by Melinda Metz
Do you think there’s any chance he could turn on us? That question of Alex’s had been running through Max’s head all day, like some kind of Muzak from hell.
Max just didn’t know. Maybe they should have left Adam at home. But Max thought that he might need the extra power.
This is not the time to start rethinking your decision, he told himself. Adam’s here now. There’s no turning back.
“You two keep watch,” he said to Liz and Maria. “If you see guards, try and knock on the cell door or give us some kind of signal.”
“We’ll kick their butts if they come near us,” Maria answered, her voice quaking.
“Go,” Liz urged.
“Let’s connect here in case we need to use our combined power inside,” Max said. Adam reached out and grabbed him by the wrist.
Do you think there’s any chance he could turn on us?
Max tried to ignore that question as he and Adam crept up to the cell door. Adam reached out with his free hand and swung it open. Wait. There was something wrong. Shouldn’t it have been locked?
Before Max could formulate any kind of answer for himself, Adam stepped through the door, pulling Max with him.
“Max Evans. You’ve saved me the trouble of coming to pick you up.”
Max jerked his head toward the voice and saw Sheriff Valenti sitting behind a wide desk. A girl with short red hair sat in one of the chairs across from it.
Adam had led him right to the sheriff’s office. He’d clearly been planning this all along. But why?
“I hope your sister is here, too. Not that it would be too difficult to run into town and get her,” Valenti said. “In fact, I’d enjoy it. I’ve spent half my life looking for the two of you. Soon I’ll have all my aliens safely tucked into their beds.”
Max couldn’t answer. He felt a twisting in his gut. Valenti knew the truth.
Max grabbed Adam’s hand and made the connection.
“Won’t that be nice, Adam?” Valenti asked in a hideous kindergarten voice. “You always wanted a bigger family than just you and Daddy.”
Max felt the power begin to grow inside him, doubling in size every second. Adam’s getting ready to use it, he realized.
Maybe we could make a circle of fire around Valenti to trap him, Max thought. Or maybe with our combined power we can knock him out from here without touching him to make a connection.
Max turned toward Adam. Maybe he could signal him to –
His heart froze. Adam was smiling at Valenti. The same smile he’d given the rabbit.
“Adam, no!” Max yelled. He tried to jerk his hand away, but Adam’s fingers were digging into his flesh.
Max twisted around and slammed his fist into Adam’s side. Adam released him. “I don’t need you, anyway,” he muttered.
A flash of brilliant white light filled the room, reflecting off the walls, blinding Max. He blinked hard, trying to clear his vision. He thought he saw Valenti sitting behind his desk. But that was impossible. There was no way he could have survived.
Max wiped his running eyes with his sleeve and took a step closer to the desk. Valenti was sitting there, coated entirely in ash, not one speck of skin showing. He was absolutely motionless. What had Adam done to him?
He heard the girl in the chair behind him making these low moaning sounds deep in her throat. He knew he should go to her, but he couldn’t stop staring at Valenti.
Adam moved up next to Max. He leaned forward, pursed his lips, and blew. With a soft whispering sound, Valenti crumbled into a pile of dust.
“Why did you do that?” Max shouted. “There were other ways we could have dealt with him. We never use our power to kill. Never!”
Adam didn’t respond.
Max felt a trace of power in the room. It was building fast.
Do you think there’s any chance he could turn on us?
Max whipped his head toward Adam. Adam smiled at him.
* * *
“What the hell did you do to her?” Alex screamed at the doctor.
Isabel gave another jerk, her eyes wide and staring. Alex could practically feel the pain in his own body.
The doctor dropped to his knees next to her. “I didn’t mean to hurt her. I just gave her a shot of a fast-acting tranquilizer. It shouldn’t have caused this reaction. I only wanted to detain you until I could can Valenti or one of the guards.”
Alex reached down and yanked the doctor to his feet. He wrapped his arm around the man’s neck to hold him still. Then he searched the pockets of the doctor’s lab coat, coming up with two more syringes. He threw them across the room.
“I’m going to let you go now,” Alex said into the doctor’s ear. “And here’s what you’re going to do – you’re going to do whatever it takes to save her life. She dies, and I do to your head what I did to that door.” Alex used his free hand to point to the metal door Isabel had crushed open, then he shoved the doctor away.
“I may need to draw some blood to find out why she’s having this reaction,” the doctor answered, his words tumbling out on top of each other.
“Fine. Stay in sight. And if you think about doing anything stupid, I want you to look at the door and think again,” Alex snapped. He sat down next to Isabel and took her hand in his. At least she’d stopped spasming.
He reached out with his free hand and brushed her hair away from her forehead. He felt something wet under his fingers. Did she cut herself when she fell? Alex leaned close. “aGet over here and tell me what this is,” he ordered the doctor.
The doctor rushed to Alex’s side and crouched down next to him. “It looks like some kind of primitive gill,” he said.
“A gill?” Alex exploded.
“This happened to Adam once when he had a high fever,” the doctor answered. “I don’t know how much you know about your own physiology, but your body is designed to adapt to whatever environment it is in.”
My physiology? Alex thought. Then he realized the doctor must think he was an alien, too, since Alex had taken credit for the door.
“Occasionally it can malfunction and adapt when it isn’t necessary,” the doctor continued. “Look, the gill is closing already.”
Alex moved his gaze to Isabel’s forehead just in time to see her skin smooth itself back into place.
“I think it will be safer if we just let this run its course,” the doctor said. “I don’t think it will take long. If I’d realized the tranquilizer could cause this reaction …” He let the sentence trail off.
“You’re going to be okay, Isabel,” Alex promised. “I’m right here with you. I’m going to be here the whole time.” Alex felt her hand move in his. “Yeah, see, I’m here.” He squeezed her hand back. Her fingers felt … different. Alex opened his hand so he could see hers.
Her fingers had always been long and slender, but now they were almost twice as long and as thin as pencils. As Alex watched, one finger was absorbed into the side of her hand.
His breath started coming in harsh pants. Maintain, he ordered himself. This is just Isabel. He closed his hand around hers again and turned back toward her face.
He didn’t recognize her. There was nothing that remained of the Isabel he knew. Her head was huge. So were her eyes. And they were completely black.
Alex took the Isabel creature in his arms and began to run toward what he hoped was an exit. Then – in an instant so quick that it seemed like a hallucination – Isabel morphed back into Isabel again.
“Put me down, you big goon,” Isabel said, smiling.
Alex set her down. Looking her straight in the eyes, he said, “We’ve got to get out of here, Izzy.” Taking her cue, Isabel grabbed his hand and ran.
Michael had to get out of this cell. Now. Isabel needed him. He’d felt a blast of pain from her that had practically knocked him to the floor.
But Hubba and Bubba, his guards, were still out there. Still two of them. Still one of him. Right now they were sitting in a couple of chairs, facing Cameron’s cell. Th
ey spent much more time with their eyes on her than on him, for obvious reasons, and they hadn’t bothered to flip the chairs back around in his direction.
There’s got to be a way to do this, Michael thought. If I surprise them, maybe I can manage to take them both out. Only there was this thing about glass cells. They made it hard to arrange any kind of surprise.
But he had to try. And he could think of only one possible way. He walked over to the wall behind the two guards and leaned on it with his hands pressed against the glass to either side of his waist.
Hubba – or Bubba, he still hadn’t decided which was which – turned around. “Miss your girlfriend?” he mouthed.
Michael gave what he hoped was a sheepish grin and stared longingly toward Cameron’s empty cell. Hubba – or Bubba – turned back around, and Michael focused his attention on the molecules of glass beneath his hands. He nudged them apart gently, taking his time.
This actually might work, he thought as a hole began to open up underneath both of his hands. It would definitely work if Cameron was over in her cell. Then there would be no chance these two would notice what he was doing.
Where was she, anyway? She didn’t seem that sick. Could she and her guard escort have gotten captured by Max and the others? At least Adam knew Cameron, so he could tell everyone that she was on their side.
Michael gave the molecules a few more nudges, and he had his holes. Time to rock and roll. He shoved his hands through and grabbed Hubba and Bubba by the backs of their big necks.
Now would be a good time to connect, he told himself as he felt them turning toward him. He squeezed his eyes shut so he wouldn’t be distracted by anything they were doing – and the images flooded his brain. He didn’t know which came from who, and it didn’t matter. He heard two heartbeats join his. That meant he’d have a lot of nice veins to choose from. He selected a good fat one from each head and squeezed. He opened his eyes in time to see the guards slump in their chairs, their heads touching.
“Don’t they look sweet asleep like that,” he muttered as he blasted a hole in the cell and stepped through. Time to find Isabel.
“Get out of here,” Max ordered the red-haired girl. She didn’t need to be told twice. She bolted.
The feel of power in the room was growing stronger. Adam was clearly about ready to send Max off to heaven with Valenti.
But I’m not like Valenti, Max thought. Adam’s not the only one who can use power. He focused on his own power, letting it build inside him.
It’s gathering too slowly, he realized. I’m never going to be ready before Adam makes his move.
Max could run, but what good would that do? Adam would be right behind him, and out in the corridor Liz, Maria, and the girl would be in the line of fire.
Think. Be logical, Max ordered himself. You don’t need the same amount of power as Adam. You just need enough to knock his power off course. And you already have that.
He did. He could feel it. But he had to use it at exactly the right moment. Too soon or too late, and he was dust.
“Come on, Max. Aren’t you even going to try to save yourself?” Adam asked. “You could probably stub my toe with that little ball of power I you’ve got over there.”
“I told you, I don’t use my power to hurt,” Max answered. His so-called plan would only work if he just stood there and let Adam fire on him.
Adam shrugged. “Have it your way.”
Max felt the power in the room pulse. Not yet, he told himself. Not yet. Then a blast of heat scorched his face.
Now! He focused his ball of power straight out in front of him, willing it through the air. A second later an explosion rocked the room, and the wall behind Max burst into flame.
“I can’t stay,” Adam said. “I have to spread my love around.” He turned toward the door. When he opened it, it began to smoke.
Max reached the door only a few steps after Adam. By then orange flames covered it from top to bottom. He ducked through and saw Adam racing down the corridor with one hand outstretched, brushing against the wall. A trail of fire followed his fingers.
“He’s burning the place down!” Mafia cried.
“We’ve got to stop him. Come on!” Liz shouted.
Max grabbed her by the elbow. “He’s too strong for us to fight,” Max answered. “We’ve got to get Michael, find Isabel and Alex, and then get out of here while we still can.”
“I know where he is,” the red-haired girl exclaimed. She took off down the flaming corridor, Max, Liz, and Maria right behind her.
When the corridor branched, the girl went left with no hesitation. At least she seems like she really knows where she’s going, Max thought.
Adam had obviously gone left, too. He must have been zigzagging because the walls on both sides were blazing. In places the flames were meeting in the ceiling, forming an arch of fire. And smoke. Max was dragging smoke into his lungs with every breath.
“It’s right through this door down here,” the girl shouted, her voice husky. She took another left. Immediately the air felt cooler. The fire was spreading in this direction, but slowly
When they reached the metal door, Max focused on the molecules and slammed them. The door lurched open, and long fingers of flame shot through the opening. Max smelled the scent of his own singed hair as he backed away.
“Where is Michael’s cell?” Maria cried.
“You can usually see it from here,” the girl answered.
“Is there another way in?” Max asked. “I don’t think we can make it through here.” Even from a few feet away, the heat was almost unbearable. Max felt as if he were breathing lava instead of air. His throat and lungs and the lining of his nose were getting cooked.
“We’d have to double back and make a circle,” the girl answered.
“We don’t have time,” Liz yelled.
“I’m going through,” Maria announced. She pulled off her jacket and wrapped it around her head, then she plunged through the wall of flames.
“I guess it’s now or never,” Max said. He turned around, grabbed Liz by the back of the head, and planted a firm kiss on her surprised lips. “I love you,” he said, looking her in the eyes. Before she could respond, he turned and ran.
Liz was so close behind him that she crashed into him when he came to a stop next to Maria. The red-haired girl was through a second later.
“Everybody okay?” Max asked, running his eyes around the group. He hadn’t really registered any pain until he saw the blistered patches on Maria’s face and realized pieces of his own skin felt as if they’d been splashed with oil from a french fry cooker.
“I don’t see Michael,” Maria cried. “All the cells are empty.”
“That’s his right there. Third one down. They must have taken him out,” the girl said.
“Michael!” Max shouted. “Can you hear me? It’s Max.”
Maria started to yell, too. Liz and the girl joined in.
There was no answer.
“We’re going to have to assume he got out of here somehow. Isabel and Alex, too,” Max said. If he was wrong, he was leaving his sister and two of his best friends to certain death. But if he was right and they stayed down here continuing the search, he, Liz, Maria, and the girl would probably cook.
The girl nodded. “Let me take you on a tour. Starting with the exit.”
“We can’t leave them here,” Maria protested.
“Anyone who stays is going to die,” Liz told her, echoing Max’s thoughts, as she often did. “They all know that. Michael, Alex, Isabel, and Adam –”
“Wait, did you hear that?” Max interrupted. He closed his eyes so he could listen better. No, he wasn’t delusional. That was Michael. Wait. Michael and Alex.
“This way,” the girl yelled. She took off down the row of glass cells. One exploded behind them, sending a rain of glass tinkling on the cement floor.
Now Max could hear Isabel, too. Her voice sounded totally different, all thick with smoke. He glanced towa
rd the sound, and through the glass walls of one of the cells, he saw them. His heart expanded with relief.
“Let’s go!” Michael shouted as the two groups converged. He wheeled to the left, leading the way. Max dropped to the back. He didn’t want to get out and then find out someone had fainted from smoke inhalation on the way there.
“It’s not that far,” Michael called back as they ran. Max didn’t know how he could tell. The smoke had turned the air into a thick gray blanket. With each breath it felt like less oxygen was making its way into his body.
Max’s head started to spin. He couldn’t feel his feet hitting the floor anymore. But they had to be. Because he was moving. Wasn’t he? How could he tell? Everything just looked gray.
He felt an arm slip around him. “You stayed back here to make sure everyone else got out, right?” he heard Liz ask. He could hardly see her. “You’re just lucky you have me to look out for you.”
“I got the door open,” Michael yelled, his words mixed with a coughing fit.
The smoke got a little thinner, and Max pulled in a breath that felt like it was at least half air. A few moments later he and Liz were out.
“Keep moving,” Alex commanded. “We’re –” Before he could finish, an explosion threw Max into the air. He landed hard on his back and saw an orange mushroom cloud shoot upward with a blinding flash of light.
Max slowly pushed himself to his feet, wheezing with every breath. What he saw when he looked toward the compound almost made him stop breathing altogether – the sand was burning. Low blue flames covered the ground in a huge square over the area where the compound lay.
Liz was immediately by Max’s side, touching his face, her cheeks reddened from the heat. “I love you, too,” she said, and smiled. He smiled back, then pulled her tight against his chest. She listened to his pounding heart for a moment, then turned back toward the flames.
The crew was watching in silence as the flames flickered and slowly died, leaving the sand black.
“Valenti’s dead,” he said finally “Adam killed him.” He turned to his sister. “No more nightmares.” She smiled at him, a tiny smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.