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"He almost killed us! I can't believe you're defending him," Max Evans yelled, his bright blue eyes burning as he glared at Michael Guerin.

Michael leaned his head against the cave's cool limestone wall, trying to get a grip on the anger building inside him. Now wasn't the time to go off. Max was his best friend. There had to be a way to get him to listen, to understand. "Agreed, Adam almost killed us," Michael answered, fighting to keep his voice low and calm. "All I'm saying is that-"

"There's nothing else to say," Max interrupted.

"And of course you're the one who gets to decide that, right?" Michael asked. "What about Liz and Maria and Isabel? Or Cameron? Can't they speak here?"

Cameron Winger, who had been sitting quietly against the wall, looked up at the others and spoke. "I don't want to be involved in your Psychic Friends Network discussion. It just doesn't involve me," she said.

No one said anything. Max looked furious.

Michael glanced around the circle. His eyes locked on Max's sister, Isabel. More than any of the others, she should have a little sympathy for Adam. Adam had lived out her worst nightmare-he'd spent almost his entire life locked away in Project Clean Slate's underground compound, never even allowed to see the sun. Just because he happened to come from another planet. Just because he was one of them.

"It could have been you who grew up in the compound, Izzy," he reminded her. The color drained from Isabel's face, even her lips getting all pinched and white. Michael knew he was hurting her, but he forced himself to go on. "You, and Max, and me, we just got lucky. Our incubation pods were moved to the cave before the Project Clean Slate guys showed up at the crash site. We've always had each other. Adam grew up without anyone around who was… like him." Michael's words tumbled out faster and faster. "He's one of us. We've got to help him. There's got to be something wrong with him. He's sick or something. I know Adam. He would never have tried to hurt anyone-"