“Alex,” he ordered, nodding towards the window. “Keep an eye on those guys.” He scanned the area quickly. “Okay. We need a plan.”

“I’ve got a plan.” Liz said quietly, tearing her eyes away from the window and the still form of the one person who meant more to her than anyone or anything else in the world.

“Okay, what is it?”

“It’s pretty simple.” Liz quickly related the details.

“It’s not going to work,” Michael scoffed. “Too much can go wrong—“

Maria placed a hand on his sleeve. “Just shut up, Michael.” It was the first thing she had said to him since his outburst at the Crashdown. “Let Liz finish.”

“Wait!” Alex’s voice was urgent, his hand waving behind him for silence. “Something’s going on. I can’t see…. Wait. It’s Valenti. Valenti’s in there. He’s arguing with the FBI guys.”

“What?!” All five teenagers rushed to the window.

“Oh my god. How are we going to get Max out now? It was bad enough before.” Isabel’s voice cracked. “He’s dying, and we can’t do anything.” She lurched backwards away from the window. Her knees buckled beneath her. Alex was beside Isabel in an instant, helping Maria catch her as she fell. Between the two of them, Alex and Maria helped Isabel sit on the ground. They stayed on the ground beside her, chafing her hands, trying to comfort her.

Watching them, Liz tried to think about how to deal with this new situation. Worrying her bottom lip, she forced her mind to think. Her new plan was audacious, but it could work. On winged feet, she was around the corner and into the building before any of her friends could stop her.

“What the hell,” Michael muttered.

Maria sprang to her feet and grabbed Michael’s arm. “Where is she going?”

“Let go of me.” Michael shook her off. “I don’t know. She’s your best friend. Aren’t you supposed to read each other’s minds or something?”

Maria shot him a sarcastic, you’re-not-being-funny look. “Do you read Max’s mind?”

Michael stiffened. “I never know what’s going on in Max’s mind these days.” He turned his back on Maria to look through the window again and swore under his breath. “She’s crazy. Liz is totally crazy. She’s actually in there with Valenti and the FBI guys. What’s she trying to do? Reason with them?”

Maria stood on tiptoe beside him to see what was happening. Her lips twitched to one side in a half-smile. “No. She’s not crazy. She’s in love.” Maria sat back on her heels and shot him a bitter look. “Something you wouldn’t know anything about, Michael.”

* * * *

“Sheriff Valenti?” Liz said loudly, trying to focus the attention of the room’s occupants on herself. “Sheriff Valenti, I’ve been trying to reach you for the past hour. I thought you should know about these illegal activities in your jurisdiction.” Liz battled to keep her voice steady. Involuntarily, she glanced at Max. He was so pale. His chest barely rose and fell as he breathed. She wished he would move even a tiny bit so she could have some hope that he was going to be okay. Wrenching her eyes away from Max, she re-focused on the people in the room.

“Miss Parker.” Sheriff Valenti’s voice was flat. It was hard to tell what he was thinking. “How nice of you to join us.” He looked meaningfully at Agent Stevens. “Our citizens are the concerned sort, as you can tell, Agent. Miss Parker’s family goes back four generations in the Roswell area. She comes from good stock. Same story with Mr. Evans here.”

Liz blinked at the lie. Max was adopted, and the sheriff knew that. He even suspected the right reason that Max and Isabel and Michael didn’t know who their birth parents were.

The sheriff continued, “The laws of New Mexico tend to frown on federal agents shooting the children of upstanding families, Agent Stevens. They also tend to frown on federal agents leaving those children without medical attention.” He paused. “Now, as Miss Parker just pointed out, you’re on my turf. You have no jurisdiction here. I’ve talked with your superiors, Agent Stevens, and they agree with me. You can check it with them. In fact, I suggest you use that phone to do just that.” Valenti paused. “Your vendetta has gotten out of hand.”

Agent Stevens sputtered, “My vendetta?”

“These kids are my problem, Agent, because this is my town. Now you and your little FBI boy scouts are going to get out of my town. And I’m going to get that boy to a hospital.” The sheriff turned to Liz and nodded her towards Max’s unmoving form.

Liz didn’t need a second urging. She sprinted to Max’s side, falling to her knees beside him, her hands tracing the curves of his beloved face, delicately fingering the wound in his side. “Max,” she whispered, leaning in close to assure herself that he was still breathing. “Max. It’s Liz. You’re going to be okay.”

“Liz?” Max’s voice was groggy with pain. “What are you doing here?” He took a rattling breath. “Michael? Is Michael okay?”

“He’s fine. Don’t talk, Max. We’ve got to get you help first.” Liz was worried. Max seemed so weak. Trying not to jostle his injury, Liz took hold of his right arm and started to ease him up off the floor.

Sheriff Valenti was there to support Max’s other side. “Let’s get him to a hospital.”

Liz glanced quickly at the sheriff and decided to tell him the truth. One more promise broken, she thought. Please forgive me, Max.

“He doesn’t need a hospital,” she said in a low voice so the FBI agents couldn’t hear. “Michael and Isabel can heal him.”

Valenti stared at her. “Are you telling me what I think you’re telling me?”

“Yes.” Liz couldn’t look at him. “Please. Help me get him outside.” Between them, Liz and Sheriff Valenti got Max outside and on the ground a small distance away from the warehouse.

Michael, Isabel, Alex, and Maria were waiting under the window. When they saw Liz and Max, they ran to help. But they stopped dead when they saw Sheriff Valenti. They didn’t know how to react to the sheriff’s presence. He had been their pursuer too long. They didn’t know his intentions. But healing Max was a greater priority than being afraid of the sheriff or what would happen next.