After the heated kiss, Maria had come into the back and was surprised by the state of her two friends. Reluctantly Liz went back to work and talked to Maria about the flashes. Her body wouldn’t calm down so when they were done closing she went upstairs and took a long cold shower. She had tried to sleep in the attempt to distract herself but her dreams were filled with Max doing things to her that would only be in an NC-17 movie.
The next day was an eventful one, Liz tried to keep herself in check but found it difficult. She was in full heat and wanted every guy she saw. But she was determined to fight it and not give in, if only to prove to Kyle that she didn’t need a babysitter. Then in biology, her heat increased like it had the night before and all she was doing was sitting next to Max. His scent and the memory of the kiss before were too much for her; she had to feel him. Of course it was that feeling that landed her and Max in detention but that didn’t stop her from going to meet Max in the eraser room. Then they got caught and their mothers had come to school. She studied her mom, seeing if she had figured out her daughter was in heat but gave no indication. That made her happy because if she did know her mom would make her stay away from Max. And the way Liz’s body felt right now that was the last thing she wanted. That’s why she snuck out and headed over to meet Max at Michael’s.
After Isabel and Michael left, she looked at Max. “So, you told 'em, huh?”
“Yeah.”
“And now everyone's just sort of cheering you on...like at a football game.”
“No. No, it's...it's not like that. I mean...yes; they want us to keep going so we can find out where all this leads. But...that's not...”
Liz felt the same way; she wanted to find out if this was how a normal heat was or if it was a combination of heat and alien influence. “Max. I need to find out where all this leads, too. Look.” She said pulling her shirt away to reveal the rash she had found earlier. Max placed his hand over the rash then removed it a second later. “It’s gone.”
Liz smiled. “Thanks.” She looked up at Max only to see him staring at her arm. She followed his gaze and saw a glowing light follows his hand. “Max...do you understand any of this?”
“No.”
“Can you take your shirt off?” Liz asked boldly. Max looked at her surprise and said, “Can I? Yeah.”
Liz watched Max take off his shirt and she tried not to moan at the sight of his muscular chest. She reached her hand out and tried to create the glowing light. “I can't do it to you.”
He smiled at her; “I’m glowing everywhere...my toes, my heart. You can't see it. It's on the inside.” He leaned down and started to kiss her. She knew that she wanted him, but she didn’t know if she could control herself and she didn’t want to regret it tomorrow. “No, Max. We can't do this.”
“I know.” He said as he kissed his way down her neck. He wasn’t making this easy on her.
Trying to think of something to snap them out of the situation, Liz asked. “You know, could I, uh..could I get sick?”
“I don't know anything. I don't even know who I am.”
'He doesn't know who I am either.' Liz thought as she let his hands and mouth wonder over, creating the most wonderful feelings. Her body heated up more, the primal side of it taking over and she decided to give in to it. “You know, the...the mark went away because...because you touched it. Maybe...maybe it came because we were away for...too long. That sounds really crazy, but...it would be a complete disaster.”
“I can't ask you to do anything that might hurt you in any way.”
“I know.”
“And I have no idea what that is...and what's right...or wrong.”
“I know. I mean...and you know things...about me that you, um...that you shouldn't know.” 'And might possibly find out more than I want you too.' “And my mother...my mother, who I love, is just gonna kill me...if I don't die from this.” She gasped out. She felt like she was going to explode.
“You're right.” Max said huskily.
“I can't stop.” Liz purred. Max lowered her onto the couch as things started to heat up. That was when the flashes started again. She saw the ship crashing to Earth; soldiers are running towards some beeping object being buried nearby a radio tower. The sexual haze Liz was in was interrupted when she heard Maria, “My God! I was looking for Michael. Um, something tells me he isn't here.” Liz almost growled in frustration as Maria drug her out of the apartment. Maria was lucky that she hadn’t walked in a minute later or she might have gotten hurt by trying to separate her and Max.
Maria waited until they were in the car before she started the questioning, “Liz, what was going on in there?”
Liz feigned innocence, “What was going on?”
“Yeah, it looked like it was getting pretty serious...like, very serious.” She emphasized.
Liz rolled her eyes, “Maria, I have my mother for these lectures.”
“I'm worried for you.”
“Why?” Liz knew her behavior had to be strange to Maria but she didn’t even know if she could explain it if Maria knew the truth about her.
“Because this isn't you.”
'You have no idea how much this is me,' She thought. “Yes, Maria, see...this is. This is me. I'm sitting right next to you.”
“I just don't want you to go too far.”
“I think I want to.”
“Are you crazy? This is dangerous. This isn't like a game! We don't even know what could happen!”
“Look who's talking! You were the first one to take the plunge, Maria!”
“Michael and I just kissed. Ok, fine. We did a little more than kissing. But, look, I wasn't getting visions, and I didn't have glowing hickeys and rashes and...look, Liz, the bottom line is that we don't know what this is about, all right? Female spiders can, you know, bite off the males' heads after they mate. What if they need someone to mate with to get certain information, you know? And then...Blttt! You know?”
“What're you been trying to say? That Max is just gonna bite my head off?” Liz wanted to laugh.
“What I'm saying is, how do you know that he's not like using you?”
“Maria, because it...it...it feels right. I'm sorry. It feels right in a way that nothing has felt right in my life before.” She said before climbing out of the car. Liz crept up her balcony. She was going to need to take a long cold shower, since her and Max’s make-out session at Michael’s. This heat was driving her nuts, especially since everyone seemed determined to interrupt Max and her. She crawled through her window and ran right into her mom.
“Hi, Mom.”
“Do you think I’m stupid?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry not’s good enough. Where were you?”
Liz couldn’t help it after the night she’d had, “Mom, will you just stop trying to control me?”
“I’m trying to keep you safe. If I needed to control you,---when have I ever tried to control you?”
“Right Mom because you’ve never had to. I’ve done every single thing you’ve wanted. And you just think that I’m always gone be that way. You don’t even see me.” Liz argued. Her mom had no idea what she was going through at the moment.
“All right then help me to see you. Talk to me. Oh my god you’re so warm.” Her mom said.
Liz tried to pull away. “Mom, I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine you’re burning up.” Her mom said again, feeling her face. Liz’s body temperature was always higher than normal humans’ but now she was even hotter.
“Mom just stop it okay? This is my body, I don’t have to tell you every single thing about it.” She yelled as she headed into the bathroom. She knew she was being mean but her hormones were driving her crazy. She slammed the door hoping her mom would leave but it didn’t work.
“Kyle came by. He heard about the eraser room and told me what was going on with you. That you were in your first heat and I figured out that that was what happened when you got caught. I was worried.” She heard her mom say through the door. “You have to be careful.”
“I know Mom and I’m sorry. I just need to take a cold shower to calm myself down.”
“Okay, I’ll call you in sick to school tomorrow. We need to keep you away from any boys or men until it goes away.”
Liz rolled her eyes, that was the last thing she wanted but agreed. She stripped quickly before jumping into the ice cold shower spray. She stayed in there until her hands were all pruned. She felt better after the shower and went outside to busy herself with her journal and drawing what she had seen in the flashes. That was when Max showed up.
Part 23
Liz watched Max pull up next to the old radio tower. She had been all of staring at him on the drive, watching as his body move during the simple task of driving. She had to sit on her hands to keep from running them over his body and straddling him. Max voice ripped her from her thoughts. “It should be around here somewhere.”
Liz took her eyes off of Max for a minute as they made their way over to tower and saw the stars. “Wow.”
“That's what's really there all the time. If we could only see it.”
“So.” Liz said coyly.
“So.”
“So we have to decide what our next step's gonna be.” Liz knew exactly what she wanted the next step to be but they were way over dressed for that.
“Right.”
“I guess we could just start...digging.” Liz suggested thinking she could come right out and say they lay down and have sex.
“Or, uh...”
“Or, um...we could look for the next clue.”
“Yeah. The clue idea seems more, uh...”
“More efficient.”
“Yeah. Right this minute...I can't...not touch you.” Max said moving towards her.
“Let's just lie down.” Liz ordered, her body was reveling in his touch craving more. Max unfolded the blanket and laid it out.
“Are you scared?” He asked.
“Well, I know I'm supposed to be, but...I'm just gonna put myself in your hands.” She said as she heard a howl, it was close. “What's that?”
“It's a coyote.” He said as he leaned over to kiss her. His tongue ran over her mouth and asking entrance which she readying gave. They kissed hungrily, as Liz felt Max lowering her to the blanket she held herself back from ripping off his clothes. He pulled back just enough to ask, “Are you sure?”
She was about to say yes when her enhanced hearing picked of a beeping noise she had heard before. “Oh my God. Max, that's it.”
“What?”
The beeping had been as effective as a cold shower on her desire. Her mind was on the sound now. “That's the sound I heard in my vision.”
“Shh. It's over there. Come on.” They made their way to the other side of the tower.
“This is it, Max.”
“Here. It's right here.” He said as they started shoveling. They dug until a bright blue light shot up into the air. “Max...something's down there.”
Max leaned down and pulled out what looked like a metal rock with a familiar mark. “It's the symbol from the cave painting.
“Is this from your home?” Liz asked.
“I don't know.”
The way the light was shining reminded Liz of how Manticore would sometimes send Morse code messages through a light tower. “Maybe it's a signal...for...”
“Maybe.” They rest of the night they spent examine it and trying to figure it out until they fell asleep.
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The next morning Liz woke up in Max’s arms and could tell that the effects of the heat were diminished. She could control it now. It had been a close call the night before, if she hadn’t heard the beeping that led them to find the alien object then she knew they wouldn’t have stopped. Although she wanted Max to be her first she didn’t want it to be heat induced. She smiled at him, it was nice waking up with him. She had actually slept that well for a long time, without any nightmares.
They left the desert after the rancher’s warning and were parked outside the Crashdown kissing. “Any flashes?” He asked.
“No, you.?”
“Don’t think so.”
“Max, everything that we did, everything that we felt, was it just about this thing?” She asked picking up the orb. “We don’t even know what it is?”
“Yet.” Max climbed out of the jeep and made his way around to her. The way he looked at her made her blood start pumping again.
“Max, was it ever just about us? You and me? Because a person could feel like they served their purpose, you know like being used.” She knew he thought she meant the orb but she was wondering if all of what she had felt was her heat.
“Is that what you think?”
“Because you’re not the only one who could be worried about being used.” Liz panicked for a minute thinking he might have seen what she was in the flashes then he said, “I mean, some girls would give a lot to see themselves flying through space.” Liz relaxed knowing that he was only joking and that he hadn’t seen anything.
They joked around about Kyle as they walked into the restaurant. And walked right into their parents. They lied and said they went stargazing and fell asleep. Of course her parents knew she was lying, they knew she didn’t need that much sleep but they couldn’t say anything in front of the Evan’s. Later in private, Liz’s parents told her that the next time she was in heat she was to stay at the house with either them or Kyle so that she would stay away from any male and especially Max. She agreed and when she headed up to her room she found an unwelcomed sight. Kyle and Zack sitting on her bed.
“Where have you been?” Zack asked practically shouting.
“I spent the night out in the desert.” Liz answered.
“With Max?” Kyle asked. “I saw his parents downstairs and your mom said you were both missing.”
“Yes, I was with Max.”
“You’re in the middle of your first heat and you go spend the night with some guy? A guy who has already hurt you before. What were you thinking? Wait a minute, you weren’t thinking were you? At least not with your head.” Zack ranted.
“Hey, get off of my back. My heat is already fading and nothing happened out there.”
“Yeah, right. You are going crazy from a hormone overload, thinking of nothing but getting laid and you’re all alone in the desert with a teenage guy. And we know that no teenage guy is going to resist a girl who is all over them and nothing happened, yeah right.”
“We talked and then we fell asleep. I can control my own body.” Liz said angrily although the last statement wasn’t exactly true. If she hadn’t heard the orb then they probably wouldn’t have stopped. “And he is not some guy, his name is Max.”
“I know what his name is and I know how you’ve been getting closer and closer to him.” Zack also wanted to say that he knew there was something strange going on with Max but didn’t think it would be good to tell Liz. She was protecting him and if she found out Zack had been snooping around she wouldn’t be happy.
“I don’t think you came all the way to visit just to fight so let’s just drop it now.” Liz said. She hated arguing with Zack since she didn’t see him often.
“Just promise that on your next heat your stay away from the male species.” Kyle stated. Liz agreed. Of course they didn’t know that at the time, her and Max wouldn’t be together.
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The next night Liz was sitting on her balcony talking to Zack when she heard Max coming up the alleyway. “Zack, get my room now.”
“Why?”
“Just go.” Liz said shoving him through the window. Max whispered up to her and he came up. He had managed to sneak away to see her and Liz was happy. He stayed a little while before finally leaving. He kissed Liz goodnight then left. Liz still had the smile on her face when Zack came out of his hiding place, not looking happy. She was forced to listen to a long lecture from him about how dangerous it was to get close to Max, etc. Liz listened attentively wondering if her brother knew how much he sounded like a broken record.
Part 24
Crazy
Liz made her way downstairs to wait for Max and the others to meet her. They were all going to go to the movies and try to act normal. She pushed the door open that led from the back and was surprised to find the café empty and dark. Figuring her dad just felt like closing early so she thought nothing of it. She walked halfway through when she heard a chilling voice she hadn't heard in years. "Well there's my little 435."
Liz turned around and looked right into the eyes of the man she hated and feared most in her life. "Colonel Lydecker."
"Don't even try to run, my men have this building surrounded. I don't doubt that you can't take them out but you should know if you run it will only make things worse especially for your friends."
Liz wouldn't let him see how his statement affected her. "My friends?"
"Yes, all five of them plus your brother, 440. You see, I've been watching Roswell ever since I heard of a mysterious shooting where a girl was shot but was fine. I knew that only one of my kids could do that. So when the FBI took an interest, I piggybacked on their investigation. Come along peacefully or I'll make sure your friends suffer."
"Let them go, they have nothing to do with me or my brother." Liz said.
"Now why would I do that. The DNA of three of them will be very useful for the next X series. Just think what the addition of powers would do for our soldiers. So I now have two of my kids back and three aliens. All because of you." Lydecker said smiling.
The next thing Liz knew she was within the familiar walls of Manticore. She was standing in front of a window that looked into a cell. She recognized the cell as one they used for psychops, intense psychological interrogation and brainwashing. And in the middle of the room strapped to five chairs were Max, Maria, Isabel, Alex, and Michael. She could hear them screaming in pain.
"Let them go." She screamed at Lydecker. Lydecker just laughed as Liz pushed the door to the cell open and ran in.
"Liz! Help us. Please!" Maria screamed.
"If it hadn't been for her I never would have gotten my hands on you." Lydecker said from behind her.
"Let them go. I'll do anything, just don't hurt them." Liz pleaded.
"I taught you long ago that emotions are a weakness soldier, look where they haven’t got you." Lydecker stated.
"Why does he think you know him?" Max asked.
"Because I do. I was there on the day she was born and I was the one who trained her to be was she was created to be."
"What is he talking about Liz?" Max asked, Liz couldn't say anything.
"So they don't know the truth about you, 435? I'll just have to enlighten them." Lydecker said smirking then turned to his prisoners. "You see your friend here, 435 or Liz as you know her, is a soldier. A genetically engineered weapon, a human killing machine." Lydecker said as he produced a small remote from his pocket and pressed the button. On the wall a picture came into view. It was of the first prisoner her and her family had been sent to kill. Lydecker continued to click the button bringing up more pictures, some of the same soldier some of the kids covered in blood after then some other ones of the other prisoners they had killed on later missions. "So you see I'm tell you the truth. I've been looking for her for years and finally got her back along with all of you."
"We trusted you!" Michael yelled.
"I'm sorry." Was all Liz could say before some soldiers came in and tried to restrain her. She fought back but one of them used a taser on her and all she saw was blackness. She woke up to find herself strap to a chair just like the others. She looked over and saw that none of her friends were moving, and had doctors hovering over them with scalpels.
"NO!" Liz screamed.
Liz bolted up right. She could feel that her body was covered in sweat. She ran into her bathroom and splashed water on her face trying to wipe away the memory of the dream. She looked down and saw that her hands were shaking. But unlike before they weren’t from seizures. She hadn’t had a seizure since Max healed her; these shakes were from fear. She knew her meeting with Topolsky at the restaurant had triggered the dream. Especially when she said she’d been to Hell. The increased pressure of the FBI finding out about the others or Manticore finding her because of them was affecting her more than she thought.
Tomorrow she needed to talk to Max, tell him that they were on an alien hunter’s list.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The next few days were even more stressful. First Max had been upset about Topolsky tricking her into a meeting, the disastrous meeting out at the quarry, the double date with Michael and Maria, the mysterious car following Alex, and lastly the fight between Michael and Max out in the woods. The Sheriff might have said that Topolsky was wrong and crazy but she had seen that the woman was sane and knew what she was talking about. She knew the FBI was watching them and she wanted to keep them safe. So every night, dressed in her darkest clothes and a few of her guns, Liz would make rounds to everyone ‘s house to make sure they were safe. She would sneak out the window in the kitchen since she was sure that her balcony was being watched, and scale up to the roof. Then she jumped to one of the other buildings and scaled back down. Her transgenic status allowed her to move like a shadow through town and no one saw her.
Part 25:
Liz looked over at Max as he confidently drove the convertible down the road. There was something off about him, but she didn’t know what. Maybe it was his sudden impulsiveness at grabbing her in the Crashdown and said they were going to go talk. “So tell me.”
“Tell you what?”
“Tell me everything. Isn’t that what you said you were going to tell me?” Liz asked.
“I just wanted you to know, Liz, that nobody will ever come between us. Nobody.” He answered.
Liz smiled at him and leaned over. “Tell me something I don’t know.” She said before kissing him.
“Well, if you keep that up, I’m going to have to pull over.”
Liz held in a laugh at his playfulness. “Is that a threat, or is that a promise?”
Instead of answering he pulled the car over to the side of the road and pulled her close. As they kissed Liz was hit with flashes unlike any she’d ever seen before. They were in black and white, and of the desert, lightening, a dead woman. It shook her and she broke away from him.
“What?” He asked
“Nothing.” Liz asked as she settled back into her seat and tried to figure out what was going on. The flashed she got from Max were unlike anything she’d seen before. They drove for a little while before she asked, “So, uhh, how… how long are we going to be gone, anyway?”
“How long do you want to be gone?”
“I really shouldn’t miss too much more of my shift.” She said trying to talk him into going back.
“That’s the least of our worries.” He said in a tone Liz had never heard before.
“Did Tess do something to you?” Liz asked. She didn’t trust Tess. There was something that made Liz not trust her even before she found out she was an alien. From the first time she saw her, there was just something off.
He didn’t answer instead he pulled over, and went to get something out of the trunk. She was watching him when her phone rang. “Hello?”
“Liz, it’s me.” She could swear it was Max’s voice. “Who is this?”
“It’s me, Max. I don’t know who you’re with, but we’re at the CrashDown. Tell us where you are.” She heard him say before the other Max grabbed her phone and hung it up. It finally clicked who it was, Nasedo.
“Now you know.” He said. She looked over to where he had been and saw a body before they drove off. She had to figure out a way to escape.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Liz watched Nasedo talking on the phone and weighed her options. Right now Nasedo had no idea what she was, he only thought her to be a normal human. She would play upon that until the opportunity was right. When he hung up she asked, “ Are you going to kill me, too?”
“Not as long as I still need you.”
“Do you have to be Max?” It unnerved her looking at him.
“Oh, I like it. Being him. Being 17. I don’t think you’d have been as friendly to Ed Harding.”
“ That was you?” She had known something was off about him whenever she’d been around him.
“I’ve been a lot of different people you don’t even know about. But right now, Max Evans is my most important role.”
“Why?” Maybe if she could figure out his plan it would work to her advantage.
“Because I’m the bait. Pierce is looking for Max, and I’m going to draw him to me.”
“So why do you even need me?”
“You’re my collateral, my hostage.”
“What kind of hostage am I? Pierce would just kill me.” ‘Or maybe worse.’ Liz thought. She knew that if Pierce go a hold of her, he would see her barcode. That could land her a one way trip to Manticore.
“Oh, there’s a thought. Actually, he wouldn’t. See, he knows what Max did to you at the CrashDown that day. He wants you alive. You see, he needs answers. You could come in extremely handy in terms of my survival, and even if you don’t, you’ve been fantastic company. Time to leave another clue.” He answered as he pulled into a gas station. He placed his hand on the gas pump and left a silver handprint before pulling away. Moments later it exploded.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
They ended up at a carnival that was where Nasedo told Liz about Max’s destiny. “I don’t believe you.”
“It’s true, Tess and Max were made to be together.”
“But you don’t even know what Max and I have. You know, ever since he saved my life at the CrashDown, he changed me. We saw into each other’s souls.”
“Time for the final clue.” Nasedo used his powers and a light shot up into the air. That was when Liz made her escape. She headed for the hall of mirrors figuring he wouldn’t find her inside. She wandered around inside until she saw Max. This time she was sure it was he. “Max!” She yelled as she pounded on the glass wall separating them.
“Liz. Get out of here.” He said with worry in his eyes.
“Not without you.” Movement behind him caught her eye. “ Max! Behind you!” Two FBI guys came running up and Max took off. Liz looked up to see if the wall went all the way to the top before she scaled it to help him when he was suddenly next to her. “I’ve got to get you out of here.”
As they ran out Liz saw another Max. Now she was confused, was she with the right one? They headed inside a nearby bus, “Right in here.”
“Max, are you all right?” She asked before kissing him. She was hit with the same dark flashes. “You’re not Max.”
“No I’m not. And now I’ve got to get him back.” He held up his hand and after a bright flash of light he was a clown. He turned and ran off. Liz followed after him only to run into Isabel, Michael and Tess. “Oh god.”
“Liz. Liz!” Isabel said trying to pull her out of the shock she was in when she realized Max had been caught.
“ They have Max. They have Max.” She muttered as Michael pulled him into his arms.
Part 26
Destiny
Liz, Maria, and Alex were waiting around the Crashdown waiting for the others to rescue Max. She knew she should go with them. She could grab her brother who she knew would help her and along with the aliens get him out. But they hadn’t let her go. She could stand waiting around anymore. “I’m not waiting any more. I’m going to do what Max would do for me.”
“Wait a minute. Are you sure it’s our responsibility to tell Valenti everything?” Maria asked.
“It’s our responsibility to keep them alive. You know, Max was ready to trust him that’s all I need to know.” She knew she could trust him and if Max was ready to do it then it was time to bring him in on the secret.
“What are you going to say?” Alex asked.
“Whatever I have to; to get him to help.” She said as she left. She hoped he would help.
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The Sheriff looked up and saw Liz coming into his office. A year ago, he would think nothing of it, she was like a daughter to him but lately she had drifted away. “Liz Parker.”
“You’re right Sheriff. I need your help. We all do. Your new deputy, Fisher; he isn’t a deputy, Sheriff, and his name is not Fisher. It’s Pierce – from the FBI Special Unit. He’s the one who has Max.”
“How do you know that?”
Liz looked at him, pleading with her eyes for him to trust her again like he had for so long. “I can’t tell you, Sheriff, but Max is in a lot of trouble. I think that they all are. Sheriff, please. Will you trust me? I can tell you where he is.”
The Sheriff looked at her and saw how serious she was. He had seen that look a few times in the time he had known her, he knew she needed him.
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“We gotta get Max out of here.” Michael stated as they made their way out of Eagle Rock.
“I know somewhere safe, an old silver mine in Gallinis off of Horse Shoe Road. If we make it there it’ll buy us some time. We should split up make it harder for them to follow.” He looked at Liz signaling that she should take Max. She could keep him protected.
She got in the Jetta and they were off. Liz looked over at a shaky Max. He looked like he had been through hell or worse. She had only seen someone look like that a few times. When one of her siblings had been punished back at Manticore. God, why didn’t she just take out the FBI agents back at the fair. Keeping her eyes on the road she asked, “Max, what did they do to you?”
“It's over. Listen, Liz, if we ever get out of this…” He was cut off by the sound of the back window being shot out. Liz saw that the FBI had them closed in and she knew she had to get them out of there. She stopped the car. “Let's go. Let's go. Come here.”
“Go.” Max said as they started to run.
“Come on, come on, Max.”
She said. She knew she could get out of there quickly but she couldn’t do it with Max. “Go. Go.”
Liz double backed onto the road and saw that the agents followed, they now had them surrounded. Liz saw the bridge and got an idea. “Come on. “
She grabbed his hand and kissed him quickly. She knew she could make the jump easily and was going to have to help him. After all cats always land on their feet. She took a deep breath and together they jumped. They hit the water hard and went under several feet. Keeping hold of Max’s hand, Liz started to swim down the stream. After a minute, she could feel him starting to struggle for air. She latched her mouth onto his and fed him some of her air. This bought them some time. When they finally surfaced Liz pulled him to shallow water and they made their way out of the water. She pulled him under another bridge and helped him along. When they came to a junkyard, she headed into it. Liz was going on instinct alone. “We've got to hide.”
Liz spotted an overturned delivery truck. “Come on, in here. Come on, Max. Come on, in here. Come on.”
They climbed inside the truck and Liz looked out the window to see if they had been followed. Her enhanced vision allowed her to see that they hadn’t. “I think we'll be safe in here for a while. They don't know how far down river we got.” But that wouldn’t last long. They would have to get out of there, possibly go on the run. Maybe she could get a hold of Zack and he would help them, Kyle could get away too. But to do that she would have to tell Max the truth, which she wanted to. Working up the nerve she started. “Max..” She looked at him scared and weak. She leaned in and kissed him.
Max’s memories of what had been done to him flew by Liz’s eyes in flashes. She realized then that she couldn’t tell him. If she did and they went on the run, they could get caught by Manticore as well. And he might have to go through the same thing again except in Manticore. She barely heard Max telling her everything Tess had told him. That was when she knew that they didn’t belong together. He was supposed to be with Tess. She didn’t like Tess, there was just something about her that she didn’t trust. “So everything Nasedo told me was true. You and Tess were meant to be together.”
“Liz.”
“I mean, it's your destiny, right?”
“I wish I could go back Liz. Back to when things were normal.”
“Me, too. I just wish that I could have stopped you from saving my life that day in the CrashDown.” ‘I wished I had just dodged the bullet.’ She thought.
“Don't say that.”
“Max, the day that you saved my life, your life just ended.”
“No, that was the day my life began. Liz, when I was in that room, and they did what they did to me. You're what kept me alive. The thought of you. The way your eyes look into mine. Your smile. The touch of your skin. Your lips. Knowing you has made me human. Whether I die tomorrow or fifty years from now, my destiny is the same: it's you. I want to be with you, Liz. I love you.” Max said.
His words rocked her resolve to give him up. She went by her heart not her brain. “I love you.” She kissed him until they laid down next to him and held him. She pretended to be asleep until he fell asleep. Then she kept watch.
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