Roswell Fanatics

Title: Hide and Seek
Rating: Adult
Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.
Pairing: CC
Summary: At age 17, Liz Parker left behind her old life and all the people in it. Now, at age 30, she must return to Roswell to solve a mystery and mend a few fences while she's there... including trying to make up for her past sins with the boy she always believed to be the love of her life. AU/CC

Author Note: Hello everyone! I want to apologize in advance if any of my CSI stuff seems a little unrealistic to you. I did do some research but it wasn't a big help to me so I'm basing their capabilities off what I see on tv. Hope you all enjoy anyway.Also a very big thanks to FSU/MSW-94 for being my amazing beta and helping me whenever I wasn't sure where exactly I wanted to take this. Thank you La'Shon!

I'm not sure how long this will end up being but based on the number of chapters I have written, I think its safe to say that this is at least half way finished, if not more so. Which means updates won't be a problem and those of you reading my AU W/Aliens story, this will not affect updates.

Hopefully when these are both complete, I can finally get a few that I have waiting in the D&B forum.



<center>

Prologue</center>


“Do you ever wonder what’s going on inside a killer’s head?” Elizabeth Parker asked as she collected a sample of gravel to compare to the dirt beneath the victim’s fingernails. She knew it was fruitless but continued the taxing job of scavenging around for clues that would lead to nowhere. Her partner of five years, Jesse Ramirez, looked up at the sound of Liz’s voice. The two were all alone now that the yellow tape had gone up and the officers on scene had gone to canvas the area, making her voice echo out into the cold, dark night.

A haze of frost appeared in front of his face as Jesse sighed deeply. He too, was cold and tired but as a native of Massachusetts, was much more accustomed to the freezing weather than Liz was. Even after five winters spent in the icebox known as Manhattan, she still couldn’t get used to the bitterly cold months flanking the end of the year.

“We get into their minds every time a case lands on our desk” Jesse replied a few thoughtful moments later. He had been in the CSI business three years longer than Liz had and was long since hardened by the harsh reality of their world. As weeks past and more bodies ended up on a cold metal table in front of Kathleen Topolsky, their pathologist, she too found it harder and harder to look at these victims as people. They were numbers, sequential but differing in appearance.

From where he was crouched on the frosty earth, Jesse held a camera just above a splattering of blood. For a brief moment, the flash lit up the darkened area which was shadowed by a group of Empress Trees that were just starting to loose their dried out brown and red leaves. “Its gonna be a long night” Liz stated and glanced to her right when she heard a quiet, almost inaudible rustling. The wind was lapping around them in a gentle breeze that promised a temperature drop within the following hour or two.

Jesse, following the trail into the compost surrounding the tree, didn’t notice Liz’s lack of attention. Several moments later, a dog, brown and white, obviously a stray, came ambling out from behind a set of bushes. Both looked up at the intrusion and watched it run further away from the scene. “I’ll go check it out” Liz volunteered and felt at her side for the Sig-Sauer she always carried.

“No, you stay here” Jesse replied and held a latex glove clad hand out towards her. “I’ll go” he said and began to rise from his position when the sound of gunfire broke the quiet of night.

Liz watched in horror as Jesse stepped in front of her, a breath before the sound filled the air. His pain filled her ears while blood flung out against her blue and yellow windbreaker. Before she could blink, Liz reacted on instinct, grabbed at her sidearm and squinted against the darkness. Another sound to her left had her turning, pivoting around to catch the shooter as he or she made a run for it. Instead, another dog ran from behind the cluster of shrubbery.

“This is CSI Parker. Requesting immediate medical assistance at the Central Park crime scene. Officer down, I repeat, officer down.” Her voice was little more than a whisper as she spoke into the cell phone she’d fumbled to retrieve from inside her pocket.

Crouching low, Liz tried to make use of the shadow the tree canopies provided, all the while continuing to scan the area. There were footsteps in the distance. She held her gun, ready and waiting when another shot rang out into the night. Liz turned towards it and felt a hard blow to the stomach. The gun fell from her hands, landing on the ground just beside her as she struggled to remain upright. Her hand flew to her stomach, coating her fingers with a warm, sticky substance. She felt her eyes blur, felt the world spinning before finally falling along with it.

Then everything went dark.

Hello everyone, thanks for your interest and wonderful feedback!

L-J-L 76 - thanks, glad you like it
Ellie - yep, I have it pretty much laid out and I'll update regularly
LovingGuerin2Much - I'm a fan of CSI too, it's kind of what gave me the idea to begin writing this.
FSU/MSW-94 - La'Shon, thanks again for all your help getting my thoughts in order with this fic. I'll definitely be bugging you again soon though
begonia9508 - glad you enjoy CSI and I do hope you enjoy this fic
dreamer19 - Wow, I hope this doesn't seem totally unplausible to you since your working on criminal justice now
Jason's Lover - hi, glad you like it!
Smac - CSI Miami is my favorite so I like seeing Jesse in that roll too!
pandas2001 - you'll find out the answers to your Jesse and crime questions in this chapter
LegalAlien - glad you liked it so far!



Chapter 1

Liz stared up at the light turquoise colored Victorian house that she had been calling home for ten straight days. Its wrap around veranda was currently devoid of guests, all who were most likely tucked away in their rooms, fighting off the low freezing temperatures. Liz would have been inside too, benefiting from the wood burning fire place in her suite had it not been for Woodstock.

The scrappy little beagle didn’t seem to want to wait a moment longer to take his walk and Liz, who enjoyed the cedar and apple scent in her room, didn’t relish the idea of having it replaced by his droppings.

Leaves crunched beneath her sunshine yellow rain boots as she paced back and forth. Dinner had finished more than a half hour before but Liz could still smell the sweet potatoes and roast beef the kitchen had served as she walked by the dinning room window. With the lights on, she was able to see the wait staff of four clearing away plates and chatting on about one thing or another.

The Henry Bennett House wouldn’t have been her first choice if asked. Liz didn’t want to witness the friendly camaraderie between the B&B staff that came from years of knowing one another. She didn’t want silent nights that were only disrupted by the creaking bed each time she tossed or turned. If given a choice, she would have remained in the city with the steady hum of traffic outside her window each night to keep her company.

But she hadn’t been given a choice.

Liz Parker had promptly been ordered out of the city for a minimum of three weeks. She supposed they meant well but so far her trip had been more of a curse than a blessing. All she had was time to reflect on everything that had gone wrong and the part she had played. Her questions were endless, each without an answer and she slowly felt herself going insane from the uncertainty of it all.

The wind whistled angrily as it rustled the dried leaves above her. Liz quickly closed her eyes against the sound and tried to block out the memories that still haunted her mind in vivid detail. The sounds began to assault her ears all at once until she thought she’d go deaf from the various noises. Then she heard a dog bark and pictured the soft eyed collie that had served its purpose as a successful distraction.

When she opened her eyes, she half expected to still be in the park. The trees her mind’s eye conjured transformed before her eyes, repainting the picture until she was once again standing in front of the South Carolina B&B. The dog she heard wasn’t a collie but was actually Woodstock, who looked up at her and wagged his tail happily.

Her scarf, a long yard of red yarn with ratty fringe on the ends, suddenly felt suffocating. She tugged at the material, trying to loosen it from around her neck as Woodstock began to bark three times more in rapid succession. He was obviously ready to go back inside and rose up on his hind quarters, resting his two front paws on the thin denim of Liz’s jeans. He was inviting her to attach the blue woven leash to his tinkering collar. Liz had to say one thing about the young animal, he was definitely a smart one.

“Strange dog” she murmured and was surprised at how foreign her own voice sounded. Since arriving, she had only spoken a couple of times and only when necessary. Her cell phone had remained silent and if possible, she tried to stay away from the other guests who could be more than a little chatty if given half the chance.

Liz waited until she was back inside her suite before removing the leash again. Woodstock immediately ran towards her bed and skidded to halt just beneath the edge so that his little body was partially covered by the long hanging comforter. Liz ignored her new dog and continued on towards the bathroom where she planned on taking a hot bath. She hoped that it would relax her enough to ensure some sleep though she wasn’t about to hold her breath.

There were dark circles beneath her eyes that gave away how she had been spending her nights. She looked tired, emotionally and physically, while the rest of her body showed her recent malnutrition. She hadn’t been able to keep much food down before her stomach rebelled and pushed it all out again. As it was, her appetite was next to non-existent but she acknowledged that whether her body wanted it or not, it needed some sort of sustenance. It was in those moments that she managed to pick at a plate of fruit or hold in a slice of bread.

The boots were the first to go, followed by her socks, jeans and a thick black wool sweater. Left only in a simple pair of white cotton panties and a matching bra, Liz studied her reflection in the mirror with a critical eye. The local doctor had removed her stitches the day before, leaving behind a dark pink wound that stretched up her abdomen. The area was still sore and Liz avoided sleeping on her side or putting any other pressure on the slowly healing wound. Her head had ceased hurting after the first week but she continued to dutifully take her pain medication until her prescription ran out.

The physical pain was one thing, something she knew she could handle but the emotional aspect of it all left her drained. Liz wondered if she would ever feel normal again.

Shaking her head to ward off those thoughts before they had a chance to truly depress her, Liz reached around her body to pull at the hooks holding her bra closed. The soft material slid from her shoulders to land on the heart pine floor a few inches away. Her underwear immediately followed. Deftly, she worked the taps until she was satisfied with the water temperature and gathered her shampoo and soap as the claw footed tub filled.

The fire in her bedroom had effectively warmed the entire suite, Liz noticed with satisfaction as she grabbed some unused candles from the shopping bag resting on one floral upholstered chair. Its twin was devoid of luggage but the small table sitting between them was laden down with eight different magazines. Liz had even resorted to reading far fetched tabloids as a way of distracting her mind.

With a cheap blue lighter in the other hand, Liz returned to the bathroom and set the apple scented candles on top of the vanity and toilet seat. Once lit, their light was enough of a glow to turn out the overhead bulb which Liz promptly did before sinking into the warm bath. She sighed contently at the feel of the warm, sudsy water gently lapping against her skin. The tension in her body slowly began to subside as she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate solely on relaxing her tired muscles.

Outside, the wind continued to howl angrily, announcing the arrival of an upcoming rain storm. It had been raining for three days straight though it didn’t matter much to Liz who hardly set foot outside of the house. A clap of thunder filled the air and Woodstock answered back with a frightened bark. Liz didn’t mind as much as the timid dog did because at least the storm was loud enough to cover up the rapid beating of her heart each night when she woke, drenched in sweat and panting in fear over the events she relived through dreams.

Normal was a distant memory, she thought as Woodstock continued to bark back in protestation to the loud thunder and blinding bolts of lightening that filtered in through translucent white gossamer and lace curtains.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


Two more days past much as the first ten had. Liz rose with the sun after a fitful sleep that left her a little bit crankier each morning. She ordered breakfast in her room, took Woodstock out for his morning walk and then proceeded to spend the rest of the day with her nose buried in a book or magazine. She played solitaire and Free Cell on her laptop computer to fill in the rest of the time until dinner arrived. Afterwards she would take Woodstock out again and lied around her room until sleep finally decided to claim her. Then at dawn she got up and did it all over again.

On day thirteen of her vacation, Liz’s cell phone finally sprang to life. No one from work had attempted to call under direct orders from one Detective Eric Pacer and none of her friends from home had any idea what had happened in the park. If Liz could help it, they would never find out either.

“Parker” she answered after checking the ID and finding out the call was coming from one of the precincts she worked with.

“How’s the fresh air treating you?” Liz was only mildly surprised to find it was Detective Pacer, or Pace, as they called him. Everyone else on the team was so scared to get on his bad side that no one would have disobeyed one of his orders.

Then she heard it. There was something in his tone, maybe caution, maybe unease but whatever it was had Liz narrowing her eyes at the bedroom wall in front of her.

“Cut the crap Pace. You’re not just calling to check up on me, are you?” Well aware of distance between them, Liz felt bolder than she normally was. At that point the worst he could do was glare angrily at the phone. That thought alone was enough to put a smile on Liz’s face, the first since the whole ordeal unfolded. “What’s this really about?” she questioned knowing that his good intentions wouldn’t have allowed him to call if something important hadn’t come up.

The fact that he only sighed in response caused a chill to dance up Liz’s spine. She would have been more comfortable if he had yelled at her for insubordination like he had every other day since she was assigned to work on his team. “There’s been another one” he said as simply as possible. Liz, however, caught what he hadn’t said. Pace believed it was the same guy and if memory served, it wouldn’t be the last in the new string.

“Same M.O.?” Liz asked after a beat. There was a small frown spread across her lips and her expression remained impassive but her brown eyes had turned a shade darker in anger. It was the only feature on her entire face that revealed how she truly felt over hearing the news.

“Triple Threat strikes again” Pace replied in a detached tone. The killer, whoever he was, didn’t just believe in murdering his victims. As if death wasn’t bad enough, he strangled them, sexually assaulted them post mortem and then shot them three times in the heart. Three horrendous acts committed per victim, thus earning him his name. For his shots to the heart, a Colt .45 automatic was always his pistol of choice. Liz had proof of that just nine and a half inches above her hip.

The girls were all petite brunettes with long hair and brown eyes, each ranging from age twenty five to age thirty two. It hadn’t escaped Liz’s notice that she perfectly fit the description of each targeted victim. “I’ll be on the next plane back to JFK” Liz decided after only a moment’s hesitation. It wouldn’t be easy, she knew, but it just might be enough to finally catapult her out of the depression she had recently fallen into. The idea of pouring all her efforts into the case would be a healthy distraction and hopefully, they’d catch the sick bastard before he struck again.

“While I was hoping you’d say that, you can’t” Pace stated and hesitated an additional moment before explaining himself. “See the thing is that the murder didn’t take place in the city” he admitted while Liz’s brows knitted together in unmasked confusion. “It didn’t even happen in the state of New York.”

Liz got the sudden, horrifying image of the killer skulking around South Carolina, trying to even the score. She knew that despite everyone’s words of encouragement and consolation, she could still be a major target. The killer would have had no idea whether or not Liz had glimpsed his face plus there was pride now involved in the mix. “Then where did it happen?” Liz questioned in a tight, controlled tone.

From the corner of her eye she saw Woodstock scurry away from the window and take cover beneath her bed again. Liz shook her head at the dog that acted more like a fraidy cat.

“You understand that this isn’t an order, right?” Pace asked, sidestepping Liz’s inquiry for just a moment longer. “You can wash your hands of this, no questions asked but… well, I thought I’d give you first crack at it since its been your case from the start” he explained in a tentative voice Liz had never once heard the hardened detective use. At thirty six, he was one of the youngest detectives in the department. He had received the promotion seven years before and had to fight tooth and nail to keep his position when everyone dismissed him as lucky and too young.

His record was spotless and almost flawless. He only had six unsolved cases and they were the Triple Threat victims. Everyone, mayor included, leaned on him during the investigation. It hadn’t helped that the killings began two months before Christmas and local officials were concerned the news might stunt the holiday tourisms which brought in millions of dollars each season.

Between herself, Jesse, Kathleen and Pace, they should have had the case locked down within weeks but it hadn’t worked out that way. The killer was smart, too smart to leave anything behind that would link him to the victims. The women were never killed where they were found and there didn’t seem to be any connection between them other than their similar physical appearance. There had been no DNA, blood or hairs and only a minimal amount of fibers on the clothing that revealed the killer wore leather. Whether it was a jacket or a pair of gloves, they weren’t sure.

With each new body, the hunt grew more and more desperate. New cases were re-assigned to other teams, long hours were spent cooped up in the lab together and the pressure was so thick it could have been cut with a knife. It hadn’t been an easy time for anyone involved in the case.

“I’m ready to jump back into the fray, just tell me where I have to jump to” Liz stated, hoping to god that he hadn’t heard the tremor in her voice. For all her bravado around everyone at the station, she had no idea what she would feel when the time came to go back to work. All Liz was certain of was that she had to get away from the still tranquility of the Bed and Breakfast. At age thirty she had almost lived in a big city for as long as she had lived in a small town. Silence was something she could no longer deal with it and seemed that the tucked away B&B in the middle of nowhere South Carolina had too much silence for her liking.

“Roswell. You’re jumping back to Roswell” Detective Pacer said in a formal voice. “I had some people run an extensive check over the area and it turns out that the woman lived at 616 Citrus” he informed and if possible, Liz’s heart began to beat a little faster. The address rang very loud bells in her ears but she didn’t have a chance to process her shock before Pace delivered the next blow. “We don’t want the press getting wind that we’ve moved our investigation down south. They’d swarm that town in a matter of hours and could possibly destroy any edge we hope to gain. Plus, I really can’t spare Kat right now, not if we’re going to keep working on it from our end so when you go down there, you’ll be all on your own.”

Shit, Liz thought and tried to trudge over the feelings stirred up by the revelation. It took her several quiet moments to get her wits back in which Pace dutifully remained silent. Liz knew he half expected her to turn down the assignment and wouldn’t have thought to blame her if she had. The word “no” was tempting and on the tip of her tongue as Liz opened her mouth to speak. Then, an image conjured itself up in her mind and she felt her jaw harden.

Her heart still beat a frantic staccato against her chest but its source was no longer fear but anger. Before, it had been a job but after everything that happened in the previous month she realized it had become much more personal.

With that in mind she held the phone a little tighter in her hand and asked Pacer to explain exactly what had happened and exactly what she would be expected to do. Weddings, births, graduations and holiday invitations hadn’t made her return to Roswell but it looked like a crazed killer on the loose would finally bring Liz Parker home.

Thanks everyone for the feeddback, I'm glad you're enjoying this so far!

kitten
Ash_maxliz
LegalAlien
dreamer19
FSU/MSW-94
Sternebetrachter
begonia9508
LovinGuerin2Much
flyawayraven
alizaleven
Michelle17
Blink1lit

Chapter 2

Eyes snapping open, Max Evans was greeted by darkness as his eyes struggled to adjust to the lack of light in the room. He wasn’t sure what had caused him to jerk awake so suddenly but whatever it was, he was certain he wouldn’t be falling back to sleep anytime soon. The thought of another night of missed sleep left him disgruntled as he accepted his fate, pushed the blanket away from his boxer clad body and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

A quick glance at the bedside clock confirmed there was still another two hours until dawn. A small sliver of moonlight cut across the darkness, highlighting the grey carpeting that covered every room in the house, minus the kitchen and bathrooms. The walls, a pale ivory color that Ava had deemed perfect, were devoid of any pictures or framed art works like the ones gracing his living room. Then again, those were only there because Ava thought they livened the place up a bit.

Max didn’t particularly care one way or the other but he learned early in life that it was easier to just to smile and nod. Growing up around Diane and Isabel Evans had taught him as much. Mother and daughter were quite a pair and a formidable force to be reckoned with when they had their hearts set on something.

Velvet steam rollers were what they were, at least when they were getting their way. Both would smile and pat your head, pretending everything was all your idea and they were just following along. It was as if they tried to boost your ego in thanks for not contesting their will. If anyone was stupid enough to go up against them, each had small stash of icy venom that quickly had you changing your mind.

Thinking about his mom and sister brought recent events crashing back to Max’s mind in full force. The idea that some woman had been found dead in her own home left a bitter taste in his mouth. It could have been anyone, his family members included and that was enough to keep Max working hard, hour after hour to dredge up some sort of lead.

Roswell had never seen a grizzly murder before. The town, small and friendly, was more of a Utopia than a battleground for crime. Sure the local fuzz had seen their share of vandalism, drunk driving and the odd domestic dispute but nothing so chilling as what had been done to Pamela Troy. The town was in an uproar, the police and sheriff departments were unsure of where to begin much less where their novice search would end.

Max, having returned the year before after eight spent on the Albuquerque Police force, had been anticipating a much needed break. For nearly a year he had received just that but two days before, a body had been found and he was quickly thrust back into the world he had hoped to leave behind. Having seen his share of deaths in the bigger city, he was the most prepared to handle what was happening but even that wasn’t enough to catch a killer.

Roswell had no crime labs, meaning all evidence would have to be sent out either to Albuquerque or Las Cruces. People operated on gossip rather than facts, making it difficult to distinguish between the two during interviews. It didn’t help that everyone was buzzing with fear and becoming tight lipped in hopes that they would be spared any backlash that might come along with Pam’s murder.

Max was also at a disadvantage because everyone was counting on him to do a job he had never done before. No one seemed to understand that he had been a Major Crime’s officer who specialized in robbery and burglaries. It was there where he had seen death. An intended job gone horribly wrong when the cops showed up because of a tripped alarm, a nearby witness or sheer dumb luck. He saw criminals loose their lives as they began shooting up the place, looking for some sort of leverage only to have a cop take them down with a single shot. He’d also seen his fellow friends in blue take a hit if the tables were turned.

He had seen plenty of death but he’d never had to analyze or investigate it.

Grimacing, Max pulled on a pair of jeans and left the button open as he padded towards the kitchen. What he needed was a stiff drink but settled for a strong cup of black coffee instead. He was basically running on fumes after over twenty four straight hours of collecting and pouring over information. His stomach growled but Max ignored its demand for food as he reached for the folder housing all the reports the other deputies had turned in to him.

Looking down at the pages of scrawled words and horrific photographs, only one thing seemed certain. Max felt like he was in way over his head and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


After rising with the sun as she was grudgingly growing used to, Liz took a quick shower in the dingy motel bathroom. The tiles had been covered with dust when she first pushed open the shower door while a layer of film was so thick, one would have mistaken the clear glass for the frosted kind. The water was scalding at first and quickly cooled within two minutes of constant flowing until it was as icy as the Hudson in winter.

Liz shook her head at the sight of a cockroach scurrying away as she stepped onto the ratty, burnt orange bathmat. The towels had faded to a sickly yellow color but at least they smelled clean which was more than she could say about the bedspread. She had stripped the sheets to find a relatively decent looking mattress and covered the coarse fabric with the pale blue felt-like blanket she had purchased in the airport gift shop.

Woodstock, unfortunately, had to be left behind with Pace and Liz was surprised to find how lonely she was without the timid beagle nipping at her heels.

Roswell wasn’t nearly as cold as New York was, or even South Carolina for that matter and Liz found that she enjoyed the cool temperature of October in New Mexico. She had yet to sleep throughout the night but that too was becoming the norm.

When she heard a rooster crow in the distance, startling her thoughts back the present, Liz began to dig around in her suitcase, not the least bit surprised by the loud squawk that had been a part of her daily life for seventeen years.

In New York, a day at work could have been dressy slacks or worn blue jeans. Then knowing that anyone who looked at her would still see little Lizzie Parker, town sweetheart, she decided to dress all business. She didn’t want them to see who she had once been, she needed them to understand who she had become. It was the only way to get their full cooperation and respect because she would definitely need both if she hoped to accomplish anything.

All her clothes needed to have an iron run over them but there wasn’t time, or an iron around for that matter. Liz reached for a pair of black slacks and paired them with a delicate long sleeved white button down shirt. The cuffs were wide, adorned by two tiny silver buttons that glinted when the light caught hold of them. She opted to leave the top two buttons undone and shrugged into a matching black blazer. Her hair got pulled up high into a loose bun with several damp strands of hair falling around her face and a pair of black high heeled boots gave Liz a much needed extra two inches.

What she wasn’t used to carrying was a brief case but it was a necessary evil since the slim black case housed copies of all the autopsy reports from the seven victims. After reaching for her purse, she hefted a rectangular metal box up off the dresser and carried all three items out to her rental car. The box, a CSI kit on loan from NYPD, courtesy of Detective Pacer, contained all the necessary materials she would need to conduct an investigation, assuming Roswell PD didn’t have them.

Knowing the small town she had grown up in and the every day life of its constituents, she would have bet every penny in her savings account that they weren’t equipped to handle whatever data they managed to collect.

Safely ensconced in the black, 2004 Nissan XTerra, she pulled out of the rent by the hour motel parking lot and started down 285 North. The place was as dingy on the outside as it had been on the inside but Liz needed the anonymity. Until she managed to talk with Sheriff Valenti, she didn’t want anyone finding out she was back in town, least of all his daughter in law who would pitch a fit the moment they set eyes on one another. For the entire operation to work, no one outside of a select group could know what she returned to do.

Thankfully Jim Valenti seemed to retain the schedule he lived by when she was a teenager. Parked in front of the Sheriff’s Department was his brown Ford Explorer which was, thankfully, the only vehicle in the lot. If she remembered correctly, he would be sitting in his office with a thermos of hot coffee and a glazed doughnut. His hat would be perched on the desk, his door would be closed and the mini-blinds would be lowered so that he could enjoy his breakfast in peace before the hustle and bustle of his deputies began.

Surprisingly, it took a moment to work up enough courage to push open the driver side door and step down onto the dusty pavement. She reached inside for her briefcase and purse but left the metal examination kit hidden beneath the passenger seat. Pulling at the front door, she found it unlocked though she knew it would be and stepped into the cool lobby. From the adjoining room she heard the steady hum of machinery followed by a dispatcher’s voice, giving out a curt “10-4” to whomever they had been communicating with.

Liz bypassed the room and instead headed towards the Sheriff’s door. Her heels clicked steadily on the ancient gold colored linoleum that had been in place for as long as Liz could remember. There were scuff marks every couple of steps that stood out in stark contrast to the pale color that had faded with time. The wood paneled walls also appeared to have seen better days and strangely enough, stopped three fourths of the way down. The remaining portion was pine green, a color that had also faded over the years.

Valenti’s door, baring his name in large letters over the frosted glass, rested at the end of a short corridor. Just as expected, the break room, two interrogation rooms and one large space baring a striking resemblance to a classroom were all vacant. The only visible shape came from within the Sheriff’s office and he seemed to have not noticed her form standing outside his door.

Hand poised, she knocked once on the glass and nearly laughed as she saw his head snap up in surprise. A moment later the door was flung open and she found herself face to face with a much older man than she remembered. Hair the color of fine straw speckled with bits of gray, a faint stubble along his chin and pale turquoise eyes that had widened in surprise. “Hi sheriff… it’s been a while. How are you?” she greeted, wearing a tentative smile as he tried to discern whether or not his lack of sleep was playing tricks on his eyes and ears.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


Once his initial shock wore off, Liz found herself being pulled into a warm embrace that could only be described as paternal. For a brief moment, she forgot the space of thirteen years and allowed herself to be hugged by the man she used to call Uncle Jim.

Then he pulled back and stared at her face, looking for the changes and similarities since they last saw one another. Liz knew her hair had grown longer , her features had matured and the youthfulness that had once lit her eyes had long since burnt out. The one thing, it seemed, that hadn’t changed was her height. She was still as tall as she had been on her fourteenth birthday, the year, she believed, she had stopped growing.

“Don’t think I’m not glad to see you but what the hell are you doing here?” Valenti asked without preamble and tugged her into the office. Liz hid a smile at the sight of his office, looking just as it always had. “And where the hell have you been all these years?”

The question brought Liz crashing back into the present. It was fun while it lasted, she thought and locked all her reminiscing away for later. “That’s an excellent question” Liz stated and slipped into negotiation mode. After talking to more than a hundred suspects over the five year course of her career in forensics, Liz was fairly certain she could talk the sheriff into going along with her but paused to smile at him for good measure.

“Then I’m sure you’ll have an excellent answer for me” Jim pointedly replied.

“Okay, but I’d sit back if I were you” Liz suggested as she began to pull pages from her briefcase. “This is a long story and so far, it doesn’t have a happy ending.”


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


A group comprised of nine deputies and one former police officer all gathered into the briefing room. Old rickety wooden chairs sat in the same places they had been left in the night before which seemed symbolic to Max since nothing else had changed since the night before either. The crude diagram that had been scrawled on the dry erase board by Valenti reflected no new information since the last time they had referred to it.

The realization surprised most as they assumed something had come up if Valenti had them all pulled into the station house.

“Alright boys” Valenti greeted as he looked over each deputy, including his son Kyle who was the only one besides Max that was under the age of thirty five. “I’ve decided to make a few changes with the investigation. Now obviously, we can’t have all our man power directed towards solving one crime otherwise we’ll miss any other, including possibly preventing another murder” he stated. The word was enough to visibly shake half the men in the room who still couldn’t wrap their minds around what had happened.

“What’d you have in mind?” Kyle asked so the others wouldn’t have much of a chance to dwell on the idea that more murders could possibly occur. After all, they had no idea who the person was, much less his reasoning.

“Delgado, Anderson, Fisher, Trilling and Hanson will all report back to their regular duties. You’re dismissed, thank you” Valenti stated and continued pacing as he waited for the five offered a reprieve to hightail it out of the room. Once the door was firmly shut behind them, he turned his attention back to the remaining five. “Edison, I want you to keep up with the interviews. Everyone who lives in her neighborhood and anyone visiting the neighborhood that night. You’re dismissed.” One by one he handed out assignments until only Max and Kyle remained.

His pacing continued and Max noticed how nervous the sheriff looked. His shoulders were hunched tightly, his fists clenching and unclenching sporadically and his eyes kept darting towards the second door which led towards his private office. Kyle also seemed to pick up on the uncharacteristic shiftiness and shot Max a questioning glance.

Shrugging, Max returned the look and quietly called out to the man in question. “Sheriff? What do you want Kyle and I to do?” he asked, seemingly snapping Valenti out of his stupor. Seconds ticked by and his composure returned. He didn’t immediately answer, almost as if he was searching for something to say.

“I had a visitor this morning” Valenti stated and rooted himself in place. Arms crossed over his faded denim shirt, he looked between Kyle and Max for another beat before continuing any further. “It seems that some of the big guns in New York caught wind of what happened down here and recognized the killer’s work. I’ve been asked for our cooperation and in return, one of their CSI specialists will take care of all the samples and lab work. However, the catch is that this person needs to keep their name out of the investigation” he said, relaying all the terms Liz had provided only a half hour before.

Liz knew that the killer would eventually find out she was in town but she hoped to have collected enough data by then to take him down before he could strike again.

“I don’t understand why they think the person who killed Pam is actually a repeat offender from New York” Kyle admitted, again looking to Max for some sort of answer. Once more, he was bowled over by everyone’s insistence that he would have all the answers simply because he worked with a larger agency before returning home. If anything, he was glad to hear someone who had experience in the matter had trekked down to New Mexico to run things. The whole fearless leader bit was getting a bit tiresome.

“I’ll leave that to the CSI agent to explain” Valenti replied and blindly reached behind him for the doorknob. “We’re ready for you” he said to the person inside and shuffled a couple steps over as the agent walked into the room. Max felt his eyes widen, his breath quicken and the scanner he’d been toying with slipped from his hand and crashed against the floor.

“Kyle… Max” she greeted, deciding that maybe she had been more than a little stupid to accept the assignment.

Thanks for the feedback. Happy Halloween everyone!

FSU/MSW-94 - Thanks La'Shon
begonia9508 - don't worry about Ava
sunshine6258 - thank you!
Ellie - that'll take a little time but its coming
Jason's Lover - thanks!
flyawayraven - glad you're enjoying it
LovinGuerin2Much - you'll find out more about M/L soon
SmileeUK - thanks, glad you're enjoying it

Chapter 3

“Ah hell, Ava is gonna kick my ass for finding out before she did.” The outburst came from Kyle who wasted no time sweeping Liz off her feet in an exuberant embrace. She tried to hold in a wince at the feel of his arms brushing up against her wound but it was obvious that Max had seen it. His jaw was clenched, his expression stoic but for a brief moment, his eyes flicked between her face and stomach before returning to their impassive state.

“It’s good to see you too Kyle” Liz returned, mustering up a smile for the boy she’d known like a brother who had grown up and married the girl she thought of as a sister.

Five years before, she had gotten a call from her childhood best friend, Ava Harding, who proudly announced that she was getting married. Teasingly, she said Kyle was finally ready to make an honest woman out of her and then talked non-stop for at least fifteen minutes about when and where it would take place.

Liz had, of course, been invited but at the time she was just starting out with the NYPD and couldn’t afford, financially or professionally, to attend. Ava had been disappointed and the result was her refusal to talk to Liz for three months afterwards. Then one day as Liz walked along Canal Street, she paused at a fruit stand to buy some oranges when her phone began its incessant ring. She had sighed and scanned the area for any available cabs, prepared to meet her team at whatever crime sight they specified. Instead, the caller had been Ava, who was in tears and nearly hysterical.

She thought she was pregnant and was scared to tell Kyle since they had only been married for a short time. She also feared he wouldn’t be ready for kids yet, a fact that turned out to be the complete opposite when Ava finally broke the news to him. The baby, it seemed, mended the riff between two childhood friends and as Ava’s belly and appetite expanded, it seemed her capacity for forgiveness also extended towards Liz.

“What the hell are you doing here?” he asked, eyes curious and unrelenting.

Like father, like son, Liz mused. “You heard the sheriff. I’m the CSI on loan from the NYPD” she explained and didn’t miss the way his baby blue eyes continued to swim with confusion. It occurred to Liz then that she had never actually elaborated to Ava on what she did for a living.

After leaving Roswell, the only person who she managed to stay in contact with had been Ava and that was due solely to a moment of weakness. Liz had been alone and felt lonelier than she could have possibly imagined. Her instincts told her to call the boyfriend she had left behind and broken hearted but her fingers dialed the angry blonde instead.

Ava had yelled, argued and cajoled in an effort to try and find out where Liz was but she refused to relent on that one issue.

Afterwards, now holding onto Liz’s new cell phone number, Ava frequently called to check up on her and to pitch a new argument in hopes of finding out where Liz was living. Eventually the blonde realized she was getting nowhere and was content enough to know that her best friend was alive and well. Liz remembered once mentioning something about med school and she could recall talking about the lab a time or two. Now, she realized her friends believed she was either some sort doctor or scientist rather than a crime specialist that encountered New York’s worst.

“You can play catch up on each other’s lives later” the older Valenti intervened before Liz had to offer up some kind of explanation. “The biggest priority at the moment is getting you and Max briefed on what exactly is supposed happen now” he stated, reminding Liz of the stony faced boy, no… man, she silently corrected. He hadn’t moved an inch other than to pick up his scanner and now, as she looked over at him, he refused to meet her gaze.

With as much grace and composure as she could dredge up, Liz waited for Kyle to sit back down and slipped into her professional, if not detached, mode. “On October 3rd, 2004 the NYPD Central Park Precinct received a call from a male jogger who had stumbled upon the body of 26 year old Patricia Tasker. A team of three CSI agents and one detective was dispatched to the scene of the crime where fifteen patrol officers had already sealed off the area. This was the first murder in a long series” Liz began, sounding more like a college lecturer than a field agent or lab rat as the precinct fondly referred to them as.

“We named him Triple Thread because of his obsession with the number” Liz continued, briefly breaking stride as she remembered Jesse had been the one to suggest the name to Pace. “Three Victims over the span of three months, all murders occurring on the third of each month. There was a three month break after the first set and then he started again with three more. A little over a month ago, he claimed his seventh life, a woman named Serena Cooper.”

“Wait, you’re saying he’s already killed seven people and no one has caught him yet?” Kyle questioned, barely disguising the horror he obviously felt at the idea that they may never catch the killer.

Liz didn’t blame him and managed a sympathetic smile. “Triple Threat knows how to cover his tracks so that there isn’t one for the cops to follow. Its obvious that each murder is well planned out and in a city with seven million people, its impossible to pinpoint which woman will be his next target” she explained, momentarily saddened by the realization that she was nearly immune to the effects the murders had on everyone.

It was a job, something she could put in the back of her mind at the end of the day but since her own encounter in the park, she had been unable to tuck the memories into a safe corner. Yet despite everything she had recently been through, Liz was able to remain impassive as Kyle’s expression continuously changed before her eyes.

“So what makes you think this is the same guy that killed Pam?” Max queried as he finally settled his gaze on Liz.

Liz was momentarily struck by the way his voice made her miss the past like nothing else in thirteen years had. With his hair a little longer and the darkening shadow of a beard over his jaw, he looked only slightly more grown up than Liz remembered. His eyes, hazel and flecked with hints of gold had once been filled with love each time they’d looked into hers. Liz was almost disappointed by the mask he hid them with now, not that she blamed him

Unlike Kyle and the other deputies she had seen, Max was sporting a pair of black slacks and a pale blue pinpoint shirt. A navy colored tie was loosened around his collar, almost like he had tugged on it in discomfort and his sleeves had been pushed up to his forearms. Liz nearly smiled as she spotted the silver Fossil watch his sister had given to him as a high school graduation present.

She knew, from Valenti’s earlier warning, that despite being a Criminal Justice teacher now, he had graciously agreed to lend whatever knowledge he had from his time on the Police Force in hopes of helping things along.

“Aside from the dates they happened on and Pam’s resemblance to the previous seven, the killer also employed several of the same tactics on each victim” Liz answered after getting her wits back again. “I mentioned his obsession with the number three and it also extended to the murders. The woman was first strangled, sexually assaulted post-mortem and finally shot through the heart three times with a Colt .45 automatic. There were no other visible lacerations that indicate he had strayed from the routine on any of the murders… including Pamela Troy.”

Kyle, despite the severity of the situation, seemed visibly impressed by Liz. Max, on the other hand, simply nodded in acknowledgement. “Given what we know about the killer and his crimes, I think the women here are safe… at least for now. He won’t strike again until the assigned day” she said, relaying the conclusion she, Kathleen and Pacer had all come up with. “Sheriff Valenti has offered me this agency’s full cooperation. I must implore you both that discretion is non-negotiable, even with your colleagues. Kyle, I don’t even want Ava knowing what I’m doing here if I can help it” she added with apology in her voice and eyes.

Bringing any more people into the mix would chance whatever edge she hoped to gain. Liz had complete confidence in Ava but she knew her friend would worry about her safety and the last thing she wanted was to cause more hurt to those she cared for. She had done enough of that in her past to last a lifetime.

“I need one of you to take Liz down to the Troy House and stay with her while she goes through the crime scene” Valenti stated, looking between the two men before settling on his son. Kyle nodded once to show he was fine with it and Liz pretended not to notice the relief that temporarily flooded Max’s features. “Max, I want you to collect everything we were gonna have sent off and make sure Liz gets it by the end of the day” he added and looked to Liz for any further instruction she might have.

“I’m ready when you are, Kyle” she said and forced her eyes to remain on her old friend as Max silently exited the room.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


Forty minutes after their makeshift meeting, Kyle pulled his Crown Victoria cruiser into a long, recently paved, driveway. The house was a small one story with chipped white paint and royal blue shutters. A low picket fence closed in the luscious green yard which was beautifully landscaped with a red blooming rose bush, one large lemon tree and several potted plants Liz couldn’t identify.

“She ran that old nursery just outside of town” Kyle stated when he saw the direction her gaze had taken.

Nodding, Liz followed as he led her through a side entrance door, grateful that the long driveway and out of sight door would make it difficult for any nosy neighbors to see her face. It also meant that the killer had an entrance and exit that would have provided him plenty of cover to break in and out.

With a pair of latex gloves on her hands, Liz carried her case in one hand and held a small black flashlight in the other. There were only four rooms in the house, a small kitchen that appeared untouched, a bedroom, a bathroom and a living area. With two days in between her arrival and the murder, along with a slew of inexperienced officers assigned to process the scene, Liz knew the chances of coming up with any viable evidence would have been slim to none. It was why she was counting on what had already been collected along with the information Kathleen and Pace were working with back in the city.

Beginning in the bedroom, Liz reached for a special UV light that was meant to detect traces of blood that would normally not be seen by the naked eye. Kyle watched from the doorway as Liz zeroed in on a spot of blood that had been lodged in the decorative molding of the queen sized cherry framed bed. She took a swab of the dried substance and mixed two chemicals together on the cotton to produce a faint pinkish color. She placed the swab downward in a flat manila package and continued to silently process the room.

The bathroom was clean as was the kitchen and even the living space turned up empty. Liz wasn’t entirely surprised but couldn’t help feeling a little dejected that more hadn’t been uncovered. Working on a strict timetable meant there was no room for errors. She hoped the information Max was set to deliver would provide some sort of insight on this crime because there was one thing she had no doubt about. The killer had moved out of his comfort zone and when that happened, criminals began to make mistakes.

Liz could only hope they would catch onto the mistake before it was already too late to make a difference.

“How’d you end up doing this, anyway?” Kyle inquired as he drove them back to the station where Liz’s SUV sat parked. “I mean… didn’t you want to be a scientist or something?” he asked, taking only a moment to glance away from the road and over towards his old friend.

The deputy car, Liz decided, was definitely Kyle. Empty coke bottles littered the floor around her shoes. A discarded candy wrapper stuck to his citation book and there was a fairly strange and unnatural scent permeating the air. His seats were stained with what Liz could only assume was coffee and the pitiful excuse for an air freshener hanging from the review mirror was obviously several years old.

She could be mistaken, but she could have sworn the green, cardboard pine tree was actually growing mold.

Liz wondered if maybe the mess was Kyle’s way of rebelling against a wife who believed cleanliness was next to godliness. Then, for one horrified moment, Liz worried that the unattractive stench would stick to her clothes even after she got out of the car.

“One word, Kyle” Liz stated with complete seriousness. “Febreeze… try it.”

“Ha! Ha!” he mocked and rolled his eyes heavenward. “Lay off the cruiser, will you? This bad boy has been with me since I got out of the academy” he informed in a snotty tone. Liz briefly entertained the idea of asking him whether or not that was the last time the car had smelled normal but decided not to press her luck. “Anyway, answer the question. How’d you get into the Crime Scene gig?” he repeated, causing Liz to take a reluctant stroll down memory lane.

“Well the abbreviated version is that I got my degree and had no desire to use it. So I played around with a few jobs here and there, then I met this elderly lady on a bus. She was telling me all about her nephew, the PI and it occurred to me that it actually sounded kind of fun” Liz shrugged, thinking back to her days in San Francisco.

The glory days, Kathleen used to call them when she heard Liz’s story because it was the first place she made it on her own.

“But the more I thought about it, the more boring it sounded. I didn’t want to tail people so one spouse would get a big divorce settlement or anything like that which is really the only way to make money in that business. I wanted to solve things, make them better so I came up with CSI. It held my interest long enough for me to get through all my qualification tests and then once I started working for the NYPD, I knew I had found my dream job.”

If her tone sounded wistful, she didn’t notice. It was the first accomplishment she had actually felt any satisfaction for but as everything else did with time, it eventually faded. Liz continued to keep at it because she was good and had no idea what she would do if she wasn’t a field agent. Jesse had been the one to convince her to tough it out a little longer, claiming her funk would pass. He may have been right, but then he had to go and die and with him, so did Liz’s desire to continue her job.

In retrospect, she acknowledged that he was also the reason she was busting her butt to catch a criminal that had eluded everyone for over a year. She wanted justice. She wanted to look the son of a bitch in the eyes before she sent him away. It was the only way she would ever have any peace of mind over what had happened.

“So then you’re the best… well you’d have to be if you’re the one they sent down here” Kyle concluded on his own just as they pulled up to the Sheriff’s Department.

“I’m the best one for this job, anyway” Liz replied after a contemplative moment. Kyle placed the car in park and watched Liz un-holster her Sig-Sauer from the black belt around her waist. Carefully, she set the weapon down inside her case and turned to smile her thanks. When they first went out to Pam’s house, Liz had kept her gun loaded and ready for use but now that she had to get out in broad daylight, she needed to stow it away otherwise anyone within viewing distance would gossip up a storm as to why little Liz Parker was carrying a side-piece.

“Come by the house when you get the chance” Kyle invited with an easy grin. “Ava would kill you if you didn’t and you’ll finally get to meet Brian.” Pure fatherly pride would be the only description accurate enough to call the expression he wore at the mention of his four year old son. “In fact, why don’t you come by tonight? Dad and Amy will be there and I think Michael and Maria were going to head in tonight from Santa Fe. Saturday’s their 23 wedding anniversary” he reminded.

Liz knew she looked like a deer caught in headlights at the suggestion. Ava would be enough of a handful but adding Amy to the mix meant way more questions than Liz was prepared to handle. “I don’t know, Kyle. I have all that evidence to go through” she shrugged, hoping he’d take her excuse yet instantly knowing he wouldn’t.

“Come on, Liz. You’ll have to face everyone eventually, right. Better all at once… like ripping off a band-aid” Kyle persisted in a way that had Liz wondering whether he remembered exactly what had happened the last time she was in Roswell. Didn’t he realize how hard it would be?

The look on his face told her no, he didn’t. She guessed he assumed everyone else would welcome her back with open arms just because he had and because he knew Ava would.

“Alright” Liz sighed and offered him a tight smile. After all, it could have been worse, she thought. It was just the Valenti family. It wasn’t as though she he’d have to face Max or any of the other Evans family members.

Hello, sorry everyone, I thought I had posted the next chapter last week when I updated my other story Thank you all for your feedback and patience!

FSU/MSW-94
begonia9508
Sternbetrachter
SmileeUK
Smac

Chapter 4

Nearly six hours had passed before Liz finally glanced down at her watch. Surprised, she looked out the one window that was cracked and partially boarded up, only to find that the sun was already setting. A vibrant array of yellows, oranges, pinks and reds had replaced the dreary blue that had previously lit up the sky during the early hours of day. Liz was once again assaulted by a strong wave of nostalgia. She hadn’t realized how much she missed home until she’d finally returned.

You couldn’t see the stars in the city or much of the sky for that matter. It was called a concrete jungle for a reason and sometime during her years away, Liz had learned not to need the simple sights of setting suns and smog free skies.

Forcing her eyes away from the dirty glass, she carefully began to pack away her materials. Roughing it was what she would call what she’d been doing. Her laptop, with the barest of software from the crime lab had been useless at first since there wasn’t an internet connection in the room. Instead, she keyed in the information she could and compiled a list of everything else to e-mail to Pace at the station house.

Before that, Liz went through all the statements and reports the Roswell deputies had provided, with a fine toothed comb. There were some differences between the crimes though there was also a margin of error since the killer was now operating outside his regular zone of comfort. The most pertinent facts, however, remained the same. The method of murder, the date it occurred on as well as the appearance of the latest victim.

As she cleaned up, preparing to go to dinner at Kyle and Ava’s home, Liz wondered how long it would take before someone asked why the killer would flock down to Roswell when there were millions of women in New York, as she had pointed out. At the time, it hadn’t occurred to her that she might be digging a deep hole to climb out of later. Though looking back on it, Liz supposed it was because she was unaccustomed to censoring herself, a fact that was strange considering there was so much about her that the people she had grown up with didn’t know while those she worked with did.

Before boarding a plane to Las Cruces, Liz and Pace sat together on a pair of uncomfortable plastic chairs at JFK, trying to decide whether or not they were making the right choice. Given that the killer was a stickler for patterns, Liz couldn’t deny how strange it was that the victim targeted in Roswell lived in the house her mother had grown up in.

The small space had been cramped but then it had just been Nancy and Claudia. Once Claudia had scraped together enough money from the two jobs she worked, mother and daughter moved into a larger house that had two bedrooms rather than the one.

Then when they worked, processing the scene in the park, Liz had no idea how long the guy had been hiding, listening to her and Jesse talk. All he had to do was find out her first name then he could have gotten Parker from the NYPD website. With that information, he could have Google’d her or found the information he needed from any other number of resources. After all, a master mind who managed to elude an entire precinct wouldn’t have had any difficulties tracking down someone as public as a government employee.

Yet even as they found more than a dozen reasons for Liz to return to Roswell, there was always that one, big possibility that they had the wrong person. Copy Cats sprouted up all the time, trying to recreate crimes committed by some of the most notorious killers. So the ball was left in her court and with either side to chose, Liz walked through the terminal and boarded a plane headed for New Mexico.

She acknowledged that her judgment might be clouded by the strong desire to catch the perpetrator who killed Jesse… the one who left her scarred in more ways than one. Then there was the responsibility Liz felt because the heinous crime had been committed against the woman who resided in the house Nancy Parker had once lived in.

In the end, she made a choice and no matter how many doubts might pop up along the way, she was already in too deep to back out.

Since dinner parties hadn’t been considered when Liz packed a bag, she decided her slacks and button down shirt would have to do. The cuffs had long since been rolled up due to the strange heat in the cheap room. Oddly enough, the radiator seemed to be stuck on ‘hot as hell’ as a temperature. The ceiling fan above her, enormous, dirty and eerily loud, had managed to circulate the air well enough to keep the room comfortable so Liz only had to suffer through the heat while she was performing tests that couldn’t be disturbed by the outdated, overhead fan.

Reaching for her purse, Liz also grabbed her examination and brief cases. She didn’t trust any of the information to sit alone in a room that had one lock that any teenager could break through. Instead, Liz carried everything out to her rental SUV and locked them in a small storage space just beside the spare tire compartment. This way no one would be able to see them and the only way to get to it would be to break the rear window.

In a worse case scenario, Liz would hear the shattering glass before anyone had a chance to take anything important.

Her gun, however, was something she was unwilling to lock away. If she could have hid the handgun beneath her blazer, she would have but since the shooting, it hurt her side too much to sit down with the gun tightly secured against it. At least tight enough to prevent any one else from spotting it.

Instead, she took the holster she wore as a belt and adjusted the length to make it as small as possible. Twisting it around her upper ankle twice, she finally managed to secure it against her leg, then tucked the gun inside the holster.

Satisfied with the end result, Liz was finally ready to start heading towards the Valenti house. After their wedding, the pair continued to live in Kyle’s little apartment until Ava announced she was pregnant. The two had searched for the perfect, affordable home and with Amy Deluca-Valenti in their corner, Kyle and Ava finally found a place they loved. Ava had raved all about it during one of their phone conversations and it had been another one of those moments where Liz wished her own life wasn’t so complicated.

Turning onto Spruce Street, Liz easily spotted the right house because it was the one that had two department vehicles in the driveway. A small, red Ford Focus was parked beside Kyle’s cruiser and even from the outside, Liz could see the differences between the two owners. Ava’s car was spotless, her windows were streak free, tires shined and even her bumper gleamed.

Felix and Oscar, Liz used to call them. It had seemed appropriate back in high school and from the looks of it, it still rang true.

Smiling to herself, Liz parked beside the Sheriff’s Explorer and reached across the seat for her purse. As she straightened up, she glimpsed movement in the review mirror and watched as another vehicle pulled in. This one was a ragged, green military jeep with a matching rag top and a dented front grill. Liz knew who the driver was before he even opened the door and stepped onto the paved walkway.

What she hadn’t expected was to see the passenger side open, revealing a leggy blonde.

“Why am I not surprised” Liz muttered to herself and decided there was no point prolonging the inevitable. After all, she couldn’t leave even if she tried since Max was currently blocking her in.

Hoping to appear aloof and unaffected, Liz nodded towards the pair in acknowledgement as they walked right by her SUV. The blonde smiled quizzically but didn’t stop to introduce herself and Max ignored Liz all together. “Even better than I thought” she murmured under her breath and slammed the door shut behind her.

She was only a few steps behind them and watched as the front door opened, revealing a shell-shocked looking Kyle. “M…Max” he stuttered and cleared his throat to hide his surprise. “Ava didn’t mention you were stopping by” he said but ever the courteous host, stepped aside so the pair could pass. Kyle smiled at something the blonde said but his eyes remained fixed on Liz, who pretended nothing was wrong.

After all, she couldn’t blame him for moving on when she was the one who left. Liz understood that a man like Max Evans would not be single for the rest of his life but knowing it and actually seeing it were two different things. “So where’s that crazy wife of yours” Liz joked and wrapped both arms around Kyle in a brief embrace. He grinned down at her but she could see the pity he held in his eyes.

“In the living room playing Susie Homemaker” Kyle teased back and threw his arm around Liz’s shoulders in a way that annoyed the hell out of her. Kyle knew it too and simply grinned when she lightly hit his ribs with her elbow.

Liz noticed he had changed out of his tan colored deputy shirt and chocolate slacks. Now he was clad in a pair of worn jeans and a plaid, button down cowboy shirt with pearl snaps and faded off-white piping. His boots were brown and scuffed at the toe. Liz wasn’t sure but she thought they were the same boots he had been wearing since he was seventeen.

As the pair walked further into the house, Liz noticed that the dinner party occupants were all just standing around a comfortable looking living room. The walls were a pale yellow and the carpeting was ivory. The couches, off white with floral accent pillows, were long, wide and overstuffed. An oak coffee table held a large silver platter laden with cheese puffs while beside it, a tall glass vase housed an arrangement of sunflowers and French Tulips.

A group of bookshelves lined one wall and were filled to capacity with picture frames, knickknacks and old sets of encyclopedias. They were oak, just like the coffee and end tables, giving the entire room a homey, country feeling. “Hey everyone, look what the cat dragged in” Kyle said by way of introducing Liz. She felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment as conversation halted and seven pairs of eyes turned their gaze on the Prodigal Daughter…or at least that was what Kyle called her when everyone continued to silently gape.

Max was the first to turn away but Valenti was the one who came to her rescue. “For heaven sakes, Kyle… how old are you now?” his father scolded just as Amy covered her mouth with both hands in an effort to hold back a loud sob.

“Liz!” cried out Ava who launched herself at the petite brunette. Again, before she could hold back, her face contorted in a grimace as Ava brushed up against her wound. The blonde, along with everyone else in the room, seemed oblivious to Liz’s pain, much to her appreciation. Then, to Liz’s horror, Ava began to bawl hysterically. She clung tightly to her old friend as both Kyle and Valenti attempted to gently pull her away.

“I probably should have mentioned she’s pregnant again” Kyle stated as an afterthought. Half the people in the room smiled fondly while the other half stared wide eyed at the small blonde.

“Kyle Valenti, if you say my hormones are making me cry then I swear you’ll sleep in your filthy car tonight” Ava warned with an angry glint in her sapphire eyes. The airy, mint green dress she wore was more suitable for summer but Liz vaguely remembered Ava once mentioning that throughout her first pregnancy, she was constantly hot. “But he’s right, I’m pregnant” she repeated, turning excited eyes and a wide grin on Liz.

She was only mildly aware that everyone was still staring. Then everything closed in on her and she felt a wave of dizziness sweep up her body. Ava’s voice penetrated her haze but it sounded so far away. She reached out blindly, hoping to find something sturdy beneath her hands when instead her entire world went dark… again.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


“I heard you were finally awake.” Blinking rapidly with sleep still in her eyes, Liz tried to focus on the voice attached to a white lab coat. He was tall with a thick tuft of white hair on his head and a matching silver mustache. His eyes were friendly, she noticed. A warm shade of green that glanced down at her sympathetically. “I’m Doctor Edward Palmer” he introduced and held his hand out for her to shake. It was then that Liz noticed the IV tubes stuck to her skin with strips of clear tape.

Her mind raced, trying to figure out what she was doing in a hospital. The last thing she remembered was getting a call to head down to Central Park. Someone had found a body…a man jogging… no, that wasn’t right either. What had she been doing?

“Elizabeth?” the doctor called out in a gentle voice. “Elizabeth, can you tell me what happened?” he asked, obviously reading the confusion in her eyes. Again, she tried to concentrate, hoping to find the answer that lied just beneath the surface. He waited, patient and silent for several moments before Liz finally admitted she had no idea what had happened. “Can you tell me who you are and what you do for a living?” he then asked in the same calm tone that somehow soothed Liz’s frustration.

“Liz Parker… I’m a CSI for the NYPD” she answered without hesitation.

“Alright, Elizabeth…Liz, you were in Central Park working on a case. You were shot in the line of duty” Dr. Palmer explained gently. Only then did Liz feel a sharp pain in her stomach. Instinctively reaching towards it, she found a heavy bandage and gauze covering an area on her right side. “Liz” he tried again and waited until she had returned her full attention to his sympathetic face. “Did you know you were six weeks pregnant?”

Shaking her head, Liz said no and tried to wrap both her arms around her middle. She felt an emptiness that she didn’t understand but related to the loss of her baby. Because she knew she had lost the child, otherwise the doctor wouldn’t have referred to the pregnancy in the past tense.

She may not have remembered the night he spoke of but she was coherent enough to pick up on his wording.

“You were rapidly hemorrhaging when the paramedics brought you in. We were able to remove the bullet which, by some miracle, just grazed or missed all viable organs. However, you did have a partially collapsed lung which we were able to repair with surgery and there was a lot of tissue damage. But the bleeding was extensive, putting entirely too much stress on your body” Dr. Palmer explained with sorrow in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Liz but we weren’t able to save the baby.”

Silent tears fell from her eyes as she continued to listen to the doctor who explained she had slipped into a coma just after coming out of the operating room. Nearly two weeks of her life were gone, along with the unborn child she hadn’t known existed and the life of a best friend.


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She woke with tears in her eyes and fear in her heart. For a short wrinkle in time, she half expected to open her eyes and see four white walls, an IV drip and monitors set up beside her. Instead, she woke up in an unfamiliar room that carried the faint scent of Pinesol and Pledge. Then it hit her, she was in Ava’ house. “Quite the scar you have there.” Liz would have jumped in surprise if she hadn’t immediately recognized the voice.

“I was in a car accident” Liz stated, repeating the first lie that sprung to mind. In the darkened room she barely made out Max’s shadow as he sat at the edge of the bed. He was hunched over and as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she noticed his hands were clasped between his legs while he stared down at the carpeted floor.

“Liar” he said without heat. “But that’s okay, you don’t have to tell me anything” he added in a curt tone. “I just came to see if you were up yet. Ava was freaking out and Kyle spent the last twenty minutes trying to convince her that you didn’t need to be taken to the hospital” Max informed and looked right at her. The moonlight shone on his hazel eyes so that they almost glowed like a cat’s as he studied her. “I put your gun in the top drawer, in case Ava broke away from the group and came to check on you.”

Liz looked between Max and the nightstand before finally settling back on Max. “I’m sor…” she trailed off as the door opened, revealing the tall blonde from before. With the light from the hallway surrounding her, she looked almost ethereal, Liz decided.

“Baby, I have a bit of a headache. Do you think we could go home?” she asked with her attention focused solely on Max. The word home continuously echoed in Liz’s ear and she found her eyes dropping to his clasped hands, looking for a wedding band. She found none.

“Liz Parker… meet Savannah Richmond” Max introduced after a moment’s hesitation. If he had believed the two women would shake hands, he would have been wrong as Savannah stayed rooted by the doorway, offering only a small wave.

“It’s nice to meet you Savannah” Liz said more out ingrained manners than anything else. “I should probably let Ava know everything’s alright” she added, almost to herself and attempted to climb off the bed. Max, who continued to sit, effectively blocked her path. “Excuse me” she said a little louder and nudged him with the heel of her boot.

“Savannah, would you give us a minute please?” Max requested as both witnessed the way his girlfriend hesitated before finally nodding. “If you walk out there now, you probably won’t be able to come back in here to get your gun” he said once the door was closed. Rather than wait, he leaned over and pulled the top drawer open. Reaching inside, he produced the black Sig-Sauer P-225, smaller than most other models and an ounce or two lighter. Slowly, he pushed the leg of her slacks up, revealing the make-shift holster still strapped just above her boot.

Liz noticed that he double checked the safety before placing it inside the holster. Then both hands pulled the black wool of her pants down, effectively concealing the weapon. “See you at work, Liz” he murmured and rose without another word.

She was still staring after him nearly five minutes later when Ava arrived to make sure Liz was really okay.

Hi everyone!

Thanks begonia9508 and LegalAlien

Chapter 5

When Liz rejoined the party, everyone swarmed around her again, this time to make sure she was feeling better. With Ava and Amy firing in rapid succession, Liz had no choice but to give them both the same story Max had seen right through. She told them she had been sitting inside a cab that was involved in an icy accident. Then once the story had been told, she played it down as much as possible to minimize their worry and explained that she was taking prescription pills but hadn’t eaten all day, thus making her dizzy.

In all honesty, the story she told about the pills was the actual truth, she just fudged the reason for needing them.

Afterwards, Maria, who Liz had never been particularly close to, began chatting her up like they were old friends. Despite her closeness with the rest of the Valenti family, Liz spent little time with Maria when they were kids because the other woman had been very close to her father and spent the majority of her time living with Henry Deluca. It had crushed Amy but with time, she eventually accepted it.

While the women continued to talk about one thing or another, Michael, Kyle and Jim cleared away the dinner plates. All three men grumbled the entire time but one stern look from Amy, Maria or Ava had them lowering their heads in obedience.

Liz expected Ava to ask all the questions she’d been storing up over the years but was surprised when her friend only asked one or two things about her life. She had always known that their friendship wasn’t exactly fair. Liz kept so many things from Ava while the blonde spilled her guts on a regular basis. It was a true testament to how close they were and how scarred Liz had been when she left that the two continued to communicate at all.

Liz suspected that there would always be a small part of Ava that was angry at her for all the secrets but she had long since accepted it. Liz knew Amy was also angry but her concern won out and instead of giving lectures or scolding expressions, she hugged and cooed like a new mother. Thankfully, she also refrained from firing enough the dozen or so inquiries waiting on the tip of her tongue.

In the midst of it all, the infamous Brian woke up, both cranky and impatient. Liz decided he definitely took after Ava even if he looked like a mini version of Kyle. He didn’t want to be introduced to Liz and he didn’t want hugs from his extended family either, he just wanted Ava to take him back to bed and sing him a song. Liz could sympathize with just wanting to sleep.

“Maybe you should stay here tonight” Kyle quietly suggested so as to not alert his wife to the invitation in case Liz said no.

“I can’t, Kyle” she shook her head with certainty. “She’d want to drive into Las Cruces to go shopping and catch up or something. There’d be no way to explain that I have other things to do” Liz stated, feeling a momentary pang of nervousness as she thought about what she was scheduled to do the following day. It wouldn’t be her first but it would be the first time she flew solo.

“Well then you better come up with something to tell her because if I know my wife, she’s going to invite you to stay” Kyle pointed out. He offered her a sympathetic smile and went to go talk to his dad about something or other. Liz, who acknowledged he was right about Ava, began thinking of a way to politely excuse herself when the distraction came in the form of a phone call.

“Parker” she answered in a quiet voice and gestured to Ava that she was going outside to take the call.

“What, you in a library or something?” Pace deadpanned a beat later. “Speak up, I can hardly hear you.”

“Do you actually have something important to tell me or did you just call because you missed giving me a hard time” Liz retorted once she was alone on the Valenti’s front porch.

A white-washed wooden swing hung near the banister and gently swayed with the light breeze in the air. The cushions were green and white plaid with a big V embroidered on each side, Liz noticed with amusement.

The porch itself was filled with potted plants that had yet to make it to the front yard. A small plastic bin rested opposite the swing, containing, from what Liz could see, various shades of yarn and large needles. Ava, a home economics teacher at the local high school, apparently brought her work home with her.

“Course I do but first tell me about you” Pace replied, sounding genuine for just a moment as he asked how her stomach felt.

He had his tough guy routine down cold and somewhere along the way, that confidence managed to extend towards his team who he also believed were invincible. Their group had the highest success rate and worked so well together after so many years of being around one another that it never occurred to Pace, or to any of them really, that someone could get hurt. Logically, you always knew it was possible, but somehow they’d all managed to forget the risk.

Jesse’s death threw everyone for a loop and Liz knew from the tone of his voice that the surly detective was really worried about her too. Away from his watchful eye and protection, he was scared that something would happen to another friend. It was in that moment that Liz was glad she never told Pacer or anyone else that she had been pregnant and miscarried. Her friends would have only worried about her more.

“I’m good… now tell me whatever you called to tell me” Liz stated, eager to change the subject. One of the last things she wanted just then was to get into a conversation with him about the fears they both seemed to share. Any other time and she wouldn’t have batted an eyelash but her emotions were running high after seeing Max and then hearing about Ava’s pregnancy. “Did something new come up?”

“Well to start with, Kat said to tell you she’ll be in her office all day tomorrow in case you have questions” Pace dutifully replied. “We talked to the Coopers and the only strange thing we could find is a boyfriend, an ex to be specific” he said with a hint of uncertainty. “The thing is that the two of them dated for a few years and then broke up a couple years back but when we tried looking him up, we got nothing. We tried his old address, his old number… we put everything into the system and came up with nothing that matched their description.”

“Well that’s not too strange. Maybe they forgot a detail or the guy was going by a different name for whatever reason” Liz mused but even that excuse sounded flimsy to her ears.

“Well… see, the thing is that the guy was a pilot or something but the parents couldn’t remember what airport he worked with so we called all of them in the area and again… nothing. We widened our search and this guy either disappeared off the face of the earth or doesn’t exist” Pace informed. Liz could practically see the frustration in his eyes as easily as she heard it in his voice.

“Maybe he didn’t[/u] exist” Liz stated after several moments. “Did the parents ever see the guy?”

“I don’t think so, why?” He was intrigued, she knew he would be but her theory was simply that, just a theory.

“Maybe she made him up” Liz replied, thinking back to the movie Clueless, courtesy of Ava who made her watch it over a hundred times, literally. She thought about Cher who tried to get a boy to notice her by pretending another boy was already interested. “Maybe she had the kind of parents that were always telling her she needed to hurry up and settle down, so she made up an imaginary boyfriend to get them off her back” she pitched and again, knew it was a long shot but they had heard and seen stranger. “You know, maybe got a friend to pose as the boyfriend. So maybe all they knew about him was made up, including the name.

“Who knows” Pace said a beat later. He sounded tired and the steady hum of traffic in the background revealed that he was currently walking somewhere, most likely home from the station. “Maybe. The name did sound like something out of those trashy romance novels.”

“What was the name?” she inquired, unaware of how curious she sounded.

“Christopher Khivar” the detective dryly informed. The sound of someone moving behind the door alerted Liz to how long she had been outside. The area was almost completely darkened and by the sounds of it, one of the guests was getting ready to go home. She hadn’t even realized she was pacing until she looked to her right and found the porch swing on the opposite side of the planked deck.

“I have to go, bye” Liz hissed and snapped her phone shut just as the door opened, revealing Michael and Maria. Quickly hiding in the shadows, she waited until they were pulling out of the driveway before hurrying over to Kyle’s cruiser.

Just as she had suspected, the door was unlocked.

Reaching inside, she grabbed at the nearest and cleanest scrap of paper she could find and quickly scrawled a note to Ava and Kyle.

At the last minute, she reached for a half eaten and almost entirely melted candy bar. Grimacing, she smeared a little of the chocolaty caramel against the back of the note and stuck it on the front door. Ava would kill her for it later but it was the only out Liz could find.

Again, as quietly as possible, she walked towards her SUV and dug a set of keys out of her pocket. Once she was home free, she quickly backed out of the driveway and waited until she was out on the street before turning on her lights.

Then, before anyone had the chance to walk outside and find out what the noise had been, she had already shot down the street.


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Early the next morning, just as the town was beginning to waken, Max pulled his jeep into a parking space right in front of Roswell Memorial Hospital. His job for the day was to shadow Liz who was scheduled to perform the autopsy on Pamela Troy. Originally, Kyle had been assigned the task but called Max late the night before asking him to cover the shift since Ava wasn’t feeling well. Her morning sickness was more of all night sickness and by dawn, she was too weak to get their son ready for daycare.

The difficult part, at least for Max, would be getting down to the morgue before anyone saw him. With his girlfriend working a few floors above as a nurse, all the other ladies would most likely inform her that he was in the building the moment they spotted Savannah. Normally it wouldn’t be a problem but since Liz was undercover, so to speak, no one, including his girlfriend, could know she was down there.

Just the thought of Liz reminded Max of all the questions he had for his former girlfriend. Questions that were important to him, yet he hadn’t had the opportunity to ask. Max didn’t understand why she was so positive that the killer would strike next in Roswell or why the killer would have come to Roswell to begin with. He wanted to know if she had taken the case because it involved her home town or if she hadn’t had a choice in the matter.

He also wanted to know how she had gotten the scar on her stomach.

Over eight inches above and to the left of her hipbone with recently removed stitches, the wound looked like a gunshot to Max rather than any injury caused by a car accident. It had also occurred to him that the reason she had been sent from New York rather than one of her colleagues was because she had to take a leave of absence, due to whatever incident that caused the wound. Twice in one day he had seen her wince when anyone got close enough to press against her skin.

At the time, she hadn’t seemed forthcoming with the reason so he refrained from asking.

Then she had gone and fainted in front of everyone and Max had been the one to carry her into the spare bedroom. By whatever twist of fate, he ended up nearest to Liz when she wobbled and collapsed. Without giving it much thought, he swooped in and caught her limp body before her head had a chance to hit the floor. The feel of something poking his arm as he carried her alerted Max that she had a gun strapped to her leg.

The fact that he got it off without Ava noticing was another miracle and he quickly hid the handgun in a drawer so that no one else would see it either. Afterwards, he went back into the living room with everyone else and tried to forget about the wound he saw when her shirt had ridden up as he carried her. It was almost beginning to work when Ava decided that she wanted to check on Liz one more time.

Thankfully, Kyle kept her distracted long enough for Max to go instead.

Already he had found two surprises on her body and worried that Ava might find a third if she began prodding at Liz. So he sat there and waited for her to wake up. She shifted restlessly and mumbled incoherently but the words were too quiet to hear even if he could understand them. So when she sat up, he tried to remain detached because inside he was still concerned. Liz hurt him more than anyone else ever had before but he still cared about her and that angered him. He didn’t want to care, he wanted to be able to move on with Savannah or any other woman but before they got too close, he always pushed them away.

He was angry at himself for that too.

Pushing the morgue doors open, Max glanced around for some sign which would indicate where the autopsy might take place. There were several offices lining both sides of each wall and he didn’t even want to think about what could be inside the storage rooms. Instead, Max kept walking until he finally reached the end of the corridor. He took a right and found a set of heavy swinging doors.

There were no windows to offset their enormity so he figured he was in the right place.

As he stepped into the room, the sight that greeted him was one he imagined on more than one occasion in the past. Then, it had been under different circumstances and the body he pictured along with Liz had been alive.

Clad in a pair of green scrubs and an old pair of running shoes, Liz stood beside the body, adjusting her hair into a tight bun on top of her head. A box containing latex gloves rested on a table nearby, along with various silver instruments, a yellow legal pad and a miniature sized tape recorder. “I thought Kyle was working the autopsy” she said when she turned to face the door and found Max standing, watching almost as if he had been in a daze.

“Morning sickness got the better of Ava” Max replied and cleared his throat as an excuse to look away. “Kyle needed time to get Brian ready.”

“Okay” Liz said, drawing out the word and reached into the box for a pair of gloves. The white latex came up to just above her wrists and Max couldn’t help but watch her hands as she held one poised above the tape recorder, the other hovering near the instruments. “Would you mind filling in a few things for me?” Liz requested and gestured towards a clipboard nearby that held several forms.

“Sure” Max replied and retrieved a pen from his shirt pocket. Not unlike the day before, he was dressed in navy colored slacks with long sleeved blue pinstriped shirt. There was no tie this time and the top two buttons of his shirt had been left undone. Liz watched as he rolled his sleeves up to his forearms and perched himself on a stool beside the body. From his position, he was able to see everything Liz did.

She took a deep breath, hit the record button on the tape player and reached for a scalpel.

“The victim is Pamela Marie Troy, a female Caucasian, approximately 120 lbs and 65 inches tall. Subject has waist length brown hair, brown eyes and no visible scars or birth marks. Visual processing concludes evidence of strangulation which we’ll conclude was the victim’s cause of death. Three gun shots pierced the…”

As Liz continued to record everything she saw and did, Max’s eyes remained fixed on the three gunshot wounds to Pam’s chest. They were identical to the one Max had seen on Liz’s stomach the night before, confirming what he had originally assumed. Liz had been shot and if he wasn’t mistaken, she was shot with the same kind of gun used on all the victims.

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FSU/MSW-94
LegalAlien
Heavenli24
Emz80m
begonia9508
L-J-L 76
Ellie

Chapter 6

“Would you grab my cell phone and hit speed 4, please” Liz requested, gesturing to the counter nearest him where said phone rested. Liz stripped off her gloves and walked over to the sink to wash the scent and dust of latex off her hands. Dutifully, Max did as he was asked, still reeling from what he had just seen. It wasn’t watching a body opened up, it was more about the person who had done it.

When they were younger, Liz used to say that she wanted to become a doctor. She’d never admit it to anyone else, even Ava, because she got teased so much for being a brain. But she confessed her dream to him and It wasn’t long before Max could picture Liz doing it. She was determined and strong and had so much confidence that she would accomplish anything she tried her hand at.

His dream had been a bit simpler. He wanted an every day job, wanted to settle in a small town like the one they had grown up in and eventually, he wanted to marry Liz.

The day she packed up and left without a word to anyone, himself included, was the day his world fell apart. He kept thinking she would call and explain what happened. She’d tell him where she was and then he’d go to her but… that phone call never came. The summer past and he went back to school at UNM but he didn’t lose hope, at least not right away. Then he talked to Ava one day well into the fall semester and she admitted Liz had called her. The catch was that she didn’t want to talk to anyone else.

He learned she was safe but not why she had gone and with each passing day, he began to get angry that she had let him go so easily while he was still desperately holding on.

So much time had gone by that he’d fooled himself into believing he’d exorcised her from his heart. He moved on, had girlfriends, a career and a house, but even all combined they didn’t add up to a home… at least not the kind he had once dreamed of.

Coming back to the present, when a voice on the other end answered, Max hit speaker and set the phone down on the counter. “Pace… it’s Liz” she called out from where she stood in front of the sink. There were two brown paper towels in her hands, drying away the moisture as she focused her attention on the voice responding to her greeting.

“Tell me what you found” the male instantly demanded.

“Later, right now I need you to do something for me” Liz stated, undeterred by the voice’s insistence that she relay everything she may have uncovered. “I want you to e-mail me two different photos. The first from the bullets used on Patricia Tasker, the second from the bullets used on Serena Cooper. I’ll e-mail you what I got here and you can check it against the file we already have there.”

“Why the first and last victims?” he questioned but the rustling of papers in the background revealed that he was doing as asked.

“I can’t be sure yet but I think I’m dealing with a copycat” Liz admitted and began jotting a few notes down on the yellow legal pad. “To start with, there is no evidence to suggest that the victim was raped, before or after death. No forced penetration, no semen or traces of spermicide, latex, rubber or anything else a condom is made of. The victim was left completely untouched south of the border” she stated and the hum of a computer scanner filled the silence as Liz continued to work.

“Alright, I just sent you the photos” he stated after several more bustling moments. “But listen, Parker… a copycat isn’t the only one of our problems right now” the words and his tone of voice had Liz’s gaze snapping over towards the phone. Max watched as she bit her lip nervously, waiting for whatever bad news this guy, Pace, had to give her. “The hospital finally sent over the bullet they pulled from your stomach.”

Liz tried to grab at the phone as soon as she heard the word stomach but Max was faster and held it away from her reach. “We compared it to the ones that killed Jesse which match all of the victims but they don’t match yours.”

“Pace I gotta go, I’ll call you back” Liz called out and waited to hear his confused, ‘okay’ followed by the click indicating he had hung up. “Give it to me” Liz demanded, holding her palm up.

“Yeah… it’s easy to see how you would confuse a gunshot wound with a car accident” Max said after a moment’s pause. “People get the two mixed up all the time” he added dryly, ignoring the glare Liz wore. “Either that or you’ve just gotten so good at telling lies that this one just slipped out.”

“I never lied to you before” Liz argued and lowered her hand when it became apparent that Max wasn’t ready to comply. “I didn’t tell you about being shot because I couldn’t. I’m still trying to deal with it and… and I just couldn’t talk about it” she said tiredly and unconsciously began to rub said area.

“You shouldn’t do that” Max stated and grasped onto her wrist, halting her movements. Liz slowly nodded and Max dropped his hand. “Who’s Jesse?”

Liz sighed, knowing the question would have come sooner or later. She blamed herself for asking Max to make that call. She should have waited to talk to Pace but she’d been eager to compare the bullets and hadn’t thought the detective would say anything she didn’t want Max to hear. “He was my partner” Liz finally replied and stared down at her hands because she couldn’t look up at Max. She was too afraid of falling apart in front of him. “We work in teams of four. One homicide detective, two CSI specialists and one pathologist. He was the other CSI and he was killed on the night Serena Cooper was murdered… at the crime site, specifically.”

“By the murderer…Triple Threat” Max deduced. Liz nodded once and tightly closed her eyes to ward off the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes. She was so tired of crying.

“We were processing the area where the body had been found. I heard a noise which eventually turned out to be some stray dog running out from behind a cluster of bushes” Liz relayed in a quiet, controlled voice. “Jesse was crouched on the ground nearby, following a trail of blood. So when we saw the dog run out, I volunteered to go see what had scared him off.” She could picture everything in her mind’s eye.

Initially, it had taken some time.

After waking up in the hospital, Liz couldn’t remember anything that had led to her being shot. Since there was no damage to her short term memory, everyone assumed she was just suppressing a traumatic event. Liz, however, was glad for the empty space where the murder should have been. It somehow made it easier for her to accept that Jesse had been killed. Then one night, just after arriving in South Carolina, Liz woke up screaming because the block had finally lifted and she had seen everything again.

“But Jesse said he would go and told me to stay put” she continued, grateful for Max’s silence as she attempted to get it all out. “I was already standing and when he got up from the ground, he walked right in front of me just as two quick bullets were fired. I tried to… to find him but I was in the light and he… he wasn’t. Then this… other dog appeared and I turned… I expected it to be Triple Threat… running away but it wasn’t. He took ad-advantage of that and… he shot me too.”

She was stubborn and refused to cry in front of him. The result was violent shaking as she wrapped her arms tightly around her body and angrily fought back her tears. “I lived… he didn’t.”

No matter how angry he had ever been at Liz, Max couldn’t stand to see her in so much pain. His reaction was instinctive and unplanned as he strode forward and wrapped his arm around her shuddering body. He was, however, aware enough to move his gun aside so that it didn’t press against her as she tightly locked her arms around his waist. It didn’t even occur to Liz to shy away. Instead, she welcomed the security and strength she would always associate with Max and finally let her tears fall.

Max felt the moisture of hot tears against the material of his shirt but didn’t comment. Liz was so much smaller than he was and he tilted his head to rest his cheek against her hair. Even with all the fluids and chemicals that permeated the room on a regular basis, it was the scent of her coconut shampoo that wafted to his nose. He briefly smiled in the knowledge that even after thirteen years, she still used the same shampoo. “Is this why you think the killer came to Roswell” he whispered as the question occurred to him. He felt Liz momentarily stiffen in his arms before she slowly relaxed again and shook her head, almost imperceptibly. “You think he’s trying to lure you because he’s afraid you saw his face” he stated rather than asked.

Again, Liz nodded but this time she took a step back to put some much needed distance between herself and Max. She needed to remember that he wasn’t hers anymore. She had done too much damage in the past for him to ever be hers again. “Given the similarities between Pam’s murder and all the others, in addition to the fact that Pam is…was, living in the house my mom grew up in, it was enough to raise a red flag. Pace… that is, Detective Pacer, heard about the story and then did a lot of digging before he called to let me know what was going on.”

“You hadn’t heard about it?” Max queried, trying not to let it show that it hurt when she pushed him away.

“I was on a mandatory sick leave” Liz explained. “Kathleen, the team’s pathologist, grew up in South Carolina and recommended this little B&B. It was in the middle of nowhere and there were no TV’s around.” The memory made Liz think of Woodstock. The little beagle had belonged to Jesse and since his mother was allergic, Liz received custody of the puppy. “So I guess now that the secret’s out, I can…” she trailed off when the sound of someone coming down the corridor greeted their ears.

Looking between one another, Max nudged Liz in the direction of a supply closet just as she took her first step towards it. When the doors opened, Savannah, clad in hot pink scrub pants and a white floral print scrub top, appeared in front of Max. “Hey. I just ran into Janet a few minutes ago and she mentioned that she saw you coming down here a few hours ago. What are you up to?” she asked and pecked his lips happily.

“I’m working with the Coroner from Las Cruces” Max answered without thinking. Savannah looked around, a quizzical expression on her face before returning her look to Max. “He had to… use the bathroom and asked me to wait here with the body.” He would have said make a call but Liz’s phone continued to sit on the table where Max had placed it after she pushed him away. “You probably shouldn’t be down here though. It isn’t very professional” he said with apology in his voice when she frowned in response.

Her white blonde hair, down to her shoulders and cut in long layers had been pulled into a low ponytail at the nape of her neck. A few loose strands escaped and as she raised her hand to push them back behind her ear, an image of Liz doing the exact same thing flashed before his eyes. “Right… so will I see you tonight?” she asked with another smile already back in place.

She was a very beautiful woman with big blue eyes, a light dusting of freckles and full, pouty lips. Savannah was taller than most of the women he usually dated and was the only one ever tall enough to look him straight in the eye. Her legs were long, her hips narrow and her breasts large. All these things had appealed to Max when he first returned to Roswell and met the blonde beauty through a mutual friend.

He was happy with her, at least he had been in the beginning but as the days went by he could feel their end rapidly approaching. She had outlasted all his prior girlfriends and might have even been someone really special to him if it hadn’t been for Liz’s return. Max wasn’t sure what was going to happen with them. He knew she would most likely return to New York when everything was said and done but the fact that she could still get beneath his skin was enough to make him realize it was time to put an end to things with Savannah.

Maybe he’d give dating a break for a while, at least until he could find some way past the feelings he still felt for Liz. They may have been buried deep inside of him but her return brought them all screeching forward again. It had always been that way, even when they were teenagers.

Back when he was sixteen, she was fifteen and a brainiac sophomore, he had been dating a beautiful blonde named Victoria Delaney. Their relationship was actually pretty cliché. She was the head cheerleader, he was a football player and they were the most popular couple at West Roswell. Then one day he bumped into Liz. She looked up at him with those big doe eyes and he suddenly lost his penchant for blondes with blue gazes.

“I can’t tonight” Max answered with an almost imperceptible nod. “Class, remember” he stated, referring to the Criminal Justice class he taught twice a week. It had been his way of staying a part of the career he’d had for so long while also putting some distance between it.

Savannah frowned again but nodded acceptingly. “Right… well I guess I’ll go back upstairs. See you later” she said and once again pressed her lips against his. Then with one last smile, she was gone.

Once he was positive that she was out of the vicinity, Max walked over to the supply closet and pulled open the door. Liz sat on a step stool that had been placed beside one of the floor to ceiling shelves. Her eyes were closed and her head was leaning back against a stack of folded scrubs. If Max hadn’t known better, he would have believed she was sleeping. “Hey Aurora, time to come out” he said and watched her lips twitch before she opened her eyes and grinned up at him. Liz adored the Sleeping Beauty cartoon.

Extending his hand, he helped pull her up and tried not to focus on the feel of her hand inside his. So small and delicate, yet incredibly nimble with the way she handled a scalpel. “I know that the sheriff’s department doesn’t have high speed internet. Do you know a place that does?” Liz queried before the silence became uncomfortable. In an effort to stay busy, she began collecting her belongings to store away in the black brief case sitting on top of a nearby storage cabinet.

“Not any place I can think of” Max replied after a moment of consideration. “This town is still in the dark ages. Anyone who gets online uses dial-up” he shrugged then stuffed his hands inside his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “If you can work on something else for now, you can hitch a ride with me later to the school I teach at. I know they have a few dozen computers with high speed capabilities” he offered, almost reluctantly.

Liz would have declined when she saw the uncertainty in his expression but she really needed to retrieve her files. Dial-up would work but she’d be sitting in front of the computer for who knows how long trying to receive her images. “Thanks” she finally said. “I’d appreciate it.”

When she first woke up in the hospital and then learned what had happened from her friends and Dr. Palmer, Liz found herself flashing back to her past. There were snippets of school, Ava and even childhood memories with her parents. The most prominent and frequent thoughts, however, had been about Max.

When they began dating her sophomore year, Max was a year older and one of the most popular guys in the school. His ex-girlfriends consisted of cheerleaders and dance team members while she was a shy girl involved in organizations like the student council and science club. If it had been any other guy she would have assumed his attention was just a stupid high school prank but it was Max, and she believed every word from his mouth. He was so sweet, so genuine and it was entirely too easy to fall for him.

He brought Liz out of her shell by taking her to school dances, after-game parties and introducing her to all his friends. It helped that she had always been close to Ava and Kyle who were also among the popular crowd.

The amazing thing to her was that she didn’t have give up her interests to be with him but merely expanded those interests to include Max and the important things in his life. As she spent time recovering in the hospital, Liz found herself truly missing what she once had. Coming so close to death had a way of putting things into perspective. Sometimes it was too late to make amends, sometimes it wasn’t but then and there, Liz decided that regardless of the probable outcome, she’d one day try with Max.

Because of those two weeks spent in a coma Liz had missed Jesse’s funeral so once she was released from the hospital, she went to visit his mom in Boston before ending up in South Carolina.

Nearly two weeks later, Liz was still trying to figure everything out when she got the call from Pace about what was going on in Roswell. She was terrified about going back into the fray, no matter how tough she acted but she also hoped that in spite of everything, maybe she’d finally have the chance to talk to Max.

She’d yet to straighten things out with him but she wasn’t about to give up either. “Why don’t you go out first?” Liz suggested when both continued to stand in front of one another, neither saying a thing. “I still have to straighten up a few things before I can go.”

“Okay, um… where are you staying? I can pick you up on my way out” Max stopped to ask.

When Liz named the motel she’d been sleeping at, his eyes widened in horror. “Sleeping in Kyle’s car would be cleaner than that place” he stated dryly. When Liz merely shrugged and smiled, Max shook his head and made for the door again. “Be ready by five” he called out and strolled through the doors, leaving Liz with her thoughts… and a body.

Thanks for the great feedback everyone!

FSU/MSW-94
martine
begonia9508
marteloise
Emz80m
LegalAlien

Chapter 7

Prompt as always, Max pulled into the parking lot of Sultan’s Hide Away Motel at exactly five o’clock. Since Liz had no idea how long she and Max would be at the school, she dressed for comfort in a pair of old blue jeans and a long sleeved red t-shirt that had ‘Stanford’ emblazoned across her chest in bold white letters. “So that’s where you went to school?” Max inquired once Liz had climbed inside the jeep.

He waited until she fastened her seatbelt and then pulled out onto the street.

Liz had received early acceptance to several universities, including Harvard which had been her first choice. The couple hadn’t been sure what they were going to do about their relationship but they loved one another too much to worry about distance while Liz was still in high school. Max had graduated the previous year and was already attending UNM but he was also prepared to transfer anywhere on the east coast if necessary.

To him, school was something that needed to be done in order to succeed later on in life. The location didn’t matter to him but he knew Harvard mattered to Liz. It had been her dream since she was old enough to understand what college was.

When everything fell apart and Liz fled, she had somehow ended up in California. After deferring Harvard for a year, she figured she’d eventually make her way east but it hadn’t worked out that way. Instead, after a semester of bumming around had passed, she was accepted into Berkley where she majored in Biology.

Like she told Kyle, by the time she graduated, she had no idea what she wanted to do with her degree. Then she met Letty, the woman on a San Franciscan cable car who originally gave Liz the idea to try and become a Private Investigator. The idea, unfortunately, went sour fast and after spending some more time working, she got acceptance into Stanford Medical School. Her undergrad grades had been nearly flawless, even if she hadn’t really enjoyed her coursework there.

After med school, she ended up with a job working for the NYPD and finally moved out east, eight years after she had originally planned to.

“It’s where I went to med school” Liz answered and turned her attention out the window at the passing landscape. She was scared of what Max would ask next but even more afraid that he wouldn’t ask anything at all. No matter how difficult they might be to answer, if he had questions, she would know that he at least cared enough to ask.

“So how much work do you have to do tonight?” he wondered after several minutes of empty silence. Liz was well aware that he had changed over the years but she still recognized the nervousness in his voice. She recognized the way he fidgeted and scratched at his eyebrow the same way he used to back in high school when he made her mad and had no idea how to proceed.

He was just as unsure about everything as she was, or at least it seemed that way to her.

“I have a bunch of reports to scan and e-mail, plus those bullet photos to print out” Liz replied, mentally ticking off a list of everything she needed to accomplish that night. “There’s actually a lot I can’t do here without all the proper equipment and chemicals. I’m basically just analyzing, comparing data and relaying it to Pace and Kat.” It had seemed like a good idea when Liz agreed to fly down to Roswell to help work on the case from there. She hadn’t realized that the town’s technology was still stuck in a time warp.

The department didn’t have much of crime lab and Liz suspected even the high school’s biology class would be better equipped to help her analyze information than the station house was.

“So tell me about what you and the detective talked about earlier. The copycat and bullets not matching” Max requested next. His gaze remained planted on the road in front of him but there were brief moments where Liz could see his eyes dart towards her.

“We were… Jesse and I… shot… within seconds of each other. At least it felt that way, but Pace said that the bullets they pulled out of Jesse didn’t match the one they pulled out of me” Liz stated, mind already reeling with possibilities. If it hadn’t been for the fact that it was the same type of gun as used on all the victims, Liz might have even believed the two incidents were unrelated.

No evidence before had ever suggested more than one person had been involved in the murders. The recent find made her question everything they knew about each killing, including whether or not Triple Threat and Pamela Troy’s murderer was one in the same.

The only thing Liz could say with absolute uncertainty was that whoever was killing these women, whether it was one person or ten, needed to found… the sooner the better.

“As for the copycat, that could have been the person who shot at me or the person who killed Pam” Liz mused aloud, wondering what the odds were that it had been the same person, yet still a different shooter than the one who killed the first seven girls. “We won’t know until we can match up all the bullets.”

“Do you specialize in ballistics?” was the next logical question to come from Max’s mouth. Despite everything he had already seen, he was still having some trouble wrapping his mind around the fact that Liz dealt with dead bodies and criminals for a living. To say that it had been a surprise would be a large understatement, he thought.

“No… that was Jesse’s thing” Liz shook her head, managing a small smile when Max turned his gaze on her. “I’m just a regular CSI training to become a pathologist. Today was actually the first autopsy I single handedly performed. Usually I have Kat standing over my shoulder muttering under her breath about what I’m doing.” She realized she was rambling and felt a blush stain her cheeks. She couldn’t help it, she was nervous.

Liz was so used to keeping almost everything personal inside that now it felt strange to sit there playing Q&A with her former boyfriend. In other ways, it was most natural thing she had done in years.

Max opened his mouth to retort then promptly snapped it shut again. She saw the corners of his lips twitch upwards and knew he was barely holding back some sort of remark about her babbling. Liz was grateful when he seemed to decide against it and simply offered her a quiet “That’s interesting.” Liz rolled her eyes and went back to staring outside.

Winter, though you wouldn’t know that based on the temperature, had already set in. The leaves had begun to turn a shade of brown that was only a hint darker than the desert sand. There seemed to be a constant breeze in the air that hinted at colder temperatures but one could easily go outside without a jacket of any kind. Back in New York it was probably close to snowing and Liz doubted there was a single person there who didn’t wear either a coat, a scarf or a hat.

Even after five years of living there, Liz still detested the bitter winters that seemed to show up every year like clockwork. Snow lost its appeal and novelty after the first time Liz took a walk outside and ended up with wet jeans and what she swore was frostbite on her hands. Of course it hadn’t really been frostbite but her hands were so numb that Liz wondered whether she’d ever feel anything again.

Growing up in a desert, she had always believed there was something magical about snow covered streets and falling flakes. Actually experiencing it was another thing entirely. Sure it looked pretty, at least sometimes, but on cheesy Christmas movies like “It’s a Wonderful Life” you never saw the slush that was more mud than ice or worse… alleys lined with yellow snow.

When they finally pulled up to the community college Max taught at, Liz realized it had already begun to grow dark. “Come on… I’ll show you where the computer labs are before I head over to my classroom” Max stated once he’d shifted into neutral and cut the engine. Liz watched him step down on the parking break and found herself momentarily struck by one of those time warps again.

How many times had she seem him do that after parking in the West Roswell student lot? A hundred? Maybe more?

“Hmm? Oh, right… lab… classroom… got it” Liz rushed out and quickly pushed open the passenger side door. She pretended not to notice the strange look Max shot in her direction and marveled in wonderment that Max already had her bumbling like an idiot after only 36 hours.

“Some things never change, I guess” she muttered to herself and plastered a smile to her face when she met up with Max in front of the jeep. “Lead the way” she added and gestured ahead.

Max shook his head in confusion but listened to her instruction none the less. He still wore the same slacks and shirt from earlier but Liz watched him pull a rumpled tie from within his pocket. Now she was the one who shook her head as he placed it around his neck, wrinkles and all.

“There are two main labs and then two smaller ones. This one here should have a scanner and anything else you need but it requires a password” Max explained and walked straight into the largest of the four computer labs. He picked one in the very back and Liz watched as he leaned over and quickly keyed in a username and password. “Just don’t forget to log out when you’re done” he added. “I’ll be in room 226 if you need anything. Just knock first.”

“Yes sir” Liz mumbled sarcastically but Max heard anyway and grinned. Then he seemed to catch himself and straightened his expression. Without so much as a ‘See ya later’ he walked out, leaving Liz to her work.

Since everything she needed was organized for easy access, Liz reached into her briefcase to retrieve the folder that contained all the information she wanted Pace to look over. Next, she went to the Central Park precinct’s website and logged into her .gov mail. She ignored the precinct newsletter and all the memos from Carmine Asher, the head of the department. He still believed she was on sick leave so Liz didn’t think anything he had to say to her would be all that important.

The message from one Detective Pacer was near the top and Liz quickly clicked on his name. A series of photo files were attached first followed by a brief message in which he demanded she hurry her ass up and e-mail whatever he needed to see.

While she printed out the photographs, Liz scanned the rest of her messages and found one from Kathleen who said she’d be credited with three additional hours for the autopsy she performed. “Only forty two more to go” she muttered, thinking about all the bodies she still had to perform autopsies on before she had completed her necessary hour quota.

After the colored pictures had been printed, Liz scanned all the photos and forms she had been given, into the computer. She added her own note to Pace about learning the definition of the word ‘patience’ and then hit the send button. Before even glancing at the photos, she logged onto her messenger since Kat was usually online whenever she was at home. Then in the corner of the homepage, Liz noticed Max’s username and couldn’t help but smile ruefully.

I8APRP4DNNR@teachermail.NMCC.edu

Liz remembered seeing a similar phrase on a department t-shirt once before. She had studied it for at least an hour before Pace rolled his eyes and said, in a superior tone “It means I ate a perp for dinner.” At the time, Liz told him cops should concentrate more on solving crimes than coming up with silly sayings to put on the fronts of t-shirts. But looking back on it now, Liz finally saw the humor in it.

A quick check showed that Kat wasn’t online but Liz left the window open anyway.

From everything Pace sent, it was obvious that everything remained consistent up until the shooting in Central Park. He mentioned that after more digging, he couldn’t come up with any information on the Khivar guy he’d mentioned the day before. He planned on going back to see the parents in hopes of getting something more out of them but they had also disappeared. According to a neighbor, the grieving parents left on a reclusive get away to avoid the paparazzi who were constantly badgering them because they believed Serena Cooper’s murder was the beginning of another crime wave. They’d left no number or address with anyone and while Pace sympathized, he was aggravated that they skipped out in the middle of an investigation.

It seemed that everything was conspiring against them what with all the blanks they kept drawing up. The mayor was breathing down the chief’s neck who in turn breathed down Pacer’s to name a suspect before another murder could take place. It almost sounded, to Liz, like the mayor didn’t care who the name was as long as someone went down for the murders.

As for Pamela Troy… well Liz had hoped the killer would slip up now that he was operating on unfamiliar territory. To her knowledge, serial killers didn’t like to deviate from their normal routine and flying across the country would have qualified as a definite deviation. This should have made him angry and with anger clouding emotions, he may not have been as careful.

Yet there was no DNA or fingerprints. The victims all had leather fibers on their clothing and skin so they knew he wore gloves and since there had never been any hair left behind, they assumed he wore a mask or hat of some sort. Everything with Pamela had been consistent with the previous seven women except for the clincher, she hadn’t been sexually assaulted. The question was why. Was this case different or had the killer just ran out of time?

The autopsy revealed that Pamela Troy had died at approximately 20 after midnight. The deputies had been called about an hour later when an angry neighbor got aggravated by the loud music blasting from within in the house. Had she turned the music on, thus making it impossible to hear the killer or had he done it to drown out any sounds made? Liz didn’t know, especially since they’d never been able to figure out where the victims were killed before being dropped off in the middle of Central Park.

Because there had been no significant amounts of blood found or bullet casings, it was safe to conclude that Pamela was shot somewhere else, bled out and then returned to her home.

So was the music a way of drawing attention to the fact that something was wrong? Had he done it because the Roswell City Park was too open and visible to drop the body off there, Liz wondered.

As they came to her, Liz jotted down all her questions along with a wide range of possible answers. Unfortunately, she had to depend on everyone else to get her the information she needed, like interviews with the neighbors.

Liz was well aware that her constant reminder and demand to remain in the shadows might seem like overkill but if Pam’s murderer had tried to lure Liz back to Roswell with the intention of getting rid of her while she was vulnerable, it was important that he didn’t know whether or not she had fallen into that trap. Liz was willing to bet her savings that after the murder, he had returned to the city rather than lingering behind to wait and see if his plan worked.

Liz guessed that the killer would assume she’d dive right into the investigation because of her personal stake in the matter. If she had, then Liz might have spoken to the press in order to put heat on the killer and would have told every deputy and citizen what to watch out for. Her name would have gotten around and he would have seen it.

Thankfully, no one outside of her team had any clue where she had gone after being released from the hospital and unless someone actually was watching, then her whereabouts were still unknown.

The one thing she did wonder about was how long she could play this game of cat and mouse with Ava before her blonde friend demanded answers. As it was, Liz dodged her calls all day long because she didn’t have an explanation for leaving without notice the night before. Ava was only so patient and then she got angry which was about as scary as coming face to face with a mugger in a dark alley.

“You about ready?” Liz was proud of herself for not jumping when Max’s voice sounded just beside her ear. She hadn’t even noticed how much time past until she glanced at the right hand corner of the screen and realized nearly an hour had gone by.

“Yeah… just a sec” Liz replied and logged out of every program she had opened. Max stood back and watched as she then emptied the temp folder and cleared out her cache and cookies before finally signing off the computer. She had a new stack of pages to stuff into her worn looking folder, and Max noticed the spine had already begun to tear as Liz maneuvered the handful into her briefcase again. The same yellow notepad from before rested just beside the mouse but he was unable to tell what it was due to all the messy scribbling and lines crossing things out.

“You write like a doctor” he commented, gesturing at her notes.

Liz blinked a couple times as though he’d just said something incredibly stupid and pointedly made a grab for the notebook. This time Max didn’t catch himself in time and smiled down at her for a brief moment. Silently, the two strolled out of the building and were each surprised to find it had begun raining in the span of an hour. Quickly, the two made a run for it and nearly slipped twice before they reached the jeep. Max pulled open the driver side door and pushed Liz inside before climbing in right behind her.

Both were laughing and completely soaked by the time he turned the key in the ignition. A short blast of hot air assaulted them as he cranked up the heat and rubbed his palms together.

Several wisps of hair had escaped Liz’s ponytail and wetly framed her face. Her red shirt had turned a shade darker and stuck to her skin uncomfortably while her lace bra did nothing to hide her puckered nipples. Liz couldn’t help but grimace at the feel of wet jeans sticking to her legs, emphasizing every curve of her lower body. The rain had also molded Max’s shirt against his torso, perfectly outlining each muscle. His chest was broad, his shoulders wide and his arms were thick with muscle. He had narrow hips and a washboard stomach that Liz clearly remembered. Max had always had an athlete’s body and it seemed that time had managed to defined each one of those muscles.

Each took deep breaths as the jeep slowly flooded with warmth. “Hang on… I think I have a towel or shirt or something back here” Max said as he remembered the bag still sitting on the back floorboard from his recent visit to see his sister, Isabel and her husband, Alex. “Jackpot” he stated and produced an oversized grey sweatshirt, at least it seemed oversized to Liz, and a faded green t-shirt. “Which do you want?” he offered and finally settled his gaze on Liz.

She couldn’t have looked anywhere close to attractive, she thought as he stared down at her. Yet even in the state she was in, she noticed his eyes slowly flick down to the slow rise and fall of her chest. Liz had a difficult time trying not to do the same until their eyes finally met. His hazel gaze had darkened, the only outward sign that he was in any way affected by her.

Thanks for the feedback

begonia9508
Ellie
Lolita
Emz80m
FSU/MSW-94

Chapter 8

For a brief, breathless moment, Liz believed he was going to kiss her. She would have accepted it, welcomed it even but the next moment left her slightly deflated as he cleared his throat and turned away, obviously embarrassed by what he had almost done. “The sweatshirt” she finally answered, sounding nearly defeated and held out her hand to receive the garment.

Without waiting for him to say anything else or close his eyes, she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled the wet article of clothing away from her body. It was heavy and dripped onto her legs as she eased her arms out of the sleeves. She expected Max to look away when he noticed that she was already changing but instead, he kept his eyes on her, only this time they were trained on the healing wound of her stomach.

“How does it feel?” he murmured and tentatively placed his index finger against her skin, just a couple inches above the gunshot. It almost felt like a whisper of wind as he gently traced the area around her scar, careful never to get too close to where it was still healing.

Before she had gotten the stitches removed, she had aggravated the wound in a fit of anger. It was just after she remembered everything that happened in the park, concluding with the image of Jesse lying motionless on the ground in a pool of his own blood. After waking up screaming in fear, she got angry and began throwing things around her room. It was far enough away from the others, who were, thankfully, heavy sleepers, that no one heard the ruckus she made.

Most of the objects she threw were clothes and then her pillow because it was nearest to her but there were also several paperback books and an eerie looking Victorian doll that had been in the room when she arrived. Liz swore its eyes followed her.

Her fit was obviously strenuous enough that she pulled a couple stitches and doubled over in pain. The local doctor said it would take even longer to heal if she didn’t take care of herself. Apparently he was right since a month had already past and she was still plagued by momentary bouts of discomfort and slight pain. “Does it still hurt?” Max queried, reminding Liz that she was sitting nearly topless in his jeep while his clothes stuck to his body and the rain pelted the windshield.

“Only when Kyle’s gun pressed against it or Ava’s bony hip” Liz replied, trying to make light of the fact that it did, in fact, still hurt.

The answer, however, reminded Liz that she had forgotten to bring her own gun along. She normally never went anywhere without her side arm, even if it was just concealed in her purse or laptop bag. She couldn’t believe that now, of all times, she had left it in the CSI case locked in her SUV. “Are you okay?” he asked but the look in his eyes told Liz he didn’t just mean physically.

“I’ve had better days… worse ones too” Liz murmured. Her hand shook as she lifted it to close over Max’s but he didn’t flinch away and Liz was grateful. His eyes became riveted on the sight of their joined hands resting along the smooth olive skin of Liz’s stomach. “When I woke up in the hospital… I didn’t really remember what had happened, at least not at first. So I would sit there, trying to find the memories I’d locked away” she admitted, almost embarrassed by what she was going to say next. “I kept thinking about… you, actually.”

He closed his eyes and broke the calm spell that had settled between them. Liz could practically see him closing up in front of her and released his hand without any protestations. “Here” he said and with his eyes still closed, held out the sweatshirt for Liz to take. Wordlessly, she grabbed the garment and tugged it over her head. The lace of her bra still felt cold against her skin so she reached behind her back and unhooked the red scrap of material. It joined her shirt on the floorboard a moment later.

“Okay” she said in a curt tone and tried to act unaffected when he finally allowed his eyes to open. Liz didn’t, however, extend him the same courtesy as he began pushing buttons through their openings. She didn’t look directly at his body but she didn’t look away from it either.

A clap of thunder echoed, the single warning just before a bolt of lightning lit up the sky. Liz instinctively flinched and turned towards the sound. Max did the same and when he did, the light caught something glinting against his chest. Her eyes widened but she looked away before he noticed what her attention had been focused on.

Once he’d replaced the wet button down with the old t-shirt, Max released the parking break and slowly backed out of his space. Neither spoke as he maneuvered out onto the highway but it didn’t bother Liz as much as it might have a few minutes before.

He was still angry, she knew he would be and truthfully, Liz didn’t blame him in the least for the harsh emotion. But despite what he wanted her to believe, he hadn’t gotten over her. She saw the proof and though it was only a small gesture, Liz was encouraged. She thought that maybe, just maybe… there was still hope.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


After Max returned Liz to her seedy motel, she only went inside long enough to change her jeans and shoes before hurrying out to her SUV. What she had seen in the jeep reminded Liz of something she still had to do before leaving Roswell. Much like her return, it was long over due and Liz decided it was time to go face the music. If she ever expected to get her life back in order again, she would have to stop running from her fears.

The drive, which led her to a secluded spot, was a relatively short one. She was several miles outside of town in the direction opposite the one she came from. Not a car was in sight and only frogs and crickets kept her company as she climbed out of the XTerra and slowly walked forward.

Weeds had sprouted up from the base along with a few errant wildflowers that had somehow survived the recent downpour. Liz carefully avoided the puddles and tried not to slip in the mud that lined the old, deserted highway. A group of trees grew beside where she stood, close to twenty yards away but they were almost dried out and their branches sagged miserably from the rainstorm. The entire area was literally dead, she thought ironically.

When she had been a little girl, the Parkers made frequent trips to Albuquerque to visit Jeff Parker’s mother. He called it family time and Liz and her parents would play I Spy while her dad drove along the old secluded highway. She would laugh merrily whenever one of her parents couldn’t figure out what she spied. It wasn’t until she was older that Liz realized they were just pretending not to know so that she could feel proud of herself for stumping them.

Those trips eventually grew less and less frequent. Both her parents became busy with work, Liz had school, her friends and Max.

Then Jeff got a wild hair up his ass one day and decided they would go to Albuquerque for dinner and a movie. Liz had already agreed to spend the night at Ava’s house and was looking forward to a night of chick flicks, popcorn and boy talk. After begging out, she promised her parents she would go with them the next time, kissed their cheeks and ran outside when Ava honked her horn.

The wooden cross was weathered now and stood no taller than two and a half feet. The date had been etched into the wood, forever marking that night, not that Liz could have ever forgotten. Sheriff Valenti had put it out there at some point though Liz wasn’t sure when. He had been the only one who felt anything close to the grief Liz had. He and Jeff had grown up together, as close as brothers and the best of friends throughout their adulthood. The loss of both Parkers hit him hard but Liz hadn’t seen that then, she was blinded by her own grief.

Even thirteen years later, Liz couldn’t remember what the funeral had been like. She had no idea what she wore, what was said or who had been there. What she did remember was who hadn’t been there.

Max had been stuck at UNM with three finals on the day Jeff and Nancy Parker were buried. He tried to get out of them but since it was the last day of testing, there was no alternative. He had been so sorry, his voice filled with remorse and Liz had lied… she told him it was okay. It was the one and only lie she ever told to Max.

Afterwards, when everyone began to get in their cars to have lunch and talk at someone’s house, Liz said she would stay behind. Valenti and Amy only agreed because the limo driver provided by the funeral home said he would wait behind to take her home when she was done.

Liz had gone home but it had only been to pack a bag. She gathered a pile of clothes, her journal and a few other mementos to remind her of her parents and Max. She had emptied her bank account the day before and with her pocket full, she climbed inside her mother’s old Jetta and left Roswell for good.

Ava had been the one to find the note she left behind. She was worried when Liz didn’t show up to the Valenti house and after several calls from Max, who couldn’t reach her, Ava began her search. By that time, Liz was halfway to Arizona and hadn’t yet looked back.

She made a promise that day. She swore she’d never go back to that cemetery because she couldn’t stand to walk above her parents graves. She didn’t want to see the marble headstone, engraved with kind words and biblical proverbs chosen for two people who had been loved by the town. She decided that if she ever went back, it would be to the last place they had ever been alive… the old highway.

Liz didn’t stay long though. She sat in front of the cross for several minutes, not saying anything, not really thinking anything either. She just wanted to be there, wanted to feel like her parents were near, even if they weren’t.

When tears began to cloud her eyes and she was able to manage a small smile, Liz kissed her fingers and pressed them against the cross. “Goodnight mom and dad. I love you” she said and returned to her feet. As she turned to walk away, it occurred to Liz how truly ironic it was that death drove her away thirteen years before and death was what eventually brought her back.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


When Max walked through his door that night, all he wanted to do was strip off his wet clothes and crawl into bed. Then he caught sight of his girlfriend asleep on the couch and realized he’d have to make some adjustments on the plan he had about getting some rest.

Quietly, he walked passed her and entered his darkened bedroom. First thing was first, if he was going to have the conversation he knew he needed to have with Savannah, he was going to do it while wearing dry clothes. The slacks were the first to go followed by his socks and boxers. Max reached into his top drawer and pulled out replacements then tugged on a pair of jeans. His hair was only slightly damp so he ran his hands through it a few times and walked back out into the living room.

Savannah was wearing a cotton candy pink colored velour jumpsuit with a plain white tank peeking out from beneath the jacket. Her hair was swept up in a messy ponytail and a Vanity Fair magazine rested in her hands across her chest. The television was on but muted, emphasizing the shadows and planes of her face. She was beautiful, he thought, but it was no longer the right kind of beautiful.

His earlier encounter with Liz instantly sprang to mind.

When they sat together in his jeep, he almost forgot about all the time that had past between them. He hated it, but he still felt comfortable around her. Then he saw the scar on her stomach again, really looked at it, placed his hands around it and the force of his anger nearly bowled him over. In that instant, he wanted to kill whoever it was that hurt her. The realization that she could have died that night in the park felt like someone was squeezing his heart with both hands.

Before, when he heard her tell her tale, he had listened but his focus had been trying to comfort her. There had been so much pain in her eyes, so much fear that he had pushed past anything he felt.

In the jeep, he couldn’t ignore the scar, couldn’t pretend like it didn’t mean something when it did. So he shut down. When she began to talk, he closed his eyes and forced himself not to hear her words. He was too wound up and couldn’t listen to anything else she had to say. By that point he was walking a fine line between reconstructing all his walls and tearing them all down.

It scared Max to realize how much he still wanted her. She had destroyed him but he still wanted her. What was it about Liz Parker that made it so hard for him to ever completely move past her?

Shaking his thoughts back into the recesses of his mind, Max extended his hand and gently nudged Savannah awake. Her eyes fluttered several times in rapid succession before focusing her blue gaze on Max. A smile swept across her lips as she looked up at him. “Hi” she murmured and covered a yawn with her hand. “How was class?” she asked, wearing a lazy smile.

“It was okay” Max said simply. Savannah didn’t really understand much about police work and tended to ask inane questions whenever he tried to explain. “Listen… I was kind of hoping we could talk” he said. The tone of his voice combined with the words no significant other ever wanted to hear had Savannah straightening up. Her smile slowly slipped away in favor of a slightly worried expression.

“Um… okay. Shoot” she invited and tucked her legs beneath her. Max, who sat perched on his coffee table, clasped his hands between his legs and searched for the right words.

“I like you” he admitted and rushed forward when he saw her begin to relax. “And I’ve really enjoyed being with you but… but I think we should break up.” She blinked in surprise before shaking her head as though she hadn’t heard him right. “I do care for you but… not like I should and I don’t want to string you along either when I know my feelings won’t ever be what they’re supposed to.” He was trying to be as honest as possible without chipping away at her pride. Max meant what he said, he did care for her and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings but he couldn’t deny his own either.

“Where is this coming from?” Savannah questioned, still appearing confused over what she was hearing. “I thought things were going pretty great between us. I thought you felt the same way” she said with hurt swimming in twin pools of sapphire. “Does this have anything to do with that woman? The one that fainted at Ava and Kyle’s house last night?” she asked, causing Max’s gaze to snap up guiltily. “Who is she, Max. Not her name but who is she to you?”

Her perceptiveness came out during the damndest times, he couldn’t help but think.

“This isn’t about Liz, this is about you and me” he stated, trying to avoid the question because he wasn’t quite ready to acknowledge his answer. “It’s about what I feel and what I can’t feel. I’m sorry, Savannah. The last thing I want is to hurt you but I’m trying to be honest.”

She shot him a look that plainly said she didn’t agree with him but she was a proud woman and merely nodded. “If that’s how you feel then… I guess there’s nothing more for us to say.” The two had only been dating for a couple months so Max believed it wouldn’t take very long for her to get over it but he couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. If he had continued to see her, she would have been the only one who ended up hurt and he didn’t want to cause her pain because of his inability to get over his past.

He watched her pull on her shoes and reach for her purse which rested beside her on the couch. Savannah opened her mouth to say something then thought better of it. “Bye Max” she finally stated and pressed a lingering kiss against his lips. He sat there, letting her but not participating.

“Bye” he said when she got up to leave. He listened for the sound of the front door closing and only then did he flop back on the recently vacated couch. He didn’t like the feeling of sadness and anger caused by two different women. She’d been back in his life less than forty eight hours and already she turned it upside down. She reminded him of what he wanted in life and those memories made him acknowledge that anything less would be settling.

As much as he wanted her, he wanted to be able to let her go. So he reached for his keys and trekked back outside.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


Liz had only returned minutes before, fatigued and ready for bed. She eagerly removed her clothes until she stood in black lace panties and a matching bra. The room was so hot it was almost suffocating and the idea of wearing anything restricting to bed was a definite turn off. Though it was still fairly early, she walked around the room turning out the lights until only one beside lamp remained lit.

As Liz reached out to flick it off, she heard a loud knock against her door. No one but Max knew where she was staying, she immediately thought and reached out for a loose robe to shrug over her shoulders. “Who is it?” she called out and held the two lapels shut with a single fist.

“Max” he called back as Liz turned the one and only lock.

With her hand on the knob, she pulled the door open and found Max, eyes haunted, hands tightly clenched. “What is it? What hap…” she trailed off as he shut the door behind him and spun her around so that her back was pressed up against the splintery wood. Without another word, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. His hands held her hips, pulling her close against his muscled body.

Even in his fog Max was careful not to jostle her scar as he continued to plunder her mouth. Liz shut her eyes and returned his kiss with equal fervor. She thrust her tongue inside his mouth, stifling a moan when his hands pushed the soft material of her robe aside. His hands grazed her warm flesh, leaving a trail of goose bumps in their wake.

Liz twined her arms around his neck as he leaned down and hooked his arms around her thighs. Liz jumped up into his arms and held on tight as he carried her over to the bed.

Sorry that this update took so long. I had finals this week so it was pretty hectic. But thanks everyone for reading!

FSU/MSW-94
pookie76
begonia9508
Ellie
Emz80m
Smac
crc1228
Ner
LegalAlien

Chapter 9

Max latched his mouth onto her puckered nipple, shooting euphoric spasms up her entire body. Her back arched up and her naked hips ground into his hot, thick erection as he continued to wreak havoc on her breasts. Liz writhed on the bed below him and fisted her hands in the cheap blue airport blanket when she felt him gently drag his teeth over the distended peak.

A low gasp of pleasure escaped past her lips as he plunged deep inside her wet depths. “Max!” she moaned throatily as he eased back then slammed inside of her again.

Sweat slicked his body as he held himself above her, hammering his engorged prick into her welcoming core. Liz grasped onto his arms, digging her nails into his hardened flesh and continued to lift her hips to meet his every thrust. Eyes dazed and body wracked with pleasure, Liz stared up at him as he pushed deeper into her wet heat. His lips took hers again in a plundering kiss as she felt the first waves of ecstasy course through her body. His name tore from her mouth in a passion filled cry.

Unyielding, Max continued to drive deep inside her spasming core. Liz hooked her arms around his neck, holding tight as his thrusts began to pick up speed. Max groaned in effort and rocked inside her body, over and again until he felt his release, strong and fast. With three shallow thrusts, he emptied himself into her waiting depths, moaning her name loudly as he came. The feel of his pulsing erection and warm seed drove Liz over the edge right along with him.

With labored breathing and rapid hearts, Max reluctantly pulled out of her warm depths and collapsed on the bed beside Liz. Neither said anything at first as the sounds of harsh pants filled the small, cramped space.

Liz’s skin was flushed in pleasure and a faint smile played over her lips. “Did I hurt you?” Max asked. It was the first thing he said to Liz since appearing in her doorway. Her expression told him she was fine but he needed to hear the words to be certain she was alright.

“No” Liz shook her head. The feel of intense satisfaction left her tired and unable to do more than glance over at him. She wanted to lean over and kiss his lips, wanted to ask what caused him to change his mind but the pain pill she had previously taken was starting to kick in. Liz tried to fight her way past the desire to sleep but lost out a few moments later.

When Liz woke up the following morning, her bed was empty and the robe Max had removed from her body was now covering her up. “Max” she called out, already knowing he wouldn’t be there. Confusion welled up inside of her as she pushed the robe aside and strode over to her suitcase for a fresh set of clothes.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


All morning Max walked around feeling guilty and ashamed because of what he had done the night before. The idea of showing up to her room came to him quickly and before he could stop and think it through, he was already on his way over. He wouldn’t allow himself any second thoughts or jitters. Then she opened door, wearing a tiny little robe and not much else and he just reacted.

Max had fooled himself into believing it would just be sex. He had done such a good job of it that he didn’t realize it meant so much more to Liz until he finally looked down into her eyes and saw love shining up at him. He hadn’t been able to handle all the emotions she caused so he closed his eyes and kissed her hard. He never stopped what his lower body was doing to hers until they had both found their release in each other.

After she fell asleep, he laid there and watched her for a while. It was the first and only time he had actually seen her at peace since arriving in Roswell.

Every curve and plane of her face was familiar to him. He’d gazed down at her more than a thousand times before. Had looked into her eyes… had touched her lips. Time stood still for a moment as he finally allowed himself to acknowledge all that he felt for her. Immediately following was guilt.

His intention hadn’t been to hurt her, it had been to get past her. He foolishly believed that sleeping with her one last time would be enough to get her out of his system but instead, it only made it twice as hard to walk away. So he got dressed, covered up her nude form and left without a word. Now he had no idea what to say to her whenever she resurfaced.

The desire to tell her it had just been meaningless sex was strong. He realized that even if it hadn’t been his intention, maybe he did want to hurt her to make up for the way she hurt him. A part of him felt like she deserved to feel all the pain she had brought to him by disappearing all those years before. She robbed him of all the happiness he felt back then and with her unexplained departure, she managed to ensure that no other woman would ever matter as much to him as she had.

For so many reasons he wanted to hate her. He’d almost convinced himself more than a dozen times that he did but the emotion never stuck.

He wanted to hate her for that too.

“Earlier this morning, we may have hit the jackpot,” Kyle declared as he came striding into the briefing room late that afternoon. Sheriff Valenti was right behind him and wordlessly closed the door, shutting out the sounds of two other deputies debating a ball game.

“What’d you find?” Max queried and attempted to push all thoughts of Liz out of his mind. Later he would have to figure out something to say to her but until then, he still had work to do.

“Do you remember the Granger family?” Kyle inquired while Max nodded once in acknowledgement. “Well there son, Andy’s an astronomy major up at UNM but he came down for the weekend and brought his girlfriend home with him. The two of them went out stargazing near Pulhman ranch last night but they left the lights on too long with the engine off and killed the battery. So they called Toby for a tow and when he showed up, he had Scout with him.”

The fifteen year old Dalmatian had just been a puppy when Max first went away to college. Admittedly, he was surprised that the old, half blind dog was still alive, much less moving around.

“Scout wandered off and when Toby found him, he was lying down on the rocks at the base of that big outcropping,” Kyle continued but couldn’t help glancing over at his father who had crossed his arms over his chest to listen. “Next to him was a really large and dried up stain of blood.”

“Have you called Liz yet to get it tested?” Max automatically asked, knowing that it could have very well belonged to an animal rather than a person.

“She can’t,” Valenti stated, breaking his silence. For the first time since the pair walked in, Max noticed the look of irritation promptly marring the older man’s face.

“What do you mean?”

“Neither of us was here when the call came in,” Kyle answered first. “So dispatch handed the call off to Hanson and without saying anything to anyone first, he gathered a team of deputies to go check it out. They’re still there now.”

Max sighed almost inaudibly. He could understand the sheriff’s annoyance with the over eager deputy, especially since he was no longer on the case. But then everyone wanted to catch the killer and all the deputies wanted to be the hero who did it.

It didn’t take long for the fear to be replaced by motivation. The killing was big news in the smallest of small towns. People who knew and liked Pam wanted to see her murderer brought to justice, others were anxious about catching the killer in the hopes that the rest of their families would stay safe. Then there a few who just wanted a piece of the unwanted publicity brought forth by something so cruel.

“You know, to be perfectly honest I still don’t entirely understand why this is all happening,” Kyle admitted and looked between his father and Max before returning his gaze to the dry erase board in front of them. “I mean, I get why Liz thinks the same killer is at work here but the question is, why would he come here?” he queried, unknowingly causing Max’s musings to return to Liz and the way she’d cried in his arms the day before at the hospital.

Even if he still had his own questions and uncertainties, Max knew one thing. Liz believed she was on the right trail and at least in this instance, he was willing to bet every cent he had in the bank that she was right. “Why don’t we leave that to the NYPD team to figure out,” Max suggested when it seemed Valenti didn’t have an answer to give his son either. “For now let’s just focus on collecting as much evidence as we can to help them catch this guy.”

And to protect Liz, he silently added to himself.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


Getting back down to the morgue undetected hadn’t been much of a problem. It was why Liz had hoped getting out would be just as easy. What she hadn’t counted on was Max’s girlfriend finding her at the absolute worst time. If she had been holding a smoking gun, it couldn’t have looked worse. “What that hell is going on down here?” she demanded, eyes widened in surprise while Liz stood over Pamela Troy’s body.

“Um… actually, that’s a really good question,” Liz replied in acknowledgement while slowly pulling the white sheet over the victim’s form.

“And unless you can give me a good answer, I’m calling security,” Savannah threatened after a moment’s pause. The expression she wore could only be described as appalled. Liz could guess that in a span of a few seconds, she’d already jumped to at least a dozen, horrifyingly wrong conclusions.

“Okay, there’s really no need for that,” Liz stated and decided that her only way out was to tell the truth. At least as much of it as it would take. “I’ll tell you why I’m here and if you don’t believe me, you can just ask Max,” she said and noted the frown on the blue eyed blonde’s face at the mention of his name. “I’m just here on loan from New York. I’m a CSI agent with the New York Police Department. The Central Park precinct, actually,” she identified herself. “I’m helping with the autopsying and lab work since we think the murderer is a repeat offender that started out in Manhattan.”

What Liz hadn’t expected was absolute silence. At first, Savannah’s mouth opened and closed several times before shooting Liz a hard stare. “That’s a lie,” she declared strongly. “I saw Max in here yesterday and he said the coroner was a man from Las Cruces,” she informed and shook her head in response. “I’m calling security.”

“Wait!” Liz called out and quickly tried to come up with something else to say. Preferably something that wouldn’t get Max into trouble for lying the day before. “The reason Max was covering for me is because no one is supposed to know I’m helping out. Only three people here in Roswell know the truth and it has to stay that way.”

Again, the blonde didn’t say anything at first, obviously weighing her options before finally coming up with a response. “Okay. Alright, suppose for a second that I believed you… tell me why no one is supposed to know that you’re here,” Savannah said indulgingly and continued to stare pointedly at Liz.

“Because the murderer also tried to kill me over a month ago in New York but I got lucky and lived,” she admitted, now just laying all her cards on the table. Liz tried to convince herself that it was just to get out of the morgue without anyone else finding out she had been there. But in the back of her mind, she was also doing it out of guilt.

The night before, she hadn’t even considered or remembered that Savannah was Max’s girlfriend. She had just helped him cheat on someone who obviously cared a lot about him and in some twisted way, Liz was trying to make up for that deception by being honest about her current actions. “It’s possible that he thinks I saw his face and right now I’m supposed to be recovering on the other side of the country. Instead I’m here in secret while hiding it from everyone except a detective back home plus Valenti, Max and Kyle here. That’s why it needs to stay a secret.”

Though she seemed to still be considering the new bit of information, Liz believed that she finally got through to the suspicious nurse. A fact that was proven a moment later when Savannah relented and replied, “Okay. I won’t say a word,” she assured though there was still a hint of wariness in her eyes.

“Thank you,” Liz quietly sighed.

“But just answer one more thing for me,” Savannah added when Liz took a step to leave. “I’m guessing that you knew each other before. I mean… you’re friends with Kyle and Ava so I’m sure you knew Max then too but… were the two of you ever together? Romantically, I mean?” she inquired, causing Liz to go deathly still.

How could she answer that, Liz silently wondered. Wasn’t that Max’s story to tell if he wanted Savannah to know the answer?

“That’s probably something you should ask Max.”

“Which means yes,” Savannah deduced softly. “And I did try asking him but he just avoided the question,” she informed sadly. “I guess I already knew then what the answer was but I just needed to hear it for myself, you know. I needed to believe that there was a reason he ended it. One that didn’t mean I wasn’t good enough,” she rambled while Liz picked up on one phrase only. He had ended it.

“Savannah, I don’t… well, I don’t actually know what to say right now,” Liz admitted, feeling distinctly uncomfortable. “It was a long time ago,” she shrugged, trying not to think about the amazing night before. “We’re two different people now.”

“Hmm… unfortunately for me you aren’t different enough,” Savannah quietly stated and backed out of the room without another word.


<center>~&~&~&~&~&</center>


“Liz, it’s Jim,” he greeted while Liz attempted to hold the phone against her cheek and shoulder in an effort to free up both hands. At least thirty different pages were spread out along her bed and she wasn’t even halfway though double checking the information. “My men have vacated the crime site so you’re free to go down there as soon as you can.”

“Did the deputies find anything?” she asked but didn’t expect to hear that they had.

Throughout all the investigations in New York, not once had they gotten so much as a hint as to where the victims were being killed. Even on Pam, Liz had been unable to find traces of rock or gravel that would elude she had been killed out in the desert. So now she had to wonder whether it was a break caused by dumb luck or just another detail in a well thought out plan. “Nothing that they would have been able to see,” Valenti replied, breaking through Liz’s thoughts, though the tone of his voice implied that he was just as uncertain as Liz was. “You might be able to find something though.”

“Maybe,” she quietly muttered. “I’ll head out there now,” Liz assured and began to put away her paperwork before she even hit the end button on the phone.

Back at the station, Valenti turned to Kyle and Max with a cautious expression on his face. “She’s on her way there now,” he stated while his mind considered at least a dozen different possibilities. “I’m stuck at the town meeting until later tonight but the two of you should get down there and help her search for any more clues,” he delegated.

“I can’t,” Kyle declared and offered Max an apologetic look. “I’m on patrol duty again tonight. But I can swing by there some time between midnight and dawn if you’re still working.”

“Max?” Valenti asked.

“I can be there,” he agreed no matter how reluctant he felt about it.

“Good, then let’s get to it,” Valenti replied and retreated into his office to finish up some paper work while Kyle and Max went their separate ways.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to help or that he wasn’t glad that they’d finally found an answer, Max just wasn’t sure about working alone with Liz. He still didn’t know what to say to her and feared that it would make things tense. After all, how could a person say that while the sex was great, allowing it to happen again would be the stupidest thing they could do? Somehow Max didn’t think that particular statement would bode well with Liz.

Sleeping together had just made an impossible situation even more complicated, Max decided as he finally reached the turnoff to the abandoned Pulhman Ranch.

It was a little out of the way. The kind of place that if you weren’t looking for it, you’d almost miss the road since it was basically just an extension of the desert. Thankfully the sky wasn’t quite dark yet but soon enough they’d have to use flash lights in the search, something that would no doubt prolong and hinder their progress.

Just as he expected, Max found Liz’s SUV parked near an outcropping of rocks, hidden in the shadows the cliff provided. He didn’t, however, see her anywhere around and figured she’d gone wandering throughout the area. Instinct told him to worry. A woman alone in a place where another woman had possibly been murdered. It didn’t seem at all safe to Max but he had to remind herself that she’d grown up in the desert. She knew the areas as well as he did and she could also take care of herself. She had to be able to if she worked in one of the biggest crime cities in the country.

After holstering his gun, Max set foot on the rocks with a flash light in his hand. The early evening wind had already begun to pick up, swirling stray bits of dust into the air. It was another sign that finding more evidence wouldn’t be an easy task.

Max opened his mouth, about to call out to Liz to discern her location when he heard a single gun shot ring out in the distance. His first thought was that Liz was in trouble and after that, all logic and caution flew out the window.

Then without a second thought, he took off in the direction he’d heard the shot with only one thing on his mind. Finding Liz.