Chapter Four: Welcome Home, Max
Roswell, New Mexico looked exactly the same as it did all of those years ago. Not a single shop had closed down nor had a road been redone. This town was timeless as was its appeal to overzealous alien fans. But to Max, driving through his hometown was painful bordering traumatic.
He quickly was drifting back into the life of the shy, introverted, slightly controlling eighteen year old Max Evans he hardly remembered being. As he was driving, it felt like he was rushing to the Crashdown just so he could watch Liz. Or maybe he was racing towards home because Michael and Isabel had called him with an emergency. Max wished it was that way.
Instead, he was a man who hadn't set eyes on this town for seven years. He was looking for answers as to why Michael wasn't dead and who had him-where he was. Max was clinging to the hope that if Michael was alive then so was Liz. But he knew one thing for sure.
He needed Valenti to help him. Cal was useless.
Finally Max arrived at Valenti's house. He briefly wondered if this would even work. Valenti wasn't beyond slamming the door in his face and Max wouldn't blame him if he did. Hopefully, Valenti would want to help him find Michael.
Max stepped out of his car and took a deep breath. This had better work, he thought.
But when he knocked on the door, a woman answered instead of Valenti. She was shorter than Max with red hair and freckles. "Hi," she said in a soft voice and her friendly eyes set on Max.
"I'm looking for Sheriff Valenti. I'm an old friend and I was sure he still lived here."
"He does. I'm Natalie, his fiancée."
She laughed at the shock on Max's face. "Obviously the two of you haven't spoken in a while. Come in."
Max followed her inside and couldn't help the rush of nostalgia that almost consumed him at being inside Valenti's house. Natalie disappeared into the kitchen.
"I'm fixing some coffee. Would you like some?"
"Yes. Thanks," Max mumbled.
Max sat down on a nearby chair and waited until Natalie emerged with two cups of coffee. "You look Kyle's age," she observed as she set them down.
"Actually, Kyle and I graduated together."
Natalie's interest increased and she looked at the man in front of her. "Really? The town still talks about that day. It's almost like an urban legend around here. I think it's very adventurous, don't you think? A SWAT team breaking into your graduation?"
Not when you're the one they are shooting at, Max thought to himself bitterly. "So what do they say happened?"
"That's the funny thing," Natalie mused. "Everyone says that they were looking for aliens."
Max smirked. "Funny," he deadpanned.
Natalie smiled and leaned forward. "But here I am telling you all of this and you got to experience it, didn't you?"
"It's not as exciting as it sounds."
There was a sharp edge to his tone that caused Natalie to change the subject. "Anyway, Jim should be home soon. Can I ask why you're here?"
"Valenti and I need to catch up on some things," Max half-lied. "Besides, I haven't been back here in years."
"Since the graduation," Natalie stated. Before Max could say anything, Valenti came through the door and froze at the sight of Max.
Natalie caught his reaction and realized that maybe there was something going on here. "Jim, he came by earlier and-I never caught your name, did I?"
"Max," Valenti said in a cold voice. "His name is Max."
Natalie rose from the couch and cleared her throat. "I'm going to go out to the market and leave the two of you alone," she said as she looked between the two. She normally saw Valenti laid back and she had never seen him react to something so strongly. She grabbed her purse, kissed Valenti on the cheek, and left.
"So you're engaged," Max said, trying to make small talk.
Valenti just pinned him with a glare and pursed his lips together tightly. "Get out of my house."
Max was surprised by the amount of hatred that was in his voice. "Will you just let me explain?"
Valenti was shaking in rage and he advanced on the alien king. "Explain *what*? I tell you that I won't help you and want nothing to do with you after what you've done-and instead, you show up at my house! How dare you!"
Max almost expected Valenti to hit him but instead he stopped right in front of him. "I'm sorry to drop in like this but I need your help."
But his plea was brushed off. "I need you out of my house."
It was then that Max realized that Valenti hated him more than Kyle did. Max, himself, knew that he deserved it and knew, on some level, that it probably was the best he could hope for. But it was in moments like this when he was so blatantly reminded of his past mistakes, that Max would grow largely defensive.
He crossed his arms and glowered at the Sheriff. "Michael's alive. Hate me all you want but don't take this out on him. He's out there somewhere, Valenti."
Valenti noticeably faltered and his eyes went from full of rage to curiosity. "Who told you Michael was alive?"
"Cal. I found him but all he knows is that Michael is alive. Liz might be too. I'm not sure. I need a location," Max ground out.
In that moment, Valenti wanted nothing more than to tell Max the truth in the most cruelest of ways. He wanted to see his face when he realized that Michael and Liz were alive and happy without him. Valenti wanted Max to feel that pain, just as Valenti had his own regarding how Max had contributed to ruining his son.
"Please don't take this out on him," Max pleaded one more time.
"I know what you did to them," Valenti revealed with face contorting with anger.
Max flinched at the tone of voice Valenti used. He was accusing him of breaking all of his friends and wife. Valenti made it sound like he had murdered them. Max's anger rose.
"Whatever it is that I did, it doesn't change the fact that I need your help," Max forced out. He would have to take the blows if it meant finding Michael.
"Help yourself," Valenti spat out.
Max snapped.
"What the hell is your problem? Are you willing to put Michael's life on the line because you have a grudge against me?"
"I don't know where Michael is and I don't have the resources to help you. And if I did, I guarantee you that wherever Michael is, he's better off without you."
"Just like Kyle would be?" Max countered. "Maybe you forgot but I saved his *life*. You should be thanking me!"
Valenti pinned him with a hard glare. "Thank you?" he scoffed. "When should I have thanked you, Max?"
"When are you going to stop blaming me for Kyle?"
"I don't have any reason to stop."
"I didn't ask to be the leader, you know. I'm so sick and tired of being blamed for everything that went wrong during those two years. Do you think they were easy for me? I had enough shit to deal with. So don't turn to me when you can't place the blame where it belongs."
"Is that what you think I'm doing?" Valenti asked in disbelief. "You can't seriously believe that you are a victim here."
"Oh? And Kyle is? I didn't force drinks into his hands, alright? That was on Kyle and Kyle only. Yes, I saw that he was developing a problem but so did everyone else. I'm not his god damn keeper. I was too worried about the fact that my fucking sister had died. So stand there and tell me that I was a controlling cold bastard because I won't deny the truth. But how dare you accuse me of your son's alcoholism?"
"I trusted you to take care of him," Valenti said softly.
"He's alive, isn't he?" Max said. There was no arrogance in his reply for it was not meant to be sarcastic. But there was a sense of bitterness at the realization that, yes, Kyle was alive. Isabel was dead and Liz might be as well; Michael was missing.
So the two men stood facing each other, their anger fading.
Max took a deep breath and looked away from Valenti's evasive gaze. "I'm sorry that I couldn't save him. Help me save Michael."
Valenti hadn't expected Max to apologize. But hearing it, made his resolve fade the tiniest bit. Now, it was time to keep his word to Liz and Michael. Don't tell him anything, had been Michael's words, just give him our address.
Even they were done with running from Max, Valenti realized a bit shamefully. When had be grown more bitter towards Max than those directly affected?
"I know someone who is good at tracking people down. I can give you the address."
Max's eyes widened with hope. Valenti wanted to shake his head because Max didn't know what he was getting into.
Max, on the other hand, was inwardly bursting with joy. As Valenti was writing down an address, Max couldn't hold back a smile any longer. Now he could find Michael.
When Valenti handed him the address, Max thanked him. "This guy is in Jersey," Max said in disappointment. He noted that he would have to drive back up again and that would take two days tops.
"He won't take long."
Max looked at the man who had once helped him and his friends through major binds. "Thank you," he said again.
Neither said goodbye as Max simply walked out of the house. Valenti stared at the door for a moment, still reeling from the fact that, Max was back in Roswell. It reminded him that his own son hadn't returned to him. His thoughts were of Kyle as he waited for someone to pick up the phone at the Guerin residence.
"Hello?" Liz picked up.
"He's on his way."
The seniors at West Roswell High were graduating in ten days. It was the first thing Max noticed as he was driving past the high school because it was on the bulletin board outside of the school. Something made Max drive into that familiar parking lot and walk over to the bleachers overlooking the football field.
It was a weekday so some of the students were still there. They were bright-eyed and eager for the future; a quality that Max remembered possessing himself. He pressed his back against the hot step behind him and thought about the day of his graduation.
He had nothing to show for it. No diploma, no drunken after party.
He had never talked to anyone about this, but that night, he had been prepared to sacrifice himself. That's why he made that speech. If Michael hadn't shown up, they would have killed him. But the rest of them would have been safe. They would have escaped.
They've had each other to cling to, he remembered saying. But tonight, that's all coming to an end...
It would have been true. When he got up there, he had every intention of making something up. But standing before all of his peers, all of the people he had been hiding from all of this life, was when he realized that he needed to say something. So he spoke about the group of people who had meant the most to him, the people he was willing to die for.
But that night was the beginning of the end for all of them.
Max saw that now clearly.
He could admit now that his mistakes were what led them down that path. But not all that had happened had been his fault. Max took responsibility for his treatment of Liz. When it came to her, he could pinpoint everything that he had said or did wrong.
Max had even accepted the fact that he'd manipulated Maria over to his side of things, knowing that she would be the swing vote.
But his actions hadn't caused everyone to drift and grow apart.
Suddenly the drive to Jersey didn't seem so bad. The further it was from Roswell, the better. The more time Max spent here the more he realized it just reminded him of who he used to be. It almost physically hurt him to see what he had become.
When he reached his car, his hand gripped the steering wheel tightly as he pushed back tears. Finally, he stopped fighting and cried.