Chapter Ten

Maria woke up early the next morning and quickly got ready for school. She wanted to avoid any possible contact with her mother for now. She was hurt. Pained that her mother wouldn't even listen. It was true. She was always lying. But it was for her own safety. Maria paused at her bedroom door, listening for her mother, and heard her in the kitchen, so Maria took her chance and bolted out of her bedroom, down the hall and out the front door. She let out a breath once she was outside and began walking towards school.

Maria was walking down the hallway when she spotted Kyle standing at his locker. "Hey." She said stopping next to him.

"Oh, hey Maria. How are you? I've heard... things. You doing okay?"

She nodded. "Just lots of rumors. I was wondering, I wanted to talk to you about something. Are you busy after school?"

Kyle paused, wondering if she had figured it all out, and how. And also what exactly he was going to tell Tess. She absolutely hated Maria right now. "No. We can talk. Did you want to meet someplace?"

"Would you just meet me at your car after class?"

"Sure, of course." He agreed.

"Thanks, I'll see you later." Maria said and then quickly left, heading for her first period class.

Michael walked up to his friends sitting at a table outside at lunch. "Hey." He said straddling the bench.

"She's a bitch." Max grumbled to Tess.

"I know." She agreed.

"Who is?" Michael asked making a face. Maxwell never talked like that, about anyone. No matter what they had done.

"Maria." Isabel interjected.

"What? Why?" Michael asked, confused. Last he knew things were great with Max and Maria. The thought made him cranky.

"She is a liar, she's manipulative and she's on drugs." Tess shook her head, then looked at Isabel. "And you're suddenly dating her best friend."

Isabel blushed, uncharacteristically. "They are barely even talking anymore."

"She isn't on drugs." Michael snapped.

"Oh, what? Now you believe her other story?" Tess laughed, and Michael just stared. "Michael!" She gasped.

"What other story?" Max asked.

"Nothing. Tess. Drop it."

"What did she do to you Michael? Are you high too? How can you believe that she is-"

"Drop. It. Tess." Michael ground out.

"What is going on?" Isabel asked confused.

"It is nothing." Michael said, not taking his eyes off of Tess.

"Can we all not be fighting? It would really be nice." Isabel begged softly.

"No one is fighting." Tess said.

Isabel just sighed. "I need to go meet Alex."

"Traitor." Tess murmured.

"Tess!" Isabel frowned.

"Tess, stop it." Max's own frown deepened. Something serious was going on, and he and his sister were clueless.

"I'll see you guys later." Isabel got up and walked away.

"Can I trust you two not to kill each other?" Max asked.

"Sure." Michael said.

Tess agreed. "Yeah."

He sighed and stood up. "I'll see you later." After he was gone Tess told Michael. "I can't believe you. She is lying. Why can't you see that? There is no such thing as aliens."

"I never said there was."

"I can tell from the look on your face. You believe her."

"Tess, honestly, all I know is that some things have happened that were pretty spectacular and I don't know how to explain them."

"Drugs." Michael scowled at her.

"It has nothing to do with drugs."

"I don't trust her. She isn't a good person."

"Tess, I love you, you're my best friend. But you have no idea how wrong you are about her. Just leave her alone, and forget anything I ever told you about her." And with that he stood up and walked away, leaving Tess alone.

After school, Kyle was already waiting for Maria at his car. He had lied to Tess about having to run some errands for his dad before he was picking her up for dinner. He really just hoped she wouldn't find out that he lied. "Hey."

"Hey." She echoed.

"So where are we going?"

"Lets take second out past the lakes."

"Okay." He agreed and they climbed inside.

"I want you to do something for me." Maria said as she led Kyle up the cliff.

"Okay..." Kyle said cautiously. Maria grabbed a hold of his hand and pressed it to the rock. Exactly where she had laid her hand before, and caused the rocks to open. Nothing happened. "Maria?" He asked and she shook her head.

"But I thought... I was sure..." She shook her head again. "Never mind, I was wrong." She took a step backwards and then turned and started walking down the path.

"Maria." He called after her.

"Sorry for dragging you out here Kyle. I don't know what I was thinking."

"Maria. Stop." He insisted. She sighed and turned around.

"Look, Kyle I-" She froze and saw him moved his hand back up to the rock and a second later the rocks pulled apart and the opening appeared.

"How did you figure it out?" He asked her.

"I was out here yesterday. It opened." She made her way back up towards him. "I saw the pods. Got a flash. It was you, I just knew it was you." She stepped inside the cave with him.

"I've known about you guys since we got here. I just didn't know how to tell you. And then Liz... and all the other stuff that has been going on with you, I wasn't sure how." He sighed.

"We?" Maria's brow furrowed.

"Nescedo. He is our protector. Pretends to be my father." Maria sunk down on a rock against the wall. "Have you told Alex?"

"I wanted to be sure. Plus, things between us have... changed. It isn't the same. He's too busy lying to me and fawning over his new girlfriend."

"Lying?"

"The FBI knew about Liz. They know about me. Sheriff Valenti knows. He convinced my mom that I am on drugs. He is turning her against me. I really need some help. I used to be able to rely on Alex for everything, but lately..."

"Geeze Maria, if I had known I would have... I wish I would have done something sooner. We will fix this." He tried to reassure her.

"Alex hacked into the FBI computer and was going to delete all the files."

"We will talk with Nescedo. Everything will be okay."

"Thank you Kyle. So much. I really need someone I can actually trust right now." Maria couldn't even begin to describe how thankful she was right then.

"I am here, and I won't lie to you. I promise you that." Kyle glanced at his watch. "I should get home, Tess and I have plans. I'll drive you home."

"Thanks." Maria walked with Kyle back out of the cave and down the path to his car.

"Talk to Alex, and then we should all meet." Kyle told Maria as she climbed out of the car.

"Okay. I'll try." But Maria wasn't sure if Alex would even talk to her. He seemed so absorbed Isabel. Maria wasn't sure if she was even important to Alex anymore. She sighed and headed inside the house and saw her mother walk out of the kitchen.

"Where have you been?" She demanded.

"I was with a friend." Maria told her.

"Who?"

"Kyle Harding."

"I don't know who that is. Who is he? What were you doing?"

Maria sighed and pushed a lock of hair back from her face. "We were talking. No drugs involved, mom." Amy scrutinized her daughters features. "Mom, please believe me. I am begging you."

"I am just not sure what to think Maria..."

"Please, trust me. I am not lying about this."

"But you have been lying to me." Amy threw her hands up. "You've been lying for months!"

"I am trying to protect you." Maria yelled at her.

"From what? Maria! You are sixteen years old!"

"I have been trying to find my birth parents!" Maria screamed suddenly. Her mother froze. Amy had often suspected Maria would want to know about them, to find them. But she had always hoped that Maria was happy enough with her that she wouldn't care about them anymore.

Maria swallowed hard. It was a half truth. Another lie. She hung her head and started to cry. "Mom, I swear, I'm not on drugs. I've never done any drugs. Your aromatherapy oils are the only thing I've ever sniffed. I've never taken any drugs, not even Tylenol! I thought you knew me better than that."

"Maria-" Amy was taken aback. Maria was her daughter, she had thought she knew her. But over the last few months, she didn't know what to think anymore. "I do trust you-"

"No you don't! You accuse me of doing drugs! You believe Valenti! He doesn't know me! He doesn't know anything about me! And you took his word over mine! I thought you were supposed to believe me! He's a liar!"

"Now Maria-"

"No!" Maria shook her head. She was sick of her mother not believing her. She was pretty sure this wasn't going to help anything, but she couldn't stop herself. "He lies! He wants you to not trust me!"

"Why? What are you talking about Maria? Why would he do such a thing? He's the sheriff."

"He's an evil man! He just wants to hurt me."

"What?" Amy's mouth fell open. "What do you mean hurt you? Hurt you how!?" Suddenly Amy was livid. She knew her daughter would never do drugs, so why had she so easily believed Jim?

"It is true! He is making up these stories to hurt me, to hurt you."

"Why?" Amy shook her head. "No, Maria, why would he do that?"

"Because he is a bad, bad person."

Amy gently grabbed her daughter's shoulders. "Maria, this doesn't make sense."

"I know, mom, I know it doesn't make any sense, but please, I am begging you, you have to trust me. I love you, more than anything else, and I just want to keep you safe. I'm sorry for lying to you, if there was any other way..."

"Are they... have they contacted you?"

"No, but I am trying to figure things out, about who I am...I want to know the truth about why I was left in the desert." Amy turned around and walked away from her daughter, and slowly sunk down into the chair at the table.

"Mom." Maria followed her. "Mom, what is it?"

"When you find them... you'll leave me."Amy hung her head and stared at the table.

"What?" Maria gasped. "No! Mom, you are my mother. You are my mom. Those other people, who... they didn't want me. You wanted me, and you loved me, and raised me, and I wouldn't give you up for anything in the entire universe, mom. I love you. You are my mom, by blood or not, you are my mom." Maria sunk down into the chair closest to her mom and clasped her hands over Amy's.

Amy looked up at her daughter, torn. "You have every right to know about them, and who they were, and why they did... what they did. But, Maria, I'm afraid for you. Why would Jim say things like that about you? Why would he be so hell bent on convincing me that you were on drugs?"

Maria swallowed hard. "Because, he thinks I'm a bad person."

"Why would he think that?"

"Because of Tess."

"But you two used to be such good friends, before... before Michelle passed away."

"I know, I know that, I remember that. I don't think Tess does. And all the lies that have been spread about me, I'm pretty sure they all came from Tess." Maria really didn't know what to do about the Valenti situation.

Amy frowned. She did not like that. She did not like the idea of someone hurting her daughter. "Maria, please know that you can come to me. I'm sorry for the way I acted, but, why wouldn't I believe him, he's the sheriff." Amy reached out and touched her daughter's face. "I love you, and I want you to be happy. But I need you to be honest with me about all of this. I am okay with you looking into this, but you have to be honest."

"Okay," Maria nodded quickly. "I will mom, I promise. I won't lie to you anymore." Maria hated that in her promise, she was lying. She would have no choice but to lie to her mother in the future. There was no getting around it, because she could never know the actual truth. But Maria really hoped that things would get better from here on out. Now that she knew about Kyle. And their protector, Nescedo. "Is it okay if I go over to Alex's for a little while? I need to talk to him. I'll be home before dark."

Amy nodded slightly. "Of course, Maria, call me if you'll be late."

"I will." Maria told her, and stood up before bending down to hug her mother tightly. "I love you."

"I love you too, be safe." Maria grabbed her purse and walked out the front door. Amy simply stared after her. She knew Maria was still lying. What was this horrible secret that she couldn't know? Maria wasn't doing drugs. Amy knew that, but it had been the easiest lie to believe. So if it wasn't drugs, what exactly was her daughter involved in?

Kyle pulled the car up in front of Tess' house and quickly walked up to the door. He knocked and smiled. He hated lying to Tess. But what else could he do? The door opened and he faltered slightly seeing the Sheriff standing there. There was a deep scowl on his face. "Can I help you?" He demanded.

"Uh... is... Tess here?" Kyle swallowed hard. He'd seen the sheriff plenty of times, but never in person. He could understand people's fear of him.

"No."

"Dad!" Tess exclaimed and pushed past him. "Hey, Kyle." Tess smiled, and Kyle couldn't help but grin back at her. Jim made a disapproving sound. "Dad." Tess snapped shooting him a dirty look. "This is Kyle, and we're leaving." Tess grabbed her purse and Kyle's hand and dragged him down the walkway away from the house and towards his car.

"Don't be late!" Tess heard her dad yell after has she climbed into the car. "Hi." She smiled at Kyle when he climbed behind the wheel.

"Hey." He smiled back at her.

"So you got all that stuff done that you needed to?" He nodded and she leaned across the center console and gave him a quick kiss. "Good, lets get out of here."

"You want to eat now? Or later?"

"I was thinking maybe we could grab some snacks, and then go out to this place, sort of a ways out, but there is a beautiful view..."

"Sounds great." Kyle kissed her again and pulled away from the house.

Maria drove the Jetta to the Whitman's house and walked around the side gate to Alex's window. She poked her head around to peek in, and was thankful that Isabel wasn't in there. She raised her hand and knocked softly on the glass. "Alex. We need to talk."

Alex suddenly looked up from his computer, a confused look on his face before he pushed open the window. "Maria? What are you doing? We do have a front door you know."

"Yeah, yeah, move." She said and waited for him to get out of the way so she could hop in the window. "I need to talk to you about something."

"I needed to talk to you too." Maria as pretty sure she wouldn't like what he had to say. Probably something close to 'Now that I'm with Isabel I can't be friends with you.'

"Me first. Kyle Harding."

"Huh?" Alex shook his head. "What about him?"

"He has a secret too." Alex's look of confusion deepened. "He's like us, Alex. I went out to the desert where we were found. I found this cave, inside of a rock. There were four pods. One for me, one for Liz, one for you, and... one was Kyle's."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. I saw him. I took him out there, after school, I didn't tell him why. But he opened it. He knew. He's known about us. His dad, isn't really his dad, he's our protector."

Alex sunk down on the edge of his bed and looked at Maria. "But..." He frowned. Was it true? Could it be really possible? "I deleted all the FBI's files. I did it at the library, you know, just in case, so they couldn't really track it back to any one person."

"Deleted?" Maria sunk down beside him. "It's all gone?"

"Everything. All the information they had, about you, and Liz. It's all gone." A strange sound came out of Maria's mouth. A mix between a gasp, a sigh of relief, and a sob. She buried her face in her hands, and Alex carefully put his arm around her shoulders. "Everything is going to be okay now."

"Thank God." Maria choked out, and hugged Alex tightly. After a long time she raised her head and looked at him again. "Well, everything except for your girlfriend hating me, Kyle's girlfriend hating me, hell half of the school hates me right now, I think."

Alex sighed. "We'll work on that." He brushed some hair back from Maria's face. "I promise. Everything is going to be okay now. I'm sorry for everything Maria. For shutting you out, turning my back on you. All of it."

"Your forgiven, as long as you never do it to me again." Alex smiled at her.

"I promise. You're still my best friend, Maria." Maria gave him a little nod.

"I should get home. Promised mom." She stood up and headed for the window again. "Good luck, with Isabel. I hope it works out." She told him. She wanted things to be like they used to be. Where she and Alex could spend hours together, just being themselves. But now, Alex was dating someone who detested her. She wasn't sure she could trust him, at least not like before. Everything was changed.

Maria headed back home, had dinner with her mom, and then stole away to her bedroom, to work on her homework. Now that she no longer had a tutor she had a lot of work to do. She sat down on the floor, leaning against her bed with her books and binders spread out around her and got to work.

Hours passed silently. Her mom had poked her head in to tell her she was going to bed, and Maria was pretty sure she was also checking up to make sure Maria really was in her bedroom like she'd said she would be. She sighed heavily and tossed her math book across the room. "I'm so done." She muttered kicking the stuff out of her way as she stood up and headed into her bathroom for a hot shower.

She climbed out, wrapped in a towel and sat down at her vanity table. Maria frowned at her own reflection. She hadn't been taking very good care of herself lately. She looked down at her little vials of oils and smile. Cedar oil. That had always helped. She pulled the lid off and inhaled deeply. Who needed drugs? The scent was so strong in her nostrils it stung. She put the lid back on it, and set it back down before changing into her pajamas. Maria started to pick up her books, and stuff them into her bag when she heard a tapping. She jerked her head up quickly, her eyes focused on her window.

Maria quickly yanked open the window. "What?" She asked in a hushed voice. She really hadn't expected to see Michael at her window.

"I wanted to see how it went with Kyle, after school." Maria frowned at him.

"Fine." She told him and started to close the window.

"Maria." Michael grumbled shoving the window back up. "What happened?"

"My mom is going to kill us both if she hears you, that's what is happening." Michael frowned back at her.

"Then let me in."

"What?!" She shrieked quietly. "No. I remember what happened the last time! You're not going to set foot in my bedroom." But he didn't listen to her and climbed in anyways. "Michael." Maria hissed. She watched as he closed the window and sat down on the floor, occupying the place she had been earlier that evening. He patted the floor next to him.

"Tell me what happened with Kyle." She just stared at him, completely lost for words. But she sunk down beside him and pulled her knees up to her chest.

"I was right." She told him quietly. "He's like me, and Alex. And his father is actually our protector. And Alex deleted all the FBI files. And my mom finally stopped believing Valenti. Of course I couldn't tell her everything, but she knows that I'm not on drugs, and she's going to start trusting me again."

"Wow." Michael murmured. "Sounds like a lot happened today." Maria nodded slowly.

"I think that things are finally going to go back to a semi-quasi normal. It won't be perfect, but it will be better than it has been." They sat there for a long moment, neither speaking. Michael carefully snaked his arm around Maria's shoulders and she willingly leaned into him.

"Everything is going to be okay." He reassured her.

"I'm not sure it really will be." Maria told him. Michael pressed his lips against the top of her head and just held her in silence. They didn't move, they didn't speak. The only sound was their soft breathing. Maria felt relaxed. Michael had hurt her by betraying her trust, but he was trying. He was trying really hard to fix it, and she was thankful for that.

"I should probably head home." Michael finally spoke, quietly.

"Yeah." Maria nodded and pulled back, and stood up with him. He headed for the window and easily slid out. He turned back and Maria was leaning down so she could pull the window shut. Quickly he leaned his head back in and kissed her cheek. "See you at school tomorrow." He said and quickly jogged away.

Maria stared after him lost in a moment of shock. She shut her window and crawled into bed. Letting the exhaustion of the days events take her into a deep dreamless sleep.

Tess snuggled closer to Kyle on the blanket that they had laid out on the ground. It was so quiet. They could hear bugs, and the wind. But other than that, it was silent. They had driven for an hour and snacked on a bag of chips, and some donuts as they sat on the blanket. The sun sunk lower and lower, casting beautiful colors in the sky. They laid there together and watched. They had talked about everything and nothing. Kyle told her about traveling so much, and never having anyone other than his father. Tess talked about her mom, and how much she missed her.

"I should get you home." Kyle said, pressing his lips against her temple. "It's a long drive, I wouldn't be surprised if your dad already has an A.P.B on me, for kidnapping his little girl."

"I'm not ready to go home." Tess told him, tilting her head back and looking up at him. "I want to stay here, with you." She pressed her lips firmly against his, and Kyle groaned. "You're going to get me arrested." He muttered before claiming her lips in another kiss.

Tess pulled back a little to look at his face. "But would it be worth it?"

"Hell yes." He said and pulled her on top of him, and pulled her mouth down against his.