PART FOURTEEN

Liz felt the tension in Max's body as they sped along, trying to make up the time they had lost taking the alternate route.

She knew he was frustrated, and this was the reason for his silence, but she couldn't help feeling a little hurt that he'd fairly shut her out since they turned onto the road three hours ago.

She'd tried to call to him as they rode, but he never acknowledged her.

After that, she'd not said another word. She didn't want to think that this would be the way things would be from here on out.

What if he got weaker? What if he couldn't stand up to the Skins? She was afraid that frustration would lead to isolation and she couldn't take that now, not when they were so close to danger, not when so much was at risk.

She needed him to know that she understood.

It had long since gotten dark, but Alex had been right. So far, the road had been clear and there had been no further incidents.

They flew past another road sign.

Jekyll Island

10 miles

They'd made better time than she thought they would. Soon enough, they'd be meeting up with the others, and would begin Serena's rescue.

But what would it cost all of them?

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%

Michael drove cautiously over the bridge, looking for anything suspicious. He noticed a photo taped to the dash. Looking closer, he realized it was the driver, or the person that they modeled the driver's husk after.

He had a sudden inspiration. He'd never tried it before, but it might work. He slowed and stopped the truck. Reaching over with one hand he touched the photo, concentrating with all he had.

"Guerin, what are you doing?" Kyle asked at him frowning.

"Shut up," Michael said, his brow knitting in concentration.

Kyle sighed annoyed, that was until he watched Michael's face growing insubstantial, remolding itself.

"Guerin what the hell! Cut that shit out!" Kyle said, alarmed, but the metamorphosis continued.

Kyle's eyes grew wider as he watched Michael's face transform into the driver's.

"Fuck *me*!" Kyle said in amazement. Michael looked at himself in the rearview mirror, touching the skin, making faces, admiring his handiwork.

"No thanks," Michael said, imitating the driver's drawl. "I go for the wimmin, if ya know what I mean."

He snickered lightly.

"Oh so you think this is humorous?" Kyle said, irritated. Michael shrugged, a little grin on his new face.

"Glad somebody does," Kyle muttered. "Please tell me, what did I do to deserve getting Mission Impossible with an asshole that can make his head look like fricken Silly Putty?"

"You wish you could do it," Michael retorted.

"Uh....that'd be a *NO*," Kyle said, looking out the window.

"Whatever. It's gonna get us past their guards, so shut up," Michael answered.

He put the truck into gear again and hit the gas, taking a deep breath as he saw a truck parked at the side of the road right off the bridge.

"Here goes nothing," he said quietly, tossing Kyle a baseball hat that was lying on the seat. Put that on and make like your sleeping. Face the window," he said.

Kyle took the hat and pulled it over his eyes, slouching down against the window.

Michael slowed the truck as his headlight revealed a man hopping out of the truck.

Michael stopped and rolled down his window as the man came over.

"Evenin' Earle," the man said.

"Hey," Michael answered.

"Find anything out there?" he asked.

"What do you think?" Michael asked wryly, improvising.

"What's up with Jimmy?" the man asked, motioning with his head to Kyle in the passenger seat.

"Dumbass went and hit his head on a branch when he was taking a piss in the woods," Michael answered dryly.

"How the hell did he do that?" the guy asked.

"Dunno. Said something came out of the bushes and it scared the crap outta him," Michael said.

The guy shook his head.

"Just bringing him back," Michael said.

The guy waved them through, and as soon as Michael moved past the man, Kyle shot him an annoyed look.

"What the hell do you always have to make me out to be the idiot for?" he asked.

"Hey. When you can change your face, then talk to me. It's all I could think of," Michael said, irritated.

Kyle sighed, annoyed. "Whatever. Just drive."

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%

Michael drove down the dark road leading toward the Clubhouse, the huge mansion-like building that was once the playground of the rich and famous years ago. It had since been turned into a hotel, Liz had told them.

He saw the lights of the main building behind an expanse of trees.

"So where the hell is this Horton House?" Michael asked.

"A little further," Kyle answered. "I don't even think much of it's standing anymore. That's what Liz said anyway. I don't even know if that's where they're actually keeping Serena. We only know what she told Isabel," Kyle said.

"We'll find her," Michael said, glancing at him.

"I just hope it's not too late," Kyle muttered.

Kyle checked the map again.

"We should stop here and go on foot," he said.

"Wait, we should just wait for the others," Michael said.

"No I want to see what we're dealing with. We should check it out first, so we know what we're getting into," Kyle said.

Michael nodded, pulling the truck over and turning it off.

They quietly got out and moved away from the road, travelling parallel with it.

Kyle moved ahead quickly, putting distance between himself and Michael. He couldn't help but worry about this sudden feeling of nervousness that had invaded his mind. Was she ok?

Michael kept his distance behind Kyle, keeping him in site, carefully noting the terrain around him so that they would be able to find their way back when the time came.

His thoughts drifted to Maria. He felt a little thrill race through his body at the small kiss she had placed on his cheek.

He chided himself at it. It was just a small kiss. But it had taken him aback. Just as the soft kiss she'd given him in the woods had stunned him.

He didn't know why it was affecting him. She was over-dramatic. She was a pain in the ass. She was a smart ass. She was....God, she was so cute.

He growled at himself softly.

What the hell was wrong with him? He was letting her get to him. The little slip of a girl that had the nerve to straighten herself as much as her diminutive height would allow to get in his face to tell him he was being an ass. She was a wise-ass just like he was.


He couldn't help but admire it, especially after what she'd been through, after what that skin had done to her. Again, he wondered what horror lingered after it had happened. Kyle had said she never talked about it. He felt a sudden irrational anger at what had happened to her. How did she feel being here now, in "Skin Central"? She had o be scared. He found himself wishing that that he, Max and Isabel had found them earlier. He would have made sure that that skin never touched anyone again.

But why was he letting anyone get to him? He'd promised himself a long time ago that he'd never get that close to anyone, never allow himself to care about anyone other than Max and Isabel. He couldn't afford it. Living with Hank had taught him that. Hank had taught him that feeling anything was a weakness. He'd taught him that having feelings, showing any feelings would only get you hurt. And so he shut himself off from everyone, even Isabel and Max. They never knew half of what went on in that trailer, and he didn't want them to know. They'd helped him emancipate himself after Max found him skipping school one day with a bruise that he couldn't heal. They could guess, but that was all they knew for sure. And he kept it that way. He didn't want anyone, most of all Max and Isabel feeling sorry for him, or doing something to Hank that would bring attention to him. He knew Isabel too well.

With that thought, he realized that he and Maria had yet something else in common. Keeping things from the people they cared about to save them from trouble.

He wished he'd handled her last kiss, her last words to him better than he had, but he knew himself well enough to know that had he a chance to do it all over again, it would have went down the same way. He just wasn't a verbal guy, or a guy who was used to, or even liked people being concerned for him.

But this time, somewhere inside of him, he was glad that Maria was worried. Maybe it was because no one really knew what was going to happen tonight, as much as they all put the front up that they were going to be in and out of here, no sweat. The truth was, no one knew what was going to happen, or who was going to come out of this alive. And maybe he liked the fact that there was someone left out there, someone outside of Max and Isabel, the people he considered his family.

He shouldn't even be thinking about this. The world was a mess, and only getting Serena out of here alive would give them any hope of fixing it.

*%*%*%*%*%%*%*%*%

After a good twenty minutes of walking, Kyle saw a flash of light through the trees. Quietly, he approached it, knowing that they were close.

The sense of nervousness had spiked to a fever pitch as he began to see the outline of the ruined estate ahead of him. Makeshift spotlights running on gasoline generators were posted around the perimeter. He could hear the cranky sound of the motors giving them power. That was an advantage. They were loud, and the skins would be less likely to hear anything in the woods, namely them.

He saw a sentry walk past, half-heartedly eyeing the surrounding brush. Maybe they would get lucky after all.

A small crack next to him caused him to turn his head. He started for a moment, seeing an unfamiliar face, and then remembered it was Michael.

"Can't you get rid of that mug?" he whispered. "It's making me jumpy."

"Might need to use it again," Michael whispered back. "You never know who we're going to run into."

Kyle nodded.

"So, what do you think? How do we get in there?" he asked, seeing ruined steps leading down into the foundation. It was probably what used to be a cellar.

"We wait, for now," Michael said.

"Guerin, we don't have time...." Kyle started.

"Look, if we get caught, it's all over. We need to know exactly what we're dealing with before we do anything," Michael answered in a low voice.

Kyle knew he was right, but it didn't ease the nervousness any. All he could think of was Serena, in some cold, dark and dank place. She was probably hurt and terrified, and he had promised her. He had promised her. He wasn't going to let her down.

A half-hour later, they had seen another sentry, and one other skin that had come up from the cellar.

The sense of foreboding pushed Kyle into action. He couldn't wait any longer.

"I'm going in," he whispered.

"Are you crazy?" Michael spat back. "I thought we were going to wait for Max."

"We don't have time for that Michael. You can stay here if you want, but I'm going," he said, getting up.

Michael shook his head angrily, but wasn't going to let him go alone.

Silently, they made their way around the perimeter until they had a clear view of the stairwell.

"How do we know who's down there?" Michael asked quietly.

"We don't," Kyle answered.

"So how do we know exactly what we're walking into?" Michael said.

"We don't. But we don't have a choice," Kyle said.

"Yeah, we do. We can wait for the others," Michael argued.

"Guerin, I told you, wait if you want, but I'm going in," Kyle answered stubbornly.

Michael's lips tightened.

"Fine, I'll go first. You follow, and keep that hat over your eyes," he said. "This face might just get us out alive."

He took a final look to make sure that the sentries weren't in sight, and stepped out into the clearing cautiously, Kyle right behind him.

They walked quickly to the stairs. The spotlights that lit the clearing didn't reach the stairwell, and all that could be seen below was an inky blackness.

Michael glanced back at Kyle, and took the first step.

They moved quickly and quietly down into the darkness and turned left. Michael held his hand out palm up and the corridor was lit with an eerie green glow. The corridor seemed to go on forever into nothiness.

They moved slowly, listening for any sound ahead that might alert them to someone waiting.

Only silence met their ears.

For what seemed like an eternity, they walked cautiously.

Kyle saw that as they moved on, the rock walls became damp, covered in the green slime of moss that sialed the humidity that prevailed.

To their left, they spotted a door. Moving quickly, they approached it. Kyle let out a disappointed breath. The door had rotted with age, mold making the wood soft to the touch. The small barred window at eye level revealed a long empty cell, the floor dirt, the smell of decay faint.

"How far do you think this thing goes?" Kyle asked Michael.

"Who knows?" Michael said. "This could be a whole underground labyrinth for all we know."

"That's a comforting thought," Kyle muttered, receiving no response from Michael.

As they moved on intermittent doors became more frequent, though none of them led to Serena. The corridor twisted and turned, making sense of direction virtually impossible.

Suddenly, Michael stopped, dismayed.

"Now what?" he asked. In front of them, the corridor branched in into two paths, both leading in opposite directions.

"Shit," Kyle breathed.

After a moment's silence, Kyle spoke.

"We each take one of them I guess," he said.

"I'm not so sure that's a good plan," Michael answered. "Maybe we should turn back and wait for the others."

Kyle's look silenced Michael.

"Look, I'll meet you back here in ten minutes," Kyle said. "Just check it out."

Michael again shook his head as he watched Kyle head off to the left.

He had a really bad feeling about this.

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%


Maria saw the lights of the bikes in the distance before they blinked out.

"They're here," she said to Doug, crossing her arms worriedly over her chest.

"Let's go meet them," Doug replied, putting a comforting hand on Maria's shoulder.

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%

Liz felt a small pang of sadness that they had reached their destination. Max hadn't said anything to her since they'd turned off the main road, and she couldn't help but be hurt.

She knew that he was frustrated with his weakness, and she understood that. But it didn't change the fact that he'd been angry with all of them for changing the plans and not letting him use his powers.

He slowed the bike. Ahead they could see Doug and Maria waiting on the side of the road. Alex passed them with Isabel, and engine idling, Max watched Maria jump on Alex as he got off the bike.

He felt the hurt rolling of off Liz as she remained silent behind him.

Switching the engine off, he popped the stand for the bike and got off. He waited as she got off the back, and felt a pang of dismay as she continued walking past him.

He grabbed her arm gently.

"Liz, wait...." he said.

She halted, not turning toward him.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

She turned slowly to face him.

She stood completely still, just looking at him.

Max ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. He knew she had every right to feel the way that she did.

He stepped closer to her, taking her hand.

"I know I'm not being fair," he said, looking into her eyes. "It's just....frustrating. I shouldn't have snapped at you."

She nodded, looking at the ground.

Sighing, he pulled her gently to his chest, wrapping his arms around her. Over her shoulder, he saw Isabel turn and give him a pointed look. He looked away. He wasn't going to feel guilty. He wasn't doing anything wrong.

His fingers lost themselves in her hair as he gently touched her forehead with his lips.

Her voice was muffled against his jacket.

"Max, I can accept that things can't go any further between us for now. I understand that. But I don't think I can take you shutting me out, and that's what I felt like you've been doing since we last stopped. she said.

"I know," he said quietly. "I'm sorry."

She felt her arms trail around his waist lightly, and he felt that now altogether familiar pang of desire run through his veins. He shut his eyes, trying to get control of it.

"Don't do it again Max," she said in a rough voice, and he smiled softly.

"Lizzie!" Maria called out, and Max reluctantly let Liz go.

Together, they walked the short distance.

Liz caught the worry in Maria's eyes as she embraced her friend.

"Are you ok?" Liz asked her.

Maria pulled back.

"I'm fine," she said. "But I'm worried about Kyle and Michael."

"What do you mean?" Max said, glancing over at Isabel.

"They left like almost three hours ago. They said that they were just going to check things out, but they never came back," she said.

"Why didn't they wait?" Max asked, half-concerned, half-angry.

"Kyle's been having these dreams....about Serena. He said that she was in danger. I hope they didn't do anything rash," he said, troubled.

"What do you mean?" Isabel asked, concerned.

"I don't know," Doug said.

"You don't think they tried to go in by themselves do you?" Alex said.

No one said anything, as the obvious hung over them.

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%

Michael turned back in the direction he had come when he hit a dead end. All of the doors down this corridor led into empty cells.

A sense of unease was growing in his gut as he made his way back to the junction. Something wasn't right, he could feel it in his bones.

As he reached the juncture, he stopped, looking around for Kyle. He checked his watch. It had been fifteen minutes. Where the hell was he?

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%

Kyle heard muffled voices as he continued down the murky passageway. He was getting close. He could feel it.

A dim light grew ahead of him, and he pressed himself as close to the wall as he could, slowly making his way forward.

"Is he going to get rid of her tonight?" one voice said.

"Who knows?" another answered. "I've given up trying to figure out what he's going to do."

"Guess it doesn't matter much anyway. She doesn't look like she'll last much longer."

Kyle peered around the corner he'd come upon and spied two men sitting at an old table. To their left was another cell door.

She had to be in there. He could sense it.

Drawing his gun, he waited to make his move.

"I can't wait until this is all over. This husk is really getting to me. It's drying out, I can feel it," one of them said.

"Won't be too much more of a wait. Once Khivar wraps things up here, it's only a matter of time before we'll never have to worry about that again."

"Can't be too soon for me," the other said.

"It'll never happen," Kyle said, stepping around the corner, letting off two short bursts with his pistol before the men ever had a chance to draw a weapon.

Quickly he went to the door, peering in. He didn't see anyone, and he cursed.

Stepping back, he kicked the semi-rotted door twice and it gave way.

As he walked into the cell, he looked to his right, and the sight that greeted him made him want to throw up. For curled into a ball on the floor was Serena.

"Jesus," Kyle said, falling to his knees next to her. Her hair covered her face, but the front of her clothes were covered in blood.

"Serena," he said gently, pushing her hair away from her face.

He shut his eyes against what was in front of him.

Her face was barely recoizable, her eye swollen shut. A long gash streaked across her neck, crusty with dried blood. Black bruises spread across her face, and he could hear the wheeze of blood in her breathing.

"Kyle," she said softly.

His heart fell as he saw the damage that had been done to her.

"Son of a bitch," he ground out. They'd beat her to a pulp.

He wanted to kill whoever had done this. He wanted to take all of it away, what she'd been through.

"Serena," he said again, his voice quavering. She moaned slightly, and then was still.

"I'm going to get you out of here," he said. "I have to lift you, ok?" he said quietly, trying to keep his emotions in check in seeing her in such a state.

Carefully positioning his arms underneath her, he gently lifted her off the floor, careful not to hit her legs in the doorway, and started back up the passage.

"It's going to be ok," he said to himself as much as to her.

"Everything's going to be ok. We're getting out of here."

He stiffened as he saw a figure ahead.

"Valenti, where the hell have you been?" Michael hissed. "You said ten minutes!"

And then Michael saw Serena, and his eyes widened.

"What the hell did they do to her?" he asked.

"I don't know, let's just get her out of here," Kyle said roughly.

Michael led the way back up the corridor quickly, Kyle taking care not to jostle her.

As they came up the steps, they immediately noticed that the spotlights had gone dark.

"I don't like this," Michael said.

"Just keep moving," Kyle answered.

Suddenly they were bathed in light.

For a moment all was still. And then all hell broke loose.

Gunfire erupted from the underbrush and Kyle instinctively fell to his knees, holding onto Serena.

Michael held out his hand toward the undergrowth where the shots were originating, and immediately, they burst into flames. Agonized cries rang out as two bodies launched themselves from the cover, engulfed in flames.

"Get her out of here!" Michael shouted to Kyle.

"What about you?" he said, cradling Serena to his chest.

"I'll meet you back at the truck. Just go!" he yelled.

Kyle didn't hesitate, rushing toward the other end of the clearing. A moment later he disappeared. Michael launched another power burst at three other men who appeared with guns out of the trees.

Rushing toward where he'd seen Kyle disappear, he didn't even see the lone sentry positioned diagonally.

A deafening shot rang out, and a blinding heat in his back pushed Michael to the ground.

He let out a yell of pain as he felt his face turning, re-melding itself.

He lay there, engulfed in agony, his vision blurry.

A harsh laugh rang out, and he squinted to see where it originated from.

"Well, well, well, this is a day I thought I'd never see," a deep voice said, and Michael looked up, focusing on the face above him.

Crystalline blue eyes looked at him musingly. A mane of golden blond hair fell down the man's back and over powerful shoulders.

"Welcome Rath," he said, and Michael laid his head back in defeat.

Khivar.

*%*%*%*%*%*%*%*%%*

Kyle heard Michael's shout of pain as he hurried through the trees.

They'd felled him, Kyle was certain.

Serena moaned again as he carefully maneuvered her body through the underbrush.

He continued on, hoping against hope that he was heading in the right direction.

His progress was slower coming out than when they came in, as he tried not to worsen any of her injuries. His hand cradled her head to his neck as he prayed that he wasn't being followed.

Twenty minutes later, he reached the truck. He laid Serena gently in the passenger seat and closed the door, uncertain what to do. He couldn't go back for Michael. He'd be surrounded.

This was all his fault. Michael was right, they should have waited.

The best thing he could do was to get help from the others.

His decision made, he jumped into the driver's seat, starting the engine.

Driving as fast as he dared, he sped up the road toward the bridge, lights off.

As he approached, he saw the door of the sentry's truck open. He had only one chance at this.

The man moved into the road, and Kyle slowed up. He threw the hat back on and pulled his gun, holding it steady out his window.

He aimed as carefully as he could, and let off a round. The man was knocked off his feet by the hit, and Kyle hit the gas again, feeling the thump as the tires ran over the body. He quickly turned the headlights on.

At breakneck speed, he drove over the bridge. Keeping a watchful eye on Serena, who still remained unconscious.

The whirring of the older concrete gave way to newer blacktop with a thump.

He watched the side of the road frantically, not wanting to miss where they'd turned off earlier.

A moment later, he saw it.

The truck veered off the road, the headlights revealing the bikes and his friends, who were starting to draw their weapons.

"Don't shoot! It's me!" he yelled, jumping out.

"I've got her," he said shakily, as Liz and Doug ran to the passenger side.

"Where's Michael?" Isabel asked.

"I don't know. I think he's been captured," Kyle answered.