Roswell Fanatics

TITLE: You've got to be kidding me

AUTHOR:willowbv

DISCLAIMER: Roswell belongs to J.K and co, I'm just a fan.

RATING: MATURE, because of violence or language

COUPLING: M/L and a little bit of the other CC couples

AN: Hey all, I don't know what possessed me, but I'm starting a new fic. I was at work and incredibly bored and my mind went far far away...

Here's a little SUMMARY of what's what.
There are aliens.
Liz Evans is Liz Parker, why the name change? you'll find out later She's 25 years old.
Kane (guess who he is?) is 26.
The whole gang are there, just in different roles.
I can't give too much away because, it's that kind of fic, a little different for me, but I thought I'd play with "everything/ everyone one is not as they seem" idea anyway....

1.

The Perfect Day

Shop with Maria for a few hours or so, pick up a dvd on the way home, make a nice dinner while listening to music, have a pampered bath, watch the dvd, read, have a nice relaxing night.

Liz smiled in satisfaction as she went over her plan for the rest of the day. She had been looking forward to today all week. After working late nights for two weeks in the lab, she was ready for a night of doing nothing over-stimulating for her brain.

Maria was waiting for her in front of Rei Anders. If there was one thing Maria was never late for, it was shopping. Even though she had explained the logic, Liz was always fascinated by the fact that Maria bought clothes even though she could make her own. She understood that it was the same thing as being an author and reading books written by other people, yet she still found it strange.

"Hey," she greeted her.

"Hey."

Liz was unprepared for the almost choking hug Maria gave her. Once released, she shook her head in fond amusement. Maria's hugs were always a wonderful surprise, they reminded her of the worst and best time of her life at the same time. It was weird...weird and wonderful.

"Shall we?" she asked jumping up and down excitedly like a child.

Never mind that she's a grown woman and not mention a well respected fashion designer, she mused.

Liz nodded. "Let's spend some money."

****

Liz loved Rei Anders, a designer she would never have found if not for Maria's insistence that she branch out. His clothes varied from outrageous to elegant to sexy and freeing. He was one to visit on a day like today when she wanted to splurge.

And splurge they did. In-fact, they were too busy picking out clothes and talking that they missed the fact that when one of the employees went out back, someone else returned in their place. They missed the store shutters going down and the sign "CLOSED FOR THE REST OF THE DAY DUE TO COMPUTER FAILURE" - put up in the windows. The only time they and other customers noticed that something was wrong, was when some people around them, literally whipped out gas masks and put them on.

"What in the world?", Liz wondered.

The music cut off, leaving the store filled with confused and increasingly hysterical voices. Maria gripped a hold of Liz's hand as the masked girl a few inches away from them pointed a gun in their direction.

Liz felt her heart stop. The world around her faded away, it was only her and the gun. Maria's tightening grip on her hand pulled her out of her trance. Looking around her, she saw other customers all partnered up with masked gun men.

"You've got to be kidding me" she muttered dryly before her world went black.

****

The first thing Liz registered when she regained consciousness, was the fact that she was on the floor, then that her hands were tied.

Nightmares of the last time they were tied forced open her eyes, she was surprised to find herself staring at amazingly familiar amber brown eyes. They penetrated her to a level that left her feeling disconcerted enough to look away.
As her eyes swept the room, she didn't repress the panic she felt. Instead, she let it flow through her till it dissipated. She liked to imagine that it evaporated from the pores of her skin, leaving her calm and alert.

Maria sat to the right of her, another woman - red hair, green fear filled eyes - to her left. From what she could tell, they had somehow been knocked out by some gas through the ventilation or emergency sprinkler system. Their bags were confiscated and then they had tied them up and put the all against the wall.

"Rise and shine," chirped amber eyes.

Liz glowered at him as he stood up to his full length. He was tall, stunningly handsome...with a silencer in his hand.

This is nice, she thought to herself.

She glanced over at Maria to make sure she was okay.
Maria was anything but. He eyes were big pools of panic and fear.

Liz nudged her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "It's going to be okay," she told her in a low voice.

Maria looked at her friend as if she was crazy. "Liz. There are people with guns, who've tied us up...we're hostages!", she whispered harshly.

"That you are" agreed amber eyes, interrupting their conversation.

A blond, green-eyed gun-man joined him as he stood in front of them. Liz was weary of him at first sight. Just by looking at them, she knew that amber eyes would be the less dangerous of the two.

"Oh my god," whispered Maria," are we going to die? I don't wanna die-"

"Maria".
The controlled tone of her friend's voice brought her back from the brink of hysteria. She took two deep calming breaths and started praying to God that they made it through this.

Liz was sympathetic to the whimpering around her, they were in a pretty dangerous situation. She was scared and extremely pissed off. She could see her plans for the day going down the drain.

"Do you know how long you're going to be?" she asked.

"Excuse me?" amber eyes asked. The surprise was evident in his tone.

Liz repeated her question.

He cocked his head slightly to the side as if trying to decide if she was serious or joking.

"None of your business sweetie," retorted green eyes. "Just shut up and stay there," he added menacingly.

"I'm fine with that," she told him. "It's just could you be quick about it because I've got things to do."

Maria elbowed her obviously unhinged friend. "Antagonise the men with guns why don't you."

Liz merely shrugged her shoulders before turning her attention back to the pair in front of them. She still needed an answer.

She thought she caught a small smile from amber eyes, but that couldn't be right.

"Don't let her get you man, let's get this done," he told green eyes.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he began pleasantly, "if you sit back and keep quiet, we should all get out of this alive." He cast one more eerily disconcerting look her way before him and green eyes disappeared into the back leaving them with a woman called Tess to watch them.

At least they're about the equal ops, she thought to herself.

She glanced at the other women beside her. "You okay?".

"No," she replied, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I'm scared. I have kids and a husband, I don't want to die."

"You won't if you keep calm," Liz told her softly.

Maria couldn't believe what she was hearing! Liz was talking as if getting held up was an everyday occurrence. She knew that her friend's reaction to events was...different to say the least, but in a situation like this, with guns pointed at them, she had expected her to panic like a normal person instead of leaning back comfortably and swing her feet like she was doing at the moment.

"Liz, seriously, you're calm thing is freaking me out," she told her.

"Maria, we freak out, we could get killed. We need to keep our heads okay?".

Maria nodded, sobered by the seriousness in her friend's eyes. She could do that, she could keep her head. "Okay."

****

Amber eyes, green eyes and three more gun men emerged later from the back. Liz guessed that they were finished with whatever it was they wanted to do.

"We're in," amber eyes told Tess.

"Great job Kane," she congratulated him.

Liz involuntarily gritted her teeth at the way Tess practically pasted herself onto him.
Could she be more obvious? And Kane just ate it up like the easily seduced moron he was!-

She blinked back, surprised at her thoughts. What did she care about what those two did together or where to each other? They were criminals. Liz held her breath as Kane and A.J. aka green eyes, advanced towards them with a gleam in their eyes. She held her breath while they hauled her and Maria up.

"Congratulations motor-mouth, you and your friend here are going to be our escorts," he said jerking her closer to him.

Liz closed her eyes in disgust as he sniffed her hair. She knew that so far she had been somewhat detached from the situation, but this, being handled so roughly and him sniffing her hair...she shuddered, it brought back too many bad memories.

Maria on the other hand, having learnt from her, was more vocally explicit about what A.J. could go do with his hands.
Liz couldn't help but smile. Their lives were in danger, she knew that, yet she couldn't quiet be scared enough to whimper or cry or all the normal things people did in these situations - it just wasn't an option.

Kane felt the brunette smile at her friend's slew of curse words at A.J.

I'm sniffing her hair, he realised suddenly pulling away from her.
He hadn't meant to, he'd just noticed it earlier on when he had bent down to see if she was awake. He had wondered how it felt, what it smelt like.
He got one out of two answered for now - it smelt like strawberries.

Focus on the job, not the collateral, he told himself.
Too much was at stake for him to slip up because of a girl, no matter how refreshingly rebellious she was. He didn't know much about her, but he was pretty sure that that attitude of hers had got her into a lot of trouble before and that it was going to once again.

****

AN: Hey all,

begonia9508
BelevnDreamsToo - blue eyes and green eyes were the same person, I finally decided on green eyes, but forgot to change the first reference to blue. I've edited it all to green now. Thanks for pointing it out. I should be updating Nice To Meet You on Sunday, if all goes to plan. Questions about what Liz's secret is, where her and Kane have met before and where they are now, will be answered bit by bit, not in this part though, lol

Emz80m
frenchkiss70
icequeen
Jason's Lover
lizzy3686
mzBree
Natz
su-lyn
thanks for the encouraging feedback. Here's the next part...


PREVIOUSLY The Perfect Day

"Congratulations motor-mouth, you and your friend here are going to be our escorts," he said jerking her closer to him.

Liz closed her eyes in disgust as he sniffed her hair. She knew that so far she had been somewhat detached from the situation, but this, being handled so roughly and him sniffing her hair...she shuddered, it brought back too many bad memories.

Maria on the other hand, having learnt from her, was more vocally explicit about what A.J. could go do with his hands.
Liz couldn't help but smile. Their lives were in danger, she knew that, yet she couldn't quiet be scared enough to whimper or cry or all the normal things people did in these situations - it just wasn't an option.

Kane felt the brunette smile at her friend's slew of curse words at A.J.

I'm sniffing her hair, he realised suddenly pulling away from her.
He hadn't meant to, he'd just noticed it earlier on when he had bent down to see if she was awake. He had wondered how it felt, what it smelt like.
He got one out of two answered for now - it smelt like strawberries.

Focus on the job, not the collateral, he told himself.
Too much was at stake for him to slip up because of a girl, no matter how refreshingly rebellious she was. He didn't know much about her, but he was pretty sure that that attitude of hers had got her into a lot of trouble before and that it was going to once again.

****

2.

What went wrong?

"Where are you taking us?" Liz asked. She and Maria had stopped trying to struggle out of their assailants' clutches. It was fruitless.

"Next door," Kane answered.

"What's next door?" asked Maria.

"You'll see," answered A.J.

Liz didn't know how they were going to get next door through the back until she spotted the hole in the floor. Her eyes grew wide as two armed men jumped in. She concluded that it must be some kind of tunnel or passage left over from whatever the building had been before it got taken over by stores.

Kane looked at her expectantly. "Ladies next."

Liz held out for Maria's hand and together, they gingerly climbed in. It was just as she expected, it was some kind of underground tunnel. Kane and A.J. jumped in after them.

"Let's move," ordered Kane.

The two men in front of them turned on their flashlights and obeyed the order to move forward.

Liz held onto Maria's hand as they walked in the middle of the convoy. "Why do you need us anyway?" she asked.

"To use as shields if need be," A.J. answered pleasantly.

Both her and Maria halted their footsteps at his answer. Liz had images of bullets penetrating her chest.

That's not the way I want to die.

She jumped slightly when she felt something cold and deadly press against her lower back. If he shot her there, she would be paralysed if anything.

She shared a what-the-heck look with Maria. They didn't have a choice, they would have to see this whole nightmare through.
When they reached the end of the tunnel, it looked like a dead end to her till one of the men took out what looked like a blow torch and ran it down one side of the metallic wall.

A.J. and Kane swapped places with her and Maria, they were now at the back of the convoy. Liz met Maria's eyes and knew exactly what she was thinking. They could have made a run for it, but two things were stopping them. The first thing was, that they were expendable and could easily get shot in the back. The second reason was that A.J and Kane had tight grips on their wrists.

The flame from the blow torch ceased. "On my count," whispered A.J.

Liz steeled herself for whatever was to come.

"3, 2, 1".

Light flooded in as the sealed door swung open. The two men stepped out. Liz heard a few yelps of surprise, the distinctive sound of their silencers and then nothing.

Her disbelief was mirrored in Maria's eyes.

"Let's go," Kane commanded pulling her along with him.

****

Four people were dead, two by the coffee machine and two in front of the staff room couch.

The two men manned the door while Kane typed furiously on his miniature lap top. Her and Maria stood in the middle of the room completely out of their depth and wishing to the powers that be that this would be over soon.

"Their whole security system is disabled," he announced. Liz watched as he confidently slipped the lap top back into his over the shoulder bag.

So he was a smart criminal, she frowned.

"Good," said A.J. "Time to get out there."

****

It all happened like a dream. The two men at the door pulled on ski masks, A.J and Kane pinned her and Maria in front of them.

She shook her head incredulous. I can't believe I'm going to used as a human shield.

****

The marble floors, the expensive twinkle of the lights, the unnaturally cool air conditioning. She knew where they were. Zing Yan jewellers, exquisite diamond specialists. They weren't into having large stores, they just had small personal exclusive stores around the world.

Why the heck didn't they just go through the front instead of involving us? she fumed.

She flinched as gun shots rang out into the air.

"Everybody down!".

She watched surprised as the security guards locked the doors and lowered the store's shutters.

They had men on the inside, she couldn't help but be impressed.

"Stay here," ordered Kane. Liz rubbed sore arm. She could feel it beginning to bruise. At least her and Maria were free to stand aimlessly while Kane and A.J. went about their business.

People cowered on the floor, all except for the old man behind the counter who reached for the phone. Unfortunately, he wasn't faster than the speeding bullet that fired from A.J's gun.

Liz felt her eyes water as the old man slumped to the ground.
Maria screamed, "You bastard! He was just an old man".
Liz tried to stop her as she launched at A.J, but she wasn't fast enough. She watched horrified as A.J. turned around and shot her.
He shot Maria.
Her jaw dropped at the same time as her friend hit the floor.

Oh. God.

She ran and sank down beside her. "Maria, Maria!". She couldn’t be dead. Liz quickly searched for a pulse and smiled when she found one. She sighed with relief when Maria opened her eyes.

****

Kane grabbed the gun from A.J. "As few casualties as possible remember?!".
He looked over at the brunette who was currently kneeling over her friend, Maria.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

He hadn't even wanted to bring them, but A.J wanted Maria, so he'd felt like it was his duty to bring her friend along. He'd been mistaken.

"She okay?" he asked.

The brunette took off her jacket and pressed it against Maria's shoulder. "She's alive. The bullet's logged in her shoulder," she shouted back.

Kane's eyes flared at A.J. who was kneeling over the old man. He held back the urge to shoot him.

He made his way over to him. "Let's get the combination."

"He pressed the silent alarm," A.J told him.

Kane looked up heavenwards. This was going to get messy.

A.J. pulled out a gun from his back and shot him again. "Hero."

"He's the only one who knew the combination," supplied a terrified sales girl. "We don't know anything, will you let us go now?".

Kane gritted his teeth. "That's your problem A.J. you shoot first and ask questions later. I'm gonna have to crack it."

"Arty!" he called one of the guards. "Show me."

"Cops should be here in ten, you've got six minutes," said A.J.

"I'll do it in five," he retorted confidently. "Behave while I'm gone," he warned.

****

"It hurts Liz, really bad," moaned Maria.

"Just hang in there 'Ria," Liz told her. "We'll get you help once we get out of this. It's almost over."

Liz didn't mind things like this happening to her, but not Maria. She was too full of life for this crap.

Maria lifted up her finger. "Pinky swear?".

Liz laughed and caught her pinky finger with hers. "Pinky swear."

The sound of sirens drew her attention towards the front of the store. Police tires screeched, doors opened and shut. She had images of a shoot out.
Could this day get any worse?

"Kane, we gotta go!", shouted A.J.

Just then Kane sailed through the doors with a bag in his hand. "Got 'em. We're done here."

Liz breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, it was nearly over. Maybe the day wouldn't be a complete waste after all.

"Come on specs," said Kane. There was something about her, maybe if she took off her black rimmed glasses, he could find out exactly why he felt this need to keep her with him.

Liz looked up at him as if he‘d suggested something despicable. "I'm not going anywhere with you. You've got what you wanted, killed a few people along the way. Leave us alone."

"We need hostages for our getaway, your friend's coming too," added A.J.

"No way!," she shouted getting up to face them. "She's hurt. She needs medical attention because you shot her!"

"I'll take what I want" he retorted.

"You’re like a petulant child! You’re not taking her! Besides be smart, she's wounded, she's a liability. I'll go with you, just leave Maria here."

She looked down when she felt someone tugging at her jeans. "Liz don't," pleaded Maria.

She knelt down beside her increasingly pale faced friend. "Maria, I'll be fine. The pinky swear was for you. You‘re going to get patched up and be fine in no time" She kissed her forehead goodbye.

****

Kane looked down at her. He should leave her, but he wasn't ready to let her go just yet. She was sacrificing herself for her friend. He respected that. Taking her with him was dangerous, but he had a feeling that he would need her somehow.

She rose up to face him. "You have me and the rest in the other store."

"We don't have time to waste, let's go," said A.J.

Kane reluctantly tore his gaze away from her. "Okay."

****

Liz cast one final look at her friend lying on the floor before the door blocked her view. She hoped Maria would be okay.
Fuck that, she knew Maria would be okay. The question was would she?

****

AN: Hey all glad you like the fic. I'm going for some confusion and a bit of mystery.

Okay, so summary of what we've got so far. Kane is Max, btw, Max is still an Evans.
is A.J Michael? You'll find out in this next part

mzBree wrote:Kane is Max, we've met Maria & Liz... where's everyone else? AND where's Alex & Kyle?

You can leave Tess out of it. [/b]

Everyone else will start to join in bit by bit.

Jason's Lover wrote: Don't know if I'd be as resilient as Liz in such a predicament, but I guess Kane/Max is feeling it! Post more.

There is a reason as to why Liz is the way she is, but that won't be revealed till later


PREVIOUSLY What went wrong?

She looked down when she felt someone tugging at her jeans. "Liz don't," pleaded Maria.

She knelt down beside her increasingly pale faced friend. "Maria, I'll be fine. The pinky swear was for you. You‘re going to get patched up and be fine in no time" She kissed her forehead goodbye.

****

Kane looked down at her. He should leave her, but he wasn't ready to let her go just yet. She was sacrificing herself for her friend. He respected that. Taking her with him was dangerous, but he had a feeling that he would need her somehow.

She rose up to face him. "You have me and the rest in the other store."

"We don't have time to waste, let's go," said A.J.

Kane reluctantly tore his gaze away from her. "Okay."

****

Liz cast one final look at her friend lying on the floor before the door blocked her view. She hoped Maria would be okay.
Fuck that, she knew Maria would be okay. The question was would she?

****


3.

Cute without the E

They loaded her and four other selected hostages into the awaiting van in front of the Rei-Anders store. Around the, people walked by not knowing that each person who entered the van had a gun pressed against their back. To be surrounded by so many people yet still be unable to call for help...Liz knew that predicament all too well. This was the fifth time in her life that she was experiencing it.

She had to admit that this robbery was well planned. They would be long gone by the time the police realised that they were on the other side of the building.

"What are you going to do with us?" she asked.

A.J sat in the front passenger seat while Kane and the other criminals sat with her and the other hostages at the back.

"We'll let you go when the cost is clear," replied Kane.
She hadn't expected the answer to come from him, she also handed expected to feel his voice smooth over her like a warm breeze.

I must be going into some form of shock, she reasoned.

"Don't worry your pretty little head sweetheart," added A.J.

Liz glared at the back of his head wishing she could blow it up with a single thought. "I'm not," she retorted.

He turned to face her. She spotted that dark tell-tale glint in his eye, that always meant trouble. "Maybe you should be."

She shrugged off his threat. There was nothing he could do or say that hadn't been tried or threatened to be done to her before. She glanced at her watch. It was 5pm, her night could still be salvaged.

****
The van turned into a warehouse garage where three more ordinary cars sat ready for them. Liz didn't struggle or object as they herded them out of the van and divided them between the three cars. Two hostages went with A.J., Tess and two other gun men. The two security guards from the jewellers and two other hostages had one car to themselves, which left her, Kane and the new guy who had been waiting for them to arrive, in the last car.

She didn't ask any more questions as the drove out and once again joined the busy trafficked roads.
She considered opening the door and jumping out of the car, but the new guy had a gun pointed at her, he could get a shot off before she left the car. She had choices, just not ones that insured her safety, so she opted to just sit tight and see what happened next.

"Hey, don't I know you from somewhere?" new guy asked her.

Liz froze at his question. Her eyes darted from him to the car seat. "I doubt we run in the same circle," she replied stiffly.

She could feel his eyes on her. It made her uneasy. He couldn't know who she really was, could he?

"Take off your glasses," he ordered her.

"Dave," warned Kane.

Liz wished he hadn't decided to drive, at least he didn't ask any questions. This new guy was stirring a pot that would be best left alone.

"Relax, Kane," he told him, "I just want to see something." New guy pointed the gun at her. "Take them off."

Apparently, he wasn't letting it go. Liz took off her glasses and forced herself to fix him with a hard stare. "Well?".

"Hold your hair back," he demanded.

The panic started. She breathed it out. "Is this really necessary?".

"Do it," he encouraged her with his gun.

Taking a deep breath, Liz held her hair back and frowned at him.

Please God. I don't need this right now, she prayed.

His eyes became narrow slits, she could see him trying to place her.

What are the odds? Please have a terrible memory, she pleaded silently.

He finally gave up his probing. "Never mind."

Inwardly relieved, Liz glared at him and put her glasses back on.

I really need to get out of here, she thought to herself.

****

The car came to sudden stop in an abandoned derelict area of town.
Kane turned to face her. "Get out."

Swallowing hard, Liz did as she was told. With her feet firmly planted on the ground, she turned her fear into anger as she turned on the pair. "If you're going to kill me. Make it fast, shoot me straight in the head."

Kane was taken aback and horrified by her bluntness. Did she think that he was that cold-blooded?

She's collateral to you, of course she would, he reminded himself.

But still, he couldn't help but be a little offended.

"There's a phone booth a few minutes that way," he pointed. "Tell the police anything, consider the people you care about to be as good as dead," he threatened.

Liz was fine with that. She wasn't one to attempt heroism or nobility, not with things like this.
She made it exactly one step forward before Dave's had captured her wrist. "I remember you now. You're Liz Parker."

Liz closed her eyes shaking her head.

You're kidding me. Is this never-ending?

Opening her eyes, she wrenched herself away from him. "I'm Liz Evans," she corrected him.

"No." His favourite mode of persuasion, his gun, was now in line with her stomach. "You're Liz Parker. I remember your picture when the contract for you was sent out. You've changed a bit, but it's you."

She moved her head back out of his reach when he pointed the gun at her forehead. "That scar you got on-top of your eyebrow was the giveaway. You should have had it fixed 'cuz now, we're not letting you go."

For fuck's sake! can a girl not get a break?! she fumed.

"Dave let her go," Kane stepped in.

Liz sighed with relief. Maybe a girl could.

"No dice Kane," Dave responded. "Sean D. will pay out big for her. I'll split it with you since you her brought her along."

He mentioned money, I'm not going anywhere, she thought miserably. What no good low life would turn down the opportunity for big bucks and Kane was no different because he nodded accepting Dave's offer.

She went in for one last ditch attempt. "Look, I don't know who Liz Parker is. I don't know what you're talking about. I just want to go back to my life."

She tried to back away but both Kane and Dave got a hold of her hands and jerked her back.

"I can blow your kneecaps out and Sean D. would still pay out," Kane told her, "now what do you say, you get in the car huh?".

Liz glared at them both. She had almost made it. That nightmare was supposed to be over, it was supposed to be in the past, why couldn’t it just stay there and die!

"Just so you know,” her tone seethed with venom, “I hate you both with a passion unbeknownst to man."
Brushing past them, she stomped back to the car slamming the door shut as she slipped inside.

Fuck, fuck, fuck! Now I really am in danger.

****

Special Agent Michael Guerin purposefully strode through the hospital corridors. Investigating the crime scenes and interviewing the hostages had taken longer than expected. The body count had been higher than expected, obviously, the plan had gone array somewhere down the line.

She was the last person he needed to get a statement from.
Maria Deluca.
Bullet wound in the shoulder but recovering nicely.
The friend of the one hostage A.J and his gang didn't release.

The door to her room was open, so he didn't bother to knock.
She sat upright in her bed, looking remarkably well for someone who had a bullet taken out of her a few hours earlier. By her bedside, sat a blond haired guy, looked to be in his late twenties, who by the way he held her hand, had to know her on an intimate level.

His eyes widened in surprise as her gaze landed on him. She was beautiful.

"Who are you?" she asked suspiciously.

He made his way over to the pair. "Special Agent Guerin." He flashed his badge, "CIA. I need to ask you a few questions about your friend."

"What's happened to Liz?" she asked suddenly panicked.

He turned to the guy he assumed was her boyfriend. "Can you leave us for a few minutes?" he asked.

"No!", Maria yelled.

Michael inwardly groaned. He wasn't in the mood for hysterics, maybe the doctors could slip her something to calm her down.

"Kyle can stay. He cares about Liz too," she told him.

From the expression on her face, he knew she wasn't going to back down. And he was too tired to argue. "Okay. Liz was the only one they didn't release."

"You mean they've got her permanently?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Scum bags", she breathed viciously.

"I just need some details, like her full name, address, ideas on why you think they would take her".

He studied their body language as he talked. There was something they were hiding.

"Her name's Liz Evans and I have no idea why they would take her," she told him.

"Okay." He'd give them a chance to think it over. In the meantime, he could do a lot with a name.

With his back turned to the pair, Michael dialled a number into his cell.

"Alex here."

"Hey. Need you to run a check on a Liz Evans."

"Consider it done. How did it go?".

"Not exactly to plan," he replied.

"Did he leave his status?".

"Yep. He's still green."

"Good. Got it. Liz Evans, 25, micro-biologist at Meta-Chem. She's clean. Not even a parking ticke- wait a sec...I know her face."

Michael held his breath as he heard Alex typing away.

"Oh Sweet Jesus," he whistled.

Michael swallowed down the dread which had built up in his throat. Alex only said "sweet Jesus" when his news was big. "What?" he asked.

"I knew I recognised her from somewhere. I worked on her relocation. Michael, she's not Liz Evans, she's Liz Parker. One and only child of Jeff Parker."

"As in FBI Head of Cover Ops, Jeff Parker?" he asked.

"The one and only."

"Fuck me!”, he breathed.

"Exactly. They must know who she is."

"Thanks Al. I'll call it in."

"Good luck. You're going to need it."

Michael hung up and slowly turned to face the pair who no-doubt had been eavesdropping on his conversation. He narrowed his eyes at Maria. "You knew didn't you? She's a Parker. Why didn't you tell me?".

Her green eyes flared at him. "The last time Liz was helped by those who protect and serve, she was screwed over."

He couldn't argue against that. He'd heard about it when it circulated throughout the agencies, he couldn't blame them for being protective, but he wasn't about to walk over to the dark side.

"After I make this call, you're going to tell me everything you know."

Maria crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "Look buddy, you can threaten me, throw me in jail or whatever, I'm not telling you anything."

Michael resisted the urge to shoot something when the boyfriend stepped in with his two cents.

"Liz is our friend," Kyle added, "We only want to protect her."

"I can help you do that. Me," he pointed to himself, "CIA. What don't you get?".

Maria pointed to Kyle and herself. "We're not telling you anything, what don't you get?".

Michael gritted his teeth. "I'll be back."

"Take your time!" she shouted behind him.

In the corridor, he massaged his temples. That blond would be a pain in the ass, but he needed information from her and Jeff Parker. He had to make sure that he controlled the situation. Liz's kidnapping could not jeopardise the operation. They had worked too hard, they were in too deep.

"Dispatch."

"Agent 4942, patch me through to Jeff Parker."

"What's this pertaining to?".

Michael took a breath before answering. It was time to go for a long swim.

"Tell him it's about his daughter."

****

AN: Hey guys, thanks for all the feedback. It's really fun to read all your theories

To answer/respond to some questions:

Are the dupes in this fic? yes

Dave and A.J. are just characters I've made up.

Are there aliens in this fic? yes

Is Isabel still Max's sister in this fic? yes.

Is Isabel CIA too? you'll see...


Here's the next part

PREVIOUSLY

Cute without the E

In the corridor, he massaged his temples. That blond would be a pain in the ass, but he needed information from her and Jeff Parker. He had to make sure that he controlled the situation. Liz's kidnapping could not jeopardise the operation. They had worked too hard, they were in too deep.

"Dispatch."

"Agent 4942, patch me through to Jeff Parker."

"What's this pertaining to?".

Michael took a breath before answering. It was time to go for a long swim.

"Tell him it's about his daughter."

****


4.

Remember To Breathe

Maria watched as he re-entered her room looking a whole lot frazzled and flustered than he did before.

"I'm still not telling you anything," she told him stubbornly. She wasn't going to be fooled by good-looks. Liz had taught her better than that.

"I figured," he responded. She looked questioningly at the phone he thrust at her.

"Jeff Parker," he told her.

Jeff Parker, she mused taking the phone. Liz had told her about him, but for reasons she understood, in the two years she'd known her friend, Maria had never met him.

"Mr Parker," she greeted him.

"Miss Deluca."

"It's Maria to you."

"Okay, Maria...."

She listened intently as he tried to convince her to talk to Michael.

"No offence Mr Parker, but you trusted those guys who watched Liz and look how well that turned out. Can I ask you a question by the way?".

"Of course."

"For my peace of mind. What was Liz's old teddy called, the one she never threw away?."

"Mr Strawberry because it was her favourite fruit," he answered instantly.

"That's right. Sorry, I just had to make sure, I mean I've never heard your voice and-"

"That's okay, my daughter has that effect on people. Maria listen to me, I'm on my way to take control of the situation but meanwhile I'm leaving Michael in charge. He does know what he's doing and believe me when I say he wants this resolved as fast as I do. Just tell him what you know. The more we know, the better plan we can come up with."

Maria debated the issue. If she told Michael anything, what harm would it do to Liz? After-all, the kidnappers already had her.

"Okay, I will."

Michael sighed with relief when he heard her answer. He’d had second thoughts about calling Jeff Parker directly and so had called his chief who had called Jeff Parker to deliver the news about Liz, Jeff had then called him back to find out exactly how he could have let his daughter get caught up in a dangerous operation.
Michael had replied as honestly as he could, he had no idea. They had made room for deviations from the plan, they had expected it. What they hadn't expected was the daughter of one of the most decorated and revered FBI agents to get involved in it.

Maria handed him back the phone.

****

"Mr. Parker-" he began

"I've made arrangements, I should be there by tomorrow morning. In the meantime Agent Guerin, find out what you can, I want options by the time we meet."

"You'll have them."

"And tell that agent of yours, Evans is it?"

"Yes sir."

"Tell him to take care of my girl."

"I will sir."

****

"So, how do you know Liz?" he asked.

"We met two years ago at this restaurant. We were both on bad dates, so we ditched them and went out. Been friends ever since," Maria replied.

"So today, did you notice anything strange about Liz? did she mention any strange phone calls? parcels?"

Maria shook her head. "Nope. She's been pretty normal."

"Tell me about your plans for the day."

"Well..."

After he heard Maria give him a blow by blow detail of their day, how he wished he'd told her to be less specific, he concluded that the two had been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Plain bad luck.

Bad luck that had brought Jeff Parker into his operation.

"…That's it," she finished.

"That's not it, Maria tell him," interrupted Kyle.

"No!".

Her horrified reaction got his attention. "Tell me what?" he asked.

Maria pursed her lips shut. Michael looked to Kyle for help.

"You probably know Liz's history about the two kidnappings," he began.

Michael nodded. The first kidnapping had been of Liz and her mother, the second one had just been Liz and they barely got her out alive that time.

"What you don't know is that, they have been three others since then."

"What?!".

"The first time," began Maria reluctantly, "we got this call from her-"

"We?" Michael interrupted.

"We three used to share a house together," explained Kyle.

"Anyway, she called and told us not to worry, that she would be home in a few days. She came back and didn't remember anything that happened to her. She was okay though and she refused to report it, so we just left it," Maria told him.

"You just left it?" he asked incredulous.

There was so many things that could have happened to her and none of them would be good.

"We couldn't do anything. She said that she definitely hadn't been date raped or anything that bad," Kyle explained defensively.

"The second time,” continued Maria, “the same thing happened except she was gone for a week. We were about to report it when we got this call from this guy who told us that she'd be home by the end of the day and she was."

"Just like that?" he asked incredulous.

"Yep. She told us that, some guy from work had got obsessed with her and thought she was some Queen of a planet called Antar and she had to be sacrificed or something. Anyway, she said that friends got her out."

"Let me guess she didn't report that one either,” he frowned disapprovingly.

"She just wanted to live her life free from cameras and bodyguards. Plus,” Maria shot him a withering look, “she doesn't have a lot of faith in your kind of protection."

"The third time. Same thing happened, we got the call and she came back. It was two weeks this time, but when she came back, she had this handprint on her stomach. She told us it was semi-permanent paint, it went away in a few days. She didn't tell us where she'd been, just told us she was fine.
And each time she was, it was just, it was all very strange. These disappearances weren't the same as the kidnappings you know of. I got the feeling she didn't disappear willingly but something happened each time and she came back fine but not. She wouldn't talk about, so we just left it."

"You left it." Michael repeated. There was definitely something strange going on here.

"There was nothing we could do,” argued Kyle. “She was fine, a little different, but fine.

"Different how?" asked Michael.

"I don't know,“ he shrugged. “She reacts to things differently. Like, she'll cry at something on a t.v. show but never in real life. She's pretty stoic about things."

"Pretty weird huh?" asked Maria.

"You could say that."

After hearing what her friends had to say, Michael questioned his theory about Liz being in at the wrong place at the wrong time. She seemed like a girl who didn't look for trouble, trouble came looking for her.

****

"Well, well, well..."

Liz cringed at the sound of his voice.

"…I didn't believe it when they told me. Liz Parker. Haven't seen you in a couple of years."

Sean D. stood tall and confident in front of her flanked by bodyguards on either side of him. The whole hold-up crew had gathered in his luxurious, paid-for-by-drug-money-and-who-knows-what-else, house for a regroup and celebration.

She hated them all. Sean D, most of all.

She stared at him unimpressed as he strolled over to where she stood in-between Dave and Kane.

"Time's been good to you," he added leeringly.

She glared cold death at him.

His met her glare head on and grinned. "I see you've still got that I'm-a-bad-ass thing going for you. Like it."

"What do you want with me?" she asked impatiently. She wasn't in the mood for chit-chat.

"What do I want with you," he mused lazily.

Apparently he was.

"You're an unexpected but welcomed surprise, Liz. See I've got something very important in the works and you might be of use to me in that arena. After that, I can torture you, send pieces of you to your dad and get the closure I've been looking for."

Liz rolled her eyes. "Are you still on that?".

Was it her fault that his wife and child had been unfortunate victims in an FBI shot off, headed by her father?

His hand came out of nowhere and struck her cheek. The force caught her off guard and sent her stumbling into Kane, whose reflexes were surprisingly quick. She allowed him to support her for a few seconds before standing on her own.

She rubbed her burning cheek. "I guess so."

He pointed a gun at her.

.34 magnum...nice.

"I should kill you right now," he threatened.

"Go ahead," she dared him.

She wasn't afraid to die, she had been there and done that.

****

Kane couldn't keep the astonishment from his face.

She must have a death wish.

"Sean, we might need her," he heard himself say.

Woah, where had that come from? What was it his business what Sean did with her?

He was relieved however when Sean lowered his gun.

"We'll need her alive.…“ he agreed. “Tell me Liz, you still got your cherry?".

She frowned, ignoring the burning in her cheeks and the snickers sounding in the room, she folded her arms across her chest. "Not that it's any of your business but not, I don’t."

"That ruins the fun for me," he told her. "I was gonna break you in myself..."

She was disgusted by the fact that he sounded and looked genuinely disappointed.

"...but since you're used goods," he turned to the group, "any takers?".

"I will," said A.J. instantly.

Liz felt fear and swallowed it down. No way would she let A.J. get near her.

"Give me some of that," wolfed Dave next to her.

Kane glanced at her. She stood tall and defiant with a clenched jaw and he just knew.
She would kill herself before letting any of them rape her.

"I'll have her," he heard himself say suddenly.

"But Max," argued Tess, "I thought it was you and me!"

He fixed her with an incredulous look. "You know it's not."

He dropped the bag of money Sean had given them as a reward for bringing Liz in. "I'll take her over the money."

He didn't flinch as Sean eyed him suspiciously. "You going soft on me Kane?" he asked.

"No. Money I'll have plenty of by the time we finish this..."

Liz gasped in surprise when his arm slid around her waist and he jerked her to him.

"...She gave me a world of attitude today, I'd say I need a little compensation."

Her throat was scorched by the heated look in his eyes.

His eyes: amber, a hint of gold, streaks of dark molten chocolate. They tempted her to give in to melt into him and she had no idea why.

"We should be done by tomorrow night, so have her for the tonight," agreed Sean. "Want to test her out first?" he added.

Test me out? wondered Liz.

She found out soon enough because Kane pulled her closer to him. His eyes weakened her defences, she didn't fight the kiss, it was vicious and brutal but she yielded to it because it became soft, gentle and passionate.

He pulled away.

Liz didn't hear Kane say that she would do, or the plans the group made to meet the next day. Her body operated on autopilot while her mind drew her into a memory.

He pulled away. They were both breathless, still wanting more.

"We can't do this," he panted.

"Why not Zan?" she asked.

Amber eyes tinged with sadness and love looked back at her. "Because you're not for me," he replied.

"If you know so much then tell me. Who am I for?!" she asked.

"Someone else."

His voice faded with the cool breeze that brushed past her.
There were steps.
Stars twinkled.
There was a beautifully manicured lawn to her right. She was walking- correction, she was being dragged towards a car by Kane.

"What happened?" she asked confused.

Ignoring her question, he opened the door and ordered her to get in.

Liz didn't contest his order, she was too busy trying to figure out why Kane and Zan had the exact same eyes.

Wait- Zan! That's his name! she thought triumphant. Her jubilation however was short lived because she had a memory she couldn't place and had no idea who Zan was.

****

AN: To:


A Rose Is True Blue
Akashaa
BelevnDreamsToo - Yep, this is the first time Kane/Max and Liz have met.
cwm_
Earth2Mama
Emz80m
frenchkiss70 - Good guess, but I can't say how right or wrong you are because that would ruin the fun of the story
janesdilemma - very good guess.
Jason's Lover
icequeen
Lizza
lizzy3686
Natz
nitpick23
RASaero611
roswellluver
Smac
phyco352
WildSphinx

Thanks for the feedback guys:D
Here's the next part...

P.S. Lyrics belong to Live


PREVIOUSLY

Cute without the E


Liz didn't hear Kane say that she would do, or the plans the group made to meet the next day. Her body operated on autopilot while her mind drew her into a memory.

He pulled away. They were both breathless, still wanting more.

"We can't do this," he panted.

"Why not Zan?" she asked.

Amber eyes tinged with sadness and love looked back at her. "Because you're not for me," he replied.

"If you know so much then tell me. Who am I for?!" she asked.

"Someone else."

His voice faded with the cool breeze that brushed past her.
There were steps.
Stars twinkled.
There was a beautifully manicured lawn to her right. She was walking- correction, she was being dragged towards a car by Kane.

"What happened?" she asked confused.

Ignoring her question, he opened the door and ordered her to get in.

Liz didn't contest his order, she was too busy trying to figure out why Kane and Zan had the exact same eyes.

Wait- Zan! That's his name! she thought triumphant. Her jubilation however was short lived because she had a memory she couldn't place and had no idea who Zan was.

****


5.

Oh, I feel it coming back again

They parked in the front of his rented house. He turned off the lights and they sat breathing in the darkness.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

He had frequently glanced at her during their drive, while she didn't seem to have acknowledged his presence at all. She just stared straight ahead as if in some kind of trance.

In a way, he had been thankful for the peace because it had given him sometime to regroup. Her entrance as a potential player in the final deal had thrown him for a loop. She had come out of nowhere and suddenly she could be used by Sean as potential leverage, for what exactly, he had no idea. Add the fact that apparently, a contract had been out on her a few years prior and also the fact that she didn't know when to stop talking and you got a very aggravating woman.

She had rubbed a lot of people the wrong way today, himself included but for an entirely different reason. Just by talking and looking the way she did, he had gone out on a limb for her by saving her tonight. She was screwing up his well cultivated plan and didn't seem to care. That pissed him off.

What also aggravated him, was that kiss.
He'd had to make it rough because that was the kind of person Kane was, he couldn't be gentle or tender, Tess would have sniffed him out in a second. He hadn't expected her mouth and tongue to welcome him and he definitely hadn't expected to feel like he was floating on air.
Everything about Liz Evans-Parker threw him off balance and that wasn't his style. Being off-balance pissed him off.

Instead of answering his question, she posed one of her own. "Why did that girl, Tess, call you Max?"

He stared at her shadowed profile in disbelief. Had she really just ignored his question? When it came to his job, as Max Evans and especially as Kane Garber, he wasn't used to being denied.

She turned to him, her eyes illuminated by the street lamp outside seemed to glow and he found himself answering. "Kane Maxwell Garber. My name."

She nodded and turned back to facing straight ahead. He stared at her unsure of what to do next. Again, she had thrown him for a loop. He had expected the same rebellious bounding on cocky attitude he'd seen her exhibit earlier not the quiet pensive woman who she now apparently was.

"What's yours?" he asked. It was a loaded question, he knew her names, both of them, but like the different behaviours he had seen her exhibit, he didn't know which one was her actual self.

"Haven't you been listening all day? I'm Liz Parker", she replied with sarcastic aplomb.

"If you're Liz Parker, then who's Liz Evans?".

"My fantasy," she answered wistfully.

She was obviously a complicated individual, one with a lot of baggage and he guessed a lot of danger.

I have enough of that in my life, I don't need hers and I sure as hell didn't put myself on the line for her deep psycho-babble replies.

He opened his door before turning to her. "Get out. We're here."

****

They made it into his house with his arm tightly gripping hers. Liz didn't know what she had let herself in for by going with Kane Maxwell Garber, but if worst came to worst, he was one guy, she could deal with him.

They both stepped in when he unlocked the door, but he held her back before going any further. Liz watched him key in a code into what she assumed was his alarm system, what she didn't expect was the flash of blue light that followed.

"What the..."

"Okay, we're clean." His demeanour changed with the flash of blue light, he seemed less dangerous criminal and more ordinary guy who was very angry and irritated by her presence.

That has to be better than dangerous criminal Kane, she decided.

He left her by the door and she watched him disappear in and out the three other doors which led out of the open floor living room and kitchen.

The house was quite spacious and very neat; she guessed he didn't own it, just using it for his job with Sean D. She counted the kitchen, living room, and assumed the because there was already a set of glass doors that led outside, the other three doors must lead to the laundry room, to wash out the blood he no doubt got on his clothing, the bathroom and the bedroom. The latter is where he led her next.

****

He pushed her towards the bed, where she unceremoniously landed. "Stay there," he ordered.

Liz obeyed. Now wasn't the time to get cocky with him. While he was rifling through his drawers, she concentrated her efforts on acquiring the pen on his bedside table. In her experience, she had found that the pen was definitely mightier than the sword, she could do major arterial damage with it if the time came.

She was so preoccupied in hiding the pen, that she was unprepared when he grabbed her wrist and jerked it towards the metal headboard.

"Hey!". Her protest came too late; he released his grip on her wrist only to replace it with handcuffs.

"Just so you don't go running anywhere." He smirked as she shot him a withering look behind her rimmed glasses. He admired her fighting spirit and her hostility was kind of cute. He'd have time to muse on her later, right now; he had to call into base ops.

He put in the piece into his ears and set up a sat-link with his laptop.

"Captain Crash to Base Ops."

He smiled when Michael's face came onto the screen. "Good to hear from you Maxwell."

"Ditto."

"Listen, we have a little problem. Liz Parker."

He nodded as he glanced at her trying with no successful to free herself from the handcuffs. He turned back to the screen. "Little is an understatement."

Michael chuckled at his friend's response. If Liz was friends with someone like Maria Deluca, and from what he'd heard about her from Maria and Kyle, Max would have his hands full. "Is she okay?" he asked.

"Who the hell is she?" demanded Max. He really wanted to know if she was worth the trouble he had already gone through for her.

Liz stopped struggling with the handcuffs at the heated tone in Max's voice. She had nothing to pick the lock with but she had had to try the usual but unsuccessful trying-to-find-a-way-to-squeeze-my-hand-out-of-the-handcuffs, technique.
She had paid attention to Kane's conversation while she had been struggling, but now he had her full attention. She bit back a smile as she studied his tense body language.

Yeah, if you're like this now, wait till you find out who I really I am.

"Liz Parker. One and only daughter of FBI Head of Special Ops, Jeff Parker," replied Michael.

Max drew out a breath. "Fuck me!".

He glanced at her. She was Liz Parker?

She met his gaze and sheepishly shrugged.

"Exactly," agreed Michael. "Sort version is Sean D's wife and kid got killed in an FBI op he headed. A contract for their kidnapping was sent out. First time it was Liz and her mother. The second time, just Liz. You were in deep cover in Argentina at the time."

Max turned his attention back to Michael. "We stumbled on her by accident," he explained.

"So I hear."

Michael sounded amused and Max was puzzled as to why.

"Where is she?".

"Handcuffed to my bed," Max replied.

"That's real nice Maxwell," Michael chuckled. Max could be a charming gentleman when he wanted to, Liz had obviously drawn out his less gentlemanly side. If Jeff Parker knew, there would be hell to pay. Luckily, Michael still had time before his plane landed.

"What does Sean D. want with her?".

"Torture, death in the long run," he replied. "But he's going to use her for leverage tomorrow. What for and in what exactly, I'll find out at the briefing tomorrow. How are the hostages from today? Her friend Maria?".

"Maria's fine. She is recovering. The rest of them were a bit shaken up but they're fine apart from that one fatality," Michael replied.

"Good."

"Liz is going to be a problem Max. Jeff's here early morning. He'll want her out," Michael told him.

"She can't or my cover will be blown", he responded.

"I know, but I don't think I'll be able to stop him," Michael told him sadly.

"Dammit Mike! We’ve come too far!".

"Don't need to tell me that, but Parker's got pull we can only dream of and if he wants her out, she'll be out".

Max gritted his teeth. He forced himself not to look at her otherwise he might not be held responsible for his actions.

"...Max?"

"I hear you Mike. We'll conference tomorrow, see what's what," he replied.

"Be safe."

"Over and out."

****

He took the piece out of his ear and took a few calming breaths before calmly setting his laptop aside and finally turning to face her.

"Special Agent..." she offered.

"Max Evans," he replied.

He noticed the surprise on her face. Had she heard of him? And if so, how, where and why?

"Whoa. How weird is that?" she said slowly, "We have the same last name."

"No, you're Parker," he told her bitterly.

She shook her head and made herself more comfortable on his bed. "I haven't been Liz Parker in years. Her life isn't very safe, as you probably now know. Liz Evans on the other hand, she's less in danger of being shot at. At least, she was till today."

He smiled at her wry tone. She was really expressive with her mouth and her eyes when she talked, it was interesting to watch.

"Your father's coming tomorrow and if he has his way, you’ll be out and safe in no time,” he told her.

She cocked at her at him. "I can see why that's a bad thing."

"Not for you maybe, but-"

"I know. I eavesdropped," she told him. "Seeing as you're no longer my captor, can I get a shower and wash off the blood, grime and terror of the day?".

For the second time that day, Max found himself feeling awkward and uncertain around her. He'd had hidden behind the persona of Kane Garber when he interacted with her throughout the day, but not now. Now he was himself and being around her now, it made him feel a little uncomfortable.

He crossed the room and took the handcuffs off and in doing so felt a powerful desire to caress her skin, run his fingers through her hair and just be with her. He pulled back as soon as she was free.

"Sure," he stuffed his hands into his pockets, something he hadn't done since high school. "You can borrow some of my clothes. I can put yours in the machine."

"Thanks." She looked up at him from rubbing her wrist. "I have a question, is that your real eye colour?"

She was looking at him with the wonderment of a child at Christmas. He couldn't look away from that.

"Yes."

What did that have to do with anything?

"Have any brothers?"

"Sister, why?"

"Nothing".

oh now feel it comin' back again
like a rollin' thunder chasing the wind

She finally blinked and that's when he did too. He was surprised to realise that they'd been staring at each other without blinking throughout her questioning session.

He watched her as she headed out of his bedroom. She stopped in the doorframe and turned to him. "...It's just, you remind me of someone I think I know."

"Someone you think you know? That doesn't make sense."

"I know, but to me it does," she responded.

He stood there for a minute or two staring at the doorframe where she'd been. There was something about her, he definitely knew that now and it wasn't because of who her father was. It was because of her, there was something in her that did remind him of someone he thought he should already know and that was what had aggravated him about her all day.

oh now feel it comin' back again
like a rollin' thunder chasing the wind
forces pullin' from the center of the earth again
I can feel it.


****

AN: Hey all, next chapter is up and it's going to answer a few questions....

Trixie wrote:You know, being Liz Evans is more than this Liz Parker's fantasy...it is a whole lot of people's fantasies! LOL!!!

Don't I know it!! lol


PREVIOUSLY

Oh, I feel it coming back again

She finally blinked and that's when he did too. He was surprised to realise that they'd been staring at each other without blinking throughout her questioning session.

He watched her as she headed out of his bedroom. She stopped in the doorframe and turned to him. "...It's just, you remind me of someone I think I know."

"Someone you think you know? That doesn't make sense."

"I know, but to me it does," she responded.

He stood there for a minute or two staring at the doorframe where she'd been. There was something about her, he definitely knew that now and it wasn't because of who her father was. It was because of her, there was something in her that did remind him of someone he thought he should already know and that was what had aggravated him about her all day.

oh now feel it comin' back again
like a rollin' thunder chasing the wind
forces pullin' from the center of the earth again
I can feel it.

****


6.

So where is the passion when you need it the most?

Max knew he was on shaky ground with Liz Parker. He didn't know how exactly, but she seemed to be at an advantage in comparison to him and he didn't like it.

Opening his laptop back up, he re-connected with Michael.

"Miss me?" Michael asked.

"You know I do."

"What do you need?".

"Can you upload Liz's files on her kidnapping and everything else you have on her to me? I wanna know who I'm working with."

Less than a minute later, Max had all the information about Liz Parker to put him back to what he felt was an advantage.

"Thanks Mike."

"There's some info which isn't going to be on the files," Michael told him.

"Why not?".

"Got it from her friends Maria and Kyle, get this...."

Max quirked an intrigued eyebrow as Michael told him the information he had obtained about Liz.

"Doesn’t it strike you as odd that she didn't report this?" he asked.

"Word is, she didn't want to live under protection all her life and disappearing every few weeks would be a sure fire way to get her in protective custody for a long while," Michael replied.

"Still, I think there's something else to those disappearances and how can she not remember anything?".

"Want me to list you the ways?".

Max acquiesced. In their line of work, they both knew the painful and painless methods used to wipe a person's memory.

"Thanks Mike."

"Drinks on you when this is over."

"A shot hits me anywhere and it's your round," Max responded.

"You're on."

Max guessed that after the day she'd had, Liz would take a long time in the shower. He prepared some clothes for her and set them on his bed before heading to the living room.
He started off with a few newspaper articles.
Ten people killed and four wounded in FBI crackdown

FBI cracks down on organised crime

It didn't name names apart from Sean Deraino who was linked to several organised crime cartels. Liz's kidnapping was never mentioned which meant that somebody did their job right.

Max abandoned the newspapers for the official files regarding the kidnapping. In the first one, Liz and her mother had been chloroformed in a parking lot when they had gone shopping, tortured by electrocution and then at the exchange, when Sean D's men didn't let them go, the FBI took them out.
He knew too well the trauma of being electrocuted and for a civilian to experience that and still make it through, showed a lot of courage.

After that, a year later, another contract was put out, Liz had been shadowed by body guards who ended up kidnapping her.
The second kidnapping in Max's opinion, didn't fit the two agents' profiles. No answers were given because they were killed in the cross-fire.
Instead of going into witness protection, Liz stayed in the same city and just changed her name to Liz Evans.

Max's mind turned to her disappearances, maybe they were linked to why Sean D was going to use her, maybe her role at Metachem, her disappearances and Sean's leverage were all linked.
His brow creased in confusion, there were too many holes in his picture of Liz Parker, he needed more.

"Reading up on me?". Her amused voice startled him from behind. No matter how engrossed he was in something, he was usually excellent at noticing changes in his environment especially a change such as a person approaching. It was almost like a sixth sense and she had gotten past it.

She stood with his towel wrapped around her, hair wet, eyes sparkling and looking significantly relaxed. The sight of her made his heart jump. He opened his mouth but no sound came out.

"That's cool, I'll leave you to it," she continued.

"I've put my stuff out for you on the bed," he finally managed.

She paused at his door and smiled. "Thanks."

He waited till she had stepped into his room and closed the door behind her before responding. "You're welcome."

****

Behind the door Max stared at with an almost x-ray vision intensity, Liz let herself relax. She had badly needed that shower, the hot water had beaten away the tension in every muscle of her body, it had washed away a few tears of exhaustion, of relief, of release. She let herself have a mental breakdown in the shower, an emotion freak-out that needed to happen for her to move on.
Why her?
Why now?
Just when things were normal-

Then in a few deep breaths, she was done.
Things had happened, there was no point in looking back.
She had to plan what to do now, more importantly, what to do tomorrow.

If she got out, Max's operation would collapse and his cover would be blown. If she stayed, her life would be in extreme danger. She didn't know exactly what Sean wanted to do with her but after everything was said and done, in choice b, Max would complete his mission and take him down. With Sean D finally behind bars, then she would finally be free from fear and ultimately, that was what she wanted, to put that evil psycho hiding underneath a suit behind bars.
It would be so easy to just walk away but in the long run, it would be best if she stayed.
She ground her teeth, rubbing away thoughts of more terror and more fear. Like today, it would be draining, by the end of it, she would be tired but it would be worth it.

After she'd decided that, she'd finished her shower and was heading over to Max's room when she found him reading her file in the living room. He was a curious man, her only ally in this mess and her greatest mystery.

Now, looking around his room, she avoided searching it. He was undercover, whatever she found wouldn’t be anything too personal. The only way she would get that would be from the horse's mouth.

****

****

Max turned towards the sound of his bedroom door opening and stared blankly at her. His mind possessed no intelligent thought. All he could do is take her in. She looked extremely cosy and at home in his oversized drawstring trousers and t-shirt, her damp hair no longer hid any part of her face, she looked strangely calm and serene.
He however, wasn't when another thought struck him. Her underwear, along with her clothes were currently in his washing machine which meant that under his clothes, she was naked.

A change to her facial features in the form of a smile drew him out of his thoughts.

"You finished reading up on me?" she asked.

Max nodded as she dumped herself casually on one of his other sofas. "An interesting read," he added.

She shrugged nonchalantly and continued to stare at him as if she was searching for something. It unnerved him yet at the same time, he didn’t back down from her perusal.

"Michael told me about your disappearances," he began.

He saw her stiffen, obviously he had hit a nerve.

"Oh," she queried. "I guess Maria and Kyle thought it had something to do with this," she added more to herself than to him.

"Maria and Kyle?" he asked.

"My best friends. Maria is the girl your charming associate shot," she said.

"Sorry about that, A.J's a little trigger happy. She's okay though, in recovery."

"That's good. Thanks for asking about her for me," said Liz.

"Can I ask you a few questions?" he asked.

She frowned, at the same time her stomach growled.

Sensing an opportunity, Max jumped on it. "I'll cook," he offered.

"And I'm hungry, I think that'll work out. You any good?" she asked following him into the kitchen.

"I'm very good…"
Cooking helped woo women, which came in handy in some of his operations.

"….But if you don't like it, we'll order takeaway."

"As long as I get to ask you a few questions in return."

"I'm cooking and you’re answering my questions. What do I get for answering yours?".

Liz thought for a moment. "I'll help you cut stuff up and do the dishes."

"Deal."

She sat on top of the countertop and started peeling the carrots he gave her. "Okay, shoot."

"Your first kidnapping is pretty straight forward, but there are a few holes in the second."

"Like?" she asked.

"Like, the men assigned to protect you. I've read their profiles and there's nothing in them that suggests potential disloyalty or corruption."

"I know, that was the worst thing. Val and Chris were good guys, we were friends and then just suddenly, it was like they were possessed or something. They didn't talk to me during the whole ordeal, then the FBI found us and there was the shoot-out and Chris suddenly looked confused as if he didn't know what was going on and then..." she broke off.

The sound of frying peppers was the only thing to be heard.

"And then what?" asked Max.

"He took a bullet for me. Things got crazy as you can imagine and I was in the way of a few bullets. Chris stepped out and took them for me. Val died too, so we couldn't get any answers."

"So everyone assumed it was Sean D again."

"He'd sent out another contract and had found a way to bribe my bodyguards, besides who else could it have been apart from him?" she countered.

"I suppose. You weren't at Metachem then?".

"I was just starting there, what does Metachem have to do with it?" she asked.

"It doesn't have anything to do with your second kidnapping, but maybe your disappearances since."

"Metachem has nothing to do with those," she responded with a certainty that surprised him.

"How do you know? you can't remember what happened to you each time you were taken."

"I may not know exactlywhat happened to me each time, but I definitely know it had nothing to do with Sean D or Metachem, this was entirely different," she replied.

"You really can't remember anything?" Max asked.

She hesitated. She could tell him about the strange flashbacks.
From the first and second kidnapping, the flashbacks had been normal, but the flashbacks from her disappearances were always emotional, never images.

She felt terror, fear, confusion and awe for events she couldn’t remember and most puzzling of all love for someone she couldn‘t remember….til now.

She hadn‘t had the flashbacks in a while and then today, kissing Max, they‘d returned. Maybe he was the answer, but how could he be when he had nothing to do with her life back then?

She could tell him about the flashes, but she didn’t. He couldn’t help her.

"Nothing that would help,” she finally replied.

Selective word choice, Max noted. She knew something.

"What about the silver handprint? the cult? the man who called Maria and Kyle each time you disappeared?" he pressed.

"I really don't remember anything that can help Max."

He was pushing her too far. He backed off.

"You're not wearing your glasses," he commented.

"I don't need them,” a wry grin dressed her lips, “they're for my sexy scientist look at work but I like to wear them anyway sometimes“.

"You look nice without them," he said.

"Are you saying I didn't with them on?", she challenged.

"No, it's just...I can see you," he replied.

Glancing up, he met her smile.

The instant she realised that they were having a moment, she broke it. "My question then. What was with that blue light when we first arrived?."

"Alex, one of the techs at Langley, made it for me,” he replied. “It's a multipurpose alarm system, the blue light is a laser scan that detects and disrupts any foreign frequencies, it's a bug zapper.”

"Ahh."

"Is that all?".

"I can't think of anything else to ask," she replied. "I thought I had questions which I do, but...," she shrugged.

He wouldn't be able to answer them.

"I still have some. Why did you change your name to Liz Evans?".

"After the second kidnapping, my father wanted me in witness protection. I wasn't gong to give up my life. I figured that Sean D would expect me to go into protection and would stop looking, so I did the opposite, I just changed my last name and moved in with Maria and Kyle. I picked Evans because…you'll think this is really stupid, but I don't think so anymore, anyway...."

She told him about the afternoon Maria dragged her to her personal fortune teller Madame Vivian to give them both direction in their lives. Liz had been sceptical but she had gone anyway. She had been expecting the usual stereotypical predictions, so she had been taken aback when the fortune-teller grew serious and told her that her life was more important than she thought it was.

"...she said that she felt a powerful energy in me, then she told me that someone with the last name of Evans would be a crucial source of strength for me, an answer to a mystery."

She didn't add the love unparalleled bit, there were many Evanses in the world who could be that, it wasn't necessarily Max.

"...then she had a heart attack right there at the table, she died. I didn't have a name so I figured that after that glowing report, why not Evans?,” Liz explained. “Now I meet you Max Evans and I think the last bit she got about Evans being a source of strength was right on“.

"What about Evans being an answer to a mystery?" he asked.

"Maybe you’re not the Evans to help me on that one," she responded.

****

By the time he finished asking his questions, dinner was ready and delicious. After that, fulfilling her end of the deal, Liz washed up the dishes. They spent the remainder of the evening indulging in small talk; Liz told him about her friends, her life and he told her about his sister, Alex and Michael.

Max was completely relaxed. He hadn't had a night like this in a long while. Then it came down to sleeping arrangements and he found himself suddenly tense.

"I'll take the couch," he offered.

"Don't be ridiculous, you're not going to put a move on me, you're one of the good guys plus my father would kill you. Let's just share the bed," she told him.

His mouth went dry at her suggestion. He was nervous, he couldn’t believe it. After everything he had done with other women, he was nervous to just share a bed with a woman who wasn't interested in him sexually.

"Plus, you and I are supposed to be having sex remember? It would make sense if we were in the same bed especially if you had surprise visitors tomorrow," she added.

"You're right." He slipped into the sheets beside her turned off his beside light while she turned off hers.

****

They lay there in the darkness, each in deep thought, each searching each other out.

"Max, about tomorrow," Liz began

"Yeah?".

"You'll get to finish this op. I want Sean D behind bars or preferably caught by a stray bullet more than you do," she replied.

"It's too dangerous,” he responded instantly. He didn’t make it a habit to get attached to his assets, but with Liz, he couldn’t help himself. “Plus, your father won't allow it."

"My life's always been dangerous, nothing I can't handle. Leave my father to me. You can't change my mind Max, so don't even try."

And he didn’t. He knew she was stubborn, he knew that whatever she decided, she would do. He wasn’t going to stop, he was going to make sure that she was safe.

"Okay.... and thanks."

A few minutes of silence passed before either of them spoke.

"So, we might die tomorrow," Liz began.

"We might."

She rolled over and turned on her light. She moved in closer to him. "Can I touch you?".

The question was unexpected leaving Max no time to respond with the eloquence he preferred to in these situations.

"Uh huh.”

He had been in circumstances like this before. When death seemed to be imminent, you wanted to do the only life affirming thing possible.
He was always open to that.

He watched as she propped herself up on her elbow so that she was looking down on him and slowly trailed her fingers across her face. It was as if she was a blind person trying to get an idea of what he looked like through touch.
He loved the way she touched him, her exploration of his face had turned into sweet caresses. He wanted to close his eyes in pleasure but they didn't waver from hers.

He felt connected to her somehow, she made him feel safe while he....he made her remember…

Her fingers traced along the contours of his face, her eyes never breaking away from his which alternated between darkening amber and a complete blanketing of black.

"I just want to remember," she explained in a low voice.

"I already told you Gidget," a regretful smile passed across Zan's lips, "you won't."

She kissed the tip of his nose. "Keep thinking that," she managed before he captured her lips with his and pulled her into oblivion.

She was kissing him. Zan.
No, not Zan, she realised in a panic. Max!
He was kissing her and she was responding!.
His hand was on her breast and she was so pressed against him that she could feel his arousal.
She stiffened in his hold before using his chest as leverage to push herself away from him.

"Dude! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she asked breathlessly.

"What do you mean? we were kissing and I thought-"

"I know what you thought and it definitely wasn't with your head and just for your peace of mind, no, we weren't. This isn't one of those, we're gonna die so let's sleep together thing, I said we might die. I don't remember initiating the kiss either."

"But you didn't stop me at first," he countered.

Liz opened her mouth to retaliate but caught herself. She couldn't very well say that she had been having a flashback of kissing Zan who had the same eyes and facial features as him.

Max grinned. She wanted him, he knew it.

"We're not having sex Max, besides, don't you get enough of that from Tess?" she asked.

"I do, but if a lady should desire it in moments of distress, I won't say no," he replied.

"Well this lady doesn't desire it," she told him scathingly. She turned abruptly and switched off the light.

****

He knew that she had her back to him. He felt like a fool. She really hadn't wanted sex, just to touch him. She wasn't playing coy.
Liz was unlike any other woman he had met on or off the job and he felt terrible for assuming what he had about her intentions with him.
He was about to apologise when he felt her turn to face him and then a few seconds later, felt her body press against him. His arms automatically went around her.

"Since we might die tomorrow, cuddling is okay," she told him.

Max resisted the urge to kiss her hair, instead, he held her closer to him, gently stroking her hair.

“What kind of molecular biologist says dude?” he asked.

He felt her chuckle against his chest.

“A molecular biologist who doesn’t fall to stereotype and is best friends with an ex football player,” she replied.

In the darkness, Max smiled. Beneath all of her attitude and stubbornness, Liz Evans was a scared and wounded woman.
When he felt her breathing lower, Special Agent Max Evans, a man who had handled some of the most expensive weaponry and jewellery on and off the market, suddenly really felt what it was like to hold the most precious thing in the world in his arms.
Little did he know, that the following day, he was going to find out just how precious Liz Evans was.

AN: Hey all, here's the next part.
Enjoy ....



PREVIOUSLY

So where is the passion when you need it the most?

"Since we might die tomorrow, cuddling is okay," she told him.

Max resisted the urge to kiss her hair, instead, he held her closer to him, gently stroking her hair.

“What kind of molecular biologist says dude?” he asked.

He felt her chuckle against his chest.

“A molecular biologist who doesn’t fall to stereotype and is best friends with an ex football player,” she replied.

In the darkness, Max smiled. Beneath all of her attitude and stubbornness, Liz Evans was a scared and wounded woman.
When he felt her breathing lower, Special Agent Max Evans, a man who had handled some of the most expensive weaponry and jewellery on and off the market, suddenly really felt what it was like to hold the most precious thing in the world in his arms.
Little did he know, that the following day, he was going to find out just how precious Liz Evans was.


7.

Your hair, it’s everywhere.
Screaming infidelities
And taking it’s wear
- Dashboard Confessional

Propped on her elbows, Liz watched him sleep as the early morning light seeped through the blinds. Her night had been beset by flashbacks, both emotional and visual this time and they all had to do with Zan.
She had a face and body to the name now.
If she assumed that the flashback dreams were actual flashbacks, then she not only had a face and body to Zan, she had kissed that face and body. She had loved the man and somehow felt that she still did.
They argued a lot, his cocky self-assurance irritated and infuriated her, she knew that too somehow. It made her want to punch him and simultaneously fall for his charm.
They laughed, shared a lot of passionate intimate moments and quite a few heartbreaking ones too.

He’d saved her life.
She didn’t remember how exactly, but she’d woken up with the definite, deep-in-your-soul feeling that he had saved her life.

Her thoughts returned to the man who slept soundly next to her. Max Evans looked exactly like Zan, except Zan had three piercings in his right ear and had a tattoo of the foursquare on his upper arm.
They couldn’t be twins because Max and Isabel weren’t adopted.

“So what the hell is going on?” she whispered.

Her voice was low, she didn’t expect him to hear her let alone wake up. She didn’t have a chance to breathe as his eyes flew open and she found herself on her back with his body pressed heavily on top of her.

It took a moment for him to register who she was and what he was doing.
It gave her time to expel breath and get the sudden heat of desire under control. Suddenly enjoying the position she was in, Liz grinned. “Good morning Agent Evans.”

Max jerked away from her as if he’d touched fire. He’d opened his eyes to find penetrating ones staring back at him. He’d acted on instinct developed through years on the job and after using it, was now blushing because of it.

Michael would love to see this, he thought dryly.

“I’m not used to people watching me while I sleep,” he apologised.

“Woke up early, needed something to keep me busy. I like looking at your face.”

Max stared at her dumbfounded . He glanced at his watch to buy time to think of something to say and was grateful when it worked. “We should get ready. Do you want to shower first or second?”.

Liz rolled out of bed and stood yawning in front of him. “You go first, I’ll rustle up some breakfast. We’ve got an eventful day ahead of us.”

He didn’t say anything reassuring though he wanted to. They both knew what was at stake.

****

In the shower, Max planned the day...
Get dressed.
No doubt the boys would be over to get him and check on how his night with Liz went…best if she was handcuffed to my bed for show.
Briefing with Sean D.
Then…then, it would be show-time.
This ended today.

Maybe if they made it through in one piece, he’d ask Liz out for coffee.

****

After breakfast and a shower, ready for whatever came and once again comfortably settled on his bed, Liz glanced up at Max expectantly. “What’s the game plan?”.

He walked over, opened the drawer next to her and pulled out the handcuffs. “Um…”.

“Not again,” she groaned.

“Sorry. We need it for show. They may want to take a peek at you so…”

She nodded. “I gotta look rumpled and sexed out,” she finished.

“Yes.”

She looked down at her clothes. They were washed and pressed and neat. “I shouldn’t really be dressed should I?”.

“Realism,” he agreed.

With a heavy sigh, she got off the bed. “Turn around,” she commanded and he obeyed.

She couldn’t be bothered to tell him to leave the room when she was only stripping down to her underwear. After their intense night of getting to know one another, she was comfortable around him, it didn‘t hurt that he looked like Zan either. Plus he must have seen it all anyway and on more gorgeous bodies than hers.

She liked Max. Not just his body, but his character and if today she was possibly going to get wounded or end up dead, she as well have some fun with him while she could.

She stripped off her clothes and put his oversized t-shirt back on and ruffled her hair. “Okay, you can turn around now.”

Max turned around, raised a controlled eyebrow while internally a riot broke out.

“Not bad.”

“Needs one more thing.”

“What?” he asked.

There was something about the way she was looking at him, about the slow almost seductive way she moved, that made his throat dry and his heart pound

“Realism,” she answered and with that, her lips brushed lightly against his.

It was a rush that turned into a roar with that little contact. “Liz.”

“We’re not having sex,” she wrapped her arms around his neck as if she’d been doing it all her life and tasted his earlobes. “Just kissing…” she murmured in a husky voice he’d never heard before. “…It’s like proof of torture, you gotta have some scars.”

Her lips returned to his but this time, a brush of lips didn’t satisfy, she kissed him deeper. “Kane seems like a guy who’d leave a few…scars,” she got distracted with playing with the hair at the nape of his neck for a few seconds,”… If I’m prim and slightly rumpled…”

Max was too weak to fight. She had taken him off guard and he didn’t have the defences to fight this kind of assault off. Not from Liz. “I guess I should…”

“Part of the job,” she agreed against his lips.

This time he responded with heat and passionate enthusiasm. This was nothing in comparison to the way he felt with their first rough kiss or the one they’d had last night.
Each kiss, each tongue duel and brush of teeth was like a slow soul burning process.

Their kisses were sometimes soft, gentle, mere brushes and sometimes they were energetic dances of desires, a mixture of devouring and savouring.
When they had to break off for oxygen, his lips merely found another part of her to kiss. His hands found more of her to explore.
The more he tasted of Liz, the more he wanted.

Liz sighed as she fell back onto the bed. This time, she wasn’t kissing Zan. She was kissing Max and it felt pretty damn good.
Her fingers ran along his firm, well-toned body, she arched into him as his tongue, teeth and lips teased her neck and collarbone before returning back to her lips.

He clouded her mind, left her yearning and made her want to let loose completely.

Like Zan does.

The thought came with a face, a sexy grin and teasing kiss.
It had the effect of a cold bucket of ice-water being poured over her.

She broke off the kiss panting.
No doubt her lips would be puffy and pink.
Job done.

“I think that’ll do.”

She felt a little guilty for getting him so worked up, but it did go both ways.

“You sure?” he growled out the question.
The bang on the door was his answer.

“Damn it! they’re here.” He took his body weight off her and got off the bed. “How long were we at this?” he asked.

“Long enough for them to get here?” she suggested.

Sighing, he reached over and picked up the cuffs.
This time Liz didn’t struggle.

“I’m sorry about this,” he apologised.

She shrugged. “Needs to be done.”

“Speaking of which, when I leave this room, I won’t be Max, I’ll be Kane. I apologise in advance for what I’ll do.”

“Apology accepted.”

He kissed her before hurrying out the door leaving a dazed smile on her face.
She guessed that she wasn’t the only one who wanted to have fun while they could.

****

Kane typed in the alarm codes and opened the door.

“Morning boys,” he drawled pleasantly.

“Someone had a good night,” commented A.J.

They walked in and made themselves at home.

“She any good?” asked A.J.

“Tasty. Had her all night, she tired out,” Kane replied.

“You dog!”, cheered Dave.

“Compared to Tess?” asked Steve.

“Now now, a gentleman never fucks and tells…” he waited a beat. “I will say she was worth more than the money I gave up.”

“Lucky dog…bet I can get that cat got cream smirk off your face,” said Dave.

Kane met his challenged.

“My beauty’s outside,” said Dave.

“1970 Pontiac Firebird Sprint? Carrie?”.

“In all her glory,” he replied proudly. “Come and eat your guts out.”

****

The car was a beauty and they spent time bonding over it. Aside from being criminals with a few sociopathic tendencies, they were cool guys to spend time with.
Too bad their law-breaking habits outweighed their good points.
Max didn’t think anything of it when A.J went to get beer, he just joked about him drinking before noon.
He didn’t think much of Dave hitting the john. They did that all the time. Liz’s safety didn’t enter his mind.
In his mind, she was safely tucked away in his room “asleep”.

****

****

When Liz heard the door open, she thought it would be Max/Kane. She’d expected some visit from him and the boys to see the “bed fun“. She had prepared herself for it but she hadn’t expected A.J and Dave unsupervised.

“Well lookie here, sleeping beauty is awake,” sneered the latter criminal.

Fuck.

Liz refused to gulp down the fear, she breathed it out and instead let anger unfurl from within as they closed the door behind them.

She could deal with criminals, they were low but not as low as rapists.
“Get out,” she commanded them.

“You’re in no position to give orders,” said A.J.

They circled her beds like vultures. She could only push herself up and glare at them in defence.

She searched for a weapon. She couldn’t use the night lamp against the two of them.
Damn it why had she agree to be handcuffed?!

“What do you want?” she asked.

She had spent enough time in situations like this to know that she couldn’t show fear, in her voice or her eyes.

Dave touched her cheek and she slapped him back with her free hand.

“Feisty. Think she likes it rough?” he asked A.J.

She ground her teeth to keep from letting rip a slur of curse words. It wouldn’t do good to piss them off.

“Let’s find out,” answered A.J.

He was the one to worry about. He had no qualms with killing people, from the look in his eyes, she bet that he got off on violence.

There were times when screaming was pointless. This was not one of them.
Liz opened her mouth to scream, but Dave grabbed one of Max’s t-shirts off the bed, the end result was him covering her mouth with it but not before he covered it with his mouth first.

Liz spit at him in the space between replacing his mouth with the shirt on her mouth.

She struggled and screamed against it. She hated them with a firey passion. If she got through this, she too wouldn’t shed a tear if they ended up dead.

When A.J. struck her, aside from the red that filled her eyes, she felt an explosive surge of strength, of energy struggling to escape but failing to do so, it imploded within.

****

Zan fell back with force. “Damn that packed a punch. Whatever‘s going on with Liz has her worked up pretty bad.”

“Bro, you gotta sort that out when we get done with Khivar.”

“Rath’s right,” agreed Vilandra, “You can’t keep this up. It’s twisted. I’m all for pleasure and pain, but you’re overstepping it. You need to close it up.”

If he closed it up, he wouldn’t get the pleasure of smelling the sudden wafts of her tangy citrus scent or of hearing her phantom laughter or visions of her hair blowing in the wind.

“If we dust Khivar, there’ll be no threat to Liz. I won’t close it,” he responded.

Rath shook his head at his brother. “You’re sick man.”

“Tell me about it…but I ain’t letting her go,” his eyes landed on Ava and the little bundle in her arms.

She was one of the reasons he would never let Liz go. He would suffer the heartbreak of the sudden feelings of love she‘d have for his other dupe if they ever met up, he would suffer it all because he had her. She‘d grown since the last time Liz had held her in her arms. Development, human, alien or hybrid, it all amazed him. “How is my little princess?” he asked.

“In need of her mother,” Ava replied.

“Don’t give me that Avs. We had no choice, Liz knew that. We all did.”

“You can’t keep her from remembering forever, you know that. You won’t be able to keep them apart, you know that too. So why not be the good guy in it all?” she asked.

“Because, Liz needs to be safe and she won’t be safe with us.”

It hurt to say it, but it was true. He could never give her normal and even though she was anything but, he could give her as close to normal as he could get.

“And Laine?” badgered Ava.

Laine. Their beautiful, perfect daughter.

“She’ll be safe with us, as long as you stick to the plan,” he told her.

“She’s part of the family. I’ll meet you at the safe house,” Ava responded. “Do me a favour, don’t get yourself killed. She doesn’t have her mother, don’t let her loose her father too.”

Zan didn’t make any promises he couldn’t keep, so he said nothing. If things turned sideways then he’d make sure his daughter had her mother back.

****

“I wanna taste the goods that had Kane raving,” leered A.J.

Liz swallowed down the bile that had travelled up her throat, stilled and let him get a hold of her legs.

Dave kept the shirt on her mouth.

What the hell was Max doing?!
If this was what he had been apologizing for, she would retract her apology and give her father full licence to have him somehow taken care of…painfully.

She shuddered inwardly as A.J’s sick fingers trailed along her leg.

Her thoughts towards him were venomous.

She waited till he shifted and kicked, but he was prepared. He captured it before it reached it’s target.

“You’ll pay for trying that,” he said menacing as he pushed the shirt past her hips.

The vicious movement caused Dave to loosen his hold on her.
Liz saw opportunity and took it.
She couldn’t call for Max. That was what Tess called him, it was too personal. She couldn’t call him Kane because Kane didn’t care what happened to some FBI agent’s kid.
She only had once choice and hopped he’d somehow take care of the rest.

Shaking free with her head and free arm, she shouted for help at the top of her lungs.

****

The desperate shout for help rendered Max momentarily frozen. Then all of it checked into place as its implication sliced through him.

A.J, Dave and Liz.

He bolted from the car, ignoring Steve’s calls and bounded into his house, raced to his room and flung the door open.

He saw Dave covering Liz’s mouth. A.J unbuckling his trousers above her. The first image angered him, the second sent him over the edge. Primal fury thundered through him and with superhuman strength he attributed to adrenalin, he grabbed A.J, pulled him away from Liz and threw him into the wall like a rag doll. Not wasting time, he rammed his fist into Dave’s face.

“Shit! Kane, what the heck did you do that for?!” he shouted.

“DID I SAY YOU COULD TOUCH HER?!” he bellowed.

He wanted to comfort Liz, to gather her into his arms and make sure she was okay, but he had to be Kane.

“What gives man? We just wanted a taste,” protested A.J.

Max resisted the urge to smash his face in. “I gave up my share of the contract money for her. She’s not to share.”
He glanced at Dave who was nursing his face, “There’s an ice pack in my fridge,” he told him.

Dave nodded and left the room. A.J. slowly followed behind him.
“Sorry man, we’ll let you cool off. Come up front when you’re done,” he apologized.

Max had his hands fisted till they left the room, waiting a few seconds to make sure they were gone before unclenching.

By then Liz had pulled the shirt back down to cover herself and was sat up watching him.

He finally let the concern show in his eyes. “You okay?” he asked sitting by her side. “Did he…”

She shook her head. “You got here just in time.”

“I’m sorry.”

It didn’t seem enough to make what had almost happened to her better.

“Not your fault but maybe we shouldn’t have me strapped to the bed?”.

Max nodded and unlocked the cuffs.

She rubbed her wrist relieved. The cuffs had cut into her skin, that meant that she’d struggled.
Of course she did, anyone would, especially Liz. She was a fighter to the end.

“You’re shaking,” he noticed.

He gave her space when she shifted and crawled under his covers. “I’ll be fine. Give me a minute, a bottle of mouth wash and toothpaste and I’ll be as good as new.”

He looked at the bruise that was beginning to form across her face. He ran his hand over it, wishing he could make it better, make it go away.

She winced initially when his hand made contact with her skin but then relaxed into it. “How bad?” she asked.

There had been a lot of force behind that slap, no doubt it would be one heck of a bruise.

“Put some ice on it. I’ll kill them.”

She smiled flattered that he‘d go crazy ape man for her. “You can’t…just yet.”

His fingers now caressing her face felt like they’d been dipped in a cooling balm which was somehow working wonders on her bruise because she didn’t feel the after-effects of being smacked across the face. She’d had enough slaps and punches from crazed or greedy law-breakers to know what she’d feel during and after. This feeling was unusual, but it felt so good and relaxing, that she decided not to analyse it, especially when there were more important things to think about.

Like why Max was searching for something under his bed.
He came back up with a slick .22.
He took the safety off and checked that it was loaded. “You know how to use one of these?”.

“Is your friend A.J. a bit of a psychopath?”.

He handed her the gun. She admired it, nice and small, she noted. Not among her favourites but, it would do.

“How’s your aim?” he asked.

“I could have a side job as an assassin.”

He kissed her, it seemed the only thing to do, before heading back out.

“You keep doing that, why?” she asked.

He turned at the door. “You like my face, I like your lips. When we leave, I’ll set the alarm so no one gets in. You’ll hear two beeps, the cost is clear.”

“Take care of yourself.”

Max smiled. He couldn‘t make any promises.

****

AN: Hey everyone, it’s been a long time since this fic was updated, but I’m bringing it back! . Thanks to all those who voted on the polls by the way

Since it’s been so long, I thought I’d do a little summary:

- 25 yr old Liz Evans is a micro-biologist at Meta-chem and has Maria and Kyle as her best friends.

- Liz however, has a past. She is Liz Parker, daughter of FBI Cover Ops. Head, Jeff Parker.
Organised criminal Sean D. tangled with Jeff in an FBI shoot out, which led to the death of Sean’s family. Since then, Sean has had a contract out for Jeff’s daughter Liz.

- After surviving two kidnap attempts, Liz changed her name to Evans and was left alone to lead a normal life - apart from three mysterious disappearances:
The first time, she returned having no memory of what happened to her
The second time, she explained it away by blaming it on an obsessed guy. She was rescued by some ‘friends’.
The third time, she returned with a silver handprint on her stomach. Apparently, it was semi-permanent paint.

- On an ordinary day, Liz and Maria are hostages in a jewellery store hold up where Maria is shot (she recovers), Liz is taken back to Sean D. where she is left in the care of Kane.

- Kane triggers off memories of her disappearances. She remembers Zan, who looks like Kane.

Kane is deep. cover ops. Agent Max Evans.

- After Max rescues Liz from a near rape assault by one his ‘team-mates’, he heads off to the meeting that will shape their now joined fates.

****

PREVIOUSLY

She winced initially when his hand made contact with her skin but then relaxed into it. “How bad?” she asked.

There had been a lot of force behind that slap, no doubt it would be one heck of a bruise.

“Put some ice on it. I’ll kill them.”

She smiled flattered that he‘d go crazy ape man for her. “You can’t…just yet.”

His fingers now caressing her face felt like they’d been dipped in a cooling balm which was somehow working wonders on her bruise because she didn’t feel the after-effects of being smacked across the face. She’d had enough slaps and punches from crazed or greedy law-breakers to know what she’d feel during and after. This feeling was unusual, but it felt so good and relaxing, that she decided not to analyse it, especially when there were more important things to think about.

Like why Max was searching for something under his bed.
He came back up with a slick .22.
He took the safety off and checked that it was loaded. “You know how to use one of these?”.

“Is your friend A.J. a bit of a psychopath?”.

He handed her the gun. She admired it, nice and small, she noted. Not among her favourites but, it would do.

“How’s your aim?” he asked.

“I could have a side job as an assassin.”

He kissed her, it seemed the only thing to do, before heading back out.

“You keep doing that, why?” she asked.

He turned at the door. “You like my face, I like your lips. When we leave, I’ll set the alarm so no one gets in. You’ll hear two beeps, the cost is clear.”

“Take care of yourself.”

Max smiled. He couldn‘t make any promises.

****

8.

You could be my someone...

Upon hearing the turn of a key in a lock, rushing for a closer look and realising that the knob was indeed being fiddled with, Liz went into action hiding in the laundry room prepared to use the knife in her hand if she had to. With the door open a crack enough for her to see the feet, legs, body and finally a face, she sighed with relief when each part added up to her image of Max.

She opened the door and stepped out to meet him. He didn’t seem surprised to see her emerge but she doubted much actually surprised the field ops. agent. Or if it did, he was careful not to show it.

“What? No ‘honey I’m home’?” she teased weaving past him and dumping herself on the sofa with a flippant attitude even she was surprised by.

He fixed her with one of those detached bland stares of his, that she supposed was designed to make her feel somewhat foolish.
Considering how he was with her after her near rape and the ‘something’ they’d shared before, he didn‘t make her feel foolish, it just stung.

But hey, they’d known each other for a total of nearly two days, if you didn’t count it by hours. What did she expect?

“I’m not that kind of guy and besides, this isn’t home,” he added as if in after-thought.

She was well aware of the fact that he’d just come from a meeting with a crime lord who wanted to painfully and slowly kill her but mental and verbal dancing around might get rid of the ever sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Angling her head to study him, she was surprised to find that he was surprisingly studying her too.

“Where’s home?” she asked.

His probing eyes turned soft and wistful. “That’s…a question”.

One she didn’t think was complicated to answer, at least for an ordinary person.

Her eyes burned- no they didn’t, they sparked, as if she and Max were exchanging an invisible charge by sight. It didn’t hurt, but it prevented her from blinking by its sheer force.
She was supposed to question him further about his ambiguous statement, that was the next step in their conversation, but she didn’t.
She didn’t because she knew the answer.

She dutifully sat down at his request, waited until he had stopped running his fingers through her hair, had it held in his, and then she asked the question.

“Where’s home?”.

He finished off fixing her hair into a pony tail before swivelling her around to face him.

“Home is wherever you are,” he solemnly answered.

She didn’t know how to react to the definitive nature and tone of his response which left her slightly unsettled. She delved into her arsenal of defence systems for the right response to this situation.

Her tone took on a teasing edge. “It’s like that huh?”

His eyes bored into hers, trying to impress the importance of what he was telling her, pleading her to accept. “It was for me and it will be for him once you find each other.”

That’s what unsettled her. That’s what depressed her about their whole situation. She could never be home for Zan. Someone else already had taken that place.
She was supposed to be his clone’s ‘home’. Someone she didn’t even know, someone who she was sure, she’d never feel for as much as she did for Zan.

“And what about you…and me?”.

Their relationship was technically ‘forbidden’. She belonged to someone else; Zan knew that and was resolute that she should be with her mate while she refused to accept it, any of it.
She and Zan were two people, who made their own choices, created their own futures. They had ‘something’ together and while she and Layraina had similarities, Liz had been told that she was acutely different.
To Zan and more importantly, to herself, she wasn’t seen as a replacement. She was just Liz Parker.

“We shouldn’t have happened. When he finds out, no doubt he’ll kick my ass but…” he heaved a tired sigh, “ you and me, it’s just…”

“Chemistry,” she finished softly.

“Chemistry.”

Then Zan became Max, or Max became Zan or- whatever, she was back in Max’s apartment and he was firmly shaking her by the shoulders.

“What?” she shook him off irritably, masking her fear and the distinct feeling that two worlds were about to dramatically meet.

He stepped away from her and shoved his hands in his trouser pockets. “You zoned off again. Where the hell do you go? What are you thinking about?”.

She would have let it go, probably lied if not for the worry he let escape in his tone. Focusing her attention on him, she noted frustration, fear and unabashed anger which told her that he was definitely strung up about the meet.

“What happened at the meeting?” she asked.

He was taken aback by her question. He had expected her to argue with him or storm off, his sudden whiplash change in behaviour had certainly warranted either of those reactions, but Liz Parker, was a constant source of surprises.

Was that why so many bad guys wanted her? He idly wondered under her unrelenting probing.

“Who’s Khivar?” he asked. He had planned to be more tactful about asking but it just slipped out.

He studied her as she rested her head back against the head of the couch, staring at the ceiling.

What was she thinking?.

“I told you, I don’t remember,” she replied.

He couldn’t stare into her eyes, so he had no idea if she was hiding something. Maybe the very fact that she wasn’t looking at him, suggested that she was keeping something from him.

She frustrated him in the worst sense. It was frustration driven by his fear for her life.

“Well you better ‘cuz he wants you.”

Her head snapped back up. Her eyes were piercing arrows. “Excuse me?”.

“You heard,” he grimly confirmed.

The briefing had gone as expected: details verified, expounded on; time, place, SOP - all of it nailed down. And then out of nowhere, a new addition: Khivar making Sean an offer big enough for him to give up his near fulfilment of revenge and give him Liz.

It was as the conversations casually continued around him that Max confirmed that in the drastically short time he’d gotten to know Liz, he had managed to get attached to her enough to want to kill anyone who harmed her in anyway. She continuously disarmed him even without her physical presence. That intrigued him. And scared him. And made him desperately want to take her to bed.

“Why would Khivar want me?” she asked mystified.
The repetitive mentioning of his name was tugging something hidden in the recesses of her complex memory. She only wished it would spring itself free fast enough to give her a better idea of what kind of mess she was in now.

“I don’t know!”, Max responded or more appropriately, exploded.

She shot him a no-nonsense look. “Don’t yell at me Max, it’ll just piss me off and there’s no real need for us to hate each other especially today.”

His expression changed to that of someone sucking on fresh lemons. Liz guessed humble pie tasted that way to him. She waited though. And waited. And waited. And-

“Alright, I’m sorry,” he muttered.

She smirked. “Next time with feeling.” She patted the space beside her in invitation. He preferred to stand.

Liz philosophically shrugged the decline off. “So, Sean’s just giving me to this Khivar guy?”.

“He made an offer Sean couldn’t refuse.”

“How very Godfather of him,” she remarked dryly. “So he sold me off. How nice.”

“Look, I know you’re scared-”

“I’m furious.”

“And scared,” he persisted.

“What’s your point?” she asked, not willing to admit that he was right.

“I’ll protect you, the best I can and to do that effectively,” now he sat down beside her, “ I need you to wrack up any memory of Khivar- names, places, anything - in the next three hours.”

Reality, stark and always never pretty, struck.

“Three hours?”, she echoed.

That was soon. That was too soon. If only she could stop time. If only she could do a lot of things.

He nodded. “Then, it’s show time.”

Liz weighed up her options and came to the conclusion that she could very well lose her life today, why not seem like she was losing her mind?

“I have a confession to make Agent Evans and well…it might make me seem a little crazy”.

****

Max listened as she told him about what she could remember about her kidnapping and her disappearances.
What she remembered about the latter experiences was unbelievable; something about someone who looked like him, his twin, clone?, someone named Zan. Liz having some type of thing with Zan. Danger, a lot of it and Khivar as an element of that danger.

By the time she finished, he wasn’t sure what to think.
Liz wasn’t crazy, he knew that without a shadow of a doubt, but how could one explain memories with him- someone who looked like him saying things he’d never said to anyone- and why did Liz have a thing with that him and not with him?

“Max?”. Her tentative touch jolted him to attention. “You zoned out on me”.

It took a while for her face to come back into focus. She was anxiously awaiting his reaction. And what did he think. Really?

“You can’t remember anything else about Khivar?” he asked.

She blinked back caught off guard by his laid-back response.

“There’s a tip of memory thing, but it’s a no-go so far. I’ll keep trying, although it just seem to flow out whenever it’s triggered by something.”

“Okay. I should go check with base ops.”

She watched him leave her and then pause at the bedroom door with his back to her. “You’ll probably want to talk to your friends and Dad, just in case.”

Just incase.
In case she died.
Tortured slowly or gunned down in a shower of bullets, she was resigned to that fact that it was likely that she would die today. Goodbyes were advisable.

“Yeah, of course, kind of an insurance last rites with a twist and all. Max what about the rest? About Zan.”

He hadn’t said a word about that. She needed him to tell her that maybe the trauma of the event had screwed up her recall of what Zan looked like, or maybe that she must have come into contact with some hallucinogenic, or even that she was crazy. The only thing she didn’t want him to say was that as strange as it all seemed, he believed her.

He turned to face her. “That can be dealt with later. Let’s concentrate on surviving today.”

He disappeared into his room leaving the door open. For her, she guessed and was bizarrely touched by the gesture.

Poor Agent Evans, she thought as she headed in. She bet he didn’t think he’d have to be dealing with a weird woman like her on one of his ops.

****

They were right on time. No one played around when it came to handling Khivar.

No matter how many times she had used or witnessed interplanetary travel, Isabel didn’t think she would get over the awe of it.
A flash of bright light, a trio of silver rings visible, then bodies. The Royal Four, version two, accompanied by four armed guards.
He was there, the man who was the exact dupe of her brother.

****

Zan inhaled a deep breath of air and smirked.

“New York. I love this city.”

Because she was here. Because she was near. The connection between them was so strong now, it literally pulsated in vibrancy. She was brilliantly alive, whatever threat had sparked her earlier, was over. Now, as Zan met with the Earth black ops. Delegation, he silently reaffirmed his vows to eliminate Liz’s greatest threat.

“Vil, Tess, Rath…” she hugged and greeted them, “…Zan.” She shook his hand and was going to leave it at that, but he pulled her into a bear hug.

She was his sister’s dupe, as well as her own person - he loved both sides of her and dismissed the formal greeting protocol.

Isabel hugged him tight before releasing him. He was so much like Max, but at the same time, quite different. Max was her brother, she had grown up with him, but Zan was her brother too, through genetics and choice. It was bizarre, but then again working with Project Antar-Earth had never been normal. She had never been normal.

“How’s my dupe?” Zan asked as they made their way to their convoy.

“Alive,” she replied. She knew and had long ago accepted that Max’s job was dangerous, so was hers but he didn’t know that. Him being alive was always good.

“He’s started dreaming about Liz,” she added.

“No joke?” gaped Zan.

“No joke,” she confirmed with a smile.

“Took him long enough,” quipped Vilandra.

“How is Liz?” asked Isabel. She liked her brother’s future wife, she had dream walked her a few times when she found out who she was and then actually having spent time with her when they’d had to deal with Khivar and the virus - Isabel had long ago decided that Liz Parker-Evans, was perfect for her brother. As long as Zan didn’t interfere and got around to breaking his connection with Liz, things would be fine.

“Alive,” Zan replied.

“Good. We’re all caught up now. What’s the status on that rat-bag?” demanded Rath.

“Said rat-bag is scheduled to meet with Sean for the drop in an hour and thirty,” Isabel informed.

“Brief us on the op on the way, let’s get this thing done,” responded Zan.

She nodded, opening the doors with her powers for them. That’s what she loved about being with people like her, she could openly use her powers recreationally.

****

TBC