Ending Two – Epilogue Part 1 (or Part 97)
Azrael's Sanctuary was humming with activity when Michael stepped inside after checking his weapons with Raphael. Most of the patrons were talking quietly amongst themselves as the jukebox filled the air with background noise. Pool balls knocked together as players lined shots up and money changed hands as games were won and lost. There was a feeling of satisfaction charging the atmosphere and several of the agents were riding high on a job well done. He shouldered out of his leather jacket and dropped it on the barstool next to him as he took a seat at the counter.
"The usual?" Gabriel barked as he passed him with a round of drinks for one of the tables.
Michael turned and hooked his elbows on the counter behind him as he surveyed the bar. "I ever order anything else?"
"Why don't you go be a dick somewhere else, Guerin?"
He snorted and turned his head to glance over his shoulder to see Azrael striding through the door to the stockroom. When he'd first met the man he'd been a little intimidated. Not that he'd admit that to anyone else. The memory device his future self had left for him had been helpful but sometimes he wished he'd left him a little more information about certain things. The ass kicking by the girlfriend of that terrorist when he'd been a rookie would've been nice to avoid. Apparently he'd had a sick sense of humor in that other timeline.
He'd been given glimpses into certain situations and it had resulted in some pretty impressive saves. Azrael was still alive. He turned his head when another patron was granted entrance and a round of applause went up from the other agents. Stone was still alive. He grinned at her when she sauntered up to the counter and leaned over it to kiss the mountain of a man behind it. She'd added another name to her list of kills, taking out a threat to the President. And while no one outside of their little group would ever know about it, they all knew it counted.
He'd tried hard to save Marcos from nearly losing his sight but he hadn't quite made it. He'd managed to keep him from being tortured at Basara's hands, but he'd still sustained injuries to his eyes when he'd chased after the terrorist and an explosion had rocked the building before either of them could get out. The terrorist was dead and Marcos assured him it was an exchange he was willing to live with.
His gaze bounced around the room as his thoughts went to Indigo. He should be around to enjoy this moment but he'd bought it on a mission a couple years back. He'd survived the mission that had taken his hand in the other timeline, walked away from it completely intact, but two missions later the chopper airlifting him out of Bahrain had been shot down. He hadn't survived that one.
He had a couple of nonalcoholic beers, shot a few games of pool, and enjoyed watching Stone beat the hell out of the new kid at the tables. He shook his head. Hawkins had a hard-on for the female agent that wouldn't quit. She did nothing to encourage his attention and he knew if the rookie ever got out of line with her she wouldn't need to do a thing to put a stop to it because Azrael would likely kill him.
"I'm outta here," Michael said after a couple of hours.
"Gotta hookup waitin'?" Gabriel asked as he leaned on the counter.
"Gotta job waitin' and since I don't wanna fuck it up I've got some things to do to get ready." He grabbed his jacket and pulled it on, rolling his shoulders to settle it in place. He pulled his keys out of his pocket and headed for the door. He collected his weapons from Raphael and hit the parking lot. He had just come back from an overseas mission and he was exhausted. He swung his leg over the motorcycle and settled into the seat, kick-starting the engine and inhaling the warm evening air before rolling out onto the street.
He hit the highway and headed for the house he'd purchased, ready to settle in for a few days before it was time to pick up his orders from Xavier and head out again. The old man was still pissed at him for a recent arrest that had interrupted his plans with a trio of sisters so he had no doubt the next mission would suck. The arrest hadn't even been his fault but Xavier wasn't interested in hearing about it.
He reached up to adjust his sunglasses as he roared through the quiet countryside. He lived out in the middle of nowhere, no close neighbors and the nearest store almost half an hour away, and he liked it that way. From everything he had learned from his future self's memories he had been a loner, preferring his own company over anyone else's. A lot of the time that was still true, but he did head back to Roswell on occasion to visit with Tom, the Evans family, and the DeLuca family. Well, to be honest, he tended to avoid that last one unless it was a random meeting in public. Why? Two words: Maria DeLuca.
He and the Evans kids had definitely had their rocky moments right from the start. There had been arguments, disagreements, and the occasional tantrum. That last one had usually occurred when things didn't go Isabel's way. But he'd eventually learned how to work around that. It was just a matter of handling her the right way.
By the time the day came to save Liz Parker they'd finally settled into some semblance of order and that one had gone smoothly. It had been a matter of keeping her away from the café the day of the shooting and they'd managed that with no problem. It had been ridiculously easy to do since she and Max had been dating for a while and he'd talked her into cutting out of her shift that day. Of course, being the brain that she was she'd insisted he tell her how he'd known to keep her away from the café that day. And being the lovesick puppy Max Evans was he'd spilled his guts.
Michael shook his head. That kid was never gonna make a good agent. He was family though, and a damn good friend. He and Liz would be heading off to college soon, a school back East. They would spend their summers in California where they would continue training and preparing for the coming invasion. Personally he didn't see the draw of college, but their parents thought it was necessary and so did the kids, and since he was away on missions most of the time and he wasn't there to work with them during those times it was best to keep them focused and occupied so he'd stopped fighting that decision and accepted it.
Isabel at least had chosen a college more closely situated to his location although she had been quick to inform him that had nothing to do with her decision. He'd just nodded and agreed with her, certain she'd chosen the college for the draw of perfect year-round weather rather than his proximity. She would be attending college in San Francisco with Alex, the last of their little group to be brought in on the secret.
Maria was the monkey wrench in all of his plans. If something in his life was out of whack, chances were good she was somehow involved. Max had saved her life, prevented her from dying too young, and instead of her forming some sort of attachment to her savior she'd chosen to lock her sights on him. She enjoyed trying his patience, challenging him, and pursuing him. And she didn't seem to be in any hurry to decide on a college in spite of everyone else having chosen and registered and whatever else they had to do to gain admittance. Time was running out and he wanted her to pick one and go there, find some decent guy her own age, and forget about him.
Unfortunately he couldn't forget about her and she was doing nothing to move in that direction. She was determined to spend her life crushing on him and that was unacceptable. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't torn about that; he'd spent a considerable amount of time using the memory device his future self had left for him. He carried those feelings with him, feelings belonging to a man who didn't exist, and feelings for a woman who didn't exist. There was no way to erase them and in some ways it felt like he'd been cursed. He knew how much that older version of him had loved Maria in that other timeline and it scared the hell out of him.
Sure, he cared about her. He cared about all of them. For ten years now he'd been working with them, protecting them, and getting closer to them than he'd ever been to another person. Maria was different though and that meant he had to stay on his guard around her especially. She was six years younger than him for one thing. His job was dangerous for another. And lastly, he was a 25-year-old single guy! He wanted to enjoy his life. He hung out with his coworkers, he worked on his motorcycles, and he really enjoyed spending time with the opposite sex.
He'd worked hard to become the man he was and he'd been shaped partly by the events in a future that for all intents and purposes had never taken place. Or maybe it had. He shook the thoughts off because they were mind bending and gave him a headache. He'd seen what he could have become and thanks to the events that had brought the others into his life he'd changed some things.
Oh, he had still become a soldier and he worked for the Company, he made a good living, and he was financially stable and comfortable. Spending so much time with Isabel, Liz and Maria had ensured that he'd treat women better than he had in that other timeline. He still didn't engage in long relationships or anything but he wasn't as careless or cold towards the women who passed through his life either.
He'd been entrusted with the care of the kids and he could only imagine what it had taken for the parents to allow that kind of interaction with him. He'd been careful with the relationships though, and he'd validated Philip Evans' decision to trust him. He was more comfortable in his skin than he'd ever been before and he wasn't as volatile as his other self had been. He took his responsibilities seriously and he was basically happy with the way his life was going.
He took the last turn and he inhaled deeply, drawing in the arid desert air as he neared the hacienda-style house situated at the end of the gravel road. There was a welcome feeling as his gaze moved over the columns that rose up into three arched openings over the flagstone entryway. He bypassed the front entrance, parking the motorcycle in the garage because the sky hinted at a coming thunderstorm. He could feel the electricity in the air, that tension waiting to snap, and it reminded him of a living thing.
He dismounted and closed the garage door before heading into the house. He was shrugging out of his jacket when the feeling that something was out of place registered and he reached for the gun tucked in his shoulder holster. His footsteps were soundless as he crept through the rooms, his sharp gaze searching for the intruder and lowering the gun when he came upon her.
"Damn it, Maria!" he barked as he holstered the weapon. "What the hell are you doin' here?"