Liz was in the back getting her things from her locker when Maria came in.

"What are you doing working on a Saturday night?"

Liz turned toward Maria who was dressed in normal Maria attire, retro and loud, and said, "I needed to keep my mind off of things and I figured this would be the best way."

"I have a way for you to keep your mind off things," Maria said smiling at Liz. "You need to get dressed and ready. Kyle has persuaded me to go this Reservoir Party with him tonight and I am not going without you," Maria told Liz putting her hands and her hips and giving Liz a no-nonsense look. Which basically meant Maria was not going to let Liz get out of this one.

Liz turned and closed her locker door, searching her head for some excuse so she could avoid going. A party just didn't sound like fun now. The thought of watching her fellow high school students get wasted was just not appealing right now.

Liz turned back to Maria and said, "I've gotta ."

Maria stopped Liz with a look. "You are not getting out of this Liz Parker. Go upstairs, shower and change. Kyle and I will be waiting for you in the Crashdown. You have 30 minutes."

Maria then turned around and walked through the door and into the Crashdown. Liz knew there was no fighting Maria when she was in this kind of mood so she headed upstairs to change.

Liz had been struggling with how to find out what Tess was up to all week with no success. That is the main reason she volunteered to work today, that and it also kept her mind off Max. Working was a distraction from the dilemma she was having. But nothing could keep her from thinking of Max. It ended up being a strange day for Liz. A couple of times during the day Liz felt Max reaching out for her and she turned around expecting to see him, but he was no where in sight. Liz had a feeling that what she had shared with Max in the past has created some sort of connection with him that was more than emotional. Liz can physically feel when Max is near and she can also tell when he is under a great deal of stress, like when Pierce captured him. This connection must have happened either when he had healed her or connected with her. Liz really wanted to talk with about this with Maria, but she wasn't sure if Maria would believe her. She wasn't ready to approach Max about it! , so for now she was going to keep it to herself.

After Liz was ready she went back down to the Crashdown and saw Kyle and Maria waiting patiently at the counter drinking colas.

Kyle turned to Liz approaching, smiled and said, "Let's get going already. I'm in the mood to party."

Liz and Maria followed Kyle out of the Crashdown, got into Kyle's Mustang, and headed out to the Reservoir. Kyle had cranked up the music so there was no need to talk which was fine with Liz.

When they got to the Reservoir, they saw Alex and Isabel leaving. Liz could tell Alex and Isabel were having a good time. She wished Alex had agreed to get some information out of Isabel, maybe he'll change his mind.

"Hey Alex.Isabel," Kyle said hesitantly. He wasn't yet comfortable with the fact that Isabel was an alien. "Are you guys leaving already? I had to literally drag these two out tonight, but I finally succeeded. You guys should stay awhile."

Alex responded, "We've had our fill of drunk teenagers so we're outta here. We'll catch you later."

Liz looked at Alex and tried to convey how important it was to her that he ask Isabel about Tess, but she knew it was a lost cause. Maria and Liz simultaneously said, "See ya," and watched Alex and Isabel walk toward Alex's car.

Kyle, Maria, and Liz then headed toward the party. Liz pretty much got what she expected. She tried to have a good time though. She was sure that Max wouldn't be here so that made things easier.

Liz and Maria were talking to one of their girlfriends when Liz spotted Tess walking up to the party with one of Kyle's jock friends. She almost told Maria that it was time to go. But all of a sudden, Liz had an idea. She looked down at the beer she had been holding for the last hour and realized that this wasn't just and idea, but was a brilliant idea. An idea that could be the answer her questions about what Tess was up to.

Liz quickly made excuses to Jenn and pulled Maria aside.

"What's up?" Maria asked.

Liz pointed in the direction of Tess.

Maria looked over to see Tess talking to a jock and then looked back at Liz and asked with concern, "Do you want to leave?"

Liz smiled and replied, "No.actually I have an idea how we can get information out of Tess."

Maria looked at Liz confused on how she was going to get information out of Tess. What could Liz be thinking? Tess wasn't going to confide in anyone here. Liz then held up her cup which contained beer and Maria recalled what had happened to Max when he'd had alcohol. Maria laughed. Liz was really clever when she wanted to be. Max had lost control with a sip of alcohol and the same thing would happen to Tess.

Maria stopped laughing and asked, "How are we going to get her to drink? We can't approach her. She'll know something is up. And what if she knows about the effect alcohol has on her."

"You're right. She may know the effect alcohol has on her and we certainly can't approach her," Liz started still smiling at Maria. "But Kyle can approach her and how much you want to bet he has a stash of rum or vodka somewhere. We can make a mixed drink, the alcohol will barely be detectable."

"You ARE sneaky, but how do we get Kyle to go along? He doesn't know about what happened in the cave."

"We'll tell him about what happened in the cave and about how we think Tess is manipulating Max, Michael, and Isabel. He owes Max. He'll help us," Liz said confidently looking in the direction Kyle was standing.

"You're sure it is a good idea to tell him everything."

"Half truths could get us in trouble. It's better to tell him everything. Anyway, we may eventually need the Sheriff's help too. It's best to get everything out in the open now," Liz said looking still looking to where Kyle was. "All I'm worried about is whether or not Michael is around. If Michael is here, then it may be hard for Kyle to get Tess alone. Michael has never been too fond of Kyle." Liz turned to Maria and asked, "Do you know what Michael is up to tonight?"

Maria suddenly felt depressed. She looked away from Liz for a minute to collect herself. She had been avoiding thinking of Michael pretty well so far, but just hearing his name took her back to when he asked her to leave his apartment. "He's been avoiding me all week, but I heard through the grapevine that he got a job as a night janitor at the UFO Museum. I guess Max helped him get the job. Maybe he's working tonight." Maria looked at Liz and smiled, "He won't come here, because he probably thinks I'll be here."

Liz reached out to take Maria's hand. Liz knew Maria was having a hard time dealing with Michael's rejection. Liz wished there was something she could do for her. Maybe if they were able to get information from Tess, Maria and Michael could find their way back to each other.

"Let's go get Kyle and talk to him," Liz said as she pulled Maria in the direction of Kyle. Liz hadn't felt this excited since Maria made Liz and Alex realize that there was something wrong with the message Max had received from his mother.

Liz and Maria found Kyle talking to a couple of his jock friends. His friends appeared to be talking about how Jeremy showed up with Tess. Saying those things guys say about a friend who is with a hot girl. Kyle wasn't saying much. He was trying to act normal, but Liz could tell he was uncomfortable.

Liz touched Kyle lightly on his arm to get his attention. Kyle turned to Liz and smiled, relieved to get an escape from his friends. Kyle made his excuses and followed Liz and Maria to the edge of the party.

When they got out of earshot of everyone Kyle asked, "What's up? Do you two want to leave?"

Liz looked around to make sure no one was close and said, "Actually Kyle, we have a huge favor to ask of you."

Kyle looked at Liz and then Maria. He could tell he wasn't going to like this, but against his better judgement he asked, "What?"

Liz looked at Maria for support then said, "Before we ask you the favor, we need to tell you about something that happened after you got shot and Max healed you. We didn't tell you before because we weren't sure what it meant. We need you're help to determine what it means."

"What are you talking about?"

Maria looked at Liz and said, "Before we get into this, maybe we should go out of site of the party. I don't think it would be a good idea for Tess to see us talking to Kyle."

Liz smiled at Maria glad Maria was always thinking. The two of them made a good team.

"Let's go to your car, Kyle, and we'll tell you everything."

Liz and Maria spent the next half hour explaining to Kyle about the message Max and Isabel's mother gave them in the cave. They also explained how Tess, when she first got here, manipulated Max, and how she used her powers to trick the FBI guys into seeing something that wasn't there.

Kyle took everything Liz and Maria said at face value. Two weeks ago he would have laughed at them and told them that they needed to be taken away to the funny farm. But that was before Max Evans healed a bullet would that would surely have killed him.

After Liz and Maria finished, no one talked for at least 5 minutes. Kyle knew he had to help out. If Tess really was manipulating Max, Michael, and Isabel, then that was the least he could do. He just hoped he could pull off whatever he had to do.

"So what's the favor?" Kyle finally asked.

Liz looked to Maria and smiled then turned back to Kyle and took his hand. "Do you remember when Max got drunk after one sip of alcohol?"

"Yeah, I remember, vaguely. I was a little drunk myself that night."

"Max let loose that night. It was like, he couldn't or wouldn't control what he said or did." Liz glanced to Maria and said, "We were thinking that if we gave Tess a drink. We could possibly get some information out of her."

Kyle looked from Liz to Maria, because he couldn't believe what he was hearing. They were asking him to get Tess drunk. Two weeks ago he would have been all over that. Tess was a hottie, but now, he wasn't so sure. She had powers he didn't understand. She could hurt him.

"I don't know if this is a good idea." Kyle started hesitantly. "What if she figures out what I am up to? Does she know that alcohol effects her in that way? How do I get her away from Jeremy?"

Liz squeezed Kyle's hand trying to reassure him. "Kyle, don't worry about getting her away from Jeremy. We'll help out with that. Also, we'll be close the whole time. All you have to do is get her to drink and then when she's drunk let us know so we can get information out of her. Max still doesn't remember exactly what happened when he was drunk. We can do this.together."