CHAPTER 34
Driving the Jetta, Michael headed across town, his mind only half-aware of where he was going. The other half was on Max, who'd finally gotten the car running again, its slashed tires restored.
The spike-headed alien was very aware that he hadn't been much help that afternoon. Twice his focus had been pulled away from his surroundings by--He gritted his teeth. No, he wasn't going to think about the voice or its message right now. Thinking about it might lead to losing himself in it again; not a good idea while driving. And already twice that afternoon he'd zoned, both times pulling himself together at the sound of Max's voice quietly saying his name. Max hadn't pressed him to talk, even though Michael could tell he had wanted to.
Then again, maybe his friend wasn't ready to risk becoming a flaming shish kebab, and had decided not to take any chances with Michael's admittedly unreliable powers. Instead, he'd concentrated on repairing the Jetta.
When Max was done, Michael--somewhat reluctantly--drove it back to the DeLuca house. Following in the Jeep, Max gave a light tap on the horn before heading home. Leaving the car in the driveway, Michael knocked tentatively on the front door, hoping Maria would answer and not Mrs. DeLuca. He didn't want to have to explain just how he'd been able to drive the car without the keys. Somehow he felt a strong reluctance to give the only explanation he could think of, that he'd hot-wired it. And he could hardly tell the woman that his friend had used his alien superpowers to start it, could he?
On the other hand, he didn't really want to see Maria either, still mentally chastising himself for connecting with her and showing her...well, whatever he'd shown her. His insane need to know exactly what she'd seen battled with an equally strong desire to never have to deal with the subject.
And so he felt a strong sense of relief when neither of the DeLucas came to the door, and quickly moved away from the house, leaving the repaired Jetta sitting peacefully in the driveway. Heading on foot through the growing darkness back towards his apartment, he tried not to dwell on much of anything.
Almost unconsciously, his feet turned and took him past the Crashdown. Maybe Maria was at work, since she hadn't been home. He hesitated. Max had probably found her and told her he'd been able to get the car fixed; he might even have taken over guard duty from Isabel. Certainly Michael wasn't needed.
His eyes flickered. There was something he could do, though. He could try and get a vision of whoever had been threatening Maria. Sure, the sketch hadn't been any help, but maybe one of the notes would work. Only problem was, he'd have to talk to her to get them. Bracing for a confrontation, he found himself pushing the restaurant door open and stepping inside.
No sign of Maria, but his eyes immediately spotted Liz. Heading over to the counter where she was refilling sugars, he said diffidently, "Hey."
Liz's eyes flew towards him, startled, but she smiled. "Hi, Michael." A pause, and then she continued, "I'm a little surprised to see you. Aren't you on your way to meet Maria?"
Michael's eyes narrowed. Was he that obvious? "What?"
"To meet Maria, like you said in your note," she explained.
"What?" he repeated, a furrow appearing between his eyes. "I didn't leave her a note."
Liz blanched, and immediately crossed to the phone where she dialed Isabel's cell phone number. When the blonde picked up, Liz burst out, "Isabel? Are you and Maria at the park yet?" A dismayed look crossed her face as she listened to the response. Michael watched her intently, noting her growing look of concern. Finally she told Isabel, "I'm sure it's all right. Michael's here; we'll get everything straightened out." Another moment, and she continued, "Yeah, we'll let you know," before hanging abruptly up.
Michael, who had barely suppressed the urge to grab the phone from her, barked, "What's going on?"
Liz bit her lip before replying, "Maria found a note in her locker this afternoon. She thought it was from you." He opened his mouth to speak, but she forestalled him. "It said to meet you at 9:00 in the park, by the swings. Isabel was going to go with her, but Maria told her she'd be safe with you, that she didn't need to be handed off like a package. And then she just took off--"
Michael cut in tersely. "What time is it?" he demanded.
Looking at her watch, Liz responded shakily, "8:57. Michael, I--"
With a curse, he was out the door, running flat out towards the park.
Eight and a half interminable minutes later, he sped into the park, looking wildly around for Maria. Spotting a small figure sitting on one of the swings, he raced over, all the while searching the darkness for a threat of some kind.
"You're late, Spaceboy," Maria said cheerfully. "You're lucky I--"
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he burst out.
"What?" she answered, taken aback by his brusqueness. "Waiting for you, as a matter of fact," she added pointedly.
"You're not supposed to be," he shot back, his fists clenched.
"What? Of course I am. You said to meet you here," Maria responded in confusion.
"No, I didn't," he corrected coldly. "Come on, I'm getting you out of here."
Maria shook her head in protest. "Not until you explain what's going on."
His mouth tight, he answered, "I didn't leave you a note. Someone else did, to lure you here. So unless you want to sit around and wait for whoever or whatever did, I suggest you get your butt out of that swing and get the hell out of here."
Open mouthed in shock--and disappointment--Maria just stared at him. He rolled his eyes, then reached out and grabbed her by the arm, hauling her off the swing.
She recovered herself enough to blurt, "What? What are you doing?"
Still holding her arm, he looked her directly in the eye before saying sternly, "Are you coming, or am I gonna have to carry you?"
She studied his stormy expression for a moment before her lips began to twitch. "Who knew you could be both a Czechoslovakian and a Neanderthal?" she laughed. His mouth tightened, and she hurried on, "No, okay, okay. I'm coming, all right? I'm coming."
He nodded, dropping her arm, then turned to scan the park around them. Once satisfied that no one was lurking in wait, he muttered, "Come on, then," and started back across the grass. Maria scooted to his side and matched her stride to his longer one as best she could.
This was not exactly how she'd pictured her evening. Sure, she was with Michael, but somehow she'd pictured them sitting on the swings and talking, not him yelling at her and ordering her around. She didn't know why she'd gotten such an unlikely picture stuck in her head, anyway; it certainly wasn't from past experience.
They quickly reached the edge of the park and Michael hesitated. "Where do you want to go?" he asked. "Home? Liz's?"
Maria considered for a moment. The idea that someone other than Michael had purposely lured her to the park was beginning to set in, and she was developing a strong case of the willies about it. She didn't want to go home. After she'd found what she thought was Michael's note, she'd made happy arrangements to spend the night at Liz's, so they could indulge in some sorely-missed ice cream and girl talk. So her mother wasn't expecting her at home--and she didn't want to deal with the explanations her showing up would necessitate.
If she went to Liz's, it would entail inviting Isabel, or else Michael would end up spending another sleepless night lurking around in the darkness. And while she was enjoying her blossoming friendship with the blonde alien, she really craved some one-on-one time with her best friend. But the only way to get that, it seemed, would be at Michael's expense. Unless Max wanted to stay up all night...
Michael interrupted her thoughts. "So where?" he repeated impatiently, his eyes constantly scanning the area around them.
Maria suddenly realized just where she wanted to go. "Come on," she said decisively, and headed down the sidewalk in the direction of the Crashdown. Michael followed, relaxing just a bit now that they were once more on the move.
His uneasiness returned in full measure, however, as Maria passed the alley leading to the back door of the Parkers' restaurant and kept moving forward without slowing. Where the hell was she going? There was nothing in this direction except--
He quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her to a halt. She turned a pleading glance up to him, but his face was stony. "Just where are you going?" he asked in a gravely voice, already knowing the answer.
Maria didn't try to fool him. "To your place," she answered honestly.
His jaw clenched. "That's not such a good idea."
"Please?" she begged. "I don't know why, but I feel safe there."
Was she crazy? She could be hurt by him just as easily as by anyone else. If not more so. He searched for a good excuse. "Your mother--"
"Thinks I'm spending the night at Liz's," she finished for him.
"Then you should be there," he stated firmly.
"And if I spend the night at Liz's, what are you going to do?" she demanded. His eyes shifted away from hers. "Look, Michael, if you lurk outside the Crashdown all night, you're not going to get any rest, and then I won't either, because I'll be up worrying about you. So if we're going to worry about each other, why not do it together? We could both use some sleep."
He didn't budge.
"Come on, Michael," she begged. "I promise I won't hound you to talk to me or anything, if that's what's bothering you. I won't even make a sound." He looked at her skeptically. "Well, I'll try, anyway," she amended. "Please, Michael?" Green eyes looked unflinchingly into brown ones. His flicked away first.
"If your mother finds out, it won't be a newspaper she comes after me with this time," he said grudgingly.
"Well then, we won't tell her," she answered, a sparkle entering her eyes. Starting once more down the sidewalk, she turned back to him. "Coming, Spaceboy?"
With a sigh, he followed her.
TBC...