Incubus, Succubus, & Demon AU/Mature M/L 2/8/07 complete

[greywolf]

Title: Incubus, Succubus, & Demon.
Author: Greywolf
Category: Max and Liz, and others
Rating: Mature/Adult
Disclaimer: Max/Liz and the whole gang are the property of Melinda Metz and whoever she has now sold rights to. Hey, why doesn't someone resurrect this series? It's still got a lot of fans.
Summary: It's early September 1999 and the shooting won't happen, because something else gets in the way first……
Started 8 Feb 2007
Completed 3/23/2007




September 1 1999 The Crashdown Café

"So how did the first week of school go for you, Liz?"

"Pretty good, Maria. How about you?"

"Oh…same-o….same-o….but it's easy for me. I'm not taking every AP course I can sign up for."

"Well, if you are going to work in biology…maybe be a molecular biologist some day, you better take AP biology I guess."

"And that really would have nothing at all to do with a certain amber-eyed dark haired student taking all the AP courses too…including AP Biology?"

"Maria…, that is so in your mind. We are only friends…and not even particularly close friends at that."

"So who was your Science lab partner last year, Liz"

"Maria, it just sort of worked out that way. Neither of us picked the other…the teacher assigned us."

"And your lab partner for AP Biology this year is….?"

She tried her best not to blush..and managed to avoid it fairly well, as she said, "Well Ria…We just worked real well together last year…both got A's. This year when we got to choose lab partners…well, why break up a team that was working well?"

"No more than that, Liz?"

"Max has never shown the least bit of interest in me…that way, Maria. Besides…I just started dating Kyle."

"I don't know, Liz. I tell you..I keep noticing him looking at you out of the corner of his eye."

"You're dreaming, Maria. Max isn't the least interested in me that way." Liz said. 'But a girl can dream, though….'

10:00 PM The Evans Residence

Max was doing homework at his desk when Isabel knocked and stuck her head in the room.

"You busy, Max?"

"No Izzy. Just finishing our first lab report for AP Biology."

"OUR Lab Report, Max?" Isabel asked, noticing the names Max Evans and Liz Parker on the report. "Max, we've had this talk a hundred times….you can't get too close…you know that."

"In ninth grade the science teacher just assigned us lab partners. That's just how it worked out. Neither of us had anything to do with it."

"And THIS year, Max?"

"There are only three girls in the class. Mrs. Richardson let them pick first…Liz picked me. What could I do about it? Tell Mrs. Richardson I couldn't partner with Liz because she might find out I was an alien?"

"Max, HUSH! Mom or Dad might hear. Look Max, I'm tired of being the heavy here. We've discussed this before…all three of us. I'd like to tell Mom….I wish it didn't HAVE to be this way. But it is…we all agreed. You need to keep your distance."

"I'll keep my distance, Izzy. But the lab partner thing was NOT my fault. It's not like she would even accept me if she knew…I don't harbor any illusions about that," he said.

"OK then Max. Keep your distance as much as you can. You're right, she'll never accept what you are."

"I know that Izzy." 'As much as I wish it were different….I KNOW that.' he thought.

11:15 PM The Parker Residence

The shower had washed off the dust from the desert and the grease from the grill. Her hair smelled of strawberries from the shampoo. It was not quite dry, but the desert wind through the open window would finish drying it and the conditioner kept the strands glistening together in the soft moonlight from the window.

Liz thought of the talk with Maria…knowing it really WAS all in Maria's mind. Max hadn't been interested in her…and she'd been trying to attract him since the seventh grade. He had made his lack of interest exquisitely clear. She felt silly that she'd even chosen him for her lab partner, not because he wouldn't be a good one…there were none better in the class. But because she knew that's not why she had chosen him. Her hopes were as much a fantasy as Maria's conspiracy theories about Max secretly being attracted to her. But sometimes…when you want something so very much,,,,, sometimes even a fantasy is better than the pain of reality. Liz looked at the window, and imagined him there….

• She saw him in the moonlight, staring in the window, his face emotionless as he strode across the deck and into her window.
  
  "Max….I missed you so."
  
  He smiled then, just a subtle little smile, as he came to the side of the bed and looked down at her. Silently he took the sweatshirt and t-shirt off in a single motion, pushing his shoes off first before the pants fell to the floor. His body glistened in the night concealed only by the boxers. He pulled back the covers and slid in beside her.
  
  "Max, my folks…we can't…they'll hear."
  
  He smiled that same half-smile as he place his hand around her hip and pulled her against him.
  
  "I can be very quiet, Liz."
  
  She smiled as she looked at his face in the moonlight.
  
  "Max….we can't do this. Even if you can be quiet…I'm not sure I could."
  
  The smile became a quiet chuckle as he pulled his body closer to her, his hand reaching between her briefs and her t-shirt to feel the skin there…the skin that seemed to catch fire with his touch. The hand moved slowly downward as he watched her in the moonlight, his fingers stroking gently, feeling the quiver that went through her, the gathering warmth and moisture caused by his touch. She fought the need to gasp as she told him, "Max…it's only three days to the wedding….we should wait…….unless you can't."
  
  He smiled at the last three words and moved his chest against her, his hand cupping her warmth possessively as he gently kissed her.
  
  "Three days…Liz…If that's what you want. But I need the closeness…I need it tonight. I'll leave in the morning…before your parents awake…but tonight I need to be near you."
  
  She felt the pressure of the hand as it stayed there….surprised that they both seemed so at ease…surprised that the gentle touch….should feel so right. She drifted off to sleep, bathed in the comfort of his presence.

11:15 PM The Evans Residence

He knew Izzy was right…knew there was no way it could work…no way it would ever work. But sometimes…sometimes when you have nothing else, when you know you'll NEVER have anything else, even fantasies are better than loneliness.

• He saw himself on the deck above the Crashdown where he'd seen her that once, imagining that the deck opened onto her room. He saw himself climbing the fire escape, visualizing every step on each stair as he climbed to the rooftop. He looked through the window and saw her, ready for bed in her baby doll pajamas, He tapped on the window and she looked up at him, her funny indulgent half-smile warming him to the depths of his soul.
  
  "Max…this is crazy. If my folks caught us, they'd have you arrested…if my Dad didn't just shoot you himself."
  
  "There are some things worth dying for, Liz…"
  
  She pulled him quickly inside, then hugged him tightly to her running her hands up under his shirt and helping him to peel it from his torso. Her kiss started out tentatively…but the passion grew and she was breathless before she finally pushed him away, her eyes twinkling.
  
  "One-half hour, Max. Then I kick your sorry butt out of here, before someone catches us."
  
  She pulled him over to the bed and sat beside him as her lips met his, the kiss deepening immediately and her breath starting to come in gasps. She laid back against the pillows, pulling him on top of her, lifting her chin as his lips slowly descended her neck. She pushed him down then, guiding his lips toward her right breast, Max feeling her nipple harden through the soft fabric of the top.
  
  Her hand went to her waist, grasping the bottom of the shirt and pulling it up to reveal the curve of her right breast. His lips went there. feeling ths softness, hearing her sighs as he gradually worked his mouth up to feel the soft skin become nipple.
  
  His own breath was coming in quick gasps as he suckled her,... his lips tenderly caressing her as she gently pulled his head tighter to him, caressing his hair.
  
  "I love you, Max…." she said as they drifted off to sleep, his lips still tasting the warmth of her.

[greywolf]

Eight years ago, a field nine miles west of Fort Dodge Iowa

• The search was massive…friends, relatives, neighbors…even perfect strangers who had heard the story, volunteers by the hundreds, combing the area for the teenage girl. They prodded the ground with metal rods throughout a four square mile area, praying they were not too late for four days. They used underground microphones and even seismographs, hoping for any little sound, any detectable movement that would lead them to where she was buried, all to no avail.
  
  It was two weeks later that they found her, buried seven foot down in the same aree where they had searched…..found her by the scent…..as the cadaver dog led the searchers to where she had been imprisoned. They used a backhoe to remove most of the earth from the top of the container…little larger than a coffin. The oxygen tanks were long empty as they improvised a sling to pull the container from the hole and lay it in the field. The lid was unsealed quickly by the law enforcement personnel but with the first whiff of the atmosphere released from the coffin they new what they would find. They opened the lid only to be sure, then quickly closed it certain that the EMTs would not be needed. But they were wrong.
  
  The middle aged couple came from the car and hurried to the site. "Our daughter, please let us see her," they said.
  
  "Mr. Langley…Mrs. Langley…you don't want to see her, really you don't," said the Deputy Sheriff.
  
  "Please….she's our daughter…we need to see her…we need to know."
  
  The Deputy tried to reason with them…tried to tell them…tried to make them understand. The man broke free and rushed forward suddenly, flinging open the lid…then dropped to his knees in horror. His stomach emptied onto the field while his wife cried out in horror. The paramedics made the call for permission and sedated them both….but it still took nearly twelve minutes until the girls mother stopped screaming.
  
  As they loaded his stretcher into the ambulance the father looked to the sky, as if imploring God Himself to answer. "Why…why would anyone do this to our daughter?"
  
  The Deputy watched them with tears in his eyes. What could he say? What could ANYONE say?

[greywolf]

Jason's Welding Supply, Albuquerque New Mexico

"Hell, Mister. I can give you a real good deal on those, but I've got to be honest with you. Those oxygen bottles are real old, and they probably won't pass their next pressure test in a year. They're damn near scrap metal."

"That's OK. These aren't really for use for welding. As soon as I use them up, I just purge them with nitrogen and cut the bottoms out of them. Then they are like a big bell or gong. I sell them for yard ornaments."

"Dang. I've seen people do that. Well that'd be OK then, paint em up a little and those tanks would be perfect for that. Need any acetylene?"

"No…I've got enough for right now, thanks. What do I owe you?"

[greywolf]

9:30 AM The Crashdown Café

"Don't look now, Liz, but your amber-eyed lab partner just came to see you."

"Maria…., stop that. Lots of people come for breakfast on Saturday…..besides, he's not even sitting in my section, he's in yours."

"Yeah, Liz…the better to watch you from."

"As if…"

"Uh, Liz…would you cover for me for a few minutes. I…uh…I have to go powder my nose."

"No-no-no-no. Who are you trying to kid, Ria? You did that not twenty minutes ago, He's at your booth…you go serve him."

"Liz,…what can I say. It's an awkward time of the month for me. I'll be back in five minutes….now…go girl…go."

Overhearing the exchange, Nancy Parker shook her head, remembering the teen crushes she'd had. Still, Maria was right. That boy seemed to have been watching Liz…even in grade school. He seemed nice enough, but sometimes it did seem a little creepy. She looked at the boy, pretending he was lost in reading the menu as Liz approached. 'Oh well,' she thought, 'I'm sure it's harmless enough.' She turned and went back toward the grill.

"Hi, Max."

"Oh Liz….hi."

"What would you like, Max?"

"Excuse me?"

"Maria is…I'm filling in for her for a few minutes. Have you decided on your order?"

"Uh…no,…I guess not. What would you recommend?"

"Uh…my personal favorite is a strawberry waffle."

"I don't see that in the menu."

"Oh…It's called an 'alien autopsy' in the menu. The waffle is shaped like an alien…and the strawberries and whipped cream are supposed to look like blood or something. It sounds gross, but it's really pretty good."

"Well, I guess I'll have an alien autopsy then…."

As she entered the store five minutes later looking for him, she knew he would be there. 'What is it with him and her? It's like a moth to a flame. It doesn't matter what I say…how many times he agrees… It's like he can't help himself.'

She sat down across from him in the booth.

"Max,..this isn't smart…and you promised."

"I'm just having breakfast, Isabel,..that's all."

"Puh-leeze Max. There are a dozen places to eat breakfast around here, without coming to some cheesy alien-themed restaurant."

"The food is good, Isabel."

"And that's the reason you come here Max? The fine food?"

"Yes, Isabel. That's the reason. The ONLY reason."

"Hi Isabel," said Maria as she walked up with the waffle. "Can I get you a menu?"

"No thanks, Maria."

"OK Max, here's your alien autopsy."

As Maria walked away Isabel looked at her brother and his breakfast, shaking her head.

"I am SO out of here," she said as she got up and left.

[greywolf]

10:15 The Home Depot, Albuquerque New Mexico

The checker beamed the reader-gun on the barcode of the top sheet of plywood, and squeezed the trigger twice.

"That's some heavy stuff, that one inch plywood….and not cheap either."

"I'm ripping it to make shelves for my garage. I'm a rock collector, sometimes the larger specimens weigh near a hundred pounds, before I cut and polish them."

"Well that ought to work OK, but the OSB would probably be cheaper."

"The plywood is better. Having the ....shelves.. sturdy is important to me."

The checker finished ringing up the screws, the 2 by 2s, and the construction adhesive. The man paid in cash. As he saw the man wheel the heavily laden cart out toward the parking lot he called out, "Just a second. Those plywood sheets are pretty heavy…let me get someone to help you load them."

"Why, thank you…"

[greywolf]

Five years ago, in a field near Blanchard Oklahoma

They had gotten lucky. Someone had remembered seeing a backhoe working there only five days ago. They had formed a human chain, prodding the soil…trying to find an area that was softer than the rest… and it had worked. They hauled out the box and worked rapidly removing the screws on the top. The medics had been there…been there as soon as the lid was open. She was still breathing then…but just barely.

Three days later, University Hospital, Norman Oklahoma.

"Mr. and Mrs. Peterson," said Dr. Abrahamson, the trauma specialist. "She was hypoxic for a long time….fluid depleted as well. There just wasn't enough oxygen to keep her brain functioning. Her EEG is flat-line, and her renal function is failing. We could dialyze her for the kidney failure…maybe get them back…but that wouldn't affect her cerebral function. I know she's only seventeen..I have a daughter the same age and it breaks my heart to say this…but I don't think we would do her any favors if we dialyzed her..she's never going to wake up."

The Petersons looked at Margaret. It was clear that the ICU staff cared about her. She'd been cleaned up, the broken fingernails and bloody fingers where she'd clawed at the lid had been bandaged, and someone had even combed out her hair. They weren't recommending this because they didn't care…but because they did.

"We understand, Doctor," said Richard Peterson. "Don't do anything heroic….just don't let her be in any more pain."

Dr. Abrahamson knew that the girl was beyond feeling pain, but she was no longer his patient. He could do nothing for her. But the middle aged couple in front of him were still alive, and they needed his reassurance. "We'll keep her comfortable. You needn't worry about that….and, for what it's worth, I think you are doing the right thing…"

[greywolf]

1:00 PM The Evans Residence

'They have their own personal world sometimes,' Diane thought, as she looked at her children. 'They are fighting again over something.'

Oh, she had no doubt they loved her….Isabel had bonded to her and Philip almost immediately. Max…well, that had taken a little longer. She wasn't really sure Max was going to consider Roswell home until…well, third grade, actually, his first day of school. She remembered him coming home and somehow that one day…his whole outlook had changed. Roswell was home for him after that….and he'd put away the toy house that same day.

But still, they sometimes had a private world, a world where they could read each other like a book. And over the years she'd learned how to tap into it just a bit. Not really deeply, but she could see the superficial stuff.

Isabel was vexed with him about something.....again…but it would pass, it always did.

"Honey, don't you want more than a salad for lunch? I could fix you some soup or a sandwich or something?"

"No thanks, Mom. I sort of lost my appetite this morning," Isabel said.

Diane saw the quick sideways look and frown from Max. 'Yep, she's pissed about something…and needling him about it too.' Diane hoped sometime they'd let her in on their private world….but not right now. This seemed like a private fight.

2:00 PM A workshop, Albuquerque New Mexico

The box was simple to construct…and very economical of material. He measured out 32 inches of width, and ripped the length of the plywood sheet. From the smaller of the two resulting pieces he made a crosscut 32 inches from the end. From the longer, he made two cuts each 16 inches from the end. He repeated this with the second sheet of plywood and when it was done…had what he wanted.

Two sides, a top and bottom..and four ends. He would double up the ends of course. It wasn't like the box needed the reinforcement, really. But it would hardly do to be found with the missing piece of a jigsaw puzzle. Of course, that would make the interior only 62 inches in length when he doubled the ends …but the box would be thirty inches wide and 14 inches in depth…it wasn't like she couldn't fit…even if he picked a taller girl..as long as she wasn't too obese…and she wouldn't be.. And the point really wasn't to make her comfortable…after all.

He smiled as he started to glue-nail the 2x2s to the edge of the plywood, being careful to leave an inch of setback for the attachment of the plywood sides and two inches at the end. It wouldn't take him long, he knew. He was actually getting quite proficient at this.

[greywolf]

11:00 PM The Parker Residence, Side Entrance to the Crashdown.

She was a little sad as she kissed Kyle goodbye. Not goodnight…but goodbye. She was glad they'd parted friends at least…he was a nice guy. And nice guys deserved better, Liz thought, than someone who couldn't help dreaming about someone else…even during a date.

Kyle had said he could tell she was distracted, 'God, is it that obvious to everyone?' she wondered.
But you had to deal with reality…and the reality was that the dream had bewitched her…the fantasy that she would never have.

She climbed the stairs sadly, showered and readied herself for bed. But her spirits had improved, even as she crawled under the covers. Reality might be painful, but at least she owned her dreams….

• Her heart soared as she pictured him coming through the window. He was wearing the black leather jacket….that always excited her. And as she opened and pushed it from his shoulders…as she heard it drop to the floor,….that excited her even more. She could feel the pectoral muscles beneath the black t-shirt….feel the nipples through the fabric. She reached under the t-shirt and let her fingernails rake softly across his skin, before helping him peel the shirt from his body.
  
  Liz lay back on the bed, pulling him down on top of her, feeling his weight crush against her through her thin pajamas, her body seeming to push itself against him of its own will. She felt his mouth against her and opened her lips to his kiss, their tongues meeting in a languid caress.
  
  As she slipped into the dream the warmth of his touch filled her body as his warm tongue darted against hers within her mouth....

Once again, Kyle Valenti was already forgotten.

[greywolf]

11:00 PM The Evans Residence

Max was still irritated as he got in bed. Isabel had made little digs at him all evening. He hated Saturdays, actually. Didn't have too much use for Sundays either. Because Monday through Friday, he could see her at least twice, once in AP Algebra, and best..in AP Biology, where he could actually talk to her during experiments. But the weekends? Struggling to find an excuse to see her....wondering who she was going out with tonight.....weekends just kind of sucked, actually.

But right now…well, right now Izzy didn't matter, because he still had his dreams….

• She walked up to him in the flimsy negligee that clearly revealed far more than it concealed,,,,not that she really wanted to conceal her body from him anyway. "Don't let Izzy bug you, Max," Liz said. "She does care for you. She thinks it's for your own good."
  
  "You are what's good for me, Liz," he said, "How could anything be better than you?"
  
  She gave him that same little indulgent smile she always did, before putting her arms around his neck and pulling him to her.
  
  "I hear this rumor that there's an alien around Roswell, Max. I think maybe I'd like to make a study of its anatomy ….in the interest of science…of course."
  
  "Uh…Izzy's room is down the hall, Liz."
  
  "Don't start with me, Max. A good lab partner would be helping me in my quest for scientific…fulfillment, not making jokes."
  
  "Anything for science, Liz…..you know that."

[greywolf]

Three years previously, in a field outside of Stanley New Mexico

They had thought the note a hoax, actually. The girl was supposed to be on a senior trip with her class. When she hadn't shown for the airplane, the chaperones had assumed she'd changed her mind. When the police had received the note it had taken them half a day to find the parents, another half a day to track down a charter bus in Southern California. But even if they'd known immediately, it wouldn't have mattered much. Even with the clues provided by the second note, it had taken almost a week to find the buried teenager.

24 hours later, autopsy room, Bernalillo County Medical Examiner

As he dictated into the microphone, he found himself tearing up. That was very unusual, MEs do thousands of autopsies over the years. But Dr. Harnsworth also had a daughter. True, she was in her thirties now, with kids of her own. But he remembered when she'd been eighteen.

"The next autopsy is case 96-46. The body is that of a young female of approximately eighteen years of age. Externally, the body is intact except for excoriations to the face that appear consistent with self-inflicted wounds. Additionally, there are multiple fractures of the fingernails, with embedded splinters of wood. There are diffuse petechial hemorrhages over the skin, consistent with a death by asphyxia. A rape exam was done, and there was no visible evidence of trauma and the hymenal ring appeared intact. Swabs of the vagina revealed no evidence of semen. There was generalized poor body turgor, consistent with at least a moderate degree of dehydration…….

3 Days later, Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office Conference Room

"Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press. My name is Officer Robert Humboldt of the New Mexico State Police. The governor has appointed me to coordinate the efforts of the task force searching for what appears to be a serial killer, targeting teenage girls. So far we are aware of two cases, the most recent one here in Bernalillo County, and a similar case in Oklahoma.

The M.O. for both cases appears to be to have selected a young female victim, to entomb her in a plywood box with two small oxygen tanks, and to bury that box in a remote location. The perpetrator then sends letters to the local police department giving clues to the whereabouts. These clues appear designed to give the authorities no real chance of finding the buried girl, at least while the victim is still alive. Eventually a final letter leads the authorities to the real resting place…too late. The governor has asked that we make this a top priority, so we are instituting a small task force to work this exhaustively. Any questions?...Yes, go ahead."

"Dave Williams, Albuquerque Herald-Journal. Can you give us some Idea about the motivation of this person…why they are doing this?"

"Let me introduce you to our profiler, Dr. Sandra Fowler. Sandra, will you take that question?"

"Thank you, Bob. We are looking in to the psychological motivation, studying the letters that are sent, trying to deduce something from the victims that are selected. Typically in cases like this there appears to be a sexual motivation, but at least in the two victims we are aware of at present, neither was sexually assaulted. That may be simply that the perpetrator found himself unable to actually consummate the assault…that happens with some frequency actually.

But given the more extensive and elaborate preparation involved in the two known cases…it may well be that this is more of a ego-fulfillment type of behavior. The perpetrator gets some sort of a feeling of power over not just the girl, but the community they terrorize this way. They may feel the need to do this to offset real or perceived inadequacies in other parts of their lives. The long interval between the attacks may simply be periods where the life of the person is going well…then along comes something that's ego-dystonic…getting passed over for a job or something and they commit this sort of a crime to show the world that they really are in control. At this point, however, that's merely speculation. Any more questions?"

"Dick Jarvis, Santa Fe Democrat-News. What is the term of this task force?"

"Let me answer that one, Sandra," said Officer Humboldt, "We are going to keep this task force working as long as it takes. We intend to nail this bastard."