be okay then," Maria said, satisfied.

Liz turned her head as a warm hand wrapped itself around hers. "You okay there, Liz?" Liz smiled and craned her neck up to give Max a kiss.

"Of course."

"I missed you on that flight." His hand tightened on hers.

"What?" Maria's voice broke in on their reverie. "I wasn't good enough company for you?"

"Maria!" Liz laughed and reached forward to slap her friend on the shoulder. As her hand made contact with the soft, silky polyester of Maria's shirt, a shock ran through her. The hand Max held clenched and the hand on Maria's shoulder hung there as if held with glue.

"...Liz....?" A voice was calling her, but it was too far away, she could barely hear whoever it was. Instead, she was absorbed in the scene before her.

Michael's deep voice rang throughout the vehicle. "Watch out, Maria! NO!" He held out both hands as Maria screamed and began to turn the steering wheel. White light enveloped the front seat-Michael was using his powers to do something. Maria slammed on the brakes. They squealed in protest, but slowed the SUV. Everyone was flung forward. Max flew right between Maria and Michael and through the windshield even as Liz reached for him. She heard something begin to crunch, as if a giant were chewing rocks right next to her ear, and the vehicle's body began to press against her. Before she even had time to understand what was going on, everything descended into sudden darkness and silence.

Liz blinked and strove to see what was happening around her. When she reopened her eyes all she saw was carnage. She was floating in the air above the road. She looked around, trying to take in her surroundings. It took her a moment to recognize the SUV they'd rented at the airport. The driver's side was a tangled mess of crushed metal and...Liz raised her hands to her mouth as she screamed. There was misted blood all over the scene. A disconnected arm, severed by a sheet of steel, lay before her. Up near the shoulder lay the tatters of Maria's shirt, barely recognizable through the red. Over to the side Liz saw a mass of dark hair, long and straight. She thought it was her hair, but the shape of the head it covered was wrong...there was no way she was still alive, if it was her. She looked forward. Max had flown out the windshield...where was he? She had to find him!

Then Liz noticed movement on the scene. Men were picking their way through the rubble...carrying Max. Two were holding Max up. He looked unconscious, but his legs...they shouldn't bend that way. They must be broken. Why were the men dragging him along? Shouldn't they put him in a stretcher first? Then she saw a man escorting those holding Max. His dark jacket had large letters on the back: FBI. She began to cry. They weren't planning on helping Max. They'd probably use the pain of his shattered legs to torture him more.

Something caught her eye, more movement. She turned her head. Michael, blood pouring out of his mouth. As she turned, he coughed up more in a sickening flood. He was standing on his own, though one hand hung useless from his shoulder. He raised the other hand toward some more of the FBI agents, and a red flower suddenly blossomed on his chest as a loud report rang in Liz's ears. Liz's vision began to waver and become indistinct as she watched him stagger once and fall to the ground. She was grateful that her tears were obscuring this vision. This was all too horrible to contemplate, even worse than the premonition she'd received before graduation. She didn't want to see any more. She closed her eyes and shook her head violently, willing it to end. She wouldn't allow this to happen, she couldn't!

"Liz! Liz!" Someone was shaking her. Liz raised her head slowly, a deep tearing sob shaking through her body. She turned and looked. The hand belonged to Kyle, but it wasn't Kyle's voice calling to her. She suddenly felt pain in her hand. Max, Max was holding her hand. He was still alive and well, her vision hadn't come to pass yet.

"Max," she screamed and turned around to face him, tearing her hand from his grip. "You're okay!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably.

"It's just ahead," Kyle said. His voice was wooden and expressionless. "What she saw is down this road another three miles."

"What'd she see?" Maria. Liz clenched her hands on Max's back. When she'd seen Maria's arm, lying there on the road...

"I-I don't know." Liz struggled to regain control of herself. Three miles wasn't far, they didn't have much time. "But I know where it happens."

"Whatever it was, it doesn't sound good," Isabelle commented from the back. "Maybe you should turn off, Maria."

"Liz, Liz, tell me. Tell me what you saw. Please, calm down." Liz gulped and looked up into Max's beautiful eyes. She couldn't let that happen to him. She closed her eyes, took a deep and shuddering breath, and opened them again.

"It was a car accident. Bad. I was dead, Maria was...probably dead. The FBI was there-probably because Michael used his powers to do something. They-they shot Michael. I saw him...fall..." The tears came again, the pain of her vision overwhelmed her once more and she buried herself in Max's embrace again.

"I'd say that's bad," Michael remarked dryly. "Turn off, Maria, the first chance you get. It doesn't matter where, we can't let that happen."

"But what about the FBI? How'd they get to the accident scene so quickly? Have they set up a trap for us?" Serena sounded frightened.

Maria hit the brakes hard and turned right, toward the seashore. "It doesn't matter." Her voice was hard and determined. "We can't get into that accident, we have to stay away from the scene."

"Kyle, can you tell anything else about the accident scene?"

"No, sorry, just the location." He paused, then spoke up again, a little hesitantly. "About the FBI setting a trap-I don't know."

"Liz," Max's face was against the top of her head, she could feel his lips move against her hair as he hugged her close. "Please, we need to know more. Was it a trap? Is the FBI onto us somehow?" His hands held her tight, exactly like she needed them to, and his voice was soft and enveloping, just what she needed to calm down. She counted to ten under her breath, then pushed back from her tight hug.

"I don't know. I couldn't see what caused the accident. I was in my seat for the accident itself...then...after...I was floating above, watching everything." She closed her eyes and concentrated, trying to remember the surroundings of the wreckage, but the vivid images of her friends' injuries and deaths kept intruding. She took a shuddering breath and tried again. She felt hands on her face, one cradling her cheek and the other massaging her temple.

"Calm down, Liz." Soft lips on her forehead. "You can do this."

There were quite a few agents, but their outfits were messy, as if hastily donned. There were other cars involved in the incident, crushed and crumpled almost past all recognition. People, some dead, some crying out for help, none of them in uniform...

"I don't think so. The FBI looked disorganized, and there were at least three other cars I remember seeing, with other injured people." Liz opened her eyes and looked around the SUV at her friends. They were all watching her intently except for Maria, who was driving slowly down the street they'd turned on to.

"It's possible," Michael said, "that my use of my powers was seen...the place where they're holding Jesse isn't far from here. I bet they'd come running if they heard about us being in the area." He leaned forward and turned on the radio. "Let's listen. If we hear about this accident, it should mean it wasn't a setup. Maybe it's just bad luck, and we've avoided it now." He flipped through stations until he settled on a promising talk radio station. Then he pulled out the map and peered at it. "Damn, it's too dark to see these fucking road names."

"Michael," Maria snapped, exasperated. "What?"

Liz looked up at her friend. Maria was gripping the steering wheel so tight it looked like she'd rip it off the steering column soon. "Cut down on the language." She took a deep breath. "The map light's above the rearview mirror, use it."

"Yeah, okay. Sorry," Michael muttered as he reached up and turned on the light.

A muscle in Maria's cheek jumped; her jaw was clenched. She took a deep breath and slowly unfolded one of her hands from the steering wheel. She reached over and touched Michael's shoulder. "I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have snapped at you. That was stupid."

"Hey, we're all tense," Kyle cracked, trying to make peace. Liz looked back at him. His face looked haggard, his eyes dark and tired. She smiled at him as she wiped tears off her face.

"Thank goodness you're here, Kyle. I couldn't see enough to tell where this would happen. Without you, we'd probably still have gotten in the accident." He smiled crookedly back at her.

"Hold it!" Michael held up a hand, raising his head from his study of the atlas. He leaned forward and turned up the radio.

"...Salem Turnpike. The whole road is blocked off with a large accident covering most or all of the lanes...Reports are coming in that a tanker truck jackknifed and lost control. There are multiple vehicles involved in the incident. I hear that-what? Okay. Multiple fatalities, ambulances have been called to the scene. This looks like a nasty one, people, avoid the turnpike, find yourself an alternate route." Michael turned the radio back down, then continued poring over the map.

"Okay...there's only one road that will get north from here now, North Shore Drive. I hope this isn't a trap, because we've only got one way out of here."

"It can't be a trap," Max said. "I don't believe anyone could pull something like that. We weren't there so they had no reason to stage such an accident."

"Maybe they allowed it to go forward to lull us into complacency," Serena argued. Her eyes were a little wild.

"No," Isabelle disagreed, "they don't know about Liz's ability to see the future. It was just chance."

"You're only saying that because you want us to go and rescue your husband," Serena accused. She gripped the seat in front of her tightly. "I'm scared. The last thing I want to do is die. I've fought too hard for too long to let that happen to me now!"

Liz had gathered herself back together again. She leaned forward and took Serena's hand with a smile. Isabelle opened her mouth to say something. Something nasty, from the look on her face, but Liz shook her head at her gently and turned back to Serena. "No, Serena, that's not fair. What Isabelle said is true. They don't know about my ability. They can't, because it appeared only a couple weeks ago, just before we fled Roswell. And only the people in this vehicle know a thing about it."

Serena stared at Liz intently, her hands gripping Liz's tightly. She closed her eyes for a moment and her lips moved as if she were muttering a prayer, then she opened them again and turned to Isabelle. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm just so scared..." Isabelle just nodded. Liz suppressed a sigh. That would have to be good enough.

"Okay, people, it's going to take a little longer to get to the place Kyle pointed us to, but we're going to be fine." Maria's voice was artificially cheery. Liz turned forward and touched her shoulder. Maria was so tense. Maybe Liz could help her out a little, Maria was taking so much on herself. Liz's grip tightened on Maria's back. "Uh, Liz?" Maria's voice was tentative, but held an undercurrent of sudden cheer.

"Yeah?"

"You remember what I told you about massages?"

"Umm...you said I give horrible ones."

"Yeah, well, girlfriend...that hasn't changed."

"Oh!" Liz withdrew her hand with a rueful chuckle. Maria was smiling now, a genuine smile, half relief, half good humor. Michael snickered as he studied the map. Liz grinned. Even at the cost of her pride, it was good to lighten the mood a little.

"Only a couple more miles, you guys," Michael said. Everyone's face was suddenly serious. Liz could hear Isabelle's loud breathing as she leaned forward. Max's hand tightened over hers. Soon, they would have Jesse out.

*****

"Greer reporting. Two-no, make that four, subjects approaching my position."

"Copy. Nature of the subjects?"

Agent Greer looked them over with a critical eye. There were two couples and all of them looked like they were in their teens. One of the girls, the short blonde, appeared especially drunk. Her partner was a guy with shoulder length hair and swarthy skin. He tried to keep her walking in a relatively straight line, but his own sense of direction appeared to be seriously impaired as well. The girl kept stumbling into things, weaving from side to side unsteadily as the four approached Greer's position.

The other couple appeared to be in better control of themselves, even if their own steps wandered from the straight and narrow a bit. The girl was taller than her pale blonde companion. The guy looked terribly serious, as if attempting to hide his condition took all his concentration. The woman appeared to be amused by the other girl's poor condition, going so far as to shove the smaller girl aside every time she stumbled near. Greer raised his radio to his mouth. "Harmless. Some kids wandering around drunk after a party."

"Copy. O'Leary spotted these coming your way a few minutes ago. Stay in position."

"Roger," he said quietly, then slipped the radio back into his large ratty trenchcoat. He pulled out the bottle he had in his other pocket, still in the paper bag, and took an obvious swig as the kids neared him.

"Hey!" the amused girl said, peering at his face in the poor light. "Feel like sharing the wealth?" She reached out with a grin for the drunken girl and yanked her over to her side. "Emily here is waaaaaay too sober, she needs something else to keep her going." As she yanked the smaller girl over to stand in front of Greer, the drunken girl's shoulders began to heave. Greer took a worried step back before remembering he was supposed to be a street drunk, someone who would only have a little trouble with being vomited on. The girl reached out a hand and rested it on his arm as she shook. Her companion reached out and rubbed her shoulders, pulling her gently away from Greer with some muttered words of comfort. The other woman only laughed and continued on, the others following after. Greer watched them leave then radioed the all clear back to headquarters.

*****

"That's two," Liz murmured to Michael as they stumbled away. She lurched over in Isabelle's direction. "Did you get a good look at his face? Or do we need to get close again?"

"No, I got a good view of his face. Let's get out of sight and back to the van. I feel bad about leaving Maria there alone with Serena and Kyle."

Michael agreed. You never knew what Kyle was going to do next, in his condition, and they still couldn't let their guard all the way down around Serena, although he had to admit she'd given them no reason to distrust her. "Besides," he added in softly, "We've already weaved our way down two of the streets around this block. If we turn the corner again, the feds are bound to get suspicious, no matter how drunk we're supposed to be. I don't want to push it. The last thing we want to do is give warning to the bastards." Liz's drunken act got a little out of hand as she nearly let herself fall over. Mindful of the agent's eyes upon his back, Michael clumsily pulled Liz back toward him. As she practically fell against him she put herself into a spin, whipping her now blonde hair across his face. Michael couldn't help his exasperated "Stop that!" He tried to make himself sound tipsy, but didn't succeed very well. They were a distance away from that agent now, though. Maybe he hadn't noticed.

"Don't you think you're overdoing this a little, Liz?" Max sounded a little upset. Michael glanced over at him and couldn't resist a snicker. He'd made himself look so pale, it looked like he'd soaked in a vat of bleach before coming out tonight.

"You've got to learn to tone down that color change, Maxwell. You look like a ghost!" Before Max could splutter an annoyed protest Isabelle yanked him into an alley by his elbow. Michael and Liz followed suit. As soon as they were out of sight they all expelled sighs of relief. Michael closed his eyes and willed his body back to normal. When he opened his eyes Isabelle was shimmering back to her old self, and Max was slowly working on it. Michael couldn't suppress a surge of satisfaction when he saw Max having difficulty with this aspect of their powers. He wasn't the slow one on everything. Michael turned to Liz, who was fingering her newly blonde hair nervously as she watched them.

"Ready?" he asked, holding up one hand. She nodded and he brought the color of her hair back to its normal brown, then lowered his hand again. "There." He looked back at Max, who was finally finished with his own transformation. "Let's get back to the others." He strode back toward Maria.

They reached the SUV. Its dark color helped it retreat into the background. Maria jogged out to meet them, throwing her arms around Michael's neck.

"I'm so glad you're back! Waiting for you guys when you're doing something like that is the most nerve-wracking thing in the world!" She gave him a peck before turning to greet the others. Michael casually allowed his arm to snake around her back, over her shoulders. Kyle and Serena jumped out of the van as Isabelle, Liz and Max arrived.

Liz lifted a lock of her hair and examined it critically. "Maria, does this look right to you?" She frowned, and turned to Michael without waiting for an answer from Maria. "Michael, did you change my hair? I wanted it turned back to normal!"

Michael shrugged. He'd done the best he could with what he remembered. Did she expect him to carry a photo of her around so he could turn her hair the perfect shade of brown? He had better things to do. "Looks right to me."

Liz turned to Max, holding the hair up. "What do you think?"

Max kissed her. "It's perfect, Liz. Don't worry about it."

Isabelle was tapping her foot impatiently. "I'm ready to dreamwalk that agent. Hopefully we can find out more about the layout of that warehouse and the FBI's security in there from inside his head." She looked at Serena. "Did you find anything in your files on those CDs? Have you ever heard of the FBI using this building for this kind of purpose before?"

Serena shook her head. "No. This building's not in my database. I figure, from what you've told me, that the FBI simply saw this as the perfect opportunity to grab Jesse. They probably just took the place over right before they snatched him up."

Isabelle sighed but nodded her understanding and turned to Liz. "Did you sense anything? Did you touch anything that gave you a vision?"

Liz looked up and dropped the lock of hair she'd been looking at. "When you pushed me into the second agent I saw us taking him out."

Isabelle raised a surprised eyebrow.

"When you say ‘taking him out', did you mean ‘taking him out' as in knocking him out, or ‘taking him out' as in ‘taking him out'?" Kyle seemed nervous as he asked Liz his question. Liz just shook her head.

"He fell to the ground and Max and I ran by him, around the corner of the warehouse. I don't know exactly what we did to him, if that's what you want to know." Her voice got quiet. "I don't know if I really want to kill them. We have to get Jesse out of there, but..." Max walked over to her. Michael ignored them. Max could take care of her. Michael knew he wouldn't go out of his way to kill anyone. He swallowed as he remembered killing Agent Pierce. But he wouldn't let that hesitation stop him from doing what he had to do to keep them all safe. If need be, he could kill again.

"Michael," Maria's voice was soft, but a little strained. "Michael, your hand."

He realized he held Maria's shoulder in a death grip. He relaxed his hand. "Sorry." He winced at the sullenness of his tone, waiting for an acerbic remark from Maria. Instead, she turned and engulfed him in a hug.

"Michael, don't hate yourself like that." She squeezed him tight. "You'd better come back to me, you hear me? Or I'll be very upset with you." She held him so tight he couldn't see her face, but he heard threatening tears in her voice. He wordlessly hugged her back. What could he say?

After a moment he realized everyone else was silent too. He looked up and around. Everyone was watching Isabelle. She stood stiffly at attention, her hands rigid at her sides and her eyes tightly closed. Michael felt Maria stir and turn to watch the scene as well. One of her hands let go of its death grip on his back and wiped something from her face. His hands curled around her protectively. He hated it when she cried.

Isabelle began to sway on her feet. Kyle took a couple of steps toward her and waited by her side as her eyes moved rapidly under her eyelids. She gasped and took an unsteady step back. Kyle's arm shot out to catch a fall, but she regained her balance and opened her eyes cautiously.

"What'd you see? Anything useful?" Max's voice was tense, but eager.

Isabelle shook her head once, as if to clear it, then she cleared her throat. "I got in. I seem to be getting better at this. He was resistant to me, but that didn't slow me down much, this time." She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. "I'm not so sure that's a good thing. It reminds me of Tess too much." Her voice suddenly became brisk and businesslike again. "He knew a lot about the security for the building. Serena was right, they just commandeered the building and prepared it for Jesse's...interrogation...overnight. This won't be nearly as hard as it could've been." Everyone, including Michael, breathed a collective sigh of relief. "There are five agents scattered around the perimeter of the building. Since it takes up the whole block, and this area has some homeless hangouts, they've been able to keep a low profile rather easily. Inside is the interrogation team." If Isabelle's voice had been brisk before, now it was cold and hard as steel. "This agent, Agent Greer, thinks there are four people in there regularly, but sometimes others come to visit, and he isn't always informed."

"So there's at least nine, maybe more, FBI agents we have to neutralize somehow. Anything else?" Max asked.

Isabelle nodded. "The interrogations are being recorded, of course. And there are security cameras throughout the building too. The good news is they're not hidden. The bad news is, Greer's not in there much. He doesn't know how many cameras there are, he doesn't know where the tapes are stored, and he doesn't know how many cameras there are."

"Great." Michael said sourly. "So we have to take out the five agents outside, and move through the building, finding and destroying cameras as we go, then take on the four or more agents inside the building without giving them a chance to hurt or kill Jesse, and then we have to hope the whole thing isn't on tape somewhere just waiting for the FBI to find it." Everyone fell into a depressed silence. Isabelle closed her eyes again and raised her fingers to her forehead, a wrinkle of worry forming between her brows. Michael felt a little bad. He hadn't meant for his comment to affect everyone this way. He expected Maria to kick him in the shin again, or say "Michael" in that annoying way she had, but she only held him tighter.

Isabelle suddenly snapped her fingers. Michael jumped, startled. She was smiling! "Greer overheard one of the other guys, one of the guys in the building, complaining about the electricity! This area sometimes loses power, and they don't have a backup generator set up here! That's how we can protect ourselves! Cut the power!"

"What if they have night-vision goggles or something?"

She shrugged. "We hit ‘em fast, right after the lights go out." She flung her hand out toward the building where her husband was held, hidden from view, but looming large in their minds nonetheless. "The five agents outside don't have goggles on them. At least, Greer didn't. And the ones inside probably don't carry them with them at all time, even if they have them. We hit them fast enough, they won't have them. And knocking out the power eliminates the possibility of the FBI getting video on us."

"We have to get the guys outside first," Max said. "If we leave them outside, they can storm in from any direction and take us by surprise."

"But we want to get to Jesse as quick as possible too!" Liz interjected. "Michael is right, all they have to do to stop us in our tracks is hold a gun to Jesse's head. We can't run around knocking all these agents around the block out. That gives the guys inside too much time to realize what's up."

"And who's going to knock the power out?" Isabelle pressed. "We can't split into three groups, that's just asking to be taken out one by one."

Maria pulled away from Michael and stepped into the middle of the conversation. "I have an idea." Everyone turned to look at her. "Serena and I will take out the power. Then Isabelle, Michael, and Kyle go in after Jesse while Liz and Max go around getting all the perimeter agents."

Isabelle looked surprised. "How are you going to take care of the electricity?"

Maria pointed at their rented SUV. "It's got that winch thing." She shrugged. "We tie it around a pole and pull it down. If that doesn't work, we ram it." Michael was shocked by the matter of fact tone of her voice, and more than a little impressed with her determination.

Serena groaned and her head sank into the palms of her hands. "You know what crashing the SUV into a pole is going to do to the card I used to rent it? It'll be useless!" She sighed and looked back up with a crooked, resigned smile. "I guess it's worth it to save a life, though." Liz spun around and hugged her tight. Serena squeaked, her eyes wide with surprise, then she settled down and her smile became one of happiness.

Maria continued. "Isabelle can connect with Jesse through her dreamwalking, and Kyle can touch her and lead you three to where Jesse is hidden. Michael can protect you two as you find him. Liz and Max should be able to take those other five agents on one by one." She grinned suddenly. "What do you think?"

Isabelle's voice shook with suppressed eagerness. "I think it's good. Let's find the right power pole first. And don't worry about the power pole being too strong to pull down. We can weaken it before we go in. I'll explain everything I was able to pull from Greer about the layout of the building inside, and we'll time everything, like last time, when we got Max out of the White Room." Her hands were trembling too, ever so faintly. "We have to get him out of there."

*****

Maria had been proud of herself for having come up with the plan, but now she was a nervous wreck. If anything went wrong now, she would feel like it was her fault. Maybe coming up with the plan wasn't such a good idea after all. She glanced at her watch. Only a minute had passed since the last time she'd looked. How could time slow down so much? She hoped everyone was in position. What if someone got shot? What if Jesse was already dead, or hurt so bad he might as well be dead? What had the FBI found out about them already? What if they were being watched, right now...

"Stop it, Maria." Serena's voice broke the silence like a hammer shattered glass. Maria couldn't restrain a startled yelp.

"Stop what?" Maria asked, pretending she wasn't acting like a startled deer.

"Stop it with the ‘what if's. Everything's set in motion. We've been as cautious as we could be. There's nothing more we can do. You'll drive yourself crazy if you keep that up." Maria laughed nervously. "No, I'm serious. My dad taught me that while we were on the run. Paranoia is something you pick up awfully fast when you live like this, but you have to learn when to let it go and just do what you can with what you've got." Serena smiled and clapped Maria on the shoulder. "That was a good plan you came up with, and we've got the element of surprise, I'm sure of it. Just calm down, and get ready to do what we have to do."

Maria nodded and closed her eyes, wishing she had another vial of her eucalyptus. Anything that could calm her clamoring nerves would be welcome right now. She'd have to buy another vial the first chance she got. Serena was right, though. Taking a breath and thinking of something else for a few seconds calmed her down considerably. She looked back at the clock. Two more minutes had passed. It was getting close to 12:31. They'd timed their operation to start just after all the agents had reported in. She looked at Serena, an unspoken question in her eyes. Serena looked back at her and nodded. "Let's pull up to the pole and tie it up."

Maria started the vehicle and drove from their spot on the road to the corner utility pole. She and Serena got out of the SUV and tied the twisted wire pull on the SUV around the power pole. Maria looked at their handiwork. Neither of them really knew much about what they were doing. She could only hope the hook held. "Okay, let's pull the car back and see if it look like it'll pull the pole over. If the pole looks like it might tumble, we'll wait until twelve thirty-one to pull it...otherwise, we get ready to ram the stupid thing." Serena examined their handiwork too before she nodded and got back into the SUV. Maria slowly backed the SUV away from the pole until the wire pulled taut. She cautiously inched back, and the pole began to shake and creak. Maria braked. "Looks like that'll do. We're ready." Serena was wordless this time. She just nodded and turned to watch the huge warehouse where Jesse was being held.

*****

"How do you want to do this? You want to start dreamwalking Jesse right off, or you want to break into the building first, and then stop?" Michael was pressed against the wall near the corner of the alley, watching the agent near the door they'd chosen to use to enter the building. They'd take out this particular agent to get in, while Max and Liz would take care of the other four, one by one, before making their own way in. A hand reached up, grabbed his chin and yanked his head back around to face into the alley.

"What? I can't here you when you're whispering away from me!" Isabelle's eyes were bright, but narrowed in anger. She was more volatile than usual. Michael really hoped her attitude would improve once they'd gotten Jesse out.

"I said, ‘You want to start dreamwalking Jesse right off, or do you want to break into the building first, then stop?'".

Isabelle squeezed up next to him near the corner of the wall and peeked around it herself, peering at the FBI agent. "I think I should wait until we get inside. I'm pretty helpless when I do that...I'd like the obvious danger taken care of, at least, before I make myself so vulnerable." She backed off again and muttered something to Kyle. Michael looked back at them. Kyle's eyes were wide and his breath was a little fast.

"Are you alright there, Kyle? We'd hate to have you collapse in the middle of the fight."

Kyle nodded curtly. "Yeah. I'm great." His voice was angry and sullen. "I love running into deadly situations with powers I don't understand or control, and getting mocked when things don't work out the way people think they should." Michael looked away from him, annoyed at his sarcastic response. He was just trying to be nice, show concern. See if he ever asked how Kyle was doing again. He sighed impatiently and looked down at his watch. 12:25. Almost time. Michael sighed with annoyance and looked out at that damned FBI guard again.

*****

Liz suddenly placed her hands on his shoulders and shoved him back into the wall with a barely perceptible thud as she leaned forward to kiss him. He leaned into the kiss, his hands unconsciously coming down to encircle her waist as he felt the sudden fear and desperation Liz was trying to suppress with the kiss. He wrapped his arms more tightly around her. She had nothing to worry about; he would die making sure she was safe. Nothing would harm her while he lived. Then he started to get flashes from her, thoughts pouring into his head in a haphazard jumble. Him, being taken away by FBI agents, his eyes full of fear for himself, and relief for her. The fear visible on his face after Isabelle, Tess and Michael rescued him from the White Room. The pain of losing him to Tess. His death this past winter. Realization washed over him as he picked up the common theme in all these thoughts. She wasn't afraid for herself. She was afraid of losing him.

Liz broke the kiss off as quickly as she had initiated it. "I think we're both thinking the same thing, Max."

He looked at her. God, how he loved her.

"We don't want to lose each other."

He swallowed and nodded. The thought of her being hurt again was physically painful to him.

Her hands wandered on his chest as she looked into his eyes. "So let's make a pact. You protect me, and I'll protect you, as if our lives depended on it."

Max looked at her lips, full and inviting. "I think they do," he said thickly.

"What?"

"I think our lives do depend on protecting one another." His hand brushed a cornsilk strand of hair from her cheek. "I know I'd die if anything ever happened to you." He kissed her again.

When they finally pulled back, Liz was smiling again. "I feel the same way." She looked down at her watch and gasped, then held it up for him to look. 12:30.

He grabbed her hand. "Get ready."

*****

"There! It's time! Go, Maria!" Serena could barely restrain her giddiness. The excitement and fear combined into a hyperactive tension she was eager to relieve, and now the time had finally arrived.

Maria hit the gas, pulling on the power pole. The SUV's tires bit into the asphalt and the vehicle began to inch backwards. Serena clenched her fists and pounded on the dashboard as she murmured encouragement to the SUV. Her eyes were fixed on the pole. It was slowly, with groans and creaks barely audible over the roar of the vehicle, bending over. Suddenly the creaks turned into cracks as loud as gunshots as the dry wood began to give. As the pole began its deadly fall, Maria suddenly switched gears and drove forward, turning the vehicle sharply so she drove out of the path of the falling utility pole.

"Unhook it, Serena. We have to get out of here before someone comes investigating!" Serena was out the door before Maria even finished her sentence, undoing the hook around the splintered end of the pole. She quickly ran back into the SUV as Maria pressed the button on the dashboard that wound the wire back around the winch in the front bumper. As Serena jumped into her seat and closed the door, Maria pressed on the gas again, driving carefully now to avoid any live wires. They shared a look of accomplishment as they began to drive to the agreed meeting point to pick up the others... and, hopefully, Jesse.

*****

Kyle followed Isabelle and Michael as a loud crashing boom echoed throughout the neighborhood. Damn, that pole falling had been loud! The lights flickered out as they emerged from the shadows of the alley. The agent who'd been watching the door automatically looked in the direction the crash had come from, and away from the approaching teenagers. It gave them enough time to close most of the distance between them and the entrance, but then something alerted the man, probably their footsteps as they pounded the pavement. Kyle saw the man begin to turn when Michael, the closest, was only about ten feet away. Michael raised his hand without even breaking stride and Kyle saw the man fly backward through air as a silent concussion shook the area. The agent hit the building wall with a resounding crash then slid down the wall to slump against the door frame. Michael ran past him, into the enveloping darkness of the warehouse. Isabelle stopped and rifled through the stunned man's body, coming up with a handgun. Kyle looked at her with wide eyes. Was she going to use that? Was her anger so overwhelming that she was just going to shoot her way to her husband?

Isabelle shot a look back at him as if she were reading his mind and shook her head. She held the gun up to the wall and it began to melt, forming a molten metal and plastic surface, too thin to be measured, over the frame. Then she smiled, stepped over the still body of the agent, and ducked inside the building after Michael. Kyle paused and considered the agent...he seemed to be stirring. He aimed a judicious kick at the man's chin. His toe connected with a loud crack and the man lay still. That should keep him out for a while. Kyle walked carefully through the doorway and Isabelle stepped around him, closing the door behind him. She held her hand up to the fine layer of melted gun on the door way, and it lifted and shifted to cover over the crack between the door and its frame. "That'll delay them, at least, if one of the other agents manages to get there. I'd prefer it if no one could sneak up behind us," she explained.

"C'mon, Isabelle, we've got to get moving. I need you to dreamwalk Jesse. We don't want to wander around in here without purpose." Michael hissed. Isabelle stepped up next to him, snagging Kyle's arm as she walked and pulling him along. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"I've got him. He's...asleep. Dreaming." Tears began to fall from her closed eyes and run down her cheeks. "Of us." Her voice dropped into the inaudible range, but her lips moved. Kyle realized she must be telling Jesse something. Michael dropped a heavy hand on his shoulder.

"Your turn, Kyle, get a good read on exactly where he is. We don't want anything to happen to him because we didn't get there in time."

Kyle nodded and closed his eyes, reaching out to touch Isabelle's arm. The building's layout appeared in his mind's eye, as detailed as if he'd built it with his own hands. He brought himself down into the building, as if taking a virtual 3-D tour, and began to follow his newfound sense of direction toward Jesse's location. Finally he emerged in the room where Jesse was being held. He could sense moving shadows in the room, indistinct and dizzying, but Jesse, lying on an operating table, was crystal clear. As Isabelle had said, he appeared to be sleeping. Kyle ran over his mental image, committing the route to memory, and opened his eyes.

Isabelle was staring at him. "I saw some of that. Did you see those shadows? Those must be the interrogators." Her eyes were narrow and angry, and her arm muscles flexed under his death grip on her. "Do you know where we have to go? I couldn't follow most of that...you went through it too fast."

Kyle nodded and self-consciously turned and pointed to his right. "I'll take you there. He's this way." He took off at a run and heard the reassuring sound of Michael and Isabelle running after him.

*****

"That's it!" Max cried as they both heard a muffled crash and saw the lights on the block flicker and die. He took off in a flat sprint, too fast for her to keep up. She ran as fast as she could, straining not to fall too far behind. If anything happened to him because she was too slow to keep up, she'd never forgive herself. She shifted her gaze between her husband and the agent that was their target - Agent Greer. He was closest to the entrance that Michael, Isabelle and Kyle were using, and they'd decided to get him first to prevent him from coming up behind the others. He was on the radio within a second of the sound of the utility pole falling, but his vigilance betrayed him this time. His conversation distracted him from the fast approaching Max. Max was nearly upon him before he looked up, his eyes and mouth wide open in surprise. The poor man tried to pull his gun, but Max stopped about five feet from him and threw him, with the power of his mind, against the brick wall of the building.

Liz winced as Agent Greer fell. Max's aim was a little off. In his excitement, he'd thrown Greer into a pile of metal trash barrels. The racket bounced off the walls and concrete road loud enough to wake the dead. Liz couldn't repress a gasped "Shit!" as she turned toward where the next closest agent was supposed to be, just around the corner. She caught a glimpse of Max snatching up Agent Greer's gun, the turning to follow her toward their next target, who was probably already alerted. She slowed her sprint as she neared the corner, looking back at Max. She pointed down, hoping he'd understand she meant to go around the corner low. He made some strange waving motion, but she simply pointed low again, then turned back toward the corner of the building.

She took a deep breath, steadying herself then threw herself into a low roll around the corner of the building. She knew, the way her emotions and fear were washing over her, that she'd have the ability to use her powers this time. Not a shred of self doubt was in her mind. The feeling was so liberating, the rush so complete, that she had to restrain a laugh as she rounded the corner.

"NO! Liz!" Max's voice was desperately loud, but she barely heard his shout. Her concentration was total. There the man was, his hair long and unkempt, wearing disgustingly dirty clothes, and holding a handgun trained on her. She held up her hand, summoning an explosion of will. The rush of expanding air as the man was thrown back was pierced by a strange sharp sound. Liz felt a nick on her outstretched arm and snuck a quick peek. A line of bright red ran along the outside edge of her upper arm, and it felt chilled, as if someone had sprayed her with icy water. She bent her arm, and the ice became fire, but her muscles and bones obeyed her mind's commands and she dismissed it as a minor wound, forcing her attention back to the agent.

He was groaning, but awake, and reaching for his dropped weapon. Liz, still kneeling from her roll on the ground, raised her wounded arm again, now dripping blood onto her thigh. She let loose another attack, but the man already had his hands wrapped around the gun, and he brought it with him as he was lifted into the air. He was lifting it toward her, his eyes locked on hers as they both stared death in the face. Then Max was in front of her, blocking her view, as another report rang through the muggy night air.

"Max!" Liz surged to her feet. The man was lying on the ground, bleeding heavily. His gun...Liz turned away from him and clung to Max. The gun had melted in his hand. There was the smell of burnt meat wafting over her, and she suppressed a sudden urge to retch. Max was running his hands over her, murmuring something. She blinked and shook her head, then looked up at him. "Max! Are you okay? He got another shot off, I heard him!" He smiled down at her, and she began to look him over. He seemed fine. His eyes were centered on her arm.

"No Liz, I'm fine." He reached out and hand and, without even looking, a pristine bullet lying on the ground between their feet rose to his palm. He stuffed it in his pocket then reached for her arm. "But you're injured."

She held her arm up and moved it. "I'm fine, it's just bleeding a bit."

"Let me take-" He reached for her.

"No!" She took a step back. "We have two other agents to take care of. And they're warned and ready, like this one was."

Max looked behind her at the man he'd killed. His eyes were full of pain and anger. "I didn't really mean to do that to him. But you were hurt-"

"Shh!" Liz wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her. "Stop that. You were saving me, like you promised. We can...we can worry about this later. We have to get going, or those agents might go after the others." She knew she'd be suffering guilt for a long time for this man's death, but right now, they just didn't have the time. She let him go and took off at a jog for the location of the next agent. She slowed her run again as she approached the corner. Max was right behind her, and she heard a strange hissing sound coming from him. She looked back at him. Why was he making noise? They should be doing what they could to sneak up on this next agent. He caught her questioning gaze and grinned, then held up the former agent's hand held radio. The volume was turned very low, which is why she thought it was hissing. They both listened.

"...don't answer? Roy, I'm going to check on O'Leary. I heard shots over in his direction. You come around the corner and check it out. I'll take the roof. Out."

Liz and Max looked up toward the roof in unison, then back at each other and back the way they'd come. A ladder, looking rusted and very untrustworthy, was near the former agent's location. He must've been the "O'Leary" the agent on the radio had been speaking of. They began to run back toward the ladder then ducked into the alcove the man had been using. The stench was terrible. They both strained their ears for the first hint of a footstep. Suddenly the radio crackled. "SHIT! Oh, God, I don't know what happened, but O'Leary's...Roy, get over there, don't just stand at the corner!" Liz grabbed Max's arm tightly as another rush of adrenaline hit her. One of the agents must be making his way toward them. He'd surely be ready with his gun. "See if you can figure out what happened to him. I'm going to check on Greer now."

"I'll put up a shield, Liz. You'll have to hit the guy when he comes into view. Then we have to get up there and get that last guy." She didn't say anything, just nodded, rubbing her hair against his arm as she clung to him for another second, then stood again on her own, feet braced a shoulder's width apart, hands up and ready for anything. If a rat crawled into view right now, she'd probably blow its head off before she really knew what it was.

The green force field shimmered into view in front of her, and she peered into it, attempting to see clearly what was on the other side. Was that movement? A man? Liz waited a fraction of a second longer, trying to get a clear view. Max seemed to sense what she needed...the shield before her eyes shimmered nearly clear for a moment, and her eyes locked with the agent's just as he noticed them. She screamed and threw everything she had at him. She had to lay him out on her own, Max would need his strength for the last one. She watched him fly almost ten yards back, hitting a building across the street with a sickening thud. She would feel sick, but she was too tired. The same lassitude that had crept over her after using her powers too much in that diner in Arizona overwhelmed her now. The shield dissipated into thin air and Max held out his hand. There was a faint glow from the man's still form. Liz squinted and realized the man had dropped his gun, and Max was melting it into the sidewalk cracks. Then he turned to her with a concerned look.

"Are you okay, Liz? You look a little...pale."

She smiled at him. "I'm fine, just tired. I think I've played out my telekinesis for the day. Sorry."

He reached out with a hand and squeezed her shoulder. "No problem. I'll get the last one. Wait here for me, okay? I'd hate for something to happen to you." An annoyed look crossed his features. "I should've given that last gun to you. At least then you could defend yourself."

Liz smiled and gave him a gentle shove toward the ladder. "I don't think I could even aim the stupid thing. Don't worry about it. Max. Be careful, okay?"

He kissed her on the cheek. "Always." She watched him climb the ladder and pause at as he approached the roof. He peeked over the edge quickly, then ducked back down. He saw her peering up and him and waved a little, then peeked over again. Liz heard a clatter, and then Max was coming back down, more clumsily when he'd gone up.

She grabbed his arm as he hopped down to the ground. "Max! Are you hurt?"

"No, I just got this for you," he said, handing her a gun. "Just in case. C'mon, let's go meet Maria and Serena!" He took off at a jog. Liz ran after him, the fatigue she felt holding her to a slower speed than she would have liked.

*****

"Do you see them yet?" Maria couldn't keep the fear out of her voice. She knew it had only been a couple minutes, but time was just passing so slowly. "Anything?"

Serena shook her head. Maria couldn't believe how calm she was. As if she took on the FBI every day. Shots suddenly rang out in the darkness to Maria and Serena's right. "Oh, look!"

"What?!" Maria stuck her head around the corner, then saw what Serena was referring to. The agent they were watching was holding a spirited conversation with his radio. Then he began to climb up the wall! "There'd better be a ladder there that I'm not able to see. I'd hate to think the other side has super powers too." Serena had the binoculars, she could see everything. It wasn't fair.

"There's a ladder. There, he's at the top, I can just see his head...nope, he's beyond sight." Serena lowered the binoculars with a sigh. "I wish we had radios too. I'd love to know what's going on."

"That makes two of us," Maria griped, watching the corner of the building Max and Liz planned to appear from. This waiting was driving her mad. Suddenly there was a new shadow. Maria squinted, then tapped Serena on the shoulder. "Is that them? Can you tell?"

Serena looked and heaved a heavy sigh of relief. "Yes, that looks like Max." They waited a few more tense moments before Max stepped forward into the light for a brief second and waved his hand, then stepped back into the darkness. Maria ran forward, pulling Serena with her. They darted across the street and into the shadows where Max had disappeared. Maria barely restrained a squeal of nervousness as someone grabbed her arm. She turned and saw Liz.

"Liz! I'm so glad you're alright!" Maria cried, wrapping her arms around her friend.

Liz gasped and fought free of the embrace. "Careful, there, Maria, that hurts!"

"Hurts? Why, what's-" Maria gasped as she saw blood running down Liz's arm. "What happened?"

"It's not a big deal, Max'll take care of it later, but we have to get in there and help Michael and others, Maria." Maria nodded. Liz turned to Serena, holding out her other hand. She was holding a gun! "Here, Serena, you know how to shoot well, don't you?"

"Liz!" Max's voice sounded pained.

"We have to put trust in her, or she can never prove that she's trustworthy, Max. Besides, I told you, I'm not sure I can aim straight right now!" Max acquiesced with a sigh. "Let's get in there and help the others if they need it, guys," Liz said and began to walk forward. Max trotted to get in front of her as they entered the building.

*****

Isabelle was wound tight as a spring. They'd made their way down the corridors without incident, and Kyle had just whispered that Jesse was through the next door. She's heard two faint gunshots outside and was worried about her brother and Liz. Isabelle guessed that since they hadn't met anyone inside yet, that meant the last four agents were all in there with Jesse. How could they get in without endangering her husband? Isabelle had the lingering suspicion that they couldn't. "Guys, how about we wait until Max gets here? Then if something happens, we have a chance of still getting Jesse out in one piece."

Kyle knelt down on the floor without waiting for a response from Michael and began rubbing his hand through the dust on the floor. Isabelle leaned over. "What the hell are you doing?!?" she hissed. He looked up at her.

"Can you give me a little light?" Isabelle took a deep breath and was about to ream him out, but a faint red light suddenly appeared above her. She looked up. Michael's hand was glowing faintly. "Thanks, Michael. Look, you guys. This is what the room looks like." He was drawing a diagram in the dirt! "These are the walls. This is Jesse's bed. He's in a separate room...the White Room. They can see him through a one way mirror. And this is that door over there."

Michael bent over, examining Kyle's drawing. "The door is near the isolation-room wall. If we know that no one's in the room with Jesse, we'll be between Jesse and the agents when we burst in."

"How can we be sure there's no one with him?"

Kyle looked up. "We can't. You saw how I can only see faint shadows of the people in the room. I couldn't make a reasonable guess about where they're standing. But this seems like our best option: We burst through that door and you guys blast everyone ahead of you and to the right into the wall." He shrugged.

Michael was nodding. "Okay, it seems like that's the best we can do, then. But what about that door? That thing looks reinforced to me. We're not going to surprise them at all by pounding on that thing."

Kyle held up his hands with a smile. "Maybe I can be of use there. Remember when I froze the van handle, and it snapped like glass? Maybe I can do that to the door's hinges." He looked back and forth between them. Isabelle didn't know about Michael, but she was doubtful. Kyle just waited.

Michael nodded again. Isabelle ground her teeth. Why was he being so agreeable all the sudden? It made her feel like a complete bitch. She reluctantly signaled agreement at well. "Fine. I hope this works."

Kyle gave her a sympathetic look. "I hope so too, Isabelle." He stood. "Let's go. You guys ready?" Isabelle nodded and stood, then Michael did too. "If this works, hit it hard, okay? We'll only have once chance for total surprise." Kyle walked up to the door and placed his hands on the far end from the knob, near where the hinges were. The hinges were on the other side of the door, though. Isabelle couldn't help worrying about how well this would work. The good news was, if the door swung open by its hinges instead of its knob, the door would provide some cover between the agents in the control room and Jesse's White Room.

Kyle suddenly whipped his hands off the door, gesticulating wildly. Isabelle supposed that meant his cold touch had worked. She and Michael exchanged a glance and pushed with all their mental muscles against the door. It creaked, then they heard two faint snaps through the door as men started shouting, and the door suddenly flew into the room with a huge crash. Isabelle ducked into the room a fraction of a second behind Michael. She was tempted to go to Jesse, but she had to stop these bastards from hurting him anymore first. She screamed in rage as she threw herself at the nearest agent, battering him with both her mind and fists. He went down without a sound and Isabelle whirled around looking for her next opponent.

For the first time she let the overwhelming rage she'd felt since Jesse was captured loose. Wrath crackled through her body. She felt something similar to the rage she'd felt when she'd blasted Congresswoman Whitaker out of existence...only this was of a magnitude a hundred times greater. Without even consciously thinking of it, the agent's gun floated into her hand. She raised it, looking for targets. Michael had one man on the ground, holding a bleeding nose and lifting the muzzle of his gun. Isabelle squeezed off a shot, guiding it with her mind into the muzzle of the FBI agent's gun. It exploded in the man's hand; he began to scream, both the gun and arm were completely useless. Isabelle heard a sound behind her and spun on her heels, gun up.

"Whoa!" Kyle was wrestling a woman agent to the ground. "Don't shoot me!" The agent took advantage of his distraction to knee him in the crotch. He yelled and let her go long enough for her to reach her hip holster. Isabelle shot a bullet through the woman's hand, holster, gun, and leg, then scanned the rest of the room, ignoring the woman's scream before she passed out. Michael held the last person up against the wall, but he was obviously out for the count.

"Isabelle! Jesse! Some guy's in there with him!" Michael pointed. Isabelle saw that the wall was transparent, and she could see her husband, tied down to an operating table. The small, rational corner of her mind reminded her that Kyle had told her the wall was a one-way mirror. There was a man in there with Jesse, frantically doing something to some tubing...tubing that went into Jesse's arms! Isabelle yelled again and fired the gun around the edges of the mirror. The man inside didn't seem to have a gun. He flinched wildly at each shot she fired. Good, anything that delayed him in whatever he was doing. She took two long strides up to the mirror and slammed her hands against it when she ran out of bullets. The bullet holes had weakened the mirror enough that it shattered and fell inward with the pressure. The man stared at her in horror, and that annoying corner of her mind wondered if she truly looked that frightening. She raised her hand and concentrated, and the tubes whipped out of her husband's arms, spraying some pale amber liquid around the room. She whipped her hand over toward the man, who was gibbering in terror, and she threw him against the wall with such force she heard his ribs crack. She ignored him, walking up to her husband. She leaned in close, running suddenly gentle hands through his beautiful black hair. He was still breathing. Whatever the man had been trying to do, he must not have succeeded. Tears gathered in her eyes, making it impossible to see. She blinked and they traced a burning track down her cheeks. There was a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head. Michael.

"He's alive, Michael! He's okay!" Michael was looking at her oddly. "What is it?"

"They're back to normal."

"What are?"

"Your eyes." Michael swallowed. "They were jet black...like when you were almost taken over by Vilandra."

Isabelle shook her head. "Whatever. It doesn't matter. Jesse's alive." She looked over her shoulder back at Kyle, who was pale, but standing and seemed to be uninjured, despite the pain he was in. "We're all okay. As long as Max and Liz came out alright, we're fine." She turned back to Jesse. His face was so grey under his usual healthy tan. She leaned down and kissed him, and felt him stir under her lips. She pulled back and looked into his deep brown eyes.

"Isa...belle?" His voice was so weak! He struggled to move, and Isabelle realized he was still tied down.

"Oh, Jesse! Jesse, wait a minute, let me undo the damned..." Her fingers were so clumsy. She cursed and focused her mind on the leather strap around Jesse's right wrist, slicing it with her powers. Michael set to work on Jesse's ankle restraints.

"Kyle! Where are-Oh! Isabelle, Michael, is Jesse okay?" Isabelle shot a smile back at her brother as Max ran into the room, Liz, Serena, and Maria close behind him.

"He looks okay, Max! Could you come here and maybe check?" Max nodded and gingerly climbed through the hole where the shattered mirror had been as Isabelle sliced through Jesse's last restraint. Jesse grunted and slowly levered himself into a sitting position. Max rested a hand on Jesse's forehead and closed his eyes for a second, then opened them again.

"I think he's okay, Iz, but it's hard to tell. They've pumped some drugs into him."

Jesse looked around at everyone, his eyes lingering questioningly on Serena as he scanned the room. "You all came for me? What about the FBI agents?"

Max's face was serious. "Dead, or unconscious. We can't stay here long, though. Someone's bound to have gotten word out during our attack."

Isabelle couldn't restrain herself a second longer. She wrapped her arms around Jesse with a happy squeal and kissed him. His arms came up around her shoulders and he hugged her close as the kiss deepened. She felt a strange emotion come over her, almost as if she desperately needed to cry, but instead of tears, memories, love and trust flowed out of her, and she realized that this was what Max and Liz shared. As she kissed her husband, she opened herself to him completely. There were no lies between them anymore. There was no distrust. There was nothing but pure, unadulterated love. Flashes of Jesse's childhood, school days, college, and time with her nearly staggered her, and they were clinging to each other as if they were each the other's last hope. Finally, Isabelle had to pull back, or she'd suffocate. She gasped weakly for a moment, then opened her eyes.

"Wow," Jesse said, his fingers tightening on her shirt. "What was that?"

Isabelle couldn't answer, she couldn't find the words. All she could do was leak even more tears out of her eyes. She felt like an idiot. He smiled, let go of her with one hand and wiped some of the tears away. "Nevermind, you don't have to answer." He seemed as awed as she was by the flashes. "If only you'd done that before, Isabelle, I would never have been able to doubt you." His voice was low and thoughtful as he ran his hand, now trembling, up her cheek and into her hair, pulling her close for another kiss. When he pulled back, he was crying too. "And I never will again."

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