Michael stood up, took Isabel by the shoulders, and sat her down on the bed next to Maria. He leaned against the dresser with his arms crossed-his don't-jerk-me-around stance. "From the beginning," he instructed. "And don't leave anything out."
"Last night Nikolas and I hung out at the bowling alley," Isabel said. "But it was sort of after closing time."
"Translation-you broke in," Michael said. "And?"
"And we fooled around. We had some food. We bowled with pool balls," Isabel answered. She knew she had to get to the part about the security guard, but it was hard.
"And?" Michael repeated.
"And then this security guard almost caught us, so Nikolas used his powers to knock him out," Isabel blurted. "But he's fine. Nikolas didn't really hurt him. Liz said Sheriff Valenti said-"
"Wait. Back up. How did Valenti get into this story?" Michael demanded.
"Valenti asked Liz some questions about what happened. He thinks…" Isabel found she couldn't look at Michael or Maria.
"He thinks that an alien took out the guard," Michael finished for her.
"Right," Isabel admitted. She glanced over at Maria. What was she thinking? She hadn't said one word since Isabel came in.
"I guess we need to have a meeting," Maria said slowly. "I guess we need to come up with another plan to deal with Valenti."
Thank you, Maria, Isabel thought. At least there was one person who wasn't going to yell at her. Maria reminded Isabel a little of Tish. They both always wanted to believe the best of people.
"Before we start working on a plan, I think Isabel has something else to tell us. Right, Iz?" Michael asked.
Damn, she thought. Michael could always do that. He not only knew when Isabel was lying, he knew when she was bending the truth or choosing not to tell everything. Michael knew her better than anyone else in the world. It's like he could see right into her soul with those sharp gray eyes of his.
"Max and Liz came home a little while ago. Nikolas was there with me. Max got all righteous, the way he always does. He started telling Nikolas what to do. And Nikolas was, like, why should he listen to Max? Which is true."
Isabel took a deep breath. Her chest felt tight. "So then Nikolas tried to show Max, even though he didn't have to, that he really didn't hurt the guard. He… he touched Liz and knocked her out. I think he accidentally did it a little harder than he meant to. He was angry. He just wanted to prove-"
"What?" Michael exploded.
"He knocked out Liz?" Maria cried. "Is she all right?"
"Liz is fine. Max healed her," Isabel explained. "It was stupid of Nikolas. Really stupid. I'm going to talk to him about it."
And she would, too. If she could make Nikolas understand how it felt to see Liz lying there on the floor, with those little drops of blood on her face… He would never do anything like that again. She was sure he wouldn't.
And it's not as if he really hurt Liz. Not permanently or anything. He just knocked her out. She was fine.
"No, you aren't going to talk to him," Michael said, his voice cold. "You are not getting within ten feet of that guy ever again."
Isabel turned to Maria. She understood, didn't she? "Nikolas didn't mean-"
"I don't want to hear it," Maria snapped. "I can't believe you still want to hang out with a guy who would do that to Liz."
"And I can't believe you're both being so judgmental," Isabel answered. "You're not even giving Nikolas a chance."
She sprang off the bed and ran out of the room. She didn't want to hear one more word from either of them.
Isabel slammed out of the house and headed down the street. She walked fast, arms swinging. Then she started to run, pushing herself to go faster and faster. She focused on the feel of her feet slamming down on the pavement, the burning sensation building in her lungs, the pounding of her heart.
She tried to lose herself in the physical sensations. But she couldn't block out the memory of Liz lying motionless on the ground or Max yelling at her, ordering her never to see Nikolas again. Or Michael's cold voice insisting that she was going to stay away from Nikolas.
They were treating her like she was a little kid. They wouldn't even listen to her when she told them that she would talk to Nikolas about what he did. She would sit him down and tell him the whole story of how Liz, Maria, and Alex risked their lives to help fight Valenti. She would make Nikolas listen. She would make him understand. She knew she could do it.
But no, they didn't trust her enough to think that she could handle things on her own. They thought they had to step in and start issuing orders. They thought she was reckless and stupid-they'd always felt that way about her.
Well, Isabel wasn't going to take it anymore. They didn't trust her, even when she behaved exactly the way they wanted her to. So why bother trying to make them happy?
She turned onto her street and slowed to a jog. She heard a motorcycle roaring up behind her.
Nikolas. He wanted her to do just what she pleased. He didn't want to hold her back, or make her be careful, or tell her what to do.
She spun around and raced over to him. She hurled herself into his arms.
Isabel had always laughed at girls who climbed all over their boyfriends. She thought they looked desperate. Pathetic.
But now she understood how they felt. She needed Nikolas, like she needed air in her lungs. Waiting for even a minute left her gasping. She couldn't give him up. Not for anyone.
"I'm kicking you out, okay? I forgot there's something I've got to do." Michael practically pushed Maria out the front door. "Thanks for helping me pack and everything."
"Uh, okay. Bye," Maria said. He shut the door behind her, then headed straight for the phone. He was calling Max, and they were going to find Nikolas. Now. There was no way Michael would let Nikolas get away with what he did to Liz. It didn't matter that Liz wasn't hurt. No one touched a member of Michael's family and got away with it.
Michael punched in Max's number. It rang a couple of times, then the answering machine picked up. Michael slammed down the phone. He couldn't wait for Max to get home. He hesitated for a second, then dialed Alex's number.
Alex answered on the second ring. Michael quickly filled him in.
"I'm picking you up," Alex said. He hung up before Michael could say another word.
Michael grabbed his jacket from his room, then stationed himself in front of the picture window that looked out over the street. At least the Hugheses weren't home, so he wouldn't have to answer any questions about where he was going.
His foster parents hadn't been around much since Mr. Cuddihy gave Michael the news that he'd be moving to another foster home. One night they went to the movies; one night they went over to a friend's for dinner. But Michael thought those were really just excuses to get out of the house, to get away from him. It was totally obvious Mrs. Hughes was uncomfortable around him now. She almost looked embarrassed if she ran into him in the hall. Mr. Hughes basically ignored him. Which was fine with Michael. It was better than always being in the middle of some stupid power struggle with the guy.
Michael spotted Alex's Rabbit turn down the street. He bolted out the door. The second he stepped outside, he smelled it. The thick ozone-rich smell of power being used. A moment later he felt the familiar buzzing tingle in his body. All the hairs on his arms stood straight up.
Not good, he thought as he trotted over to Alex's car. This is not at all good. He climbed into the passenger seat and slammed the door. Alex peeled out, barely waiting for Michael to put on his seat belt.