BANNER BY DROGYN
Title: Rescued From Death
Author: Shadowlynxbehr
Disclaimer: Don't own anything to do with Roswell or it's associations...but Kadee does
.Pairings: M/L
Rating: Adult
Summary: Liz is a murdered ghost. Max comes upon her reenacting her murder scene and somehow disrupts it, making her human again. Now she must cope with being a human in the modern world with Max.
Tess has been nominated as Favorite Supporting Portrayal of Tess Harding in Round 11, Part 1 of the RoswellFanatics Character Portrayals. Thanks to all who have nominated her and good luck to everyone in all of the parts of Round 11!
Part 1
“I can’t believe I listened to you Kyle! For all we know we could be miles away by now.” grumbled Max as he and his best friend continued to walk through the woods hoping they’d see something familiar to them.
The two friends had been on a camping trip with a group of friends from the old neighborhood. Together with Michael, Alex, Tommy, Keegan, Isabel, Maria, Tess, and Vicki they had decided to go camping after some of them had run into each other at their ten year high school reunion.
Unfortunately, the ones with the maps, good sense of directions, and familiarity with the woods were Michael, Maria, and Isabel who had remained back at camp. Max had foolishly let Kyle talk him into wandering further into the woods when they had been sent in search of good kindling for the fire they were going to build for supper.
“Yeah well how was I supposed to know you weren’t keeping track of where we were going? You’re always so anal about everything, I just figured you’d keep track of where camp was,” mumbled Kyle.
“I am not anal!” retorted Max, “I just like having a plan. Excuse me for being so organized with my life!”
“You’re excused,” Kyle replied before adding, “Look, we might just have to find some place that will provide some shelter for the night, it’s already getting too dark to see much of anything anymore. Let’s just hope they realize we’re missing and come looking for us.”
“Right,” Max sighed as he looked around the area. “I don’t think they’ll be looking for us tonight though. They’ll probably wait until sun up since it’ll be easier to see in this place.”
Kyle nodded, “You’re right. Okay, well let’s look for shelter then.”
The two of them continued to walk for a while when Kyle suddenly grabbed Max’s arm. “Oh! There is a God! That’s a house isn’t it?”
Max looked in the direction Kyle was pointing and squinted before making a face. “A house? You call that a house?”
Kyle rolled his eyes, “Hey something is better than nothing. Come on man, let’s go see if we can stay the night there.”
As the two of them got closer, they could clearly see exactly what kind of state the house was in. Max frowned as he took in the thatched roof and stone walls of the place and wondered how anyone could live in such a primitive place such as that one.
As they walked past the skeleton remains of a wooden fence, they entered into what must have once been a huge front yard of sorts. Running from the fence up to the front door of the house was a stone pathway which had been long overrun with the greenery of the woods.
To the right of the pathway was a sectioned off area consisting of a rickety fence combined with what looked like rusted barbed wire. From the looks of the area, someone must have once planted a garden there, using the wire to keep any animals out and whatever had been growing there safe. Now though, there was nothing but tall weeds and decaying vegetation.
Kyle was the first to reach the rudimentary wooden door which he briskly knocked on and called out, “Hello?”
Max rolled his eyes as he caught up with his friend. “Seriously Kyle, I don’t think anyone lives here.”
Kyle glanced at Max and shrugged when he saw the look of distaste on Max’s face. Kyle reached out to try the door knob and found the door unlocked. As he slowly opened it, the long unused rusty hinges creaked loudly. Kyle pushed the door all the way in and peeked inside.
Max moved up behind him and looked over his shoulder taking in the scenery too.
“Well, looks like you’re right Max, no one’s been here in ages,” said Kyle as he walked inside the house.
Max followed him in and noticed just how old the place really was. There were holes in the roof where the thatch had finally given in to the ever changing weather. The windows had no panes, only wooden shutters that had once been sealed tight to keep the weather out. The floor was earthen with little cracks here and there where grass had managed to sneak in. Even the stone walls had cracks in it making Max wonder just how much more pressure it needed to send the whole place crashing down on them.
Still it was a pleasant surprise to see pieces of wooden furniture scattered around the place. Granted, many of the pieces seemed to barely be holding up, but they were there.
There was what looked like a king sized bed with a carved wooden frame and headboard in the back of the place. The mattress on it looked a little lumpy in places, yet it sagged as if it had been stuffed with feathers and the like. At the foot of the bed sat a hand carved trunk with rusty iron hinges.
Near the front and to the right of the place was a long rectangular piece that resembled a couch without a back. It was facing the right wall which had a stone and brick fireplace in it. There was also an old fashioned rocking chair that seemed to tilt slightly to the side and a pile of wood that looked as if it had been a chair once upon a time.
To the left of the place was a hand carved table with four matching chairs in various states of disrepair. The entire set seemed very similar to the bed frame. Behind the table against the wall was what Max could have sworn was an old fashioned cupboard. And between the cupboard and the back of the place was an antique cast iron stove which Max would have never dreamed of seeing except for in a museum.
As he continued to stand there perusing the place, Kyle let out a sigh. “Well, it’s not much, but it’ll do in a pinch.” He motioned to the wood that must have once been a chair and said, “We could use this in the fireplace. Maybe someone will see the smoke and come looking.”
Max rolled his eyes, “Exactly how are you going to start a fire, Kyle?”
Kyle lifted his chin, “I’m not completely hopeless you know. I know how to use a flint.”
Max arched an eyebrow, “Okay then, where’s the flint?”
Kyle gave an exasperated sigh and walked outside. A few moments later he was back wearing a huge grin and holding a couple of rocks up for Max’s inspection. “Flints.”
Max laughed, “So, you are going to rub those rocks together and hope a spark starts, huh?”
Kyle nodded at Max’s disbelieving stare and said, “I’ll get a fire going and you look around for blankets or something we can use as bedding.”
For a few moments Max watched as Kyle picked up the pieces of wood and begin to pile them in the fireplace. Finally he made his way around the place, trying to guess where blankets or even where clothes would be stored.
Turning towards the area where the bed was, he noticed the trunk again and made his way over to it. Bending over, he tried lifting the lid and it gave way with a creak of the hinges. Once it was open, Max peered in and smiled when he realized he’d hit the jackpot. Inside the chest were several moth eaten blankets. He reached in and pulled them out one by one. Opening each one and shaking them out, he decided they would do for the night.
Kyle stood up just as Max had finished shaking out the last blanket and proclaimed, “There. I made a fire to keep us warm tonight. Let’s hope someone sees the smoke tomorrow and comes to rescue us.”
************************************************************
Max awoke with a start, then groaned softly when Kyle’s arm dropped heavily on his back. Sighing, he lay there for a moment berating himself for thinking he could share even a king sized bed with his friend. Ever since they were young, Kyle had always hogged the bed, sleeping sprawled out and constantly moving around in his sleep. Max had hoped his friend would outgrow it, but no such luck.
As he quietly slipped out from under Kyle’s arm and grabbed the blanket he’d been using, he wondered just how Kyle’s live in girlfriend, Tess managed to put up with him. The two of them had been high school sweethearts and had even gone to college together before finally moving in together.
Max guessed it had to be true love since Tess had been hinting at getting married lately. Still, Kyle seemed just as clueless as ever because he wasn’t getting the hints Tess threw out at him. Everyone else got them, but not Kyle.
Max stared at Kyle as he rolled over onto his back and slung his arms wide open before settling down again. Rolling his eyes, he made his way to the backless couch and decided to try bunking down there. Grumbling under his breath about immature best friends, Max spread his blanket out and tried to get comfortable on the couch that was too short for his length.
He lay on his side, facing away from the fireplace and brought his knees up to his chest. Grabbing the blanket and pulling it tight around him, he settled in to try to get back to sleep when something caught his attention. Lifting his head, he could see a faint light shining through the window shutter near the cupboard. He watched as the light seemed to be moving in the direction of the front of the house.
Thinking it was someone with a flashlight, Max scrambled off of the couch and made his way to the front door. Opening the creaky door, he caught sight of someone running towards the front yard from the side of the house.
Looking over his shoulder he called out, “Kyle man, there’s someone outside.”
As he turned back around, he frowned when he realized it was a woman wearing a long dress. She looked as if she were out of breath, yet she was running hard and looking back over her shoulder towards the side of the house. Max was about to call out to her when she suddenly tripped and fell.
Max’s eyes went wide when he realized she had fallen into the garden. But it wasn’t the fall that shocked him, it was the garden. Instead of the old fence, wire, and decaying vegetation Max saw a very well cared for vegetable garden complete with a scarecrow in the middle of it.
Before he even had a chance to fully process what he was seeing, the woman rolled over and began to beg, “No! Please! I didn’t do it! I swear I didn’t!”
Max looked in the direction she was looking and saw a man come stalking from the side of the house looking very angry. Max gasped as he caught the glint of steel from the knife the man was holding. He looked back at the woman who was now trying to get her dress untangled from the fence wire. Max was just about to shout at her to run when she straightened up and the man slapped her hard.
Max swore under his breath and called out to Kyle again, “Kyle! Get up now!”
Max didn’t wait for an answer as he took off at a run towards the couple. The man had slapped the woman again and shoved her down near the edge of the garden. Max could hear her pleading with the man to stop when he saw the man raise the knife and bring it down into the woman’s chest.
“No!” screamed Max as the man pulled the knife back and proceeded to stab the woman over and over again. Stunned at what he was seeing, Max could only gape and stare in horror as the man suddenly tossed the knife away.
The woman lay amongst the now ruined garden coughing up blood. As the man leaned over her, seemingly crying and pleading with her, she lifted a bloody hand towards him. Max watched as the man grabbed her hand and leaned closer whispering something to her. Then, he slowly stood up and began to back away from her before he suddenly turned and ran back towards the side of the house.
Appalled at what he was seeing, Max looked at the woman. He could see her chest still moving, so he knew she was still alive. He couldn’t believe the man would just leave her there like that. Quickly scrambling towards her, he ran to her side and sank down to his knees. Looking down at her, he could see her eyes were open as she stared blankly at the sky. She coughed up more blood and Max leaned closer.
“Hold on, I’m going to help you okay?” he said as he lowered his hands to inspect the wound.
His hands never made contact with a solid body as they went through her form. Scrambling back in shock, Max exclaimed, “What the…”
Then noticed she was slowly turning her head to look past him. Max turned his own head just in time to see the man walking towards them carrying a shovel. Scrambling to his feet, Max could feel chills running up his spine. He knew what the man was going to do with that shovel.
With a cry of disbelief, he watched as the man dropped the shovel, leaned down and grabbed the woman’s shoulders before dragging her further into the garden. Then he went back for the shovel and began to dig a hole next to where the woman now lay.
Max glanced back at the woman who was still staring at the sky, tears falling down her cheeks, her breathing labored.
“Stop it!” Max screamed at the man. “Stop! Can’t you see she’s still alive! You can’t do this!”
As Max rushed at the unresponsive man, he suddenly heard Kyle’s voice call out, “Max? What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?”
Max looked towards the house where Kyle stood in the doorway rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. “Kyle! Hel…”
Max stopped in mid-sentence when he turned back towards the garden only to see that no one was there. He turned his head to and fro trying to find them to no avail.
Yet, everything looked the way it had when he and Kyle had first arrived. There was no man, no woman, and no evidence of a brutal murder. Max stared down at the ground, but there was no blood and no upturned earth.
All that he saw was the very old fence with rusty barbed wire, overrun with weeds and vegetation. The neat little garden with the scarecrow in the center might have never existed except in his mind.
As Max blinked in confusion Kyle spoke again, “Max? You okay? What’s going on?”
Max stared at the ground for a few more seconds before looking up at Kyle. “What?”
Kyle frowned, “What’s wrong?”
Max shook his head, “Nothing.” He glanced at the ground one more time before making his way back to the house. “Nothing’s wrong.”
Kyle stepped aside as Max entered the house. “You sure?” he asked.
Max nodded, “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“What were you doing out there anyway?”
“Nothing.” He shrugged, “Must have been having a bad dream.”
Kyle gave him a look, “Outside?”
“Yeah, I must have been sleepwalking or something.”
Kyle didn’t say anything else, but continued to stare in concern at his best friend. As he watched Max close the door, Kyle knew something was off. In all the years they had known each other, Kyle had never known Max to sleepwalk.
Max walked back to the couch and sat down. Kyle walked over to the fireplace and put more wood in before stoking it a bit. Turning around, he watched as Max curled the blanket around him.
“Why are you sleeping on the couch? The bed is big enough for both of us.”
Max didn’t turn to look at him as he replied, “You kept hitting me in your sleep, so I moved over here.”
“Oh, geez! Sorry man! I…”
“It’s okay, Kyle. I’m just gonna sleep here.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah,” came Max’s muffled reply.
Kyle stared at Max’s back for a few more moments before sighing and moving back to the bed. He knew Max wasn’t going to talk about whatever had happened that night. At least for the moment. Maybe he would tomorrow, but for now Kyle knew he was pretending to be going to sleep.
Max lay there with his eyes closed listening to Kyle settling back into bed. When things were quiet again, he slowly opened his eyes and stared into space. He could clearly remember everything he’d seen. It couldn’t have been a dream. It had seemed too real to have been a dream.
If that was true, he wondered, then what exactly did it all mean?
TBC...
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, but it's the weekend 
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. LOL, maybe. Sorry for the wait...