Codename: TABASCO: MG

The Awesome Background And Secret Chronicles Of... Michael Guerin

Episode 116

The Huntress And The Prey

(Crazy)

Have you ever had one of those weeks where everything you do just goes the wrong way? You know what I mean, nothing works out like you intended it at all. Well, that happened to me at sometime around this point in my story, so I might as well tell you about it.

I think it's no great secret to those of you who were there at the time, in Roswell, when we were teens, that I, uh, well… wasn't the suave Romeo, you know? It didn't mean I didn't love Maria… or that I didn't want to please her. I did! Max bought Liz bubble bath, and I tried to follow his lead and got Maria a bottle of shampoo… generic. Hey, it cost more than the bubble bath! And it even had conditioner in it! What'd I know? But Max had an advantage. He had a sister, Isabel, and a real family to advise him about such things. If you knew Hank, Maria's lucky I didn't give her a 6-pack of beer. I mean, he was my influence… such as it was… unfortunately.

That's why I asked Max for help and tried really hard to follow his lead. But it wasn't helping. Sorry, Max, you may be a great Romeo, but you're a lousy teacher! And that wasn't all that was going wrong, but we'll get to that in a minute. First, Max's "tutoring."

I remember there was this one day in the CrashDown, I was getting a little behind on the orders, and I told Maria and Liz to push the special. I was tired of flippin' burgers, and everybody wanted a burger. Maria made some comment about other people acting like real couples… kissing… arms around each other's shoulders… actually excited to see each other… stuff like that, and I replied that it was overrated. But it was just her timing. I had hamburger grease on my hands and sweat on my face. I didn't think she really wanted me touching her right then, and my whole mindset back then was "right then." Max didn't explain that to me. I figured it out on my own in time… with Maria's help. Actually, Max was too busy sucking face to be any help most of the time.

What's that, Jayyd? It's just… it's an Earth expression. It's… well… I don't know what it means. Yes, it does sound icky. Some of the terms I may use are… scientific! Earth… scientific. Not meant to be understood by little Antarian girls. You're not making it any easier for me to tell this story! Why don't you and Mareeya and Ceelya go build a sand castle or something.

One comment out of you, Zorel, and you won't be getting a Galactic Milkshake at the CrashDown with the rest of us after the story. I see that smirk on your face!

Now where was I? Oh yeah…

Max and Liz were going to see a movie, and Liz asked Maria to take over at the CrashDown for her. Maria told her, "Go ahead… live the life that I so desperately want," or something to that effect. She knew I was listening. I said what's the big deal? They're just a couple of horndogs looking for a place to make out, and we could do that at my apartment just as well.

Yes, Jayyd? Yes, those were more Earth scientific terms. We learned them in school… on Earth. We were going to study together… in my apartment. You're right, that is more reasonable than trying to study at the movies! I tried to tell Max that, but you know Max. He's the king and all. He's used to doing things his way… even back then.

Anyway, Max and Liz didn't go to the movie in the end. They wound up, uh… studying in his jeep, in a secluded area on a dark deserted road, at Buckley Point.

What? I know you can't study in the dark, Jayyd. I guess he made some light with his hands to study with… or he had a light in the jeep. Yeah, that's it. He had a light in the jeep. Use your imagination!

Not you, Zorel! Wipe that smile off your face.

Anyway, that's when things got really scary for us. While they were, uh, studying, someone ran up to the jeep and banged on the window. It was Topolsky. That's Mrs. Jim Valenti… Aunt Kathleen… now to you kids. She was really upset and scared, and she kept telling them just to act like normal kids and not to trust anyone and that they were in bigger danger than they could ever imagine. Well, that pretty much ended the… studying for the night. She told them she would find them again later and tell them more.

You kids know what happened to us in Roswell and all about the special unit and Pierce and all. That's what she was trying to warn us about. But I didn't trust her. Liz did. Liz said she could tell Topolsky was really scared and was telling the truth. I thought she was trying to lead us into a trap and get us to admit we were aliens. Isabel and Max agreed with me, but Alex agreed with Liz…

"Do you really think she's here to warn us, Liz?"

"She wasn't the same person she was before, Alex. And the way she was talking, she seemed like she was just as scared for herself as she is for us."

"Then I say we listen."

I shook my head and put my foot down… hard.

"I say we don't! All right? It's just a new tactic. She scares us, makes us think we need help, and all we're really doing is admitting who we are, all right? I don't trust her and none of us should."

That was a mistake, and later I changed my mind. It wasn't like I was just going to sit on this information, though. I intended to follow up on it… without the others knowing. I didn't believe Topolsky, but I wasn't born naïve either. Don't trust, but verify, as somebody said. Or was it trust but… Well, it doesn't matter. I didn't trust Topolsky at all at the time, but I fully intended to verify her story… or at least disprove it to my satisfaction.

At about this same time, Tess showed up and introduced herself to everyone. She was the new girl in school. Turned out, she and Isabel were going to have Phys Ed together, and they got kind of chummy. This got my antennas up a bit, too. Topolsky didn't have to tell ME not to trust anyone new. I already didn't.

But let me get back to Maria and me for a minute. Maria said that what we had wasn't enough, and I told Max what she said.

"She wants more, Max."

"You mean like…"

"No. If that's what she wanted would I be here talking to you? She wants the romance thing, the thing that you and Liz got."

"Is that what you want?"

"I just want to make her happy. And you're gonna tell me how to do it."

"It's not like there's a handbook, Michael."

"I'm serious, Max. Things are getting frosty. She went to the French Club meeting today instead of meeting me in the eraser room. The French club! What the hell is that?!"

Max started to offer advice, like treating Maria as though she were the only girl in the room or taking her to a nice restaurant or surprising her with unexpected gifts, like flowers. Then Tess came in with Isabel and wanted to know how Max knew so much about women. That pretty much ended the tutoring session.

But what I'm leading up to here is, Max took his own advice and asked Liz to meet him in the restaurant where they had had their first date… Señor Chow's. At least, that's what Liz thought. But it turned out it wasn't Max who sent the note. When Liz got there, Topolsky slid into the seat across from her, dressed in a disguise.

"Don't draw attention to us. Just stay focused, Liz. It's the only way we're gonna make it through this."

"Why are you following us? We haven't done anything wrong!"

"You can play that game all night, or you can listen to me and maybe save all of our lives. You're smart. I knew you were the one I could get through to. They don't know I'm here. If they did…"

"Who's they?"

"The people I work for."

"The FBI?"

"It's more complicated than that. I've learned things, seen things… that no one would believe. Sometimes I don't even believe them myself."

"Where have you been all of this time?"

"To hell. And I've come out to warn you. There's a hunter… an alien hunter. He's buried deep inside the FBI. Even the president and the director are on a need-to-know basis only. Do you understand what I am saying? He answers to no one, and he will stop at nothing to get what he's looking for."

"What is he looking for?"

"Max Evans… and anyone he thinks is involved with him. All six of your names are on that list. You have to believe me."

"I believe you."

"I knew you would. We can't be seen together, do you understand? Meet me tomorrow night, behind the theater, at eight o'clock. I'll know more by then."

When Liz told Max about the meeting with Topolsky the next day at school, he forbad her to have any contact with Topolsky.

"Look, Max… I really think we should just trust her."

"No. No one is trying to help us. Just stay away from her."

"Max, it's not just about you guys anymore, okay? Maria, Alex, and I… we're on that list, too. I think that we should just all have a say in all of this."

"What list?"

When Liz told him, Max got us all together at the quarry to discuss what we were going to do. That's when we took an actual vote. It was four to two against meeting Topolsky or having any contact with her, so Liz and Alex accepted the result. But I was starting to wonder if I was right.

When Liz didn't show up to meet Topolsky, Topolsky did something desperate. Jim opened the door of his office late at night and found her waiting for him in the dark.

"You left without saying goodbye, Ms. Topolsky. You okay?"

"I'll never be okay again."

"You here to tell me about it?"

"I'm here because they won't listen to me."

"Who?"

"Max… Liz… none of them!"

"You're finally admitting the FBI's investigating these kids?"

"It's much worse than that!"

"You look like you could use a drink, Kathleen. What do you say we go somewhere?"

I've gotta give it to Jim. He never missed an opportunity. But Topolsky wasn't accepting… then. She was genuinely scared about what she had witnessed and wanted to stay under the radar.

"No! No. Look… everything stays a secret now or I will never make it out of this."

"Make it out of what?"

"Did you really think you could kill Everett Hubble and not send up a red flag, Jim?"

"What do you know about Hubble?"

"UFO nut. They all get tracked. He found out about Max, didn't he… at the convention? That's why you had to kill him. You're protecting those kids, too, now, aren't you?"

"All right. Why don't you just tell me what the hell you're talking about!"

"When my cover was blown, I was sent back to Washington. That's when I found out about the special unit. Alien hunters."

"In the FBI?"

"I was the first agent to make direct contact with… with the subject. I spent four weeks being debriefed by the agent in charge. His name is Pierce. And after what he did to me, I'd hate to see how he'd treat the enemy. When it was over, that's when he told me I was theirs for life. Once you know about the unit, you don't get out."

"Sounds elite. So what's the problem?"

"The problem is they kill people, and there is no one to stop them. And that is NOT why I became an agent, Jim."

"So the FBI thinks that Max Evans is an alien. Why don't they swoop in and pick him up?"

"Why haven't you? No solid proof. Fear of what he might do. He's not the only one, you know."

"This is getting a little far-fetched, I think."

"Look, Jim, your name is on that list! And you're not the first person he's destroyed over this. Now, I am trying to save your lives here, but if you don't want my help…"

"Wait, wait. Hold on! Whoa! Whoa! Hold on. Maybe we can get you some help."

"I already told you, it's too late for that. And if you don't believe me why don't you try asking your friend, Agent Stevens, what happened to HIM when he tried to get out. Pierce made an example of him for the rest of us… piece… by piece. Get them to trust me. It's the only way."

After Topolsky left, Valenti did call Agent Stevens' office, and was told that he was no longer an agent. Then he called his home, and his wife told him that Agent Stevens was dead.

The next day, Jim showed up in the UFO Center looking for Max. He told him that he needed to be careful about any crazies that came into the center spouting loony stories about aliens and conspiracies and all… that he never knew who was really his friend and who wasn't. Stuff like that. It was all pretty cryptic. And he told Max that if anybody bothered any of us to let him know.

That same day, Alex was walking home and a strange car pulled up next to him…

"Alex? You're Alex Whitman, aren't you? It's okay, Alex. Topolsky sent me. She knows you'd want to see her… hear what she has to say."

"Why didn't she just come herself?"

"I'll take you to her. She'll explain everything. Don't worry. I'm on your side. Get in the car."

At that moment, Valenti appeared and asked if anything was wrong, and the strange driver drove off in a hurry. Jim was watching out for us. He offered Alex a ride home, and Alex hopped into the cruiser with him. Then I returned home and found my apartment all ransacked. And Topolsky was waiting in the shadows.

"If I give you proof, will you believe me then?"

"Get out of my house!"

She picked up the orb and held it out. "I know what this is."

"That's a paperweight."

"It's a communicator… and there's another one just like it. I took it from the special unit evidence vault back in Washington. Now, I know they only work when they're together, so if I bring you the other one… if I risk my life for you… I need to know that you will take me with you when your people come to get you."

"You're crazy."

"No, Michael. Look, we are all going to die, and it's not going to be pleasant. We only have one chance. I will meet you tomorrow night at Buckley Point with the other communicator. If you ignore me this time… there won't be a next time."

After these incidents, Max called another meeting in the quarry. He still didn't want anyone to talk to Topolsky. But I knew it was time for some kind of intervention on my part. I just didn't want to involve the others. Unfortunately, Maria caught me looking for her car keys in her locker at the CrashDown and wouldn't let it go. She saw I had the orb and figured out where I was going.

"You're going to meet Topolsky, aren't you? After everything you said to the others."

"Yeah, well… just don't tell them, all right? I gotta do this thing, but it's safer if I do it alone."

"I'm going!"

"No!"

"Hello, Sheriff? Hi! My car's been stolen."

Did I say Maria had a way with words? I wasn't thrilled about it, but she did make a very good case. To complicate matters, she started to leave Liz a note telling her where we were going, but Liz walked in and saw us. Then Liz told Max and the others, and they all came after us in Max's jeep. I had intended to do this as the Avenger, but that wasn't an option now. We were going to have to meet with Topolsky… all of us… as ourselves.

I won't go into how Max walloped me and demanded I give him the orb back. In his shoes, I probably would have done the same thing. But it didn't change anything.

"Topolsky says it's a communicator, Max… It does something when it's with another one, and I gotta find out what it is."

Then Valenti showed up; and at the same time, someone else drove up and got out of another car.

"I'm sorry," the other man said, "but Ms. Topolsky won't be meeting you tonight… or any other night."

I nodded. "So she wasn't lying. You killed her, and now you're here to kill us?"

"No, Michael, he's not," Valenti said. "This man is from Bethesda, Maryland. His name is Dr. Malcolm Margolin. He stopped by my office this morning… explained a few things about Ms. Topolsky."

Dr. Margolin nodded. "I've been treating Kathleen for the last six weeks… She had a breakdown. She's paranoid delusional. That means that she's desperately afraid of things that don't exist… to the point that she makes up elaborate scenarios to justify the fears that she has… We traced her credit card here to Roswell, and when I caught up with her she was hysterical… talking about meeting you around here… something about an orb. The sheriff said he knew you and that you'd had trouble with her in the past. I didn't want anything to happen to you out here."

I've got to tell you, I was tingling all over from my 'lies radar.' This man didn't know us from Adam and he wanted us to believe that he came all the way up here just to save us some trouble? And he's supposed to be a doctor, but he's telling everybody Kathleen is paranoid delusional. Doctors are supposed to keep patients' records confidential. We were nobody to him. Why was he telling us this? I wasn't buying it. But I went along with it. It was the safest thing to do for everyone. I could do my own checking later… the way I wanted to in the first place.

"I checked it all out," Valenti said, vouching for him. "The doctor is who he says he is, and Topolsky spent the last month in a mental hospital. I think it's safe to disregard anything she's been saying… to any of us."

The doctor smiled. "I'm sorry to have caused you this inconvenience. And don't worry about Kathleen. She should be back in Bethesda by now under the best care available. So please… no more late-night trips to the middle of nowhere. Anything could be out here, and I'd hate to see any harm come to you on our account."

Valenti nodded. "Thank you, Doctor. I'm sure we'll all sleep better. So it's over. You can go home now."

I'm looking at this so-called doctor and at Jim and thinking, is Jim really buying this guy's mumbo-jumbo? I mean, he may be a real psychiatrist, or whatever, but his story was so fishy that I expected to see sea gulls circling overhead! Well, if it wasn't the middle of the night anyway. And that's another thing. What real doctor makes house calls in the middle of the night… much less comes all the way up to Buckley Point just to ease our minds and make sure we're going to be okay? No, he wanted us to forget about Kathleen and stop pursuing this. And I was sure Jim knew it. Jim's smarter than that. But if he was, he was putting up a real good front.

I looked around to see where the orb was. I had dropped it when the place became overcrowded. Unfortunately, Valenti spotted it first and picked it up. Max was none too pleased with me right then, but I knew that there would be time to mend those fences later… after I got the orb back.

When everyone was back home and asleep, I made my own move… the way I had wanted to in the first place… alone. I took Max's keys and jeep, without him knowing it, and headed back to Buckley Point. I parked the jeep a little ways away, over the hill, and walked the rest of the way so no one would hear me coming. When I got there I saw a car drive off… and Kathleen was looking out the back window. She looked positively terrified. So she wasn't back in Maryland after all. She had come to meet us. We were just intercepted by this Dr. Margolin person and sent home before she arrived. If she was crazy, it wasn't because of any breakdown, it was for good cause. She had very good reason to fear for her life. And so did we. I knew that now. What I didn't know… yet… was that it was Agent Pierce driving the car with Topolsky in it. But I was about to find that out.

As I was walking back to the jeep I passed a hiker, and the way he looked at me set off alarms inside me. I could say it was an Avenger tingle… kinda like the Spidey tingle thing… but the truth is there was something about his eyes. Then it hit me. Dr. Margolin had that same intense look in his eyes. But this man was obviously not Dr. Margolin. Or was he? Call it intuition, but I played a hunch…

"Hello, Nasedo."

"Lower your voice. You don't know who could be listening."

"So it was you. You were Dr. Margolin. You shape-shifted. You fooled Valenti and tried to fool us with a story about Topolsky being crazy. What do you have to do with Kathleen Topolsky, Nasedo?"

"Nothing. I was trying to save your sorry asses. All of you. The story about her being in a mental ward was true… and Dr. Margolin is real. He's one of them. So the story checked out when the sheriff checked. Would you expect anything less of me?"

"No."

"You don't know what you're dealing with, Michael. These people are ruthless… and they're connected. They are a serious danger. They would kill you all and sleep like babies afterwards. They have no remorse."

"Mmm. I guess you would understand that. I seem to have heard something about you lacking that particular emotion, Nasedo."

"It's a useless emotion. It gets in the way of what must be done. But I have never killed without reason."

"Whose reason?"

"Mine. The only one that matters. I am supposed to protect you and Max… our king. I can't do that properly if I let useless emotions get in my way."

"I used to think like you once… kind of. Not about killing, but about the emotions thing. I've grown."

"Good for you. It'll get you killed some day. And maybe get our king killed, too. And while we're talking about useless things… what the hell is that you're wearing… under your jacket?"

"Oh… mmm, well. You weren't supposed to see that. It's just… my underclothes."

"Looks more like pajamas… the women's variety."

"Shows how much you know. This is what all the kids in school are wearing these days."

"What does the big A stand for?"

"You wouldn't understand."

Nasedo was silent for a moment then nodded. "It has something to do with sentimentality… an emotion that may get you killed, Michael."

"That's my problem. You know what, Nasedo, I'd rather die than never to have lived."

"Soon enough you may be dead, if you don't listen to me. Then you will have your wish."

"Living is more than just being alive, Nasedo. It's having someone who cares about you… really cares about you. And caring about them."

"Well, from what I've seen, our king is equally as smitten and as useless as you right now. Oh, don't get me wrong. He's our king… he has the sign, and I'm bound to protect him. But the only one of the three of you who has any sense is Isabel. And I've been watching her and that boy… Alex, isn't it? She's one step away from letting emotions take over her life, too. It's a good thing you have me to watch over you all."

"Is it just duty, Nasedo? Do you feel nothing else?"

Nasedo breathed in deeply then exhaled slowly. "What I feel… you would not understand. I do feel a duty to protect you… and something else. But I could not let that get in my way… if it became an impediment."

"Of course. Well, I guess that's something. There's hope for you."

"Not if we're caught with you wearing women's pajamas."

"It's covered up. It's a uniform, not pajamas… You weren't supposed to see it. No one was. It's just… you wouldn't understand."

"Maybe I do."

"We ought to do something to help Topolsky," I said, trying to change the subject. "She risked her life to warn us about the danger we face."

"Forget her. There's nothing you or anyone else can do for her now. She chose the people she associated with and they turned on her. You had nothing to do with her fate. None of you did. It was of her own doing. She's being taken far away from here… to a place you could never get in. That was Agent Pierce himself driving the car that took her away. Forget her. Everything she said about him is true."

"It's hard to forget someone who risked their life for you."

"It's her or you… and Max and Isabel… and maybe Maria, too. Which is more important to you?"

Nasedo did have a way of putting an unpleasant perspective on things. But he had a point. Several of them really. Not the least of which was that I had no idea where they had taken Topolsky. It was, as Nasedo said, probably far away and somewhere where I would not be able to find her, much less save her. I didn't like it, but she was on her own… unless I got a miraculous break. But that didn't seem likely right now. I just hoped she would be all right.

I gave Nasedo a ride to the edge of town and he got out there, then I dropped Max's jeep off in front of his house and walked to Sheriff Valenti's office. I don't know why but I just had a feeling he would be there tonight even though it was already almost 4 A.M. The light was on in his office, so I climbed in through the window. He didn't even bother to turn around.

"Couldn't sleep, Michael?"

"No. Looks like you couldn't either."

"I had some matters to attend to."

"You didn't believe that Dr. Margolin guy, did you, Sheriff?"

"Nope."

"Why'd you bring him up there then?"

"Whoever he really was, Michael, he's dangerous… but he was trying to get you off the trail of someone even more dangerous. That told me that he wanted you to stay alive. That's a sentiment I agree with."

"But Topolsky…"

The mention of Kathleen caused Jim to flinch, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

"There's nothing you can do for her, Michael. Let me do what I can do from here. I have legal contacts. If I can't help her, you certainly can't."

"I just wanted to make sure… someone tried."

Jim nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, it's after 4 in the morning. I guess I better get home and get a little sleep… if you're on the case and all."

"Do Avengers sleep, Michael?" Jim asked with a half grin.

I pulled my jacket back over the big A.

"Yeah. Avengers sleep."

End of Episode 116

tbc…