“What did you do with...” Liz broke off. She couldn’t get the word out. It was painful to admit that she was dead, that now she was just a body, that her soul has gone forever.

“ We buried her next to Nasedo. He was her family.” replied Max.

Liz nodded and pulled herself away from his arms. She looked into his eyes; they were red from the crying. Nobody could bear the thought that she was definitely dead, but what hurt most was that they killed her. What of that? The Royal Four killed her best friend, their protector, as they wanted to call her.

******************************************************************************************

Now, after 6 years, they hadn’t gotten over her death. They had graduated from college, except Max who was still at Harvard. He had married Liz, who was pregnant with their first child: a girl. They both lived in Boston. While Max studied Medicine, Liz was staying home on maternity leave from her job as a High School Science teacher.

Michael and Maria were just married and weren’t thinking of having children yet. Maria fulfilled her singing career and Michael joined the Marines before getting married, living in San Francisco. Tess and Kyle were engaged. They live in Washington, D.C. Kyle became an FBI agent. Even though none of the gang liked it, he said that he’d do what Leona did all through her life on earth: keep the FBI off their backs. Tess worked as Maria’s agent. Maria said she would have never thought of hiring Tess as her agent if Tess hadn’t gotten her as Billboard’s first. Isabel pursued her career as a lawyer. At first, she entered a pageant, The Miss United States pageant, which she won. After her year as Miss United States, she went to Santa Fe University where she met her beau, Andrew Garrison, who also wanted to become a lawyer.

Neither of them came back to Roswell...well, except for one day, the anniversary of Leona’s death, the day they all thought about the big ifs, what would have happened if...? Nobody knew the answers to their questions. They were sure that they didn’t want to find out. They just lived with their grief bottled up inside, wondering if their hearts would ever let go.

******************************************************************************************

6 YEARS AGO...

Liz was running down the street on her way to the Crashdown Cafe. As she opened the door violently, her friends Isabel, Leona, Maria, and Tess, who were sitting in their favorite booth, turned as they heard the door being swung open by their friend. The cafe was deserted already and it was only 7 at night. Liz stood beside them and even though she had been running, she was still jumping with excitement.

“ You guys!! I have very, very good news!!!” she said breathlessly.

Then Leona, a girl they met a year ago, said, jumping out of her chair:

“Backstreet Boys are coming and you already have the tickets for their concert!!”

The girls looked at her as if saying “shut up Leona!” Then Leona looked at her friends and said, shrugging,

“What?! I was just kidding!!”

Leona was new in Roswell. When they met her, they thought she had come from Mexico and didn’t speak English. In fact, her family came from Mexico, but she was born in the U.S. With that golden skin, silky, shiny, black hair, and beautiful dark eyes, she seemed like a Mexican goddess and Kyle felt very lucky to have her as his girlfriend.

Tess, who was sitting besides her, pulled Leona’s arm to sit her down saying:

“Sit down and let the woman talk!”

Maria giggled and Isabel turned her head over to Liz and said:

“So, what’s the good news?” Liz then smiled and said,

“I got accepted in Stanford!”

The girls squealed as they jumped out of their chairs. Maria hugged her friend while Isabel waited for her turn. But when Isabel hugged her, Tess and Leona could hardly wait for turns so they all joined in a group hug.

“You guys, stop it!” said Liz as Maria laughed with the scene. “You’re suffocating me!”

As the girls let go of her, Leona said:

“You see? I told you that if you believed in yourself, sooner or later you’d get what you want.” Liz nodded. “I think I got that pretty clear now,” she said smiling. Then Tess spoke, “I am so happy for you!!” “Thank you!” said Liz.

Liz was happy to have Tess as her friend. It was difficult, but they made it and Leona had had a lot to do with that. She helped them become very close. The same happened with Isabel and Maria. They didn’t even talk to each other and now they couldn’t stop talking. They even go shopping together while Liz and Tess stay home to study. Max befriended Kyle. They found they had a lot in common. As for Michael, he opened up more with both of them even though the alien stuff is always in the middle. They would get together at The Crashdown and talk the “guy talk” without having to mention extraterrestrial life or girls.

Now, the five girls share everything, even the alien stuff. There are no secrets now except one. Leona had something she didn’t want to share, and the girls respected that, but it worried them.

Leona wasn’t very secretive when they met her. A year ago, a month after Alex died, she had come from Philadelphia. Her parents are FBI agents. Her name is Leona Johnson. Tess was the first one who befriended her. When she found out that her parents worked for the Bureau, she thought her whole family were “alien hunters.” Well, can you blame her? However, there was something that made all the gang come around her. She was like a magnet. She had a special, mysterious charm. Leona felt so alone at first because she had just moved. Her family moving was like a routine in their lives, they were FBI. Sometimes they had to move for protection, new cases, and she didn’t like that. Even tough she was a cheerleader and a popular girl, she was modest.

Soon, Michael befriended her and got closer to her. He felt that she understood him. She knew how painful it was to get close to someone and at the end they had to let go.

It was Michael who made them understand that she wasn’t dangerous. At first, he asked them to give her a chance but Max refused. He was always reminding Michael about her parents. Max also reminded him that her parents weren’t the only danger. Leona was about to become one more. That is, because she was being trained to be an agent of the FBI. One night, she came to The Crashdown cafe. Michael saw her first and smiled at her.

“Hey!” He said.

“Oh, hi!” Leona replied.

“What are you doing here?”

“Well, you talk a lot about this place and I thought I’d give it a chance.” then she looked around and she saw that the place was almost deserted and that it was so far from closing time.

“You made the right choice.” he said smiling, then he turned to his friends and said to her without looking at her, “do you want to meet my friends?”

Max overheard him and gave him a look that made her understand that she wasn’t wanted there. “Maybe some other time. Right now, I’m going to another booth to eat something. I’m starving!” she said whispering.

“C’mon, it won’t hurt a bit to meet them.” said Michael pulling her to their booth.

“Michael, no, I mean...” she broke off as she got closer to the booth.

“Hey, you guys, this is Leona. Leona, these are Max, Isabel, Maria, Kyle, Tess, and Liz.” Kyle said politely, “Hi! It’s...nice to...meet...you.” As Kyle saw Leona, her beauty mesmerized him and he couldn’t help but stare at her in awe.

Michael looked at him as if to say “Thanks,” Kyle just smiled.

“Well, it’s sure nice to meet you.” she replied nervously.

“So, I hear you’re from Philadelphia?” asked Max.

Leona looked at him and then smiled. That caught Max off guard. That smile had done it...for good.

“Yes. I was born in New York, tough.” she said. Ah! The memories New York brings; not good ones, that’s for sure. Maria joined him in the talk.

“People say you’ve traveled around the world. Is that true? I mean, have you been to Paris?” said Maria, trying to seem excited. She failed.

“Well, is true and yes, I have been to Paris. The reason is that my parents...um...are FBI agents.” They all looked at each other. They knew that she was being sincere. If she wanted to get them, she would never tell them that her family worked for the Bureau. “Just don’t tell anybody.” then she whispered, “It’s supposed to be confidential.” she winked at them.

“I just have to ask you,” replied Liz “are you going to sit down and order something, or do you just want to stand there and get even more hungry?”

“Oh, I just thought it was closing time,” she said looking around.

“No, sometimes when my parents are out of town, I get to be in charge of the place and I get to close it early.”

“Oh”

Then Isabel just stood up and said, “Be our guest!” They invited her to sit with them. Michael said that everything she ordered was on him. Maria rolled her eyes thinking *Go figures*

“I’m warning you, Guerin, I am so hungry I could probably eat a cow. It can get very expensive!”

“ In that case, I think I just changed my mind!” he said laughing.

Leona slapped him in the arm. “You’re being mean, Mike.”

When she called him Mike they looked at him and Max said,

“ Mike?”

“ Mike is short for Michael.” Michael said looking down.

“ Wow, Mike!” said Maria, sarcastically, “I have never heard a name that sexy!”

They laughed except Leona. She felt a little embarrassed because his secret name was out. Michael tried to make her feel better by telling Maria,

“You think so? Tsk, too bad that Leona is the only one who can call me that!”

Maria’s jaw dropped. Nobody could even believe it, but well, that’s Michael, all right.

“So,” said Kyle trying to break the ice, “what can you tell us about you?”

After that, they started a pleasant talk, and for the first time in their lives, they talked...a lot: the one thing they didn’t do with just anybody. They became close to her and she was the kind of friend that was always there for them, no matter what. She was special. A couple of months later, Kivar kidnapped her. They never knew what had happened to her that night, but she hadn’t been the same since. Of course, they thought that it might be because she knew their secret, but they saw that it was beyond that. They knew that there was something, something that became personal to her, but when they asked her about it, she just said, “I don’t want to talk about it. Please, stop asking.” She was still charming, cheerful, with a great sense of humor. She was Leona, always, but there was one thing that she didn’t share with just anybody but her own shadow.

******************************************************************************************

“ Is anybody hungry?” Asked Tess, “because I’m starving!”

“ I’m not that hungry, but I could use something.” replied Isabel

“Then let’s get something to eat,” said Maria. That said, Tess, Maria and Isabel went to the kitchen.

“While you’re at it,” yelled Leona from the booth, “could you guys be kind enough to make me a sandwich?”

“Come make it yourself!” replied Maria and then giggled.

“You’re mean!” yelled Leona, turning to where the other two girls were. When she turned back, she saw Liz deep in her thoughts. She interrupted her by saying,

“Can you imagine what Max is going to say when he learns that you’re going to Stanford?”

“Leona, what Max thinks or says is the last thing I’m worried about and I’m not worried at all. I was just thinking about my life away from Roswell and what it would be like.” then she sighed, “I don’t care about what he’ll say.”

“ News flash, Liz, that is getting really old and I have always known that what you just said is not true!”

Liz knew that she was right. Sometimes she hated it when she was right about Max. Leona knew her too well. No matter how much Liz said she didn’t care, it was a complete lie, a lie that hurt so much.

“You know? I shouldn’t care but I can’t help it.” replied Liz.

“It’s ok, as long as you don’t lose your mind!” said Leona smiling.

They kept talking for a while. Leona was still surprised at how much Liz still loved Max and how much this “destiny” thing had affected her. Leona knew about the future Max and what he asked her to do. In fact, after that, she admired her. She knew that it was too much for Liz to handle on her own. It was the biggest and hardest job. Not even Max could probably handle. But Liz did it for love. That was the biggest sacrifice she had to do and Leona just thought that Liz was a woman to be remembered. The girls were still in the kitchen laughing and yelling. It seemed hard for them to talk. Too much noise.

Suddenly, the door opened. Liz turned around to see who it was. It was Max with the rest of the guys. Kyle smiled at Leona and passed by Max and quickly sat besides Leona.

“Hi!” he said with a grin.

“Hi! How’s it going?” then Leona leaned closer to kiss him. Kyle kissed her back deeper.

“Ahem... Is it closed already?” asked Max, looking around and trying to make them break off their kiss.

“ No, still open. ” Leona replied smiling, still not getting off of Kyle.

Then, the other girls got out of the kitchen. Maria seemed like she was attacked. She had ketchup all over her shirt. Isabel was still laughing and Tess just had a plate with piece of chocolate cake and a bottle of Tabasco in hand. Kyle broke the kiss and turned to look at them.

“What happened to you?” Kyle asked Maria, pointing at his shirt trying to tell Maria about the ketchup in her shirt.

“Oh, that? We just had a war in the kitchen!” replied Maria

“ If the war camp’s still there, you’re cleaning it!” said Liz.

Max took his seat besides Kyle. Isabel started to play with them by pushing them toward Leona using her powers as well, then they all yelled in unison,

“ Whoa!”

Leona yelled,

“Isabel, stop!” then she laughed “you’re going to make a tortilla out of me or what?”

“ Yes, and Max and Kyle are the stuffing!” Maria said playfully.

“ISABEL!!” said Kyle, “Evans! Do something! Tickle her or whatever. Just make her stop!”

“Believe me, Valenti!!! I’m trying!” he yelled.

“Don’t even dare, mister,” Said Isabel, pointing a finger at Kyle when he tried to do something, and Isabel started to push even harder.

“Whoa!” yelled Max, “Isabel, stop right now! That’s an order!” Now everybody was laughing at them. Those little plays of Isabel were fun for them...only if they weren’t the ones who suffered from it. Then Kyle yelled trying to reach Isabel‘s arm,

“Isabel, I’m asking my dad for a restraining order!”

“You guys?! THERE’S PAIN HAPPENING HERE!!” yelled Leona, whose face was now red from the compression.

“Do you still want to ask your dad for that restraining order?” asked Isabel looking at Kyle.

“He was just kidding!! Now let go of us, PLEASE!!” said a screaming Max.

“The hell I was!!!” yelled Kyle.

“Should we let go of them?” she said turning to Maria.

“ISABEL!” they yelled.

“I think so. The poor girl over there can barely breath.” replied Maria.

“At the count of three,” Isabel said.

“You got it!” she said

“Isabel, no time for counting!!” said Max.

“OK!” and they let go of them.

Kyle looked at Isabel as if he was ready to kill her. Max and Leona were just happy that now they could catch their breath. As for everybody else, they were laughing, still.

Leona felt dizzy and started to have a headache. Max looked at her and asked,

“Are you ok?” Leona nodded.

“ Now you see what you did?” Said Kyle looking at Izzy. She widened her eyes in worry.

“It’s nothing really.” replied Leona. She smiled to make her statement believable.

“Hey!” called Tess, “no secrets, you promised!”

“Well, a headache is not much of a secret, is it?” she said grinning.

“Do you want me to get you something?” asked Liz. Leona noticed that Liz wanted to get out of there, trying to avoid Max. Max seemed to be trying to avoid her, too. He hadn’t looked at her since he got there.

“No, I’m fine. If I ever need something, Michael would get it for me, wouldn’t you?” she said looking at Michael. Michael looked at her for a while, then he replied,

“ Slavery is way long gone, my friend. So, if you need something, go get it yourself!”

“That’s my Michael, all right!” Maria said. Then everybody started laughing.

“Maria, you’re spoiling the poor guy with your manners.” said Kyle.

“Excuse me?” she said, “are you talking about me?” The session just started. Everybody joking, making fun of each other, talking about how much they hated Algebra class, how boring Mr. Benson’s class was getting, their plans for the weekend, college. Liz was glad that nobody did ask about her getting in Stanford. Too many questions would be on sight and she just didn’t want to talk about it. Suddenly, Leona started to get dizzy again. At first, nobody noticed, but then she got a flash after that. She saw Max bleeding, pale, dead.

Then she gasped. Tess looked at her, worried.

“Are you ok?” asked Tess. Everybody just looked at her. She was trembling.

“What’s wrong?” asked Michael. She didn’t answer. She seemed so afraid. She knew where the flash was coming from and she knew what it meant.

“Leona?” called Liz.

“Honey, are you ok?” asked Kyle, getting really worried and he touched her cheek.

“Uh?” She realized that everybody was looking at her and then she smiled, but she was sure that she wasn’t that believable. Michael felt something that, he knew, was coming from her. It wasn’t something new. Michael had felt what she felt since he met her. Hhe didn’t know how. He didn’t know why. Nnobody did. He just knew it made him special. It was helpful to him the night Kivar kidnapped her, Thanks to that connection, they were able to find her. Maria was obviously jealous of that connection they shared, but she understood the way he felt about that connection. Anyway, he didn’t think of it as a romantic affection, but as a brotherly affection.

“Why are you so afraid?” asked Michael.

Leona looked at him in the eyes as if telling him that she didn’t want to talk about it. Then he knew what it was. Leona then turned her head away from his eyes and said,

“What time is it?”

“Twenty minutes till 10 pm” replied Liz.

“I have to go home. I need to finish up some things that I have to do.” Leona said.

“I’ll give you a ride.” said Kyle standing up. Max sat there, not letting them go.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you what’s wrong, and I don’t know why you don’t want to talk about it!” said Max as Michael was standing up. He wasn’t ready to let her go until he knew what was wrong.

“I just don’t feel like it.” replied Leona, “I’m just not feeling well.”

“Whatever happened to that promise you made to us?” he asked.

“Max...” she said exasperated.

“A promise is a promise, Leona!” Max replied, turning his body to face her.

“Max don’t push it!” Leona said exasperated because Max was sitting besides her, blocking the way for her to get out of the booth.

“Ok, I’ve been meaning to ask you Max, why don’t you just leave it alone for a while? And why am I always between you guys!?”

And now everybody was talking at the same time.

“Guys!” yelled Isabel, “GUYS!!” she yelled again and everybody stopped, “If Leona doesn’t want to talk about it, leave her alone!”

“Thank you!” said Leona.

“When you’re ready to talk about it, give us a call because you are so telling us!” said Izzy looking at her.

“It seems as if she will never be.” said Kyle, looking away. Leona stared at him as if she felt hurt by his words.

“Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, Kyle.” she said.

“Well, I’m sorry, but I am also confused as to why you keep this secret!” he replied.

“Leona,” Liz spoke, “I don’t know how we’re supposed to help you if you don’t tell us what’s bothering you.”

“Right now, the only thing I need is to go home, not help.” replied Leona.

Everybody stared at her. Suddenly the phone rang. Liz went to pick it up and turned to Kyle.

“Kyle, it’s your dad. He says that if you don’t get your ass down there in less that 15, you will be sorry!” she said.

“He really said that?” he asked.

“Well, no, I softened the part of you will be sorry because it sounded nasty coming from the sheriff, but most of it was true.” she replied.

“Looks like you’re on your own kiddo” says Kyle looking at Leona. She just nodded.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at school.” he said, and leaned down to give her a quick kiss.

“Yeah, bye.” she said faintly smiling. As he picked up his jacket, he turned and said,

“Please, you guys, don’t be so hard on her.” and picked his car keys and got out. The silence was unbearable for her so she broke the silence,

“Ok, you guys, you wanna know what’s wrong? You really wanna know what’s wrong?” she asked in a tone of voice that made them realize that she was angry enough to storm out of there and stop talking to them for a week.

“YES!!” Her friends replied in unison ignoring the signs.

“Ok , I’ll tell you what’s wrong ...” she broke off as she heard her cell phone ring. The faces of her friends, who were hopeful, were now faces of disgust and anger. Max wanted to take the thing away and crush it. Their faces turned to worry when Leona dropped the cell phone. Her face turned to shock and her eyes were moist with the tears that struggled to get out. Finally, she gave in to her tears and closed her eyes as the tears trickled down her cheeks.

“Leona?” questioned Liz.

“What’s wrong?” asked Michael. Leona seemed to be lost in her thoughts, staring at the wall, with nothing to say. Max took her by her shoulders until Leona whispered,

“Oh my God!” Then she turned to look at Max deep into his eyes. Max could’ve sworn that those were the saddest eyes he ever saw. Suddenly, she spoke,

“Max, I need a ride!”

Max just nodded and took the keys of his jeep without asking any more. By the looks of it, something was really wrong. He didn’t dare to ask on the way to Leona‘s house, but he saw her so sad that the curiosity won him over and as he opened his mouth to ask, she simply said,

“My brother was found dead.”

“Oh, my God! Leona, I’m so sorry!” he replied.

“Don’t be. Be sorry for the asshole who killed him. There’ll be hell to pay for what he did to my brother!” she said in a tone filled with rage.

“I know you’re upset, but...”

“I’m more than upset, Max!!” interrupted Leona, “I’m angry, I’m hurt, I’m confused, I’m... I...” she couldn’t find the words to express her feelings. She felt out of breath. She didn’t want to talk about it anymore. When they arrived at her house, she just got out of the car without saying good bye. Her parents were waiting for her outside. Leona ran to them and hugged them, crying. Mr. Johnson saw Max in the jeep and approached him.

“Thank you for bringing her home.” he said in a crackled voice and with tears in his eyes.

“Anytime, Mr. Johnson.” replied Max. And the man just smiled weakly and lowered his head.

“I’m sorry about your son, Mr. Johnson.” Max said. The man jerked his head up with a questioning look.

“Leona told me a little about it.”

“ Oh.” Mr. Johnson replied.

Max saw a figure moving towards them. It was Leona. He got out of the car. Leona looked at Max then at her father, She approached him and said something in a low voice. He nodded and left them alone.

‘Thanks for the ride.” she said to Max.

“Do you need anything else?” asked Max, almost hoping that she would ask him to hold her in his arms...‘what am are you thinking? she’s your friend...’ He shook his head to get the thought out of his mind.

“No, I’m fine.”

“What happened to your brother?”

“I’ll tell you tomorrow. Right now, I just need to be alone with my parents.”

“Ok.”

“Good night Max.”

“Good night, Leona.” What caught Max by surprise was that Leona hugged him and broke down crying. Max hugged her back and held her for a while without saying a word. Then, she let go of him, looking down. Max had her by her arms, then took her face in his hands.

“What ever you need, just call me, ok?” he said.

“Yeah, thanks.” she smiled, even tough he knew that it wasn’t a real smile.

“Sure, any time.” He let go of her, “Take care.” and he turned away.

“Bye.” she replied as she saw him get in the car and start it.

“Bye.” he said almost hating himself for leaving her in that state, ‘but she needs time alone with her parents, not you,’ he thought as he drove off on his way to The Crashdown. He knew his friends were there, waiting for him to tell them the details. As he was driving, he thought a lot about Leona and didn’t even stop himself.

******************************************************************************************

PART# 2

Michael was tapping his hands on the table. Tess was pacing from one place to another while the rest of the gang tried to do something else. It was useless. Maria got so frustrated with Michael’s tapping, she said loudly,

“Ok, stop that!! You’re driving me crazy!!”

“I’m sorry but I can’t help it!” Michael yelled back.

“Don’t you dare yell at me, Michael Guerin!!!”

“Oh. and you can yell at me?!”

“Yes, I...”

“STOP!!” yelled Liz interrupting them. Maria looked at her with a suprised look on her face.

“I know you’re worried! I’m worried, too! But yelling isn’t the best way to handle this!”

“Do you have any ideas?” said Michael sarcastically.

“Michael! Chill out, will you?” said Isabel.

“Max is here!” Tess screamed. Everybody turned to the door to see Max coming in.

Everybody just froze in their place waiting for Max to say something. He finally spoke,

“She’s...she’s really upset and I...I didn’t get the chance to talk to her...much.”

“Ok, just tell us what you know!” said Tess, grabbing Max’s hands in plea.

Max drew a deep breath. Michael seemed so desperate and anxious to know what had happened.

“So...”

“Her brother died.” Max replied. Everybody stood there...shocked, but they were more shocked at the fact that Leona didn’t tell them that she had a brother.

“My God! I didn’t know!” said Isabel.

“Well, what really surprises me is that she has...I mean...had a brother!” commented Isabel.

“I know!” replied Liz, “why would she not tell us about him?”

“Ok, I thought the important thing here was what happened to Leona!” said Michael, “instead of asking why she didn’t tell us about him!”

“Well, we’re just saying, Michael.” said Liz.

“Well, save it!” he replied, almost angry.

“Michael!” yelled Isabel again.

“What?” he said turning to Isabel.

“Michael, we’re all worried, but she also said that she would tell us more when she gets the chance!” said Max. When he saw that the words calmed him down, Max spoke again,

“Now, we all need to go home and get some rest, we need it!”

“I don’t think I can sleep right now, Maxwell! Not after knowing what Leona is going through right now!” said Michael.

“Well, we have to if we don’t want our butts kicked by the queen of Kung Fu!” said Tess smiling, referring to Leona’s ability to fight. Now, everybody laughed at her statement.

Michael apologized to Maria and offered a ride home, which she accepted. Isabel just said that she’d go with Tess. At first, Max protested, but he was defeated by his sister and that left Liz and Max alone.

The silence was awkward for them until Max spoke,

“Hey, do you still have that apple pie you made yesterday?”

‘Yeah, why?” replied Liz.

“I want to take some to my mom, that’s all.”

“Oh, sure!”

It went all silent again. Liz went to the kitchen and came back with a whole pie.

“I said that I just wanted some.” said Max after watching her wrap the whole pie.

“Oh, it’s alright. I don’t think anybody’s going to eat it anyway.”

“Maria could. She said that she loved it.”

“Well, she lost her chance.” she giggled. Max smiled when she giggled. It brought back memories.

“So,” spoke Max, “Have you received any letters form any college?”

‘Oh, God! why now!!’ she thought, and waited a little to respond.

“Well?” Said Max waiting.

“Um...yeah...and I made my decision.”

Max felt his heart stop when he waited for her answer. ‘Something tells me that I don’t want to know,’ he thought.

“I’m going to Stanford.” she replied.

Both of them fell silent...not knowing what to say...not wanting to spoil the moment, but both of them knew that they had to say something. Max was the first one to speak.

“That’s ...um...that’s great! Con...congratulations!”

“Thanks.” she replied, not sure if that’s what she expected to hear.

“I’m going to Harvard.” said Max.

“Wow! Well, I guess we know who won: you!”

“Why do you say that?”

“I mean. I’m going to Stanford and you’re going to Harvard, and Harvard is like...” she said moving her hands through the air.

“Yeah, I know. I didn’t expect that, but I guess I made it.” said Max smiling.

“I always knew you could do anything.” she said. Max looked at her not knowing what to think.

“That’s why I always admired you.”

Max looked into her eyes, asking himself what to expect of this. He still loved her, but he wasn’t sure how much. He didn’t think there was hope for them, but something in her eyes just told him to believe in her...to wait for her, and he wasn’t sure how to do that, either.

“Thank you.” he replied. Liz looked at the clock and then at Max.

“You better go home. It‘s getting late.”

“Yeah, well, thanks for the pie.”

“Sure,” she said smiling. Max got up from his chair, taking the pie in his hand.

‘Max?” called Liz.

“Yeah?” he replied turning around. Liz hesitated.

“Say hi to your mom for me.”

‘Ok, I will.” He turned away, heading outside to his car. Liz just stood there, disappointed in herself because she didn’t say to Max what she needed to say. She let the tears fall down her cheeks, thinking that once again she had lost her chance.

Leona was lying down in her bed, crying. Her parents entered the room and Leona got up while she wiped the tears away.

“Honey, we have to tell you something,” said Mrs. Johnson.

Leona looked at her mother with confusion. ‘What could possibly be there?’ She hoped that it wasn’t bad news.

“We found out who killed Pierce!” said Mr. Johnson, “and believe me, I can’t believe they did it! I mean, how could they?”

“They? Dad, what are you talking about?” said Leona even more confused.

“We’ve been loyal to them! And this is how they pay us?”

“Dad! Mom, what is he talking about??!” she said almost desperate, and pleading with her eyes to her father so he doesn’t tell her what she’s thinking about.

“The Royal Four! That’s what I’m talking about!” said Mr. Johnson almost screaming. Leona was shocked. She couldn’t believe what her father was trying to imply.

“The Royal Four killed our son!”

“How do you know?” said Leona, “What makes you think they did it?”

“Our people did witnessed it!” replied Mrs. Johnson, as she saw her husband pacing from one side of the room to the other.

“I, for one, won’t let them get away with it. I’ll make sure they pay for their crime, even if it’s the last thing I do in my life!” Now Mr. Johnson was filled with anger. Leona could see the rage in his eyes. But she was lost. How could the Royal Four kill someone who tried to help them escape from the government?

“David,” said Mrs. Johnson seeing the shocked face of her daughter, “you need to calm down so we can explain everything to her!”

“Please ...do!” she said in her coolest voice. She didn’t want to cry, not unless she finds out the truth.

Mrs. Johnson sat down with her daughter and started,

“Remember when Derek changed his name to Pierce?” her mother said, “Well, when he was at the Special Unit, he tracked down the Royal Four so we could get a hold of them and at the same time he worked in a case that probably involved them as murderers. They killed their victims leaving their silver handprint on the bodies.. Later, he was told to come to Roswell, where the murders were taking place. Finally, he found them, and even if he tried to make them see that he was there to help, they didn’t listen to him and one night...”she suddenly stopped then she went on, but not for long, “they set up a meeting with him when...”now, she completely stopped and started to cry. It was clear for Leona that she couldn’t go on. Mr. Johnson kneeled down to hug his wife and Leona spoke to finish her sentence,

“When they killed him!” She said it without believing what she has just said. She felt that something was wrong and whatever it was, it was something big.

“How long has he been dead?” Leona asked without looking at them.

“3 years and a half!” said Mr. Johnson. Leona was lost in her thoughts. She had too many questions, and not one of her answers seemed to make sense. Nothing made sense to her anymore. She knew them too well, or that’s what she thought, but the truth was out there and she was determined to find out .

“I’m going to give them a chance to come clean.” Leona said, looking at her mother and then at her father, who were now looking at her in surprise. They knew that she was up to something and they grew confused.

“To come clean?” replied Mr. Johnson.

“Yes, I am going to talk to them about Pierce. If they tell me truth, I’ll get to know what really happened!” Leona seemed so sure of herself at that time that they almost believed that it was going to work.

“But, they think you’re human.” commented Mrs. Johnson, “How could they possibly tell a human about that? Unless...”

“No, I haven’t told them anything about my background. I was about to do it tonight because they kept bugging me about a promise I made to them.”

“Then...?” replied Mr. Johnson.

“They’ll get nervous and they’ll spill. If they don’t tell me anything, I will use something else.”

“But you think they are going to say anything? You just told that boy, Max Evans, about your brother!” said Mr. Johnson trying to make his point, “They won’t tell you because you practically are Pierce’s sister!”

“They won’t trust you anymore.” recalled Mrs. Johnson.

Leona didn’t seem to listen to them. It seemed as if she already had a plan.

“I’d rather have you punishing them for their crimes than giving them the chance they don’t deserve!” said Mr, Johnson, who now seemed to be resentful for what she was doing. “You’re a goddess. For Pierce...for us...they deserve to be punished!”

Leona looked at him as if she couldn’t believe what he said, then hardened her face and spoke,

“I’m here, and fortunately, alive to protect the Royal Four and to lead them through this war, not to punish them. The last time I did that, it all went to hell. The war started and our people were killed and enslaved. Even if they cried and prayed for help and salvation, the gods couldn’t do anything because it was done, mostly by the curse I put upon them, and the unexcused rage between my father and the King Father. I’m here to make sure they go home alive and stop the war.”

“Leona, even when you brought them back to life and gave them the gifts of the gods, The Royal Four turned out to be the way they were in their past lives...using their gifts for evil!” replied Mr. Johnson with exasperation “What makes you think Max Evans is any different from Zan, or Isabel from Vilandra? They both have the same DNA! They’re clones!!”

“True enough,” said Leona, “But the Roswell Royal Four have a huge difference from the New York Royal Four. The firsts are more human than the seconds. The human DNA softened Max’s heart.”

“Well, I didn’t know our King had a heart, if he ever had...”

“Dad, please...stop!!” pleaded Leona. He stopped talking, but the silence was unbearable for Mrs. Johnson. She broke the silence by saying,

“Why don’t we get some rest? We really need it.”

“I don’t think I can sleep, but I think we better let Leona sleep. She needs it more than we do.”

he replied. Leona had her head down trying not to cry.

“Good night, honey.” said her mother, and just when they were about to head toward the door, she called them,

“Wait, I...uh...” they stopped and turned around. “I’m so sorry. Mom, dad, the Royal Four...they will get what they deserve, but right now there are so many questions and I need them answered. Please, understand that I’m just trying to do my job.”

“Honey, we understand but it’s just that...” he replied sighing, “we don’t always agree with your plans or getting too close to them because sooner or later, they’ll probably hurt you.”

“I’d like to see them try!” she said sarcastically, “Besides, I know they won’t hurt me.”

“I trust you.” he said looking at his wife and then stretching his hand out to her, “We trust you.”

“We must not forget that we can’t risk losing them. With the gifts of the gods, they will make my father surrender. He might feel powerful and dangerous, but he doesn’t know that he has a bigger match that can take him out. We practically need them.”

“Plus the Messiah...” commented Mrs. Johnson. Leona sighed. She didn’t have any idea where to find the Messiah. The gods just told her that the chosen one would be the human that was brought back to life by the king.

Leona looked at the people that were in front of her. She smiled at them and they both asked in confusion,

“What?”

“I just realized that I wouldn’t know what I would do without you.”

“Oh, honey!” replied her mother, hugging her.

“I know things would have been different if you were my real parents.” she said in the arms of her mother/aunt.

“There’s nothing else we would like more than that, but your mother was a wonderful woman. I’m glad I had her as my sister.” replied her uncle patting Leona’s head.

“I never understood what your mother saw in your father anyway.” said her aunt, releasing her, “He is a monster, whose place belongs in hell!”

“Hear, hear!” replied Mr. Johnson.

“But I can’t forget that he’s my father and that I have to respect him anyway. He might have done horrible things, but I can’t help but love him because he gave me my half mortality and without it, I wouldn’t have understood mortals like I do now.”

“Ok, you know what? You need to rest. Tomorrow, you start whatever big plan you have for your little friends.” said her uncle yawning.

‘I have a plan already, and you, more than anybody, needs to rest.”

“Well, she’s right, we better.” replied her aunt who was now heading towards the door, “Good night, sweetie!”

“Night.” she replied, as the couple closed the door behind them. As it closed, she started to cry. She fell to her knees covering her face with her hands and she began to sob uncontrollably.

The pain she could take, but the betrayal...that was what wounded her most...the secrets they kept from her, secrets of which they were ashamed but she didn’t even know that.

She wondered every night: ‘Why? Why couldn’t her father just get along with the King? Why did Vilandra betray them in the first place? Why couldn’t she be with the man she loved?’ Every night, when there’s a moon and stars, she says a prayer in her head: