This story is part of The Fair Maiden series in which a journalist
Elizabeth Baker helps Cade and Eddie in their quest to expose the alien
conspiracy. In this story Cade and Liz investigate the death of a shop
front fortune teller under suspicious circumstances.
Disclaimer:- First Wave Titles and Characters are the property of First Wave Productions and Pearson TV. Cade Foster, Crazy Eddie and The Gua are the property of Chris Brancato, Larry Sugar and Francis Ford Coppola. Elizabeth Baker, Nick, Jamie, Gina as well as some other characters belong to me and will not be used without my permission. (irish - April 2001) ©
Content – Drama, Violence, Adult Situations
Rating – R
1.1 Visions
2 Prologue
"I can see him," exclaimed Gina looking into the crystal ball.
"You can?" asked Gina's customer.
"Yes,"
"How is he?" asked the customer.
"He wants to tell you that he is happy where he is," said Gina. Gina was a shop front fortune teller who made her living making customers believe that she could see the dead and tell fortunes. She didn't really possess a gift. Her sister Jamie did but Jamie never wanted to use the gift for reasons that Gina could never understand.
"It might surprise you that I think that you are telling lies," the customer said rising to her feet.
"I don't tell lies," Gina said.
"Don't you?" replied the customer grabbing Gina's hand suddenly.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" demanded Gina getting scared.
The customer suddenly grabbed Gina's head. Gina screamed as she felt her whole internal organs boil. All of a sudden Gina went up in flames. The customer watched smugly as Gina screamed and then drop to the floor.
"Bet you didn't see that coming," the customer said going out the door.
********
Quatrain 5, Century 3
The raging inferno engulfs the fake seer, while the sibling with true vision waits for Strength of will to overcome the fear.
A shop front fortune teller in Cincinnati, Gina Reynolds, died when she went up in flames for no apparent cause. The quatrain suggests that she did not possess a gift but a brother or sister did. If we find the sibling we can find out how Gina died and hopefully the sibling will become a believer.
Cade Foster stood outside the Ohio Chronicle Newspaper offices in Cincinnati debating whether or not to go in. Walking into a newspaper office when you are a wanted murderer was not the best thing to do but he had been trying to get in contact with Liz since he got into town but wasn't able to.
"Liz, are you in or out this week?" Liz's editor Jack Daly asked at the weekly meeting that all the reporting staff attended.
Liz looked up. "I'm in this week," she replied.
"Good. Now back to business. Here are your assignments. Tom, I'm giving you the Forest case, Liz, the fortune teller story…."
Liz looked up sharply at Jack as he continued to hand out assignments and wondered why he gave her the fortune teller story to report on. It wasn't exactly an exclusive. The Forest story was the story that she wanted.
"Ok, you all know the deadlines so get out there and start reporting." Jack said.
"Jack, can I have a word?" asked Liz as he walked towards the door.
"Any time for you Liz,"
"The fortune teller story, Jack?" asked Liz.
"Elizabeth I know. You are a very good journalist and you've given us a lot of first class stories since you started working for us but you need to get the experience of other styles of reporting. Investigative reporting isn't the only style."
"But Jack, Investigative Reporting is what I am good at. It's what I do. You have seen Tom's work. His research is full of holes, he never meets deadlines. He couldn't write his way out of a paper bag," exclaimed Liz.
Jack sighed and looked at Liz. "Liz, I've handed out the assignments and I'm not changing them now. Do the best you can with the story," he said opening the door of the office.
Liz walked out of the office deflated.
"Excuse me Liz?" Wendy said coming over to Liz. Wendy was the receptionist for the newspaper and also the resident gossip.
"What is it Wendy?" Liz asked in irritation.
"Your brother was here about five minutes ago but you were in the meeting…"
"What?" asked Liz thinking Wendy was mad.
"Your brother, Charlie."
"What are you talking about?" asked Liz
"Your brother was here. I didn't know you had a brother. He is very cute. I would love to be introduced properly to him," Wendy said giving her a note and walked away.
"I don't have a…" she said but looked at the note and recognised Cade's handwriting.
"What is he up to?" she thought going out the door and down to the street.
"Liz," called Cade as she passed him on the street.
"Cade! Are you crazy? Coming into the newspaper office? You could have been recognised!" exclaimed Liz.
"Don't worry. No one saw me," replied Cade.
"What are you doing here?" asked Liz.
"Eddie hooked up a quatrain with a…"
"A story?" asked Liz.
"Yeah, the…" Cade started to say but was interrupted by Liz.
"Don't tell me it's the Forest Story."
"The what?"
"The Court case that is going on downtown. Jack wouldn't give it to me. He gave a stupid story about a fortune teller," complained Liz.
"Liz, it's not a stupid story," replied Cade.
"Yes it is. Don't tell me you believe in all that crap," Liz said looking at Cade who was grinning at her.
"Would you listen to what I have to say. Eddie linked up a quatrain about the fortune teller."
"He did? Why didn't you tell me?"
"I was trying to," Cade said looking bewildered.
"This could be a better story than the Forest Story," Liz said smiling now.
"Liz," a voice called. Cade and Liz looked around and saw a good-looking dark haired man coming out of the building.
Liz smiled when she saw who it was.
"Nick," she said walking up to him.
"I saw you were unhappy about the assignment that Jack gave to you," Nick said to her.
"It's fine," she replied.
"Are you sure?" asked Nick.
"Yeah," She said kissing him.
"So whose your friend?" asked Nick.
"Nick, this is my brother, Charlie," Liz said introducing Cade and Nick.
"I've heard a lot about you, it's good to meet you," Cade said as he and Nick shook hands.
"Same here. I'll let you and Charlie catch up. I'll talk to you later," Nick said.
Cade watched as Liz and Nick kissed again and then Nick went back into the building.
"So where's your other half?" Liz asked Cade as they entered her apartment.
"Eddie's driving from North Carolina. He should be here in the morning," replied Cade.
"Driving. Why doesn't he fly?" asked Liz going over to the kitchen to put on coffee.
"You're forgetting he's paranoid. He hates flying. He's afraid the plane…" "the plane will crash," Liz interrupted laughing.
"Yeah," Cade smiled. They stood looking at each other for a couple of seconds in silence.
"So what is the quatrain?" asked Liz.
"The raging inferno engulfs the fake seer, while the sibling with true vision waits for strength of will to overcome the fear," quoted Cade.
"The fake seer? Does that mean that Gina Reynolds didn't have psychic abilities?" asked Liz
"Possibly but a brother or sister does and possibly doesn't use it," replied Cade.
"Has Eddie found anything out yet?" asked Liz.
"Only that Gina died of spontaneous combustion, according to the coroner's report," replied Cade.
"Spontaneous Combustion?" asked Liz incredulously.
"That would explain the "Raging Inferno" in the quatrain," replied Cade.
"Yeah but people don't go up in flames for no reason,"
"The Gua have some kind of ability that causes the insides of a human being to boil, I've seen it before," replied Cade.
"OK. I think I can call in a favour from a friend of mine down at the 23rd Precinct and see if I can get him to find out if Gina had a record," replied Liz going to the phone.
"You've friends in high places," Cade said when she finished the call.
"He's a believer," replied Liz. "He said Gina Reynolds was arrested several times for drug possession, but get this, Gina has a sister called Jamie who is psychic and she used to assist the police solve some cases but she suddenly gave up and is virtually a recluse now," Liz continued.
"Did he say where she lives?" asked Cade.
"On the outskirts of town," replied Liz.
"Well let's go then," Cade said going out the door followed by Liz.
Liz and Cade drove to where Jamie lived. They parked the car outside the rundown house.
"She obviously isn't into gardening," Liz said as they walked up the overgrown garden path. Cade knocked on the door but there was no answer. He knocked again.
"No one is in," Liz said.
Cade said nothing but went around the back. Liz stayed at the front door. Cade looked into all the windows in the back of the house. The windows were filthy and some where broken. He came back around to the front.
"There's nobody here," he said.
"So what now? Asked Liz.
"Let's go to Gina's place and see what we can find out," Cade said.
Cade and Liz looked around the shop where Gina did her business. Apart from scorch marks on the carpet there was nothing out of place. Cade noticed the security camera at the entrance to the shop.
"The killer is on the video" he said. He looked for the video machine and found that there was no video in it.
"The cops must have taken the video," he said to Liz.
"I can get it," replied Liz.
"Another favour?"
"No, Nick has a contact," replied Liz picking up her cell phone.
"Nick said he will be able to get the video tomorrow," Liz said as they got back to her apartment.
"Nick seems like a nice guy," Cade said.
Liz smiled at Cade. "He is," she said smiling.
She sat down on the couch and looked thoughtful for a minute.
"Are you alright?" asked Cade sitting down beside her.
"Yeah, just thinking," she said.
"About Nick?" asked Cade.
"I think I have fallen in love with him," she said after a minute or two.
"I know. I'm happy for you," Cade said softly.
"It doesn't seem right,"
"Why?" asked Cade.
"It's not the right time. We are fighting for our very survival here and …" Liz's voice cracked.
"I'm happy you found someone, Liz," Cade said.
"Can I ask you something?" asked Liz.
"Sure,"
"Do you … ever regret what happened between us?" she asked.
Cade looked at her. "No. Do you?"
Liz was about to answer when there was banging on the door. Liz got up to answer the door. She stood face to face with Eddie.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"It's nice to see you to. Am I interrupting something?" asked Eddie.
"No. I thought you weren't going to be able to make it till tomorrow," Cade said.
"I drove like a bat out of hell to get here." replied Eddie dumping a big duffel bag on the floor.
"Where's the trailer?" asked Cade.
"I left the trailer in Virginia. It was slowing me up. Don't worry I have everything I need," he said taking a lot of paraphernalia out of the bag.
"I guess you want to stay here," Liz said looking at all the equipment he was taking out.
"If that's not too much trouble," replied Eddie
"OK, that's fine. A few house rules. No snoring, Clean up after you, if you make any of your weird concoctions that smell use an air freshener, put the toilet seat down after you…"
"Yes Major, Sir," Said Eddie.
"Good. As long as that is cleared up," replied Liz.
"Have you guys found anything out?" asked Eddie as he set up his laptop computer.
"Gina has a sister called Jamie who is the real psychic but we haven't been able to speak to her yet," replied Cade.
"So Gina was the false seer," replied Eddie.
"Yeah. There are also a couple of security video that are in police evidence at the moment. It might show us who the killer is," replied Cade.
"How are we going to get the videos if they are in police evidence?" asked Eddie.
"Nick has a contact in the precinct," replied Cade.
"That's great. Whose Nick?" asked Eddie.
"A friend of mine," replied Liz looking at Cade.
"Can we trust him?" asked Eddie.
"What?" asked Liz.
"I am just saying that we can't trust anybody these days," he replied.
"Well then yes. I DO trust him," Liz replied in annoyance getting up off the couch. She got two blankets out of the closet and threw them at the two men.
"I'm going to bed. Fight over whose getting the bigger couch if you want but keep the noise down," she said as she headed to her bedroom.
Eddie watched as she left the room.
"What's her problem?" he asked.
"Sometimes Eddie, tact is not your greatest attribute," replied Cade.
"What do you mean?" asked Eddie looking a bit puzzled.
"What you just said to her," Cade said lowering his voice.
"About Nick?"
"Yes about Nick," whispered Cade.
"What about him?"
"He's the Nick she is dating. She's in love with him," replied Cade.
"OH, so what's the problem?" asked Eddie.
"Eddie, there's going to be an invasion soon. She feels it's the wrong time,"
"There's never a right time. How do you feel about it?" asked Eddie.
"I'm… happy for her. I'm glad she found someone," replied Cade.
Eddie yawned. "All that driving has worn me out. I'm taking the big couch," he said as he grabbed a blanket and jumped onto the couch.
"Hey, that's not fair," complained Cade.
"Tough," Eddie laughed and fell asleep almost straight away.
Liz was awoken the next morning by a loud crash. She groaned and looked at the alarm clock beside her. It was 6.30am. Another crash followed. She got up and went out to the living room. Eddie was already up and was making himself breakfast. There was no sign of Cade.
"What the hell was that noise?" she almost shouted.
Eddie looked up and whistled at the sight of Liz in her silk night gown.
"Whoa," was all he could say but saw the look on her face.
"Sorry, I was looking for a pan and dropped a couple," he replied.
"Why are you up so early?" she asked.
"Early? This is not early when you are fighting the Gua," replied Eddie.
"Where's Cade?" asked Liz.
"In the bathroom."
"What are you making?"
"Scrambled egg and bacon," replied Eddie.
"Smells great," she replied.
"Liz, Sorry for what I said last night. Foster told me," apologised Eddie
"That's alright," she said smiling at Eddie.
Cade came out of the bathroom wearing just a pair of jeans.
"Morning," he said.
"So what is the plan for today?" asked Liz.
"Find out where Jamie is. Get the video, find out who the Gua is," replied Cade.
"When did Nick say he was going to get the tape?" asked Eddie.
"First thing. Said he would call when he got it. As soon as we get it we can identify who the killer is. Now since I am up I am going to take a shower," Liz said going toward the bathroom.
"UM Liz, before you go in I have to do something," Eddie said running into the bathroom.
"What's up with him?" asked Liz.
"Nothing!" replied Cade trying to look like he was doing something. Eddie came back out of the bathroom a couple of seconds later.
"Did you forget to put the toilet seat down?" asked Liz.
"NO…Ok I did," replied Eddie.
Liz smiled and went to the bathroom.
Cade, Eddie and Liz were surfing the net trying to see if they could get any more information on Jamie and Gina. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The three of them jumped at the sound of the noise.
"I wonder who that is?" whispered Eddie paranoid as usual.
"It's probably Nick," Liz said going to the door and looking out the peep hole on the door. She smiled and opened the door. Nick smiled when he saw her.
"I have the videos for you," he said kissing her on the lips.
"Thanks Nick," Liz replied wondering if she should let him in.
"I know you are busy with the story and your brother so I'll call you later," Nick said.
"Ok," Liz said watching as Nick turned and walked down the corridor. She closed the door and was looking very thoughtful. Eddie and Cade watched her as she stared into space smiling to herself.
"My boyfriend is so dreamy," teased Eddie.
"Shut up, Eddie," replied Liz walking over to her video machine and putting in one of the videos.
"Man, there's about 7 or 8 hours on each tape here," Eddie said as they started watching the video.
"Good, that will keep you occupied for a while. We're going back to Jamie's house," Cade said picking up his jacket and motioning to Liz to come with him.
Cade and Liz sat in Liz's car across the road from Jamie's house. They didn't have to wait long as Jamie walked down the road about fifteen minutes later. They both got out of the car and walked across the road.
"Ms Reynolds," called Liz.
Jamie looked around to see Cade and Liz.
"I'm Elizabeth Baker from The Ohio Chronicle. I am writing a story about your sister's death and I wonder if you would like to make a comment," Liz said taking out her press ID card and showing it to Jamie.
"I'm sorry. I don't have anything to say," replied Jamie walking faster towards the house.
"Ms Reynolds, We understand how upset you are but if you could just give us a moment of your time," said Cade.
"I have nothing to say. Now leave me alone!" exclaimed Jamie.
"Jamie, we know who may have killed your sister but if you don't talk to us we can't help you," Liz said. Jamie stopped suddenly and turned to look at Cade and Liz. Jamie was a very pretty woman of about 30. Her eyes were the bluest Liz had ever seen.
"Come in," she eventually said.
"I never liked to use my ability," explained Jamie sitting down on the chair opposite Cade and Liz in the little lounge room.
"Why not?" asked Liz.
"I used to see horrible things,"
"What do you mean?" asked Cade gently.
"I can see things by holding things. I can sense what has happened. I used to work for the police in solving murders. I worked with them on a case once when three children in the same family were murdered while playing in the park. It was horrible. I couldn't do it anymore after that," Jamie shuddered as she thought of the memory.
"When was the last time you saw Gina?" asked Liz.
"It was about three months ago. We had an argument about what she was doing," replied Jamie.
"Did Gina have an ability?" asked Cade.
"No. She was always jealous that I had this gift, for the want of a better word, and when I gave it up she decided that she was going to use it to her advantage. My sister was a con artist who conned many people into believing her lies," replied Jamie.
"Maybe she helped a few people," replied Liz.
"I doubt it. I would say she hurt a few people," replied Jamie.
"Do you use your abilities now?" asked Cade.
"No. But I still get visions but I have learned to tune out,"
"Would you use your gift to help us find out what happened to Gina?" asked Cade cautiously.
"No. I would appreciate it if you left now," Jamie said appearing afraid.
"Just think about," replied Cade.
"I don't need to think about," replied Jamie in an angry tone.
"I'm sorry we bothered you." Liz said getting up to leave. "Just one thing what happened to the three children," she asked more out of morbid curiosity than anything else.
"Their grandfather butchered them," replied Jamie closing her eyes as not to see the horrible memory.
"So what do you think?" Liz asked Cade as they got back into the car.
"I was hoping we could persuade her to help us but that seems to be out the window," replied Cade putting on his sunglasses.
"I can't imagine what she went through," replied Liz.
"Yeah," agreed Cade.
"I went to a fortune teller once. In High School," Liz said.
"I thought you didn't believe in it," replied Cade.
"I went for a laugh,"
"What did she tell you?" asked Cade.
"She told me that my career would involve words and that I would be successful," replied Liz.
Cade laughed but then stopped as he saw a man and a woman going into Jamie's house.
"Do you have a camera?" asked Cade.
"In the glove compartment," replied Liz as Cade reached into the glove compartment to get the camera. He started to take photographs of the two people who left after 10 minutes.
"I wonder who they were," wondered Cade.
"Dunno. I can get Nick to develop these and see if we can get a positive ID. He has a dark room in his house," said Liz starting her car
"Ok. I'll go back to your place and see if Eddie has come up with anything with the video," replied Cade.
"First the video and now these photos. You must be getting somewhere with your story," Nick said as he and Liz waited for the photos to develop.
"I'm a good journalist. I can get a good story out of a shoebox," joked Liz.
"You sure can. These are going to take another hour or two," replied Nick.
"What do you suggest we do then?" Liz said.
"I can think of one thing," replied Nick walking over to Liz.
He stood behind her and released her hair from the hair grip that she wore allowing her hair to fall to one side. He kissed her neck lightly and caressed her shoulders. Liz felt a rush of excitement run through her body. She felt Nick's hands move down her arms and stop on the swell of her breast. Her breathing got deeper as he moved his hand inside her shirt. She gasped as she felt his warm hands on her skin. She turned around and they kissed Nick slowly undressed Liz removing all her clothing until the lace and denim of her clothing were in a pile on the floor. The light from the dark room illuminated Liz's skin and hair. They moved towards the bedroom. They both sat on the bed kissing and caressing each other. Liz opened Nick's shirt and kissed his chest running her tongue over his stomach. She lay back on the bed as he continued to kiss her and stroke her soft skin. He moved his body over her as she reached for him and guided him inside her. She moaned softly as she felt him move gently inside her and she cried out his name. She wrapped her legs around his hips and clung to him and soon they were moving together in unison. Slowly at first as they got used to the feel of each other and then their lovemaking increased pace.
Cade and Eddie were still watching the videos. So far they hadn't come across anything.
"I wonder if Liz and Nick found anything with the photographs yet," Eddie said.
"She said she would call when they were developed," replied Cade.
"How long ago was that?" asked Eddie.
"Three hours,"
"Maybe we should go over there and get them," replied Eddie
"Yeah I might do that," Cade said picking up his jacket. Eddie turned off the TV and followed.
Liz and Nick lay in each other's arms too exhausted to say anything.
"I wonder if those pictures are ready yet," Liz said.
"Is that all you can think of?" teased Nick.
"No," laughed Liz kissing him as he rolled on top of her again.
Suddenly the doorbell rang.
"Tell whoever it is we are busy," whispered Liz as the doorbell rang again.
"It's probably the paper guy. I'll get rid of them," replied Nick.
He got out of the bed and put on his robe and went to open the front door.
Liz heard voices and then heard the door slam. She got up and wrapped the sheet around her.
"Nick, did you get rid of him?" she called and opened the bedroom door. She stood still in shock as she saw Cade and Eddie standing there. Eddie's eyes opened wide when he saw her but no one said anything.
"Would you excuse me?" she said blushing as she turned around and went back into the bedroom.
"What are you two doing here?" she asked when she came back out fully dressed.
"Well there is no need to ask what you are doing here," replied Eddie only for Liz to hit him on the shoulder.
"We were just wondering if the photos were developed yet," Cade said.
"They are," replied Nick coming out of the dark room with the photographs.
"Can we get a positive ID on these people?" asked Cade.
"I'll see if I can get a contact of mine in the precinct to get an ID on them," Nick said.
"Wait a minute. This person was on one of the videos a couple of times," Eddie exclaimed looking at the photograph closely.
"Are you sure?" asked Liz.
"Yes," replied Eddie.
"You think he's Gua?" asked Liz.
"Could be but even if he is Gua he could have switched husks by now," replied Eddie.
"Gua?" Nick asked looking puzzled.
"Let's get back over to Liz's place and look at those videos again," Cade said.
"Wait a minute. What's a Gua?" asked Nick.
"Liz will explain on the way," replied Cade.
"This is unbelievable," Nick said as they entered Liz's apartment. He had listened in disbelief as Liz explained everything about the Gua and the Second Wave.
Eddie turned on the video and fast-forwarded it to where the person appeared on the video.
"OK, see here that person entered the shop and left after fifteen minutes, the next day he was there for ten minutes and about a week later at the very same time he was there for twenty five minutes,"
"That just means that he was probably a regular customer," replied Nick.
"That's what I thought, but the day before Gina died he came back and look who he is with," Eddie said pointing to the screen.
"He's with Jamie," said Liz. "But Jamie said she hadn't spoken to Gina in three months. She lied to us." Liz picked up her jacket and walked towards the door.
"I'll come with you," "You shouldn't go alone," Nick and Cade said together. Liz looked at the two men.
"I can look after myself," she said.
"I'm coming with you," Nick said getting up and following Liz out the door.
"So why didn't you tell me about this before?" asked Nick as they walked across the road to Jamie's house.
"I don't know," replied Liz.
"Did you want the scoop for yourself?" asked Nick. Liz stopped and turned to look at Nick.
"This could be the biggest story of our lifetime. The alien invasion of our planet. Think of all the front-page headlines that would make. But it's NOT about front-page headlines or how many newspapers are sold. It's about the threat to our very existence. We have to stop it before it's too late," replied Liz.
Nick smiled and kissed Liz on the lips. "I knew there was something I loved about you." Liz smiled and they both walked up to the front door. Liz knocked on the door. Jamie came to the door. "I'm sorry I've said all I have to say," she said attempting to shut the door only to be stopped by Liz.
"You lied to us Jamie. We saw you on the video tape," Liz said. Jamie looked at Liz in annoyance but opened the door and let the two in.
"Why did go to see your sister the day before she died?" asked Liz.
"I went to tell her she was in danger," replied Jamie.
"Who was the man with you?" asked Nick.
"He wanted me to tell her to stop," replied Jamie.
"Why?" asked Nick.
"He said he was going to kill her if she didn't stop the fortune telling. They believed that she had a gift and they wanted her to stop," explained Jamie.
"This doesn't make sense. Why did they believe this?" asked Liz.
"They were under the impression that she was me," replied Jamie.
"Why?" asked Nick.
"Because I was getting visions…" Jamie seemed to falter on her words and went pale all of a sudden and looked like she was about to faint. Nick and Liz caught her just before she fell and sat her on the sofa. They looked on in horror as Jamie began to convulse and scream.
"Liz call the paramedics," instructed Nick as the convulsions got worse.
Just as Liz picked up her cell phone the convulsions stopped. Jamie looked like she was in a trance.
"Jamie?" said Liz reaching out to touch Jamie's arm. As Liz did this she was thrown into the air with such a force that she banged her head off the coffee table on the other side of the room. She lay there stunned for a minute.
"Liz," Nick shouted as he scrambled over to her.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"Fine," replied Liz rubbing the back of her head.
"What happened?" Nick asked Liz as he helped her sit up.
"It was like some sort of electrical energy…." Liz said.
"I had a vision," Jamie said as Liz and Nick looked over at her.
"What did you see?" asked Liz.
"It's hard to explain," replied Jamie.
"Well try explaining," Nick said. "You nearly knocked Liz out."
"Nick, leave it," Liz said. Jamie stared intently at Nick who was starting to feel a little uncomfortable under the steady gaze.
"Do you love this man?" Jamie asked turning her gaze on Liz.
"Yes. But what does have to do with what just happened?" asked Liz.
"Everything and nothing," replied Jamie.
"What do you mean? What did you see?" asked Liz again.
"The invasion is getting closer. That's what I saw. An apocalypse," replied Jamie getting up off the sofa.
"You saw it?" asked Liz incredulously.
"Yes," replied Jamie. "I told Gina about the visions and she used them to her advantage in the shop. A few weeks ago that man you saw me with came to me and asked me to stop her as her "Gift" was making a lot of people believe her."
"What did you do?" asked Liz.
"I asked her to stop but she wouldn't. Gina was always jealous of me even when I was a child and she could never understand why I didn't want to use my ability to my advantage. I went with that man to try and convince her to stop. The next day she was dead," Jamie said looking at a photo of Gina on the shelf.
"Did he kill her?" asked Nick.
"I saw it happen," replied Jamie.
"What?" exclaimed Liz and Nick.
"I saw her die in a vision," Jamie said with a shudder.
"When?" asked Liz.
"An hour before it happened," replied Jamie sadly.
"Why didn't you try to stop it?" asked Nick.
"I was afraid. I didn't know when it was going to happen. My visions don't specify times or dates," Jamie said sitting down on the sofa again.
"Can you tell us who killed Gina?" asked Liz softly.
"Yes,"replied Jamie
"I'm going to stay here with Jamie. She's terrified that she is going to be next," Liz said to Cade over the cell phone.
"Just be careful," warned Cade. Liz had given him the name of the alien and Cade was going after him.
"You be careful as well," replied Liz hanging up.
"There's no point in the two of us staying here with Jamie. I know you have some work to do," Liz said turning to Nick.
Nick looked surprised. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"We'll be fine. I'll give you a call in a while," she said.
"If you need me just give me a call and I'll be around here as soon as possible," Nick said as he and Liz walked to the front door. He kissed her on the cheek and Liz watched as he walked down the footpath.
Cade sat in the car outside the building that Jamie had said were the aliens were.
The building had been a disused storehouse to a computer company according to Eddie's research.
Suddenly a car pulled up beside his. It was Nick.
"What are you doing here?" asked Cade getting out of the car.
"Thought you could do with a hand," replied Nick taking off his sunglasses.
"Oh. Liz didn't say you were coming here," answered Cade.
"Liz doesn't know," said Nick. "Thought I would come along and see how the infamous Cade Foster works as well as find out a few things."
"What things?" asked Cade.
"I just want to know if I am wasting my time," replied Nick dryly.
"Wasting your time?" asked Cade.
"With Elizabeth. I know you and she have a history," replied Nick.
""Don't you think you should be discussing this with her? Besides now isn't the time to discuss this," replied Cade keeping an eye on the building.
"It's the perfect time, Foster," Nick said grabbing Cade by the arm just as he was about to walk off. Cade looked down at where Nick's hand was and brushed it off.
"I have work to do," he said and started off towards the building. Nick followed him.
Cade scanned the area for anything unusual. They came to a side door. Cade took out his lock picking tools and had the door open in no time. Both he and Nick went in. Cade turned on his torch and shone it around. There was nothing inside except for dust and cobwebs.
"Why would Jamie send us here?" asked Nick.
"Dunno," Cade said and was about to say something else when there was a creaking sound.
"LOOK OUT," shouted Nick just as a rafter fell from the ceiling. Nick pushed Cade out of the way and the rafter landed with a thud on the floor nearly missing Nick.
They could hear more creaking sounds.
"We gotta get out of here!" exclaimed Cade helping Nick to his feet. "The whole thing is going to collapse. The two men ran as fast as they could to the door and had just reached the outside when the whole building collapsed.
"That was a trap," Cade said wiping dust off his jeans.
"And who was the one who sent us here?" asked Nick.
"Jamie," replied Cade.
"You think what I am thinking?" asked Nick.
"We've been had. Jamie set us up," answered Cade.
"And Liz is with her!" exclaimed Nick as the two men ran for Cade's car. Nick tried Liz on her cell phone but there was no answer as Cade reversed the car out of the car park and took off with the breaks squealing towards Jamie's house.
They could see smoke coming from the street where Jamie lived. As they drove up to the house they realised that it was Jamie's house that was on fire. The two men jumped out of the car and ran up the path to the house. The heat was intense but they could hear the girls screaming inside the house.
"LIZ, JAMIE," shouted Cade as the two men began to kick the door down. The lock came apart from the frame of the door and the door fell in. Throwing his jacket over his head Cade entered the house. Nick followed him. Cade could only see thick black smoke and felt the heat from the fire burn the back of his throat. He called Liz and Jamie again. He could hear someone calling his name and went in the direction of the sound. He found the two women in the kitchen trying to find their way out. They were both coughing from the smoke. Nick and Cade both grabbed the girls and guided them out of the house. The four sat on the grass just as the fire brigade came. They watched as the fire was put out but all four refused to go to the hospital when the firemen asked them to.
"So what happened?" asked Cade as they got into the car.
"Morrison and the woman who killed Gina came back to the house and tried to get in. Jamie wouldn't let them in but they forced their way in. They told Jamie that they knew she was the real seer…I can't remember what happened after that," replied Liz rubbing her head.
"Who started the fire?" asked Nick.
"They did by doing the same thing that they did with Gina but I could turn the fire back on themselves and they went up in flames instead and then dissolved," replied Jamie.
"Why did you send us to the wrong address?" asked Cade
"That was the address where they told me to meet them one time. But I never went," replied Jamie.
"So what are you going to do now?" asked Liz.
Jamie looked sad for a minute. "I can't get Gina back but I would like to spread the word about the aliens. I think I have gotten the strength to overcome the fear," she finally said.
"Glad to have you on board," replied Cade.
"So you guys were getting up to all sorts and you never bothered to give me a call or anything to let me know what was going on. This is so not fair," whined Eddie as he packed up his stuff in Liz's apartment.
Liz and Cade ignored him as the men got ready to leave and drive back to Virginia to pick up the trailer. They walked down to the car park.
"It was good to work with you," Nick said to Cade putting his hand out. Cade looked at the outstretched hand and took it and they shook hands.
"You to," replied Cade with a smile and then said, "Take care of her."
"I will," replied Nick.
"Hey you guys I can look after myself," said Liz.
"Yeah, Yeah," said the two men together.
"I can," replied Liz.
"Sure you can," replied Nick putting his arm around Liz.
"I'll talk to you soon," Cade said to Liz and they both hugged.
Liz and Nick watched as Cade and Eddie drove away.
Jamie had strength of belief in herself to overcome the fear she had of her gift. He sister died because of that fear but she will now use that strength in herself to try and help us stop the invasion. We could all use that strength in this time. For the invasion must be stopped.
Disclaimer:- First Wave Titles and Characters are the property of First Wave Productions and Pearson TV. Cade Foster, Crazy Eddie and The Gua are the property of Chris Brancato, Larry Sugar and Francis Ford Coppola. Elizabeth Baker, Nick, Jamie, Gina as well as some other characters belong to me and will not be used without my permission. (irish - April 2001) ©
Content – Drama, Violence, Adult Situations
Rating – R
1.1 Visions
2 Prologue
"I can see him," exclaimed Gina looking into the crystal ball.
"You can?" asked Gina's customer.
"Yes,"
"How is he?" asked the customer.
"He wants to tell you that he is happy where he is," said Gina. Gina was a shop front fortune teller who made her living making customers believe that she could see the dead and tell fortunes. She didn't really possess a gift. Her sister Jamie did but Jamie never wanted to use the gift for reasons that Gina could never understand.
"It might surprise you that I think that you are telling lies," the customer said rising to her feet.
"I don't tell lies," Gina said.
"Don't you?" replied the customer grabbing Gina's hand suddenly.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" demanded Gina getting scared.
The customer suddenly grabbed Gina's head. Gina screamed as she felt her whole internal organs boil. All of a sudden Gina went up in flames. The customer watched smugly as Gina screamed and then drop to the floor.
"Bet you didn't see that coming," the customer said going out the door.
********
Quatrain 5, Century 3
The raging inferno engulfs the fake seer, while the sibling with true vision waits for Strength of will to overcome the fear.
A shop front fortune teller in Cincinnati, Gina Reynolds, died when she went up in flames for no apparent cause. The quatrain suggests that she did not possess a gift but a brother or sister did. If we find the sibling we can find out how Gina died and hopefully the sibling will become a believer.
Cade Foster stood outside the Ohio Chronicle Newspaper offices in Cincinnati debating whether or not to go in. Walking into a newspaper office when you are a wanted murderer was not the best thing to do but he had been trying to get in contact with Liz since he got into town but wasn't able to.
"Liz, are you in or out this week?" Liz's editor Jack Daly asked at the weekly meeting that all the reporting staff attended.
Liz looked up. "I'm in this week," she replied.
"Good. Now back to business. Here are your assignments. Tom, I'm giving you the Forest case, Liz, the fortune teller story…."
Liz looked up sharply at Jack as he continued to hand out assignments and wondered why he gave her the fortune teller story to report on. It wasn't exactly an exclusive. The Forest story was the story that she wanted.
"Ok, you all know the deadlines so get out there and start reporting." Jack said.
"Jack, can I have a word?" asked Liz as he walked towards the door.
"Any time for you Liz,"
"The fortune teller story, Jack?" asked Liz.
"Elizabeth I know. You are a very good journalist and you've given us a lot of first class stories since you started working for us but you need to get the experience of other styles of reporting. Investigative reporting isn't the only style."
"But Jack, Investigative Reporting is what I am good at. It's what I do. You have seen Tom's work. His research is full of holes, he never meets deadlines. He couldn't write his way out of a paper bag," exclaimed Liz.
Jack sighed and looked at Liz. "Liz, I've handed out the assignments and I'm not changing them now. Do the best you can with the story," he said opening the door of the office.
Liz walked out of the office deflated.
"Excuse me Liz?" Wendy said coming over to Liz. Wendy was the receptionist for the newspaper and also the resident gossip.
"What is it Wendy?" Liz asked in irritation.
"Your brother was here about five minutes ago but you were in the meeting…"
"What?" asked Liz thinking Wendy was mad.
"Your brother, Charlie."
"What are you talking about?" asked Liz
"Your brother was here. I didn't know you had a brother. He is very cute. I would love to be introduced properly to him," Wendy said giving her a note and walked away.
"I don't have a…" she said but looked at the note and recognised Cade's handwriting.
"What is he up to?" she thought going out the door and down to the street.
"Liz," called Cade as she passed him on the street.
"Cade! Are you crazy? Coming into the newspaper office? You could have been recognised!" exclaimed Liz.
"Don't worry. No one saw me," replied Cade.
"What are you doing here?" asked Liz.
"Eddie hooked up a quatrain with a…"
"A story?" asked Liz.
"Yeah, the…" Cade started to say but was interrupted by Liz.
"Don't tell me it's the Forest Story."
"The what?"
"The Court case that is going on downtown. Jack wouldn't give it to me. He gave a stupid story about a fortune teller," complained Liz.
"Liz, it's not a stupid story," replied Cade.
"Yes it is. Don't tell me you believe in all that crap," Liz said looking at Cade who was grinning at her.
"Would you listen to what I have to say. Eddie linked up a quatrain about the fortune teller."
"He did? Why didn't you tell me?"
"I was trying to," Cade said looking bewildered.
"This could be a better story than the Forest Story," Liz said smiling now.
"Liz," a voice called. Cade and Liz looked around and saw a good-looking dark haired man coming out of the building.
Liz smiled when she saw who it was.
"Nick," she said walking up to him.
"I saw you were unhappy about the assignment that Jack gave to you," Nick said to her.
"It's fine," she replied.
"Are you sure?" asked Nick.
"Yeah," She said kissing him.
"So whose your friend?" asked Nick.
"Nick, this is my brother, Charlie," Liz said introducing Cade and Nick.
"I've heard a lot about you, it's good to meet you," Cade said as he and Nick shook hands.
"Same here. I'll let you and Charlie catch up. I'll talk to you later," Nick said.
Cade watched as Liz and Nick kissed again and then Nick went back into the building.
"So where's your other half?" Liz asked Cade as they entered her apartment.
"Eddie's driving from North Carolina. He should be here in the morning," replied Cade.
"Driving. Why doesn't he fly?" asked Liz going over to the kitchen to put on coffee.
"You're forgetting he's paranoid. He hates flying. He's afraid the plane…" "the plane will crash," Liz interrupted laughing.
"Yeah," Cade smiled. They stood looking at each other for a couple of seconds in silence.
"So what is the quatrain?" asked Liz.
"The raging inferno engulfs the fake seer, while the sibling with true vision waits for strength of will to overcome the fear," quoted Cade.
"The fake seer? Does that mean that Gina Reynolds didn't have psychic abilities?" asked Liz
"Possibly but a brother or sister does and possibly doesn't use it," replied Cade.
"Has Eddie found anything out yet?" asked Liz.
"Only that Gina died of spontaneous combustion, according to the coroner's report," replied Cade.
"Spontaneous Combustion?" asked Liz incredulously.
"That would explain the "Raging Inferno" in the quatrain," replied Cade.
"Yeah but people don't go up in flames for no reason,"
"The Gua have some kind of ability that causes the insides of a human being to boil, I've seen it before," replied Cade.
"OK. I think I can call in a favour from a friend of mine down at the 23rd Precinct and see if I can get him to find out if Gina had a record," replied Liz going to the phone.
"You've friends in high places," Cade said when she finished the call.
"He's a believer," replied Liz. "He said Gina Reynolds was arrested several times for drug possession, but get this, Gina has a sister called Jamie who is psychic and she used to assist the police solve some cases but she suddenly gave up and is virtually a recluse now," Liz continued.
"Did he say where she lives?" asked Cade.
"On the outskirts of town," replied Liz.
"Well let's go then," Cade said going out the door followed by Liz.
Liz and Cade drove to where Jamie lived. They parked the car outside the rundown house.
"She obviously isn't into gardening," Liz said as they walked up the overgrown garden path. Cade knocked on the door but there was no answer. He knocked again.
"No one is in," Liz said.
Cade said nothing but went around the back. Liz stayed at the front door. Cade looked into all the windows in the back of the house. The windows were filthy and some where broken. He came back around to the front.
"There's nobody here," he said.
"So what now? Asked Liz.
"Let's go to Gina's place and see what we can find out," Cade said.
Cade and Liz looked around the shop where Gina did her business. Apart from scorch marks on the carpet there was nothing out of place. Cade noticed the security camera at the entrance to the shop.
"The killer is on the video" he said. He looked for the video machine and found that there was no video in it.
"The cops must have taken the video," he said to Liz.
"I can get it," replied Liz.
"Another favour?"
"No, Nick has a contact," replied Liz picking up her cell phone.
"Nick said he will be able to get the video tomorrow," Liz said as they got back to her apartment.
"Nick seems like a nice guy," Cade said.
Liz smiled at Cade. "He is," she said smiling.
She sat down on the couch and looked thoughtful for a minute.
"Are you alright?" asked Cade sitting down beside her.
"Yeah, just thinking," she said.
"About Nick?" asked Cade.
"I think I have fallen in love with him," she said after a minute or two.
"I know. I'm happy for you," Cade said softly.
"It doesn't seem right,"
"Why?" asked Cade.
"It's not the right time. We are fighting for our very survival here and …" Liz's voice cracked.
"I'm happy you found someone, Liz," Cade said.
"Can I ask you something?" asked Liz.
"Sure,"
"Do you … ever regret what happened between us?" she asked.
Cade looked at her. "No. Do you?"
Liz was about to answer when there was banging on the door. Liz got up to answer the door. She stood face to face with Eddie.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"It's nice to see you to. Am I interrupting something?" asked Eddie.
"No. I thought you weren't going to be able to make it till tomorrow," Cade said.
"I drove like a bat out of hell to get here." replied Eddie dumping a big duffel bag on the floor.
"Where's the trailer?" asked Cade.
"I left the trailer in Virginia. It was slowing me up. Don't worry I have everything I need," he said taking a lot of paraphernalia out of the bag.
"I guess you want to stay here," Liz said looking at all the equipment he was taking out.
"If that's not too much trouble," replied Eddie
"OK, that's fine. A few house rules. No snoring, Clean up after you, if you make any of your weird concoctions that smell use an air freshener, put the toilet seat down after you…"
"Yes Major, Sir," Said Eddie.
"Good. As long as that is cleared up," replied Liz.
"Have you guys found anything out?" asked Eddie as he set up his laptop computer.
"Gina has a sister called Jamie who is the real psychic but we haven't been able to speak to her yet," replied Cade.
"So Gina was the false seer," replied Eddie.
"Yeah. There are also a couple of security video that are in police evidence at the moment. It might show us who the killer is," replied Cade.
"How are we going to get the videos if they are in police evidence?" asked Eddie.
"Nick has a contact in the precinct," replied Cade.
"That's great. Whose Nick?" asked Eddie.
"A friend of mine," replied Liz looking at Cade.
"Can we trust him?" asked Eddie.
"What?" asked Liz.
"I am just saying that we can't trust anybody these days," he replied.
"Well then yes. I DO trust him," Liz replied in annoyance getting up off the couch. She got two blankets out of the closet and threw them at the two men.
"I'm going to bed. Fight over whose getting the bigger couch if you want but keep the noise down," she said as she headed to her bedroom.
Eddie watched as she left the room.
"What's her problem?" he asked.
"Sometimes Eddie, tact is not your greatest attribute," replied Cade.
"What do you mean?" asked Eddie looking a bit puzzled.
"What you just said to her," Cade said lowering his voice.
"About Nick?"
"Yes about Nick," whispered Cade.
"What about him?"
"He's the Nick she is dating. She's in love with him," replied Cade.
"OH, so what's the problem?" asked Eddie.
"Eddie, there's going to be an invasion soon. She feels it's the wrong time,"
"There's never a right time. How do you feel about it?" asked Eddie.
"I'm… happy for her. I'm glad she found someone," replied Cade.
Eddie yawned. "All that driving has worn me out. I'm taking the big couch," he said as he grabbed a blanket and jumped onto the couch.
"Hey, that's not fair," complained Cade.
"Tough," Eddie laughed and fell asleep almost straight away.
Liz was awoken the next morning by a loud crash. She groaned and looked at the alarm clock beside her. It was 6.30am. Another crash followed. She got up and went out to the living room. Eddie was already up and was making himself breakfast. There was no sign of Cade.
"What the hell was that noise?" she almost shouted.
Eddie looked up and whistled at the sight of Liz in her silk night gown.
"Whoa," was all he could say but saw the look on her face.
"Sorry, I was looking for a pan and dropped a couple," he replied.
"Why are you up so early?" she asked.
"Early? This is not early when you are fighting the Gua," replied Eddie.
"Where's Cade?" asked Liz.
"In the bathroom."
"What are you making?"
"Scrambled egg and bacon," replied Eddie.
"Smells great," she replied.
"Liz, Sorry for what I said last night. Foster told me," apologised Eddie
"That's alright," she said smiling at Eddie.
Cade came out of the bathroom wearing just a pair of jeans.
"Morning," he said.
"So what is the plan for today?" asked Liz.
"Find out where Jamie is. Get the video, find out who the Gua is," replied Cade.
"When did Nick say he was going to get the tape?" asked Eddie.
"First thing. Said he would call when he got it. As soon as we get it we can identify who the killer is. Now since I am up I am going to take a shower," Liz said going toward the bathroom.
"UM Liz, before you go in I have to do something," Eddie said running into the bathroom.
"What's up with him?" asked Liz.
"Nothing!" replied Cade trying to look like he was doing something. Eddie came back out of the bathroom a couple of seconds later.
"Did you forget to put the toilet seat down?" asked Liz.
"NO…Ok I did," replied Eddie.
Liz smiled and went to the bathroom.
Cade, Eddie and Liz were surfing the net trying to see if they could get any more information on Jamie and Gina. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The three of them jumped at the sound of the noise.
"I wonder who that is?" whispered Eddie paranoid as usual.
"It's probably Nick," Liz said going to the door and looking out the peep hole on the door. She smiled and opened the door. Nick smiled when he saw her.
"I have the videos for you," he said kissing her on the lips.
"Thanks Nick," Liz replied wondering if she should let him in.
"I know you are busy with the story and your brother so I'll call you later," Nick said.
"Ok," Liz said watching as Nick turned and walked down the corridor. She closed the door and was looking very thoughtful. Eddie and Cade watched her as she stared into space smiling to herself.
"My boyfriend is so dreamy," teased Eddie.
"Shut up, Eddie," replied Liz walking over to her video machine and putting in one of the videos.
"Man, there's about 7 or 8 hours on each tape here," Eddie said as they started watching the video.
"Good, that will keep you occupied for a while. We're going back to Jamie's house," Cade said picking up his jacket and motioning to Liz to come with him.
Cade and Liz sat in Liz's car across the road from Jamie's house. They didn't have to wait long as Jamie walked down the road about fifteen minutes later. They both got out of the car and walked across the road.
"Ms Reynolds," called Liz.
Jamie looked around to see Cade and Liz.
"I'm Elizabeth Baker from The Ohio Chronicle. I am writing a story about your sister's death and I wonder if you would like to make a comment," Liz said taking out her press ID card and showing it to Jamie.
"I'm sorry. I don't have anything to say," replied Jamie walking faster towards the house.
"Ms Reynolds, We understand how upset you are but if you could just give us a moment of your time," said Cade.
"I have nothing to say. Now leave me alone!" exclaimed Jamie.
"Jamie, we know who may have killed your sister but if you don't talk to us we can't help you," Liz said. Jamie stopped suddenly and turned to look at Cade and Liz. Jamie was a very pretty woman of about 30. Her eyes were the bluest Liz had ever seen.
"Come in," she eventually said.
"I never liked to use my ability," explained Jamie sitting down on the chair opposite Cade and Liz in the little lounge room.
"Why not?" asked Liz.
"I used to see horrible things,"
"What do you mean?" asked Cade gently.
"I can see things by holding things. I can sense what has happened. I used to work for the police in solving murders. I worked with them on a case once when three children in the same family were murdered while playing in the park. It was horrible. I couldn't do it anymore after that," Jamie shuddered as she thought of the memory.
"When was the last time you saw Gina?" asked Liz.
"It was about three months ago. We had an argument about what she was doing," replied Jamie.
"Did Gina have an ability?" asked Cade.
"No. She was always jealous that I had this gift, for the want of a better word, and when I gave it up she decided that she was going to use it to her advantage. My sister was a con artist who conned many people into believing her lies," replied Jamie.
"Maybe she helped a few people," replied Liz.
"I doubt it. I would say she hurt a few people," replied Jamie.
"Do you use your abilities now?" asked Cade.
"No. But I still get visions but I have learned to tune out,"
"Would you use your gift to help us find out what happened to Gina?" asked Cade cautiously.
"No. I would appreciate it if you left now," Jamie said appearing afraid.
"Just think about," replied Cade.
"I don't need to think about," replied Jamie in an angry tone.
"I'm sorry we bothered you." Liz said getting up to leave. "Just one thing what happened to the three children," she asked more out of morbid curiosity than anything else.
"Their grandfather butchered them," replied Jamie closing her eyes as not to see the horrible memory.
"So what do you think?" Liz asked Cade as they got back into the car.
"I was hoping we could persuade her to help us but that seems to be out the window," replied Cade putting on his sunglasses.
"I can't imagine what she went through," replied Liz.
"Yeah," agreed Cade.
"I went to a fortune teller once. In High School," Liz said.
"I thought you didn't believe in it," replied Cade.
"I went for a laugh,"
"What did she tell you?" asked Cade.
"She told me that my career would involve words and that I would be successful," replied Liz.
Cade laughed but then stopped as he saw a man and a woman going into Jamie's house.
"Do you have a camera?" asked Cade.
"In the glove compartment," replied Liz as Cade reached into the glove compartment to get the camera. He started to take photographs of the two people who left after 10 minutes.
"I wonder who they were," wondered Cade.
"Dunno. I can get Nick to develop these and see if we can get a positive ID. He has a dark room in his house," said Liz starting her car
"Ok. I'll go back to your place and see if Eddie has come up with anything with the video," replied Cade.
"First the video and now these photos. You must be getting somewhere with your story," Nick said as he and Liz waited for the photos to develop.
"I'm a good journalist. I can get a good story out of a shoebox," joked Liz.
"You sure can. These are going to take another hour or two," replied Nick.
"What do you suggest we do then?" Liz said.
"I can think of one thing," replied Nick walking over to Liz.
He stood behind her and released her hair from the hair grip that she wore allowing her hair to fall to one side. He kissed her neck lightly and caressed her shoulders. Liz felt a rush of excitement run through her body. She felt Nick's hands move down her arms and stop on the swell of her breast. Her breathing got deeper as he moved his hand inside her shirt. She gasped as she felt his warm hands on her skin. She turned around and they kissed Nick slowly undressed Liz removing all her clothing until the lace and denim of her clothing were in a pile on the floor. The light from the dark room illuminated Liz's skin and hair. They moved towards the bedroom. They both sat on the bed kissing and caressing each other. Liz opened Nick's shirt and kissed his chest running her tongue over his stomach. She lay back on the bed as he continued to kiss her and stroke her soft skin. He moved his body over her as she reached for him and guided him inside her. She moaned softly as she felt him move gently inside her and she cried out his name. She wrapped her legs around his hips and clung to him and soon they were moving together in unison. Slowly at first as they got used to the feel of each other and then their lovemaking increased pace.
Cade and Eddie were still watching the videos. So far they hadn't come across anything.
"I wonder if Liz and Nick found anything with the photographs yet," Eddie said.
"She said she would call when they were developed," replied Cade.
"How long ago was that?" asked Eddie.
"Three hours,"
"Maybe we should go over there and get them," replied Eddie
"Yeah I might do that," Cade said picking up his jacket. Eddie turned off the TV and followed.
Liz and Nick lay in each other's arms too exhausted to say anything.
"I wonder if those pictures are ready yet," Liz said.
"Is that all you can think of?" teased Nick.
"No," laughed Liz kissing him as he rolled on top of her again.
Suddenly the doorbell rang.
"Tell whoever it is we are busy," whispered Liz as the doorbell rang again.
"It's probably the paper guy. I'll get rid of them," replied Nick.
He got out of the bed and put on his robe and went to open the front door.
Liz heard voices and then heard the door slam. She got up and wrapped the sheet around her.
"Nick, did you get rid of him?" she called and opened the bedroom door. She stood still in shock as she saw Cade and Eddie standing there. Eddie's eyes opened wide when he saw her but no one said anything.
"Would you excuse me?" she said blushing as she turned around and went back into the bedroom.
"What are you two doing here?" she asked when she came back out fully dressed.
"Well there is no need to ask what you are doing here," replied Eddie only for Liz to hit him on the shoulder.
"We were just wondering if the photos were developed yet," Cade said.
"They are," replied Nick coming out of the dark room with the photographs.
"Can we get a positive ID on these people?" asked Cade.
"I'll see if I can get a contact of mine in the precinct to get an ID on them," Nick said.
"Wait a minute. This person was on one of the videos a couple of times," Eddie exclaimed looking at the photograph closely.
"Are you sure?" asked Liz.
"Yes," replied Eddie.
"You think he's Gua?" asked Liz.
"Could be but even if he is Gua he could have switched husks by now," replied Eddie.
"Gua?" Nick asked looking puzzled.
"Let's get back over to Liz's place and look at those videos again," Cade said.
"Wait a minute. What's a Gua?" asked Nick.
"Liz will explain on the way," replied Cade.
"This is unbelievable," Nick said as they entered Liz's apartment. He had listened in disbelief as Liz explained everything about the Gua and the Second Wave.
Eddie turned on the video and fast-forwarded it to where the person appeared on the video.
"OK, see here that person entered the shop and left after fifteen minutes, the next day he was there for ten minutes and about a week later at the very same time he was there for twenty five minutes,"
"That just means that he was probably a regular customer," replied Nick.
"That's what I thought, but the day before Gina died he came back and look who he is with," Eddie said pointing to the screen.
"He's with Jamie," said Liz. "But Jamie said she hadn't spoken to Gina in three months. She lied to us." Liz picked up her jacket and walked towards the door.
"I'll come with you," "You shouldn't go alone," Nick and Cade said together. Liz looked at the two men.
"I can look after myself," she said.
"I'm coming with you," Nick said getting up and following Liz out the door.
"So why didn't you tell me about this before?" asked Nick as they walked across the road to Jamie's house.
"I don't know," replied Liz.
"Did you want the scoop for yourself?" asked Nick. Liz stopped and turned to look at Nick.
"This could be the biggest story of our lifetime. The alien invasion of our planet. Think of all the front-page headlines that would make. But it's NOT about front-page headlines or how many newspapers are sold. It's about the threat to our very existence. We have to stop it before it's too late," replied Liz.
Nick smiled and kissed Liz on the lips. "I knew there was something I loved about you." Liz smiled and they both walked up to the front door. Liz knocked on the door. Jamie came to the door. "I'm sorry I've said all I have to say," she said attempting to shut the door only to be stopped by Liz.
"You lied to us Jamie. We saw you on the video tape," Liz said. Jamie looked at Liz in annoyance but opened the door and let the two in.
"Why did go to see your sister the day before she died?" asked Liz.
"I went to tell her she was in danger," replied Jamie.
"Who was the man with you?" asked Nick.
"He wanted me to tell her to stop," replied Jamie.
"Why?" asked Nick.
"He said he was going to kill her if she didn't stop the fortune telling. They believed that she had a gift and they wanted her to stop," explained Jamie.
"This doesn't make sense. Why did they believe this?" asked Liz.
"They were under the impression that she was me," replied Jamie.
"Why?" asked Nick.
"Because I was getting visions…" Jamie seemed to falter on her words and went pale all of a sudden and looked like she was about to faint. Nick and Liz caught her just before she fell and sat her on the sofa. They looked on in horror as Jamie began to convulse and scream.
"Liz call the paramedics," instructed Nick as the convulsions got worse.
Just as Liz picked up her cell phone the convulsions stopped. Jamie looked like she was in a trance.
"Jamie?" said Liz reaching out to touch Jamie's arm. As Liz did this she was thrown into the air with such a force that she banged her head off the coffee table on the other side of the room. She lay there stunned for a minute.
"Liz," Nick shouted as he scrambled over to her.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"Fine," replied Liz rubbing the back of her head.
"What happened?" Nick asked Liz as he helped her sit up.
"It was like some sort of electrical energy…." Liz said.
"I had a vision," Jamie said as Liz and Nick looked over at her.
"What did you see?" asked Liz.
"It's hard to explain," replied Jamie.
"Well try explaining," Nick said. "You nearly knocked Liz out."
"Nick, leave it," Liz said. Jamie stared intently at Nick who was starting to feel a little uncomfortable under the steady gaze.
"Do you love this man?" Jamie asked turning her gaze on Liz.
"Yes. But what does have to do with what just happened?" asked Liz.
"Everything and nothing," replied Jamie.
"What do you mean? What did you see?" asked Liz again.
"The invasion is getting closer. That's what I saw. An apocalypse," replied Jamie getting up off the sofa.
"You saw it?" asked Liz incredulously.
"Yes," replied Jamie. "I told Gina about the visions and she used them to her advantage in the shop. A few weeks ago that man you saw me with came to me and asked me to stop her as her "Gift" was making a lot of people believe her."
"What did you do?" asked Liz.
"I asked her to stop but she wouldn't. Gina was always jealous of me even when I was a child and she could never understand why I didn't want to use my ability to my advantage. I went with that man to try and convince her to stop. The next day she was dead," Jamie said looking at a photo of Gina on the shelf.
"Did he kill her?" asked Nick.
"I saw it happen," replied Jamie.
"What?" exclaimed Liz and Nick.
"I saw her die in a vision," Jamie said with a shudder.
"When?" asked Liz.
"An hour before it happened," replied Jamie sadly.
"Why didn't you try to stop it?" asked Nick.
"I was afraid. I didn't know when it was going to happen. My visions don't specify times or dates," Jamie said sitting down on the sofa again.
"Can you tell us who killed Gina?" asked Liz softly.
"Yes,"replied Jamie
"I'm going to stay here with Jamie. She's terrified that she is going to be next," Liz said to Cade over the cell phone.
"Just be careful," warned Cade. Liz had given him the name of the alien and Cade was going after him.
"You be careful as well," replied Liz hanging up.
"There's no point in the two of us staying here with Jamie. I know you have some work to do," Liz said turning to Nick.
Nick looked surprised. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"We'll be fine. I'll give you a call in a while," she said.
"If you need me just give me a call and I'll be around here as soon as possible," Nick said as he and Liz walked to the front door. He kissed her on the cheek and Liz watched as he walked down the footpath.
Cade sat in the car outside the building that Jamie had said were the aliens were.
The building had been a disused storehouse to a computer company according to Eddie's research.
Suddenly a car pulled up beside his. It was Nick.
"What are you doing here?" asked Cade getting out of the car.
"Thought you could do with a hand," replied Nick taking off his sunglasses.
"Oh. Liz didn't say you were coming here," answered Cade.
"Liz doesn't know," said Nick. "Thought I would come along and see how the infamous Cade Foster works as well as find out a few things."
"What things?" asked Cade.
"I just want to know if I am wasting my time," replied Nick dryly.
"Wasting your time?" asked Cade.
"With Elizabeth. I know you and she have a history," replied Nick.
""Don't you think you should be discussing this with her? Besides now isn't the time to discuss this," replied Cade keeping an eye on the building.
"It's the perfect time, Foster," Nick said grabbing Cade by the arm just as he was about to walk off. Cade looked down at where Nick's hand was and brushed it off.
"I have work to do," he said and started off towards the building. Nick followed him.
Cade scanned the area for anything unusual. They came to a side door. Cade took out his lock picking tools and had the door open in no time. Both he and Nick went in. Cade turned on his torch and shone it around. There was nothing inside except for dust and cobwebs.
"Why would Jamie send us here?" asked Nick.
"Dunno," Cade said and was about to say something else when there was a creaking sound.
"LOOK OUT," shouted Nick just as a rafter fell from the ceiling. Nick pushed Cade out of the way and the rafter landed with a thud on the floor nearly missing Nick.
They could hear more creaking sounds.
"We gotta get out of here!" exclaimed Cade helping Nick to his feet. "The whole thing is going to collapse. The two men ran as fast as they could to the door and had just reached the outside when the whole building collapsed.
"That was a trap," Cade said wiping dust off his jeans.
"And who was the one who sent us here?" asked Nick.
"Jamie," replied Cade.
"You think what I am thinking?" asked Nick.
"We've been had. Jamie set us up," answered Cade.
"And Liz is with her!" exclaimed Nick as the two men ran for Cade's car. Nick tried Liz on her cell phone but there was no answer as Cade reversed the car out of the car park and took off with the breaks squealing towards Jamie's house.
They could see smoke coming from the street where Jamie lived. As they drove up to the house they realised that it was Jamie's house that was on fire. The two men jumped out of the car and ran up the path to the house. The heat was intense but they could hear the girls screaming inside the house.
"LIZ, JAMIE," shouted Cade as the two men began to kick the door down. The lock came apart from the frame of the door and the door fell in. Throwing his jacket over his head Cade entered the house. Nick followed him. Cade could only see thick black smoke and felt the heat from the fire burn the back of his throat. He called Liz and Jamie again. He could hear someone calling his name and went in the direction of the sound. He found the two women in the kitchen trying to find their way out. They were both coughing from the smoke. Nick and Cade both grabbed the girls and guided them out of the house. The four sat on the grass just as the fire brigade came. They watched as the fire was put out but all four refused to go to the hospital when the firemen asked them to.
"So what happened?" asked Cade as they got into the car.
"Morrison and the woman who killed Gina came back to the house and tried to get in. Jamie wouldn't let them in but they forced their way in. They told Jamie that they knew she was the real seer…I can't remember what happened after that," replied Liz rubbing her head.
"Who started the fire?" asked Nick.
"They did by doing the same thing that they did with Gina but I could turn the fire back on themselves and they went up in flames instead and then dissolved," replied Jamie.
"Why did you send us to the wrong address?" asked Cade
"That was the address where they told me to meet them one time. But I never went," replied Jamie.
"So what are you going to do now?" asked Liz.
Jamie looked sad for a minute. "I can't get Gina back but I would like to spread the word about the aliens. I think I have gotten the strength to overcome the fear," she finally said.
"Glad to have you on board," replied Cade.
"So you guys were getting up to all sorts and you never bothered to give me a call or anything to let me know what was going on. This is so not fair," whined Eddie as he packed up his stuff in Liz's apartment.
Liz and Cade ignored him as the men got ready to leave and drive back to Virginia to pick up the trailer. They walked down to the car park.
"It was good to work with you," Nick said to Cade putting his hand out. Cade looked at the outstretched hand and took it and they shook hands.
"You to," replied Cade with a smile and then said, "Take care of her."
"I will," replied Nick.
"Hey you guys I can look after myself," said Liz.
"Yeah, Yeah," said the two men together.
"I can," replied Liz.
"Sure you can," replied Nick putting his arm around Liz.
"I'll talk to you soon," Cade said to Liz and they both hugged.
Liz and Nick watched as Cade and Eddie drove away.
Jamie had strength of belief in herself to overcome the fear she had of her gift. He sister died because of that fear but she will now use that strength in herself to try and help us stop the invasion. We could all use that strength in this time. For the invasion must be stopped.