to wear while on duty Max had always seemed to believe that other intelligent life really did exist out there in the cosmos. Of everyone he knew, Brody felt that Max might be the closest to understanding what being an abductee was like, without having been one himself. A vibration in his pants pocket brought Brody out of his reverie. He withdrew his cell phone, pulled up the antenna to its full length, and checked the Caller ID. It was an unlisted name, but he recognized the 617 prefix as from Boston. He pressed the talk button. «Hello.» «Brody Davis, please,' the male voice on the other end of the connection said. The voice sounded familiar. «Speaking. Who is this?» «Jesse Ramirez. Isabel Evans's husband.» Now Brody knew why the other man's voice sounded so familiar. He'd only talked with the young lawyer a few times, but had found him to be a pleasant enough guy. «Hello, Mr. Ramirez. What can I do for you?» He hesitated to ask about Isabel. She had disappeared after the West Roswell High graduation ceremony, along with Max, Liz, Maria, and a few of their classmates. If he wants to tell me what happened to her if he knows what happened to her he will. «I know we don't know each other that well, but a situation has come up that I believe you can help me with. And we really need your help.» «What is it that you want, Mr. Ramirez?» Brody was intrigued. «Please, it's Jesse. Something bad happened in Roswell this morning. Something no one is supposed to know about. And I'm certain it's going to be covered up, just like the crash in 1947.» Brody sat on the stairs that led down from the entrance. «Does this have anything to do with the Parkers or Deputy Valenti?» There was a pause at the other end of the line. «You know about that?» «I saw it,' Brody said. «I was in the UFO Center early today, and my security cameras caught a squad of Men in Black taking Jeff and Nancy Parker away. I tried to call Valenti about it, but I couldn't get through.» «Do you know if he was taken too?» Jesse asked, urgency audible in his voice. «No. He left town. I don't know where he went. But from what I gathered, the government spooks tried to get him as well. And I think they may have taken others.» Another pause. «They did,' Jesse said finally. «They got Phillip and Diane Evans as well. That's part of why I'm calling you.» Brody nodded, even though Jesse couldn't see him. «Okay. So how can I help?» «What if you had the chance to prove that everything you have been presenting at the museum is actually true? The 1947 crash, the cover-up, aliens among us, the whole bit.» Brody stood up, adrenaline surging through his body. «I'd take it. And run with it.» «There are two things we need to do to make this happen,' Jesse said, now sounding like a confident defense lawyer addressing a jury. «First, we have to find a way to free the Evanses and the Parkers. And Amy DeLuca, if they have her. And to accomplish all that, we need you to retrieve a video for us.» «A video? Where?» «As far as we know, Phillip had a signal feed from a camera he'd left set up when they took him and Diane captive. The tape is still in Roswell. It will show who took them.» «I may have footage of the Parkers being taken,' Brody said. «But the troopers were wearing masks, so it may not do any good.» Something nagged at the back of his mind, and finally he caught it. «You said 'we.' Who's with you? Isabel?» «No, it's a lawyer friend of Phillip's,' Jesse said, and Brody heard a tone of sadness in his voice. «Isabel and the others are… involved in this mess, and the government is looking for them. That's why they took their parents.» Brody sat down again, his mouth hanging open. «Oh. My. God. Max and the others… they found proof? Proof of the crash? Proof that aliens are on Earth?» «You might say that,' Jesse said. «So we need to blow the lid off this thing, if their lives or the lives of their parents are ever going to get back to normal.» «So what's the second thing you'll need?» Brody asked. «You've got friends in the news and entertainment business, right?» Jesse's voice sounded like he was hesitating. «And as crass as it sounds, you've got enough disposable cash to plan and execute some fairly big publicity quickly?» «Yes to both, but my media contacts are mostly in La-La Land, California. And Valenti told me to stay here for my own safety. I'm at the Center, and I've it locked down.» «If you get us the right people and help bankroll this, we can handle the California end of things,' Jesse said. «You probably won't even need to leave the UFO Center. Except for retrieving that video from the Evanses' safe spot, that is. Do you have a way to reach Valenti?» «Yes, I have his pager number,' Brody said. «Good,' Jesse said. «Because we need to get in touch with him to coordinate our plans. So, here's what I want you to do…» Tucson, Arizona «This goes beyond anything I'd even have conceived of,' Suzanne Duff said. «I had no idea the Special Unit would go to these lengths.» Valenti waved his cowboy hat like a fan, trying to cool himself down. The dry Arizona desert air was almost unbearably hot, and he was feeling it. «Come on, Agent Duff, you know as well as I do that a lot of special ops government groups do all sorts of illegal things, from assassinations to running drugs. And you knew about the Roswell cover-up, too. They erased people from existence back then; what makes you believe they wouldn't do the same to a few civilians who got in their way in Roswell today?» Duff finished her drink and didn't answer. Seated nearby, Laurie Dupree used a pitcher to refill her glass with raspberry iced tea. The four of them were sitting out on a veranda overlooking the autumn desert scenery, but none of them could spare time to enjoy the sights. «So, what do we know for sure, then?» Laurie asked. «And what can I do to help?» «Providing us with a safe house has been a blessing, Laurie,' Valenti said. «I have some ideas about how to ' «Hold it!» Duff interrupted him, and stood quickly. «Safe house. That may be where they're keeping them. I think I» she stopped, waved her hands for a second, then pointed to Valenti «I think I may have something. Laurie, I need to plug my laptop into your DSL line.» «Sure, I'll take you in,' Laurie said.
When Duff was gone, Amy looked at Jim, squinting her eyes in the fading afternoon sunlight. «Are you sure you trust her, Jim?» «Duff? Yeah, I do.» Jim leaned forward and took Amy's hands in his, squeezing them slightly. «She saw some things, did some things here at Laurie's house that never made it into any report. She's protected Michael's and Isabel's secrets for over a year now. And she was the one who warned me that the Special Unit takedown was coming. We wouldn't be here now if not for her.» Amy sighed. «It's just hard to… you know I was never one to completely trust the government anyhow. And now I have to trust her, and…» Her voice trailed off. Jim smiled at her, remembering their checkered past together. «You forget, Ms. DeLuca, that I am a government employee too. I've even handcuffed you before.» He paused for a second, then grinned very slightly as he added, «One time, it was even on official business.» Amy blushed, and Jim smiled widely. A moment passed, and Valenti's pager began beeping. He looked down at it. A Boston number? Only one person I know up there. Valenti dialed the number on his cell phone and was pleased to hear a familiar voice at the other end of the line. «Deputy Valenti?» «Hey, Jesse, are you all right?» A heavy sigh, and then Jesse said, «I've been dodging Special Unit agents this morning, and making the acquaintance of one of Phillip Evans's old friends. Are you okay?» «Yeah, just a bit shaken up,' Valenti said. «I got Amy DeLuca out with me, but I wasn't able to save any of the others. The feds took Phillip and Diane and the Parkers.» «I already knew that. Phillip's friend told me. Did you hear about what happened with Isabel and the others in Wyoming?» Jesse asked. «Yep. Just recently. A friend of mine from the FBI is here keeping us up to date.» «Does he know anything about where the gang is now?» Jesse sounded worried. «No, she doesn't,' Valenti said, gently correcting him. «We're pretty sure they got away clean, which seems to be why the Special Unit has moved on to terrorizing the folks. I think they're upping the stakes.» Valenti saw Amy pointing back behind him. He turned and saw Duff and Laurie returning to the veranda. Duff was smiling and holding her thumb aloft. «I think we might be about to find out where they're holding the parents,' Valenti said. «Good,' Jesse said. «We have a pretty radical plan here, one that Phillip came up with a few months ago. Lucky for us he prepared for the worst.» «Amen. Let's compare notes and start drawing up a battle plan,' Valenti said, grinning. For the first time today, he began to feel some real hope that they might succeed in turning the tables on the Special Unit. 7. Harvard, California Michael checked the rearview mirror again and frowned. «Somebody is following us,' he said. «On a motorcycle. And whoever it is keeps getting closer.» He felt his adrenaline racing, perhaps a reminder of the warrior instincts of his former life. «Why don't you pull off at the rest area ahead?» Maria asked, pointing to a roadside sign just before the Microbus passed it. «That way, you might be able to find out who it is, and if I'm not running for my life, I'll at least be able to get out and pee.» Michael winced, then spared a glance over his shoulder at Max, who nodded quickly. «Go ahead, Michael.» Two miles later, Michael veered the Microbus off the highway and down a sloping off-ramp to a rest area. He parked as far away from the other cars and trucks already there as he could. «The bike's still behind us,' he said. «Let's get out, Maxwell. I'd say we should be ready for anything.» Max clambered out the van's side door, while Michael jumped out the driver's side. They both quickly made their way to the back of the van. The motorcycle Michael had spotted was coming toward them, but slowing down as the rider braked. The helmeted rider appeared to be male, and he stopped fifteen feet or so back from them. Michael put out his hand, palm first, determined to make short work of this newcomer should the need arise. «Whoever you are, you'd better not make any fast moves.» Very slowly, the rider reached up to remove his helmet. «Chill out, Michael,' he said. «I didn't ride all this way to pick a fight with you.» His shoulder-length dark hair came into view first, then his distinctive angular features. «Eddie?» Max said, lowering his own arm from its defensive posture. Michael recognized the rider as well. He was River Dog's young protege from the reservation. The junior shaman. «What are you doing following us? And how'd you find us?» Eddie unzipped his leather jacket, flapping it a bit to cool himself down in
