The ten minutes that had passed since Mike Donovan escaped from the plane wreck seemed to go by like an
eternity.  He walked close to the canyon wall in fear that he might be spotted if he were to walk out in the open.
The original space craft had been joined by three others and the four continued to circle overhead, shining their
lights downward.

Donovan stopped for a moment, catching his breath and checking Julie's throat for a pulse.  She was still alive,
yet still unconscious.  His biggest fear, at this moment, was that  she would bleed to death before he got the chance
to stop it.  He was looking for a place to hide.

Then he saw it, the small opening in the cliff nearly fifteen feet above where he was standing.  'Don't even try
it' he thought.  He looked back down at Julie and tried to wake her.

"C'mon, Baby.  C'mon!" he said softly, but got no response.

He began to drag her upwards, while climbing the rocky cliff.  In a way, maybe it was better for her to be unconscious
so she could not feel the rough stones scraping her bare legs. Once he reached the caverns opening, he pushed her through, then joined her inside.

Terrance picked up his radio headset and began to speak to the commanders of the other squad ships that had joined him in the search.  He was growing impatient.  For he knew that if he could find Juliet Parrish, Diana would reward him.  Gaining the Supreme Commander's respect meant a great deal to him.

"Spread out more!  Search any local residences!  I want them found!" he ordered.

"Yes, Commander Terrance," the three other captains replied in unison.

"Commander Drew, give me coverage.  I'm going back down to the aircraft to search for clues."

"Yes, sir," the alien replied.

Two squad ships began their decent towards the plane. Once on the ground, Terrance entered the aircraft alone.  He
gave the interior a complete search.  When he was done, he'd found another clue, a man's brown leather jacket with
the name M.S. Donovan embroidered under the internal collar.  He smiled.
 

"QUIET!" he shouted over their arguing.

They looked up at him, mostly startled by his outburst. However, the New Yorkers, Pete Forsythe, Mitchell Loomis,
and Sari James did not flinch.

"Tell them what you know, Dr. Forsythe," Ham said.

Pete stood up on cue.  "My friends here and I went  out and searched the Rockies.  It appears that Mike and Julie
were shot down sometime last night.  I'm afraid I have more bad news.  The plane went up in flames.  We couldn't go down and see if they made it out okay because there were Visitors patrolling the area."

"How can you be sure that was our plane?!" Maggie Blodgett asked.  She was feeling better today and had gotten
over her flu.

"Do you think they're dead?" Robin Maxwell said.

Pete looked at the young woman intently, "I don't  know Ms?"

"I'm Robin," she replied.

Pete gave her a second glance.  She barely looked old enough to have a daughter let alone one who looked
seventeen years old.  "Maybe  your daughter can help us find them.  Doesn't she holograph or something?"

"Sometimes,"  Maggie said. "Usually only before something happens."

Tyler looked at Kyle Bates.  "Get her."

The twenty-three year old slipped out of the room going into the  next.  A moment later, Kyle returned with
Elizabeth, the half human/ half lizard, "Starchild."

"I have to touch something that belongs to them," she said softly.

Maggie handed her a photograph.  "Try this, Elizabeth."

The young woman took the frame and held it as she closed her blue eyes.  In her minds eye, she could see nothing but fire and blood.

"Elizabeth,  honey, what is it?"  Maggie held the now trembling girl.

The Starchild did not respond, but began to cry instead.

After a moment, she spoke.  "There was a fire--"

"We know that!" Damon growled impatiently.

"Shut up, man!"  Kyle flashed him a look. "Let her finish."

"--and there was blood  everywhere!  That's all I could see.  I, I'm sorry."  Her shoulders slumped as if she knew
that she had let her friends down.

Kyle embraced her.  "It's okay, Elizabeth."

"Oh, God!" Maggie cried.  "I can't believe they're dead! I mean, what the hell were they doing down there anyways?"

Ham Tyler did not contain his sarcasm.  "Apparently, taking a joy ride.  I knew I shouldn't have let them two fly
together.  You give 'em a couple of days alone together and they think it's a honeymoon!"

"You're wrong, Ham," she protested.  "This is my fault. I should've taken this trip.  Besides, I  don't  think Julie
had anything to do  with the route change.  I just can't understand why Mike has to be so self-centered!"

"Yeah," he agreed.  "This is all we need, for Bates to find out that Julie has been moonlighting as a resistance
leader!"

Maggie got up from her chair and stepped closer to him to shout in his face.  "Well, I can tell where your concern
lies!  Losing our source of information?! I just lost my best friend!  And if she isn't dead, then she's probably up
there in that hell chamber!!"

"Take it easy, honey,"  Chris Faber stepped forward to console his girlfriend.  But she shuddered pushing him away.

"The wedding's off, Chris."

"Oh, Maggie, c'mon-"

"No!" she said.  "Julie is supposed to be my maid of honor and I'm not getting married without her!"

Pete Forsythe spoke up.  "Look if it'll make you guys feel any better, we'll go back and look for 'em in a few
days."
 

A cool breeze blew  into the small cavern and Donovan shivered.  He sat on the cave's floor, holding the woman in
his arms.  He had taken off his shirt and used it to control Julie's bleeding.  But still, she had not waken.  He was
just thankful that she had made it through the night.  There had only been a few times in his life that he was reminded
how  much he loved her.  If she did survive, would she ever forgive him for what he had put her through?

Suddenly, she stirred and opened her eyes.  She looked around at her surroundings and wondered how she had gotten here or what day it was.  But Donovan didn't see that she was waking up.  He was dozing off himself.  Julie tried to sit up, but he stopped her.

"Don't move.  You've been injured," he said.

The agonizing pain confirmed his words.  "Ugh--" she sighed.  "Where the hell are we at?"

"Shh!"  He cupped a hand over her mouth, pushing her back down, whispering, "Keep your voice  down.  You
remember being shot at in the cargo plane?"

She said, "Yeah."  Again she tried to break free from his embrace.  But he still would not let her move.

"Well, you hit your head pretty bad.  You lost a lot of blood.  And you've been unconscious for a while."

She pushed his arm away, wanting to sit up.  "How long is a while?"

He looked at his watch.  It read nine a.m. pacific time. "About twelve hours.  How are you feeling?"

"I feel like shit!  How do you expect me to feel?!  And why the hell are we hiding in this cave?"

"Because there are Visitors all over looking for us!"

She wanted to cry, whether from being in so much pain, or sheer frustration, she wasn't sure.

"How could you let something like this happen?  Why couldn't you think of me for once?!"

He swallowed trying to resist the feelings of guilt that he'd been feeling.  "Is this the thanks I get for saving
your life?"

She shook her head.  "Gee, and I was sure that coming out here is suicidal in itself."

"Julie, I wanted you to see the scenery," he protested.

If he was trying to suck up to her, it wasn't working.  She took in a deep breath.  "How the hell are we going to
get out of here, Mike?  I bet you haven't even thought about it--"

Did she really take him for a moron?  He was getting annoyed with her lack of faith in him.  "For your information, 'Doc', I have thought of a way to get us out of this mess.  We passed a little airport a few miles  west of here.  We'll use your gun and hijack a plane."

Was he being serious?, she wondered.  "You can count me out!  That's all I need is to be  arrested under charges of
criminal activity with a resistance member."

"Okay," he agreed. "I'll just leave you here and pray  that some wild animal doesn't come along and attack you."

"Well, it would be a hell of a lot better than being stuck in this damned cave with you!  Besides, what makes you so
sure that I'll give you the gun?"

He shrugged and was silent for a moment then looked at her intently.  "I can't come up with any other ideas. Can
you?"

"No.  Suppose I consider your so-called plan?  When will we be able to leave here?"

"Not til the Visitors stop patrolling the area.  At least a day or so."

"You hope?" she stared at him.

"I hope."
 

When morning came, Terrance arrived in the Los Angeles mothership and demanded to speak with Diana.  He was  taken to her private quarters and found her in a meeting with James.  She  dismissed the lieutenant, then welcomed the newcomer.

"Good morning, Diana."

"Morning, Terrance," she replied,  not returning his smile.  "What matter could be so urgent that you couldn't
wait to see me?"

Without hesitation, he explained.  He knew all too well of Diana's reputation for being impatient.  She would not be
bothered for petty meetings, and if someone happened to get on her bad side, they found themselves regretting it.

"My lieutenant and I were patrolling near the Rocky mountain range in the southwestern portion of Colorado
yesterday evening and shot down a human cargo plane.  We had trouble with our landing gear and couldn't inspect
the crash site right away.  But when we were able to make our landing, we entered the plane and found these."

He gave her the woman's wallet and man's leather  coat. She began to inspect the articles as he continued.
"Unfortunately, the passengers, I presume Michael Donovan and Juliet Parrish, were able to escape  before we could get to them.  But my men are combing the canyon and the surrounding area where we found their plane."

"Any clue as to what they were doing flying out there?" she wondered.

"Apparently transporting supplies to another resistance group."

"Do you have any evidence?!" she demanded.

"We found some large containers of fruit and vegetables and oh, of course these too."  He gave her a stack of
papers.

Diana thumbed through them gently, finding the Science Frontiers Logo stamped on a few pages with the hand-
written  words:  CONFIDENTIAL - To Hannah Donnenfield at Brook Cove, on one of the manila folders.  She gave
a nod of approval to Terrance, certain that she had enough evidence to have Julie Parrish  charged with  conspiracy and treason as well as collaborating with the resistance.

"If you find them, I want them kept alive, and have them sent to me  immediately.  Thank  you, Terrance.  You are
dismissed."
 

That night, temperatures had sank below fifty degrees.  Julie Parrish shivered in her sleep and then woke.  She
looked over at Donovan who was bare chested and sleeping nearly four feet away from her. She felt sympathy for him,
having used his shirt as a bandage around her head.

Bright sunlight entered through the opening.  Julie headed towards it and  peeked outside.  She immediately noticed two  space crafts  parked on a cliff nearby, then quickly darted back inside, sitting down  indian style,  and leaning
against the cavern wall.  She rested her chin on her palms.

Her stomach growled and she tried to ignore the pain. What choice did she have?  A few moments later her friend awoke.  Without a word, he took a look outside.

"They're still out there,"  she whispered.

He turned to face her, with his arms folded over his chest and asked, "Did you sleep good?"

She nodded, smiling.  "You must've been cold."

"Still am," he replied sitting down besides her. "How's your head?"

"Sore."

He shook his own.  "We need to get you to a doctor. But it doesn't look like we'll be leaving here today."

"Oh, Mike. Don't worry about me.  I'll be fine."  She forced a reassuring smile.  "If there's any chance we cross the river when we go hijack this plane, I'm going in for a swim.  I feel like hell."

"Look it too,"  he returned the grin.

"Gee, thanks!" she growled.  "If you keep insulting  me like this, I may just ditch somewhere after you teach  me
how to fly in our stolen plane."

"Have to get one first," he reminded and kissed her, pulling her near as he did so.  She pulled away.

"What, may  I ask, are you doing?" she asked in mock anger.

"Keeping warm," he confessed.

"Uh-uh.  If  for some reason we get captured and taken in, I want to be decent."  But her main reason was that she was still angry with him.  How could he dare want to make love at a time like this?

'Nice try, Donovan,'  he  mused.  "Well, at  least  you didn't say it's because you don't want to period."

"Oh?" she said looking downward.

He caught her glance.  "Well, I'd like to know if  it's over between us since you've been avoiding me lately."

"Oh,  c'mon,  Mike.  You know I lead a busy life.  I haven't had time for myself or you."

'Same old excuse', he thought, but only said, "It's more than that, Julie. You won't even let me touch you anymore.
Why is that?  Are you afraid of something?"

"Afraid of what?" she asked, resentment filling her tone.  There was the fear of getting pregnant again.  But that wasn't what he meant.

"Our relationship, for one."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Julie shot back defensively.

He moved away from her, not so cold anymore, but angry.

"Aw c'mon, Julie.  You could at least tell  me where we stand.  You owe me that much!"

She was silent for a second and could no longer hold  back the tears that had been waiting to fall.  "The truth is,"
her voice cracked, "that I don't know."

"So what, are you saying you don't love me anymore?"

She shook her head, covering her watery eyes with her hands at the same time.  How could she tell him that it was
because she was still afraid of Nathan?

"Is that a no?" he demanded.

Julie sniffled then leaned over and kissed him passionately. "Is that a good enough answer, Mr. Donovan?"

"It'll do for now," he grinned.
 

Continue to Chapter Four

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