"Oh, I almost forgot," Kyle said, holding out the photo. "I found this in the van," he added.
Dan took the picture and looked down. He was so startled when he saw the image, it looked to Kyle like Dan had just been struck. The color drained from his face, and he stared down blankly. Then he turned the photo over and read the back. Something moved on Dan's face and for a terrible moment, Kyle was afraid that his boss was going to burst into tears in front of him. Then Dan swal- lowed down whatever he was feeling, and his face was once again unreadable. Turning, he walked out toward the back door and said in a tight voice, "Get to work Kyle.”
Kyle stared after him for a moment, then he picked up the exhaust pipe he needed for his first car of the day and got started.
"Can you kids paint?" Bell asked.
Max nodded.
"Sure," Michael said.
"The outside?" Isabel asked.
Max had also noticed that the outside of the place needed it.
"I was going to wait until Sam got around to it, but I'm not getting any younger." Bell said.
"The front, side, and the back?" Michael asked.
"Yes, might as well do the whole thing," Bell said.
"It's pretty chipped. We'll probably have to scrape and prime it before we paint," Max said.
The building was red brick underneath but it had been painted many times since it was built. The last coat was white, but other colors showed through in a number of places as well as the original red brick.
"Just make it look nice. Match the white if you can. There's a ladder in the basement and some tools. Sam will show them to you. Then go see Harry at the hardware store to get whatever else you need. Tell him it's for me and that he can put it on my account," Bell said.
Then she turned toward the kitchen and shouted, "Sam!" A few minutes later they were rummaging around the basement, wading through old restaurant equipment. They found a tall, extendable ladder as well as a six-foot stepladder. There were also some drop cloths, old rollers, and one brush. They would be able to use all of it, and it would save Bell some money.
At the hardware store, Harry had looked at them with dis- trust. Max didn't mind. He was used to it in this town. And knowing what he did about what was happening here, he understood it.
But once Harry had called Bell, he had been helpful, if not particularly friendly.
Less than half an hour later, they were putting on three pairs of painter's overalls.
"I'll take the ground level," Isabel said.
Max put the extendable ladder in position, grabbed a scraper, and started climbing. They were working on the side of the building and Max started on the top left. He scraped at the chipped paint while Isabel did the same on the ground and Michael did the same from the stepladder.
The prep work is most of the job, his father's voice said in his head. Do it right, or you’ll be back at it again in an year. The sum- mer after sixth grade, his father had taught him to paint.
"Don't overwork it, Max," Isabel said from below. It was more of his father's advice.
When he looked down, he saw his sister; there was a slight smile on her face. He found himself returning it.
That summer when Max was thirteen and Isabel four- teen, Dad had announced that they were going to paint the house. Still, he was thirteen and there was a certain procedure for these things, so Max had protested. Isabel had too, but the next day the three of them were outside, surrounded by equipment and paint.
It was a clear day, early in the summer. And since it was pretty early in the morning (which had been a real sore point for Isabel), it was not hot yet. A few minutes into the job, Michael had shown up dressed in old shorts and a T-shirt.
"Glad you could make it, Michael," Dad had said.
"Sure," Michael replied.
No protests. Michael actually wanted to be there, Max had marveled. Well, Max knew things were tough with his foster father. Michael was hanging around more and more. Max's parents acted as if it was perfectly normal. In fact, they had taken to inviting him over themselves. A wave of feeling washed over him. He was surprised to find that he missed his parents.
He shook it off. It had only been a couple of days…
Yet, it would be much longer before he saw either of them again. Maybe never. He felt a stab in his stomach at that. It surprised him. Things had been rough with Mom and Dad after his and Liz's arrest for holding up the conven- ience store. Max had even moved out to live with Michael.
He had not been able to tell this father the truth about why they had really done it… or the more important truth about who he and Isabel really were. Finally, they had told their parents the whole truth. And then they'd had to leave Roswell, which just wasn't safe for them anymore.
But one summer before all of that… even before Liz… Max, Isabel, and Michael had painted the house with Dad.
And soon, the clear, warm air, the motion of the rollers on the side of the house, and some old rock and roll that was playing on the radio had begun to work on them all. Max had found all of his thirteen-year-old worries fading away. The group began to joke and laugh.
Michael burped once. Then Dad had made it a burping contest. Isabel had pretended to be disgusted at first, but she'd joined the game. In fact, Max remembered that she had won. It was a great summer, Max remembered. And that first day was one of the best days of his life, he realized.
Max glanced down at Isabel and Michael. They were working steadily. Maybe the work would take Isabel's mind off things.
Reminding himself to ask Bell if they could borrow a radio, Max got back to work.
16
Hey time to take a break, mister," Liz said from down below, a smile on her face.
Max climbed down as the others put down their tools. Shaking off the dust and paint chips, Michael said, "You know, we'd be done already if we used out powers.”
"That would be low profile," Isabel said.
"Just a thought," Michael said, raising his hands and smiling.
Max quickly scanned the wall. They had almost fin- ished scraping it smooth. As a result, they had made many patches that were bare brick or half a dozen different col- ors. It was already after the lunch rush now. With a break to eat, Max figured they would finish scraping the side and maybe the front by the end of the day.
"How's it going?" Liz said.
"We'll be at it a few days," Max said.
"I think it's nice. Bell really appreciates it," Liz said.
"Well, we appreciate the food," Max said.
"And you want to keep an eye on me," Liz said seriously.
Max shrugged as Michael said, "I would really appreci- ate some food about now.”
Inside, Max saw Jimmy sitting by the window of the nearly empty diner. The boy looked like he hadn't moved since that morning, when Max had seen him last. Jimmy was still looking out with the same forlorn stare. Max felt a stab of guilt at how much he had enjoyed working outside with his friends while Jimmy was inside thinking about his sister and worrying… with very good reason, Max knew.
Suddenly, he knew he had to help Jimmy, and the name- less others in town who were lost or who had lost loved ones. Just two days ago, he had said to Liz that he thought his path in life might be to use his powers to make a difference… to try to help people. Well, in front of Max was a person who needed help as badly as anyone he had ever seen. Helping him might be dangerous… that much, he had learned from Liz's visions and Isabel's dreamwalk. But since he had come out of the pod, his entire life had been dangerous.
Max didn't know if he really could help, but he knew he would try.
As soon as he finished eating with the group at the diner, Kyle headed back for the garage. He didn't want to do any- thing to tick off Dan. He had clearly upset his boss and he didn't want to add to the trouble. Unless he kept this job, they might never get out of Stonewall.