By Didi
Disclaimer: Roswell is owned by… other people. I'm making no profits from… anything. Dirt poor and not quite so loving it. No infringement intended.
Timeline: Alternate Universe… where anything and everything goes.
Ratings: I guess PG-13.
Chapter Summary: Tess and Maria gain a wealth of knowledge, Michael betrays Tess, Kyle lies to Jim and Pierce finds an ally.
Key: "Spoken" "Thoughts."
Author's Note: This is going to be an extremely short chapter for no other reason then because this should probably be perceived as a transitional chapter as I try to reconcile some things… having not seen the third season and hating the end of second season, I'm not really sure where I'm going to with this awfully long story now. (sigh) I guess I'll just let it ride and see where we end up. Sometime stories write themselves with little help from me.
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Chapter 53 - Allies
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Tess stared wide-eyed and gap mouthed at the piercing blue eyes that asked her to believe. "Brody whatever game you're playing it is not funny." She physically pulled back, freeing her hands… just in case.
"This isn't a game Ava," Brody's mouth moved but the voice… similar yet different. Tess felt a shiver down her back. Whatever was happening at this very moment, the man before her was not Brody Davis. "I don't have a great deal of time, this body I've chosen isn't as strong as it once was and it cannot sustain my consciousness for very long these days without sufficient preparation and I did not have the luxury of doing so this time."
Shaking her head in denial at what her mind was already beginning to believe, Tess stared back with utter silence. "This isn't happening, this isn't happening."
"Listen to me, Ava," Larek urged suddenly as he grabbed her by the shoulder. "You must listen."
Frightened by the sudden movement, Tess gave a cry of alarm.
Maria stopped in her tracks half way across the Exhibit lobby as the should of distress echoed in the open area. That was her sister… she knew it in her bones. "TESS!" and rushed toward the sound.
Larek turned and stared at the door where footsteps drew closer. "She shouldn't be here."
Tess grabbed Larek's arm as he turned toward the door. "What are you going to do?"
Tilting his head, he regarded her curiosity.
"Don't you dare hurt her," Tess's eyes went dark with anger; the threat to Maria overriding her fear of this… this…. she wasn't even sure what she was looking at. An alien? A host? "I will not let you hurt my sister, do you understand me? No one touches her family; no one."
"Still the same Ava," with a nod of his head and understanding in his overly brilliant eyes, Larek conceded. "As your majesty wishes."
Startled by his use of a title and not sure what to make of it, Tess was about to question it when Maria crash through the door. "TESS!"
"I'm okay," she reassured Maria quickly but didn't let go to Larek, warning him by the tightening of her hands on his arms, nails digging in painfully. "Help me get him into a chair."
"What happened in here?" Maria asked as she reached for Brody and lifted him into the nearby chair, kicking tangles of wire out of her way. It was a death trap in there. "Brody, are you okay?" turning to look at the expressionless man that she remembered as being rather cute in a goofy, nerdy kind of way. "Tess, what going on?"
Tess motioned for her sister to wait until she can explain later and knelt before Larek, watching him with steady eyes now that she's gotten herself under control. "Who are you?"
"I've already stated who I am," he tilted his head again and studied her with those eerily bright eyes. "But you don't remember, do you Ava?"
"Ava?" Maria's face twisted with concern and confusion even as Tess looked at her with big, frightened eyes... indicating that she was as lost as Maria was.
"Listen carefully," Larek pronounced slowly, watching at Tess's eyes came back into focus on him. "The stars are coming into alignment, you have very little time to remember your place in the past before the others come in search of you if they haven't already found you. Trust no one but your guardian, he will lead you back to us."
"Guardian?" Tess shook her head. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't send the signal until you are ready to go home," Larek continued a little more softly now, as if it took all his concentration to speak. "They'll know where you are if you send the signal and you will have very little time before…" Larek gasped, his eyes wide with shock for a moment as he struggled for breath.
"Brody?" Tess caught him as he toppled out of his seat, his eyes rolling into its sockets and his body convulsing for a moment before he became still. "Oh god," she turned to her sister with fearful eyes. "We have to call for an ambulance."
"I'll do it," Maria replied and tripped her way through the door for the phone, her mind racing with thoughts and what the hell she was going to tell the 9-1-1 operator.
"Electrocution!" Tess yelled from behind Maria. "Tell them he got accidentally electrocuted," she explained as if reading Maria's mind.
"Okay!" Maria yelled back as she picked up the phone and gave silent thanks when she heard the dial tone.
Tess stared at the open door for a moment, her mind still trying to keep up with the whirlwind of information, questions and statements that threatened to overwhelm her to the point of insanity. "Oh god, oh god," she silently in her mind as she pressed her ear to Brody's chest, checking for pause when she couldn't find out on at his neck. "Come on, come on, come on…" she had never before felt such relief at hearing the soft thump of the human heartbeat. "Oh geeze," she sat on her haunch and stared at the still form before her, replaying the scene over and over again in her mind.
"Tess, the ambulance is on its way. They said not to move him and to try to cover him with something warm so I grabbed the jacket off the coat hanger," Maria tucked the oversized jacket that had to belong to someone else other than the two in the room. "They said that if he wakes, get him to talk but for him not to move."
"Okay," Tess replied dully as she helped to tuck the jacket around Brody.
"Tess?"
"Yeah?"
"I know that he hasn't really been electrocuted but I thought it might be better if we at least make it look like he's totally been fried to a crisp, you know?"
"For all I know, Brody might have been electrocuted. I found him passed out on the ground with that stupid helmet on, his hair all frizzed and smoking… maybe he was and Larek just took advantage of the situation. Or maybe Larek caused the surge in the wiring when he jumped into Brody's body and…" Tess closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "God, it all sounds like something out of a bad science fiction novel."
Maria reached out and patted her sister on the shoulder with sympathy as she continued to watch Brody take swallow breaths. "You know what they say about life being weirder than fiction."
"This isn't happening," Tess wanted to cry, wanted to scream, wanted to ignore that just happened. Unfortunately, she didn't have that option at the moment. "Why is all this happening to me?"
"Come on Tessie," Maria came around the body and hugged her sister tight. "It's going to be all right. You and the others will figure this out."
"We," Tess murmured softly as she help onto her sister. "We're going to figure this out. I can't do this without you, Maria. I can't."
Something heavy lifted from Maria's chest and she tightened her hold. "You're not going to have to. I'm going to be here, no matter what. We're family; we stick together."
"Maria," Tess pulled back and stared at her for a moment. "He said that someone is looking for me… for us. He said something about stars coming into alignment and remembering things and…"
"Okay stop," Maria gave her a firm shake. If there was one thing that was more frightening than a pissed off Tess it was rattled Tess. So use her sister's serenity, Maria wasn't too keen on having to be the logical, rational, practical sister in the family. "You're going to have to give yourself a moment and get a hold of yourself."
"But he said there isn't going to be much time left."
"Tough!" Maria snapped and glanced at Brody again, making sure the man was still out like a light. "He doesn't get to dictate what you do and how you feel. You are going to have sort this out later. Right now, we have a possibly electrocuted body on our hands, authorities that are on their way and Hank Guerin on our backs."
"Hank Guerin?" Tess's brows furrowed together. Pushing aside her own confusion and fears, she stared at her sister for a moment and suddenly wondered why Maria was even there. "What does Hank Guerin have to do with any of this?"
Maria groaned at her own thoughtlessness. "Oh geeze…" Now was definitely not the best time to be bring it up. "Me and my big mouth," she muttered before launching into the happenings of the day.
-&-&-&-
Isabel and Michael sat tensely across from each other, neither of them saying anything as a world of thoughts made its way through their heads. As if being a teen wasn't enough, all this alien related events, spies, hormonal burst of insanity was only making this merry-go-round from hell that much more fun. But all the other things were just distractions from what Michael and Isabel were both avoiding at the moment, the scorching kisses that have burned themselves into the forefront of their memories and Isabel's admission of something they both knew was true but neither one could bring themselves to speak of it.
Michael had learned long ago to hide his emotions least they gave him away to the wrong person, e.g. Hank Guerin, who would in turn use it to against him. It is with that thought in mind that he sat there blank faced as his heart savored Isabel's admission silently, trying to hold onto it as long as he could before reality intruded. "Love," a four letter word that had the power to lift one off the ground or delivery the ultimate blow to the soul. He wanted to believe, believe that Isabel meant it as something other than that same brotherly love she shared with Max; oh what he would give for it to be true. But he was a realistic person, a practical one; Michael Guerin does not delude himself with sentimental thoughts or ideas of things that cannot be. He was…
"I meant it," Isabel stated, finally lifting her eyes from the coffee table. She clutched her hands together in her lap, away from Michael's line of sight, drawing courage from knowing that Michael was every bit as scared as she was when it came to the affairs of the heart. She's seen it in his eyes, heard his admission of fear; she won't do the cowardly thing and pretend it didn't happen. She couldn't, not to him.
He hesitated a moment too long.
"I meant it," she said a little more forcefully, raising to her knees as she looked him in the eyes, trying to see beyond his thoughts. "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about."
"Isabel," Michael said softly, killing himself slowly but knowing that it was better to protect his heart then to risk having it trampled on. "I know that you love me and…"
"Don't you dare," she warned, starting at him in disbelief. "Don't you dare pretend this isn't exactly what it is," she said carefully. "You and I both know that this wasn't some sibling thing; I don't say it the way I do with Max. And don't you dare pretend that's wasn't how you were going to spin this."
"Issy…"
The urgent knock on the front door had Isabel growling with frustration and Michael sighing with relief. She shot him a deadly look, "Don't think we're through with this yet," as she got up and went to answer the door. Pulling it open suddenly and startling Alex on the other side, she made rumbling noise of irritation. "What could you possibly want?"
Alex licked his lips and cleared his throat as he wearily faced the angry girl. "Um… is Michael around?"
Throwing up her hands, Isabel screaming at the top of her lungs before deflating all together. "Come in," she motioned to Alex just as Michael came rushing into the foyer. She turned and faced Michael with a very disgruntled look. "He's here for you," jerking a thumb over her shoulder. "Talk fast cause we have a conversation to finish."
Michael swallowed uncomfortably and nodded his head as he shut the door behind an apprehensive Alex. "Hey, what's going on?"
Alex's eyes followed an angry Isabel as she stomped away then turned to Michael, "Did I interrupt something important here?"
"Define important," Michael muttered and motioned for Alex for follow. He was genuinely glad to have held off on the talk with Isabel, at least until he can get some perspective on this. Right now, Alex was as good of an excuse as any. "What's up? Why are you here?"
"I went to the Valenti's to find you but you weren't there so I took an off-chance that you might be here since I know you weren't working today," Alex explained as he took of his jacket and entered the family room.
"You rememorized my schedule?" Michael asked with a frown. He didn't like the idea of being that predictable; it leaves him too exposed.
"Had to so I can find you. You're one of the few people I know who doesn't carry a cell phone. It's kind of annoying."
"I can't afford one," Michael answered honestly.
Alex could feel himself blush. "Oh… um…"
"Don't sweat it; I'm not ashamed."
"Right," but Alex still felt the prickling of guilt for having brought up his financial difficulties. "Anyways, I came kind of as a messenger so hear me out first okay?"
"Messenger for who?" Isabel asked as she retook her seat.
Alex paused for a moment.
Isabel raised her brow. "Should I leave the room?"
"No," Michael replied firmly, pushing aside his earlier discomforts. "Whatever Alex has to say can be said in front of you."
"Hank Guerin," Alex blurted out figuring it was simply easier to face thing head on then to try to skirt around it. Besides, he was never very good at evasions.
Michael's body visibly tensed at the name and Isabel hurried to his side. She reached for his hand, linking fingers to offer support. Michael's first reaction was to pull away but she won't let him, tightening her grip on him. He looked down and saw nothing but understanding in Isabel's eyes and relaxed in the next instant before tensing again. Whenever his adopted father wad involved, no good ever comes of it. "What about Hank?"
Alex took a breath and prepared himself. "He went to the Harding's looking for Tess."
Feeling the blood surge to his head, Michael clinched his teeth in an effort to stem his outrage. "He did WHAT?"
"Relax, relax," Alex held out his hand as if to ward Michael off, "He didn't find her there; he ran into Maria instead."
"And that's any better?" Michael asked. He could already see Tess's towering rage.
Isabel gripped Michael's arm as he took a step forward. "Michael, let him finish before you jump to conclusions all over the place."
"Yeah," Alex agreed with a frantic nod of his head and a step back. "Let me finish."
It took a great deal of effort on his part but Michael managed to get a hold of himself and sat down in the nearby chair. Restraint was not one of his strong points. "Go ahead, I'll try not to interrupt anymore."
Alex gave a sigh a of relief and nodded his thanks to Isabel, having new found respect for the usually haughty Ice Princess. "Mr. Guerin found Maria at the house and told her that some FBI agent came to his place to talk to him about you. He asked a lot of question about your past, where you came from, who you're friends with, what you did and stuff."
Isabel's blood ran cold. "FBI?"
"That's what Mr. Guerin said," Alex watched Michael's expressionless face for a moment wondering what went on behind that tough façade. "He said that it didn't feel right to him so he wanted to tell Tess so she could tell you." Nothing changed on Michael's face, which only served to make Alex feel even more uneasy. "I think, in a odd kind of way, he was trying to protect you."
"Protect him?" Isabel's teeth snapped together sharply and she felt her heart clinch tightly. "How can you say that?"
Ignoring Isabel - something not so smart - Alex watched Michael carefully, "He didn't have to tell Maria, didn't have to come to Tess with the information; he could have very well walked away and never said anything about the FBI. But he didn't do that. He made an effort, found out where the Hardings lived and went to see them. That counts for something, right?"
Gaping at Alex, Isabel shook her head. "That doesn't count for anything! The fact that he even talked to..." She stopped when she felt Michael's hand close around hers. She turned to look at him, seeing the slight shake of his head, and let the rest of her indignation out with a huff. "Fine."
"Michael," Alex wondered if he was taking his life into his own hands. "I know that he hasn't been the…"
"Are you defending him because you think I'm going do something to him?" Michael asked almost mildly given the subject. "Or do you honestly think I care why he did it?"
"Maybe a little of both," Alex admitted. "Maria was pretty frantic to stop any kind of respond to this. I mean, she sent me after you so you can go deal with Tess, I think that pretty much tell you what she thought was going to happen when you guys found out."
"She going to tell Tess?" Michael asked in disbelief. He thought Maria would be smarter than that. "Is she crazy? Tess is going to blow a gasket when she founds out that Hank cornered Maria." He's seen first hand how protective Tess was of her family; if she thought Hank was a threat to Maria… "Damn it, we gotta find her before she does something stupid." He grabbed his jacket from the couch. "Isabel, can you find her for me?"
Isabel nodded her head and grabbed her purse. "You drive, I'll…"
"Why?" Alex placed himself between the two hurried aliens and the doorway out. This may not be the wisest move his ever made but the questions have been gnawing at him for far too long. If he can't get a straight answer from Maria then maybe… "What will she do?"
"With Tess, who knows," Michael said trying to get pass him. "But I don't want her being responsible for…"
"What can she do?" Alex asked more specifically as he moved to block Michael's path. "What could she possibly do that would be so awful? Call the police? Call social services? Try to beat him to a bloody pulp with a bat?"
Michael shook his head and tried to get pass Alex again. "If only it was that simple."
Isabel warned Alex with a snap glare that usually had the population of Roswell High cowering, "Alex, move!"
"Why not that simple?" Alex asked, block their way again. "Why else can she do that could be worse? I can't imagine being arrested for assault will look good on her transcript. What could possibly be worse than that?"
"Exposing herself would be far worse!" Michael exploded in a shocking display of frustration and fear. "She could expose herself to the FBI, that would be far worse than…"
"MICHAEL!" Isabel yelled in astonishment and unable to hide it. "Oh god Michael, what have you done?"
Alex swallowed the dry lump in his throat, "She's one of you, isn't she?"
Michael stared at him, surprised at himself for not feeling the least bit of remorse over betraying Tess' secret. After all, she's the one that advocated telling Alex and Liz about herself; it was Max and Michael that dissuaded her. On the other hand, it was Tess' secret to tell and he really ought not have done so.
"Isn't she?" Alex asked again, his eyes begging them for the truth that he already knew.
Feeling somewhat regretful and somewhat relieved, Michael nodded his head. "Yeah, she's one of us."
-&-&-&-
The clocked ticked quietly in the corner as Kyle tapped his notebook with the end of his pen trying to concentrate on his homework. Algebra has never looked so boring or so confusing before. None of the numbers and letters and symbols made any sense to him at the moment and he could not afford to fail another midterm in that class. He wished he could still relay on Isabel to help him with the math stuff, she was ridiculously smart about these things.
He looked up expectedly as the door opened, "Hey Michael, how good are you with…"
"Sorry, not Michael," Jim Valenti called back as he shrugged out of his jacket and let out a sigh of relief. It had been an extremely long day. "What's going on, son?"
"Algebra is killing me," Kyle complained and tossed his pen on the table between his notes and his homework. "I thought maybe Michael could show me some tricks to this stuff." He made been pleasantly surprised by Michael's helpful hints on studying for his last history test. "What are you doing home so early?"
Jim made a face as he locked away his gun. "I thought it was be nice to come at a decent hour for a change. I don't think I've seen you boys for more than ten minutes a day for the past two weeks."
"You've been busy," Kyle replied easily.
"Not an excuse," the sheriff said and gave his boy's hair a quick ruffle as if he was six again. "So, what's for dinner? And where's Michael?"
"Meatloaf and mash potatoes," Kyle answered putting his homework away. "I'm not sure who made the food though so I can't guarantee anything."
"Probably Michael," Jim answered as he pulled the cold meatloaf from the frig and sniffed tentative at it. "If I remember correctly, Tess is working today so she probably didn't have time to come over and make a meatloaf for us." He was genuinely amused by the girl's sense of responsibility toward Michael. Take the large bowl of mashed potatoes, he gave a sigh of relief. "It's nice having him around, huh? Better cook than the two of us put together."
"You're telling me," Kyle turned the knob on the oven to preheat it and took the meatloaf from his father. "I think this is the best we've eaten in forever."
"I wasn't that bad of a cook when you were a kid."
"No, not exactly 'bad,' but you weren't exactly good either," Kyle teased with grin.
"Just for that," Jim said pulling the saran wrap from the potatoes, "You're not getting any of this."
"Hey," making a playful grab at the bowl.
Jim laughed and pulled away, heading toward the microwave. "Any idea where Michael is tonight? Or should I just go ahead and call the Evans house?"
Kyle laughed easily. "I don't know why nobody bother to ask the Evans about taking Michael in when he left his dad's, he's there more often than not."
Jim paused for a moment before continuing to heat up dinner. "Are you still okay with Michael staying with us, Kyle? I need you to tell me if you're not all right with…"
"I'm not saying that at all," Kyle was quick to reply. "Michael and I are getting along great."
Giving him look of disbelief, Jim shook his head at his son.
"Okay, so maybe we're not always the best of friends or even nice to one another," Kyle admitted with a smile, "But I'm still okay him staying here. It's actually kind of nice, having someone else around the house that can cook and don't mind cleaning once in a while. Plus he's out so much that you'd hardly know he was here unless you literally run into him."
"So you and him are still okay?" Jim asked carefully.
"Yeah," Kyle nodded.
Jim took a breath and broach the next subject that's been rattling around in his head for a while now. "Um… Kyle?"
"Yeah, Dad?"
"How do you feel about moving?"
"What?"
"Or maybe putting an extension on the house," Jim added quickly when Kyle stared at him blankly. "To, you know, give us more room," gesturing to the living room. "I really don't like having Michael sleep on the couch; doesn't seem right."
Kyle nodded in perfect understanding. "I could give him my room."
"And where would you sleep? No, I think we need to either find a bigger place or start building an extension to the house… maybe even a little apartment of sorts." Nodding to himself, Jim looked at the garage. "Maybe I can get a permit for a R2 and put a loft up over the garage. Michael does get his emancipation papers, he could still stay here and feel like he's independent." Looking at his son, "What do you think?"
There was a moment of silence as Kyle watched his father with softened eyes. He didn't understand what the FBI wanted with Michael, whatever it is had to be a mistake anyways, but he could see that Michael had already made a place in their home. It wasn't that Kyle believed his father might be harboring guilt in not having seen the destruction Hank Guerin was raining on Michael's psyche, but that Jim Valenti understood and cared. He's father was a good man, a great man: a great father. "I think an addition to the house would be great idea but let's keep it attached to the house. I don't Michael thinking we're putting him outside or anything like that. Maybe adding something to the back with a private entrance?"
There was relief in Jim Valenti's eyes as he nodded his head. "That'd be nice, I think Michael might like that." He turned and put the cold meatloaf into the warmed oven. "So, how was your day? Anything interesting happened?"
Kyle thought about the unexpected meeting with his birth mother on the doorsteps of the very house she'd walked away from more than a decade ago. He thought of his confrontation with her, letting her know exactly how he felt about her; he thought about all the way he had rehearsed to tell his father of the meeting; and then he looked at his father's smiling face and remembered all the things Jim Valenti had to do without all these years. To see his father so happy now, with Amy Harding, Michael, his job, their lives… He wasn't going to take that from his father; not because of her. Kyle took a breath and got juice out of the frig. "Nothing special. Should we wait for Michael or go ahead and eat?"
Jim watched his son for a moment, a little surprised by the hesitation he heard in Kyle's voice. "We've got a little time. How about your old man see if he remembers any of his algebra?"
Kyle groaned. "How about I wait for Michael to come home?"
"Hey…" tossing a dish towel at Kyle's head.
-&-&-&-
Pierce resisted the urge to cover his nose as he followed the technician down the sterile hallways of the DC coroner's office. "When did the body arrive?"
"This morning."
"Why wasn't I notified immediately?" the still air was hung with the stench of antibacterial cleaners and bleach, made for a nauseating combination, though he suppose it could have been worse.
"We made positive ID of the body a hour ago," the lab technician had the look and voice of a man beaten down by life. "This way," turning in a corner. "We're placed the body in the sectional for viewing."
"Who has seen it so far?" Pierce felt a growing headache behind his eyes.
"Two agents from your office has been by."
"Who?"
The technician reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a well-bent notepad. "Agents Linfield and Scorrary; they made the positive ID."
Pierce sighed and wished for coffee, something he hadn't had in hours now. On top of this, he still had Topolski's reports on the Evans boy on his desk to go over. "I want the record sealed and the body removed to our own facilities immediately. No one gets to this body unless I give the…" the stopped short as the entered the viewing section. A petite blond women stood before the pane of glass the separated the observer from the remains of one Agent Julie Topolski.
Dark steady eyes turned to look at Pierce. "Are you in charge?"
"How did you get in here?" Pierce asked tensely, slanting the technician a very disagreeable look.
"Through the door of course," the woman replied in a smooth whiskey voice. "Are you in charge?"
Pierce reached into his pocket and pulled his badge. "I'm the agent in charge, madam. And who might you be?"
The woman turned and looked through the glass again, her face devoid of anything resembling emotion. "Who did this to her?"
"Madam…"
"How did they do this?" she asked and turned to look at Pierce with dangerous eyes.
"This is an ongoing investigation and I'm not at liberty to divulge any…"
"Was she on assignment?"
Since Topolski was deep undercover and there was no next of kin to speak of, Pierce had a very disquieting feeling. "Who are you?"
The woman blinked, her eyes glittering for a moment in frustration. "I'm Andrea Whitaker; I'm Julie's best friend."
"The congresswoman?" the technician spouted out suddenly.
Whitaker gave him a brief glance but dismissed him as someone she didn't have to deal with. "I want to know exactly what happened to her."
Pierce paused for a moment, not exactly sure what to do and yet still instinctively knowing that there was advantage to this. If he remembered correctly, Congresswoman Whitaker was a junior congressmen on the Ways and Means committee, a good ally for any occasion. "Congresswoman, I think we need to talk."
To be continued…
