The Salvation

Liz released the memory of Maria's kitten scratching her lip when Liz was using a piece of string to play with it. She released the raw fury at her papa that she was shocked to find still had a place in her heart.

Her body began to feel lighter. She didn't lift her head to see if anything was happening. She kept calling up the memories, then letting them go. Calling them up, letting them go. Feeling the power of gravity release her. Feeling her heart stop beating. Feeling her lungs stop taking in air.

And then blackness.

And then silvery light.

Liz didn't even know how she was seeing the light. For she had no eyes. No body. No way to sense anything. But somehow she was experiencing silvery light.

The light shattered into silvery splinters, and Liz realized they were stars. She was surrounded by them.

Maybe we're the binary pair we saw that night out in the desert. Liz didn't know how she heard the words, any more than she knew how she was the stars. But she knew the words were from Max.

The closest star expanded and took on a new shape. Max. A shining silver Max. He reached out and touched her face with his glittery fingers, and she realized she did have a body after all, or at least she did now-a body like his, more glow than substance.

She pulled him to her, embraced him, never wanting to let him go. For an instant their bodies became one blinding star, then separated into the glowing forms again.

We need to get back. The others might need us, Max communicated soundlessly.

Liz laughed, feeling the laughter but not hearing it. You're still Mr. Responsible. It's one-one of the many-things I love about you.

Yeah, I know, Max communicated. I know a lot of things now. We're going to have to… talk about those fantasies you've been having.

Max took her hand. He pointed at a small blue ball far below them. Earth. Then Liz felt her molecules dissolve again, dissolve and mix with Max's.

"Oh, my God! Look!" Maria cried over the sound of the wormhole. "Am I seeing what I think I'm seeing?"

"Max!" Isabel exclaimed.

"I guess I am!" Maria shouted. This was… phenomenal. That was the only word for it. Max and Liz had teleported into the museum, arms wrapped around each other, looking so happy, so love struck, that they almost glowed. Without letting go of each other, they stumbled toward the wall where Maria and the others had strapped themselves. They squeezed in between Maria and Isabel.

Maria grabbed Liz around the waist and held on tight to keep her from being sucked into the hole. She snagged a piece of Max's shirt with her other hand, and he smiled at her, his eyes bright and alert and Max-ified.

"Hi, everyone," he yelled.

"You guys are late. We've pretty much done everything without you," Michael shouted. Even through the noise Maria could hear the raw relief in his voice.

"We're not going to be able to keep the hole open much longer," Trevor shouted.

Maria felt like Trevor had picked up a baseball bat and bashed her over the head with it. The joy at seeing Max back, whole and just him, gushed out of her like blood from a wound. She was still happy for him and Liz in an intellectual sort of way. Ecstatic, really, even though she couldn't feel the ecstasy right now.

How could she? Michael was going to leave. And any chance Maria had of ever experiencing that Max-and-Liz kind of love was going with him. Maria knew she'd never love anyone else the way she loved Michael. It was impossible.

"Isabel?" Trevor called out. "Are you coming?"

Isabel wrapped her arms tighter around Max, her fingers brushing Maria's.

"I can't," she answered. "My family is here. My whole family." She smiled at Maria. "I can't leave."

Trevor unfastened the straps holding him to the wall. He wrapped one of them around his fist to keep him from flying into the wormhole immediately.

"Isabel, I… I'll come back. I don't know how long it will take, but I promise I will."

"Yeah," Michael shouted. He unfastened his straps and grabbed onto Trevors shoulder. "Let's go!"

That's it? Maria thought. That's it? He said one word to all of us. One yeah. And that's it?

She knew she should feel angry. But she didn't feel anything. She was sure she'd never feel anything ever again. How could she? Her heart was broken.

THIRTEEN

Michael tightened his grip on Trevor's shoulder. This was it. He was going home. He was glad there wasn't time for a lot of good-bye bull. It wasn't as if Max wouldn't know that Michael was happy he made it out alive. He didn't have to make some speech. It wasn't as if Izzy wouldn't know that he'd think about her every day if he didn't say it. It wasn't as if Maria-

He didn't intend to do it, but Michael turned his head, wanting just one more look. His eyes met Maria's, and even though he hadn't touched her, hadn't gotten close to touching her, a co

Images of Maria shot into him with the impact of bullets. Maria telling him how she loved lavender crayons when she was a little girl. Maria fiercely demanding that Trevor tell her what he'd done to her brother. Maria helping Michael move from one foster home to another, whether he wanted her to or not. Maria snorting soda out her nose during the part of Evil Dead 2 where the guy breaks dishes over his own head. Maria crying while watching Starman. Maria being tortured by Elsevan DuPris. Maria asleep in the front seat of his car, raspberry lips gently parted.

They're all roots, Michael realized. Each memory of Maria was a root she'd put down in his body. He tried to turn his head, tried to break the co

Using all his energy, Michael forced his eyes shut. But he could still see Maria looking at him. Maria looking at him as if he was her entire universe.

"Michael, what's wrong?" Trevor called.

Too many roots, he thought. If Michael left, all those roots would pull free, pulling pieces of him with them. There wouldn't be anything left but broken, useless chunks.

He opened his eyes and faced his brother. "I can't do it. I'm sorry."

Trevor stared at him a long moment, then nodded. "Nothing to be sorry about," he answered. He glanced at the wormhole. "It's about to close. I have to go. I wish I didn't, but-"

"They need you," Michael finished for him. He tried to hand his brother the Stone of Midnight, but Trevor pushed it away.

"You keep it," he said. He grabbed one of the loose straps and pushed it into Michael's hand. Michael tightened his fingers around it, then released his grip on his brother's shoulder.

Trevor turned to Isabel, smiled, then let go of his own strap. Instantly his feet flew off the ground. He raised his arms over his head in a gesture of triumph as he was pulled up into the wormhole, up, up, and then out of sight.

The hole closed behind him, the sudden change in pressure making Michael's ears pop. No one spoke for a moment, then everyone started jabbering at once. The words swirled around Michael-"How did you…," "You were going to go…," "Your molecules were…" He ignored them. He let go of the strap, and in two long strides he was in front of Maria.

Her eyes were on her knotted safety harness. She didn't look up, although he was sure she knew he was there. "I guess it finally sank in that Max and Isabel are your family, too. I know that you and Trevor are brothers, and I'm sure you'll see him again, but Max and Isabel-"