Maria paced the stained carpet, making a quick trip around the dingy room. Her feet made no sound on the soiled carpet, but it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. She was slowly going mad within the confines of the four walls anyway. She may as well not be clean when it happened. When her pacing brought her to the only window, she peeked through the dusty blinds to the street beyond.
“Maria, if you don’t quit it,” Isabel warned without bothering to finish the threat. She’d threatened the fellow blonde enough over the last two days for her to understand the dangers of annoying her.
Maria spun towards where Isabel sat on one of the room’s double beds. She had been pouring over a map for the better part of the hour and the silence had irked her. Ordinarily, she would have let the comment go, but she was in the mood for a good argument. Anything to break the monotony. “You’ll what?”
Isabel raised her eyes and glared. “Do you think the Skins are going to get bored and just leave?”
“You never know what’s going to happen,” Maria offered primly. “We might have a window of opportunity to run without them seeing us.”
“That defeats the purpose of being a decoy,” Alex offered without pause as he flipped through the television channels quickly. He was propped up against the wall with a pillow behind his head, trying to remain the calm voice of reason. It was a thankless job, but it had been his since their road trip had begun.
Maria began pacing again; reminded of Michael and all the possible dangers he could be facing alone. “I knew his plan was a bad one. He’s been gone for two days! What if he’s in trouble and he needs us?” Her blood pressure soared just thinking about it.
Shortly after leaving Roswell, Michael had figured out they were being followed. They’d tried every possible way to lose them, and it had taken them twice as long to reach Santa Fe. But in the end, it had been for nothing. The Skins had remained on their tail.
They’d rented a cheap motel room where Michael had announced that he was going after Brody alone. The others were to stay behind as decoys so that the Skins wouldn’t know what they were really after. Maria had been insistent that Brody stay safe and they’d agreed that if there really was a device that could do what it had done to Max, their lives would be better if the Skins didn’t know anything about it.
Maria had reluctantly agreed with the plan then, but now it was two days later and they hadn’t heard from Michael. To make matters worse, he’d taken her cell phone and Maria’s fingers had itched to dial the number. They’d agreed to wait until sunrise to panic and call him. But it was a last resort. They were pretty sure the phones were bugged and they had no way of knowing if a ringing telephone would endanger Michael’s life.
Alex watched Maria begin pacing again and he quickly hit the power button on the remote and plunged the room into an unwelcome silence. Turning to his old friend, he patted the bed beside him in invitation. She turned a watery smile to him and eagerly crawled into bed next to him. She rested her head on his shoulder and let him soothe her nerves.
“Alex, I’m just so worried.”
“I know. But you don’t have to be.” Alex stroked her back, soothing her fears as he’d done in one way or another his whole life. It was his role. “Michael’s stubborn and he’s smart. Plus, he’s gotten himself out of dangerous situations you and I couldn’t even dream up. I’m sure he’s just trying to find Brody. He’ll show up any minute now like he hasn’t been worrying us silly.”
Maria sniffled and burrowed into his chest. “I know you’re probably right.”
“Hey, I’m always right. Now do you want to kill some time watching infomercials? I think I saw the one for the spray paint hair.”
Isabel watched the easy friendship between the two humans with a low burning spark of jealousy she couldn’t explain. Her world was upside down right now. Her brother was sick, couldn’t understand anyone around him and she’d had to leave him with people she couldn’t guarantee would take excellent care of him. Michael had been missing for two days now and who knew what sort of trouble he could be in by now. Tess had stayed behind in Roswell alone, knowing that Nicholas could pop up on their doorstep any minute. And they were being watched by the Skins. But all she wanted to do was claim Alex’s other shoulder and nuzzle her head in the crook of his neck.
She wondered if she would fit as easily as Maria did. But she knew it was a luxury she couldn’t allow herself. What had it gotten Max and Michael? Max had suffered through the worst pain known to man when Liz betrayed him, and Michael had to answer to Maria, was subjected to her endless questions and he had to inform her of his every move. Why did she need that kind of unnecessary attachment holding her down?
It had been a long two days trapped in the small space. Maria and Alex had shared one of the beds, curling around each other as if they belonged. Had she ever fit anywhere that perfectly? She hadn’t been able to recall a moment in her life when she had ever belonged that completely.
Isabel had taken to going over the maps, looking for any ideas as to where Brody might be in case Michael didn’t find him. On the morning after Michael left them behind, they had decided to keep up the appearance of hunting for something, making phone calls. They’d ventured outside once, but Michael’s absence had been felt all too acutely and they’d decided to remain inside after that. Of course, half the time since then, Isabel had been trying not to concentrate on Alex and the pull towards him. And if she wasn’t doing a perfect job maintaining distance, it was the circumstances.
It had taken every ounce of self-control not to run back to Roswell and take care of Max. It was killing her to not know how he was doing. Had the symptoms improved since they’d left? Was their trip for nothing? She wanted to pick up the grimy phone that was bolted down to the bedside table and call for information. But that could mean putting their lives in danger. If Nicholas really was in town and he found out that Max was vulnerable, it might spell her brother’s death.
So, Isabel had focused her energy to Alex, feeling as if she were seeing him for the first time. And it wasn’t a good thing.
She would have to be blind not to see the adoration shining in Alex’s eyes. It wouldn’t take much more than a warm smile to send him head over heels for her. So she was careful to keep a foot of space between them. She didn’t need love, didn’t want it. When the time came to leave, she could do it freely, with little mess.
But she couldn’t deny that she wondered what it would feel like to be held in those long arms. Would he wrap them around her and pull her close? Would his fingers tangle in her hair? Would he still want to kiss her after all this time?
With a mangled scream of frustration, Isabel realized she had been doing it again and leapt off the bed. She strode across the room and into the bathroom, slamming the door in her wake.
Maria looked up at Alex in question. “What was that about?”
Alex eyed the door for a minute, wishing he could help Isabel in some way. He knew she was losing her grip on sanity, but she would die before she let him help her. But all he’d ever received for his efforts was a proverbial slap to the face. Eventually, even the mongrel dog learned to stop begging for scraps. So, he did the only thing he knew how to do and pulled Maria closer, offering her comfort until Michael came back safely, and wishing Isabel would find a way to let him in.
“Do I ever know? Do you think I’d be here if I understood how her mind worked?”
Maria settled back down, still worrying about Michael as the man in the infomercial had his balding head sprayed with the black spray paint. “I don’t think it’s just you, Alex. This planet just makes people do weird things.”
*~*~
Michael flattened himself against the wall and waited. He could all but hear the seconds ticking away, counting off the time that he stood, waiting to get caught. He checked the time, glancing at his watch again. The watch Max had given him two years ago.
Michael had been late for something or another and Isabel had been in the middle of lighting into him as if he’d done it to purposefully ruin her day. Michael had turned to Max, hoping to share an amused look, but Max had been staring into him with those damn eyes that saw more then you were willing to share. And somehow, Max had figured out that the reason Michael was always late was because he didn’t own a watch.
So, Max had bought him one. He’d made it out like it was no big deal; played it off like it was an old watch he was getting rid of. But Michael wasn’t stupid. He knew an old watch from a new one. But there hadn’t been a way to refuse it and still maintain his pride. So, he’d kept it and it had been the first thing he owned that anyone had given him.
Now, as the seconds ticked away on the old watch, Michael was reminded of why he was in a dank hallway in the middle of the night. His brother needed him and he would do whatever it took to help Max.
Chancing a look around the corner, Michael scowled. The security guard was still sitting at his desk. Michael had spent the last two days watching the guards, timing their rounds, marking their shift changes. And the desk should be empty by now, giving him exactly thirteen minutes to find what he needed on the security cameras.
It had been easy enough to find Brody. The man wasn’t exactly low key. But getting to the devices he’d brought to the university had been another story. The building’s security wasn’t exactly top notch, but the last thing Michael needed was to be caught on camera stealing an alien device from the university. So, for once in his life, instead of bursting in and taking what he needed in a show of force, he’d played it safe and had planned.
Max would be proud.
One of the two night shift guards had gone home early. And that meant that there was only one guard on duty in the university right now. He knew that Brody had brought the alien device here, and that it was somewhere on these floors. But it would take too long to discover which one. So, he needed the surveillance cameras.
Impatiently, he tapped his foot, trying not to make noise. And when the guard rose from the desk to meander his way to the large metal door into the heart of the research labs, Michael didn’t waste a second of time.
He had been hiding in the one corner that didn’t have camera coverage and it took a simple ribbon of energy to knock out the camera that watched the security desk. Dashing to the rest of the way, Michael gave himself two minutes to get acquainted with the system. It really wasn’t so difficult. Any trained monkey could operate the remote for the system.
Switching between the cameras to find what he needed, Michael grinned smugly. It really was a cushy job. Drink coffee, sit back and watch the monitor. Hell, he’d bet they even got cable if you connected the cords just right. All in all, a far cry easier than serving hamburgers for half of the population of Roswell and having to watch Max pretend not to watch Liz’s every move. He might have to switch jobs when he got home.
Keeping an eye on his watch, a thin trickle of sweat began running down Michael’s spine. This was taking him longer than he’d anticipated. He wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting, maybe a neon sign pointing the way. But he was down to four minutes and there still wasn’t a sign of the device that had caused Max so much harm.
Michael switched cameras again and caught a glimpse of the security guard making his way back to the desk. Michael soaked up as much information as he could, trusting his memory to recall the corridors' twists and turns if he had to navigate them blindly.
Two minutes left.
Another camera switch. Was it his imagination or was it taking longer to maneuver the cameras? He only had a minute left and he wouldn’t have another chance for another couple of hours. Time was ticking away, a staccato beat that sped up Michael’s heart.
He caught the security guard on another camera, pausing for a drink of water at a fountain. Michael switched camera angles again and hit the jackpot. He didn’t need to double-check the metal box on the lab table against the crude drawing Max had supplied him with. It was what he’d been looking for.
The door to the lobby beeped and opened, allowing the guard to stroll through the door. The tune on his lips died when he saw the state of his desk. Rushing forward, he tried to mop up the mess his spilled coffee mug had left in its wake. The VCR beside his video monitor sputtered, shooting the occasional spark from its circuits.
Swearing to himself, his brain already began coming up with excuses for the damaged hardware. The system was completely fried and there would be hell to pay he was sure. And in his haste to cover his tracks, he never saw Michael slip though the door.
*~*~
“I’m going after Michael.”
“What?” Maria straightened, staring at Isabel as if she’d grown a second head. “How? We don’t even know where he is.”
Isabel began folding her maps, cleaning the mess off her bed. “I think I do. Alex, you were watching the news earlier tonight and they mentioned something about the University having guests in town this week for the Centennial celebration.”
“Yeah,” Alex agreed, not seeing the connection.
“I didn’t put it together right away, but I recognized one of the men in the footage.”
“Brody?”
“No. Some guy, Kirby something or another. I couldn’t figure out why he looked so familiar and it just hit me. Remember that book Max used to tote around during the summer when Liz was gone? No, you probably don’t. Well, he was constantly quoting it. So, I took it when he wasn’t looking and hid it.”
“Hey, isn’t that the book that Max kept accusing Michael of taking?”
Isabel nodded without remorse. “That’s the one. Well, I had the thing hidden upside in my room for a few weeks and the guy on the news is the same guy from the dust jacket of the book.” Isabel watched Maria and Alex, waiting for understanding to dawn.
“This Kirby guy is in town?” Maria guessed. “I don’t know, Isabel. That’s kind of vague.”
Isabel crossed her arms over her chest. “Michael isn’t answering your phone, Maria. Time’s up. I’m ready to do this and get back to Roswell. I can’t sit in this hotel room another minute just waiting.”
Alex caught the faint hint of desperation in her movements and sighed. “It wouldn’t be a road trip if we didn’t break into some sort of building.”
“So, we go the University?” Maria rose from the bed, surprised that Alex had given in so easily but eager to do something other than wait.
“First we have to get rid of the Skins.” Isabel packed her few belongings into her bag.
“Any ideas?” Alex asked as he handed a stack of papers to her.
“That actually shouldn’t be a problem. We’ll just use the back door.”
“Isabel? Not to debunk your plan, but this place doesn’t have a back door.”
Isabel offered Maria a smile. “It will by the time we leave. Unfortunately, we won’t be able to take your car since it’s parked in the front of the building.”
“Hold on a second. If you think I’m just going to leave my car-“
“We’ll come back for it,” Alex promised. Even if the Jetta hadn’t been parked in the front, it would be too risky to use a car they could identify so easily.
Folding her hands over her chest, Maria turned the force of her icy glare on Alex. “Then how do you propose we get there?”
Isabel stood and met Alex’s eyes, saw that he already understood her plan. It was surprising and kind of nice not to have to explain herself, so she offered him a smile. “I guess we’ll just have to borrow someone else’s then.”
“Borrow… you know what, I probably shouldn’t ask too many questions. Fine. Let’s go then. How far is the University?”
“Not far, maybe fifteen miles south of here. Alex, can you make sure the blinds are closed tight?” Isabel shouldered her bag and moved to the far side of the room. She’d checked earlier to be sure that there weren’t any other occupants in the motel and hadn’t been surprised to discover that they were the only suckers paying to stay there.
Raising her hand, Isabel laid her palm flat against the wall. She let her energy pool beneath her fingertips and directed it outward, burning a hole in the plaster. She tried to keep the glow to a minimum, but it made the job harder. Finally, Isabel let her energy ease back and she examined the hole she had created in the wall, letting the first streaks of daybreak into the room.
Alex grinned when Isabel turned back to them. “I don’t think that’ll ever not be the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Isabel pushed the bubble of delight away and cautiously poked her head out the hole to the alleyway beyond. “The coast is clear. And there’s a car parked a little ways down. Alex, do you think you can jumpstart it if I can get us inside?”
Alex nodded thoughtfully. “In theory, sure. It’s just some wires. And I’ve always wondered how difficult it was.”
Maria rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to look over her shoulder for Skins as Alex followed Isabel out the hole. “Great. Maybe we still have enough time to knock over a bank on our way.”
*~*~
Michael ducked behind a cubicle, waiting until he was sure that the echoing footsteps weren’t coming his way. It had just been his luck that a cleaning crew had shown up to scrub the building before the day shift began. They hadn’t shown up the last few nights and he figured it must be a once a week thing. Still, it had made his job trickier. And he had certainly been there too long already.
A quick glance at the camera in the corner of the room told him they were still off. No little red light watched his movements, so he still had time. The sun had risen a short while ago and the regular workers and interns would be arriving shortly. Michael had been able to find his way through the corridors to the wing where he’d seen the device. But he hadn’t gone inside yet. Part of him was afraid to, remembering the wide-eyed look of panic on Max’s face when he’d discovered that he couldn’t understand anyone around him. What if his presence alone was enough to set it off? Max hadn’t been able to tell him how it had happened.
So, Michael had scoured every inch of the wing, looking for something he could wear that would protect him from whatever the thing did. But so far he’d come up empty handed. He was just about to give up and grab the thing if he could.
But then he felt the odd buzzing sensation in his head.
He knew that sensation. It spelled alien trouble. Had the Skins been able to track him to the building? Were the others all right? For the first time, he regretted not knowing what they had been up to. He’d thought it would be simpler to just get the box and keep them holed up in the motel room. But what if he’d simply left them as easy targets?
His mind made up; Michael pushed away from the desk. Danger or not, he was going to have to grab that box. He couldn’t let the Skins get it or Max would never be his old self again. Ducking around another corner, he checked the cameras again. Still no red light. At least something was going his way.
There was just one more corridor to go a left then a right, fiddle with the automatic locks and he would be in. Getting out would be something he would cross later.
The buzzing in his head was growing louder, more insistent and he swallowed reflexively. They were close. Not bothering to check the hallway before he took the corner, Michael ignored the voice in his head that told him he was being sloppy. There wasn’t time for it.
Were those footsteps behind him? It was hard to tell since the whole damn place echoed. But he could hear someone. Only a few more feet to the last turn. But as he approached it, he saw movement and he instinctively raised his hand for the attack.
Sparks of energy were already rippling under his skin by the time he recognized Isabel’s mane of blonde hair. Struggling to hold himself back, he scowled at her.
“Isabel!” he hissed. “I could have killed you.”
Isabel arched an eyebrow at him. “Think much of yourself?”
“Michael?”
Michael barely had time to turn towards the voice before he was crushed in a hug. “Maria? What’s wrong with you? Get off me.”
“Don’t you ever, ever do that to me again!” She punctuated each word with a jab to his arm. “Are you okay?”
“Now you ask.” He refused to rub at his arm, no matter how much it ached. The girl had a wicked arm when you got her worked up enough. “Why are you here? And why are you wearing lab coats?”
“Aren’t they great?” Alex asked. “We practically walked right in-“
“We were worried,” Maria interrupted. “Why didn’t you call us?”
“Why would I?”
Maria huffed at the utter bewilderment in his tone. “I don’t know. Maybe because you left us alone in a skuzzy motel room.”
“Guys,” Alex interrupted with a low whisper. “Are we forgetting something?”
“Did you find it?” Isabel asked.
Michael nodded in the direction they’d just come from. “This way.”
The trio followed after Michael, pausing in front of the door he gestured to. Isabel peered into the small window. “What are we waiting for? Let’s grab it and get out of here.”
“Wait.” Maria latched onto Michael’s arm. “Is it safe?”
“For us? I’m not sure,” he answered honestly. Michael saw the hesitation in Isabel’s movements now. She’d forgotten about the dangerous aspects of the device.
“What about us?” Alex asked. “We should be able to get it without any danger. Right? I mean, Brody did carry it all the way down here.”
“I don’t know. Michael?”
Michael felt the weight of their gazes on him. “I think so, but I don’t know for sure.”
Alex nodded; knowing it was going to have to be him. Maria was still clinging to Michael’s arm and much to his surprise, Isabel was looking a bit fearful from the idea of him going in. And he couldn’t help the smile on his face. “Well, I guess I’ll just have to go in and get it then.”
Michael tossed the cloth bag he’d found to Alex. “That should hold it.” Placing his palm over the scanning device on the door, it took only a second before it beeped in acceptance and the door hissed open.
“Alex, be careful,” Maria whispered.
“Right.” Alex entered the room, feeling the first tendrils of fear coil in his stomach. Approaching the lab tables slowly, Alex made out the device quickly. He only hoped it wasn’t as heavy as it looked, or he had no idea how he was going to get it out of there.
With a look over his shoulder, he discovered that the others were watching him through the small window. “Oh sure. They’re smart enough to stay outside. Face it, Whitman, you’re a sucker for the girl. Why else would you be breaking and entering to steal alien technology?”
Taking a deep breath, Alex crossed the room to the line of tables. The large device Max had tried to draw for them sat alone on one table while another had half a dozen smaller pieces laid out on it. Were all of them real? Brody supposedly had authentic alien artifacts every other day. But Alex supposed they shouldn’t take for granted that the rest were fake.
He tested the weight of the larger one first and found it surprisingly light. It didn’t zap him like he half expected it to and Alex decided to take it as a good sign. Tucking it inside of the bag Michael had given him, Alex made sure to wrap it carefully. The last thing he wanted was to break the thing before they got it back to Roswell.
Looking around the room, Alex spied a small box and began to carefully arrange the rest of the pieces inside. The door creaked open and Alex automatically looked up, expecting one of his friends. But instead he found a janitor standing in the doorway, looking as surprised to see Alex, as Alex was to see him.
Stumbling over his own tongue, Alex forced himself to straighten. “Hi.” When his voice cracked, he tried again. “Working late tonight?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know anyone was working in here.”
“Oh, well. Yeah. I just can’t get enough of this place. You know how it is. Or…maybe not. Say, look, I’m in the middle of a really important…er, test right now that can’t be interrupted. Can you come back later?”
“Yes, sir.” The young man offered him a smile. “Half an hour okay?”
“Sure.” Alex wandered over to a table of test tubes and beakers. They reminded him of Liz and he hadn’t the faintest idea of what to do with any of them. But he picked up one of everything anyway, pretended to study them with interest. “Half an hour is great. I’m just going to get back to…the…experiment then.”
Alex clanked the glass together, trying to set up his fake experiment until the janitor slipped out the door. “Give me thirty seconds and I promise to be so far away from here,” he muttered. Careful to remember the rules of breaking and entering that his years of television had taught him, Alex carefully wiped any fingerprints off the glassware. The door opened again and when he saw his friends’ worried faces, he tried to glare at them.
“You know, some sort of signal would have been nice.”
“Sorry. We didn’t have time. He snuck up on us.” Michael approached the table carefully. “Is everything okay?”
“You mean do I have a new appreciation for all things Antarian? Nope. Isabel, get me that cart over there.” Alex quickly finished putting the pieces of metal in the box and set it on the cart Isabel brought him.
Maria was standing by the door, keeping an eye on the hallway. “It’s still clear, but we really need to get out of here.”
“You don’t need to tell me twice. So, does anyone have any bright ideas on how to wheel a cart past the guards at the front desk?”
Maria grinned. “Oh, I think I have an idea or two. Trust me, we’ll be out of here and back on the road to Roswell in a matter of minutes.”
