worried. No, worried couldn't cover the feelings she was feeling.

She walked slowly behind the counter slumping by the kitchen window.

"What's up with you, you'd think your dog died?" Michael asked from behind the grill.

"Huh, Oh hi Michael." Liz said and continued behind the counter.

Michael's eyebrows pursed together, "Okay spill Parker or I'll hug you."

Liz turned to look at him, "What kind of threat is..." She trailed off when she noticed the grease that was plastered to his apron, the sweat beading down his face and his grease soaked bandana. She shuddered at the thought, "Fine," she walked up to the window, "Just leave me alone, it could take weeks to get the grease out of my uniform and this ones my last." She took a deep breath, "Maria's late."

Michael stood there and stared at her, "So. She's always late. What makes today any different?" Michael hated to admit it but he was a little worried. She was supposed to meet him last night but never showed. It was the first time in a long time they agreed to talk. No one knew not even Liz or Max. At least he hoped not. He'd figured she didn't show because of her mom but something irked him the wrong way about the Whole

situation.

Liz sighed, "Never mind, I'm going to go call her house, maybe she's home now." Liz moved towards the back but before she could, Max walked through it. Liz jumped back, "God, you scared me Max."

"Sorry," He smiled sheepishly.

"That's okay just don't do it again." She joked.

Silence fell again. They stood there for like the third time today staring at anything but each other. They were so wrapped up in each other that they never noticed Kyle and Tess as they entered the restaurant. The two walked up to the counter and sat down. Kyle looked at them then at Michael. Michael just shrugged and went back to work. Kyle rolled his eyes.

"Okay that's it I can't take it any more, you two go in the back and talk for gods sake before you suck us all into the black hole that is your tortured, Romeo and Juliet relationship." Kyle cried standing up and pushing the two into the back.

Liz yelped as she flew through the door and into Max. His eyes bugged out as she crashed into his arms. The door swung closed on the two of them staring into each others eyes.

Kyle slapped his hands together, "There. That got rid of them."

Tess giggled. Kyle looked at her, "You laughing at me? Huh, are you?"

"Yes, Valenti she's laughing at you, every one's laughing at you, why? Because you're a funny looking guy." Michael quipped.

Kyle glared at him, "HaHa. Very funny Guerin. You really should become a comedian."

"Oh I would but..."

"No! I don't think so. You two are not getting into an argument. I came for fun not to watch you two get your yaya's out by bashing each others faces in." cried Tess. Sometimes the two could get into some truly horrid fight's about nothing at all.

"Fine," Michael said, He slammed down a plate of food and hit a bell, "Orders up Liz, quit sucking face with my best friend and get out here!" His outburst caught the attention of some of the customers but he couldn't care less. He was fed up with every one telling him what to do. His best friend, their "leader", Isabel, Tess, A woman from some stupid

planet somewhere out in the cosmos, light-years away from him. He just wanted to get away. Preferably with Maria and a two piece bathing suit on a deserted island in the middle of no where. But he wasn't being picky.

Liz pushed through the backdoors followed by Max, "That was immature Michael. We weren't making out." Max said

"Whatever." Michael brooded.

"So how'd you two fare, any glowing hickies?" Kyle quipped

"We weren't making out Kyle, we were just having a nice talk." Liz defended

"Sure you were." He said in a mocking manner.

"We were I swear." Liz's face was red and flushed which didn't help her much.

"I believe you, really I do." He said in the same mocking voice.

"Kyle," Tess said looking at Kyle with a disapproving look, "Stop it." She ordered. And he did.

Liz grabbed the plate and stuck her tongue out at Kyle. "You're whipped." She stated and moved off.

"I am not." Kyle said whipping around in the chair to face where Liz had walked off but she wasn't listening. Tess got up, a smile plastered to her face, and excused herself to the bathroom. She left giggling.

"Yes, you are." Michael said when she was out of reach.

"How can I be whipped when I'm not even in a relationship?" he argued.

"The same way we are." Max said and looked at Liz taking an order from an elderly woman. Her I-want-a-tip smile was on.

"What he said... Wait we? What we? There is no we. I am not whipped." Michael said. Max just laughed and went to find a good table to sit at. "I'm not." Michael called to him, Max just waved his hand absently in his direction, Michael turned to Kyle, "I'm not."

"Uh-huh. You keep believing that and maybe just maybe someday it really will come true." Kyle said in a sing-song voice. He then got up and followed Max.

Michael just huffed and flipped a burger.

"I'm not"

~*~

"Come on Maria, wake up. I have some explaining to do." Ohmak said gently, shaking Maria's shoulder. Maria's eyes opened, she lifted her head up and looked around.

"Hi. How do you feel?" Maria looked at him, a look of pure hatred mixed with a hint of fear. Maria opened her mouth to speak but Ohmak's hand went up, "No talking from you Maria. Just me. You have to listen so I can explain."

Maria tried to protest but he stopped her again. "Please," Ohmak stressed, "Maria don't make me take your voice away. I really don't want to do that but I will if I have to." Maria looked at him warily, "Please." The look on his face gave Maria an unexpected feeling of sympathy towards the man. She nodded, her eyes still untrusting.

"Okay," He nodded and smiled, "Do you remember what I said before about you being not of this earth? At least not completely." Maria rolled her eyes and nodded, "Well it's true and I'm going to prove it. On the inside of your thigh there is a mark, your birthmark. Am I right?" Maria nodded, "it's in the shape of a small cross is it not?"

"Yeah but you could have found that out somehow. That doesn't prove anything." Maria contended.

Ohmak groaned, "Did I not, just ask you to not talk?"

"Yeah well silence isn't my strong point." She mused.

Ohmak smirked, "No, of course it wouldn't be."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I'm not going to get into that yet, you still have to believe me." Ohmak thought for a second. He needed something else to convince her with. He realized something and looked back at her, "What happened before, does it happen often?"

"What being kidnapped. No, unfortunately this is my first time." her voice was soaked in sarcasm.

"No the way..."

"Okay, hold up. Lets just pretend for a second I believe you, which I don't, but say I do, what would you tell me?" Maria asked. She wanted to know just how insane this guy was.

"What."

"If I believed you what would you tell me about me?"

"Well I'd tell you, you were created..."

"As in, hatching from a pod?"

Ohmak smiled and shook his head "No, a lot has happened since the royals were sent to earth. We've advanced quite a bit. In a lot of areas. Genetic coding being one of them."

"Genetic coding? What's that."

"By right of birth every child under the confederation has their blood taken and their genetic information logged so that some day they can be recreated if the need be."

"So... this means what?"

"You were born as you said earlier, you were just genetically altered, A foetus created to be a half human, half Sevrettian, hybrid."

Maria smiled triumphantly, "Then why don't I have powers? Huh... answer me that. Why don't I get crazy cravings, or premonitions?" She had him now. He was lying and she'd just proven it. She has never once wanted something Tabasco soaked or sugar filled. She had never once experienced an abnormal thing in her life. Okay so she was an abnormal girl but supernatural, no that was reserved for Liz and the rest of the pod squad.

"Well you wouldn't. See the man who made you. Your father you could say," Maria's eyes welled up at the word father. The man she'd once dreamed would come and rescue her from a small town called Roswell. If what Ohmak was saying was true then the man she idolized wasn't even her real father. She was truly and utterly fatherless. A single tear slipped past her lashes and fell silently, unnoticed by Ohmak.

Ohmak continued to explain how Benson, the man who created her, implanted her with a genetic marker that prevented her alien side from ever showing. That it worked 24/7 and has been doing the same old job for the last16 years. That her earlier reaction had been because the marker hadn't been needed to operated to the extent it had earlier for a very

long time. The direct attempt from Maria had caused it to over react which in turn caused her to over react. He explained how her mother had been impregnated by Benson with the genetically enhanced embryo. Maria heard the explanations but none of it registered. Her mind was preoccupied by thoughts of her 'father'.

"So I have no father." Maria interrupted Ohmak mid-sentence. Her voice was dripping with pain.

"What? Oh. You had a genetic father and a mother but they're long dead by now. So no, I guess you don't but make no mistake Benson loved you as if you were his own. You were his first success."

"Wait. First?" A look of disbelief and disgust took over her tears, "There were others." She couldn't believe it., "Young women were impregnated for your own damn benefit." She seethed, "Those little foetuses never had the chance to live." She breathed deeply and continued, "My 'father' was an animal. How can anyone in their right mind play god like

that."

Ohmak didn't know what to say, this was unexpected, "How many others were there? How many before me, had to die?"

"Maria please..."

"How many!" She screamed in anger, "How many Ohmak?"

Ohmak sighed and thought, "A couple dozens, maybe 50 but Maria..."

"No, don't talk to me, if what you say is true I don't want anything to do with you or your damn planet. I mean... God. Have you ever heard of the saying the need of the many outweigh the need of the few. You selfish bastard." Tears had started again. Tears for the lost souls of the poor babies, the mothers and their losses. She cried for the injustice

that her so-called father had done.

"Stop right now!" Ohmak yelled, "You listen to me. We knew the consequences when we started our project, but it was never just for us. Benson never got any pleasure out of what he had to do. For every child he lost he would cry, he would lock himself in his room, not for days, but weeks..."

"So he felt sorry! That doesn't justify what he did," She screamed back.

"No he just saved hundreds if not billions of lives! Do you have any idea how important the woman you used to be was. Do you?"

"No ones important enough for the sacrilege of innocent children! Or the pain that those women had to go through! You don't just get over the loss of a child! You don't get to chose who lives or dies."

"Your wrong! Anika, the woman who you used to be was a powerful leader in the resistance against Kivar. Kivar, a man who's killed more men in a day then Benson ever did! Anika was the Queen of our world, She was more powerful then Kivar, not only in what she was capable of but in the fact that the people of Antar, Sevrette, Trimmia, the other planets under the confederation loved her and would gladly have died for her. That was, until they murdered her and covered it up. She was our only hope and she was killed. Murdered, by the betrayal of her best friend. The women back on Sevrette lined up in droves to ask if they could be used for testing. When they found out that it was a human woman that was to be impregnated most were devastated. Yet still they came to give their support. Hundreds would show up every day willing to give themselves to the cause uncaring that they wouldn't even be considered. She was important and as much as Benson hated it when he failed, he continued until finally you came along. He was killed a year later by Kivar trying to save you and your mother. Your father was a hero and you are an ungrateful, spoiled little girl." Ohmak stood up breathing heavily. He waved his hand to his left and a cot appeared, "Sleep, get some rest, I will return in the morning. Maybe by then you will realize how wrong you really are." He waved his hands over Maria and her cuffs fell to the ground.

She brought her hands up massaging them, her tears still coming, "I'm sor..."

"No Maria, no" With that he left and closed the door. Ohmak fell into the wall opposite the door. He turned and leaned his back against it. He shook his head at the door, at her. 'What have we done old friend, what have we done." Ohmak asked Benson wherever he was. He may be dead but Ohmak would still talk to him as if he weren't.

Back in the room. Basked in a darkness breached only by the small light Maria hunched over and cried. She cried hard and long. Her chest heaving with every sob. What had just happened? What had she done? What was she going to do? Her mind was whirling in questions, all unanswered. She tried to halt her tears, smoothing them away. She sat up and looked for the cot. The moment she stood up she became light-headed and her stomach lurched. She dropped to her knees and threw up. She didn't stop, couldn't stop even when nothing came out and she was dry heaving she just couldn't stop. She wanted nothing more then to die now or to have never have been created. She believed now, how could she not. Not after watching the pure and raw emotion on her captor's face. She tried to breath, to stop the heaving, stop the feelings reeling inside her. Was there no end to the pain, the torture? Was her life always going to be one hardship after another? Could she handle it with out wanting to take her own life? She had to stop heaving before she brought up a lung. She took a deep breath and swallowed the next heave. She coughed hard and took another breath. Once she was sure she'd stopped she dragged herself over to the cot. It was small and cold looking. She pulled herself up and curled into a ball.

She cried herself to sleep, sure to have horrifying nightmares.

~*~

"So?" Tess asked.

"So what?" Liz asked from behind the counter.

"Have you talked to them?" Tess asked. She sat at the counter watching Liz make a shake.

"With Michael, but he didn't seem too worried. I haven't had a chance to talk to Max, Alex or Isabel about it yet. Have you talked with Kyle?" Liz inquired.

"I tried but he was watching football and when that guy starts watching football..."

"It goes in one ear and out the other," Liz finished for her, "I know that feeling." She smiled.

"Don't you just hate it? It's like a bomb could go off right out side and he wouldn't notice." Tess joked.

"Yeah. Or someone could be trying to kill you, you could be screaming and crying for help and he wouldn't even look up."

"Men." Tess said in an exasperated voice.

"Got that right." Said Liz and the two started to laugh.

"You got any good stories I should know about?" Tess asked referring to Kyle.

Liz smiled and put the shake down, She leaned on the counter ready for the long haul, "Hundreds, you?"

"Oh yeah." Tess said with a raised eyebrow.

~*~

"Okay don't tell me that doesn't scare you." Kyle said. He was sitting with Max, although both of them hadn't spoken to each other much at all. Max was reading and eating some French fries. Kyle was sitting and eating Max's French fries.

Max looked up, "What now?"

"Them," Kyle pointed to Liz and Tess laughing and talking.

Max looked up and over at the two girls having a good time. "No why, should it?"

"Poor clueless Max , of course you should. When your wife from a past life and you present girlfriend, and don't deny it cause she is, I know it and so does the rest of the world. When they get together all hell can break loose. They start to share stories and before you know it the whole world knows you sleep with a teddy and a night light on."

Max shook his head, "Speaking from experience?"

"What? No! Never!" Kyle cried.

"Come on they're getting along. Isn't that a good thing?"

"No, never. It's dangerous and stupid to leave them together for too long. You in deep and you are never getting out."

"What about you?" Max countered.

"What? NO, I'm home free."

"Come on Kyle. Liz was your former girlfriend and Tess, well you can't tell me there's nothing going on there." Max explained.

"Oh god!" Kyle cried, "We're doomed, we're all doomed to an unhappy never ending horrible life." Kyle said and buried his face in his hands. "It's all over Max. We'll never be able to show our faces in public again."

"Grow up Kyle, it's not that bad."

"Oh yeah," He looked up, "Look, they're looking at us and laughing how is that good?"

Max looked and true to form they were laughing and looking at them. Max's head hit the table with a thud. "We're dead."

"I told you."

"Shut up." Max groaned then looked up, "A night light huh?" he grinned. A French fry hit him in the face.

~*~

"I think we've thoroughly scared the crap out of them." Liz mused.

"Most definitely." Tess said and turned back to her.

The door chimed and Liz looked up. "Ms Deluca, hi." Liz called to Maria's mom.

"Amy, Liz how many times do I have to tell you to call me Amy?" Amy smiled.

"I can't. You're my best friend's mom. It's too weird. How are you by the way, everything cleared up?" Liz asked as Amy walked up to the counter. She put down the box she was carrying.

Isabel and Alex walked in at that moment.

Amy scrunched her eyebrows, "Crisis? What are you talking about?"

Isabel stopped Alex and herself as she watch Liz's eyes widen, "Oh nothing, Maria just said you were have a crisis. She must have heard you wrong or something."

"Huh, well she does that all the time. The not listening thing. Usually when it come to housework though. Is she here?" Tess' mouth dropped, realizing her worries about Maria were being confirmed. "I have to give her the house keys. Leaving for another convention, this time in Canada. Can you believe it, me going north?" She mused.

"No it's hard to imaging, Maria's not here right now, she had to... go..." Liz stumbled

"She had to run an errand," Tess said quickly, "for Mr. Parker he needed more...more..."

"Hamburgers! We're out of hamburgers." Liz finished.

"Yeah that's it. Bad memory. Never can remember things." Tess excused. The two smiled nervously. They prayed that Maria's mom would bite.

Amy looked sceptical, "She's off with Michael isn't she, I knew it. She's in so much trouble, when I get my hands..."

"No! Michael's working, see he's right there." Liz said pointing to Michael who looked up at the sound of his name. He saw Amy and froze. He smiled nervously and hurriedly when back to work.

Isabel pulled Alex to her and whispered, "Go out the front door and go to the back. Don't, no matter what happens, come out until Amy is gone. Got it." Alex nodded and turned quickly and got out of sight. He didn't even question Isabel's motives, trusting her completely. She smiled at him.

"Then were is she and don't give the errand crap. I want to know now." Amy said her voice raising.

Isabel walked up to Amy, "Ms. Deluca. I know where Maria is." Liz and Tess looked at her questioningly.

Amy turned to look at her, "Then out with it - where is she?"

"She went with Alex to Marathon."

"Marathon, why hell would she be there?"

"They went to pick up a CD that they've been looking for. She didn't want you to know in case you got mad. She really wanted the CD."

Amy looked at Isabel sceptically, "What CD?"

Isabel didn't hesitate, "Queen's Greatest Hit's, they're thinking about doing a cover song from it."

Amy thought for a second. "Okay," She turned to Liz, "Here, take the keys and give them to Maria when she gets back, and tell her the money is where it always is," She turned to leave but turned back. "Could you also tell her that she and I have to talk when I get back?"

"Sure Ms Deluca, we'll let her know." Liz said

"Thank you Liz," She turned and before she left called out, "Good night girls."

They replied with their own goodnights.

As soon as she left, Liz Tess, and Isabel sighed from relief. Alex came through the back doors, "What was that about?"

"We have to talk all of us, now." Isabel said and grabbed his sleeve and pulled him with her. Tess motioned for Kyle and Max to follow.

"Okay ladies and gentlemen I'm sorry to say that we have to close up early, so please, if you want doggy bags lift your hands, if not line up at the cash register. Again I'm sorry for the inconvenience." Liz said as the others headed into the back.

~*~

"What's going on?" Michael asked coming out of the kitchen. He removed his apron and bandana and threw them on the sink.

"Maria's missing." Isabel stated. A resounding 'what' came from the guys. "Her mom was just here. She had no idea where Maria was."

"And that constitutes a missing persons report how?" Kyle asked

"Last night Maria said she had to leave cause her mom was having a crisis. Liz asked Amy about it and she had no clue what Liz was talking about. She didn't even know that Maria had left last night, she thought she was still here." Isabel said.

"How the heck did you get her to not freaking out?" Michael asked.

"We tried to make up a story but she didn't bite. She thought you two had gone off again." Tess said looking at Michael.

"That's why she was looking at me?" Michael asked. Tess nodded

"Why did you make me hide?" Alex interrupted.

"Because I had to tell her a story about you two going to Marathon to buy a CD and if you were there I don't think it would have worked." She snapped. Then apologized, she was upset and scared and angry, but it had nothing to do with him.

"That was some pretty good lying Isabel." Tess said heedlessly

"I always knew years of lying to my mom would pay off." She said dejectedly.

Liz walked in removing her head band, "There all gone, did you tell them?"

"Yeah she did, what do we do?" Asked Kyle.

"We've done this once before when Max was taken, we can do it again." Kyle said

"Yeah but then we knew who had taken him. We don't even know if Maria really was taken or if she's of shopping." Isabel said.

"We just have to retrace her steps as good as we can." Alex deduced,

"The last thing she did was take a phone call right." They nodded, "Well Liz you were the one to pick up..."

"Oh god." Liz breathed tears forming.

"What Liz? What is it?" Michael asked. He was getting upset real fast. What if Maria was taken? It's was entirely his fault he knew it. If only she hadn't gotten involved. He had to find her, he had to save her. He didn't know what he'd do if he didn't get to her on time.

"I can't believe I didn't pick it up sooner. The person who called her was a man not a woman. There was no way it was her mom. This is my fault. I..." She trailed of as she broke down in sobs. Max wrapped her up in his arms. She clung to him as if he was her life preserver, the only thing keeping her up.

"It's not your fault Liz, if it was the skins that got her and you had figured it out we could have gotten her killed or we all could have been killed." Tess reasoned.

"I'd rather be dead." Liz said deadpanned.

"What help would that be. If we got ourselves killed we wouldn't be able to save her now. Now, would we?" Max whispered in her ear. She nodded and hugged him even more tightly.

Isabel turned to Michael. She sensed something not quite right with him. His breath started to get deeper and longer. His nose flared with every breath. His knuckles clenched and unclenched. He was getting madder and madder by the second. Max and Tess sensed it too and looked at him. Isabel reached a tentative hand forward, "Michael. Calm down before you blow us all away." The others looked at him. His expression frightened Liz and she grabbed Max even more tightly.

"I can't," He said through gritted teeth.

"Yes you can," She looked at the others then back again, " You have to save this - your rage, Michael. Save it for the Skins Michael don't waste it on us." Michael slowly started to breath normally, "That's good," She soothed, "Save it so you can save Maria."

Once he was back to normal he turned his head to Isabel. "Thanks."

"Anytime." She smiled.

"I think we should look around the room. Look for evidence." Alex suggested.

"We could touch things, look for premonitions." Isabel suggested.

The other three aliens nodded. Tess turned to the others, "Maybe you guys should leave."

"Why?" Kyle asked offended.

"You might distract us." Max agreed.

Liz looked up at him and smiled, "If it gets Maria back quicker I'll do anything." She removed herself from him. She linked hands with Alex, he squeezed her hand as he stood up from the couch, the two walked out followed by Kyle. The three sat in the booth closest to the backroom door. As Alex and Liz sat on one side Kyle went to sit on the other side. Liz reached out to him and took his hand in hers.

"Sit." She ordered. And he did, right beside her. She didn't let go of his hand instead she rested her head on Kyle' shoulder and Kyle rested his head on hers.