"He's not going to hurt you. If he tries, he's going to have to get through me," Michael promised.
Isabel knew she had to leave the cave sometime, and she'd much rather do it with Michael by her side. "Let's go."
Isabel hauled herself out of the cave. Michael scrambled up a second later. They began the long walk back to the Jeep, and Isabel pulled off the tarp they used for camouflage. They always parked it some distance away from their cave as a precaution. She handed Michael the keys and jumped into the passenger seat. "You drive, okay?" she asked. She just couldn't handle it right now.
"Sure." Michael climbed behind the wheel and backed the Jeep out of the rocky overhang where they hid it. Isabel could hear the mesquite bushes crunching under the tires as they drove back toward the highway.
"How did you get out here, anyway?" she asked.
"Hitched."
"Are we leaving tracks?" she asked. She'd never thought of that before. Were they leaving a trail that could lead Valenti to their cave?
"Too dry out here," Michael answered. "Valenti's just a man, you know. You act like he has superhuman powers or something. If he gets too close, we'll take him out."
She glanced over at Michael. He wasn't kidding.
"What about Liz and Maria?"
Michael didn't answer for a moment. "I think Max is right about Liz. If she was going to talk, she would have done it when Valenti showed her the handprints on that guy's body. But Maria… I don't think she wants to hurt anyone, but she's scared. And that makes her unpredictable."
"She practically said she was going to go to Valenti," Isabel reminded him.
"I bet Liz can handle Maria," Michael said as he swung the Jeep onto the highway. "But if she can't-"
The long wail of a siren cut him off. Isabel's eyes jerked to the rearview mirror. She saw the flashing blue lights of the sheriff's car, and her heart slammed into her ribs. "It's Valenti." She knew he was out here. She knew he would track her down.
Michael pulled over to the side of the road.
"Don't stop. Are you crazy?" Isabel cried.
Michael reached over and grabbed her hand. He squeezed it hard. "I was probably speeding or something. You've got to get a grip. Don't let him see how scared you are."
Isabel tensed as the sound of Valenti's boot heels grew louder. She couldn't bring herself to look over at him when she heard him stop by Michael's side of the Jeep.
"I need you to step out of the car, please," Valenti said, his voice low and even. "Both of you."
What happened to her? Ever since Isabel had stormed out of the house, Max had been able to feel her fear, strong and constant, like a headache. But about an hour ago he'd experienced something more like a hammer to the forehead. A shot of pure terror. He knew something horrible had happened to her.
I hope Michael found her first, Max thought. He couldn't stand the idea of Isabel going through something so terrifying alone. If Michael didn't find her, he would have come back here, Max told himself.
So where were they? He'd expected Isabel to come slamming back into the house a couple of hours after she left-maybe with a new dress or a pint of Ben amp; Jerry's that she would refuse to share with him. That's what she usually did when she had a fight with him or their parents.
Well, maybe he hadn't expected that to happen. It wasn't like he and Isabel had a fight about whose turn it was to wash the dishes. But he'd hoped, he'd really hoped.
"Denial's not just a river in Egypt," he muttered. It was something his mom always said. Max and Isabel were always making fun of her because she had a saying for everything. They'd even made up this game. One of them would come up with a situation, and the other one would have to come up with what Mom would say.
Max glanced at the clock. It was after two in the morning. What could possibly have happened that would stop Isabel from making it home? All he could feel from her was terror-nothing else, no hints about where she could be. He'd called a few of her friends, casually asking if she was there, but he wasn't surprised when they all said no. Izzy was popular. She had a billion more friends than Max. But they were all sort of surface, let's-hang-out-at-the-mall friends, not people she would go to if she had a problem. The only humans Isabel really trusted were their parents.
Man, Isabel, would you just come home already? Max thought. He shouldn't have yelled at her. She was already so freaked, and he'd made it worse.
He could take Dad's car and drive around. Maybe if he went in the right direction, the feelings from Isabel would get stronger. That way he'd be able to track her down. It didn't usually work like that, but Max had to do something. If he stayed in his room one more second, he'd go nuts. His parents would find him curled up in the corner, whispering to himself.
Max grabbed his key ring off the dresser. He decided to go out the window. His dad had X-ray hearing-if Max tried to go out the front door, he'd get busted. Luckily they thought Isabel was already home for the night. He didn't think he'd be able to find an excuse for what he was doing sneaking out after midnight. At least not one that would pass his dad's bull detector.
He slid out the window and hopped into the backyard. He trotted to the low side gate and vaulted over it. As he headed to the driveway he heard his Jeep driving down the street. He'd spent so much time working on the engine, he knew the sound by heart.
Max spun toward the sound. He felt some of the tension drain out of him when he saw that Isabel and Michael were both in the Jeep-until they pulled into the driveway and he saw their faces. All Isabel's lipstick and stuff had worn off-she never let that happen. And Michael's mouth was set in a hard line.
"What?" Max demanded.
"Valenti picked us up," Isabel answered.
"What?" Max exploded.
"He was just doing his usual harass-anyone-under-twenty crap," Michael explained. "But it scared the hell out of both of us."
Michael shot a glance at Isabel. Max gave a small nod, signaling that he had picked up on the fact that Isabel was seriously flipped out.
"I think… I think he could tell there was something wrong," Isabel stammered. "I was acting way too scared for someone… who got stopped for speeding, especially because I wasn't even driving."
Max could see the muscles in Isabel's throat working as she struggled to keep from crying.
"You were fine," Michael told her. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. That's when Max realized she was trembling.
Isabel shook her head. "I made him suspicious. I messed up."
"He probably just thought you were worried you'd get grounded for showing up at home so late," Max said. He didn't really believe it. No one looking at Isabel right now would believe it. But he had to say something. The haunted expression on his sister's face was tearing him up.
Isabel wrapped her arms around herself. "Maybe, maybe you're right," she mumbled. "But we aren't safe for long. Valenti's going to find out about us, I know it. We have to leave town tonight, and we can't ever come back."
"If we bolt, then he'll really be suspicious. We'd end up with every Project Clean Slate agent out there searching for us," Max argued. "Besides, Mom and Dad would be devastated. They'd never get over it."
And I would never see Liz again, he thought. Something was building between them, and he wanted to be around to see what it was.
"Mr. Hughes would probably have a party if I took off," Michael muttered. "But Max is right. It wouldn't be smart."
"If we stay, we have to do something about Maria. She's going to tell Valenti everything-you saw the way she looked at us. And Liz won't be able to stop her," Isabel insisted. "We're not going to be safe as long as any human knows our secret."