******************************
CHAPTER THIRTY:
"I hope we're doing the right thing," said Michael.
He and Max were sitting on the couch in Valenti's house, waiting for the Sheriff to arrive with Agent Duff. Kyle had come by earlier and had taken Tess to their house, which used to belong to Amy Deluca. Max and Michael found out that Amy gave it to them when she married Jim Valenti. Amy was over at their house as well, keeping Tess company while Kyle got some sleep after his night shift.
"What other choice do we have," said Max. "That is, if we want to come home. Besides, Jim trusts Agent Duff."
"Yeah, but he also trusts Tess," said Michael. "Doesn't bode well for us."
"Michael, you once said there was no older person you respected more than Jim Valenti," said Max.
"Yeah, well, maybe I had a little too much hero worship going on then," said Michael.
"Well, I happen to think Valenti is still trustworthy," said Max. "Somehow, I don't think Tess is mind warping him, or Kyle. I think Kyle genuinely loves her. Now, on the other hand, Tess maybe pulling an old fashioned charade to weasel her way back into the fold. That I would believe."
"Getting herself knocked up in order to secure their trust," said Michael.
"She's done it before," said Max.
Just then, the door opened, and in stepped Sheriff Valenti with a woman in her late twenties, wearing a woman's suit and an all business expression. "Fellas," said Jim. "You remember Agent Duff."
"We never really formally met," said Max.
"I did meet Michael, though," said Duff. "Hard to forget when someone uses his alien powers to suck all of the air out of a sealed room in order to suffocate and alien jelly fish."
"My biggest memory of when I met you last time was getting shot," said Michael. "Of course, it was the jellyfish in Grant Sorenson that shot me."
Duff smiled, and looked at Valenti. "So, do all conversations around here sound like they're cheesy dialogue from a 1950's monster movie?"
Jim smiled back. "Sometimes," he said. "You haven't even heard about Max's return from the dead."
"Okay," said Duff. "Enough banter. Down to business."
She sat down in a chair, while Max and Michael plopped back down on the couch.
"Sheriff," said Duff. "Could you do me a favor and get me some of that shitty coffee you make?"
"Yeah, sure," said Jim gruffly, who went into the kitchen to get it.
"The Sheriff told me about what happened to you, with those agents," said Duff. "I understand the two of you killed three of them, and the other was killed by Alex Whitman. Is that right?"
Max and Michael looked at each other, then back at Duff. "That's correct," said Max. "They were trying to kill us, and my wife, my sister, and Michael's girlfriend. We had no choice."
"Well, the burned out wreckage of the car with those dead three agents was found about a week ago," said Duff. "DNA was used to ID the dead agents. The one Whitman killed hasn't been found yet."
"He was killed in a lonely stretch of woods in Maine," said Michael. "Alex said that the woods looked pretty deserted."
"What about hunters?" asked Jim, who came back into the room, handed Duff her coffee, then sat down in another chair.
"Hunting season hasn't started in Maine yet," said Duff. "Chances are, that's when the body will be found. Look, they were there on a rogue operation. If the Bureau had caught on, they all would have been canned. Thanks to me, and to the congressional testimony of Agent Pierce of the Special Unit...who, I've been told by Valenti, was actually an alien shape shifter..." she chuckled. "Boy, more 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers' dialogue. Anyhow, those agents' work had been pretty much turned into a laughing stock at the FBI. Any hard evidence they had has long since been destroyed. Only reason they knew who you were was because of the time when they were working with the REAL Pierce. Now that they're dead, well...so was their knowledge. They tried telling their superiors, but after the discrediting of the work of the special unit...they looked like they were NUTS."
"So, now that they're dead, we should be in the clear, right?" asked Michael.
"Not necessarily," said Duff. "They were still FBI agents, and they still died clearly by foul play. The Bureau doesn't like having their agents killed in the field, even the ones who are embarrassments. They're going to want answers. Now, they are going to have trouble finding anything they can go on because they were up there investigating ALIENS. They can't go public with something like that, and their superiors didn't believe them. So, that leaves only one explanation. They blindly stumbled onto some other kind of illegal operation, and the perpetrators killed them."
"But they can't connect their deaths to our allegedly being aliens," said Max.
"No," said Duff. "That just leaves any hard evidence you might have left to connect their deaths back to you. Now, the car exploded due to the engine being superheated somehow. Any chance your...power, leaves any evidence of its hand work?"
"None that they'd recognize, if the hard evidence Pierce had accumulated had been destroyed," said Max.
"That just leaves the fourth agent, killed in the woods," said Duff. "The gun Whitman used. What happened to it?"
"Alex still has it," said Max.
"Destroy it," said Duff. "Bury it in the desert somewhere deserted, something. But that gun ceases to exist. Got it?"
"Got it," said Michael. "We can do that."
"Good," said Duff. "Now, hopefully, no one finds the body until the hunting season. That's a few months from now. Footprints, things like that, will be gone by that time. What about shell casings?"
"Alex used a revolver," said Max. "He didn't eject the spent bullet casings."
"Good," said Duff. "If you still have those, destroy them, too. Now, FBI labs are very good at analyzing scraps of evidence. I want you to tell me exactly where the guy was killed. I will go up there and sanitize the area."
"Why not just ditch or destroy the body?" asked Michael.
"Can't," said Duff. "I intend to burn it, but not completely. We want them to find a body, at some recognizable state. I'll make it look like a sloppy disposal job. The Bureau already knows three of those four agents are dead. They're going to want to know what happened to the other. If there's a body, then they can chalk his murder up to the same unknown assailants who killed the other three. But, if there is no body, then they are going to have to dig into other things to find clues as to what happened to him. Just in case he might be still alive, and being held somewhere."
"I see," said Max. "When are you going?"
"As soon as I leave here," said Duff.
"Look, I've got to ask," said Michael. "Why are you doing this?"
Duff was silent for a moment or two before replying. "Because...Valenti told me what happened to Agent Topolsky. These guys killed one of their own. They betrayed the trust of their fellow agents. She, and a bunch of other innocent people who were killed in the fire along with her. And then there is what happened to Max...what Agent Pierce did to him. The thought of such an organization, of such a Gestapo-like organization in the FBI...scares the HELL out of me! Even more than the thought of aliens living among us, especially when they are really just like the rest of us, wanting to live in peace and build a life for themselves. None of you ever hurt anyone, except in self-defense. Now, I joined the FBI to protect the innocent, the weak, from those who would do them harm."
"And to be FBI Director someday," said Jim, with a smirk.
"True," said Duff, returning his smirk. "And actually, the work I did exposing the corruption of these Special Unit guys in the Bureau, of saving the Bureau from the public embarrassment they were causing with stuff like storming your graduation with a hit squad, got me noticed in Washington. In fact, I just found out...I'm being transferred to Washington in a month. I figured I owe you for giving indirectly giving me that opportunity."
"So, that's it," said Max. "No more FBI hit squads coming after us."
"As long as you pay your taxes, don't join Al Queda, and keep your bare lady of justice statues covered up for modesty," said Duff, "you'll have no problem with the Bureau."
**
Two days later, Alex, Isabel, Liz, and Maria, were driving down the highway, on their way home to Roswell. Alex was behind the wheel, while Maria kept him company up front. In the meantime, Isabel and Liz rode in the back, with baby Kevin resting in her Aunt Liz's arms.
"He is so adorable," said Liz, who gave the baby his bottle and smiled as he ate his milk.
"Yeah, well, this is just the cute stuff," said Isabel. "Wait until you try diaper changing."
"Get used to all of it, girl," said Maria. "Because that will be you in nine months or so."
"I know," said Liz. "I hope little Kevin here will give me good practice."
"Hey, Alex," said Maria. "You've been real quiet since this morning. Something wrong?"
"I just can't believe I am going to have to face Tess when I get back to Roswell," said Alex. "I don't know what to feel about it, or the fact that Kyle, my friend, is MARRIED to her."
"I know," said Isabel. "I swear, that bitch better stay away from my baby."
"You know, I'd be the last one to defend what Tess did," said Liz. "But...maybe, just maybe...we should giver her a chance."
"Huh! Not me," said Maria. "She may have my mom fooled, and Sheriff Valenti fooled..."
"You mean your STEPDAD!" said Alex, teasingly.
"Shut up!" said Maria. "You know I'm having trouble getting used to that!"
"Come on, Maria," said Isabel. "Jim is a great guy! You should be happy your Mom has him!"
"I am," said Maria. "I mean, I'm glad she wasn't alone while I was gone. But...its just going to take some getting used to."
"Hey look!" said Liz, pointing to a road sign. "Roswell-ten miles. We're almost home!"
They continued driving until they got to Roswell. A re-union was planned with their families at the Evans house, so they headed straight there. As they pulled up the Evans house, Isabel started to cry.
"I can't believe it," she said. "Home. After...so long! I'm home!"
Alex got out first, along with Maria. Liz handed Alex the baby, then got out of the car herself. Then, Isabel slowly stepped out of the car, and stood next to Alex. He put a hand on her shoulder, silently telling his wife that he knew this was an emotional moment for her, and that he was there.
Then, they heard a voice cry out "THEY'RE HERE!"
Then, a stream of people came flooding out of the Evans house. The Evans, the Parkers, the Whitmans, Amy and Jim Valenti...all came out of the house to greet the new arrivals. Max and Michael hung back in the doorway, watching the family reunion unfold.
Isabel and Mrs. Evans were crying as they hugged each other, and were soon joined by Mr. Evans, who latched onto his daughter like he was never going to let her go. Mr. and Mrs. Parker grabbed Liz and held her tight, while Amy Valenti took her daughter into her arms. Mr. and Mrs. Whitman came over and put their arms around their son, while at the same time marveling at the baby sleeping in his daddy's arms. Then, Isabel led her parents over, and introduced them along with the Whitmans to their grandson. Then, Liz, Maria, Isabel, and Alex, each were hugged by Jim Valenti, as he welcomed the rest of the group of young people he had looked out for back home. After the greetings, the group went inside, to celebrate as an extended family, brought together by the strangest of circumstances, was made whole at last.
End of Chapter Thirty. Chapter Thirty-one coming soon.
Well, the story still isn't over. Much more still to come, so be sure to tune in for the next installment to see where the story goes from here. In the meantime, please do keep those reviews coming. Feedback is always appreciated.
CHAPTER THIRTY:
"I hope we're doing the right thing," said Michael.
He and Max were sitting on the couch in Valenti's house, waiting for the Sheriff to arrive with Agent Duff. Kyle had come by earlier and had taken Tess to their house, which used to belong to Amy Deluca. Max and Michael found out that Amy gave it to them when she married Jim Valenti. Amy was over at their house as well, keeping Tess company while Kyle got some sleep after his night shift.
"What other choice do we have," said Max. "That is, if we want to come home. Besides, Jim trusts Agent Duff."
"Yeah, but he also trusts Tess," said Michael. "Doesn't bode well for us."
"Michael, you once said there was no older person you respected more than Jim Valenti," said Max.
"Yeah, well, maybe I had a little too much hero worship going on then," said Michael.
"Well, I happen to think Valenti is still trustworthy," said Max. "Somehow, I don't think Tess is mind warping him, or Kyle. I think Kyle genuinely loves her. Now, on the other hand, Tess maybe pulling an old fashioned charade to weasel her way back into the fold. That I would believe."
"Getting herself knocked up in order to secure their trust," said Michael.
"She's done it before," said Max.
Just then, the door opened, and in stepped Sheriff Valenti with a woman in her late twenties, wearing a woman's suit and an all business expression. "Fellas," said Jim. "You remember Agent Duff."
"We never really formally met," said Max.
"I did meet Michael, though," said Duff. "Hard to forget when someone uses his alien powers to suck all of the air out of a sealed room in order to suffocate and alien jelly fish."
"My biggest memory of when I met you last time was getting shot," said Michael. "Of course, it was the jellyfish in Grant Sorenson that shot me."
Duff smiled, and looked at Valenti. "So, do all conversations around here sound like they're cheesy dialogue from a 1950's monster movie?"
Jim smiled back. "Sometimes," he said. "You haven't even heard about Max's return from the dead."
"Okay," said Duff. "Enough banter. Down to business."
She sat down in a chair, while Max and Michael plopped back down on the couch.
"Sheriff," said Duff. "Could you do me a favor and get me some of that shitty coffee you make?"
"Yeah, sure," said Jim gruffly, who went into the kitchen to get it.
"The Sheriff told me about what happened to you, with those agents," said Duff. "I understand the two of you killed three of them, and the other was killed by Alex Whitman. Is that right?"
Max and Michael looked at each other, then back at Duff. "That's correct," said Max. "They were trying to kill us, and my wife, my sister, and Michael's girlfriend. We had no choice."
"Well, the burned out wreckage of the car with those dead three agents was found about a week ago," said Duff. "DNA was used to ID the dead agents. The one Whitman killed hasn't been found yet."
"He was killed in a lonely stretch of woods in Maine," said Michael. "Alex said that the woods looked pretty deserted."
"What about hunters?" asked Jim, who came back into the room, handed Duff her coffee, then sat down in another chair.
"Hunting season hasn't started in Maine yet," said Duff. "Chances are, that's when the body will be found. Look, they were there on a rogue operation. If the Bureau had caught on, they all would have been canned. Thanks to me, and to the congressional testimony of Agent Pierce of the Special Unit...who, I've been told by Valenti, was actually an alien shape shifter..." she chuckled. "Boy, more 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers' dialogue. Anyhow, those agents' work had been pretty much turned into a laughing stock at the FBI. Any hard evidence they had has long since been destroyed. Only reason they knew who you were was because of the time when they were working with the REAL Pierce. Now that they're dead, well...so was their knowledge. They tried telling their superiors, but after the discrediting of the work of the special unit...they looked like they were NUTS."
"So, now that they're dead, we should be in the clear, right?" asked Michael.
"Not necessarily," said Duff. "They were still FBI agents, and they still died clearly by foul play. The Bureau doesn't like having their agents killed in the field, even the ones who are embarrassments. They're going to want answers. Now, they are going to have trouble finding anything they can go on because they were up there investigating ALIENS. They can't go public with something like that, and their superiors didn't believe them. So, that leaves only one explanation. They blindly stumbled onto some other kind of illegal operation, and the perpetrators killed them."
"But they can't connect their deaths to our allegedly being aliens," said Max.
"No," said Duff. "That just leaves any hard evidence you might have left to connect their deaths back to you. Now, the car exploded due to the engine being superheated somehow. Any chance your...power, leaves any evidence of its hand work?"
"None that they'd recognize, if the hard evidence Pierce had accumulated had been destroyed," said Max.
"That just leaves the fourth agent, killed in the woods," said Duff. "The gun Whitman used. What happened to it?"
"Alex still has it," said Max.
"Destroy it," said Duff. "Bury it in the desert somewhere deserted, something. But that gun ceases to exist. Got it?"
"Got it," said Michael. "We can do that."
"Good," said Duff. "Now, hopefully, no one finds the body until the hunting season. That's a few months from now. Footprints, things like that, will be gone by that time. What about shell casings?"
"Alex used a revolver," said Max. "He didn't eject the spent bullet casings."
"Good," said Duff. "If you still have those, destroy them, too. Now, FBI labs are very good at analyzing scraps of evidence. I want you to tell me exactly where the guy was killed. I will go up there and sanitize the area."
"Why not just ditch or destroy the body?" asked Michael.
"Can't," said Duff. "I intend to burn it, but not completely. We want them to find a body, at some recognizable state. I'll make it look like a sloppy disposal job. The Bureau already knows three of those four agents are dead. They're going to want to know what happened to the other. If there's a body, then they can chalk his murder up to the same unknown assailants who killed the other three. But, if there is no body, then they are going to have to dig into other things to find clues as to what happened to him. Just in case he might be still alive, and being held somewhere."
"I see," said Max. "When are you going?"
"As soon as I leave here," said Duff.
"Look, I've got to ask," said Michael. "Why are you doing this?"
Duff was silent for a moment or two before replying. "Because...Valenti told me what happened to Agent Topolsky. These guys killed one of their own. They betrayed the trust of their fellow agents. She, and a bunch of other innocent people who were killed in the fire along with her. And then there is what happened to Max...what Agent Pierce did to him. The thought of such an organization, of such a Gestapo-like organization in the FBI...scares the HELL out of me! Even more than the thought of aliens living among us, especially when they are really just like the rest of us, wanting to live in peace and build a life for themselves. None of you ever hurt anyone, except in self-defense. Now, I joined the FBI to protect the innocent, the weak, from those who would do them harm."
"And to be FBI Director someday," said Jim, with a smirk.
"True," said Duff, returning his smirk. "And actually, the work I did exposing the corruption of these Special Unit guys in the Bureau, of saving the Bureau from the public embarrassment they were causing with stuff like storming your graduation with a hit squad, got me noticed in Washington. In fact, I just found out...I'm being transferred to Washington in a month. I figured I owe you for giving indirectly giving me that opportunity."
"So, that's it," said Max. "No more FBI hit squads coming after us."
"As long as you pay your taxes, don't join Al Queda, and keep your bare lady of justice statues covered up for modesty," said Duff, "you'll have no problem with the Bureau."
**
Two days later, Alex, Isabel, Liz, and Maria, were driving down the highway, on their way home to Roswell. Alex was behind the wheel, while Maria kept him company up front. In the meantime, Isabel and Liz rode in the back, with baby Kevin resting in her Aunt Liz's arms.
"He is so adorable," said Liz, who gave the baby his bottle and smiled as he ate his milk.
"Yeah, well, this is just the cute stuff," said Isabel. "Wait until you try diaper changing."
"Get used to all of it, girl," said Maria. "Because that will be you in nine months or so."
"I know," said Liz. "I hope little Kevin here will give me good practice."
"Hey, Alex," said Maria. "You've been real quiet since this morning. Something wrong?"
"I just can't believe I am going to have to face Tess when I get back to Roswell," said Alex. "I don't know what to feel about it, or the fact that Kyle, my friend, is MARRIED to her."
"I know," said Isabel. "I swear, that bitch better stay away from my baby."
"You know, I'd be the last one to defend what Tess did," said Liz. "But...maybe, just maybe...we should giver her a chance."
"Huh! Not me," said Maria. "She may have my mom fooled, and Sheriff Valenti fooled..."
"You mean your STEPDAD!" said Alex, teasingly.
"Shut up!" said Maria. "You know I'm having trouble getting used to that!"
"Come on, Maria," said Isabel. "Jim is a great guy! You should be happy your Mom has him!"
"I am," said Maria. "I mean, I'm glad she wasn't alone while I was gone. But...its just going to take some getting used to."
"Hey look!" said Liz, pointing to a road sign. "Roswell-ten miles. We're almost home!"
They continued driving until they got to Roswell. A re-union was planned with their families at the Evans house, so they headed straight there. As they pulled up the Evans house, Isabel started to cry.
"I can't believe it," she said. "Home. After...so long! I'm home!"
Alex got out first, along with Maria. Liz handed Alex the baby, then got out of the car herself. Then, Isabel slowly stepped out of the car, and stood next to Alex. He put a hand on her shoulder, silently telling his wife that he knew this was an emotional moment for her, and that he was there.
Then, they heard a voice cry out "THEY'RE HERE!"
Then, a stream of people came flooding out of the Evans house. The Evans, the Parkers, the Whitmans, Amy and Jim Valenti...all came out of the house to greet the new arrivals. Max and Michael hung back in the doorway, watching the family reunion unfold.
Isabel and Mrs. Evans were crying as they hugged each other, and were soon joined by Mr. Evans, who latched onto his daughter like he was never going to let her go. Mr. and Mrs. Parker grabbed Liz and held her tight, while Amy Valenti took her daughter into her arms. Mr. and Mrs. Whitman came over and put their arms around their son, while at the same time marveling at the baby sleeping in his daddy's arms. Then, Isabel led her parents over, and introduced them along with the Whitmans to their grandson. Then, Liz, Maria, Isabel, and Alex, each were hugged by Jim Valenti, as he welcomed the rest of the group of young people he had looked out for back home. After the greetings, the group went inside, to celebrate as an extended family, brought together by the strangest of circumstances, was made whole at last.
End of Chapter Thirty. Chapter Thirty-one coming soon.
Well, the story still isn't over. Much more still to come, so be sure to tune in for the next installment to see where the story goes from here. In the meantime, please do keep those reviews coming. Feedback is always appreciated.