Thanks EVE
Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE) 10/29/15 COMPLETE
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begonia9508
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Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 47 9/1/15 p. 30 (bott
Oh no! They just got trapped... USA is a big country but that they could know where they were, is quite worrying and it can also means that Liz was "marked" with some kind of marker which will show where she is, at the moment! It is getting bad and bad and bad...etc
Thanks EVE
Thanks EVE
- Les jouissances de l'esprit sont faites pour calmer les orages du coeur!
- On reconnaît le bonheur au bruit qu'il fait quand il s'en va!
- L'amour vous rend aveugle et le mariage vous redonne la vue!
- On reconnaît le bonheur au bruit qu'il fait quand il s'en va!
- L'amour vous rend aveugle et le mariage vous redonne la vue!
Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 47 9/1/15 p. 30 (bott
So very sorry for bothering you will you please please come back and post more really really soon? I can't wait to read if Max, Liz, Michael, Maria, Isabel and Tess get away from the FBI. Where Max, Liz and friends will go and what they will do? So please come back and post more really soon?
From:
L-J-L 76
From:
L-J-L 76
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max and liz believer
- Obsessed Roswellian
- Posts: 822
- Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2002 10:45 am
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Chapter 48
L-J-L 76 - Thank you for the feedback! And the bump 
Eve (begonia9508) - The FBI sure has eyes and ears everywhere. Even outside of the US, it appears
Thank you for the feedback!
Previously on "Lethal Whispers"...
CHAPTER 48
Liz
She didn’t turn to look behind her.
Tried to ignore the increased barking of the dogs.
Attempted to block out the orders from the FBI screaming ‘Federal Agent!’, ‘Freeze’, ‘Stop right there’, ‘I’m armed’.
She focused on the pressure of his hand against hers, of her fingers interlaced with his, on putting one foot in front of the other.
The lunch area moved by in a blur and she barely registered the green ‘Exit’-sign above the door before they pushed through it. There were metallic stairs outside, only three steps, the perforated ones that enabled you to see through to the ground.
She stumbled, almost fell, as he pulled her down the steps. She ran into his back as he came to a complete stop.
“Melissa?”
Liz looked up and saw the open side door of a white van twenty feet in front of them. Outside of it was a girl, about their age, impatiently waving Max and Liz towards her.
“I’ll explain later,” she yelled. “Get in!”
Max didn’t need much time to go over his options. A nanosecond of confusion passed before he pulled on her arm and together they ran towards the car. Liz didn’t miss the suspicion and disproval on the woman’s face as her eyes flickered over Liz. Liz got the message loud and clear that she wasn’t welcome before Max with a sharp tug on her arm basically lifted her off the ground and she stumbled over the edge of the car, falling to her knees inside.
“Max,” Isabel breathed from the dark inside of the van and Liz blinked to catch Isabel throw her arms around her brother.
Breathlessly, Liz looked around the interior of the van while Melissa jumped out and slammed the door shut behind her, before getting in at the driver’s side.
They were all there. Tess, Isabel, Maria and Michael.
Liz scooted away, hating to have someone behind her back and scooted up with her back against the metallic inside of the door.
“That was Melissa,” Max said, his voice filled with confusion. He was just getting out of Isabel’s hug and he was shaking his head in incomprehension. “What is she doing here?”
“We had no choice but to trust her,” Maria said. She was sitting next to Michael, desperately clutching his hand. “We were being chased and she came up in front of us.”
“Isabel said that she works with you,” Michael said.
“She’s…” Max shook his head, a deep frown on his forehead as he glanced towards the front of the car, where the strange woman was maneuvering the van like she had spent her life driving get-away vehicles. “She’s an EMT.”
“I know that she’s your friend,” Isabel said, having talked to Melissa a lot of times herself. Melissa had even helped her when Max was having a seizure. “But can we trust her?”
“I guess we have to,” Max mumbled, putting a hand across his eyes. Liz watched his shoulders rise in a deep sigh. Liz glanced to her left, towards the driver’s seat. She was sure that they woman could hear their discussion, but apparently now was not the time for any explanations.
The van moved sharply to the side and the back of Liz’s head slammed against the door.
“Yikes,” Maria murmured, bumping into Michael.
Liz found a wide lanyard attached to the floor by a clasp next to her thigh and grabbed onto it for support. As she looked up, she saw Max moving towards her. He pushed up next to her and grabbed her free hand with his.
“Are you okay?” he asked, concern in his eyes.
“Yeah,” she breathed, not sure if she was telling the truth or not. “You?”
“Getting there,” he answered and brought their entwined hands to his mouth and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. A shiver of pleasure ran through her and she couldn’t stop the small smile on her lips. He looked down at her, caught her smile and returned it with a small smile of his own.
“Who is she, Max?” Liz asked, catching his eyes.
“She’s a friend,” he answered seriously. Simply. “I think we can trust her.”
“Does she know about you?”
“Nobody knows about us,” Max said with a lopsided smile. “Well, except for you and Maria.”
“Isn’t it very odd that she came here? To this very spot and picked us up when we needed to escape? How did she know? And why isn’t she worried about being our accomplice?”
“All very good questions,” Michael piped up where he was seated across from them, reminding Liz that she was not alone with Max. The rest of the group was quiet, probably all listening to their conversation.
Suddenly self-conscious, Liz fell into silence and, shy of a squeeze of his hand against hers, Max remained quiet too. Except for a hushed conversation between Maria and Michael, which Liz didn’t have the energy to focus on, the van was quiet; its passengers exhausted and shocked from the day’s events.
“Explain.”
Melissa had gotten rid of the agents on their trail, somehow, and they were now parked on a gravel road off the main road, surrounded by trees. Melissa had just opened the side door to the van and let them all out, Tess and Isabel opting to stay seated on the edge of the side entrance to the van.
Melissa crossed her arms across her chest (Max had never seen her act so coldly) and hitched her chin in the direction of Liz. Ignoring Max’s question, she said, “She doesn’t belong here.”
From the emotional roller-coaster provided by the day they’d just had, Max’s anger wasn’t far away. He felt it instantly bubble up to the surface as he stepped closer to Liz and took her cold hand in his. “She’s with me.”
Melissa looked at him. “She doesn’t belong here.”
“As far as we know, neither do you,” Michael said.
The answer was delivered as a simple statement. “She’s human.”
Max felt his stomach churn. She knows. “Liz is one of us.” He looked over at Maria. “And so is Maria.”
“Maria’s pregnant”, Melissa stated, as if it was general knowledge. “She’s carrying a hybrid. She is to be protected along with you.” She turned hard eyes on Liz. “There’s however no reason for us to risk everything to bring this girl along.”
Melissa took a step towards Liz, which made Max move in front of Liz, putting himself between Liz and his work colleague. Melissa stopped and her eyes remained hard as she etched them into Max. Max felt like he should wither at her look, but nothing could make him move away from Liz and put her in a vulnerable position. Except for Maria, Liz was alone with four aliens (possible five), which put her in a ridiculously exposed state.
“I won’t tell you what you want to hear as long as she’s here,” Melissa said.
“She knows about us,” Max said. “I presume you do too?”
“She doesn’t need to know what I’m about to tell you,” Melissa argued tensely.
“Put Liz in the van or something, so we can find out what this woman is talking about,” Michael sighed and Max felt Liz move behind him. He turned to watch Michael pull on Liz’s elbow to forcefully move her towards the van. Liz’s eyes were locked with Max, large and fearful in her pale face.
“Michael, what are-“ Max protested, but before anyone could react, Melissa had acted on the moment of distraction and closed the distance between her and Liz.
Melissa raised a hand to Liz’s forehead and Max’s “No!” was followed by Liz’s body slumping to the ground having been claimed by unconsciousness.
Max felt himself go ice-cold as the connection to Liz snapped, and governed by pure instinct - fueled by a hot wrath - Max stretched his hand out in the direction of Melissa.
Before Liz’s slack body reached the ground, Melissa was flying backwards through the air, thrown by the energy from Max’s outstretched hand. She hit the trunk of a tree as Max manifested his green shield around himself and Liz, falling to his knees next to her prone body and pulling her head up in his lap. Her head lolled to the side as he tried to simultaneously focus on keeping the protective shield up while searching Liz’s body for injuries.
His heart was hammering in his chest at the unresponsiveness of Liz’s body, of how her body was like dead weight, of the paleness of her face. Fighting the panic building at the back of his throat, ignoring the cold sweat that was breaking out on his forehead, he pressed his fingers to her jugular: finding a pulse, alas weak and thready.
He attempted to search her body, even without the connection between them, but the strain of keeping the shield up at the same time as taking care of Liz was quickly sapping his energy levels.
He looked at Melissa through the green veil, drowning in hatred. “What did you do to her?!”
Melissa was slowly getting to her feet, holding her hands up in front of her in a gesture of resignation. Maybe that was the best thing to do, considering that both Michael and Isabel were posed with their right hands stretched out towards her, prepared to fire if she decided to make the wrong move.
“Nothing,” Melissa answered and she sounded shaken.
But Max didn’t have the patience for her feelings.
Releasing the protective shield, he gently lowered Liz’s upper body to the ground and got to his feet, advancing on Melissa quickly. Melissa shied back against the tree trunk that had stopped the throw of her body just a moment earlier, as Max stopped in front of her. He looked into the eyes of the person that he had considered a friend, with whom he had shared laughs and who had been a real support during bad days.
“Tell me what you did.” There was nothing gentle about his tone. It was deadly.
“I’d tell him, if I were you,” Maria said from behind them.
Melissa briefly glanced at the group behind Maria before she squared her shoulders and regained strength to her voice. “There’s something wrong with her.”
“There wasn’t, before you touched her,” Isabel said.
Max slammed a fist against the trunk, half an inch from Melissa’s face. She jumped, but kept her eyes connected with his.
“What?” Max demanded.
“She has two minds,” Melissa answered.
Max didn’t have time to reflect over Melissa’s words as Isabel forced his attention back towards Liz. “Max! She’s seizing.”
Without a word, he left Melissa and ran back to Liz. Her head was moving from side to side, her fists clenching and unclenching next to her body while non-sensical words were spilling over her lips. “Na kuuawa mtoto wangu. Na kuuawa mtoto wangu.”
Isabel folded her arms around her middle and asked in a small voice, “What is she saying?”
Max cradled Liz’s cheek with his hand and shook his head, feeling helpless and frustrated. “Nothing. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“No. It does.” The group turned to Melissa, who had silently moved to stand next to them.
“It’s gibberish,” Maria protested.
Max stretched out his hand towards Melissa in warning and said coldly, “That’s close enough.”
Melissa stopped and met Max’s eyes. “Is this the girl you saved when you were little?”
Max looked from Liz to Melissa, his hand lowering in confusion. “How do you know about that?”
“I know more about you than you think,” Melissa said wistfully and looked at Liz, her voice turning gentle as she said. “Jina lako ni nani?”
“Aislin”, Liz mumbled and Max felt his heart skip in dread. Aislin. Aislin.
Turning to Melissa, Max grabbed her wrist and demanded, “What did you ask her?” while Isabel asked, “What language is that?”
“She’s speaking Antarian,” Melissa looked at the group. “Your language.”
“What did you ask her?” Max asked again, feeling his restraint falling apart. He had seen Liz in his dreams and he had heard the name in his head; Aislin. But it had been a dream. Liz was not some girl called Aislin, his mind had mixed it up.
“I asked for her name,” Melissa answered simply.
“What did she say? Earlier?” Maria asked.
“Zan,” Liz whispered, her voice breaking in sobs. “Zan?”
Melissa looked at Max and said, like she was only talking to him, “Earlier, she said, ‘You killed my baby’.”
“Upendo wangu,” Liz mumbled.
“She’s speaking to you,” Melissa said to Max and he shivered with her words. Zan. Something about that word sounded familiar.
“What’s happening to her?” Max asked weakly and took a hold of one of Liz’s hands. Her hand immediately softened in his grip and her agitated movements calmed slightly.
“I’m sorry,” Melissa mumbled, “I wanted to sedate her, so that we could speak in private. But apparently, by sedating Liz, I awoke Aislin.”
Isabel laughed, but stopped abruptly as she saw the seriousness on Melissa’s face. Looking around the group for support in the ridicule, Isabel asked, “You’re joking, right?”
“I never thought this was possible,” Melissa said, mostly to herself. “I’ve never heard of anything like this.”
“Bring her back,” Max said quietly but forcefully. He was not interested in history lessons at the moment. Liz was obviously in pain, writhing on the hard ground next to him, tears running down her cheeks, her eyes open but unseeing.
“Are you saying that she’s possessed?” Isabel asked incredulously.
“In a manner of speaking,” Melissa reluctantly agreed. “Your friend inhabits two minds.”
“Bring her back,” Max repeated, even more demanding.
“I’ll try,” Melissa sighed and dropped to her knees on the other side of Liz. Max had to struggle to keep himself from pushing Melissa away.
Grabbing Liz’s free hand, Melissa mumbled, “Aislin?” Liz turned her blank eyes towards Melissa’s voice. “Mimi haja wewe kwenda kulala. Mimi haja ya kuzungumza na Liz.”
Liz wailed softly, “No, mtoto wangu.”
“Mimi kukusaidia kuokoa mtoto wako ... Lakini unahitaji niruhusu nizungumze na Liz.”
To Max’s surprise, Liz relaxed on the ground, her eyes falling closed. “What did you say?”
Melissa looked at Max worriedly, “I told her that I needed her to go to sleep. That I needed to speak to Liz.”
“What the fuck…?” Michael mumbled, standing over Liz’s head.
There was rapid eye movement beneath Liz’s eyelids before they flew open. Her gaze was confused before she focused on Max’s face. “Max?”
Max felt his body sigh with relief and exhaustion. On instinct he bent down, put his hands around the back of her shoulders and crushed her upper body up against his. “Thank God.” He didn’t know how much more of this drama he could handle for one day.
“Melissa, is it?” Michael asked dryly as Max pressed a kiss to Liz’s forehead. “You’ve got some explaining to do.”
TBC...
Eve (begonia9508) - The FBI sure has eyes and ears everywhere. Even outside of the US, it appears
Thank you for the feedback!Previously on "Lethal Whispers"...
- Max, Tess, Michael and Isabel believe themselves to be aliens, because of them lacking memories from their first living years and having special abilities.
Michael recently went back to the "birth" cave in the desert outside of Roswell. The cave was protected by a force field which was not very healthy for Maria (humans). In the cave Michael found writing he couldn't interpret.
That same cave was later visited by a person we don't know the identity of.
Max brought Liz back from recent death when she was just young. He seems to have formed some type of connection with her since then, enabling himself to see when she's in danger through premonitions.
Liz has been let in on the secret of the aliens walking the earth.
Liz was attacked, drawing the attention of the FBI and the group is now on the run to keep themselves safe.
Liz was just abducted by the special unit of the FBI, asked for the information she has on the group. She was returned just a couple of hours later. Traumatized.
Tess has been trying to get Max interested in her and did a mindwarp on Liz to drive a wedge between Liz and Max. This was revealed in the previous chapter.
Max normally works as an EMT, with a colleague named Melissa.
The group was just trapped at a mall and are now trying to get out of there without getting caught...
CHAPTER 48
Liz
She didn’t turn to look behind her.
Tried to ignore the increased barking of the dogs.
Attempted to block out the orders from the FBI screaming ‘Federal Agent!’, ‘Freeze’, ‘Stop right there’, ‘I’m armed’.
She focused on the pressure of his hand against hers, of her fingers interlaced with his, on putting one foot in front of the other.
The lunch area moved by in a blur and she barely registered the green ‘Exit’-sign above the door before they pushed through it. There were metallic stairs outside, only three steps, the perforated ones that enabled you to see through to the ground.
She stumbled, almost fell, as he pulled her down the steps. She ran into his back as he came to a complete stop.
“Melissa?”
Liz looked up and saw the open side door of a white van twenty feet in front of them. Outside of it was a girl, about their age, impatiently waving Max and Liz towards her.
“I’ll explain later,” she yelled. “Get in!”
Max didn’t need much time to go over his options. A nanosecond of confusion passed before he pulled on her arm and together they ran towards the car. Liz didn’t miss the suspicion and disproval on the woman’s face as her eyes flickered over Liz. Liz got the message loud and clear that she wasn’t welcome before Max with a sharp tug on her arm basically lifted her off the ground and she stumbled over the edge of the car, falling to her knees inside.
“Max,” Isabel breathed from the dark inside of the van and Liz blinked to catch Isabel throw her arms around her brother.
Breathlessly, Liz looked around the interior of the van while Melissa jumped out and slammed the door shut behind her, before getting in at the driver’s side.
They were all there. Tess, Isabel, Maria and Michael.
Liz scooted away, hating to have someone behind her back and scooted up with her back against the metallic inside of the door.
“That was Melissa,” Max said, his voice filled with confusion. He was just getting out of Isabel’s hug and he was shaking his head in incomprehension. “What is she doing here?”
“We had no choice but to trust her,” Maria said. She was sitting next to Michael, desperately clutching his hand. “We were being chased and she came up in front of us.”
“Isabel said that she works with you,” Michael said.
“She’s…” Max shook his head, a deep frown on his forehead as he glanced towards the front of the car, where the strange woman was maneuvering the van like she had spent her life driving get-away vehicles. “She’s an EMT.”
“I know that she’s your friend,” Isabel said, having talked to Melissa a lot of times herself. Melissa had even helped her when Max was having a seizure. “But can we trust her?”
“I guess we have to,” Max mumbled, putting a hand across his eyes. Liz watched his shoulders rise in a deep sigh. Liz glanced to her left, towards the driver’s seat. She was sure that they woman could hear their discussion, but apparently now was not the time for any explanations.
The van moved sharply to the side and the back of Liz’s head slammed against the door.
“Yikes,” Maria murmured, bumping into Michael.
Liz found a wide lanyard attached to the floor by a clasp next to her thigh and grabbed onto it for support. As she looked up, she saw Max moving towards her. He pushed up next to her and grabbed her free hand with his.
“Are you okay?” he asked, concern in his eyes.
“Yeah,” she breathed, not sure if she was telling the truth or not. “You?”
“Getting there,” he answered and brought their entwined hands to his mouth and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. A shiver of pleasure ran through her and she couldn’t stop the small smile on her lips. He looked down at her, caught her smile and returned it with a small smile of his own.
“Who is she, Max?” Liz asked, catching his eyes.
“She’s a friend,” he answered seriously. Simply. “I think we can trust her.”
“Does she know about you?”
“Nobody knows about us,” Max said with a lopsided smile. “Well, except for you and Maria.”
“Isn’t it very odd that she came here? To this very spot and picked us up when we needed to escape? How did she know? And why isn’t she worried about being our accomplice?”
“All very good questions,” Michael piped up where he was seated across from them, reminding Liz that she was not alone with Max. The rest of the group was quiet, probably all listening to their conversation.
Suddenly self-conscious, Liz fell into silence and, shy of a squeeze of his hand against hers, Max remained quiet too. Except for a hushed conversation between Maria and Michael, which Liz didn’t have the energy to focus on, the van was quiet; its passengers exhausted and shocked from the day’s events.
*****
Max“Explain.”
Melissa had gotten rid of the agents on their trail, somehow, and they were now parked on a gravel road off the main road, surrounded by trees. Melissa had just opened the side door to the van and let them all out, Tess and Isabel opting to stay seated on the edge of the side entrance to the van.
Melissa crossed her arms across her chest (Max had never seen her act so coldly) and hitched her chin in the direction of Liz. Ignoring Max’s question, she said, “She doesn’t belong here.”
From the emotional roller-coaster provided by the day they’d just had, Max’s anger wasn’t far away. He felt it instantly bubble up to the surface as he stepped closer to Liz and took her cold hand in his. “She’s with me.”
Melissa looked at him. “She doesn’t belong here.”
“As far as we know, neither do you,” Michael said.
The answer was delivered as a simple statement. “She’s human.”
Max felt his stomach churn. She knows. “Liz is one of us.” He looked over at Maria. “And so is Maria.”
“Maria’s pregnant”, Melissa stated, as if it was general knowledge. “She’s carrying a hybrid. She is to be protected along with you.” She turned hard eyes on Liz. “There’s however no reason for us to risk everything to bring this girl along.”
Melissa took a step towards Liz, which made Max move in front of Liz, putting himself between Liz and his work colleague. Melissa stopped and her eyes remained hard as she etched them into Max. Max felt like he should wither at her look, but nothing could make him move away from Liz and put her in a vulnerable position. Except for Maria, Liz was alone with four aliens (possible five), which put her in a ridiculously exposed state.
“I won’t tell you what you want to hear as long as she’s here,” Melissa said.
“She knows about us,” Max said. “I presume you do too?”
“She doesn’t need to know what I’m about to tell you,” Melissa argued tensely.
“Put Liz in the van or something, so we can find out what this woman is talking about,” Michael sighed and Max felt Liz move behind him. He turned to watch Michael pull on Liz’s elbow to forcefully move her towards the van. Liz’s eyes were locked with Max, large and fearful in her pale face.
“Michael, what are-“ Max protested, but before anyone could react, Melissa had acted on the moment of distraction and closed the distance between her and Liz.
Melissa raised a hand to Liz’s forehead and Max’s “No!” was followed by Liz’s body slumping to the ground having been claimed by unconsciousness.
Max felt himself go ice-cold as the connection to Liz snapped, and governed by pure instinct - fueled by a hot wrath - Max stretched his hand out in the direction of Melissa.
Before Liz’s slack body reached the ground, Melissa was flying backwards through the air, thrown by the energy from Max’s outstretched hand. She hit the trunk of a tree as Max manifested his green shield around himself and Liz, falling to his knees next to her prone body and pulling her head up in his lap. Her head lolled to the side as he tried to simultaneously focus on keeping the protective shield up while searching Liz’s body for injuries.
His heart was hammering in his chest at the unresponsiveness of Liz’s body, of how her body was like dead weight, of the paleness of her face. Fighting the panic building at the back of his throat, ignoring the cold sweat that was breaking out on his forehead, he pressed his fingers to her jugular: finding a pulse, alas weak and thready.
He attempted to search her body, even without the connection between them, but the strain of keeping the shield up at the same time as taking care of Liz was quickly sapping his energy levels.
He looked at Melissa through the green veil, drowning in hatred. “What did you do to her?!”
Melissa was slowly getting to her feet, holding her hands up in front of her in a gesture of resignation. Maybe that was the best thing to do, considering that both Michael and Isabel were posed with their right hands stretched out towards her, prepared to fire if she decided to make the wrong move.
“Nothing,” Melissa answered and she sounded shaken.
But Max didn’t have the patience for her feelings.
Releasing the protective shield, he gently lowered Liz’s upper body to the ground and got to his feet, advancing on Melissa quickly. Melissa shied back against the tree trunk that had stopped the throw of her body just a moment earlier, as Max stopped in front of her. He looked into the eyes of the person that he had considered a friend, with whom he had shared laughs and who had been a real support during bad days.
“Tell me what you did.” There was nothing gentle about his tone. It was deadly.
“I’d tell him, if I were you,” Maria said from behind them.
Melissa briefly glanced at the group behind Maria before she squared her shoulders and regained strength to her voice. “There’s something wrong with her.”
“There wasn’t, before you touched her,” Isabel said.
Max slammed a fist against the trunk, half an inch from Melissa’s face. She jumped, but kept her eyes connected with his.
“What?” Max demanded.
“She has two minds,” Melissa answered.
Max didn’t have time to reflect over Melissa’s words as Isabel forced his attention back towards Liz. “Max! She’s seizing.”
Without a word, he left Melissa and ran back to Liz. Her head was moving from side to side, her fists clenching and unclenching next to her body while non-sensical words were spilling over her lips. “Na kuuawa mtoto wangu. Na kuuawa mtoto wangu.”
Isabel folded her arms around her middle and asked in a small voice, “What is she saying?”
Max cradled Liz’s cheek with his hand and shook his head, feeling helpless and frustrated. “Nothing. It doesn’t make any sense.”
“No. It does.” The group turned to Melissa, who had silently moved to stand next to them.
“It’s gibberish,” Maria protested.
Max stretched out his hand towards Melissa in warning and said coldly, “That’s close enough.”
Melissa stopped and met Max’s eyes. “Is this the girl you saved when you were little?”
Max looked from Liz to Melissa, his hand lowering in confusion. “How do you know about that?”
“I know more about you than you think,” Melissa said wistfully and looked at Liz, her voice turning gentle as she said. “Jina lako ni nani?”
“Aislin”, Liz mumbled and Max felt his heart skip in dread. Aislin. Aislin.
Turning to Melissa, Max grabbed her wrist and demanded, “What did you ask her?” while Isabel asked, “What language is that?”
“She’s speaking Antarian,” Melissa looked at the group. “Your language.”
“What did you ask her?” Max asked again, feeling his restraint falling apart. He had seen Liz in his dreams and he had heard the name in his head; Aislin. But it had been a dream. Liz was not some girl called Aislin, his mind had mixed it up.
“I asked for her name,” Melissa answered simply.
“What did she say? Earlier?” Maria asked.
“Zan,” Liz whispered, her voice breaking in sobs. “Zan?”
Melissa looked at Max and said, like she was only talking to him, “Earlier, she said, ‘You killed my baby’.”
“Upendo wangu,” Liz mumbled.
“She’s speaking to you,” Melissa said to Max and he shivered with her words. Zan. Something about that word sounded familiar.
“What’s happening to her?” Max asked weakly and took a hold of one of Liz’s hands. Her hand immediately softened in his grip and her agitated movements calmed slightly.
“I’m sorry,” Melissa mumbled, “I wanted to sedate her, so that we could speak in private. But apparently, by sedating Liz, I awoke Aislin.”
Isabel laughed, but stopped abruptly as she saw the seriousness on Melissa’s face. Looking around the group for support in the ridicule, Isabel asked, “You’re joking, right?”
“I never thought this was possible,” Melissa said, mostly to herself. “I’ve never heard of anything like this.”
“Bring her back,” Max said quietly but forcefully. He was not interested in history lessons at the moment. Liz was obviously in pain, writhing on the hard ground next to him, tears running down her cheeks, her eyes open but unseeing.
“Are you saying that she’s possessed?” Isabel asked incredulously.
“In a manner of speaking,” Melissa reluctantly agreed. “Your friend inhabits two minds.”
“Bring her back,” Max repeated, even more demanding.
“I’ll try,” Melissa sighed and dropped to her knees on the other side of Liz. Max had to struggle to keep himself from pushing Melissa away.
Grabbing Liz’s free hand, Melissa mumbled, “Aislin?” Liz turned her blank eyes towards Melissa’s voice. “Mimi haja wewe kwenda kulala. Mimi haja ya kuzungumza na Liz.”
Liz wailed softly, “No, mtoto wangu.”
“Mimi kukusaidia kuokoa mtoto wako ... Lakini unahitaji niruhusu nizungumze na Liz.”
To Max’s surprise, Liz relaxed on the ground, her eyes falling closed. “What did you say?”
Melissa looked at Max worriedly, “I told her that I needed her to go to sleep. That I needed to speak to Liz.”
“What the fuck…?” Michael mumbled, standing over Liz’s head.
There was rapid eye movement beneath Liz’s eyelids before they flew open. Her gaze was confused before she focused on Max’s face. “Max?”
Max felt his body sigh with relief and exhaustion. On instinct he bent down, put his hands around the back of her shoulders and crushed her upper body up against his. “Thank God.” He didn’t know how much more of this drama he could handle for one day.
“Melissa, is it?” Michael asked dryly as Max pressed a kiss to Liz’s forehead. “You’ve got some explaining to do.”
TBC...
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Roswelllostcause
- Roswell Fanatic
- Posts: 1992
- Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2001 4:58 pm
- Location: Motown
Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 48 9/4/15 p. 31
Boy oh boy Melissa has a lot of excplaing to do and fast!
Helen
Helen
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saori_1902
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keepsmiling7
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Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 48 9/4/15 p. 31
Thanks for the "previously" comments......that always helps me.
Now Max's work mate is something else......and her timing was perfect to come help the gang out.
Will they be able to trust Melissa??
Maybe after she does all of that explaining.
Thanks,
Carolyn
Now Max's work mate is something else......and her timing was perfect to come help the gang out.
Will they be able to trust Melissa??
Maybe after she does all of that explaining.
Thanks,
Carolyn
Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 48 9/4/15 p. 31
Great Chapter!!!! please please please please please please please please please please come back and post more really really really reallys oon? I can't wait to read what will happen next for Max and Liz. So Melissa saves the day. I can't believe Melissa wants Liz gone. Liz has a right to hear what Melissa has to say. I can't believe Michael was rough with Liz. I like how Max and Liz smiled at each other while holding hands. I also can't believe Melissa knocked Liz out the way she did. I'm glad Max was being very protective of Liz. Oh no Aislin has come out. Who is Aislin? What she is to Max? Who is Melissa really? Will Melissa talk while Liz is with Max? What will Melissa have to tell Max, Liz and the others? Will Max, Liz and others be happy about the news or upset about the news? Will Max and Liz be alone to talk? Will Max tell Liz what happened? Will Melissa protect Max, Liz and others? Will Melissa let Liz get caught by the FBI? Sorry for the questions I was wondering. Please please please please please please please please please please come back and post more really really really really soon? I can't wait to read what will happen next for Max and Liz.
From:
L-J-L 76
From:
L-J-L 76
Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 48 9/4/15 p. 31
So very sorry for bothering you will you please please come back and post more really really soon? I can't wait to read what will Liz remember when she wakes up. And what this Melissa woman has to Max, Liz and the others?
From:
L-J-L 76
From:
L-J-L 76
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max and liz believer
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Chapter 49
Helen (Roswelllostcause) - She's on it... Thank you for the feedback!
saori_1902 - Thank you
Carolyn (keepsmiling7)
Melissa will shed some light on things in the next chapter and that'll hopefully help you decide if you can trust her or not. Thank you for the feedback!
L-J-L 76 - Yes, Melissa knocking Liz out was not very nice. She seems to have an aversion towards Liz... A lot of your questions will (hopefully) be answered in this next part. Thank you for the feedback and the bump!
Previously on "Lethal Whispers"...
Answers are coming up in this next part
CHAPTER 49
Maria
“You were the beloved Royal Four of Antar.”
Maria felt Michael’s hands tightened around her middle, across where their baby rested, as Melissa started talking.
It had become night and they had shut themselves into the van, the sporadic and somewhat spooky lights of three flashlights positioned on the metal flooring casting off shadows on the listeners and the teller. Maria looked around the group: at Max who had laid his jacket around Liz’s shaking body and had positioned an arm around her shoulder while she rested her head tiredly against his shoulder: at Isabel who was hugging her knees to her chest, her face dirty and weary as she rested her head on the top of her knees: at Tess, who was seated the furthest away from them, as if she felt the great divide between her and the rest of the group since Max had found out about her betrayal. Tess hadn’t spoken a word since Max had confronted her. At least not to the group. Maybe she had said something to Isabel when they were together in the mall earlier.
The newest addition to the group was sitting in the center, cross-legged, with the attention of three aliens and two humans. Her hair was curly and, with her ordinary clothes, she looked like a regular twenty-something girl. But the words coming out of her mouth were everything but regular.
“You, Zan,” Melissa nodded towards Max and Maria looked at her best friend wearily as Melissa continued, directing her gaze towards Isabel, “and you, Vilandra, were the children of our great king, Demarcus. He was a very beloved man and the majority of the Antarians were loyal to him. He had a younger brother called Khivar, who was quite the opposite of his brother. His political views were controversial and he wasn’t afraid to share them. But as long as Demarcus was alive, Khivar would never have the chance to rule Antar.”
Melissa took a deep breath before continuing, “Our king grew sick with an Antarian disease similar to the bubonic plague on Earth and there was no cure. This fueled the hopes of the opposition that Khivar might be able to take to the throne. The only problem was Demarcus’ son. If a prince had reached adulthood - which in human translation meant around 17-18 years of age - upon the death of the king, the throne would be passed onto him. If not, the throne would be passed onto the next alternate adult relative.”
“Khivar,” Isabel mumbled.
Melissa nodded. “Right.”
“I think I’ve seen this movie,” Michael muttered into Maria’s hair.
“But Ma- Zan reached adulthood before…?” Maria guessed.
Melissa nodded again. “He did. He was on the throne for a mere two days before there was an attempt at his life - the first one. He survived, thanks to proficient guards, but it made everyone aware of the possible threat posed against the new rulers of Antar. It made a lot of citizens wary and a general unease was spreading through the population. The royal advisors came up with a plan of strengthening the throne by having Zan marry a noble girl from a well-respected family.”
“Tess,” Max said quietly and Maria noted how Liz stiffened next to Max.
“Her name was Ava,” Melissa said softly and smiled encouragingly at Tess in the background of the group. Maria didn’t turn her head to look at Tess. It was too uncomfortable at the moment.
“Ava was young, only 15 or so,” Melissa continued, “and didn’t really have a choice about the marriage. Neither did Zan. It was rumored that Zan had already given his heart to someone else: A farmer girl. There were even rumors that this girl was pregnant with Zan’s child, but none of the rumors were ever confirmed. Well, at least not until that last battle… But I’ll get to that.”
“What happened?” Isabel whispered as Melissa paused.
Melissa brushed a red curl off her forehead and wet her lips before continuing, “The nation was feeling increasingly uncertain about the new king. They all loved Zan, had watched him grow from a toddler to a young prince to a respected adolescent, who was now set to rule their world. But due to the increasing threat from the opposition, Zan was kept mostly hidden from the public. His announcements were aired from a secret position in the castle and he made no public appearances. With the rise of the opposition being so real amongst the people, the former King’s loyal followers were either changing sides or growing increasingly quieter, afraid of being persecuted by the opposition.”
“But the royals must’ve had more power still, must’ve been able to get rid of the opposition,” Michael objected.
Melissa smiled wistfully. “You were Rath.” Maria felt herself stiffen in Michael’s arms and his upper body grew rigid against her back. “And you thought the same thing then as you do now.”
“Who was I?” Michael whispered and Maria felt a chill go through her body. There was something very surreal about listening to someone speak of your lover’s former life and identity and knowing that it was probably true. That Michael had lived before.
“You were head commander. A natural at it, actually.”
If Maria had turned around and looked at Michael at that point, she would have seen his eyes glow with interest. Michael had never felt important in his Earth-bound life.
“Something of a hot-head though,” Melissa smiled and Maria felt herself match that smile in recognition as Isabel and Max chuckled softly. “You were young to be top commander, but you had worked yourself up the ladder quickly. You were also the trusted friend of Zan and you would give your life for your friend and king.”
Maria felt her eyes tear as she looked over at Max who was looking slightly uncomfortable with the tale of deep devotion between men. Maria knew that Max’s display of discomfort was because Rath and Zan’s story was so similar to Max and Michael’s.
“Rath did everything in the book, and outside of it, to dispel the power of the opposition and give the power back to his king. But the opposition had been working for years to infiltrate even the highest commands of the royal office. Rath and his army were fighting a losing battle that started long before he was born.”
“What happened?” Max asked and Maria reacted to the fearful timbre of his voice. She felt it too. The fear. They all knew that something bad had happened, otherwise they wouldn’t be sitting here on Earth. The aliens she loved so much would be living their life on Antar and she, the girl miraculously cured from cancer, would be dead.
“To fully understand what happened, you must know that everyone of royal blood on Antar had special abilities. Those same abilities have been activated in you in this life, which means that Zan was able to heal, Ava could confuse enemies by making them see things that weren’t there,” Maria felt goosebumps across her body as she thought about how Tess had used those powers even in this life, “and Vilandra could figure out the strategic plans of enemies by visiting their dreams.”
“What about Rath?” Michael asked.
“Rath was not born of royal blood,” Melissa said. “Therefore his abilities were not unique. Everyone on Antar had some basic abilities that here on Earth would be considered impossible but which were considered normal on Antar, no different than being able to sing.”
Michael must have looked disappointed, because Melissa gave him a empathic smile, “Of course, just like some people are tone-deaf and some are opera singers, there were different degrees of how well you utilized your powers. Rath was exceptional in using what he had. He was a crisp strategic thinker, naturally suspicious, and could sharpen his aim to hit anything.”
“Destructive abilities?” Michael murmured, disappointed. He already knew that his only power basically meant that he could blow things up, which was ridiculous compared to the other aliens’ powers.
“Protective abilities,” Melissa corrected and Maria sent her a grateful smile.
Melissa smiled back with a soft understanding nod before continuing, “Because of Zan’s healing abilities, he was instinctively interested in medicine which meant that he had spent quite a lot of time in the Royal Healing Facility, even long before his father died. He was actually intimately involved in trying to find a cure for his dying father. Working alongside physicians and Antar’s best researchers, Zan came up with the idea of cloning someone’s essence.”
“Huh?” Michael said.
“Zan worked on copying someone’s…” Melissa searched for the right word, “…soul. Whatever makes you you. All of your thoughts, memories, personality traits copied and saved.”
“He…” Max cleared his throat, “I mean, I, figured it out, didn’t I?”
“It’s the reason why you’re here,” Melissa confirmed.
“So what? Our essence got copied onto some kind of USB and plugged into a human?” Michael asked impatiently.
“Something like that,” Melissa answered. “I’m not a physician, so I don’t know the details, but Zan put Rath on a special mission to find suitable hosts for accepting their essence, in case of emergency.”
“‘In case of emergency’?” Isabel asked.
“In case of our deaths,” Max translated quietly.
Melissa nodded gravely. “Exactly. It was no secret to Zan or the royal guards that their lives were threatened. And if they were to be killed, Khivar would be the next one on the throne, which couldn’t happen.”
“Why not put their essence into an Antarian?” Liz asked. Maria turned surprised eyes to Liz. She was not the only one who was surprised at Liz’s involvement in the conversation.
Melissa’s face showed slight disapproval at the question and Maria wondered why Melissa was still showing resentment towards Liz.
“Why transport them away from Antar, away from the war, to Earth?” Liz continued.
Everyone looked at Melissa, obviously also wanting to know the answer to that question.
Melissa sighed. “Zan tried. He wanted to do just that. Put his essence into some anonymous farmer, who would give their body up for the royal war, so that the king could hide in plain sight. But it wasn’t possible. Something clashed with putting Antarian essence into Antarian bodies. The bodies rejected the essence, recognized it as not self. So they turned their search outside of Antar. It was just a week before the uprising when Rath and his army discovered Earth. Earth, which had a similar atmosphere to Antar and where homo sapiens looked very similar to Antarians.”
Melissa shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “The plan was to send the Royal Four, as you were called, to Earth while the royal army fought the resistance. It was always believed that the royal army would win, they had more heads, and if the distraction of protecting the Royal Four was removed it would be an easy win. But the uprising came too soon. None of the Royal Four could stand by and watch as their army went into war, as the opposition slaughtered their nation.”
“They went into battle,” Maria whispered. Her lips felt dry and she was shaking. It was as if she was about to hear how her boyfriend died - even though he was very much alive - seated behind her. His warm arms tightened around her in comfort.
“Yes, they did. Zan went straight to a close-by village to protect the farmers. But in retrospect, it’s been discussed that Zan was actually going there to protect a girl.” “What about Ava?” Liz whispered. “Where was she?”
“She was too young to fight. She wanted to, and she contributed with her abilities in many situations, but Zan placed her in the healing facility for the copying procedure before he left the castle to go to village.”
“He was protecting her,” Liz said thoughtfully.
Melissa looked insulted. “Of course he did. Zan was very protective, very loyal, very caring. He was a pacifist and wanted to save his people from war completely. But of course, that was not possible. He could only save the people closest to him.”
“Not Aislin,” Maria objected and she got the chill of Melissa’s look.
“No,” Melissa said tightly. “Zan was found, on the brink of death, close to a beautiful girl in ill-fitted patchy clothes just outside of the village he had gone to defend. The girl was dead. Rumors say that she was covered in blood, that she had been with child but was no longer, and that Zan was holding onto her. Apparently, the men that got to him first had troubles separating the dying king from the girl’s body. He wouldn’t let her go.”
“It was Aislin?” Max croaked and Maria looked at him with sympathy. Max’s face was white as a sheet and he was holding tightly onto Liz’s hand.
Melissa cast Liz a fleeting look before reluctantly nodding, “That was the rumor, and judging from the earlier episode from your friend here, I would say it was more than a rumor.”
“But how…” Max whispered and Maria finished what he couldn’t say, “How is that possible? If Aislin died, how come Liz somehow turned into Aislin?”
Melissa shook her head in confusion. “I’m not sure. But I think that Zan somehow absorbed Aislin’s essence. Maybe he knew so much about the process from all the research he had done, that he could do it without the help of medicine or any equipment. Maybe his…” Melissa hesitated, seemingly reluctant to admit it, “…love for her made it possible.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Tess said, surprising everyone. But she seemed indifferent to the fact that everyone was staring at her as she continued, “Zan was married to Ava. He loved Ava. Otherwise he wouldn’t have placed her in protective care. He wouldn’t have seen to it that her essence was carried on.”
“I agree,” Melissa mumbled. “It doesn’t make sense.”
Maria felt herself getting annoyed. “Maybe he was just acting according to how he was supposed to act. He was forced to marry Ava. He knew that he needed to stay married to her to not cause any more instability in the royal house than there already was. Maybe he was smart enough to know that it was not the time to be selfish and bring up his love life when there was a threat on the royal house.”
Max looked at Maria, stunned, and Maria heard Michael chuckled in her ear. His lips brushed lightly against the corner of her ear as he whispered, “That’s my girl.”
Tess shot to her feet and pointed at Max, “He cheated on me!”
Max frowned and said angrily, “Tess, please-“
“No,” Melissa interrupted. “Zan didn’t cheat on Ava-“
There was fire burning in Tess’ eyes as she stared at Liz and Max. Mostly Liz. “She was pregnant. With his child.”
“First of all, that’s Max you’re pointing at-“ Isabel started, but was interrupted by Melissa.
“Believe me, there were a lot of rumors, but after Zan took to the throne, he was never alone. He was even watched while sleeping. There was no way he could be together with someone else after he had been married to Ava. Someone would’ve seen it and reported it. What he did before he took to the throne though…”
“He was supposed to love me,” Tess whispered, hot tears rolling down her cheeks.
Isabel got to her feet, walked up to Tess and took a firm grip on her upper arms. With a light shake, Isabel said sternly, “For God’s sake, Tess. Pull yourself together. That was Zan and Ava. Not you and Max.”
“But it’s happening again,” Tess cried. “Look at them!” She pointed accursedly at Max and Liz. “They’re together again.”
“That’s Max and Liz,” Isabel objected. “Not-“
“Please, sit down,” Melissa said gravely, “I’m not done.”
“She’s not part of us,” Tess said bitterly, her eyes red with tears and anger, “She’s not part of the Royal Four.”
“Tess,” Max said coldly. “Sit. Down.”
Tess turned angry eyes towards her ex-husband and after a stubborn pause her body sank to the floor of the van again.
Melissa inhaled deeply and pushed her hands through her hair before continuing, “Zan was brought to the Royal Healing Facility where the medical team followed the procedures set up by Zan himself. Zan’s body was failing and it would not survive. His essence was carefully extracted, saved in a crystal, alongside the royal seal-“
“The royal seal?” Michael questioned.
“It was a seal etched into Zan’s genetic make-up, which was activated when his father died. It had been active in his father when he was alive. It was the seal that showed who was the rightful king. It was the seal that would be activated in Khivar were Zan to die. It was also very handy when putting Zan’s essence in someone else’s body as means of identification.”
Maria turned curious eyes to Max and her voice came out in unison with her boyfriend’s, “Do you have it?”
Max shook his head in confusion. “No…”
Melissa looked certain when eyes turned from Max to Melissa for correction. “You do.”
Melissa got to her feet and moved up to where Max and Liz were seated. Glancing at Liz, Melissa moved to stand behind Max and pressed her hand to the back of his head. Instantly, light exploded from Max’s forehead and everyone except Melissa jumped in surprise as the light painted a symbol on the back of one of the car seats in front of Max. Like a movie projector.
“Holy crap,” Michael mumbled.
Melissa removed her hand and the light went out.
“How did you…” Max mumbled, shocked.
“Neat party trick, isn’t it?” Melissa said secretly, before retaking her seat in front of the group. “Rath was to be ‘saved’ next and finally Vilandra. Out of the four, she was the most reluctant to the plan. She wasn’t convinced that it would work, was afraid that she was agreeing to her death by letting her essence be extracted.”
“But she agreed?” Isabel guessed.
Melissa nodded. “Yes. Except for the Royal Four, four advisors went through the same procedure. I was one of them. We were set to activate your memories when it was time for you to return home and we were assigned to protect your secret and protect you during your time on Earth. No one knew it would be so long. The war went on for many years-“
“Why weren’t we sent there to fight?” Michael asked and Maria tried to ignore the feeling of abandonment that was etching its way into her. “We’ve been adults for quite some time now-“
“And I presume that we were in the 1947-crash - that was us -“ Max interrupted, “We were incubated for 48 years before getting out of the chambers. And we were only kids then. Why did you leave us there for so long?”
“You said it yourself; there was a crash,” Melissa answered. “The pilot couldn’t handle the increased oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere and his head - quite frankly - exploded.”
Maria grimaced and her expression was matched by everyone else in the room. Well, except for Tess, who still appeared to be sulking.
“We came down really hard,” Melissa continued. “I was the only survivor. You survived because you were only essence - inside of crystals.”
“Of course,” Michael muttered.
“My task thereafter was to prepare you and await instructions from my planet-“
“That’s why you’re here,” Michael interrupted breathlessly, “To bring us home.”
Maria shivered at the hope in his voice. He wanted to go back. He wanted to return to Antar. What about them? What about their child?
Before Maria had time to let the panic fully seize her body, Melissa squashed her fears with one sad admission, “No. I’m sorry.” She looked around the room and met the eyes of each former Antarian. “Antar died last week.”
“Antar…what?” Max whispered and Maria felt the relief flood her. There’s no Antar.
“During his fraudulent reign, Khivar utilized all the natural resources on our planet. He caused an immense imbalance in the core of Antar which became common knowledge to the Antarians only in the past five years - Earth years. But by then it was too late. Possibly, some Antarians managed to escape before the planet imploded, but for certain a lot of people died with the planet.”
There was silence as everyone absorbed this. They had just heard a remarkable tale of the measures taken to preserve a royal family in order to save a planet, even sending some off to another planet, only to have it all done for nothing. Also, it seemed right to offer a moment of respect for Antar, further emphasized by the silent tear rolling down Melissa’s cheek. She had family there, people she’d lost. She had lost her hope at survival, of a return to her home.
“I’m sorry,” Max whispered and voicing what they were all thinking he added, “Maybe they all got away; Your friends. Your family.”
Melissa smiled at him softly, but her eyes were devoid of hope, “Thank you. But I don’t think so. My acquaintances were not wealthy people. You’d have to be wealthy to flee from a planet.”
“Did Khivar get away?” Isabel asked fearfully.
“Quite possibly,” Melissa mumbled darkly. “But I honestly don’t know. All transmission was cut out and I haven’t heard a word since.”
“So we have no purpose any more?” Michael asked.
Melissa shook her head. “In a way, no. That’s why I needed to talk to you. To let you know that you’re free, to live your lives here.”
There was a pause to absorb this.
“What about Liz?” Max asked after a minute. “Is she human? Are we human?”
“Sorry,” Melissa said, straightened her back and wiped the sorrow off her face. “I didn’t finish telling you… Your essence were put into the bodies of children who were deemed brain dead. Children who, by technical terms, had no personality anymore. Human children. It took me about ten Earth years to find suitable hosts.”
“So our bodies are human?” Michael asked.
“One hundred percent human,” Melissa answered.
“How come we have powers?” Isabel asked.
“Because your abilities come from the mind; a consequence of how you think and work. Your Antarian thinking uses the brain in another way.”
“Like when they say that you only use 10% of your brain,” Maria interjected.
“Which is actually not true,” Melissa said. “Humans use their whole brain, but Antarians use it in another way.”
“But if they were brain dead, wouldn’t that’ve been a bad recipient?” Isabel asked.
“Ethically, it was the only plausible option. The scientists were not against putting you into any available human body, but Zan was very adamant about not taking someone else’s life so that he could live. Since the Antarian brain works slightly different than the human, the Antarian essence was able to activate the brain and utilize the body.”
“So these bodies are our puppets?” Michael questioned, a hint of disgust in his voice.
Melissa shook her head. “No. They’re yours. They were rejected by the humans. They had been pulled off ventilators and just died when you were infused into their bodies. In a way, you brought them back to life. After inserting the essence into those child bodies, I placed you in incubators to facilitate the healing process and letting you grow out of the more vulnerable period of your childhood. The healing and getting the human bodies to accept the rewiring of their brains, took more time than expected. That’s why you were in incubators so long.”
“But they were not there anymore, the rightful owners of the bodies?” Max wondered nervously.
“No,” Melissa answered. “Their souls were already gone.”
“But Liz wasn’t…” Max said, guilty.
Melissa’s face hardened. “She was dead, wasn’t she?”
“I think so,” Max answered and Maria saw him tighten his arm around Liz’s shoulders. “I remember her lips being blue.”
Melissa nodded. “That must be it then. When you were bringing her back, you were infusing her with Aislin’s essence. Somehow her essence had been saved in your dying Antarian body and was extracted alongside your essence and put in your human body. Aislin’s essence was naturally looking for its own host and when it encountered Liz’s dead body it was the perfect fit.”
Maria shivered. “But Liz is still here…”
“You brought her back,” Melissa answered and looked at Max. “Just as Aislin was pouring into Liz, you brought Liz back.”
“That’s why you have two identities,” Isabel whispered, looking at Liz in awe.
“It’s why I dreamt of dying, of losing a baby,” Liz said quietly and added softly while looking up at Max, “and you. It was Aislin. Aislin was reaching out for you.”
“This is fucked up,” Michael mumbled.
“It’s the only way I can explain it,” Melissa said.
“Liz?”
Maria looked over at Max at his uncertain question and saw Liz disentangling herself from Max.
“Sorry, I need…” her gaze flickered from Max to move across the heads of the rest of the group. “I need some air.” Liz stumbled to her feet and moved towards the door.
“You shouldn’t go out there on your own,” Isabel protested.
“Liz?” Max repeated and rose.
Maria moved Michael’s arms away from her middle, but he moved them back and tightened the grip. “You’re not going out there.”
“She needs someone,” Maria protested.
“And you’re just as defenseless as she is, if not more,” Michael protested.
“I’ll go,” Isabel said.
“Please, I need to be alone,” Liz said at the door, her tense back towards the group.
“You’ll be alone while I’m watching you from a distance,” Isabel compromised and moved up behind Liz as she got the door open.
“Don’t go,” Max said behind the girls.
Isabel turned to her brother. “Maybe it’s best if you leave her alone right now, Max.”
Maria watched with sad eyes as Max slumped at Isabel’s words and in a quick movement Liz and Isabel were out the door, slamming it shut behind them.
TBC...
Thank you for the feedback!saori_1902 - Thank you
Carolyn (keepsmiling7)
Glad to hear itThanks for the "previously" comments......that always helps me
Melissa will shed some light on things in the next chapter and that'll hopefully help you decide if you can trust her or not. Thank you for the feedback!
L-J-L 76 - Yes, Melissa knocking Liz out was not very nice. She seems to have an aversion towards Liz...
A lot of your questions will (hopefully) be answered in this next part. Thank you for the feedback and the bump! Previously on "Lethal Whispers"...
- Max, Tess, Michael and Isabel believe themselves to be aliens, because of them lacking memories from their first living years and having special abilities.
Michael recently went back to the "birth" cave in the desert outside of Roswell. The cave was protected by a force field which was not very healthy for Maria (humans). In the cave Michael found writing he couldn't interpret.
That same cave was later visited by a person we don't know the identity of.
Max brought Liz back from recent death when she was just young. He seems to have formed some type of connection with her since then, enabling himself to see when she's in danger through premonitions.
Liz has been let in on the secret of the aliens walking the earth.
Liz was attacked, drawing the attention of the FBI and the group is now on the run to keep themselves safe.
Liz was just abducted by the special unit of the FBI, asked for the information she has on the group. She was returned just a couple of hours later. Traumatized.
Tess has been trying to get Max interested in her and did a mindwarp on Liz to drive a wedge between Liz and Max. This was revealed in the previous chapter.
Max normally works as an EMT, with a colleague named Melissa. Melissa just saved the gang while they were being hunted by the FBI at a mall.
Melissa doesn't seem to like Liz very much; using her powers to "sedate" the girl, which revealed that Liz isn't necessarily the only one in her mind. She seems to share a mind with someone named Aislin.
Answers are coming up in this next part
CHAPTER 49
Maria
“You were the beloved Royal Four of Antar.”
Maria felt Michael’s hands tightened around her middle, across where their baby rested, as Melissa started talking.
It had become night and they had shut themselves into the van, the sporadic and somewhat spooky lights of three flashlights positioned on the metal flooring casting off shadows on the listeners and the teller. Maria looked around the group: at Max who had laid his jacket around Liz’s shaking body and had positioned an arm around her shoulder while she rested her head tiredly against his shoulder: at Isabel who was hugging her knees to her chest, her face dirty and weary as she rested her head on the top of her knees: at Tess, who was seated the furthest away from them, as if she felt the great divide between her and the rest of the group since Max had found out about her betrayal. Tess hadn’t spoken a word since Max had confronted her. At least not to the group. Maybe she had said something to Isabel when they were together in the mall earlier.
The newest addition to the group was sitting in the center, cross-legged, with the attention of three aliens and two humans. Her hair was curly and, with her ordinary clothes, she looked like a regular twenty-something girl. But the words coming out of her mouth were everything but regular.
“You, Zan,” Melissa nodded towards Max and Maria looked at her best friend wearily as Melissa continued, directing her gaze towards Isabel, “and you, Vilandra, were the children of our great king, Demarcus. He was a very beloved man and the majority of the Antarians were loyal to him. He had a younger brother called Khivar, who was quite the opposite of his brother. His political views were controversial and he wasn’t afraid to share them. But as long as Demarcus was alive, Khivar would never have the chance to rule Antar.”
Melissa took a deep breath before continuing, “Our king grew sick with an Antarian disease similar to the bubonic plague on Earth and there was no cure. This fueled the hopes of the opposition that Khivar might be able to take to the throne. The only problem was Demarcus’ son. If a prince had reached adulthood - which in human translation meant around 17-18 years of age - upon the death of the king, the throne would be passed onto him. If not, the throne would be passed onto the next alternate adult relative.”
“Khivar,” Isabel mumbled.
Melissa nodded. “Right.”
“I think I’ve seen this movie,” Michael muttered into Maria’s hair.
“But Ma- Zan reached adulthood before…?” Maria guessed.
Melissa nodded again. “He did. He was on the throne for a mere two days before there was an attempt at his life - the first one. He survived, thanks to proficient guards, but it made everyone aware of the possible threat posed against the new rulers of Antar. It made a lot of citizens wary and a general unease was spreading through the population. The royal advisors came up with a plan of strengthening the throne by having Zan marry a noble girl from a well-respected family.”
“Tess,” Max said quietly and Maria noted how Liz stiffened next to Max.
“Her name was Ava,” Melissa said softly and smiled encouragingly at Tess in the background of the group. Maria didn’t turn her head to look at Tess. It was too uncomfortable at the moment.
“Ava was young, only 15 or so,” Melissa continued, “and didn’t really have a choice about the marriage. Neither did Zan. It was rumored that Zan had already given his heart to someone else: A farmer girl. There were even rumors that this girl was pregnant with Zan’s child, but none of the rumors were ever confirmed. Well, at least not until that last battle… But I’ll get to that.”
“What happened?” Isabel whispered as Melissa paused.
Melissa brushed a red curl off her forehead and wet her lips before continuing, “The nation was feeling increasingly uncertain about the new king. They all loved Zan, had watched him grow from a toddler to a young prince to a respected adolescent, who was now set to rule their world. But due to the increasing threat from the opposition, Zan was kept mostly hidden from the public. His announcements were aired from a secret position in the castle and he made no public appearances. With the rise of the opposition being so real amongst the people, the former King’s loyal followers were either changing sides or growing increasingly quieter, afraid of being persecuted by the opposition.”
“But the royals must’ve had more power still, must’ve been able to get rid of the opposition,” Michael objected.
Melissa smiled wistfully. “You were Rath.” Maria felt herself stiffen in Michael’s arms and his upper body grew rigid against her back. “And you thought the same thing then as you do now.”
“Who was I?” Michael whispered and Maria felt a chill go through her body. There was something very surreal about listening to someone speak of your lover’s former life and identity and knowing that it was probably true. That Michael had lived before.
“You were head commander. A natural at it, actually.”
If Maria had turned around and looked at Michael at that point, she would have seen his eyes glow with interest. Michael had never felt important in his Earth-bound life.
“Something of a hot-head though,” Melissa smiled and Maria felt herself match that smile in recognition as Isabel and Max chuckled softly. “You were young to be top commander, but you had worked yourself up the ladder quickly. You were also the trusted friend of Zan and you would give your life for your friend and king.”
Maria felt her eyes tear as she looked over at Max who was looking slightly uncomfortable with the tale of deep devotion between men. Maria knew that Max’s display of discomfort was because Rath and Zan’s story was so similar to Max and Michael’s.
“Rath did everything in the book, and outside of it, to dispel the power of the opposition and give the power back to his king. But the opposition had been working for years to infiltrate even the highest commands of the royal office. Rath and his army were fighting a losing battle that started long before he was born.”
“What happened?” Max asked and Maria reacted to the fearful timbre of his voice. She felt it too. The fear. They all knew that something bad had happened, otherwise they wouldn’t be sitting here on Earth. The aliens she loved so much would be living their life on Antar and she, the girl miraculously cured from cancer, would be dead.
“To fully understand what happened, you must know that everyone of royal blood on Antar had special abilities. Those same abilities have been activated in you in this life, which means that Zan was able to heal, Ava could confuse enemies by making them see things that weren’t there,” Maria felt goosebumps across her body as she thought about how Tess had used those powers even in this life, “and Vilandra could figure out the strategic plans of enemies by visiting their dreams.”
“What about Rath?” Michael asked.
“Rath was not born of royal blood,” Melissa said. “Therefore his abilities were not unique. Everyone on Antar had some basic abilities that here on Earth would be considered impossible but which were considered normal on Antar, no different than being able to sing.”
Michael must have looked disappointed, because Melissa gave him a empathic smile, “Of course, just like some people are tone-deaf and some are opera singers, there were different degrees of how well you utilized your powers. Rath was exceptional in using what he had. He was a crisp strategic thinker, naturally suspicious, and could sharpen his aim to hit anything.”
“Destructive abilities?” Michael murmured, disappointed. He already knew that his only power basically meant that he could blow things up, which was ridiculous compared to the other aliens’ powers.
“Protective abilities,” Melissa corrected and Maria sent her a grateful smile.
Melissa smiled back with a soft understanding nod before continuing, “Because of Zan’s healing abilities, he was instinctively interested in medicine which meant that he had spent quite a lot of time in the Royal Healing Facility, even long before his father died. He was actually intimately involved in trying to find a cure for his dying father. Working alongside physicians and Antar’s best researchers, Zan came up with the idea of cloning someone’s essence.”
“Huh?” Michael said.
“Zan worked on copying someone’s…” Melissa searched for the right word, “…soul. Whatever makes you you. All of your thoughts, memories, personality traits copied and saved.”
“He…” Max cleared his throat, “I mean, I, figured it out, didn’t I?”
“It’s the reason why you’re here,” Melissa confirmed.
“So what? Our essence got copied onto some kind of USB and plugged into a human?” Michael asked impatiently.
“Something like that,” Melissa answered. “I’m not a physician, so I don’t know the details, but Zan put Rath on a special mission to find suitable hosts for accepting their essence, in case of emergency.”
“‘In case of emergency’?” Isabel asked.
“In case of our deaths,” Max translated quietly.
Melissa nodded gravely. “Exactly. It was no secret to Zan or the royal guards that their lives were threatened. And if they were to be killed, Khivar would be the next one on the throne, which couldn’t happen.”
“Why not put their essence into an Antarian?” Liz asked. Maria turned surprised eyes to Liz. She was not the only one who was surprised at Liz’s involvement in the conversation.
Melissa’s face showed slight disapproval at the question and Maria wondered why Melissa was still showing resentment towards Liz.
“Why transport them away from Antar, away from the war, to Earth?” Liz continued.
Everyone looked at Melissa, obviously also wanting to know the answer to that question.
Melissa sighed. “Zan tried. He wanted to do just that. Put his essence into some anonymous farmer, who would give their body up for the royal war, so that the king could hide in plain sight. But it wasn’t possible. Something clashed with putting Antarian essence into Antarian bodies. The bodies rejected the essence, recognized it as not self. So they turned their search outside of Antar. It was just a week before the uprising when Rath and his army discovered Earth. Earth, which had a similar atmosphere to Antar and where homo sapiens looked very similar to Antarians.”
Melissa shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “The plan was to send the Royal Four, as you were called, to Earth while the royal army fought the resistance. It was always believed that the royal army would win, they had more heads, and if the distraction of protecting the Royal Four was removed it would be an easy win. But the uprising came too soon. None of the Royal Four could stand by and watch as their army went into war, as the opposition slaughtered their nation.”
“They went into battle,” Maria whispered. Her lips felt dry and she was shaking. It was as if she was about to hear how her boyfriend died - even though he was very much alive - seated behind her. His warm arms tightened around her in comfort.
“Yes, they did. Zan went straight to a close-by village to protect the farmers. But in retrospect, it’s been discussed that Zan was actually going there to protect a girl.” “What about Ava?” Liz whispered. “Where was she?”
“She was too young to fight. She wanted to, and she contributed with her abilities in many situations, but Zan placed her in the healing facility for the copying procedure before he left the castle to go to village.”
“He was protecting her,” Liz said thoughtfully.
Melissa looked insulted. “Of course he did. Zan was very protective, very loyal, very caring. He was a pacifist and wanted to save his people from war completely. But of course, that was not possible. He could only save the people closest to him.”
“Not Aislin,” Maria objected and she got the chill of Melissa’s look.
“No,” Melissa said tightly. “Zan was found, on the brink of death, close to a beautiful girl in ill-fitted patchy clothes just outside of the village he had gone to defend. The girl was dead. Rumors say that she was covered in blood, that she had been with child but was no longer, and that Zan was holding onto her. Apparently, the men that got to him first had troubles separating the dying king from the girl’s body. He wouldn’t let her go.”
“It was Aislin?” Max croaked and Maria looked at him with sympathy. Max’s face was white as a sheet and he was holding tightly onto Liz’s hand.
Melissa cast Liz a fleeting look before reluctantly nodding, “That was the rumor, and judging from the earlier episode from your friend here, I would say it was more than a rumor.”
“But how…” Max whispered and Maria finished what he couldn’t say, “How is that possible? If Aislin died, how come Liz somehow turned into Aislin?”
Melissa shook her head in confusion. “I’m not sure. But I think that Zan somehow absorbed Aislin’s essence. Maybe he knew so much about the process from all the research he had done, that he could do it without the help of medicine or any equipment. Maybe his…” Melissa hesitated, seemingly reluctant to admit it, “…love for her made it possible.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Tess said, surprising everyone. But she seemed indifferent to the fact that everyone was staring at her as she continued, “Zan was married to Ava. He loved Ava. Otherwise he wouldn’t have placed her in protective care. He wouldn’t have seen to it that her essence was carried on.”
“I agree,” Melissa mumbled. “It doesn’t make sense.”
Maria felt herself getting annoyed. “Maybe he was just acting according to how he was supposed to act. He was forced to marry Ava. He knew that he needed to stay married to her to not cause any more instability in the royal house than there already was. Maybe he was smart enough to know that it was not the time to be selfish and bring up his love life when there was a threat on the royal house.”
Max looked at Maria, stunned, and Maria heard Michael chuckled in her ear. His lips brushed lightly against the corner of her ear as he whispered, “That’s my girl.”
Tess shot to her feet and pointed at Max, “He cheated on me!”
Max frowned and said angrily, “Tess, please-“
“No,” Melissa interrupted. “Zan didn’t cheat on Ava-“
There was fire burning in Tess’ eyes as she stared at Liz and Max. Mostly Liz. “She was pregnant. With his child.”
“First of all, that’s Max you’re pointing at-“ Isabel started, but was interrupted by Melissa.
“Believe me, there were a lot of rumors, but after Zan took to the throne, he was never alone. He was even watched while sleeping. There was no way he could be together with someone else after he had been married to Ava. Someone would’ve seen it and reported it. What he did before he took to the throne though…”
“He was supposed to love me,” Tess whispered, hot tears rolling down her cheeks.
Isabel got to her feet, walked up to Tess and took a firm grip on her upper arms. With a light shake, Isabel said sternly, “For God’s sake, Tess. Pull yourself together. That was Zan and Ava. Not you and Max.”
“But it’s happening again,” Tess cried. “Look at them!” She pointed accursedly at Max and Liz. “They’re together again.”
“That’s Max and Liz,” Isabel objected. “Not-“
“Please, sit down,” Melissa said gravely, “I’m not done.”
“She’s not part of us,” Tess said bitterly, her eyes red with tears and anger, “She’s not part of the Royal Four.”
“Tess,” Max said coldly. “Sit. Down.”
Tess turned angry eyes towards her ex-husband and after a stubborn pause her body sank to the floor of the van again.
Melissa inhaled deeply and pushed her hands through her hair before continuing, “Zan was brought to the Royal Healing Facility where the medical team followed the procedures set up by Zan himself. Zan’s body was failing and it would not survive. His essence was carefully extracted, saved in a crystal, alongside the royal seal-“
“The royal seal?” Michael questioned.
“It was a seal etched into Zan’s genetic make-up, which was activated when his father died. It had been active in his father when he was alive. It was the seal that showed who was the rightful king. It was the seal that would be activated in Khivar were Zan to die. It was also very handy when putting Zan’s essence in someone else’s body as means of identification.”
Maria turned curious eyes to Max and her voice came out in unison with her boyfriend’s, “Do you have it?”
Max shook his head in confusion. “No…”
Melissa looked certain when eyes turned from Max to Melissa for correction. “You do.”
Melissa got to her feet and moved up to where Max and Liz were seated. Glancing at Liz, Melissa moved to stand behind Max and pressed her hand to the back of his head. Instantly, light exploded from Max’s forehead and everyone except Melissa jumped in surprise as the light painted a symbol on the back of one of the car seats in front of Max. Like a movie projector.
“Holy crap,” Michael mumbled.
Melissa removed her hand and the light went out.
“How did you…” Max mumbled, shocked.
“Neat party trick, isn’t it?” Melissa said secretly, before retaking her seat in front of the group. “Rath was to be ‘saved’ next and finally Vilandra. Out of the four, she was the most reluctant to the plan. She wasn’t convinced that it would work, was afraid that she was agreeing to her death by letting her essence be extracted.”
“But she agreed?” Isabel guessed.
Melissa nodded. “Yes. Except for the Royal Four, four advisors went through the same procedure. I was one of them. We were set to activate your memories when it was time for you to return home and we were assigned to protect your secret and protect you during your time on Earth. No one knew it would be so long. The war went on for many years-“
“Why weren’t we sent there to fight?” Michael asked and Maria tried to ignore the feeling of abandonment that was etching its way into her. “We’ve been adults for quite some time now-“
“And I presume that we were in the 1947-crash - that was us -“ Max interrupted, “We were incubated for 48 years before getting out of the chambers. And we were only kids then. Why did you leave us there for so long?”
“You said it yourself; there was a crash,” Melissa answered. “The pilot couldn’t handle the increased oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere and his head - quite frankly - exploded.”
Maria grimaced and her expression was matched by everyone else in the room. Well, except for Tess, who still appeared to be sulking.
“We came down really hard,” Melissa continued. “I was the only survivor. You survived because you were only essence - inside of crystals.”
“Of course,” Michael muttered.
“My task thereafter was to prepare you and await instructions from my planet-“
“That’s why you’re here,” Michael interrupted breathlessly, “To bring us home.”
Maria shivered at the hope in his voice. He wanted to go back. He wanted to return to Antar. What about them? What about their child?
Before Maria had time to let the panic fully seize her body, Melissa squashed her fears with one sad admission, “No. I’m sorry.” She looked around the room and met the eyes of each former Antarian. “Antar died last week.”
“Antar…what?” Max whispered and Maria felt the relief flood her. There’s no Antar.
“During his fraudulent reign, Khivar utilized all the natural resources on our planet. He caused an immense imbalance in the core of Antar which became common knowledge to the Antarians only in the past five years - Earth years. But by then it was too late. Possibly, some Antarians managed to escape before the planet imploded, but for certain a lot of people died with the planet.”
There was silence as everyone absorbed this. They had just heard a remarkable tale of the measures taken to preserve a royal family in order to save a planet, even sending some off to another planet, only to have it all done for nothing. Also, it seemed right to offer a moment of respect for Antar, further emphasized by the silent tear rolling down Melissa’s cheek. She had family there, people she’d lost. She had lost her hope at survival, of a return to her home.
“I’m sorry,” Max whispered and voicing what they were all thinking he added, “Maybe they all got away; Your friends. Your family.”
Melissa smiled at him softly, but her eyes were devoid of hope, “Thank you. But I don’t think so. My acquaintances were not wealthy people. You’d have to be wealthy to flee from a planet.”
“Did Khivar get away?” Isabel asked fearfully.
“Quite possibly,” Melissa mumbled darkly. “But I honestly don’t know. All transmission was cut out and I haven’t heard a word since.”
“So we have no purpose any more?” Michael asked.
Melissa shook her head. “In a way, no. That’s why I needed to talk to you. To let you know that you’re free, to live your lives here.”
There was a pause to absorb this.
“What about Liz?” Max asked after a minute. “Is she human? Are we human?”
“Sorry,” Melissa said, straightened her back and wiped the sorrow off her face. “I didn’t finish telling you… Your essence were put into the bodies of children who were deemed brain dead. Children who, by technical terms, had no personality anymore. Human children. It took me about ten Earth years to find suitable hosts.”
“So our bodies are human?” Michael asked.
“One hundred percent human,” Melissa answered.
“How come we have powers?” Isabel asked.
“Because your abilities come from the mind; a consequence of how you think and work. Your Antarian thinking uses the brain in another way.”
“Like when they say that you only use 10% of your brain,” Maria interjected.
“Which is actually not true,” Melissa said. “Humans use their whole brain, but Antarians use it in another way.”
“But if they were brain dead, wouldn’t that’ve been a bad recipient?” Isabel asked.
“Ethically, it was the only plausible option. The scientists were not against putting you into any available human body, but Zan was very adamant about not taking someone else’s life so that he could live. Since the Antarian brain works slightly different than the human, the Antarian essence was able to activate the brain and utilize the body.”
“So these bodies are our puppets?” Michael questioned, a hint of disgust in his voice.
Melissa shook her head. “No. They’re yours. They were rejected by the humans. They had been pulled off ventilators and just died when you were infused into their bodies. In a way, you brought them back to life. After inserting the essence into those child bodies, I placed you in incubators to facilitate the healing process and letting you grow out of the more vulnerable period of your childhood. The healing and getting the human bodies to accept the rewiring of their brains, took more time than expected. That’s why you were in incubators so long.”
“But they were not there anymore, the rightful owners of the bodies?” Max wondered nervously.
“No,” Melissa answered. “Their souls were already gone.”
“But Liz wasn’t…” Max said, guilty.
Melissa’s face hardened. “She was dead, wasn’t she?”
“I think so,” Max answered and Maria saw him tighten his arm around Liz’s shoulders. “I remember her lips being blue.”
Melissa nodded. “That must be it then. When you were bringing her back, you were infusing her with Aislin’s essence. Somehow her essence had been saved in your dying Antarian body and was extracted alongside your essence and put in your human body. Aislin’s essence was naturally looking for its own host and when it encountered Liz’s dead body it was the perfect fit.”
Maria shivered. “But Liz is still here…”
“You brought her back,” Melissa answered and looked at Max. “Just as Aislin was pouring into Liz, you brought Liz back.”
“That’s why you have two identities,” Isabel whispered, looking at Liz in awe.
“It’s why I dreamt of dying, of losing a baby,” Liz said quietly and added softly while looking up at Max, “and you. It was Aislin. Aislin was reaching out for you.”
“This is fucked up,” Michael mumbled.
“It’s the only way I can explain it,” Melissa said.
“Liz?”
Maria looked over at Max at his uncertain question and saw Liz disentangling herself from Max.
“Sorry, I need…” her gaze flickered from Max to move across the heads of the rest of the group. “I need some air.” Liz stumbled to her feet and moved towards the door.
“You shouldn’t go out there on your own,” Isabel protested.
“Liz?” Max repeated and rose.
Maria moved Michael’s arms away from her middle, but he moved them back and tightened the grip. “You’re not going out there.”
“She needs someone,” Maria protested.
“And you’re just as defenseless as she is, if not more,” Michael protested.
“I’ll go,” Isabel said.
“Please, I need to be alone,” Liz said at the door, her tense back towards the group.
“You’ll be alone while I’m watching you from a distance,” Isabel compromised and moved up behind Liz as she got the door open.
“Don’t go,” Max said behind the girls.
Isabel turned to her brother. “Maybe it’s best if you leave her alone right now, Max.”
Maria watched with sad eyes as Max slumped at Isabel’s words and in a quick movement Liz and Isabel were out the door, slamming it shut behind them.
TBC...
Re: Lethal Whispers (ML, MATURE), Ch 49 9/8/15 p. 31 (bott
all caught up and holy cow 