Disclaimer: In first chapter.

Chapter 3

“The child is mine!” a man shouted.

Miss Parker clutched Matthew’s hand as the man in the shadows took a step closer to them. “Leave us alone!” She yelled back angrily. “He’s my son. Let him be!” She could hear the man taking a few more steps towards them. Her heart thundered in her chest, but not for her safety, only for Matthew’s. Miss Parker didn’t know who the man was, all she knew was that she had to protect her son from him.

“Mommy,” whimpered Matthew.

Knowing Matthew was in danger, she picked him up and tried to run, but for some reason she couldn’t. Looking down, she found that her feet were sinking into the floor, holding her prisoner. Panic rose inside her as the man came closer, his face still hidden by the shadows. “No, please don’t,” she cried out, “Don’t take him away from me!” She could feel Matthew’s arms wrap her around tightly, afraid of letting go.

“It’s too late, Miss Parker. You can’t save him no matter how much you try to protect him; you’ll never be able to keep him from me. He’s my son!” the man said with an evil laugh.

Feeling the tears burning down her cheeks, she held Matthew close to her heart, trying her best to soothe his fears away. As the man continued towards them, she put Matthew down on the ground. “Run baby and don’t ever look back! Run and save yourself! You know who to go too!” she urged frantically, hoping her son would run to safety.

“No mommy. I’m scared. I don’t want to leave you,” he cried out as tears fell down his face.

Glancing back, Miss Parker could see the man was only about fifteen feet away. She had to get Matthew out of here, even if it killed her. Her son’s life was the only thing that mattered. Grabbing his hands, she pleaded with her son to run away, but he remained stubbornly in place, refusing to go.

“Don’t you love me, Mommy?” he sobbed.

Feeling her time was running out, she cupped Matthew’s face in her hands, kissing him on the forehead. Brushing his tears away with her thumb she whispered back, “I love you more than life itself.”

Just as the words left her mouth, her body jerked forward, knowing that a bullet entered her back. Blood splattered onto Matthew’s shocked face. She knew she was bleeding internally as blood slowly began to fill her lungs. Each breath she took was becoming more labored. “Matthew, please, listen to me, go to our place of refuge,” she croaked out as blood flavored her mouth. Not needing any more encouragement, the boy grabbed his teddy bear off the floor and turned around, but before leaving, he ran back to her and embraced her fiercely.

“I love you, Mommy,” he whimpered out.

Closing her eyes to ward off the tears she replied back softly, “I love you too, baby. Always remember that.”

Nodding his head, he reluctantly let go of her. Wiping his tears away, he turned on his heels and ran. Smiling at his retreating form, she fell to the ground as all of her strength became spent.

“You shouldn’t have done that, Miss Parker,” she heard him say as he took a couple of steps past her before coming to a stop.

Fear clutched at her heart as she watched the man bring his arm up, pointing his gun in the direction of Matthew. “No!” she screamed out.

The man ignored her plea as he fired the shot. Miss Parker watched helplessly as Matthew’s small body crumpled to the floor. “No!” she cried out again.

Miss Parker tried desperately to get to Matthew but her legs were useless, so she did the next best thing, she crawled to her dead son as he laid in a pool of his own blood. When she reached him, she cradled his head in her lap, weeping for the lost little boy who became a beacon of light for her in her world of darkness. When she opened her eyes once more, she gasped at who’s face she saw in her lap; Jarod’s.

“Jarod…” she whispered out in disbelief. Then, just as fast, Jarod’s face morphed back into Matthew’s. Miss Parker cried for her son, but she knew she was not alone as she saw a shadow dance over her, knowing it was the man.

Through her tear-filled eyes, she glanced up and gasped at the man she saw before her. He was unrecognizable to her as he had no eyes or nose, just a mouth that smiled sinisterly.

“You bastard!” she growled out.

“Now, now, Miss Parker is that anyway to talk about your son’s father,” he smiled.

“How could you do this to your own flesh and blood?” she questioned in an outraged tone.

The man’s smile got broader as he knelt down beside her. Reaching out, he pushed a strand of Matthew’s hair from his forehead. Miss Parker instantly slapped his hand away. “Don’t touch him!” she warned, but not with her usual bite as she became more and more tired.

Smile never wavering, the man put the muzzle of his gun over Miss Parker’s heart. “Because I won’t be bound to the men in Blue Cove. Killing him is just a means to an end,” he replied back as he nodded his head towards Matthew.

“What?” she asked quietly, trying her best to keep her eyes open.

“The answer to your question, that’s why I can do this to my own flesh and blood,” he answered. “As for why I’m killing you, well, it’s just for my own personal enjoyment.” Clicking the safety off he added, “Nighty night,” then fired the shot.

Miss Parker shot up in bed. Sweat covered her face as she panted frantically for breath. Since running away from the Centre, her nightmares were becoming worse. She was lucky if she could get 3 hours of sleep a night. She knew she couldn’t go on like this. If the Centre started closing in, she would have to be alert and ready so she could protect Matthew. There was no way in hell her son was going back to that concrete prison.

Rubbing the weariness form her face, she got out of bed. Grabbing her robe, she opened her door and quietly went to Matthew’s room. Glancing at the clock on the wall it read 6:02 am. Letting out a tired sigh, she rubbed her eyes as she made her way down the hallway.

When she reached Matthew’s room, she silently stepped inside. Grabbing the rocking chair that sat nearby, she pulled it over to his bed, remaining ever so quiet. Of course, a herd of elephants could trample through here without Matthew ever knowing. Oh how she envied his sleeping patterns, she smiled at the thought.

It was still hard to believe that Matthew was her son. He looked nothing like her. With his blond hair and blue eyes, it was so easy to believe that Brigitte could be his mother, but ever since the Carthis adventure she began to wonder about his parentage, but it was more about his father, never his mother.

When Sydney told her about Mr. Parker not being her father she began to wonder if maybe, by some off chance, that Lyle was his father. Getting Lyle’s DNA sample, she had Sydney run a test, but the test came up negative, indicating that Lyle wasn’t the boy’s father.

She knew something wasn’t right about Matthew’s parentage, so she had her team scour the Centre for any clues or projects that dealt with the small boy. For weeks, they came up with nothing, until finally, a little over a week ago; she found a file on her desk. When she opened it and read the contents she was shocked, angry, and sad at all the same time. Still, she didn’t know whether or not to believe it. Having Sydney run another DNA test, this time on her, the results came back saying she was, without a doubt Matthew’s mother.

It was the final straw for her. With Broots’, Sydney’s and Angelo’s help, she was able to get Matthew out. She drove all night through Maryland, West Virginia, and Kentucky before finally resting in Indianapolis, Indiana. After a couple of hours of restful sleep, she was back on the road once again, letting her inner sense do the navigating for her.

When she reached Clearwater, she knew she was in the right place. Jarod and Ethan’s presence surrounded her wherever she went. When she found Ethan, they talked and talked until the wee hours of the morning. From their conversation she found out Jarod was still working on a pretend, but should be back any day now. She just hoped it was soon. If anyone knew how to elude the Centre, it was Jarod.

Yawning, she leaned closer to Matthew, pushing the hair away from his eyes. For her, he was her little angel now. And she would protect him against whatever the devil threw their way. Placing her hand on his chest, she marveled at every breath he took. It was still hard to believe that her blood ran through his veins. She was one half of this beautiful child, but the other half, his father, worried her. Whoever was Matthew’s father would want him back, and she knew it wasn’t because his father loved him, no; it was something so sinister the thought alone sent a shiver down her spine.

“Mommy?” came a tired a voice from the bed.

Miss Parker smiled at him. “What is it baby?”

“I…I don’t feel so good.”

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To Be Continued…