Greg Cox: Loose ends

"Boy," Alex commented, shaking his head in disbelief. "When did Max turn into such a hard-ass? He was starting to sound like Dirty Harry there."He's just worried about Liz…I think," Maria said doubtfully "The scary part is, we're expecting Michael to be the sensible one?" She gave Liz another encouraging hug, perhaps to reassure herself as much as her shell-shocked best friend. "Well, what do you say, girlfriend? Are you up to blowing this underground popsicle stand? I don't know about you, but I'm ready to see the sun again." She toyed with the silver pendant around her neck. "If cool chicks like us were meant to live underground, then we wouldn't look so great with a tan."Okay, I guess," Liz said. Her legs still felt a little rubbery, but she supposed she could manage to make her way back to the surface again. Maybe III feel less trapped, less frightened, once I get out of these endless caves. A pang of regret stabbed her heart as she wondered whether her upsetting run-in with Morton had ruined the caves for her forever. Only this morning, Carlsbad had represented carefree childhood memories to her; now she just wanted to get as far away from these gloomy caverns as possible.

Her arm around Liz's shoulders, Maria guided Liz out of the grotto, into the press of foot traffic surging through the Big Room. Alex stuck close to Liz as well, so that she was bracketed protectively between her friends as they slowly made their way back toward the rest area. "Isabel?" he called out after a moment or two. "You coming with us?"The glamorous alien teenager shook her head. "Not right away. There's something else I have to do first."Huh?" Alex said, mystified. He lingered upon the trail, blocking traffic somewhat, torn between keeping up with Liz and Maria and finding out what his frequently enigmatic dream girl was planning. "Why? What-?"No questions, Alex," she instructed him decisively. Like her brother, Isabel could seldom be dissuaded once she'd made up her mind. They were royalty, after all, Liz remembered, albeit not from this planet. "Help Maria get Liz to the surface. I'll join you there later."But-?" Alex began, completely disoriented by this baffling turn of events. Liz had to admit that she didn't understand either.

"Just do it, Alex," Isabel insisted, turning her back and heading the other way. Alex strained his neck to keep hei in view, but, within moments, she had disappeared into the milling mob of amateur spelunkers.

"Come on, Alex," Maria said, calling him back to the task at hand; namely, ferrying Liz back to the world above. "I'm sure our friend, the space princess, will find us once she's finished her mysterious alien business." Lowering her voice, she whispered clandestinely into Liz's ear. "What oni earth is that all about?"I have no idea, Liz thought.

Lieutenant David Ramirez, currently assigned to White Sands Missile Range, was wishing he'd never heard of Joe Morton. How the hell did I get mixed up in this mess? he asked himself gloomily, but he already knew the answer. Morton had plenty of dirt on him-the drugs, the gambling, the whole thing-plus connections with enough cash to let Ramirez pay off his debts and start a new life somewhere else if he had to. Blackmail and bribery were a potent combination, one that he had been unable to resist. I should have never opened my mouth about that damn UFO! He leaned against the metal guardrail, staring morosely into the unplumbed depths of the Bottomless Pit, which seemed about as black and abysmal as his current prospects. He had no illusions what would happen to him if his superiors found out about his dealings with Morton. At best, he'd be talking court- martial; at worst, he'd just quietly "disappear" without any fuss, as though he had never existed at all. This was high treason, after all, involving some of the government's most closely-guarded secrets.

Maybe it won't turn out that way, he thought desperately.

Maybe the entire operation will go off as planned. He had to think so, otherwise he might just as well hurl himself into the Pit right now. Think of the money, he told himself, trying hard to look on the bright side. If I don't get caught, if Mor ton comes through with his side of the bargain, III be set for life.

He could just serve out his term of duty, exit the air force with an honorable discharge, then settle down to live a life of luxury someplace very far from here, where no one has ever heard of Roswell or the Crash "Yeah," he murmured wistfully. That was the ticket. Someplace nice and warm, on a beach, maybe, with a big house, big cars, and a sexy babe or two, with long blond hair and built like- "Excuse me, do you have the time?"Startled, he looked up from the Pit to find his fantasy standing right next to him, only inches away. He blinked behind his sunglasses, taken aback by the breathtaking vision that seemed to have stepped right out of his steamier daydreams.

She was young-eighteen, nineteen, probably-and quite simply gorgeous. Lustrous, sandy-blond hair falling down over her shoulders. Glossy, pouting lips. Smooth, flawless skin. Even bundled up against the coolness of the caverns, wearing a partly opened tan suede jacket over a blue cashmere sweater, she obviously possessed the enticing curves of a good, old-fashioned pinup girl. Seductive brown eyes locked onto his, and Ramirez felt his heart skip a beat.

"The time?" she asked again. She had a diroaty, sultry voice that pushed his buttons in all the right ways. He was over six feet tall, but she was tall enough to look him directly in the eyes. Talk about hot! he thought eagerly.

"Oh, yeah, right. No problem," he burbled. Somehow he managed to tear his eyes away from hers long enough to peek at his wristwatch. "It's about 12:45," he told her helpfully.

"Thanks," she said with a smile. Encouragingly, she didn't seem to be in any hurry to move on now that he'd answered her query. "Sorry to bother you, but there's just no way to tell what time it is down here, away from the sky and all." She unzipped her jacket the rest of the way, revealing more of the amply- filled blue sweater underneath. "It's like we've stepped outside of time, you know? Into a whole new world, with completely different rules."I'd like to break a few rules with you, he thought lewdly. Part of him knew he had more important things to worry about than trying to make time with some chick, no matter how sensational she was. Another part of him, however, welcomed the distraction. God knows this babe was easy on the eyes, and a hell of a lot more appealing than Joe Morton. "Yeah," he agreed readily. "This place is pretty impressive, isn't it."I'll say!" she breathed huskily. She leaned over the guardrail, gazing down into the Pit. "Wow, that's a long way down," she exclaimed, then stumbled backward, tottering unsteadily upon her shapely, denim-clad legs while placing a hand over her forehead. "Ooh, I feel dizzy…," she whispered, swooning so dramatically that he had to rush forward to keep her from collapsing onto the floor of the cavern. His arms slid deftly beneath hers as her weight sagged against his chest.

"Hey, there!" he said, feeling her taut body press against his. The heady scent of her hair rilled his nostrils, while his hands gently stroked her back through, in his opinion, far too many layers of clothing. "Are you okay?" he asked, marveling inwardly at his luck. This keeps getting better and better! "I'm fine, I think," she murmured, her head rested on his shoulder. She clung to him for support, perhaps waiting for the dizziness to pass. He was perfectly happy to hold onto her for as long as necessary, and then some. "Just a touch of vertigo." She shivered delectably. "You must think I'm terribly weak."No, not at all," he assured her. As far as he was concerned, her sudden vulnerability just made her sexier. "That's a pretty steep drop-off." He laughed in what he hoped was an irresistibly debonair fashion. "They don't call it the Bottomless Pit for nothing."She lifted her head to look up at him with grateful brown eyes. A devastating smile melted away the worries of the day, at least for the moment. "That's sweet of you to say so," she declared, "but I'll bet you're never afraid of heights."How could he resist a cue like that? "Actually, I'm a test pilot," he volunteered, "for the air force."Really!" Her awestruck tone was a tonic to his ego, which had been seriously battered by recent events. Never jails, he thought smugly Chicks love the whole Top Gun thing.