"What now?" Maria asked when Max and Kyle got fin- ished talking.
"We can't leave," Max said. "It would be too suspicious.”
"Well, it would look bad to the cops, but the cops are not the biggest problem in this town," Michael said.
He was right, Liz knew. There were worse things than police here. Worse things even than the Special Unit.
There were rooms that weren't rooms.
And monsters.
"But in a few days we will have to get out of town and put as much distance as we can between us and these aliens," Max said.
"What about Jessica? Dawn? Who knows how many others?" Kyle said.
"I don't think we can…," Max said. He didn't allow himself to complete the thought out loud.
Liz wanted to say that it wasn't true, that they could help. They could do something, find a way. But even as she thought it, she knew it wasn't true. Max and the others would likely lose any battle they fought. She had seen it happen in her vision of the future, in her vision of a differ- ent battle.
What chance did they have against a huge ship full of monsters? But if that were true, what hope did Jessica have? What hope did Jimmy have? As if he were reading her mind, Max said, "I'm sorry, but I don't think we can fix this.”
Liz caught Isabel's eyes and saw her own feelings mir- rored there. Liz had caught glimpses of Jessica's pain, but Isabel had visited the girl's dreams.
No one spoke much for the rest of the night. They got ready for bed and took their places with minimum conversa- tion. They didn't sleep much either. Whenever Liz did close her eyes, she saw rooms that weren't rooms, and monsters.
It was a long night, but it passed and Liz and Maria had to get ready for work.
The others got ready as well. Without discussion, they headed together for the diner, where Bell was waiting for them with concern written on her face. "Are you kids all right? We heard about Dawn," she said when they entered.
"We're fine," Liz said. She was surprised to see Sam peek out from the kitchen. He didn't say anything, but he looked concerned. Bell sat them down, and they told Bell and Sam the same story they had told Dan and the police. It was true, to an extent.
"It's a shame. I hope they get the bastards before anyone else gets hurt," Sam said.
Liz realized that that was the longest sentence she had heard Sam speak since they'd arrived.
The group ate quickly, and Kyle headed off to work while Max, Isabel, and Michael got ready to paint.
"You don't have to do that today" Bell said.
"We want to," Max said. Then, to keep her from protesting, he added, "It'll keep us busy." He didn't add that it would keep them near Liz and Maria.
A few minutes later, Jimmy arrived, but he barely acknowledged them. He just took his place at the booth by the window and put his head down.
The day at the diner moved slower than it ever had before. At first Liz thought it was because of how she was feeling. Then she realized that it was because there were fewer customers… and no women. It looked like people were not going out if they could avoid it. Things had got- ten bad in Stonewall… very bad, and desperate.
Unfortunately, it looked like they weren't going to be getting better anytime soon.
Kyle got to the garage early and decided to get right to work. If he finished early, he would be able to get even more time in on the van. And it seemed important to get the van running as fast as possible.
He found that he didn't like the idea of running out on the town. People had helped them here. And now those people were scared and facing something they didn't understand.
Better that they don't, he thought.
If they knew what was really happening, they would be terrified and they would all run for their lives.
Like us.
Max was right, though, he knew. What could they do against the force they had witnessed? Even Max's powers, incredible as they were, would be no more effective than Kyle's wrench against that technology.
When he reached the garage, he was surprised to see the shop doors open already. Then something struck him about the shop doors… they were only partly open. In fact, they looked exactly as Kyle had left them the night before.
Dan had said he would lock up, but clearly he hadn't.
Kyle found his boss in the office, he head down on the desk. He was still wearing the same clothes from the night before.
Hearing the door open, Dan woke up and raised his head. His eyes looked haunted, and he looked exhausted.
He also looked like he had aged ten yeas "You okay, Dan?" Kyle asked.
Dan shrugged. "I've known Dawn's father since I was a kid. He used to hang out with my brother. Last night I told him his daughter is gone.”
"I'm sorry, Dan. I'm sorry about Dawn and about your brother," Kyle said.
His boss showed a tiny flash of surprise when Kyle mentioned his brother. "This place is named after him. Our father opened it the year he was born.”
It looked like Dan wanted to talk. Kyle was too sur- prised to move for a long moment. Then he sat down on the office couch. "Was the van out back his?" he asked slowly.
Dan nodded. "Yes, he and my dad rescued it from being junked somewhere. He did the paint job himself.”
"It looks like it was a hippie-mobile," Kyle said.
Dan actually made a slight smile at that. "I guess he and his friends were hippies. They were also good kids. Ever heard of Woodstock?”
"Well, yeah. My dad has the movie," Kyle joked. "Did you go?”
Dan smiled and shook his head. "We tried. Made it as far as Indiana before the van broke down," he said.
"1 know what that's like," Kyle said, smiling. "Too bad for you guys, though.”
Dan shook his head. "Not really. We camped out in the van for a week, me, my brother, and three of his friends. That was the best trip of my life. That summer…" He drifted off for a moment. "I was thirteen, hanging out with older kids. I had the time of my life. Tom, Dawn's father, was there.”
There was a long pause, then Dan added, "The next summer my brother was gone.”
Kyle didn't know what to say. Dan clearly wanted to talk… for the first time since Kyle had met him. But he didn't know if he should ask the obvious question. After more than a full minute of silence, Dan continued on his own.
"Johnny and Tom went to Vietnam together. Tom wanted to go… he thought he was saving the world. My brother wasn't as sure, but he didn't want anyone going in his place. I mean, he thought we were on the right side of that mess, but he would have rather stayed home.”
Dan took a deep breath, then spoke the next part quickly. "Johnny looked after Tom over there, and a lot of other guys as well. He was a hero. Problem was, his squad was caught in an ambush and there was no one to look after him.”
On the verge of tears, Dan held himself together… barely, Kyle thought. "Sometimes you lose someone and, well, things are never the same. You are never the same.”
Kyle nodded. He thought of his mother. He knew something about that. He thought about Dawn. He had liked her. They had shared a connection, a small one, but a real one just the same.
And now he was running out on Stonewall. Running out on her.
"Well, tonight I told my brother's best friend that he's lost his daughter. Actually, I told him she was missing, but we know what that means in this town. His wife was there, so he said things were going to be all right, but I don't think they will be. I don't think Tom will be all right either." Dan shook his head. "What kind of place is this? What kind of people would do this?”
Kyle had an answer to that, but he didn't think it would help Dan to hear it. In fact, whatever his boss's suspicions were, Kyle knew Dan would be better off if he never found out what was really going on in his town.
Getting up, Kyle said, "Come on, you need some sleep. I can handle the cars in the shop for today.”
Dan nodded and allowed Kyle to lead him up and out of the office. "Maybe just a little, then I'll head over to Tom's to wait with him. Not much else to do.”
Kyle walked his boss around back and up to his house. At the door, Dan turned around and said, "Thanks, Kyle. Why don't you work on your van today? Take what you need from Johnny's van. Get yours running and get yourself and your friends out of Stonewall. Okay?" Dan's voice was stronger and clearer than it had been in the office. He clearly wanted Kyle to listen to him. "Okay?" he repeated.
"Sure, thanks," Kyle said, and turned to head back to the garage.
In the shop, there was only one car waiting. He checked Dawn's book and saw that four cars were due in this morning, but he wondered if they would show.
As he worked, Kyle thought about another group of kids traveling in a van more than thirty years before. They had shared the trip of their lives, but one of them would be dead a year later, leaving a brother who looked like he'd never really recovered and a best friend who would lose his daughter.
Tragedy. Loss. Were they waiting for Kyle and his friends at the end of this trip? Or would they not even wait for the end? Kyle knew he couldn't even begin to answer those questions now, so he did the only thing he knew he could do: He worked.
Max peeked into the diner for perhaps the hundredth time since they had started working. Liz and Maria were fine.
As he turned back to his work, he saw Michael staring into the front window as well. Michael looked away a moment later, and Max caught his eye as he friend did so. Michael shrugged, but neither one spoke. They didn't need to. They both knew what they were doing: keeping a close eye on the girls until they could get them all out of Stonewall.
Max thought that the prospect or running out on this fight should have shamed him, but he found that it did not. I'm not running, his mind replied on its own. He was protecting Liz and the others.
Once again, he wondered what kind of King he had been in his last life. What would that person think of what he was doing now? Had he loved Tess… his wife and betrayer… then as he loved Liz now? Would he have been willing to risk or sacrifice her? What about Michael? Or Isabel? Whoever he had been then, he knew he would not risk any of his friends now… and Liz least of all.
Maybe that made him unfit to be a King. That was fine… he didn't want the job. And by all accounts, he had blown it for himself, his friends, and his whole planet back when he was a King, anyway. For now, he would concentrate on protecting his piece of this world. If he couldn't save a planet, perhaps there was wise enough a ruler in him to save his friends and the girl he loved.
Max tried to concentrate on the work in front of him. It was an effort, but he kept his hands busy. By the time the lunch crowd was done, he, Michael, and Isabel had managed to finisn priming and painting the front of the diner. The work had not calmed him or given him any peace, but he fig- ured it was better than sitting idle. Isabel had used her pow- ers a bit in the end to spruce up the restaurant's sign, but Max hadn't bothered to protest. There was no one on the street to see them. They were finished, but Max was reluctant to move on. When they were working on the side and die back, he wouldn't be able to watch Liz through the window.
"Looks like the lunch rush is over," Max said.
"Rush?" Michael repeated. The restaurant had had maybe one third of its usual number of customers that day.
"That does it," Max said. He stepped back to look over the work.
"Let's clean up and get something to eat," Max said.
"Great job outside. Thank you," Bell said, after they'd freshened up. Though she was trying to put on a smile, Max could tell that… like him and everyone else… she was really thinking of only one thing.
"Thank you," Max said. "We used to paint with our dad back home.”
Bell nodded. "I didn't expect you to do the sign, too," she said.
"I found some matching paint in the basement," Isabel said, covering quickly.
"How did you get the neon to work?" Bell asked. "It hasn't come on in years.”
"I fixed it," Michael said, jumping in. "It was just a loose contact.”
Bell nodded politely, then turned serious. She looked from Max to Michael and said, "You look after the girls.”
"We will," Max said.
"These things happen in threes. They always take three girls at a time within about twenty-four hours. I know it sounds like crazy superstition, but every time it's happened, three girls have gone missing. Okay?" Bell said.
"Okay," Max said. Since she was opening up, Max con- sidered pumping Bell for information, but he decided against it. He needed to concentrate on getting his friends as far from Stonewall as possible.
Bell nodded and walked off. Liz came over and greeted him with a thin smile. Then she kissed him. holding it longer than usual.
Bell brought them food, but didn't stay to eat with them. "I'll be in the back with Sam," was all she said. Max understood. He wouldn't leave Liz's side voluntarily.
Kyle came in just as they sat down. Leaning into his friends, he said, "The engine is in and back in one piece. I have more I could do, but if we have to go, the van will be ready tonight.”
Max nodded. At the same moment, Jimmy stirred and Max felt a pang of guilt. We can't help her, Max reminded himself. No one can. Not now.
The voice in his own head sounded so convincing that he almost believed it.
"Then we'll go tonight when you get off work," Max said to Liz and Maria.
The others nodded. No one liked it, but they all silently agreed that they did not have a choice. A moment later, Max realized that they had fallen into their old habits: Max making decisions, and the others going along. But this was a decision that Max knew was the only one he or any of them could make.
After lunch, they started on the side of the diner. He didn't like not being able to see the girls, and he knew that Michael didn't either.
Yet he knew it was irrational. There had never been an… incident during daylight. And they would be on their way tonight.
"Too bad we won't be able to finish," Isabel said as they began. They would finish priming the side and rear of the diner today. And they would paint maybe half of the side wall before dinner. "Bell and Sam have been good to us," she added.
Max only nodded. "Too bad," he said, knowing that the painting was the smallest part of it… but the only part they could talk about now.