Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer: The characters Miss Parker, Sydney, Jarod, Broots etc. and the fictional Centre, are all property of MTM, TNT and NBC Productions and used
without permission. I'm not making any money out of this and no infringement is intended.
Kaleidoscope
part 3
by Jennifer DeNaughel
Broots turned the Lexus off the highway and into a residential neighborhood. Lining both sides of the narrow street were charming and historic Victorian homes with their intricate woodcarvings, lace ironwork, wraparound porches, and myriad of brightly colored facades.
Jarod smiled as he saw children playing in the yards and riding their bikes on the sidewalks. It was the neighborhood he had always dreamed of growing up in…every detail was exactly as he and Miss Parker imagined as children. Whenever they had talked about escaping from the Centre…this was the place they had dreamed of running to.
Guiding the car into a circular drive in front of the last house on the street, Broots shut of the engine and smiled. “This is it, my friend. Your family is waiting for you.”
“I am so nervous,” Jarod said.
“That is understandable,” Broots smiled. “It has been a long time.”
Turning to look at Andrew, Jarod sighed. “Well, Andrew, are you ready?”
Nurse Henderson patted Jarod’s arm. “You go to your mother. She has waited a lifetime for this day. We will bring Andrew along in a bit.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“I am sure,” she said. “Now go.”
Jarod nodded then opened his door. He stepped out onto the stone walkway and stared up at the house. It was somewhat smaller than the other homes on the street, but no less beautiful. The walkway led up to the wraparound porch which had a swing and the front door which was painted a deep green like the shutters and the window trim. The house itself was white with gingerbread moldings and a second floor balcony.
Walking up the steps, Jarod felt as though his heart was going to jump right out of his chest. His mind was racing to find the right words to say to his mother when he looked into her eyes for the first time.
Just as he stepped onto the porch the front door opened and Josh appeared with basketball in hand. “Oh my God,” he uttered softly. Then he laughed and shouted back to the other occupants of the house. “He’s here. Jarod is here.” Then dropping the basketball, he took a step forward and Jarod embraced him.
“It is so good to see you,” he said as he hugged the teen. “Man have you grown. You are already nearly as tall as me.”
Josh laughed, “Yeah, but at least we know that I will never be taller than you.”
“Funny,” Jarod chuckled and mussed the boy’s hair. “How about a game later?” he asked, motioning toward the basketball which had come to rest against the porch railing.
“You got it,” Josh grinned.
“Jarod,” Emily squealed as she flew out of the house and into his open arms. “I can’t believe it…you’re finally here.”
Jarod held her tightly and kissed the top of her head. “Emily, you are even prettier than I remember.”
Emily pulled back slightly and smiled through her tears. “You look pretty good yourself, big brother. I have waited a very long time to meet you.”
“Jarod,” Major Charles laughed as he came out of the house. As father and son embraced each other, Broots came up the steps with Nurse Henderson who held Andrew in her arms. “It is so good to see you,” he said as he stepped back and looked his son over from head to toe. “You look like you could use a good meal and a long rest.”
“Definitely,” Jarod smiled. Then looking expectantly over his father’s shoulder, he frowned. “Where’s Mom?”
Major Charles’ expression grew serious. “Son, your mom…she has been ill. She is upstairs in bed resting.”
“What’s wrong with her?” Jarod asked as fear gripped his heart.
Emily stepped in and took hold of her brother’s arm. “She has been fighting the flu…can’t seem to shake it. You go to her…seeing you will be the best medicine in the world. Her room is the second door on the right at the top of the stairs.”
Jarod nodded and entered the house. He knew there was more that they were not telling him and as he climbed the stairs, a feeling of dread washed over him.
Emily turned and stepped into Broots’ waiting arms. “I just couldn’t tell him,” she said.
“Shh, Em, everything will be okay,” he said reassuringly.
Reaching the partially open door of his mother’s room he knocked then slowly pushed it open. “Mom,” he said as he crossed the room and dropped to his knees next to the bed. “Mom, it’s me, Jarod. Mom, I’m home.”
Margaret opened her eyes and slowly turned her head. Tears filled her eyes the instant she saw her long lost son kneeling next to her. “Am I dreaming?” she asked wearily. “If I am then please, God, don’t let me wake up.”
Jarod smiled tenderly, “No, Mom. You aren’t dreaming. I am here.”
“My son,” Margaret choked back a sob as Jarod raised up and hugged her. “You are really here…you have come home.”
“Mom,” Jarod said fighting his own tears. “What’s wrong?”
Smiling, Margaret reluctantly released him and lay back on the pillows. “You are so very handsome. Just like your father…” she said softly.
“Mom, please, tell me what is wrong. Let me help you.”
“I am just fighting a bad case of the flu,” she replied with a slight smile. “Don’t you worry, I will be back on my feet in no time at all.”
“Mom, I know this is not the flu. Tell me the truth, please.”
Margaret turned her head and stared up at the ceiling for several seconds before facing Jarod again. “I should have known I would never be able to lie to you,” she said, shaking her head slowly. “Jarod, I am dying.”
“No,” Jarod said softly as tears began to slide down his face. “No, God, no,” he uttered. Getting to his feet, he ran his hand through his hair.
“It’s true, son. You have to accept it. I have a rare form of leukemia. It is untreatable. Chemotherapy, radiation, bone marrow transplants…we have tried every treatment known to the medical world. Nothing has helped.”
Jarod sat down on the edge of the bed and took her hand in his. “No, Mom. I cannot accept this. There has to be something I can do.”
“Jarod, you can’t stop this.”
“Why didn’t you have Broots get word to me? If I had gotten here sooner…”
Margaret closed her eyes for a few seconds then opening them she smiled. “I didn’t want you to see me like this…I wanted to be the mother that you remembered in your dreams. The mother you saw on the street that day in Boston.”
“Mom, I won’t lose you…not like this.”
“I love you so much and I want to spend what little time I have left getting to know you and Andrew.”
“Speaking of our grandson,” Major Charles said as he entered with Andrew in his arms. “Here you go, Grandma.”
Margaret’s face lit up as her husband placed the squirming baby in her arms. “Oh my,” she laughed. “Just look at you.”
Jarod rose from the bed and walked to the window. He stared out into the cloudless blue sky as he felt his heart breaking. His mother was dying and there was nothing he could do to stop it. “Why, God,” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
Major Charles placed his hands on his son’s shoulders and squeezed gently causing Jarod to turn, his gaze falling on his mother and son. “You and Andrew truly are the best medicine for her. Lately she hasn’t had the strength to smile much less laugh. Now look at her.”
Jarod watched her for a moment then nodded. “I just wish there was something more I could do.”
“There is nothing except just being here. Spending all of the time you can with her before…” Major Charles voice faded as his own emotions got the better of him. “I love your mother more than my own life. If I could trade places with her, God knows I would. But that is not an option.”
Jarod turned and hugged his father. “I love you, Dad.”
“I love you too, son.”
**********
The infirmary was dark except for a single light above her bed. She was sleeping when he entered and stood silently in the shadows. She looked so peaceful, so beautiful…just like her mother.
“You shouldn’t be here,” said a voice from the doorway.
“I just wanted to make sure that she was all right,” Sydney said.
Lyle moved into the room and stepped into the light. “Have you heard anything?”
“Yes,” Sydney said. “They are safe.”
“Good,” Lyle said.
“Thank you, for your help.”
“I only did what I should have done a long time ago.”
“Why did you? Why the sudden change of heart?”
“I guess I just took a good look at my life and decided that I didn’t have to be the product of my upbringing. Then I looked at Andrew and I suddenly knew what I had to do. I had to save him…and I had to save the others.”
Sydney took a step toward him. “Lyle, I want you to know how proud I am of you,” he smiled.
Lyle laughed humorlessly. “No offense, Syd, but I would prefer to hear those words from my father.”
“But you are,” Sydney said hesitantly. “Lyle, I am your father.”
Lyle stared at him in disbelief. “How? How can that be?”
Sydney took a deep breath and released it slowly. “Catherine and I fell deeply in love. We were together secretly for more than a year. When she became pregnant, Mr. Parker found out but he believed that he was the father.
When Catherine told him she was planning to leave, he flew into a rage and told her that his child was a Parker and as Parker, they would take their place in the family legacy. Afraid for my safety as well as the life she carried inside her, she swore to never tell him the truth and she made me promise as well.”
“So we aren’t Parkers?”
“No,” Sydney smiled. “I am sorry I didn’t tell you both sooner, but before she died, your mother made me promise not to tell you until Mr. Parker was no longer a threat. Catherine was afraid, and rightfully so, that if he were ever to learn the truth that he would kill the two of you. She believed that as long as he thought the two of you to be his own offspring, you would be safe.”
“Does she know?” Lyle motioned toward his sister.
“Yes.”
Lyle fell silent for several minutes before finally turning to Sydney. “To tell you the truth, I never really felt like a Parker. I guess…now I know why.”
“I hope that we can begin to build the relationship that we should have had all along,” Sydney said as he stepped forward and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder.
Lyle nodded, looking down at the floor. Then he raised his eyes to look into the face of his father. “I would like that,” he said then suddenly embraced Sydney. “I would really like that.”
“All right you two,” Miss Parker said with a smile. “Enough…you’re making me nauseous.”
“How long have you been listening?” Lyle asked with a grin.
“Since you walked in the door,” she replied.
“Funny,” he smiled. “I came here to tell you that your pregnancy is progressing normally and with a little luck we will be able to get you out of here in six to eight weeks.”
“That long,” she frowned.
“I am afraid so,” he said.
“We cannot risk moving you too soon. Any stress during the early stages of the pregnancy could cause you to miscarry and God knows that getting you out of here will cause you stress,” Sydney said. “Now you get some rest and I will come back to see you in the morning,” he said as he approached the bed and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Sweet dreams.”
Miss Parker smiled, “Good night.”
Sydney walked toward the door then stopped to wait for his son.
Lyle took hold of her hand and leaning over, he too kissed her forehead. “I—I love you,” he said softly then turned and walked away before she could respond.
**********
Andrew woke Jarod before dawn, and while the rest of the house was still sleeping, he lifted his son out of the crib and smiled. “Good morning,” he whispered as he removed Andrew’s sleeper, changed his diaper, and then dressed him in the new outfit that Emily had given him. “There, now what shall we do with ourselves until everyone else wakes up?”
Sitting down in the rocking chair, Jarod stood Andrew on his lap and rocked back and forth making funny faces at him. Andrew grinned and giggled reaching out to grab Jarod’s nose.
“Ow,” Jarod said his voice sounding nasally. “Let go of my nose, you little rugrat,” he laughed.
Andrew giggled again and finally let go. He leaned forward and laid his head on Jarod’s shoulder, his arm resting alongside his neck. Gently rubbing his son’s back, Jarod was overcome with an intense feeling of warmth and contentment. Closing his eyes, he began to sing softly. “Cree craw toad’s foot, geese walk barefoot...”
“I can’t believe you still remember that nursery rhyme,” Margaret smiled. “I taught you that just before…” her voice waned as memories assailed her weary mind.
“Mom,” Jarod jumped up and placed Andrew back in his bed. A deed that his baby boy was quick to let him know was not acceptable by letting out a frustrated whimper. “You shouldn’t be out of bed,” he said as he rushed over to help her over to the rocking chair he had just vacated. Then he knelt down on the floor in front of her.
“I am feeling better today,” she smiled.
“Do you need me to get you something?”
“No, no, I am okay. I just heard you and Andrew and felt the overwhelming need to remind myself that this is not a dream…that I will not wake up and find that you were never here at all. God knows the number of times I have done just that.”
Jarod smiled and kissed her hand. “I know, Mom. So many nights I have dreamed of finding you only to wake up alone in some new city, trying to make up for all the pain the Centre caused.”
“You cannot blame yourself for what they did. I know how deeply it hurt you to learn of the vile things the Centre did with your work, but it was not your fault. You could not have known what they would do with your findings.”
“I know, but sometimes I can’t close my eyes without seeing their eyes…”
“For a very long time I blamed myself for allowing them to take you and your brother. I just knew there was something I could have done…should have done differently to protect you from them.”
“The Centre would have killed you,” Jarod said softly.
“It wasn’t me that I was worried about. I had lost my two wonderful boys…I knew that I could not allow them to find out about the baby I was carrying so I ran. I left the place where we had been hiding and ran. I went to the convent where I met Ella and she took care of us. Your father visited me there as often as possible. The last time he came to see us, he told me that he had help inside the Centre. That he was going to get you and Kyle back. When he didn’t return, I took Emily and we left the convent.”
Jarod nodded, “Dad was shot by Raines.”
“Yes, though I did not know it at the time. He promised me that he would come back…he always kept his promises. So when he failed to return, I feared the worst.”
“It was Catherine Parker who was helping him. She was killed for her part in the attempted rescue.”
“Catherine was my best friend in the Catholic girl’s school I attended as a teenager. We were inseparable and always getting into trouble. I still remember the day she told me that she had met a man…an older man, and that he had swept her off her feet. She was so in love with him. The very first time I met William Parker I knew there was something inherently evil about him…a bitter coldness that made my skin crawl. I tried to tell her but she was blinded by her love for him.”
“Mr. Parker is evil,” Jarod said angrily. “The way he has manipulated and tormented his daughter since Catherine’s death is reprehensible. She spent her entire life trying to please him only to have her love and devotion thrown back in her face.”
“It was Catherine who introduced me to your father,” Margaret smiled. “She begged me to go out with this Air Force pilot she knew and for months I refused. I wanted to concentrate on my studies. I didn’t need the stress of a relationship, much less one with a military boy, and a pilot at that.”
Jarod smiled, “So what finally made you change you mind?”
“Your father, in full uniform, walked into my dorm room, threw me over his shoulder and carried me, kicking and screaming out to his car. He slid behind the wheel and started the engine. Then he turned and gave me that grin...the look in his eyes… I was hopelessly lost,” Margaret said dreamily. “We were married a year later.”
Jarod lowered his gaze to hide the pain in his dark eyes. “Mom,” he whispered. “My birthday…when was I born? What year?”
Margaret’s eyes filled with tears, “My God, I never even realized…Jarod, your birthday is July 2. You were born in 1958…you are forty-one.”
Jarod smiled gratefully. “It has always been so strange…not knowing.”
Margaret fell silent for several seconds. Then she reached out, took Jarod’s hand in her own, and held it to her face. “My son, there is so much I need to tell you. I am just afraid I will not have the time.”
“You will,” Jarod said as he struggled to hide his emotions.
“Please don’t,” Margaret said. “Do not hide what you are feeling inside. I am not as fragile as you think.”
“Mom, I wish you would let me help you.”
“There is nothing you or anyone else can do…it’s in God’s hands.”
“What good is being able to help people if I can’t help my own mother,” Jarod asked, his voice edged with feelings of resentment and helplessness.
“Jarod, I don’t ever what you to feel that way. I am so proud of the fact that, despite everything you have been through, you have not lost your compassion, your integrity, or your courage.”
Jarod shook his head slowly. “I don’t feel very brave right now.”
Margaret smiled and squeezed his hand. “Neither do I, but as long as I have my family in my life, I can face anything.”
Nodding, Jarod leaned forward and took her in his arms. “I love you, Mom,” he whispered.
“I love you too, son. Now what do you say we go downstairs so I can fix some breakfast?”
“Are you sure you’re feeling up to it?”
“I am,” she smiled and kissed his cheek.
“All right then,” he grinned. “I will help you then come back up for Andy.”
Margaret stood and straightened her robe as Jarod rose from the floor. Taking her arm, he walked her out of his room and down the stairs. It was slow going but they finally reached the kitchen.
“Thank you, son,” she said wearily.
“You sit down here and rest while I go get Andrew,” he said then bolted up the stairs. He did not want to leave her alone for too long.
In the few minutes it took him to return to the kitchen with Andrew, she had already started to mix the batter for the pancakes. “How do you like your eggs?” she asked with a bright smile that belied the fact that she was in pain.
“Any way is fine,” he said as he placed Andrew in the highchair. “Can I help?”
“Yes, you can get the griddle down from that cabinet for me,” she said pointing toward the cupboard above the refrigerator.
“I can do that,” he nodded then reaching up he opened the door and finding the griddle he took it down and placed it on the counter next to the stove. Turning he spotted a picture on the refrigerator. “This is me and Kyle,” he said staring at the picture. “How old were we here?”
Margaret grabbed a towel and wiping her hands, she moved to stand next to Jarod. “You were three, Kyle was eighteen months.” She smiled as she remembered the day Charles had taken the picture. “It was your birthday. Your dad took you on your first airplane ride and then we all went out for pizza and ice cream. You loved ice cream more than just about anything in the world.”
“I still love ice cream,” Jarod grinned. “But there is so much that I cannot remember…”
“I am so sorry,” she said softly, gathering him to her.
Jarod closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of being in his mother’s arms. “It is so good to finally be home with you,” he said softly.
**********
Two weeks later...
Miss Parker waited impatiently for Sydney to appear. When the door finally did open, it was Lyle.
“Good morning, Sis,” he smiled and leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“You are sure in a good mood this morning,” she teased.
Lyle sat down on the edge of her bed and gave a short laugh. “You know, it is amazing to wake up and realize that you are a part of a real family.”
“It is, isn’t it.”
“So where is our father?”
“I don’t know but I wish he would get here soon.”
“Dying to talk to Jarod?”
Miss Parker hit him with one of her pillows and laughed. “Hey, leave me alone. I am pregnant and I miss my baby boy.”
“And Jarod…” Lyle grinned.
“And Jarod,” she said.
Lyle’s expression grew serious for a moment. “It is so nice to see you smiling and happy.”
“I agree,” Sydney said as he entered the room.
Miss Parker nodded, “It feels good to be able to do so.”
“Sorry I’m late,” Sydney smiled and kissed her forehead. “I had to have a signal scrambler installed on my cell phone so we can call Jarod without worrying about the conversation reaching the wrong people.
“So we can call now,” Miss Parker asked.
“Yes,” he said as he began dialing.
“Hello,” a deep and vaguely familiar voice came over the line.
“Hello, this is Sydney…”
“Hi Sydney, this is Josh.”
“Josh?”
He heard Josh laugh, “Sorry, I forgot. You only knew me as Gemini.”
“Josh, of course, how are you?”
“I am doing great, Sydney. Thanks to you. Jarod told me what a risk you took in helping me.”
“I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
“You probably want to speak to Jarod. He is out on the porch. Hold on, I will get him for you.”
“Thank you, Josh,” Sydney smiled as he heard the sound of footsteps then a door opening followed by muffled voices. A moment later he heard heavier footsteps coming toward the telephone.
“Hi, Syd,” Jarod said anxiously. “How is she?”
“Hello, Jarod,” Sydney laughed. “I will let you ask her since she is threatening to scratch my eyes out if I don’t hand over the phone.”
“Thank you, Sydney,” he chuckled.
“Jarod,” Miss Parker said softly even as she was giving Sydney and Lyle the look and sending them to the other side of the room so she could talk to him in private. “How is Andrew?”
“He is fine, getting more and more spoiled by the minute, but fine.”
“God, I miss you…both of you,” she whispered.
“We miss you too, Parker,” Jarod said his voice fading.
Alarm bells went off in her head as she heard something in his tone. “Jarod, what’s wrong? I can tell something is bothering you.”
Jarod sighed, “It’s my mother, Parker. She is dying…”
“Oh God, Jarod. I am so sorry.”
“I don’t know what to do.”
“Just be there…love her. Make every second you have left with her count. I would have given anything to have that chance with my mom, Jarod.”
Jarod released a deep breath. “Thank you,” he said. “I wish you were here with me right now.”
“So do I, but we both know that isn’t possible. I can’t even get out of this bed for six to eight more weeks.”
“So, we are going to have another baby?” Jarod asked with a smile in his voice.
“Babies, Jarod,” Miss Parker said. “We are going to have twins.”
“Twins?” Jarod gasped.
“They were the only embryos that survived the thawing process, Jarod. It just happened that they came from the same egg…identical twins.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Much better now,” she whispered.
“I promise I will come for you before the babies are born.”
“Jarod, you just take care of our boy.”
“I will,” he said.
“Tell him that his mother loves him and his father very much and can’t wait until we can be together.”
“I love you too, Parker.”
“Jarod.”
“Yes?”
“You can stop calling me that. I am not a Parker. You can start using my given name. That is…if you still remember it.”
Jarod laughed, “I love you, Madeline.”
“Much better,” she smiled. “I’d better go now, the doctor will be here any minute.”
“All right, Maddie,” Jarod said softly.
Miss Parker nearly lost it as she heard the long-forgotten nickname that only he had ever called her. “Good bye, Jarod,” she whispered.
“Good bye,” he replied then the line went silent.
Sydney approached the bed and accepted the cell phone as she held it out to him. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“It’s his mother…she is dying,” she replied. “How much more pain is one man supposed to bear?” she asked angrily.
Sydney shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Lyle listened intently then with a secretive look in his eyes he headed for the door. “Come on, we had better go. The doctor and Dad—I mean Mr. Parker will be coming in here any second. See you later, Sis.”
“Bye,” she said then settled down under the covers and pretended to be asleep.
Once they were out in the corridor, Lyle pulled Sydney aside and checked to be sure no one was within earshot. “I need you to do something for me,” he whispered.
“What is it?”
“I want you to find out the name of the doctor treating Jarod’s mother. I need every bit of information you can get on her illness.”
“What are you planning?”
“Please, just do it. I will explain later.”
“Can you at least tell me why?”
“I have to see if I am right in my suspicions. If I am, she can be saved.”
Sydney watched as his son turned and walked away from him. It was still so amazing to see such a radical change in Lyle in such a short time. He smiled then turning in the opposite direction, he headed for his office.”
**********
Returning to his seat beside his mother on the porch swing, Jarod put his arm around her and kissed her on the cheek.
“Well, that must have been some phone call,” Margaret chuckled.
“It was Sydney,” he said.
“Somehow I don’t think it was Sydney who put that light in your eyes.”
Jarod laughed, “No, I spoke to Miss Parker…Madeline.”
“You really love her don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then why are you here without her?”
“We fell victim to yet another of the Centre’s machinations.”
“What happened?”
“When we first attempted to rescue Andrew, we were captured and separated. They were going to kill her but instead they decided to implant two embryos in her uterus. Since she is the natural mother, there is less risk of her body rejecting them.”
Margaret nodded in understanding. “I take it that you are the father.”
“Yes.”
“So I am going to be a grandmother again?” she smiled.
Jarod laughed softly. “Yes, you are...to identical twins.”
“You are going to have your hands full.”
“I know they and Andrew weren’t created in the conventional way, but I love him and I will love them just the same.”
“I know you will,” she said as she leaned into his embrace and watched Josh and Emily out on the lawn with Andrew. They were trying to get him to walk from one to the other by bribing him with a blue ball, a teddy bear and cookies, but so far, nothing seemed to work.
“Come on, Andy,” Josh begged. “You can do it.”
“You two are going to wear that boy out,” Major Charles chuckled as he came out of the garage his hands covered in grease.
Jarod closed his eyes and listened to the sounds around him…the sounds of family. A moment later, he opened them just in time to see Andrew launch himself off Emily and take six steps toward Josh before losing his balance. Josh was there to catch him before he fell.
Laughing, Jarod shouted, “That’s my boy.”
Josh hugged Andrew. “I knew you could do it. See, Em, I told you he liked me best,” he said teasingly.
Emily slugged him in the shoulder then took her nephew from his arms. “Good job, Andy,” she said and kissed his chubby little cheek, then turning toward the house she headed across the lawn and up the steps. “Did you see that, Jarod? Your son just walked.”
Jarod took Andrew from her and lifted him high into the air. “I am so proud of you, Andy. Just wait until I tell your mom.”
Emily tapped her brother on the shoulder. “Unless you want to change him, I suggest you give him back to me so I can take him upstairs.”
Jarod placed Andrew back in Emily’s arms. “If you insist,” he grinned.
“Oh like I really had to twist your arm,” she glared playfully at him before disappearing into the house.
“How about that game of basketball,” Josh asked tossing Jarod the ball.
“All right, but take it easy on me, will you?”
“Ha, not likely. You will master this game in about ten seconds, so there is no way I am going to cut you any slack.”
“All right,” Jarod shrugged. Then with eyebrows raised and a sly grin on his face, he tossed the ball blindly over his shoulder. The ball dropped through the hoop…nothing but net. “You asked for it, kid.”
Major Charles came out of the house with his hands free of grease and took a seat next to his wife. Together they watched their boys play a game of basketball that the pros would envy.
“You know, Maggie,” he smiled. “If I didn’t know better, I would swear this family has never been apart.”
“I know what you mean,” she laughed softly.
“Do you want me to take you upstairs so you can rest?”
“No, I want to stay right here,” she said as she snuggled closer to her husband.
Charles adjusted the blanket around her and gathered her closer. “I love you, Maggie McKenna.”
“And I you,” she whispered then closed her eyes as she listened to the laughter of her two sons.
**********
Sydney knocked on the door of Lyle’s office and was quickly beckoned inside. “I have the information you asked for,” he said as he entered.
“Good, let me see it,” Lyle stood and took the envelope from his father.
“What exactly are you looking for?”
“Blood test results,” he replied just as he found them.
Sydney sat down and waited quietly while Lyle read the files.
“I was right,” he said.
“About?”
“Jarod’s mother does not have leukemia. Though the symptoms are virtually identical, what she has is untreatable by the conventional treatments for leukemia.”
“What is it?”
“Years ago when Jarod’s parents went to NuGenesis to help them get pregnant, the doctors there were using a certain combination of drugs to increase fertility. Margaret was given those drugs for months before she finally conceived and gave birth to Jarod. Then she went on them again to have Kyle. The mothers who took these drugs for more than one pregnancy developed this disease later in life and most died. Their deaths wrongly attributed to leukemia.”
“And the others?” Sydney asked.
“The Centre, with Jarod’s help, came up with a cure. The others went on to live normal healthy lives.”
“Then Jarod knows about this?”
“Not exactly. He was told only what he needed to know in order to come up with the cure.”
“So where is this cure and how do we get it to Jarod?”
“You call and set up a time and place to meet him. I will take care of the rest.”
Sydney gave a short nod and rose from the chair. He turned to leave but stopped and turned back to his son. “Thank you, Lyle.”
“Thank me when it works. There are no guarantees. It may already be too late.”
“It will work, it has to,” Sydney said, then left the room.
**********
Jarod arrived at the rendezvous point early. He was anxious to find out what Sydney had to tell him that was so urgent. Despite repeated assurances that Miss Parker and the babies were doing fine, Jarod was afraid Sydney was waiting to tell him in person that something had gone wrong.
The helicopter appeared over the crest of the hill and flew overhead, setting down in the field next to where Jarod had parked the Lexus. Climbing out of the car he moved around to the opposite side and sat down on the hood, propping one foot up on the bumper.
He watched and waited for Sydney to appear, but when a lone figure stepped into the beam of the headlights, it was Lyle. “What the hell?” Jarod shouted and reached for his gun, leveling it on him.
“Easy, Jarod,” Lyle said with one hand raised in defense. In the other, he carried a small silver case.
“Where is Sydney?” Jarod growled angrily. “If you have done anything to hurt him…”
Lyle stopped a few feet away from the pretender. “Jarod, he is my father. The last thing I would want to do is hurt him.”
Jarod heard the sincerity in his enemy’s voice and lowered the gun though he did not put it away. “What do you want, Lyle?”
Lyle held out the silver case to Jarod. “A truce, and this is a peace offering.”
Jarod’s eyes flashed with distrust.
“Jarod, I know we have had our differences, but things have changed…I have changed. You probably will never believe it, but it is true.”
“Well, I am happy for you, Lyle,” Jarod said his voice thick with sarcasm.
“I know it will take time for you to forgive me for the past…for Kyle’s death. God, knows I do not deserve it.”
“That’s true, you don’t.”
“I am offering you a chance to save your mother.”
Jarod focused his gaze intently on Lyle, searching for any sign that he was lying. Then he let his gaze drop to the case Lyle still held in his right hand. “So what is it?”
Lyle took a step forward. “I can never make up for taking your brother from you, but maybe giving you your mother’s life will begin to make amends.”
Jarod took the case and opened it. Inside were several bottles and syringes. Taking out one of the bottles, he read the label and recognized it as a drug he had helped to develop while at the Centre. “Anacorcin? I do not see how this will help my mother. She has leukemia.”
“No, Jarod, she has the very disease that you developed that drug as a cure for. You were not told at the time but its symptoms are identical to leukemia. It is the byproduct of the fertility drugs used at NuGenesis. She can be saved if the disease has not progressed too far for the Anacorcin to be effective.”
Jarod closed the case and turned to meet Lyle’s gaze. “I am still not sure if this change is for real, but I thank you for this and for allowing me to save my son.”
A look of surprise washed over Lyle’s features. “How did you know?”
Jarod smiled slightly, “Andrew told me.”
Lyle held his hand out to Jarod and the pretender took it. As they shook hands, they both felt something change between them…something important.
“Jarod, just to let you know. My sister is doing just fine…though she misses you and Andrew.”
“We miss her too.”
“I promise you I will do everything in my power to protect her.”
Jarod stared silently at Lyle for a moment before nodding. “I know you will,” he said. As he turned to leave, he paused. “Tell her I love her.”
“I will,” Lyle said then turned back toward the helicopter.
“Thank you,” Jarod said too softly for the other man to hear. Sliding behind the wheel, he placed the case in the passenger seat. Then starting the engine he pressed down on the accelerator and steered the Lexus back onto the dirt road that would take him back to the highway.
As he drove, he wondered if he would live to regret trusting Lyle. For his mother’s sake, he had to trust him…this time. If the treatment worked and her life was saved then it would be worth the risk.
**********
“Has she awakened yet?” Mr. Parker asked the doctor as they stood just outside the door of Miss Parker’s room.
“No, as you ordered we have kept her heavily sedated,” Doctor Samuels responded. “Though I am not sure that continued sedation is safe for the babies?”
“Surely it is safer than allowing her to be alert and having her become distressed when she learns what we have done. Keep her sedated for a few more days.”
“Very well, sir,” Dr. Samuels nodded. “Now if you will please excuse me, I have to finish my reports before I leave for the night.”
“I will expect them on my desk in the morning,” Mr. Parker said.
“Yes, Mr. Parker,” he replied as he hurried down the corridor.
Entering his daughter’s room, Mr. Parker approached her bed. He stood, silently staring down at her seemingly lifeless form. In a strange way, it saddened him to see her in such a vulnerable state. Without her fire and ice spirit, she was just her mother’s daughter…weak and pathetic…unworthy of the Parker name.
“You should never have betrayed me, Angel,” he whispered. “You allowed Jarod to come between us…to influence you against me.”
It took every ounce of strength Miss Parker had not to respond to his words. She struggled to keep her heart rate and blood pressure under control. All she needed was the alarms on the machines around her to go off and give her away.
As Mr. Parker studied her, he could have sworn that he had seen a flicker of something…a response to his voice, but he wrote it off as his imagination. Turning to leave he paused and smiled. “You will give birth to these babies…after which you will be of no use to the Centre, or to me.” Then he was gone.
Miss Parker opened her eyes. Her pent-up rage was quickly reaching the breaking point. She wanted to kill him…slowly. More than anything she wished that she could make him pay for killing her mother.
The high-pitched tone of the heart monitor started to beep faster. She had to calm down…for the babies. Closing her eyes again, she took slow, deep breaths and imagined herself in another time and place…with Jarod and Andrew on a beach playing in the waves. The air filled with the sounds of a child’s laughter…
The monitor finally slowed to a normal pace as in her dreamlike state, Miss Parker finally found a moment of peace. ‘I love you, Madeline,” Jarod smiled as he swept her up into his arms and kissed her.
**********
Jarod pulled the Lexus into the driveway and shut off the engine. Grabbing the case he got out of the car and ran up the walk taking the steps two at a time. Bursting through the front door, he caught his father by surprise.
“Whoa, son, slow down. What is on fire?”
“Sorry Dad, but I have to get this to Mom now.”
“What is it?”
“Something that may save her life.”
“She is upstairs in bed. Today took a lot out of her.”
Jarod charged up the stairs and into her room. “Mom,” Jarod said as he placed the case on the bed and opened it.
Margaret opened her eyes and watched as her son took out a syringe, which he quickly filled with liquid from a vial. “What is that, Jarod?” she asked.
“Mom, you do not have leukemia. What you have is a side effect of the drugs that they gave you at NuGenesis. The symptoms are identical to leukemia so your doctors would never know the difference.”
Major Charles sat down on the edge of the bed opposite from his son. “Jarod, what are you giving her?”
Jarod glanced over at him and smiled. “It is a drug I developed while at the Centre, though I didn’t know what it was for at the time.”
“Are you sure it is safe?” he asked.
“It is safe, Dad. I promise.”
Margaret smiled at her son as he took hold of her arm and injected her with the drug. “I love you for trying, Jarod…”
“Mom, it will work…it has to.”
“I just don’t want you to feel bad if it doesn’t.”
Jarod flashed her a wide grin. “It is going to work,” he said.
“I hope you are right, son,” Major Charles said.
Embracing her gently, Jarod kissed her cheek. “Mom, you rest for now. I need to administer the next dosage in exactly six hours.”
“Good night, Margaret,” Major Charles leaned over and pressed his lips to her forehead. “I will be up to join you in a while.”
“Good night,” Margaret yawned then closed her eyes.
Downstairs, the two men walked into the den where Emily and Josh were engrossed in a game of chess. Neither of them seemed to notice their father and brother in the room.
Jarod placed the silver case on the coffee table and removed his leather jacket, tossing it over the arm of the sofa as he sat down. Leaning back he rubbed his eyes and sighed. “This has been quite a day,” he smiled.
“Yes, it has,” his father agreed.
“Is Andrew asleep?”
“No, Ella is reading him a story in her room.”
“Where is Broots?”
“He left with Nick an hour ago. They have a meeting at the FBI headquarters in DC in the morning. They will be back in a couple of days.”
Jarod glanced over at Emily and Josh and grinned. “Have either one of them even made a move? They are just sitting there staring at the board.”
Major Charles chuckled. “They will sit like that for hours…until one of them either moves one of their pieces or falls asleep. Which ever comes first.”
“Have they ever actually finished a game?”
“Not that I am aware of.”
Jarod laughed and turned his attention back to his father. “How are you holding up?”
“I am fine, son. Just worried about your Mom.”
“I know, so am I. I just hope that this treatment isn’t too little…too late.”
“Whatever happens, Jarod…what matters is you tried.”
Jarod nodded, “Something good has to come out of the work I did at the Centre. There has been so much pain and suffering and death caused by my work…”
“Jarod, that was not your fault. You didn’t know what the Centre was doing.”
“I should have known.”
Major Charles leaned forward in his chair and covered Jarod’s hand with his own. “Are you telling me that Josh was to blame for what they did with his simulations?”
Jarod shook his head, “No, of course not.”
“Then neither are you,” Major Charles stated emphatically.
“I wish I could believe that,” Jarod smiled sadly.
“Your Mom told me about Miss Parker. I’m sorry.”
“We will be together soon. Until then she has her father and brother to protect her and care for her.”
“So Sydney is her father. I would sure love to be a fly on the wall when William Parker learns the truth. That bastard never did deserve Catherine. If she had not been so blind to the truth about that man, she would still be alive today.”
“I am going to go upstairs and tuck Andrew in then get some sleep before I have to give Mom her next dosage.”
“Good night, son,” Major Charles nodded.
“Good night, Dad,” Jarod said then he crossed over to where Josh and Emily were still staring at the chessboard. He reached down and moved one of Emily’s pieces. “Checkmate,” he chuckled then turned and went upstairs with the mildly annoyed eyes of his siblings boring into his back.
Major Charles burst into a fit of laughter at his children’s expense and as they turned their gazes in his direction he just shrugged and continued to laugh.
Emily and Josh looked at each other and smiled then started a new game.
**********
“How did it go?” Sydney asked Lyle as they crossed paths on SL-5.
“Well, he didn’t kill me. Beyond that, I am not sure. I don’t think he will ever trust me. Not that I can blame him.”
Sydney nodded, “Give him time.”
“How is our favorite patient today?” Lyle asked with a smile.
“I was actually on my way down to see her now. Want to come along?”
“I can’t right now. It seems that Mr. Parker has requested my presence in his office and I am already running late. Give her my love and tell her I will see her later.”
“Watch your back,” Sydney warned.
Lyle nodded then stepped into the elevator.
Sydney walked into the next elevator and pressed the button for the infirmary level. He hoped that Mr. Parker had not figured out what was going on.
The guards were under Lyle’s control and the security cameras in Miss Parker’s room had been rigged so that with the touch of a remote control they would switch back and forth between actual and recorded footage. So far, no one had been the wiser, but there was always that nagging fear that they would be discovered and she would be moved to a more secure location in the building.
Just six to eight more weeks and they would get her out of there. Then she and Jarod could start a new life with Andrew and the twins.
Until then, they would just have to be careful.
**********
The alarm sounded exactly four hours after he had gone to sleep. Shutting it off quickly so it would not wake Andrew, Jarod slipped from the bedroom with silver case in hand. The light came on in his parents’ bedroom at the same instant.
Margaret was sitting on the edge of the bed with the sleeve of her nightgown already rolled up. It was three o’clock in the morning and she was wide-awake.
“Mom, are you okay?”
“I am fine. Just anxious to see if this miracle drug is going to work.”
Jarod hugged her then proceeded to take out another syringe and fill it with the drug. “Hopefully we will see results very soon.”
“That would be nice.”
Major Charles returned to the bedroom with a glass of water for his wife. “Drink this, sweetheart,” he said as he handed her the glass.
“Thank you, Charles,” she said as she took the glass and quickly drank the cool water. As she started to give the glass back to him she laughed and stared at her hand. “Look,” she said.
“What is it?” Jarod asked in confusion.
It took a moment for Major Charles to realize what she was so excited about. “Her hand. It isn’t shaking.”
Margaret turned to her son and smiled. “Since I have been sick, my hands have trembled whenever I held on to a glass or any other small object.”
Jarod smiled, “That is a good sign, Mom. Now you lie back and get some sleep,” he said as he took the glass from her and set it down on the table next to the bed. “It is very important that you get plenty of rest.”
“All right, son. Good night,” she smiled and closed her eyes.
Major Charles followed his son out of the room and closed the door behind them. “Do you really think that is a positive sign? I don’t want to see her get her hopes up and then to have it fail.”
“I don’t want that either, Dad. I developed the drug without full knowledge of the disease, but I have all the reports and case studies. The drug is ninety-six percent effective, which means that there is only a four-percent chance that it will not work. According to the reports given by the doctors, they saw vast improvement in their patients almost immediately.”
Major Charles nodded and squeezed Jarod’s shoulder. “Go on back to bed, son. We’ll discuss this more in the morning.”
“Good night, Dad,” Jarod said then went into his room and closed the door. The soft moonlight coming in the window bathed Andrew in its glow. Jarod smiled and bent to cover his son with the hand-stitched quilt that his mother had told him had been his when he was a baby. “Sweet dreams, my son,” he whispered.
Climbing back into bed, he reset the alarm for nine a.m. so he would not over sleep and miss giving his Mom the next dosage. However, he strongly suspected that Andrew would wake him long before then.
**********
“Miss Parker,” Dr. Samuels whispered. “Miss Parker, I know you are awake. Open your eyes, please.”
Miss Parker reluctantly obeyed, opening her eyes she glared angrily at the doctor. “I refuse to let you sedate me again, doctor.”
“I have known for some time now that you have been alert to everything going on around you. If I was on their side you would already be sedated.”
“Then just whose side are you on?”
“My own.”
“Then why are you telling me this?”
Dr. Samuels proceeded to examine Miss Parker keeping his body between her and the camera so the eyes watching them would not be able to tell that they were speaking. “Your father, Mr. Parker has threatened me with death if anything were to go wrong with this pregnancy. I do not intend to give him a reason to follow through with his threats."
“That still does not explain why you are allowing me to remain conscious.”
“Miss Parker, I have a daughter just about your age. I can’t help but see her when I look at you and I can’t help but wonder what kind of man does such a thing to his child…his own flesh and blood.”
“The kind of man who has no conscience and no heart. He cares about nothing except power and the Centre. Everything and everyone else is insignificant.”
Dr. Samuels nodded slightly, “I get that feeling.”
“Dr. Samuels, you have to leave…get out while you can. He will have you killed when this is over whether or not anything goes wrong with my pregnancy. The Centre will not risk outsiders knowing what goes on inside these walls.”
Dr. Samuels adjusted the blankets around her. “Miss Parker, I was a doctor in Vietnam, I never abandoned a patient, not even under the worst of fire…I am not about to start now.”
Miss Parker smiled as the doctor squeezed her hand.
“Now close your eyes and go back to sleep. I will be in to check on you later.”
Miss Parker closed her eyes. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“You are welcome, Miss Parker,” Dr. Samuels said as he turned and left the room.
**********
Jarod awoke and noticed that the clock read 8:45 a.m. Getting up he shut off the alarm and stretched his sleep stiffened body. He noticed that the crib was empty and was amazed that he had slept through Andrew’s morning wake-up call.
He dressed quickly and grabbed the silver case. He went into his parents’ room and found it empty.
Downstairs he found Andrew and Josh playing with wooden building blocks on the kitchen table.
“Where is everyone?” Jarod asked as he kissed Andrew on the top of his head.
“Dad and Emily went to the store. Mom and Ella are out on the front porch.”
“I’ll go out and give Mom her shot then come back in and fix breakfast.”
“Oh, we already ate. Mom fixed breakfast hours ago. She wouldn’t let us wake you because you needed your sleep. There is a plate for you in the oven.”
Jarod smiled and headed out to the porch where he found his mother and Ella sitting in the wicker rocking chairs and sipping hot tea. He watched his mother for a moment. She seemed to have color in her cheeks and her hands were steady as she lifted the delicate teacup to her lips.
“Mom, how are you feeling?” he asked with a smile as he approached the two friends. “It’s time for your next dosage.”
“I am feeling great, Jarod. Better than I have in months,” Margaret smiled brightly as she rolled up her sleeve. “It seems to be working.”
Jarod administered the drug then closing the case he smiled. “Mom, just take it easy, okay. Too much too soon may cause a relapse.”
“All right, son.”
“Ella, how is her blood pressure and heart rate this morning?”
Nurse Henderson reached down into her bag and took out the notebook where she had been keeping track of Margaret’s vitals. “Her heart rate and blood pressure are both normal and I drew blood this morning as you requested and Emily took it to the FBI lab for analysis. They should have the results by this afternoon.”
“The results should tell us whether or not the Anacorcin is a cure or merely a temporary fix,” Jarod said.
“Jarod, I know you do not want me to get my hopes up, but I really believe that this drug is the cure,” Margaret said as she squeezed her son’s hand.
“Mom, we have to be realistic,” Jarod warned gently.
“There is a plate warming in the oven for you, Jarod. I will get it for you,” Margaret said as she placed her teacup on the table next to her chair and started to rise.
“No, Mom, that’s all right. I can get it. You sit here and enjoy your tea,” Jarod smiled as he kissed her cheek. Then he stood and went back into the house.
“He is really something, that boy of yours,” Ella said.
“Yes, he is,” Margaret replied as she took another sip of her tea. “I still have trouble believing that I am not dreaming.”
**********
Four Weeks Later...
Sydney entered Miss Parker’s room to find it empty. Alarmed he pulled out his cell phone and dialed Lyle’s number.
“Lyle,” his voice came over the line after the second ring.
“Where have they taken your sister?”
“She is not in her room?”
Sydney paced angrily his gaze frantically scanning the room for clues as to where they had taken her. “She is gone…everything is gone. The room is empty.”
“Don’t worry, I will get to the bottom of this,” Lyle said as he broke the connection.
Sydney left the empty room and searched every square inch of the infirmary level to no avail. She was nowhere to be found. “Where have they taken you?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
**********
Mr. Parker sat behind his desk looking over Dr. Samuels’ reports and smiling with satisfaction at the progress of his daughter’s pregnancy. He was glad that he had thought to move her to Jarod’s old room. It was much more secure and much easier to monitor everything that went on around her.
“Dad,” Lyle opened the door as he tapped lightly on the glass. “Can I speak with you for a moment?”
“Of course, come in, son.”
“You seem rather chipper this morning,” Lyle grinned.
“I am happier than I have been in years, my boy. The Triumvirate is very pleased with our latest venture.”
“And that would be…”
“The twins of course. Thanks to your quick thinking, the Africans are increasing their funding for the new pretenders in training. As soon as they are born, we will begin the process of molding them and suppressing their individual personalities until we have total control of them. We will not make the mistakes we made with Jarod and the others. The twins will become little more than human androids, trained to do whatever we tell them without human frailties or consciences.”
“Do you really believe that Miss Parker and Jarod will just stand by and allow us to turn their children into glorified robots?”
Mr. Parker smiled, “They will not be around to object.”
Lyle felt his stomach lurch as he stared in disbelief at the man he now hated more than anyone, including the man who had raised him and locked him in the shed for days without food or water. Compared to the monster who stood before him, Lyle Bowman was a model father and Douglas Willard was a saint.”
“Dad, you know that the Triumvirate wants Jarod back alive.”
“Actually they are convinced that his time on the outside has corrupted his abilities and have ordered him to be…shall we say, erased?” he laughed heartily. “Yes, these twins are truly a new beginning for the Centre.”
“Do I really need to ask who they expect to ‘erase’ Jarod and Miss Parker?” Lyle asked as he struggled to maintain his composure.
“The Triumvirate believes that by fulfilling their wishes, you prove your loyalty to them and to the Centre.”
“Is that why you murdered our mother?” he asked angrily. The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them.
Mr. Parker glared icily at his son. “Lyle, we all do what we have to do to get where we need to be. Unfortunately your mother failed to heed my repeated warnings about digging into Centre business.” He rose from his chair and slammed his fists down on the solid mahogany desk. “Your sister is too much like Catherine…that is what got her where she is right now.”
Lyle saw his chance and casually perched himself on the edge of the desk. “So, where is my dear sweet sister anyway? It seems that she is no longer being held in the infirmary.”
“I had her moved to Jarod’s old room for security purposes.”
“I will be needing the code to the lock,” Lyle said as he toyed with the abstract metal sculpture on the desk. He had no clue what the monstrosity was supposed to represent and he really didn’t care.
Mr. Parker nodded, “I will see that you get the code as soon as the security system update has been completed. I am having new, state-of-the-art surveillance equipment installed. Including cameras and listening devices so tiny they can be hidden it the most obvious places.”
“Is that really necessary? She is heavily sedated and in no condition to even attempt an escape.”
“That is true, but you know as well as I do that eventually Jarod will come for her and when he does, we are not going to be caught unprepared.”
Lyle nodded as he rose from the desk and straightened his suit coat. “Keep me posted, I have a meeting with Sydney to discuss his latest project.”
“Good,” Mr. Parker said. “Inform Sydney that he is not to go anywhere near your sister unless accompanied by you.”
“I will make sure he understands,” Lyle said, quickly stifling the look of relief on his face. He would not have wanted to have to tell his father he could not go near his own daughter. That would not have sat well with Sydney.
“Very well,” Mr. Parker smiled. “Why don’t you meet me for lunch.”
Lyle cringed at the thought. “Sorry, already have a lunch date.”
“Of course,” Mr. Parker gave him a curt nod. “Another time then.”
Lyle left the office and headed for the nearest restroom. He felt the bile rising in his throat as he thought of what he had just been ordered to do. Leaning over the marble sink, he stared at himself in the mirror. “Well, now what are we going to do?” he asked the reflection staring back at him.
**********
Miss Parker was relieved to be out of the infirmary. She was thrilled to be in Jarod’s old apartment. It was much more comfortable. She hated the fact that she had to continue to feign sleep for the dozens of cameras that had been installed in the various rooms. However, until Dr. Samuels could get permission from Mr. Parker to take her off the sedatives, she was doomed to day in and day out of pretending to be unconscious.
As if on cue, Dr. Samuels entered the bedroom where she lay ‘sleeping’. “Miss Parker,” he whispered. “Good news, your father has ordered that you be taken off the sedatives. He feels that since you are now in a totally secure environment that you can be allowed to move about freely within the confines of this room.”
“How generous of him,” she muttered sarcastically.
“Your brother asked me to tell you that he and Sydney have a meeting with a very important client and that they would be back tomorrow. He said that he hoped you would understand, and that they would come to see you as soon as they return.”
Miss Parker smiled, “I do understand, thank you, Dr. Samuels.”
“You are very welcome,” he winked as he lifted her wrist to check her pulse.
**********
Emily ran into the house with a plain manila envelope in her hand. “Jarod, we got the results,” she called out.
Jarod hurried down the stairs and with an anxious glance at his sister he sat down at the kitchen table and tore open the envelope. As he read, the worried look on his face slowly transformed into a broad grin. “It worked, Em,” he laughed. “She is going to be okay,” he said jumping up from his seat and embracing his sister.
“You did it, Jarod,” Emily hugged him tightly. “You saved her.”
“Not without help,” he said.
“Come on, let’s go tell them the news,” Emily took hold of her brother’s hand and together they went outside to the back yard where their family was gathered for a late autumn barbecue.
“Mom,” Emily smiled as she sat down on the ground at her mother’s feet and took hold of her hand. “Jarod has something to tell you.”
Jarod approached with the envelope in his hands and tears glistening in his eyes. “Mom, the Anacorcin worked. Your blood cell count is normal. You are going to be okay.”
Margaret rose from her chair and embraced her son.
Major Charles, overcome with relief, sank down on the garden bench and placed his head in his hands. “Thank God,” he whispered.”
Jarod pulled back slightly from his mother and just stared into her eyes. “I was so afraid that it wouldn’t work…that I would lose you.”
“I told you, it was in God’s hands. He brought you home when he did for a reason. So that through you, I would receive a most precious gift…a second chance at life.”
Emily was in tears as she got up and hugged her father.
Josh sat on the edge of the deck trying to hide the fact that he was crying, but failed miserably. Ella reached over and gathered him into her arms.
The smell of burning steaks soon had them all laughing hysterically at themselves and wiping away their tears. They sat down around the picnic table, ate their very well done steaks and before long, had settled into the easy banter of a normal family.
**********
The black town car sped down the highway, away from Blue Cove, with Lyle behind the wheel. Sydney was dialing Jarod’s number and listening with baited breath while it rang unanswered. Hanging up, he tried repeatedly and finally on the sixth attempt Jarod’s voice came over the line.
“Hello?”
“Jarod, thank God,” Sydney gasped.
“Syd, what’s wrong?”
“We need to meet somewhere as soon as possible. We are about an hour away from the place where you met with Lyle before. Can you meet us there?”
Jarod was silent for a moment. “No,” he finally said. “Come here…to the house. I will give you directions.”
“Are you sure?”
“I have to trust that Lyle really has changed.”
“All right, Jarod. Tell me how to find it.”
Jarod was waiting out on the porch when they pulled into the drive. He met them halfway down the walk. “Sydney,” he said as he embraced his mentor. Then turning to Lyle he hesitated for a few seconds before offering his hand which Lyle shook. “I am trusting you,” Jarod whispered the warning.
Lyle nodded in understanding. “Thank you, Jarod. It means a lot to me.”
“You helped my mother, and for that I thank you.”
“Then we have a truce…however tentative.”
“Yes, I suppose we do.”
As the three men climbed the steps to the porch, Major Charles opened the door for them. “Hello, Sydney. It is good to see you again,” he smiled and shook his hand.
“You as well, Major, though I wish it were under better circumstances.”
“Have a seat in the living room,” Major Charles said. “Can I get you some coffee?”
“No, thank you,” Lyle replied.
“I would love some,” Sydney smiled.
A few seconds later, he returned with a cup for Sydney and one for himself. “The girls are fixing dinner…pot roast I believe. Every time I attempted to peek in the oven I got my hand slapped,” Major Charles chuckled.
“Sydney, what happened? Is Miss Parker all right?”
“For now, yes,” Sydney nodded.
“The Triumvirate has ordered her to be killed as soon as the babies are born,” Lyle said nervously massaging the place where his thumb had once been. “Not only that, but they want you eliminated as well. You just went from an asset to a liability and I am supposed to ‘erase’ both of you.”
“I was afraid it would come to this,” Major Charles said his voice edged with fear and concern for his son.
“We have to get her out of there now,” Jarod said.
“If only it were that easy,” Sydney frowned. “Mr. Parker ordered her moved to your old apartment. He has beefed up security and surveillance. It will not be easy getting to her undetected.”
“He has that room wired like Fort Knox, Jarod,” Lyle said.
Jarod fell silent as he rose from the sofa and walked to the fireplace. As he stared at the family pictures and the newly added photo of he and Andrew together, he smiled gently. “You know, a home is not a home without pictures,” he said drawing curious looks from his audience. “For most of my life I believed that I was alone in the world. Now I see that I was never truly alone. I had you, Syd. I had Angelo and I had my best friend…my soul mate.”
Turning to meet the confused gazes, he shook his head slowly. “I can’t lose her,” he uttered softly.
Broots’ heart nearly stopped when he saw the black town car in the driveway. “Nick, this doesn’t look good.”
Scrambling from the car, they darted up the front steps and cautiously opened the front door, their hands hovering over their guns. “Hello,” Nick said as they entered the front room.
“Emily?” Broots called out.
“Chris, am I glad to see you,” Emily said as she ran into his arms.
“What’s wrong, Em?”
“Sydney and Lyle are here.”
“Lyle,” Broots said as he reached for his gun.
“Easy John Wayne, they came in peace,” she smiled and kissed him. “Come on, they will explain.”
They walked into the dining room and everyone looked up. It was not hard to tell that something was wrong since no one seemed to be actually eating what was on their plates.
“What’s going on?” Broots asked as he took a seat next to Emily and Nick pulled up a chair next to him.
Lyle noticed Broots’ FBI badge on his belt. “You—Broots, FBI?” he said as he nearly choked on his coffee.
Broots glared angrily at him, but did not say a word. Instead he turned to Jarod and saw the unmistakable look of fear in his friend’s eyes. “Jarod, what has happened?”
Sydney spoke for his protégé as he glanced from Jarod to Broots and shook his head slowly. “It’s not good, I’m afraid. The Triumvirate has ordered Lyle to kill Miss Parker as soon as the twins are born. They have also declared Jarod a liability and a security risk and want him dead as well.”
Margaret fought back her tears as she held tight to Jarod’s hand. Her heart was breaking right along with his. She knew that he was going to go away again and she was afraid that this time he would not come back. She also knew that without Miss Parker in his life, he would be lost. Catherine Parker’s daughter was his life’s breath, and he would go to the ends of the earth to save her and their unborn children.
Jarod turned to his mother and without a word he got up and left the room. He walked out to the front porch, taking a seat in the wicker rocking chair where his mother had been that morning. Closing his eyes, he listened to the birds singing in the branches of the old maple tree. He felt the cool autumn breeze on his face and heard the rustling of the leaves as they fell to the ground.
A few minutes later the front screen door open and close and he heard the heavy footsteps of his father as he moved to sit in the other rocker.
“Are you okay?”
Jarod opened his eyes. “I’ve been better.”
“Your mom and I know what she means to you and we want you to know that we will help any way we can.”
“Thank you,” Jarod smiled gratefully.
“Catherine saved our lives, Jarod. We owe it to her to save her daughter and her grandchildren and give them the kind of life that she wanted for her little girl.”
“Dad, I am scared.”
“It’s okay to be, son. The Centre is a formidable enemy.” Major Charles rose from the wicker chair and patted his son on the shoulder. “Don’t you worry. We will find a way to get Miss Parker out of that place, I promise.”
“I just wish I knew a way to do it without causing her and the babies undue stress. It is not going to be easy.”
“Nothing ever is when it comes to the Centre.”
Jarod leaned forward in his seat and stared down at the gray plank floor of the porch. “Dad, I can’t even imagine my life without her.”
Major Charles nodded, “I know…that is how I felt about your mother the first time I laid eyes on that fiery red hair and those eyes. She was a vision…so beautiful.”
“It still amazes me how you two have managed to keep your love and your marriage alive after so many years of separation.”
“When you have a love as strong as ours, you are never truly apart,” Charles smiled. “Look at you and Miss Parker…separated by years of anger, deception and bitterness. Yet your love has survived and is all the more powerful for it.” He started to walk away, then paused. “Come in when you are ready,” he said then opened the screen door and went into the house.
Alone again, Jarod got up from his seat and placed his hands on the porch railing. He stared up at the feathery white clouds drifting on the breeze and felt the sun on his face. “I wish you were here,” he uttered softly into the wind.
**********
Miss Parker was so happy to be able to get out of bed and walk around the apartment that she was almost able to overlook the fact that she was a prisoner. If only she could fight the loneliness that had reared its ugly head since she had not seen Sydney or Lyle in nearly a week.
Gently pressing her hand to her abdomen, she smiled as she felt the slight swelling there. She was nearly six weeks pregnant and with each passing day, she grew increasingly afraid that it would be up to her alone to protect the innocent lives growing within her.
Torn between wanting him to come for her and praying that, for Andrew’s sake, he would stay away, she cried herself to sleep night after night. She missed his smile, his laughing dark eyes and his deep comforting voice. Most of all she missed the feeling of being in his arms…protected, cherished…loved.
Settling down on the stark white sofa she picked up a throw pillow and curling up in a ball she hugged it to her chest and cried silently. The satin-like material absorbed both her tears and the heart-wrenching sobs that wracked her body.
“Please, Jarod,” she whispered into the pillow. “I need you…”
“Are you certain that it was wise to take her off the sedatives?” Mr. Parker asked as he observed his daughter on the monitor.
“Prolonged sedation could have a negative effect on the babies. I believe that we should just leave her be.”
“Watch her closely. If she attempts to escape or to hurt herself in any way, I want you to immediately put her back under. We cannot risk anything happening to those babies.”
“Yes, Mr. Parker,” Dr. Samuels nodded as he too studied his patient on the monitor. “I can assure you however, that with the observations that I have made in her actions as well as her frame of mind, I do not believe that it will come to that.”
“For your sake, you had better be right,” Mr. Parker said as he turned and stormed out of the room.
**********
Jarod crept along the corridor, keeping out of the view of the cameras. He knew he was taking a risk walking the halls of the Centre during daylight hours, but it was the last thing they would expect him to do.
Armed with the code to the door of his old room, he made his way, as quickly as possible, toward his goal. He had to get into position before the planned diversions were executed.
Finally reaching the door, he punched in the code and waited for it to open.
Miss Parker heard the door open, but believing it to be Dr. Samuels, she didn’t bother to move from the bed. Turning the page, she continued to read.
Jarod slipped quickly into the room and as the door slid closed, he jammed a chair in it to keep it open. Checking his watch, he waited. At the three-minute mark, he removed the cover on the side of the camera and short-circuited it, which automatically shut down all the cameras in the apartment.
When Dr. Samuels did not appear, Miss Parker slipped silently out from under the covers. Tying the belt of her robe, she slipped the book into the pocket. Her heart was pounding as she peered around the corner into the main room. At first, she saw no one, but when she stepped out of the bedroom and spotted the familiar black leather coat her heart leapt into her throat.
“Jarod,” she gasped.
Turning around Jarod smiled, “Hey there, what’s a beautiful girl like you doing in a place like this?”
“Waiting for you,” she cried softly and ran into his open arms. “I was afraid you wouldn’t come.”
“Wild horses couldn’t keep me away,” he said as he kissed her deeply.
“That’s original,” she smiled.
“Hey, it’s the best I could do on short notice,” he grinned.
Miss Parker laughed and kissed him again.
“What do you say I take you away from all this?” he asked with a sweeping glance of the room that still haunted his dreams.
“By all means, take me away,” she smiled.
Jarod motioned toward her attire. “Are you going out like that?” he asked with a wink and a smirk.
“My wardrobe is a bit limited at the present time.”
“Madeline, my love,” Jarod chuckled. “You would look amazing in a gunny sack.”
“So what are we waiting for?”
“Patience,” he said as he checked his watch again. “We have thirty seconds.” Jarod counted down the last fifteen seconds then grabbed her by the hand and kicking the chair out of the way, pulled her out into the corridor.
“This way,” Angelo grinned as he pushed out a ventilation grate and helped Miss Parker up into the air shaft.
They crawled until they reached SL-5 and by then, Miss Parker was exhausted. The added strain of her pregnancy was quickly zapping her strength. “Jarod, I don’t think I can make it.”
Jarod nodded and kicked out a grate. Dropping out onto the floor of the tech room, he helped her out of the ventilation shaft and set her gently on her feet. Pulling her close, he held her while she fought tears of frustration and struggled to catch her breath. “I’m sorry,” she said, her breathing ragged.
“Shh, Maddie. It’s all right. You are doing fine,” he smiled and kissed the top of her head.
Angelo stood quietly nearby.
Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the soothing sound of Jarod’s voice and the rhythm of his breathing until her heartbeat returned to normal. Then slowly she pulled back from him slightly. “Okay,” she said. “I’m ready.”
“Are you sure?” Jarod asked with deep concern in his eyes.
“I’m sure,” she nodded.
“All right,” he said then taking her hand, they followed Angelo out into the corridor and toward the emergency stairs.
Pulling open the heavy door, Angelo started up the stairs. Jarod turned and scooped Miss Parker up into his arms. They caught up with Angelo quickly and kept going. The lights flickered several times but thankfully stayed on. Just as they reached the main level, a loud explosion shook the building.
Miss Parker held on to Jarod for dear life and prayed that they would make it out of there in one piece.
“Head for the roof, Angelo,” Jarod called out to his friend.
They were almost to the door that opened onto the rooftop and freedom when Mr. Parker and Raines cut off their escape route.
Raines let loose a menacing laugh and raised his gun.
“When are you two going to realize that you cannot outrun destiny?” Mr. Parker smiled as he leveled his gun on them. “Put her down, Jarod. She will not be harmed. I promise you.”
Mr. Parker suddenly froze as he felt the barrel a gun as it dug into the back of his neck. “You are making a grave mistake…”
Sydney cut him off. “Threats will not work…not this time. I cannot allow you to hurt her anymore. For years I have stood by and watched as you continually broke her heart. I never stepped in because I was afraid of what I would do to you if I ever lost control…something I am very close to doing right here and now.”
“You will regret this, Sydney.”
“No more than I regret my life. The years I wasted…years that I could have spent loving my beautiful daughter. No more than I regret not being able to save Catherine from the fate you handed her.”
“What the hell are you talking about? You do not have a daughter…” Mr. Parker began then suddenly the truth hit him. “Catherine…you and Catherine.”
Sydney smiled, “You are finally catching on.”
“I—It cannot be,” he stammered.
“Madeline is my daughter,” Sydney said with pride and a wink in her direction. “And Lyle is my son.”
Raines made a sudden move in an attempt to escape but found himself at the receiving end of Lyle’s automatic.
“And just where do you think you are going,” Lyle grinned.
Raines glared at him. “Out of my way.”
“Lyle, thank God. Will you do something?” Mr. Parker begged his son.
“What would you like me to do, dear old Dad?” Lyle asked with a smirk. “Would you like me to save your worthless life? I don’t think you really deserve it.”
Mr. Parker’s eyes flashed with desperation. “Lyle…”
“Sorry, my hands are full,” Lyle shrugged as he produced a small black box from his pocket and held it in his left hand. “This is a detonator and if I push this button, the Centre is history and you right along with it.”
“Lyle, what are you doing?” Jarod asked.
“Insurance, Jarod. You go on. Get them out of here. I am going to end this my way,” Lyle gave a slight nod.
“Lyle come with us, they aren’t worth dying for,” Jarod said.
“No, but they are,” he said as he looked from Sydney to Miss Parker.
“Jarod’s right, Lyle,” Sydney said. “They aren’t worth it. Let’s go now.”
Lyle shook his head. “It will never end as long as they live. None of us will ever be free. This ends now.”
Jarod saw the conviction in Lyle’s eyes and realized that there would be no changing his mind. “Syd, come on.”
Lowering his gun, Sydney approached his son with tears brimming in his eyes. “Please, don’t do this?”
Smiling slightly, Lyle met his gaze. “Go,” he whispered.
Finally realizing that his son was determined to go through with his decision, Sydney moved toward Jarod and Miss Parker. As they reached the door to the roof, he felt his heart breaking.
“Don’t let him do this,” Miss Parker cried out. “Lyle…”
Lyle turned to watch them leave. “I love you both,” he uttered too softly for them to hear the words.
“Jarod, stop him,” Miss Parker pleaded with him. “He’s my brother.”
Jarod held her tightly to him as they ran across the roof to the landing pad. Major Charles landed the helicopter and Broots jumped to the ground and helped Angelo aboard.
“Broots,” Jarod said as he placed Miss Parker into his arms. “Take her and go. Get them out of here. I have to go back for Lyle,” he smiled and touched his hand to her face. “You will be okay. I love you.”
“I love you too,” she smiled through her tears. “Be careful.”
“I will,” Jarod smiled and turning he ran back into the building.
Lyle was still holding Mr. Parker and Raines at gunpoint while fingering the detonator. “It’s time to end this,” he smiled.
“Lyle,” Jarod shouted.
Turning at the sound of the pretender’s voice, Lyle removed his finger from the button. “Jarod, I told you to get them out of here.”
“They are safe. I came back to try to talk some sense into you.”
“That’s just it, Jarod. Finally, everything is making sense. I have never seen things more clearly.”
Jarod approached Lyle slowly with his hands raised. “What about your family? You have a chance…do not throw it all away.”
“I do not deserve them,” Lyle said. “I am no better than these two,” he motioned toward Mr. Parker and Raines.
“There was a time when I would have agreed with you, but not now.”
Lyle laughed softly, “Jarod, I killed your brother, I tortured you mercilessly on more than one occasion…I have made your life a living hell. Do you really believe I can change?”
“Yes, I do,” Jarod said with certainty.
Lyle stared at him in surprise. Then turning to the two men cowering before him, he smiled. “Well, it appears that this is your lucky day,” he said as he placed the detonator into his pocket. “Come on, Jarod. Let’s get out of here.”
Jarod nodded and slapped Lyle on the back as they headed for the exit. He pulled out the two-way radio and pressed the button. “Dad, we are coming out.”
They ran out onto the roof just as the helicopter was returning to the landing pad. Ten feet from safety, a gunshot rang out.
Lyle froze then dropped slowly to his knees. “Jarod…” he gasped.
“So much for redemption,” Mr. Raines said as he turned and went back inside.
“What a shame,” Mr. Parker said lowering his gun.
“No,” Miss Parker screamed.
Broots ran to help Jarod get Lyle to his feet and together they got him on board the helicopter.
“Go, Dad,” Jarod shouted as he carefully removed Lyle’s blood-soaked coat to see how much damage the bullet had done. “Broots, the first aid kit.”
Miss Parker held on to her brother’s hand while clutching his jacket to her chest. “Hold on, Lyle. You are going to be all right. Don’t you dare die on me.” Feeling the rectangular bulge of the detonator inside the pocket of the bloody coat, she slowly reached in and pulled it out.
Looking back at the malevolent edifice that had kept them all prisoner for far too long, her finger hovering over the button, she suddenly knew what she had to do. “This is where it ends,” she whispered and pressed the button.
A split second later, a massive fireball erupted from the roof of the Centre, immediately engulfing the tower. A thunderous sound could be heard over the drone of the helicopter blades as twenty-seven sub levels collapsed in on each other. The air filled with acrid black smoke, totally blocking out the devastation.
Miss Parker met Jarod’s gaze. “Now…we are free,” she whispered as she placed a hand over her midsection and gave a slight nod.
Reaching over, Jarod covered her hand with his own. Taking the detonator from her, he passed it to Broots. Then gathering her into his arms, he held her.
Major Charles landed the helicopter in the parking lot of the hospital and almost immediately, a team of paramedics raced out to them with a gurney. Broots had radioed ahead that they were coming in with a gunshot victim and to be ready for them.
They reached the helicopter just as Jarod slid the door open and he helped them lower Lyle to the gurney. “He has lost a lot of blood,” he told the paramedics. He has a gunshot would to his lower back.”
“We’ll take care of him,” one of them smiled as they quickly wheeled him toward the building.
Jarod then turned to Miss Parker and gently touched her cheek. “He is going to make it. He has too much to live for.”
Miss Parker nodded her eyes filling with tears.
Sydney hugged her and smiled, “Come on, let’s go inside, he needs his family now more than ever.”
“Broots and I will join you just as soon as we get this helicopter out of the way,” Major Charles said.
Sydney nodded and motioned to Angelo. “Angelo, come with us.”
Angelo grinned and jumped down to the ground. Running ahead of Sydney, he followed Jarod and Miss Parker into.
Sydney watched as the helicopter lifted off the ground and flew toward an empty lot nearby. Then he turned and followed the others.
He prayed that his son would make it. He could not bear to lose him, not after everything that had happened in the past months…not after all the progress they had made toward becoming a real family.
Reaching the waiting area just outside the emergency room, he found Jarod alone on the sofa with his head in his hands. Angelo was sitting quietly on the floor in the corner with his knees drawn up to his chest.
Jarod looked up as he heard Sydney enter the room. “They took him into surgery. The doctor will come talk to us as soon as she can.”
Sydney nodded and sat down on the sofa next to them. Rubbing his eyes, he shook his head sadly. “Where is Madeline?”
“I sent her with Dr. Kendrick for a full examination to make sure that she and the babies are all right.”
“Good,” Sydney replied with a slight nod.
Jarod rose from the sofa, crossed the room to the coffeepot, and poured two cups. Handing one to Sydney, he returned to his seat and took a sip of the steaming hot liquid. “Sydney, he will be okay,” he said.
“I pray you are right,” Sydney said as he too sipped his coffee.
**********
“I think we should keep you here for a couple of days for observation,” Dr. Kendrick told Miss Parker as she got up to leave the examination room.
“Sorry, but I have had enough ‘observation’ to last me a lifetime. Right now I just want to go see about my brother,” she replied.
“I will give you a choice, Miss Parker. Either you agree to let me admit you for two days or you go straight home and get into your own bed for some much needed rest.”
Miss Parker flashed him an angry glare. “Dr. Kendrick, I appreciate your concern, but at this very moment my brother is fighting for his life.”
“So are they,” Dr. Kendrick said as he took her hand and placed it gently on her abdomen. “You have to rest. Your body was in no way ready for this pregnancy. They used hormones to trick it into accepting the embryos. I can prescribe the same hormone to help it adjust but you need complete bed rest and proper nutrition for at least a month to help it along.”
Nodding slowly, Miss Parker settled back down in the chair she had just vacated. “All right,” she said. “I will do whatever it takes. I cannot let anything happen to my babies.”
Dr. Kendrick smiled as he picked up the telephone. “Nurse Shane will you please prepare a private room for Miss Parker. She is going to be staying with us for a few days.” When he hung up the receiver he reached down and took both of her hands in his. “This is for the best.”
“I know,” she said with a slight smile.
“I will go find Jarod and let him know what is happening. Nurse Shane will come for you in a few minutes and take you to your room.”
“Thank you, Dr. Kendrick.”
“You are very welcome.”
After the doctor left, Miss Parker settled back in the chair and tried to relax. As she did so, her thoughts turned to Dr. Samuels. She prayed that he had gotten out of the Centre alive. Though she had no regrets about sending that abomination into oblivion, she hoped that no one she cared about was caught in the blast.
“Miss Parker, I am here to take you to your room,” Nurse Shane smiled as she entered pushing a wheelchair ahead of her.
Without a word, Miss Parker rose from the chair and settled her weary body in the wheelchair. “I’m all yours,” she said, her voice subdued.
**********
Sydney was hovering on the threshold of sleep when he heard someone come into the room. Instantly alert he rose from the sofa and extended his hand to the doctor. “How is he, doctor?”
Dr. Louise Thomas shook Sydney’s hand and smiled. “It is a miracle, but he is going to be just fine. The bullet somehow missed every vital organ in its path and lodged in the liver. Your son is a very lucky man.”
“Thank you so much, Dr. Thomas,” Sydney said laughing with relief.
“He is being moved to ICU for observation. I will send someone to inform you when you can see him.”
“How long will he be in ICU?” Jarod asked.
“For a day or two, then we will move him into a private room. If all goes well, he should be out of here by weeks end,” Dr. Thomas said then excusing herself, she left the room.
**********
Jarod quietly pushed open the door of Miss Parker’s room. He smiled as he saw that she was sleeping peacefully and started to leave.
“Don’t even think about it, boy genius,” she said before he could slip out.
“I thought you were asleep. I didn’t want to disturb you,” Jarod said as he approached the bed.
“How is Lyle?” she asked.
“He is going to be just fine,” Jarod said.
“Thank God.”
“The doctor said that he is lucky to be alive.”
Miss Parker took hold of Jarod’s hand and laced her fingers in his. “I have been lying here thinking about the future…our future.”
Jarod smiled, “I guess we were on the same wavelength. I have been thinking about how much I want the rest of our lives to be perfect. I know you don’t believe in ‘happily ever after’ but I want that for us…for our children.”
“So do I,” she whispered.
“Madeline, I love you,” Jarod said. “I promise you that I will do everything in my power to give you the life that you deserve. Just please say that you will marry me.”
Stunned, Miss Parker stared silently into his pleading dark eyes. When she finally came back to her senses, she smiled brightly. “Jarod, there is nothing I want more than to spend the rest of my days as your wife and the mother of your children. Yes, I will marry you.”
Jarod laughed and kissed her deeply. “I love you,” he said.
“I love you too, Jarod,” she whispered.
**********
Three Days Later...
Margaret and Emily were sitting in the porch swing drinking their morning tea when the white van pulled up in front of the house followed by Broots in the Lexus.
“They’re home,” Josh shouted. He quickly shot the basketball through the hoop then ran toward the driveway. His forgotten ball hit the ground and bounced into the bushes next to the garage.
Jarod got out of the driver’s side and ran around to open the van door. He helped Miss Parker out and then turned to help Lyle.
“I’m all right, Jarod,” Lyle said refusing the pretender’s help.
Jarod turned his attention back to Miss Parker, taking her hand and leading her up the walk toward the house.
“Miss Parker,” Josh said as he ran up to them and hugged her.
“It is good to see you, Josh,” she smiled and kissed his cheek.
“Welcome home,” he said softly.
“Thank you,” she replied.
Major Charles came out of the house with Andrew in his arms. “Look who’s here, Andy,” he laughed as Andrew squealed with excitement. “I think someone is happy to see you two,” he said.
Jarod took Andrew from his father’s arms and handed him over to Miss Parker who was already crying.
“My baby boy,” she smiled through her tears. “I have missed you so much.”
“Mama,” Andrew said as he wrapped his tiny arms around her neck.
“Did you hear that?” Miss Parker beamed.
“If this isn’t happily ever after, then I don’t know what is,” Jarod said as he lowered his mouth to hers.
“My thoughts exactly,” she smiled as she returned his kiss.
without permission. I'm not making any money out of this and no infringement is intended.
Kaleidoscope
part 3
by Jennifer DeNaughel
Broots turned the Lexus off the highway and into a residential neighborhood. Lining both sides of the narrow street were charming and historic Victorian homes with their intricate woodcarvings, lace ironwork, wraparound porches, and myriad of brightly colored facades.
Jarod smiled as he saw children playing in the yards and riding their bikes on the sidewalks. It was the neighborhood he had always dreamed of growing up in…every detail was exactly as he and Miss Parker imagined as children. Whenever they had talked about escaping from the Centre…this was the place they had dreamed of running to.
Guiding the car into a circular drive in front of the last house on the street, Broots shut of the engine and smiled. “This is it, my friend. Your family is waiting for you.”
“I am so nervous,” Jarod said.
“That is understandable,” Broots smiled. “It has been a long time.”
Turning to look at Andrew, Jarod sighed. “Well, Andrew, are you ready?”
Nurse Henderson patted Jarod’s arm. “You go to your mother. She has waited a lifetime for this day. We will bring Andrew along in a bit.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“I am sure,” she said. “Now go.”
Jarod nodded then opened his door. He stepped out onto the stone walkway and stared up at the house. It was somewhat smaller than the other homes on the street, but no less beautiful. The walkway led up to the wraparound porch which had a swing and the front door which was painted a deep green like the shutters and the window trim. The house itself was white with gingerbread moldings and a second floor balcony.
Walking up the steps, Jarod felt as though his heart was going to jump right out of his chest. His mind was racing to find the right words to say to his mother when he looked into her eyes for the first time.
Just as he stepped onto the porch the front door opened and Josh appeared with basketball in hand. “Oh my God,” he uttered softly. Then he laughed and shouted back to the other occupants of the house. “He’s here. Jarod is here.” Then dropping the basketball, he took a step forward and Jarod embraced him.
“It is so good to see you,” he said as he hugged the teen. “Man have you grown. You are already nearly as tall as me.”
Josh laughed, “Yeah, but at least we know that I will never be taller than you.”
“Funny,” Jarod chuckled and mussed the boy’s hair. “How about a game later?” he asked, motioning toward the basketball which had come to rest against the porch railing.
“You got it,” Josh grinned.
“Jarod,” Emily squealed as she flew out of the house and into his open arms. “I can’t believe it…you’re finally here.”
Jarod held her tightly and kissed the top of her head. “Emily, you are even prettier than I remember.”
Emily pulled back slightly and smiled through her tears. “You look pretty good yourself, big brother. I have waited a very long time to meet you.”
“Jarod,” Major Charles laughed as he came out of the house. As father and son embraced each other, Broots came up the steps with Nurse Henderson who held Andrew in her arms. “It is so good to see you,” he said as he stepped back and looked his son over from head to toe. “You look like you could use a good meal and a long rest.”
“Definitely,” Jarod smiled. Then looking expectantly over his father’s shoulder, he frowned. “Where’s Mom?”
Major Charles’ expression grew serious. “Son, your mom…she has been ill. She is upstairs in bed resting.”
“What’s wrong with her?” Jarod asked as fear gripped his heart.
Emily stepped in and took hold of her brother’s arm. “She has been fighting the flu…can’t seem to shake it. You go to her…seeing you will be the best medicine in the world. Her room is the second door on the right at the top of the stairs.”
Jarod nodded and entered the house. He knew there was more that they were not telling him and as he climbed the stairs, a feeling of dread washed over him.
Emily turned and stepped into Broots’ waiting arms. “I just couldn’t tell him,” she said.
“Shh, Em, everything will be okay,” he said reassuringly.
Reaching the partially open door of his mother’s room he knocked then slowly pushed it open. “Mom,” he said as he crossed the room and dropped to his knees next to the bed. “Mom, it’s me, Jarod. Mom, I’m home.”
Margaret opened her eyes and slowly turned her head. Tears filled her eyes the instant she saw her long lost son kneeling next to her. “Am I dreaming?” she asked wearily. “If I am then please, God, don’t let me wake up.”
Jarod smiled tenderly, “No, Mom. You aren’t dreaming. I am here.”
“My son,” Margaret choked back a sob as Jarod raised up and hugged her. “You are really here…you have come home.”
“Mom,” Jarod said fighting his own tears. “What’s wrong?”
Smiling, Margaret reluctantly released him and lay back on the pillows. “You are so very handsome. Just like your father…” she said softly.
“Mom, please, tell me what is wrong. Let me help you.”
“I am just fighting a bad case of the flu,” she replied with a slight smile. “Don’t you worry, I will be back on my feet in no time at all.”
“Mom, I know this is not the flu. Tell me the truth, please.”
Margaret turned her head and stared up at the ceiling for several seconds before facing Jarod again. “I should have known I would never be able to lie to you,” she said, shaking her head slowly. “Jarod, I am dying.”
“No,” Jarod said softly as tears began to slide down his face. “No, God, no,” he uttered. Getting to his feet, he ran his hand through his hair.
“It’s true, son. You have to accept it. I have a rare form of leukemia. It is untreatable. Chemotherapy, radiation, bone marrow transplants…we have tried every treatment known to the medical world. Nothing has helped.”
Jarod sat down on the edge of the bed and took her hand in his. “No, Mom. I cannot accept this. There has to be something I can do.”
“Jarod, you can’t stop this.”
“Why didn’t you have Broots get word to me? If I had gotten here sooner…”
Margaret closed her eyes for a few seconds then opening them she smiled. “I didn’t want you to see me like this…I wanted to be the mother that you remembered in your dreams. The mother you saw on the street that day in Boston.”
“Mom, I won’t lose you…not like this.”
“I love you so much and I want to spend what little time I have left getting to know you and Andrew.”
“Speaking of our grandson,” Major Charles said as he entered with Andrew in his arms. “Here you go, Grandma.”
Margaret’s face lit up as her husband placed the squirming baby in her arms. “Oh my,” she laughed. “Just look at you.”
Jarod rose from the bed and walked to the window. He stared out into the cloudless blue sky as he felt his heart breaking. His mother was dying and there was nothing he could do to stop it. “Why, God,” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
Major Charles placed his hands on his son’s shoulders and squeezed gently causing Jarod to turn, his gaze falling on his mother and son. “You and Andrew truly are the best medicine for her. Lately she hasn’t had the strength to smile much less laugh. Now look at her.”
Jarod watched her for a moment then nodded. “I just wish there was something more I could do.”
“There is nothing except just being here. Spending all of the time you can with her before…” Major Charles voice faded as his own emotions got the better of him. “I love your mother more than my own life. If I could trade places with her, God knows I would. But that is not an option.”
Jarod turned and hugged his father. “I love you, Dad.”
“I love you too, son.”
**********
The infirmary was dark except for a single light above her bed. She was sleeping when he entered and stood silently in the shadows. She looked so peaceful, so beautiful…just like her mother.
“You shouldn’t be here,” said a voice from the doorway.
“I just wanted to make sure that she was all right,” Sydney said.
Lyle moved into the room and stepped into the light. “Have you heard anything?”
“Yes,” Sydney said. “They are safe.”
“Good,” Lyle said.
“Thank you, for your help.”
“I only did what I should have done a long time ago.”
“Why did you? Why the sudden change of heart?”
“I guess I just took a good look at my life and decided that I didn’t have to be the product of my upbringing. Then I looked at Andrew and I suddenly knew what I had to do. I had to save him…and I had to save the others.”
Sydney took a step toward him. “Lyle, I want you to know how proud I am of you,” he smiled.
Lyle laughed humorlessly. “No offense, Syd, but I would prefer to hear those words from my father.”
“But you are,” Sydney said hesitantly. “Lyle, I am your father.”
Lyle stared at him in disbelief. “How? How can that be?”
Sydney took a deep breath and released it slowly. “Catherine and I fell deeply in love. We were together secretly for more than a year. When she became pregnant, Mr. Parker found out but he believed that he was the father.
When Catherine told him she was planning to leave, he flew into a rage and told her that his child was a Parker and as Parker, they would take their place in the family legacy. Afraid for my safety as well as the life she carried inside her, she swore to never tell him the truth and she made me promise as well.”
“So we aren’t Parkers?”
“No,” Sydney smiled. “I am sorry I didn’t tell you both sooner, but before she died, your mother made me promise not to tell you until Mr. Parker was no longer a threat. Catherine was afraid, and rightfully so, that if he were ever to learn the truth that he would kill the two of you. She believed that as long as he thought the two of you to be his own offspring, you would be safe.”
“Does she know?” Lyle motioned toward his sister.
“Yes.”
Lyle fell silent for several minutes before finally turning to Sydney. “To tell you the truth, I never really felt like a Parker. I guess…now I know why.”
“I hope that we can begin to build the relationship that we should have had all along,” Sydney said as he stepped forward and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder.
Lyle nodded, looking down at the floor. Then he raised his eyes to look into the face of his father. “I would like that,” he said then suddenly embraced Sydney. “I would really like that.”
“All right you two,” Miss Parker said with a smile. “Enough…you’re making me nauseous.”
“How long have you been listening?” Lyle asked with a grin.
“Since you walked in the door,” she replied.
“Funny,” he smiled. “I came here to tell you that your pregnancy is progressing normally and with a little luck we will be able to get you out of here in six to eight weeks.”
“That long,” she frowned.
“I am afraid so,” he said.
“We cannot risk moving you too soon. Any stress during the early stages of the pregnancy could cause you to miscarry and God knows that getting you out of here will cause you stress,” Sydney said. “Now you get some rest and I will come back to see you in the morning,” he said as he approached the bed and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Sweet dreams.”
Miss Parker smiled, “Good night.”
Sydney walked toward the door then stopped to wait for his son.
Lyle took hold of her hand and leaning over, he too kissed her forehead. “I—I love you,” he said softly then turned and walked away before she could respond.
**********
Andrew woke Jarod before dawn, and while the rest of the house was still sleeping, he lifted his son out of the crib and smiled. “Good morning,” he whispered as he removed Andrew’s sleeper, changed his diaper, and then dressed him in the new outfit that Emily had given him. “There, now what shall we do with ourselves until everyone else wakes up?”
Sitting down in the rocking chair, Jarod stood Andrew on his lap and rocked back and forth making funny faces at him. Andrew grinned and giggled reaching out to grab Jarod’s nose.
“Ow,” Jarod said his voice sounding nasally. “Let go of my nose, you little rugrat,” he laughed.
Andrew giggled again and finally let go. He leaned forward and laid his head on Jarod’s shoulder, his arm resting alongside his neck. Gently rubbing his son’s back, Jarod was overcome with an intense feeling of warmth and contentment. Closing his eyes, he began to sing softly. “Cree craw toad’s foot, geese walk barefoot...”
“I can’t believe you still remember that nursery rhyme,” Margaret smiled. “I taught you that just before…” her voice waned as memories assailed her weary mind.
“Mom,” Jarod jumped up and placed Andrew back in his bed. A deed that his baby boy was quick to let him know was not acceptable by letting out a frustrated whimper. “You shouldn’t be out of bed,” he said as he rushed over to help her over to the rocking chair he had just vacated. Then he knelt down on the floor in front of her.
“I am feeling better today,” she smiled.
“Do you need me to get you something?”
“No, no, I am okay. I just heard you and Andrew and felt the overwhelming need to remind myself that this is not a dream…that I will not wake up and find that you were never here at all. God knows the number of times I have done just that.”
Jarod smiled and kissed her hand. “I know, Mom. So many nights I have dreamed of finding you only to wake up alone in some new city, trying to make up for all the pain the Centre caused.”
“You cannot blame yourself for what they did. I know how deeply it hurt you to learn of the vile things the Centre did with your work, but it was not your fault. You could not have known what they would do with your findings.”
“I know, but sometimes I can’t close my eyes without seeing their eyes…”
“For a very long time I blamed myself for allowing them to take you and your brother. I just knew there was something I could have done…should have done differently to protect you from them.”
“The Centre would have killed you,” Jarod said softly.
“It wasn’t me that I was worried about. I had lost my two wonderful boys…I knew that I could not allow them to find out about the baby I was carrying so I ran. I left the place where we had been hiding and ran. I went to the convent where I met Ella and she took care of us. Your father visited me there as often as possible. The last time he came to see us, he told me that he had help inside the Centre. That he was going to get you and Kyle back. When he didn’t return, I took Emily and we left the convent.”
Jarod nodded, “Dad was shot by Raines.”
“Yes, though I did not know it at the time. He promised me that he would come back…he always kept his promises. So when he failed to return, I feared the worst.”
“It was Catherine Parker who was helping him. She was killed for her part in the attempted rescue.”
“Catherine was my best friend in the Catholic girl’s school I attended as a teenager. We were inseparable and always getting into trouble. I still remember the day she told me that she had met a man…an older man, and that he had swept her off her feet. She was so in love with him. The very first time I met William Parker I knew there was something inherently evil about him…a bitter coldness that made my skin crawl. I tried to tell her but she was blinded by her love for him.”
“Mr. Parker is evil,” Jarod said angrily. “The way he has manipulated and tormented his daughter since Catherine’s death is reprehensible. She spent her entire life trying to please him only to have her love and devotion thrown back in her face.”
“It was Catherine who introduced me to your father,” Margaret smiled. “She begged me to go out with this Air Force pilot she knew and for months I refused. I wanted to concentrate on my studies. I didn’t need the stress of a relationship, much less one with a military boy, and a pilot at that.”
Jarod smiled, “So what finally made you change you mind?”
“Your father, in full uniform, walked into my dorm room, threw me over his shoulder and carried me, kicking and screaming out to his car. He slid behind the wheel and started the engine. Then he turned and gave me that grin...the look in his eyes… I was hopelessly lost,” Margaret said dreamily. “We were married a year later.”
Jarod lowered his gaze to hide the pain in his dark eyes. “Mom,” he whispered. “My birthday…when was I born? What year?”
Margaret’s eyes filled with tears, “My God, I never even realized…Jarod, your birthday is July 2. You were born in 1958…you are forty-one.”
Jarod smiled gratefully. “It has always been so strange…not knowing.”
Margaret fell silent for several seconds. Then she reached out, took Jarod’s hand in her own, and held it to her face. “My son, there is so much I need to tell you. I am just afraid I will not have the time.”
“You will,” Jarod said as he struggled to hide his emotions.
“Please don’t,” Margaret said. “Do not hide what you are feeling inside. I am not as fragile as you think.”
“Mom, I wish you would let me help you.”
“There is nothing you or anyone else can do…it’s in God’s hands.”
“What good is being able to help people if I can’t help my own mother,” Jarod asked, his voice edged with feelings of resentment and helplessness.
“Jarod, I don’t ever what you to feel that way. I am so proud of the fact that, despite everything you have been through, you have not lost your compassion, your integrity, or your courage.”
Jarod shook his head slowly. “I don’t feel very brave right now.”
Margaret smiled and squeezed his hand. “Neither do I, but as long as I have my family in my life, I can face anything.”
Nodding, Jarod leaned forward and took her in his arms. “I love you, Mom,” he whispered.
“I love you too, son. Now what do you say we go downstairs so I can fix some breakfast?”
“Are you sure you’re feeling up to it?”
“I am,” she smiled and kissed his cheek.
“All right then,” he grinned. “I will help you then come back up for Andy.”
Margaret stood and straightened her robe as Jarod rose from the floor. Taking her arm, he walked her out of his room and down the stairs. It was slow going but they finally reached the kitchen.
“Thank you, son,” she said wearily.
“You sit down here and rest while I go get Andrew,” he said then bolted up the stairs. He did not want to leave her alone for too long.
In the few minutes it took him to return to the kitchen with Andrew, she had already started to mix the batter for the pancakes. “How do you like your eggs?” she asked with a bright smile that belied the fact that she was in pain.
“Any way is fine,” he said as he placed Andrew in the highchair. “Can I help?”
“Yes, you can get the griddle down from that cabinet for me,” she said pointing toward the cupboard above the refrigerator.
“I can do that,” he nodded then reaching up he opened the door and finding the griddle he took it down and placed it on the counter next to the stove. Turning he spotted a picture on the refrigerator. “This is me and Kyle,” he said staring at the picture. “How old were we here?”
Margaret grabbed a towel and wiping her hands, she moved to stand next to Jarod. “You were three, Kyle was eighteen months.” She smiled as she remembered the day Charles had taken the picture. “It was your birthday. Your dad took you on your first airplane ride and then we all went out for pizza and ice cream. You loved ice cream more than just about anything in the world.”
“I still love ice cream,” Jarod grinned. “But there is so much that I cannot remember…”
“I am so sorry,” she said softly, gathering him to her.
Jarod closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of being in his mother’s arms. “It is so good to finally be home with you,” he said softly.
**********
Two weeks later...
Miss Parker waited impatiently for Sydney to appear. When the door finally did open, it was Lyle.
“Good morning, Sis,” he smiled and leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“You are sure in a good mood this morning,” she teased.
Lyle sat down on the edge of her bed and gave a short laugh. “You know, it is amazing to wake up and realize that you are a part of a real family.”
“It is, isn’t it.”
“So where is our father?”
“I don’t know but I wish he would get here soon.”
“Dying to talk to Jarod?”
Miss Parker hit him with one of her pillows and laughed. “Hey, leave me alone. I am pregnant and I miss my baby boy.”
“And Jarod…” Lyle grinned.
“And Jarod,” she said.
Lyle’s expression grew serious for a moment. “It is so nice to see you smiling and happy.”
“I agree,” Sydney said as he entered the room.
Miss Parker nodded, “It feels good to be able to do so.”
“Sorry I’m late,” Sydney smiled and kissed her forehead. “I had to have a signal scrambler installed on my cell phone so we can call Jarod without worrying about the conversation reaching the wrong people.
“So we can call now,” Miss Parker asked.
“Yes,” he said as he began dialing.
“Hello,” a deep and vaguely familiar voice came over the line.
“Hello, this is Sydney…”
“Hi Sydney, this is Josh.”
“Josh?”
He heard Josh laugh, “Sorry, I forgot. You only knew me as Gemini.”
“Josh, of course, how are you?”
“I am doing great, Sydney. Thanks to you. Jarod told me what a risk you took in helping me.”
“I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
“You probably want to speak to Jarod. He is out on the porch. Hold on, I will get him for you.”
“Thank you, Josh,” Sydney smiled as he heard the sound of footsteps then a door opening followed by muffled voices. A moment later he heard heavier footsteps coming toward the telephone.
“Hi, Syd,” Jarod said anxiously. “How is she?”
“Hello, Jarod,” Sydney laughed. “I will let you ask her since she is threatening to scratch my eyes out if I don’t hand over the phone.”
“Thank you, Sydney,” he chuckled.
“Jarod,” Miss Parker said softly even as she was giving Sydney and Lyle the look and sending them to the other side of the room so she could talk to him in private. “How is Andrew?”
“He is fine, getting more and more spoiled by the minute, but fine.”
“God, I miss you…both of you,” she whispered.
“We miss you too, Parker,” Jarod said his voice fading.
Alarm bells went off in her head as she heard something in his tone. “Jarod, what’s wrong? I can tell something is bothering you.”
Jarod sighed, “It’s my mother, Parker. She is dying…”
“Oh God, Jarod. I am so sorry.”
“I don’t know what to do.”
“Just be there…love her. Make every second you have left with her count. I would have given anything to have that chance with my mom, Jarod.”
Jarod released a deep breath. “Thank you,” he said. “I wish you were here with me right now.”
“So do I, but we both know that isn’t possible. I can’t even get out of this bed for six to eight more weeks.”
“So, we are going to have another baby?” Jarod asked with a smile in his voice.
“Babies, Jarod,” Miss Parker said. “We are going to have twins.”
“Twins?” Jarod gasped.
“They were the only embryos that survived the thawing process, Jarod. It just happened that they came from the same egg…identical twins.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Much better now,” she whispered.
“I promise I will come for you before the babies are born.”
“Jarod, you just take care of our boy.”
“I will,” he said.
“Tell him that his mother loves him and his father very much and can’t wait until we can be together.”
“I love you too, Parker.”
“Jarod.”
“Yes?”
“You can stop calling me that. I am not a Parker. You can start using my given name. That is…if you still remember it.”
Jarod laughed, “I love you, Madeline.”
“Much better,” she smiled. “I’d better go now, the doctor will be here any minute.”
“All right, Maddie,” Jarod said softly.
Miss Parker nearly lost it as she heard the long-forgotten nickname that only he had ever called her. “Good bye, Jarod,” she whispered.
“Good bye,” he replied then the line went silent.
Sydney approached the bed and accepted the cell phone as she held it out to him. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“It’s his mother…she is dying,” she replied. “How much more pain is one man supposed to bear?” she asked angrily.
Sydney shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Lyle listened intently then with a secretive look in his eyes he headed for the door. “Come on, we had better go. The doctor and Dad—I mean Mr. Parker will be coming in here any second. See you later, Sis.”
“Bye,” she said then settled down under the covers and pretended to be asleep.
Once they were out in the corridor, Lyle pulled Sydney aside and checked to be sure no one was within earshot. “I need you to do something for me,” he whispered.
“What is it?”
“I want you to find out the name of the doctor treating Jarod’s mother. I need every bit of information you can get on her illness.”
“What are you planning?”
“Please, just do it. I will explain later.”
“Can you at least tell me why?”
“I have to see if I am right in my suspicions. If I am, she can be saved.”
Sydney watched as his son turned and walked away from him. It was still so amazing to see such a radical change in Lyle in such a short time. He smiled then turning in the opposite direction, he headed for his office.”
**********
Returning to his seat beside his mother on the porch swing, Jarod put his arm around her and kissed her on the cheek.
“Well, that must have been some phone call,” Margaret chuckled.
“It was Sydney,” he said.
“Somehow I don’t think it was Sydney who put that light in your eyes.”
Jarod laughed, “No, I spoke to Miss Parker…Madeline.”
“You really love her don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Then why are you here without her?”
“We fell victim to yet another of the Centre’s machinations.”
“What happened?”
“When we first attempted to rescue Andrew, we were captured and separated. They were going to kill her but instead they decided to implant two embryos in her uterus. Since she is the natural mother, there is less risk of her body rejecting them.”
Margaret nodded in understanding. “I take it that you are the father.”
“Yes.”
“So I am going to be a grandmother again?” she smiled.
Jarod laughed softly. “Yes, you are...to identical twins.”
“You are going to have your hands full.”
“I know they and Andrew weren’t created in the conventional way, but I love him and I will love them just the same.”
“I know you will,” she said as she leaned into his embrace and watched Josh and Emily out on the lawn with Andrew. They were trying to get him to walk from one to the other by bribing him with a blue ball, a teddy bear and cookies, but so far, nothing seemed to work.
“Come on, Andy,” Josh begged. “You can do it.”
“You two are going to wear that boy out,” Major Charles chuckled as he came out of the garage his hands covered in grease.
Jarod closed his eyes and listened to the sounds around him…the sounds of family. A moment later, he opened them just in time to see Andrew launch himself off Emily and take six steps toward Josh before losing his balance. Josh was there to catch him before he fell.
Laughing, Jarod shouted, “That’s my boy.”
Josh hugged Andrew. “I knew you could do it. See, Em, I told you he liked me best,” he said teasingly.
Emily slugged him in the shoulder then took her nephew from his arms. “Good job, Andy,” she said and kissed his chubby little cheek, then turning toward the house she headed across the lawn and up the steps. “Did you see that, Jarod? Your son just walked.”
Jarod took Andrew from her and lifted him high into the air. “I am so proud of you, Andy. Just wait until I tell your mom.”
Emily tapped her brother on the shoulder. “Unless you want to change him, I suggest you give him back to me so I can take him upstairs.”
Jarod placed Andrew back in Emily’s arms. “If you insist,” he grinned.
“Oh like I really had to twist your arm,” she glared playfully at him before disappearing into the house.
“How about that game of basketball,” Josh asked tossing Jarod the ball.
“All right, but take it easy on me, will you?”
“Ha, not likely. You will master this game in about ten seconds, so there is no way I am going to cut you any slack.”
“All right,” Jarod shrugged. Then with eyebrows raised and a sly grin on his face, he tossed the ball blindly over his shoulder. The ball dropped through the hoop…nothing but net. “You asked for it, kid.”
Major Charles came out of the house with his hands free of grease and took a seat next to his wife. Together they watched their boys play a game of basketball that the pros would envy.
“You know, Maggie,” he smiled. “If I didn’t know better, I would swear this family has never been apart.”
“I know what you mean,” she laughed softly.
“Do you want me to take you upstairs so you can rest?”
“No, I want to stay right here,” she said as she snuggled closer to her husband.
Charles adjusted the blanket around her and gathered her closer. “I love you, Maggie McKenna.”
“And I you,” she whispered then closed her eyes as she listened to the laughter of her two sons.
**********
Sydney knocked on the door of Lyle’s office and was quickly beckoned inside. “I have the information you asked for,” he said as he entered.
“Good, let me see it,” Lyle stood and took the envelope from his father.
“What exactly are you looking for?”
“Blood test results,” he replied just as he found them.
Sydney sat down and waited quietly while Lyle read the files.
“I was right,” he said.
“About?”
“Jarod’s mother does not have leukemia. Though the symptoms are virtually identical, what she has is untreatable by the conventional treatments for leukemia.”
“What is it?”
“Years ago when Jarod’s parents went to NuGenesis to help them get pregnant, the doctors there were using a certain combination of drugs to increase fertility. Margaret was given those drugs for months before she finally conceived and gave birth to Jarod. Then she went on them again to have Kyle. The mothers who took these drugs for more than one pregnancy developed this disease later in life and most died. Their deaths wrongly attributed to leukemia.”
“And the others?” Sydney asked.
“The Centre, with Jarod’s help, came up with a cure. The others went on to live normal healthy lives.”
“Then Jarod knows about this?”
“Not exactly. He was told only what he needed to know in order to come up with the cure.”
“So where is this cure and how do we get it to Jarod?”
“You call and set up a time and place to meet him. I will take care of the rest.”
Sydney gave a short nod and rose from the chair. He turned to leave but stopped and turned back to his son. “Thank you, Lyle.”
“Thank me when it works. There are no guarantees. It may already be too late.”
“It will work, it has to,” Sydney said, then left the room.
**********
Jarod arrived at the rendezvous point early. He was anxious to find out what Sydney had to tell him that was so urgent. Despite repeated assurances that Miss Parker and the babies were doing fine, Jarod was afraid Sydney was waiting to tell him in person that something had gone wrong.
The helicopter appeared over the crest of the hill and flew overhead, setting down in the field next to where Jarod had parked the Lexus. Climbing out of the car he moved around to the opposite side and sat down on the hood, propping one foot up on the bumper.
He watched and waited for Sydney to appear, but when a lone figure stepped into the beam of the headlights, it was Lyle. “What the hell?” Jarod shouted and reached for his gun, leveling it on him.
“Easy, Jarod,” Lyle said with one hand raised in defense. In the other, he carried a small silver case.
“Where is Sydney?” Jarod growled angrily. “If you have done anything to hurt him…”
Lyle stopped a few feet away from the pretender. “Jarod, he is my father. The last thing I would want to do is hurt him.”
Jarod heard the sincerity in his enemy’s voice and lowered the gun though he did not put it away. “What do you want, Lyle?”
Lyle held out the silver case to Jarod. “A truce, and this is a peace offering.”
Jarod’s eyes flashed with distrust.
“Jarod, I know we have had our differences, but things have changed…I have changed. You probably will never believe it, but it is true.”
“Well, I am happy for you, Lyle,” Jarod said his voice thick with sarcasm.
“I know it will take time for you to forgive me for the past…for Kyle’s death. God, knows I do not deserve it.”
“That’s true, you don’t.”
“I am offering you a chance to save your mother.”
Jarod focused his gaze intently on Lyle, searching for any sign that he was lying. Then he let his gaze drop to the case Lyle still held in his right hand. “So what is it?”
Lyle took a step forward. “I can never make up for taking your brother from you, but maybe giving you your mother’s life will begin to make amends.”
Jarod took the case and opened it. Inside were several bottles and syringes. Taking out one of the bottles, he read the label and recognized it as a drug he had helped to develop while at the Centre. “Anacorcin? I do not see how this will help my mother. She has leukemia.”
“No, Jarod, she has the very disease that you developed that drug as a cure for. You were not told at the time but its symptoms are identical to leukemia. It is the byproduct of the fertility drugs used at NuGenesis. She can be saved if the disease has not progressed too far for the Anacorcin to be effective.”
Jarod closed the case and turned to meet Lyle’s gaze. “I am still not sure if this change is for real, but I thank you for this and for allowing me to save my son.”
A look of surprise washed over Lyle’s features. “How did you know?”
Jarod smiled slightly, “Andrew told me.”
Lyle held his hand out to Jarod and the pretender took it. As they shook hands, they both felt something change between them…something important.
“Jarod, just to let you know. My sister is doing just fine…though she misses you and Andrew.”
“We miss her too.”
“I promise you I will do everything in my power to protect her.”
Jarod stared silently at Lyle for a moment before nodding. “I know you will,” he said. As he turned to leave, he paused. “Tell her I love her.”
“I will,” Lyle said then turned back toward the helicopter.
“Thank you,” Jarod said too softly for the other man to hear. Sliding behind the wheel, he placed the case in the passenger seat. Then starting the engine he pressed down on the accelerator and steered the Lexus back onto the dirt road that would take him back to the highway.
As he drove, he wondered if he would live to regret trusting Lyle. For his mother’s sake, he had to trust him…this time. If the treatment worked and her life was saved then it would be worth the risk.
**********
“Has she awakened yet?” Mr. Parker asked the doctor as they stood just outside the door of Miss Parker’s room.
“No, as you ordered we have kept her heavily sedated,” Doctor Samuels responded. “Though I am not sure that continued sedation is safe for the babies?”
“Surely it is safer than allowing her to be alert and having her become distressed when she learns what we have done. Keep her sedated for a few more days.”
“Very well, sir,” Dr. Samuels nodded. “Now if you will please excuse me, I have to finish my reports before I leave for the night.”
“I will expect them on my desk in the morning,” Mr. Parker said.
“Yes, Mr. Parker,” he replied as he hurried down the corridor.
Entering his daughter’s room, Mr. Parker approached her bed. He stood, silently staring down at her seemingly lifeless form. In a strange way, it saddened him to see her in such a vulnerable state. Without her fire and ice spirit, she was just her mother’s daughter…weak and pathetic…unworthy of the Parker name.
“You should never have betrayed me, Angel,” he whispered. “You allowed Jarod to come between us…to influence you against me.”
It took every ounce of strength Miss Parker had not to respond to his words. She struggled to keep her heart rate and blood pressure under control. All she needed was the alarms on the machines around her to go off and give her away.
As Mr. Parker studied her, he could have sworn that he had seen a flicker of something…a response to his voice, but he wrote it off as his imagination. Turning to leave he paused and smiled. “You will give birth to these babies…after which you will be of no use to the Centre, or to me.” Then he was gone.
Miss Parker opened her eyes. Her pent-up rage was quickly reaching the breaking point. She wanted to kill him…slowly. More than anything she wished that she could make him pay for killing her mother.
The high-pitched tone of the heart monitor started to beep faster. She had to calm down…for the babies. Closing her eyes again, she took slow, deep breaths and imagined herself in another time and place…with Jarod and Andrew on a beach playing in the waves. The air filled with the sounds of a child’s laughter…
The monitor finally slowed to a normal pace as in her dreamlike state, Miss Parker finally found a moment of peace. ‘I love you, Madeline,” Jarod smiled as he swept her up into his arms and kissed her.
**********
Jarod pulled the Lexus into the driveway and shut off the engine. Grabbing the case he got out of the car and ran up the walk taking the steps two at a time. Bursting through the front door, he caught his father by surprise.
“Whoa, son, slow down. What is on fire?”
“Sorry Dad, but I have to get this to Mom now.”
“What is it?”
“Something that may save her life.”
“She is upstairs in bed. Today took a lot out of her.”
Jarod charged up the stairs and into her room. “Mom,” Jarod said as he placed the case on the bed and opened it.
Margaret opened her eyes and watched as her son took out a syringe, which he quickly filled with liquid from a vial. “What is that, Jarod?” she asked.
“Mom, you do not have leukemia. What you have is a side effect of the drugs that they gave you at NuGenesis. The symptoms are identical to leukemia so your doctors would never know the difference.”
Major Charles sat down on the edge of the bed opposite from his son. “Jarod, what are you giving her?”
Jarod glanced over at him and smiled. “It is a drug I developed while at the Centre, though I didn’t know what it was for at the time.”
“Are you sure it is safe?” he asked.
“It is safe, Dad. I promise.”
Margaret smiled at her son as he took hold of her arm and injected her with the drug. “I love you for trying, Jarod…”
“Mom, it will work…it has to.”
“I just don’t want you to feel bad if it doesn’t.”
Jarod flashed her a wide grin. “It is going to work,” he said.
“I hope you are right, son,” Major Charles said.
Embracing her gently, Jarod kissed her cheek. “Mom, you rest for now. I need to administer the next dosage in exactly six hours.”
“Good night, Margaret,” Major Charles leaned over and pressed his lips to her forehead. “I will be up to join you in a while.”
“Good night,” Margaret yawned then closed her eyes.
Downstairs, the two men walked into the den where Emily and Josh were engrossed in a game of chess. Neither of them seemed to notice their father and brother in the room.
Jarod placed the silver case on the coffee table and removed his leather jacket, tossing it over the arm of the sofa as he sat down. Leaning back he rubbed his eyes and sighed. “This has been quite a day,” he smiled.
“Yes, it has,” his father agreed.
“Is Andrew asleep?”
“No, Ella is reading him a story in her room.”
“Where is Broots?”
“He left with Nick an hour ago. They have a meeting at the FBI headquarters in DC in the morning. They will be back in a couple of days.”
Jarod glanced over at Emily and Josh and grinned. “Have either one of them even made a move? They are just sitting there staring at the board.”
Major Charles chuckled. “They will sit like that for hours…until one of them either moves one of their pieces or falls asleep. Which ever comes first.”
“Have they ever actually finished a game?”
“Not that I am aware of.”
Jarod laughed and turned his attention back to his father. “How are you holding up?”
“I am fine, son. Just worried about your Mom.”
“I know, so am I. I just hope that this treatment isn’t too little…too late.”
“Whatever happens, Jarod…what matters is you tried.”
Jarod nodded, “Something good has to come out of the work I did at the Centre. There has been so much pain and suffering and death caused by my work…”
“Jarod, that was not your fault. You didn’t know what the Centre was doing.”
“I should have known.”
Major Charles leaned forward in his chair and covered Jarod’s hand with his own. “Are you telling me that Josh was to blame for what they did with his simulations?”
Jarod shook his head, “No, of course not.”
“Then neither are you,” Major Charles stated emphatically.
“I wish I could believe that,” Jarod smiled sadly.
“Your Mom told me about Miss Parker. I’m sorry.”
“We will be together soon. Until then she has her father and brother to protect her and care for her.”
“So Sydney is her father. I would sure love to be a fly on the wall when William Parker learns the truth. That bastard never did deserve Catherine. If she had not been so blind to the truth about that man, she would still be alive today.”
“I am going to go upstairs and tuck Andrew in then get some sleep before I have to give Mom her next dosage.”
“Good night, son,” Major Charles nodded.
“Good night, Dad,” Jarod said then he crossed over to where Josh and Emily were still staring at the chessboard. He reached down and moved one of Emily’s pieces. “Checkmate,” he chuckled then turned and went upstairs with the mildly annoyed eyes of his siblings boring into his back.
Major Charles burst into a fit of laughter at his children’s expense and as they turned their gazes in his direction he just shrugged and continued to laugh.
Emily and Josh looked at each other and smiled then started a new game.
**********
“How did it go?” Sydney asked Lyle as they crossed paths on SL-5.
“Well, he didn’t kill me. Beyond that, I am not sure. I don’t think he will ever trust me. Not that I can blame him.”
Sydney nodded, “Give him time.”
“How is our favorite patient today?” Lyle asked with a smile.
“I was actually on my way down to see her now. Want to come along?”
“I can’t right now. It seems that Mr. Parker has requested my presence in his office and I am already running late. Give her my love and tell her I will see her later.”
“Watch your back,” Sydney warned.
Lyle nodded then stepped into the elevator.
Sydney walked into the next elevator and pressed the button for the infirmary level. He hoped that Mr. Parker had not figured out what was going on.
The guards were under Lyle’s control and the security cameras in Miss Parker’s room had been rigged so that with the touch of a remote control they would switch back and forth between actual and recorded footage. So far, no one had been the wiser, but there was always that nagging fear that they would be discovered and she would be moved to a more secure location in the building.
Just six to eight more weeks and they would get her out of there. Then she and Jarod could start a new life with Andrew and the twins.
Until then, they would just have to be careful.
**********
The alarm sounded exactly four hours after he had gone to sleep. Shutting it off quickly so it would not wake Andrew, Jarod slipped from the bedroom with silver case in hand. The light came on in his parents’ bedroom at the same instant.
Margaret was sitting on the edge of the bed with the sleeve of her nightgown already rolled up. It was three o’clock in the morning and she was wide-awake.
“Mom, are you okay?”
“I am fine. Just anxious to see if this miracle drug is going to work.”
Jarod hugged her then proceeded to take out another syringe and fill it with the drug. “Hopefully we will see results very soon.”
“That would be nice.”
Major Charles returned to the bedroom with a glass of water for his wife. “Drink this, sweetheart,” he said as he handed her the glass.
“Thank you, Charles,” she said as she took the glass and quickly drank the cool water. As she started to give the glass back to him she laughed and stared at her hand. “Look,” she said.
“What is it?” Jarod asked in confusion.
It took a moment for Major Charles to realize what she was so excited about. “Her hand. It isn’t shaking.”
Margaret turned to her son and smiled. “Since I have been sick, my hands have trembled whenever I held on to a glass or any other small object.”
Jarod smiled, “That is a good sign, Mom. Now you lie back and get some sleep,” he said as he took the glass from her and set it down on the table next to the bed. “It is very important that you get plenty of rest.”
“All right, son. Good night,” she smiled and closed her eyes.
Major Charles followed his son out of the room and closed the door behind them. “Do you really think that is a positive sign? I don’t want to see her get her hopes up and then to have it fail.”
“I don’t want that either, Dad. I developed the drug without full knowledge of the disease, but I have all the reports and case studies. The drug is ninety-six percent effective, which means that there is only a four-percent chance that it will not work. According to the reports given by the doctors, they saw vast improvement in their patients almost immediately.”
Major Charles nodded and squeezed Jarod’s shoulder. “Go on back to bed, son. We’ll discuss this more in the morning.”
“Good night, Dad,” Jarod said then went into his room and closed the door. The soft moonlight coming in the window bathed Andrew in its glow. Jarod smiled and bent to cover his son with the hand-stitched quilt that his mother had told him had been his when he was a baby. “Sweet dreams, my son,” he whispered.
Climbing back into bed, he reset the alarm for nine a.m. so he would not over sleep and miss giving his Mom the next dosage. However, he strongly suspected that Andrew would wake him long before then.
**********
“Miss Parker,” Dr. Samuels whispered. “Miss Parker, I know you are awake. Open your eyes, please.”
Miss Parker reluctantly obeyed, opening her eyes she glared angrily at the doctor. “I refuse to let you sedate me again, doctor.”
“I have known for some time now that you have been alert to everything going on around you. If I was on their side you would already be sedated.”
“Then just whose side are you on?”
“My own.”
“Then why are you telling me this?”
Dr. Samuels proceeded to examine Miss Parker keeping his body between her and the camera so the eyes watching them would not be able to tell that they were speaking. “Your father, Mr. Parker has threatened me with death if anything were to go wrong with this pregnancy. I do not intend to give him a reason to follow through with his threats."
“That still does not explain why you are allowing me to remain conscious.”
“Miss Parker, I have a daughter just about your age. I can’t help but see her when I look at you and I can’t help but wonder what kind of man does such a thing to his child…his own flesh and blood.”
“The kind of man who has no conscience and no heart. He cares about nothing except power and the Centre. Everything and everyone else is insignificant.”
Dr. Samuels nodded slightly, “I get that feeling.”
“Dr. Samuels, you have to leave…get out while you can. He will have you killed when this is over whether or not anything goes wrong with my pregnancy. The Centre will not risk outsiders knowing what goes on inside these walls.”
Dr. Samuels adjusted the blankets around her. “Miss Parker, I was a doctor in Vietnam, I never abandoned a patient, not even under the worst of fire…I am not about to start now.”
Miss Parker smiled as the doctor squeezed her hand.
“Now close your eyes and go back to sleep. I will be in to check on you later.”
Miss Parker closed her eyes. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“You are welcome, Miss Parker,” Dr. Samuels said as he turned and left the room.
**********
Jarod awoke and noticed that the clock read 8:45 a.m. Getting up he shut off the alarm and stretched his sleep stiffened body. He noticed that the crib was empty and was amazed that he had slept through Andrew’s morning wake-up call.
He dressed quickly and grabbed the silver case. He went into his parents’ room and found it empty.
Downstairs he found Andrew and Josh playing with wooden building blocks on the kitchen table.
“Where is everyone?” Jarod asked as he kissed Andrew on the top of his head.
“Dad and Emily went to the store. Mom and Ella are out on the front porch.”
“I’ll go out and give Mom her shot then come back in and fix breakfast.”
“Oh, we already ate. Mom fixed breakfast hours ago. She wouldn’t let us wake you because you needed your sleep. There is a plate for you in the oven.”
Jarod smiled and headed out to the porch where he found his mother and Ella sitting in the wicker rocking chairs and sipping hot tea. He watched his mother for a moment. She seemed to have color in her cheeks and her hands were steady as she lifted the delicate teacup to her lips.
“Mom, how are you feeling?” he asked with a smile as he approached the two friends. “It’s time for your next dosage.”
“I am feeling great, Jarod. Better than I have in months,” Margaret smiled brightly as she rolled up her sleeve. “It seems to be working.”
Jarod administered the drug then closing the case he smiled. “Mom, just take it easy, okay. Too much too soon may cause a relapse.”
“All right, son.”
“Ella, how is her blood pressure and heart rate this morning?”
Nurse Henderson reached down into her bag and took out the notebook where she had been keeping track of Margaret’s vitals. “Her heart rate and blood pressure are both normal and I drew blood this morning as you requested and Emily took it to the FBI lab for analysis. They should have the results by this afternoon.”
“The results should tell us whether or not the Anacorcin is a cure or merely a temporary fix,” Jarod said.
“Jarod, I know you do not want me to get my hopes up, but I really believe that this drug is the cure,” Margaret said as she squeezed her son’s hand.
“Mom, we have to be realistic,” Jarod warned gently.
“There is a plate warming in the oven for you, Jarod. I will get it for you,” Margaret said as she placed her teacup on the table next to her chair and started to rise.
“No, Mom, that’s all right. I can get it. You sit here and enjoy your tea,” Jarod smiled as he kissed her cheek. Then he stood and went back into the house.
“He is really something, that boy of yours,” Ella said.
“Yes, he is,” Margaret replied as she took another sip of her tea. “I still have trouble believing that I am not dreaming.”
**********
Four Weeks Later...
Sydney entered Miss Parker’s room to find it empty. Alarmed he pulled out his cell phone and dialed Lyle’s number.
“Lyle,” his voice came over the line after the second ring.
“Where have they taken your sister?”
“She is not in her room?”
Sydney paced angrily his gaze frantically scanning the room for clues as to where they had taken her. “She is gone…everything is gone. The room is empty.”
“Don’t worry, I will get to the bottom of this,” Lyle said as he broke the connection.
Sydney left the empty room and searched every square inch of the infirmary level to no avail. She was nowhere to be found. “Where have they taken you?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
**********
Mr. Parker sat behind his desk looking over Dr. Samuels’ reports and smiling with satisfaction at the progress of his daughter’s pregnancy. He was glad that he had thought to move her to Jarod’s old room. It was much more secure and much easier to monitor everything that went on around her.
“Dad,” Lyle opened the door as he tapped lightly on the glass. “Can I speak with you for a moment?”
“Of course, come in, son.”
“You seem rather chipper this morning,” Lyle grinned.
“I am happier than I have been in years, my boy. The Triumvirate is very pleased with our latest venture.”
“And that would be…”
“The twins of course. Thanks to your quick thinking, the Africans are increasing their funding for the new pretenders in training. As soon as they are born, we will begin the process of molding them and suppressing their individual personalities until we have total control of them. We will not make the mistakes we made with Jarod and the others. The twins will become little more than human androids, trained to do whatever we tell them without human frailties or consciences.”
“Do you really believe that Miss Parker and Jarod will just stand by and allow us to turn their children into glorified robots?”
Mr. Parker smiled, “They will not be around to object.”
Lyle felt his stomach lurch as he stared in disbelief at the man he now hated more than anyone, including the man who had raised him and locked him in the shed for days without food or water. Compared to the monster who stood before him, Lyle Bowman was a model father and Douglas Willard was a saint.”
“Dad, you know that the Triumvirate wants Jarod back alive.”
“Actually they are convinced that his time on the outside has corrupted his abilities and have ordered him to be…shall we say, erased?” he laughed heartily. “Yes, these twins are truly a new beginning for the Centre.”
“Do I really need to ask who they expect to ‘erase’ Jarod and Miss Parker?” Lyle asked as he struggled to maintain his composure.
“The Triumvirate believes that by fulfilling their wishes, you prove your loyalty to them and to the Centre.”
“Is that why you murdered our mother?” he asked angrily. The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them.
Mr. Parker glared icily at his son. “Lyle, we all do what we have to do to get where we need to be. Unfortunately your mother failed to heed my repeated warnings about digging into Centre business.” He rose from his chair and slammed his fists down on the solid mahogany desk. “Your sister is too much like Catherine…that is what got her where she is right now.”
Lyle saw his chance and casually perched himself on the edge of the desk. “So, where is my dear sweet sister anyway? It seems that she is no longer being held in the infirmary.”
“I had her moved to Jarod’s old room for security purposes.”
“I will be needing the code to the lock,” Lyle said as he toyed with the abstract metal sculpture on the desk. He had no clue what the monstrosity was supposed to represent and he really didn’t care.
Mr. Parker nodded, “I will see that you get the code as soon as the security system update has been completed. I am having new, state-of-the-art surveillance equipment installed. Including cameras and listening devices so tiny they can be hidden it the most obvious places.”
“Is that really necessary? She is heavily sedated and in no condition to even attempt an escape.”
“That is true, but you know as well as I do that eventually Jarod will come for her and when he does, we are not going to be caught unprepared.”
Lyle nodded as he rose from the desk and straightened his suit coat. “Keep me posted, I have a meeting with Sydney to discuss his latest project.”
“Good,” Mr. Parker said. “Inform Sydney that he is not to go anywhere near your sister unless accompanied by you.”
“I will make sure he understands,” Lyle said, quickly stifling the look of relief on his face. He would not have wanted to have to tell his father he could not go near his own daughter. That would not have sat well with Sydney.
“Very well,” Mr. Parker smiled. “Why don’t you meet me for lunch.”
Lyle cringed at the thought. “Sorry, already have a lunch date.”
“Of course,” Mr. Parker gave him a curt nod. “Another time then.”
Lyle left the office and headed for the nearest restroom. He felt the bile rising in his throat as he thought of what he had just been ordered to do. Leaning over the marble sink, he stared at himself in the mirror. “Well, now what are we going to do?” he asked the reflection staring back at him.
**********
Miss Parker was relieved to be out of the infirmary. She was thrilled to be in Jarod’s old apartment. It was much more comfortable. She hated the fact that she had to continue to feign sleep for the dozens of cameras that had been installed in the various rooms. However, until Dr. Samuels could get permission from Mr. Parker to take her off the sedatives, she was doomed to day in and day out of pretending to be unconscious.
As if on cue, Dr. Samuels entered the bedroom where she lay ‘sleeping’. “Miss Parker,” he whispered. “Good news, your father has ordered that you be taken off the sedatives. He feels that since you are now in a totally secure environment that you can be allowed to move about freely within the confines of this room.”
“How generous of him,” she muttered sarcastically.
“Your brother asked me to tell you that he and Sydney have a meeting with a very important client and that they would be back tomorrow. He said that he hoped you would understand, and that they would come to see you as soon as they return.”
Miss Parker smiled, “I do understand, thank you, Dr. Samuels.”
“You are very welcome,” he winked as he lifted her wrist to check her pulse.
**********
Emily ran into the house with a plain manila envelope in her hand. “Jarod, we got the results,” she called out.
Jarod hurried down the stairs and with an anxious glance at his sister he sat down at the kitchen table and tore open the envelope. As he read, the worried look on his face slowly transformed into a broad grin. “It worked, Em,” he laughed. “She is going to be okay,” he said jumping up from his seat and embracing his sister.
“You did it, Jarod,” Emily hugged him tightly. “You saved her.”
“Not without help,” he said.
“Come on, let’s go tell them the news,” Emily took hold of her brother’s hand and together they went outside to the back yard where their family was gathered for a late autumn barbecue.
“Mom,” Emily smiled as she sat down on the ground at her mother’s feet and took hold of her hand. “Jarod has something to tell you.”
Jarod approached with the envelope in his hands and tears glistening in his eyes. “Mom, the Anacorcin worked. Your blood cell count is normal. You are going to be okay.”
Margaret rose from her chair and embraced her son.
Major Charles, overcome with relief, sank down on the garden bench and placed his head in his hands. “Thank God,” he whispered.”
Jarod pulled back slightly from his mother and just stared into her eyes. “I was so afraid that it wouldn’t work…that I would lose you.”
“I told you, it was in God’s hands. He brought you home when he did for a reason. So that through you, I would receive a most precious gift…a second chance at life.”
Emily was in tears as she got up and hugged her father.
Josh sat on the edge of the deck trying to hide the fact that he was crying, but failed miserably. Ella reached over and gathered him into her arms.
The smell of burning steaks soon had them all laughing hysterically at themselves and wiping away their tears. They sat down around the picnic table, ate their very well done steaks and before long, had settled into the easy banter of a normal family.
**********
The black town car sped down the highway, away from Blue Cove, with Lyle behind the wheel. Sydney was dialing Jarod’s number and listening with baited breath while it rang unanswered. Hanging up, he tried repeatedly and finally on the sixth attempt Jarod’s voice came over the line.
“Hello?”
“Jarod, thank God,” Sydney gasped.
“Syd, what’s wrong?”
“We need to meet somewhere as soon as possible. We are about an hour away from the place where you met with Lyle before. Can you meet us there?”
Jarod was silent for a moment. “No,” he finally said. “Come here…to the house. I will give you directions.”
“Are you sure?”
“I have to trust that Lyle really has changed.”
“All right, Jarod. Tell me how to find it.”
Jarod was waiting out on the porch when they pulled into the drive. He met them halfway down the walk. “Sydney,” he said as he embraced his mentor. Then turning to Lyle he hesitated for a few seconds before offering his hand which Lyle shook. “I am trusting you,” Jarod whispered the warning.
Lyle nodded in understanding. “Thank you, Jarod. It means a lot to me.”
“You helped my mother, and for that I thank you.”
“Then we have a truce…however tentative.”
“Yes, I suppose we do.”
As the three men climbed the steps to the porch, Major Charles opened the door for them. “Hello, Sydney. It is good to see you again,” he smiled and shook his hand.
“You as well, Major, though I wish it were under better circumstances.”
“Have a seat in the living room,” Major Charles said. “Can I get you some coffee?”
“No, thank you,” Lyle replied.
“I would love some,” Sydney smiled.
A few seconds later, he returned with a cup for Sydney and one for himself. “The girls are fixing dinner…pot roast I believe. Every time I attempted to peek in the oven I got my hand slapped,” Major Charles chuckled.
“Sydney, what happened? Is Miss Parker all right?”
“For now, yes,” Sydney nodded.
“The Triumvirate has ordered her to be killed as soon as the babies are born,” Lyle said nervously massaging the place where his thumb had once been. “Not only that, but they want you eliminated as well. You just went from an asset to a liability and I am supposed to ‘erase’ both of you.”
“I was afraid it would come to this,” Major Charles said his voice edged with fear and concern for his son.
“We have to get her out of there now,” Jarod said.
“If only it were that easy,” Sydney frowned. “Mr. Parker ordered her moved to your old apartment. He has beefed up security and surveillance. It will not be easy getting to her undetected.”
“He has that room wired like Fort Knox, Jarod,” Lyle said.
Jarod fell silent as he rose from the sofa and walked to the fireplace. As he stared at the family pictures and the newly added photo of he and Andrew together, he smiled gently. “You know, a home is not a home without pictures,” he said drawing curious looks from his audience. “For most of my life I believed that I was alone in the world. Now I see that I was never truly alone. I had you, Syd. I had Angelo and I had my best friend…my soul mate.”
Turning to meet the confused gazes, he shook his head slowly. “I can’t lose her,” he uttered softly.
Broots’ heart nearly stopped when he saw the black town car in the driveway. “Nick, this doesn’t look good.”
Scrambling from the car, they darted up the front steps and cautiously opened the front door, their hands hovering over their guns. “Hello,” Nick said as they entered the front room.
“Emily?” Broots called out.
“Chris, am I glad to see you,” Emily said as she ran into his arms.
“What’s wrong, Em?”
“Sydney and Lyle are here.”
“Lyle,” Broots said as he reached for his gun.
“Easy John Wayne, they came in peace,” she smiled and kissed him. “Come on, they will explain.”
They walked into the dining room and everyone looked up. It was not hard to tell that something was wrong since no one seemed to be actually eating what was on their plates.
“What’s going on?” Broots asked as he took a seat next to Emily and Nick pulled up a chair next to him.
Lyle noticed Broots’ FBI badge on his belt. “You—Broots, FBI?” he said as he nearly choked on his coffee.
Broots glared angrily at him, but did not say a word. Instead he turned to Jarod and saw the unmistakable look of fear in his friend’s eyes. “Jarod, what has happened?”
Sydney spoke for his protégé as he glanced from Jarod to Broots and shook his head slowly. “It’s not good, I’m afraid. The Triumvirate has ordered Lyle to kill Miss Parker as soon as the twins are born. They have also declared Jarod a liability and a security risk and want him dead as well.”
Margaret fought back her tears as she held tight to Jarod’s hand. Her heart was breaking right along with his. She knew that he was going to go away again and she was afraid that this time he would not come back. She also knew that without Miss Parker in his life, he would be lost. Catherine Parker’s daughter was his life’s breath, and he would go to the ends of the earth to save her and their unborn children.
Jarod turned to his mother and without a word he got up and left the room. He walked out to the front porch, taking a seat in the wicker rocking chair where his mother had been that morning. Closing his eyes, he listened to the birds singing in the branches of the old maple tree. He felt the cool autumn breeze on his face and heard the rustling of the leaves as they fell to the ground.
A few minutes later the front screen door open and close and he heard the heavy footsteps of his father as he moved to sit in the other rocker.
“Are you okay?”
Jarod opened his eyes. “I’ve been better.”
“Your mom and I know what she means to you and we want you to know that we will help any way we can.”
“Thank you,” Jarod smiled gratefully.
“Catherine saved our lives, Jarod. We owe it to her to save her daughter and her grandchildren and give them the kind of life that she wanted for her little girl.”
“Dad, I am scared.”
“It’s okay to be, son. The Centre is a formidable enemy.” Major Charles rose from the wicker chair and patted his son on the shoulder. “Don’t you worry. We will find a way to get Miss Parker out of that place, I promise.”
“I just wish I knew a way to do it without causing her and the babies undue stress. It is not going to be easy.”
“Nothing ever is when it comes to the Centre.”
Jarod leaned forward in his seat and stared down at the gray plank floor of the porch. “Dad, I can’t even imagine my life without her.”
Major Charles nodded, “I know…that is how I felt about your mother the first time I laid eyes on that fiery red hair and those eyes. She was a vision…so beautiful.”
“It still amazes me how you two have managed to keep your love and your marriage alive after so many years of separation.”
“When you have a love as strong as ours, you are never truly apart,” Charles smiled. “Look at you and Miss Parker…separated by years of anger, deception and bitterness. Yet your love has survived and is all the more powerful for it.” He started to walk away, then paused. “Come in when you are ready,” he said then opened the screen door and went into the house.
Alone again, Jarod got up from his seat and placed his hands on the porch railing. He stared up at the feathery white clouds drifting on the breeze and felt the sun on his face. “I wish you were here,” he uttered softly into the wind.
**********
Miss Parker was so happy to be able to get out of bed and walk around the apartment that she was almost able to overlook the fact that she was a prisoner. If only she could fight the loneliness that had reared its ugly head since she had not seen Sydney or Lyle in nearly a week.
Gently pressing her hand to her abdomen, she smiled as she felt the slight swelling there. She was nearly six weeks pregnant and with each passing day, she grew increasingly afraid that it would be up to her alone to protect the innocent lives growing within her.
Torn between wanting him to come for her and praying that, for Andrew’s sake, he would stay away, she cried herself to sleep night after night. She missed his smile, his laughing dark eyes and his deep comforting voice. Most of all she missed the feeling of being in his arms…protected, cherished…loved.
Settling down on the stark white sofa she picked up a throw pillow and curling up in a ball she hugged it to her chest and cried silently. The satin-like material absorbed both her tears and the heart-wrenching sobs that wracked her body.
“Please, Jarod,” she whispered into the pillow. “I need you…”
“Are you certain that it was wise to take her off the sedatives?” Mr. Parker asked as he observed his daughter on the monitor.
“Prolonged sedation could have a negative effect on the babies. I believe that we should just leave her be.”
“Watch her closely. If she attempts to escape or to hurt herself in any way, I want you to immediately put her back under. We cannot risk anything happening to those babies.”
“Yes, Mr. Parker,” Dr. Samuels nodded as he too studied his patient on the monitor. “I can assure you however, that with the observations that I have made in her actions as well as her frame of mind, I do not believe that it will come to that.”
“For your sake, you had better be right,” Mr. Parker said as he turned and stormed out of the room.
**********
Jarod crept along the corridor, keeping out of the view of the cameras. He knew he was taking a risk walking the halls of the Centre during daylight hours, but it was the last thing they would expect him to do.
Armed with the code to the door of his old room, he made his way, as quickly as possible, toward his goal. He had to get into position before the planned diversions were executed.
Finally reaching the door, he punched in the code and waited for it to open.
Miss Parker heard the door open, but believing it to be Dr. Samuels, she didn’t bother to move from the bed. Turning the page, she continued to read.
Jarod slipped quickly into the room and as the door slid closed, he jammed a chair in it to keep it open. Checking his watch, he waited. At the three-minute mark, he removed the cover on the side of the camera and short-circuited it, which automatically shut down all the cameras in the apartment.
When Dr. Samuels did not appear, Miss Parker slipped silently out from under the covers. Tying the belt of her robe, she slipped the book into the pocket. Her heart was pounding as she peered around the corner into the main room. At first, she saw no one, but when she stepped out of the bedroom and spotted the familiar black leather coat her heart leapt into her throat.
“Jarod,” she gasped.
Turning around Jarod smiled, “Hey there, what’s a beautiful girl like you doing in a place like this?”
“Waiting for you,” she cried softly and ran into his open arms. “I was afraid you wouldn’t come.”
“Wild horses couldn’t keep me away,” he said as he kissed her deeply.
“That’s original,” she smiled.
“Hey, it’s the best I could do on short notice,” he grinned.
Miss Parker laughed and kissed him again.
“What do you say I take you away from all this?” he asked with a sweeping glance of the room that still haunted his dreams.
“By all means, take me away,” she smiled.
Jarod motioned toward her attire. “Are you going out like that?” he asked with a wink and a smirk.
“My wardrobe is a bit limited at the present time.”
“Madeline, my love,” Jarod chuckled. “You would look amazing in a gunny sack.”
“So what are we waiting for?”
“Patience,” he said as he checked his watch again. “We have thirty seconds.” Jarod counted down the last fifteen seconds then grabbed her by the hand and kicking the chair out of the way, pulled her out into the corridor.
“This way,” Angelo grinned as he pushed out a ventilation grate and helped Miss Parker up into the air shaft.
They crawled until they reached SL-5 and by then, Miss Parker was exhausted. The added strain of her pregnancy was quickly zapping her strength. “Jarod, I don’t think I can make it.”
Jarod nodded and kicked out a grate. Dropping out onto the floor of the tech room, he helped her out of the ventilation shaft and set her gently on her feet. Pulling her close, he held her while she fought tears of frustration and struggled to catch her breath. “I’m sorry,” she said, her breathing ragged.
“Shh, Maddie. It’s all right. You are doing fine,” he smiled and kissed the top of her head.
Angelo stood quietly nearby.
Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the soothing sound of Jarod’s voice and the rhythm of his breathing until her heartbeat returned to normal. Then slowly she pulled back from him slightly. “Okay,” she said. “I’m ready.”
“Are you sure?” Jarod asked with deep concern in his eyes.
“I’m sure,” she nodded.
“All right,” he said then taking her hand, they followed Angelo out into the corridor and toward the emergency stairs.
Pulling open the heavy door, Angelo started up the stairs. Jarod turned and scooped Miss Parker up into his arms. They caught up with Angelo quickly and kept going. The lights flickered several times but thankfully stayed on. Just as they reached the main level, a loud explosion shook the building.
Miss Parker held on to Jarod for dear life and prayed that they would make it out of there in one piece.
“Head for the roof, Angelo,” Jarod called out to his friend.
They were almost to the door that opened onto the rooftop and freedom when Mr. Parker and Raines cut off their escape route.
Raines let loose a menacing laugh and raised his gun.
“When are you two going to realize that you cannot outrun destiny?” Mr. Parker smiled as he leveled his gun on them. “Put her down, Jarod. She will not be harmed. I promise you.”
Mr. Parker suddenly froze as he felt the barrel a gun as it dug into the back of his neck. “You are making a grave mistake…”
Sydney cut him off. “Threats will not work…not this time. I cannot allow you to hurt her anymore. For years I have stood by and watched as you continually broke her heart. I never stepped in because I was afraid of what I would do to you if I ever lost control…something I am very close to doing right here and now.”
“You will regret this, Sydney.”
“No more than I regret my life. The years I wasted…years that I could have spent loving my beautiful daughter. No more than I regret not being able to save Catherine from the fate you handed her.”
“What the hell are you talking about? You do not have a daughter…” Mr. Parker began then suddenly the truth hit him. “Catherine…you and Catherine.”
Sydney smiled, “You are finally catching on.”
“I—It cannot be,” he stammered.
“Madeline is my daughter,” Sydney said with pride and a wink in her direction. “And Lyle is my son.”
Raines made a sudden move in an attempt to escape but found himself at the receiving end of Lyle’s automatic.
“And just where do you think you are going,” Lyle grinned.
Raines glared at him. “Out of my way.”
“Lyle, thank God. Will you do something?” Mr. Parker begged his son.
“What would you like me to do, dear old Dad?” Lyle asked with a smirk. “Would you like me to save your worthless life? I don’t think you really deserve it.”
Mr. Parker’s eyes flashed with desperation. “Lyle…”
“Sorry, my hands are full,” Lyle shrugged as he produced a small black box from his pocket and held it in his left hand. “This is a detonator and if I push this button, the Centre is history and you right along with it.”
“Lyle, what are you doing?” Jarod asked.
“Insurance, Jarod. You go on. Get them out of here. I am going to end this my way,” Lyle gave a slight nod.
“Lyle come with us, they aren’t worth dying for,” Jarod said.
“No, but they are,” he said as he looked from Sydney to Miss Parker.
“Jarod’s right, Lyle,” Sydney said. “They aren’t worth it. Let’s go now.”
Lyle shook his head. “It will never end as long as they live. None of us will ever be free. This ends now.”
Jarod saw the conviction in Lyle’s eyes and realized that there would be no changing his mind. “Syd, come on.”
Lowering his gun, Sydney approached his son with tears brimming in his eyes. “Please, don’t do this?”
Smiling slightly, Lyle met his gaze. “Go,” he whispered.
Finally realizing that his son was determined to go through with his decision, Sydney moved toward Jarod and Miss Parker. As they reached the door to the roof, he felt his heart breaking.
“Don’t let him do this,” Miss Parker cried out. “Lyle…”
Lyle turned to watch them leave. “I love you both,” he uttered too softly for them to hear the words.
“Jarod, stop him,” Miss Parker pleaded with him. “He’s my brother.”
Jarod held her tightly to him as they ran across the roof to the landing pad. Major Charles landed the helicopter and Broots jumped to the ground and helped Angelo aboard.
“Broots,” Jarod said as he placed Miss Parker into his arms. “Take her and go. Get them out of here. I have to go back for Lyle,” he smiled and touched his hand to her face. “You will be okay. I love you.”
“I love you too,” she smiled through her tears. “Be careful.”
“I will,” Jarod smiled and turning he ran back into the building.
Lyle was still holding Mr. Parker and Raines at gunpoint while fingering the detonator. “It’s time to end this,” he smiled.
“Lyle,” Jarod shouted.
Turning at the sound of the pretender’s voice, Lyle removed his finger from the button. “Jarod, I told you to get them out of here.”
“They are safe. I came back to try to talk some sense into you.”
“That’s just it, Jarod. Finally, everything is making sense. I have never seen things more clearly.”
Jarod approached Lyle slowly with his hands raised. “What about your family? You have a chance…do not throw it all away.”
“I do not deserve them,” Lyle said. “I am no better than these two,” he motioned toward Mr. Parker and Raines.
“There was a time when I would have agreed with you, but not now.”
Lyle laughed softly, “Jarod, I killed your brother, I tortured you mercilessly on more than one occasion…I have made your life a living hell. Do you really believe I can change?”
“Yes, I do,” Jarod said with certainty.
Lyle stared at him in surprise. Then turning to the two men cowering before him, he smiled. “Well, it appears that this is your lucky day,” he said as he placed the detonator into his pocket. “Come on, Jarod. Let’s get out of here.”
Jarod nodded and slapped Lyle on the back as they headed for the exit. He pulled out the two-way radio and pressed the button. “Dad, we are coming out.”
They ran out onto the roof just as the helicopter was returning to the landing pad. Ten feet from safety, a gunshot rang out.
Lyle froze then dropped slowly to his knees. “Jarod…” he gasped.
“So much for redemption,” Mr. Raines said as he turned and went back inside.
“What a shame,” Mr. Parker said lowering his gun.
“No,” Miss Parker screamed.
Broots ran to help Jarod get Lyle to his feet and together they got him on board the helicopter.
“Go, Dad,” Jarod shouted as he carefully removed Lyle’s blood-soaked coat to see how much damage the bullet had done. “Broots, the first aid kit.”
Miss Parker held on to her brother’s hand while clutching his jacket to her chest. “Hold on, Lyle. You are going to be all right. Don’t you dare die on me.” Feeling the rectangular bulge of the detonator inside the pocket of the bloody coat, she slowly reached in and pulled it out.
Looking back at the malevolent edifice that had kept them all prisoner for far too long, her finger hovering over the button, she suddenly knew what she had to do. “This is where it ends,” she whispered and pressed the button.
A split second later, a massive fireball erupted from the roof of the Centre, immediately engulfing the tower. A thunderous sound could be heard over the drone of the helicopter blades as twenty-seven sub levels collapsed in on each other. The air filled with acrid black smoke, totally blocking out the devastation.
Miss Parker met Jarod’s gaze. “Now…we are free,” she whispered as she placed a hand over her midsection and gave a slight nod.
Reaching over, Jarod covered her hand with his own. Taking the detonator from her, he passed it to Broots. Then gathering her into his arms, he held her.
Major Charles landed the helicopter in the parking lot of the hospital and almost immediately, a team of paramedics raced out to them with a gurney. Broots had radioed ahead that they were coming in with a gunshot victim and to be ready for them.
They reached the helicopter just as Jarod slid the door open and he helped them lower Lyle to the gurney. “He has lost a lot of blood,” he told the paramedics. He has a gunshot would to his lower back.”
“We’ll take care of him,” one of them smiled as they quickly wheeled him toward the building.
Jarod then turned to Miss Parker and gently touched her cheek. “He is going to make it. He has too much to live for.”
Miss Parker nodded her eyes filling with tears.
Sydney hugged her and smiled, “Come on, let’s go inside, he needs his family now more than ever.”
“Broots and I will join you just as soon as we get this helicopter out of the way,” Major Charles said.
Sydney nodded and motioned to Angelo. “Angelo, come with us.”
Angelo grinned and jumped down to the ground. Running ahead of Sydney, he followed Jarod and Miss Parker into.
Sydney watched as the helicopter lifted off the ground and flew toward an empty lot nearby. Then he turned and followed the others.
He prayed that his son would make it. He could not bear to lose him, not after everything that had happened in the past months…not after all the progress they had made toward becoming a real family.
Reaching the waiting area just outside the emergency room, he found Jarod alone on the sofa with his head in his hands. Angelo was sitting quietly on the floor in the corner with his knees drawn up to his chest.
Jarod looked up as he heard Sydney enter the room. “They took him into surgery. The doctor will come talk to us as soon as she can.”
Sydney nodded and sat down on the sofa next to them. Rubbing his eyes, he shook his head sadly. “Where is Madeline?”
“I sent her with Dr. Kendrick for a full examination to make sure that she and the babies are all right.”
“Good,” Sydney replied with a slight nod.
Jarod rose from the sofa, crossed the room to the coffeepot, and poured two cups. Handing one to Sydney, he returned to his seat and took a sip of the steaming hot liquid. “Sydney, he will be okay,” he said.
“I pray you are right,” Sydney said as he too sipped his coffee.
**********
“I think we should keep you here for a couple of days for observation,” Dr. Kendrick told Miss Parker as she got up to leave the examination room.
“Sorry, but I have had enough ‘observation’ to last me a lifetime. Right now I just want to go see about my brother,” she replied.
“I will give you a choice, Miss Parker. Either you agree to let me admit you for two days or you go straight home and get into your own bed for some much needed rest.”
Miss Parker flashed him an angry glare. “Dr. Kendrick, I appreciate your concern, but at this very moment my brother is fighting for his life.”
“So are they,” Dr. Kendrick said as he took her hand and placed it gently on her abdomen. “You have to rest. Your body was in no way ready for this pregnancy. They used hormones to trick it into accepting the embryos. I can prescribe the same hormone to help it adjust but you need complete bed rest and proper nutrition for at least a month to help it along.”
Nodding slowly, Miss Parker settled back down in the chair she had just vacated. “All right,” she said. “I will do whatever it takes. I cannot let anything happen to my babies.”
Dr. Kendrick smiled as he picked up the telephone. “Nurse Shane will you please prepare a private room for Miss Parker. She is going to be staying with us for a few days.” When he hung up the receiver he reached down and took both of her hands in his. “This is for the best.”
“I know,” she said with a slight smile.
“I will go find Jarod and let him know what is happening. Nurse Shane will come for you in a few minutes and take you to your room.”
“Thank you, Dr. Kendrick.”
“You are very welcome.”
After the doctor left, Miss Parker settled back in the chair and tried to relax. As she did so, her thoughts turned to Dr. Samuels. She prayed that he had gotten out of the Centre alive. Though she had no regrets about sending that abomination into oblivion, she hoped that no one she cared about was caught in the blast.
“Miss Parker, I am here to take you to your room,” Nurse Shane smiled as she entered pushing a wheelchair ahead of her.
Without a word, Miss Parker rose from the chair and settled her weary body in the wheelchair. “I’m all yours,” she said, her voice subdued.
**********
Sydney was hovering on the threshold of sleep when he heard someone come into the room. Instantly alert he rose from the sofa and extended his hand to the doctor. “How is he, doctor?”
Dr. Louise Thomas shook Sydney’s hand and smiled. “It is a miracle, but he is going to be just fine. The bullet somehow missed every vital organ in its path and lodged in the liver. Your son is a very lucky man.”
“Thank you so much, Dr. Thomas,” Sydney said laughing with relief.
“He is being moved to ICU for observation. I will send someone to inform you when you can see him.”
“How long will he be in ICU?” Jarod asked.
“For a day or two, then we will move him into a private room. If all goes well, he should be out of here by weeks end,” Dr. Thomas said then excusing herself, she left the room.
**********
Jarod quietly pushed open the door of Miss Parker’s room. He smiled as he saw that she was sleeping peacefully and started to leave.
“Don’t even think about it, boy genius,” she said before he could slip out.
“I thought you were asleep. I didn’t want to disturb you,” Jarod said as he approached the bed.
“How is Lyle?” she asked.
“He is going to be just fine,” Jarod said.
“Thank God.”
“The doctor said that he is lucky to be alive.”
Miss Parker took hold of Jarod’s hand and laced her fingers in his. “I have been lying here thinking about the future…our future.”
Jarod smiled, “I guess we were on the same wavelength. I have been thinking about how much I want the rest of our lives to be perfect. I know you don’t believe in ‘happily ever after’ but I want that for us…for our children.”
“So do I,” she whispered.
“Madeline, I love you,” Jarod said. “I promise you that I will do everything in my power to give you the life that you deserve. Just please say that you will marry me.”
Stunned, Miss Parker stared silently into his pleading dark eyes. When she finally came back to her senses, she smiled brightly. “Jarod, there is nothing I want more than to spend the rest of my days as your wife and the mother of your children. Yes, I will marry you.”
Jarod laughed and kissed her deeply. “I love you,” he said.
“I love you too, Jarod,” she whispered.
**********
Three Days Later...
Margaret and Emily were sitting in the porch swing drinking their morning tea when the white van pulled up in front of the house followed by Broots in the Lexus.
“They’re home,” Josh shouted. He quickly shot the basketball through the hoop then ran toward the driveway. His forgotten ball hit the ground and bounced into the bushes next to the garage.
Jarod got out of the driver’s side and ran around to open the van door. He helped Miss Parker out and then turned to help Lyle.
“I’m all right, Jarod,” Lyle said refusing the pretender’s help.
Jarod turned his attention back to Miss Parker, taking her hand and leading her up the walk toward the house.
“Miss Parker,” Josh said as he ran up to them and hugged her.
“It is good to see you, Josh,” she smiled and kissed his cheek.
“Welcome home,” he said softly.
“Thank you,” she replied.
Major Charles came out of the house with Andrew in his arms. “Look who’s here, Andy,” he laughed as Andrew squealed with excitement. “I think someone is happy to see you two,” he said.
Jarod took Andrew from his father’s arms and handed him over to Miss Parker who was already crying.
“My baby boy,” she smiled through her tears. “I have missed you so much.”
“Mama,” Andrew said as he wrapped his tiny arms around her neck.
“Did you hear that?” Miss Parker beamed.
“If this isn’t happily ever after, then I don’t know what is,” Jarod said as he lowered his mouth to hers.
“My thoughts exactly,” she smiled as she returned his kiss.
