"She's one of you?" Maria gasped.

Max shrugged. "I'm not sure, but it looks like it. Somebody put up the force field, and it wasn't me."

"But that's impossible!" Maria insisted. "Nell Troyer is Liz's godmother. Her sister dated Jeff Parker. If Nell is . . .like you, Anna would've been too, and I don't see how she could've kept that under wraps all those years."

"She could have." said Michael. "We lived among you for ten years before Max spilled it to Liz."

"And Anna had a baby." Max finished. Maria turned pale.

"You think it was Liz? That she's . . ." She couldn't complete the sentence.

Max drew a breath. "I don't know, but I think I can find out. Where's Liz?"

"In her room arguing with Dr. Conroy." Michael pointed toward the door. "She apparently wants to go home, and Conroy wants to keep her overnight. You want to talk with her?"

"With Conroy, yes. She delivered Liz. If there's anything hush-hush about Liz's birth mother, she'd know it. Let's go." They walked into the room. As Michael had said, Liz and Dr. Conroy were arguing.

"I don't think it's safe, Lizzie girl." Conroy insisted.

"Why not?" Liz asked. "You said that I wasn't seriously hurt." A vague look crossed Conroy's face. Maria felt her heart skip a beat. It was the same look that her mother had had after Tess's mind-warping.

"I know. You don't seem to be seriouly hurt but . . ."

"Liz, listen to Dr. Conroy. She knows best." Nancy said. She would've spoken further, but Liz fixed her with a glance that stopped her cold. Max thought she was going to say something, but she turned her attention back to Conroy.

"I do have a right to leave, don't I, Doctor? Besides, I don't want my father to find out I've been here. Do you?" Then she turned her attention to Nancy, and the woman looked nervous.

"No." she said softly. "No, I don't want him to know. Please, Dr. Conroy, let her go home." With a request from a parent, Dr. Conroy had to relent.

"All right." she said. "But if you feel any . . ."

"I'll call you." Liz interuppted. "Now, Maria, will you help me?" Nancy was not included in the invitation, and she ran from the room with Dr. Conroy following.

"Not very nice to your mom, were you, girlfriend?" Maria asked her. Liz closed her eyes, and Max saw her shoulders shake. He moved forward and took her hand.

"What is it, Liz? What happened? Did Nell heal you?" Liz gazed at him for a moment, then lifted the front of her hospital gown. On her left side was a handprint, a silver handprint. Max, Maria and Michael all stared.

"So, it's true." Michael said. "Nell is from our neck of the woods."

"This handprint isn't Nell's." Liz said calmly. "It's mine."

"Yours?" Michael stared in disbelief. "You mean . . ." Maria gasped and closed her eyes. Only Max was calm. He strengthened his grip on Liz's hand.

"How did it happen, Liz? Can you tell us? Nell was here. We saw her." He carefully repeated what had happened in the parking lot and also told about the doctor's strange behavior. "It looks as if she mindwarped Conroy. What did she do to you?"

Liz took a deep breath. "She directed me, directed my hands, I mean. She held my own hands over my wound, and I suddenly felt . . .the same thing I'd felt when you healed me, Max, only different. This time the power was coming from me, and it was getting stronger. She was like a catalyst in a science experiment. She was helping me heal myself. And I saw . . . images of me and her." Liz broke off and put her head on Max's shoulder. "Then," she continued. "then Dr. Conroy came in, and she mindwarped her like I saw Tess do. Max, she is one of you, and I'm . . .not who I thought I was. I've got to find her. She has an apartment here."

"She does?" Maria asked. "I didn't know she stayed in town. Your parents didn't want you to see her."

At the words "your parents", Liz looked up sharply, but all she said was, "I went to see her sometimes. She told me to come alone."

"And she never breathed a word about any of this." Michael said. "I wonder why."