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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Part 11
Ashe, New York
"Well?"
"You already know. Why are you asking?"
"Because I want to hear you say it." Helen grinned and sat back, an arm around Debbie who was sleeping against her shoulder. "Well?"
"Yes, you're right." He put the card back into the box. "You won. Happy now?"
"Very." She looked at him thoughtfully. "But you were close."
"Not that close." He looked down at the board. "But I guess that, considering that you were being nice..."
"You know," Helen looked up at Sydney and spoke in conversational tones. "If I didn't know better I'd think Jarod was bitter."
"Me?" The Pretender tried to look indignant. "Never! Better, not bitter."
"Jarod, that was appalling." As Sydney complained about the pun, Emily hit her brother with the cushion she had been leaning against.
"Well, now we know why he lost." Margaret rescued the cushion and gave it back, an arm around Jarod's shoulders. "He was too busy trying to think of such awful puns to concentrate."
Helen looked around. "Anybody else want a turn at being beaten… er, playing this with me?"
"What else do you have that you won't have learned all the answers to?" Margaret proposed.
"Monopoly or Scrabble." Reaching forward, she began to pack the game away, finally pushing the box to one side. "Em, can you grab one or both from the cupboard? And there's a big dictionary on the shelf next to them."
"Who's playing what?"
Sydney looked up with a smile. "As long as I don't have to play Scrabble with any of those people who boast genius mentality..."
"You're just scared of losing, Sydney," Helen teased.
"Well, that could be it." He laughed. "Will anybody take me on?"
"I will." Margaret stood up and walked over to sit opposite him, taking the box and dictionary from her daughter. "I haven't played Scrabble for years."
Helen looked up. "Jarod, you can be auditor for that game. I'd rather not see you exhaust yourself on a long, noisy bout of Monopoly."
Nodding, he got up and went over to sit on the arm of the chair that Margaret was already sitting in as Sydney laughed. "Well, now we don't need to use the dictionary or even keep track of the score."
"If you were wise, you would anyway," the doctor remarked.
"Perhaps." Without another word, Sydney took the notebook and pen that Broots handed him and they began the game.
"Who's winning?"
"It's even."
"Wow." Helen sat beside Sydney, looking at the board. "And you're sure every single word is in the dictionary?"
"We've checked - no proper nouns, nothing."
"Impressive." Glancing at Jarod, whose head rested against Margaret's shoulder as he slept, she smiled. "Now you know why I suggested that you keep score on your own."
"It was probably a good idea,” Sydney agreed. “Although it was nice, not having to think about it as he told us."
"And how's the Monopoly going?"
"Debbie's winning." Broots grinned at his daughter as she collected rent from her father for the eighth time. "By a long way."
"How's dinner coming along?"
"It's nearly ready. I'll serve it in another twenty minutes." Laughing, she looked over at the people gathered around the monopoly board. "Can you people be finished in that time?"
"No chance." Miss Parker laughingly glared at Debbie. "I've got a score to settle with young Miss Broots here for her exorbitant charges."
"I'm terrified." The girl laughed as the woman's token stopped at her hotel-laden property and she looked up. "Do you want me to tell you how much, or can you remember from the last six times?"
Miss Parker rolled her eyes. "I knew I shouldn't have made that deal. It's ruining me." With a sigh, she mortgaged her last property, handing over the money.
"Be thankful, Parker." Sydney smiled. "It's only a game. If you'd come down with the measles and we’d had to be away for all that much longer, the Triumvirate might have done it for real." Looking at his opponent, he smiled again. "Are we out of letters?"
The woman picked up the last and put it on her rack. "We are now. It's your turn."
"Jarod?"
The man sleepily raised his head, looking into the doctor's eyes. "Umm?"
"It's bedtime."
"You woke me up to tell me that I can go back to sleep?"
She laughed. "That's right. But you have to get upstairs first." With an arm around his back, Helen helped Jarod to his feet. Yawning, he let her guide him up the stairs and into the bedroom, sitting down wearily as soon as she had removed the dressing gown, and pushing off each slipper with his other foot.
"Do I get to...?" He yawned again and Helen laughed.
"Get to what? You need to finish the question before I can answer it."
"Can I get up again tomorrow?" he asked as he lay down.
"Maybe for a while, but we'll see how you are in the morning." She watched him nod as he rolled onto his side and curled up under the blankets. Margaret sat down on the bed, gently stroking his hair as she leaned down to kiss his cheek. A small smile appeared on Jarod's face as he closed his eyes and the doctor exited the room.
"Helen?"
"Yes?" She looked up to see Broots standing in the doorway to her room.
"Debbie wants to know if you were planning to say goodnight."
Smiling, she walked into the room. "Did you think I wouldn't, sweetie?"
"I don't know." Debbie shrugged drowsily as she nestled down into the woman's arms and rested against her chest. "I thought maybe you'd forget."
"Never, baby." Gently she kissed the girl's head. "I couldn't do that."
"And are you sleeping here tonight too?"
"I was planning to. Do you want me to?"
Debbie nodded, a yawn preventing her from answering, as she let her eyes close and snuggled further into the woman's embrace. Helen gently stroked the girl's hair as she fell asleep.
"Mommy?"
"Mmm?" Helen looked up at the girl who was standing by her bed. "What's wrong, Debbie? What is it?"
"Do we have to go home today?"
"No, baby." Helen moved over so Debbie could sit on the bed. "You don't have to go today. I want to make sure you're up to that trip before you leave here."
"Tomorrow?"
"Maybe. We'll see." Helen glanced at her watch and then out to where the panes of glass were covered with a layer of frost that was just visible in the light thrown by the rising sun. "And it also depends on the weather. If we get too much snow, I won't be able to drive."
Debbie slipped into bed beside the woman and snuggled up to her. "I'll hope it snows a lot then."
"Sweetie, you can't stay with me forever. If you don't go, the people at your Dad's work will miss him and all your friends will miss you."
"But I'll miss you."
"And I'm going to miss all of you when you go too, baby." Helen lovingly began to stroke Debbie's hair. "But that's the way it goes, unfortunately. Still, we'll see each other every time I'm in Blue Cove."
"Promise?"
"I wouldn't leave without seeing you, sweetheart. And you can always come for a visit when you have vacation from school, if you want."
"Really?" Debbie's eyes were full of delight as she looked up. "I hadn't thought of that."
"Well, we'll have to check it with your dad but I don't think he'll mind."
"What is it that I don't have to mind?" Broots asked as he appeared in the doorway, curiosity in his eyes, laughing as Debbie scrambled up from the bed and ran over, pulling him into the room.
"Daddy, please say yes!"
"To what, Debbie? I don't even know what I'm being asked about." He took a blanket off the bed and wrapped her in it, sitting down with his daughter in his lap and a smile on his face. "What's going on, Helen?"
"I suggested to Debbie that, if she wanted, she could come here for a vacation when she has time off school. And, of course, I'm always a safe location on those occasions when you're off traveling with work."
"Any conditions attached to that?"
"Like what?" Helen leaned her head on one hand, looking at him, the mock-innocence apparent on her face.
"Well," he began, "like, for instance, that I mention where we're going and you'd then just happen to jump on the phone and call a certain mobile number and ask a certain person where he was, just to make sure..."
"Broots, you have a nasty and suspicious mind!" Helen sat up in bed and hugged her knees. "That's a wonderful idea!"
"And what will your brother say when the pursuit team suddenly never lays eyes on him again?"
"That your victim's getting better at avoiding you."
"Uh, brother?" a new voice asked.
The three people looked around to see Sydney in the doorway, an eyebrow raised and one hand on the doorknob. "I know it's not nice to eavesdrop but can you explain that to me please?" Sitting on Debbie's bed, the psychiatrist glanced at Helen. "What brother?"
"Mine." She exchanged a sly glance with the technician. In an exaggerated motion, she smacked her forehead with the heel of her hand and rolled her eyes. "Do you mean that I forgot to mention the tiny, little, unimportant fact that my brother's the head of the Triumvirate? Silly me."
"He's what?" Sydney's seat on the bed lasted for all of about twenty seconds and he was now on his feet, staring at her. "I don't believe it!"
"Nobody trusts me anymore." She shook her head sadly. "Jarod didn't believe me when I said his mother was there and now you don't believe me when I say, in all honesty, that I'm the little sister of the Triumvirate boss."
"And… you…?" Eyes widening, he took a step away and she laughed.
"Sydney, relax. If I had been planning to take advantage of the connection, I think I'd have done it before now, don't you? No, Broots spotted the similarities a few days ago, when he was watching the Triumvirate in session and remarked on it. It's probably unnecessary to state that I never even thought I might have such a close relation as a brother alive, and it's taken me until the last day or two to get used to the idea. I was planning a surprise announcement for everybody today, but you jumped the gun."
"So you didn't know?" Sydney sat back down with a sigh of relief. "You've aren't planning to turn us all in?"
"If I had been, wouldn't I have done so already? And why would I have caused so many problems for the Centre? No, Sydney, I'm not switching allegiances just for the sake of family." She smiled at Debbie. "After all, I've got family, haven't I, so I don't need an older brother."
"Does he know?"
"I've got no idea." She shrugged. "But I’d thought about calling him and making him aware of the fact – and who was responsible for the total mainframe disaster. Let's see if he's got a stronger sense of family loyalty than I have."
Sydney laughed softly. "The irony in this is fantastic."
"Even better, though, will be the reaction of some people here. Yours was good but I think Jarod's will be better, topped only by Miss Parker's."
"Please," Sydney begged. "Let me be there when you tell them. I have got to see their faces!"
Helen put the thermometer back in the bag and looked at the man who was sitting up in bed. "If I couldn't still see that rash, I'd never have believed that you'd even been sick!"
"So can I get up?"
"Well, not having enough rope to tie you down, I don't think I could keep an active person like you in bed today."
"I can keep him in bed." Margaret eyed her son, who smiled. "Just say the word, and I promise he won't be getting up."
"Now this is good." Helen laughed. "Ultimate power."
"Oh, please. You've had ultimate power for the past week." Jarod rolled his eyes, trying to hide a laugh. "Why not show a little mercy now?"
"It's not really my style."
"You could extend your résumé even further."
Folding her arms and leaning against the wall, Helen pretended to think for a few moments.
"Well, I suppose..."
"Good." Jarod prepared to throw back the blankets but his mother put a hand on his shoulder.
"Just a moment, oh overeager son of mine. She hasn't finished that sentence yet and knowing Helen she's probably got some nasty ending coming."
"Margaret, really!" The doctor rolled her eyes. "You give everyone the most awful ideas about me and I'm actually a very nice person."
"Would Jarod have said that when you drugged him? Would Sydney and Broots have said that as you knocked them out, or Miss Parker?"
"Just because I've put a few people to sleep, for one reason or another..."
"And you've got some secret that you're not telling me." Margaret's eyes traveled from Helen her son. "Both of you and Emily are all part of some great plan that you're not telling anyone else about."
"You're right." Helen spoke before Jarod managed to work out the best response, a smile on her face as she looked at the older woman. "But we aren't going to tell you what it is, so don't ask. I know you cornered Em yesterday but she's as good at keeping secrets as we are. You'll know when you do."
"And to change the subject to something totally unexpected," Jarod interrupted, the suppressed amusement in his eyes again. "Can I get up?"
Helen laughed. "Yes, that was wonderfully unexpected. I'll see how you are once you've had a shower. You can be patient for that long, I'm sure."
Rolling his eyes again, Jarod sent a mock glare in her direction. "Just in case you hadn't noticed, Helen," he grumbled. "I'm not a patient person."
"True," she responded with a mock glare of her own. "But a word in the sentence was particularly accurate. You are a patient. My patient. And you'll get up at my say-so or not at all."
He narrowed his eyes. "What were you going to say after your 'Well, I suppose…' beginning?"
Helen laughed. "I’ve said it before and I'll say it again. They don't call you a genius for nothing, do they?"
"Well?"
"Well, I suppose," she hesitated and watched the frustrated expression come into his eyes, " I can't see any reason for you not to spend the day downstairs, like you did yesterday, in front of the fire and not doing a lot." As he grinned, she sat next to him, her face serious. "Jarod, you're still not better, so don't bother trying to run around the way you normally would, or all that will happen is that you'll collapse. If it happens, I won't need to tie you down because you won't be able to get out of bed. Got it?"
He nodded soberly. "But I should be able to tell before that happens, right?"
"If you pay attention to what your body's saying, yes, you should. But if you think you'll be doing a lot more today than you did yesterday, you've got another think coming, so get your genius mind used to the idea."
"What, another day of drinking hot cocoa in front of a warm fire, reading a good book and playing at Trivial Pursuit?" He grinned. "I think I can cope with that."
Helen looked up with a laugh. "Margaret, do you want to go downstairs and make your son a nest in one of the armchairs for him to sit in today? He probably wouldn't mind a bit of that cocoa when he comes down and, as you make it even better than I do, I'm sure…"
Smiling, the older woman went to the door. "I'll see what I can do."
"Great."
The doctor watched as the door closed and after a moment, went over and eased it open, looking up and down the hall before shutting it again and turning to Jarod. "I hope you realize that I meant all of that."
"I know you did. But I also realize you were telling me that unless I conserve energy this morning, I'll be asleep when Dad gets here later."
"Exactly." She reached into the cupboard and pulled out the dressing gown that he had worn the day before.
"Eddie wouldn't have fitted into that too well," Jarod commented as he pulled it on.
"That's because it was bought with you in mind, not him." She laughed. "After I'd done my basic planning, I went out and bought a few clothes for you. For the first day or two, Eddie had to fit into clothes that were intended to be worn by you, but then I did some shopping for him. Still, it means that I've got a few things that will, or at least should, fit you including the pajamas you're wearing, in case you didn't notice them before."
He grinned. "I did wonder where they appeared from."
"It must make a nice change from the constant black." Helen laughed. "If you feel like taking them with you when you leave, you're welcome to. I don't have a lot of use for them myself." She cast a glance at him. "That is, of course, unless you feel like sleeping here on the odd occasion that you might be in the area. You can have a key to the door, if you think it'll be helpful for you."
"Do you… are you sure?"
"I wouldn't ask if I wasn't." She smiled. "You’re right, it can be a little lonely here on my own. The thought of occasional company is nice."
Jarod eased on the slippers before slowly standing up. "Do you live here or in New Jersey most of the time?"
"That depends what I've been doing. But I tend to use the house in Falk more as a place to lure unsuspecting Centre victims, drug them and…"
"Okay, okay." He laughed. "Now did you say something before about a shower?"
Sydney glanced up from his book with a smile as Jarod was settled into the chair opposite.
"Out of bed twice in two days? You must be better."
"I'm hoping for three out of three as well."
Helen laughed and sat on the sofa next to Debbie, who immediately curled up in her lap before continuing to read. The doctor was about to pick up her own book when Jarod spoke.
"Helen, can I ask you something?"
"You can ask." She grinned. "I'm not promising to answer."
"Nothing's ever straightforward to you, is it?"
"Gee, that was an easy question," Helen laughed. "No, it's not."
The Pretender rolled his eyes. "You're well aware that that wasn't my question."
"I'm not sure whether I'm nice enough to answer two."
"Can I try anyway?"
"So I have to answer three now? Really, Jarod, this is too much."
"I'm sure you can be that considerate." He smiled. "I want to know what reason a single person has for having a house this size."
"And that wasn't even phrased like a question!"
"Deliberately so, giving you no reason not to answer it." He laughed. "Well?"
She smiled. "When I bought this house, with help from the Centre, in late August of 1996, I was expecting to be sharing it with somebody."
"Me?"
"Precisely. As I told you, I wanted to make sure, when I brought Eddie here, that he wouldn't be overloaded with new stimuli. I first had that thought while planning for your escape and that's the reason I chose this place. It had the advantage of the contained back yard as well."
"Clothes, a house," Jarod grinned, "I don't suppose you bought me a car too, did you?"
Helen laughed. "No, but after seeing the DSA of a SIM from January 1969, I did buy you a bike. I thought that a car might be a bit too much, too soon."
"Oh boy." He shook his head. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but your plan was a lot better than mine."
"Actually, the only advantage of my plan over yours was the secrecy. All the rest of the things I mentioned were just additional benefits."
"So what would have happened?"
Helen glanced at Sydney as he spoke. "You would have come into Jarod's room the next morning to find it empty. There would have been no signs of where he'd gone or how he got away. When Raines went to find Angelo, he would also have been missing, as would Eddie."
"Eddie, too?"
"He wasn't in my original plan, but it was versatile enough for me to have extended it to fit him. Considering that his life would have been in danger if we'd left him there, I think taking him would have been essential."
"So how would it have happened?"
"The same way I get in and out now - the air vents. I'd watched Jarod for several days and knew he had a very stringent pattern to his movements. By looping the security feed in his room, we could have done anything we wanted to, even repainted the walls if we were so inclined, and nobody would have realized until they opened the door. If nothing looked suspicious on the tape, nobody had a reason to open it and nobody would have. I’d planned to get him out an hour after the lights were turned off." She laughed. "The panic at the Centre the next day would have been almost as good as when the mainframe died."
"And we would all have been sitting here, in comfort, watching it."
"Exactly." Helen smiled. "You chose to do it the hard way, Jarod. Eddie had a far easier time after his escape than you did."
"He wasn't being chased."
"If you'd stopped dropping clues, you would have discovered pretty fast that you weren't either."
"That was part of the fun."
She smiled at Miss Parker as she entered the room. "Yes, it would have been a lot of fun if you'd found yourself with a bullet in your back one day."
"Can I ask something?"
"Same conditions apply as when Jarod asked, Sydney."
He laughed. "Okay, during the first day that Jarod was sick and you were being 'persuasive', you mentioned that he dreamed of flying. How did you know that?"
"Angelo, and Eddie." Helen smiled. "Angelo told me because he thought that a bit of information that personal would help Jarod believe he could trust me."
"And Eddie?"
"He dreamed the same thing. We talked about it one day and, the next morning, I took him to an airfield nearby so that we could go up in a plane."
"You're a pilot?"
"Uh huh." She sipped the cocoa that Margaret put in front of her before speaking again. "I learned to fly in 1994. Eddie told me how you and he talked about it one day, so I thought he'd like to try."
"And did he like it?"
"Did he?" Helen rolled her eyes. "The only things Eddie he liked more were his wife, his kids and my cocoa." She laughed. "He got his pilot's license about a year after he got married." The doctor looked at Jarod sternly. "Unlike a particular other person I could name, Eddie never faked his IDs. Margaret thinks I'm dishonest, but if she knew the things her own son did, she'd never be able to tell me off again."
"That's why I haven't told her - yet."
"And that's another thing I want to know." Sydney looked over as Helen rolled her eyes.
"Two questions? Well, greed is supposed to be good. What is it this time?"
"How did you know where to find Jarod's mother?"
"Several ways. First, I had a good idea of what corner of the continent she would be in. In one of the letters she sent me, Margaret said that only something really extreme would prevent her from working in this part of the States. If she hadn't been here, I would have looked further afield. Second, unlike Jarod, she had a habit of changing her first name, not her surname. Third, I knew what job she'd be doing. I ended up with a short-list of about eight names and rang the various schools. Only one matched with everything else I asked and that's where I found her. Easy, huh?"
"Can I ask something, too?" the brunette queried.
Helen looked up. "Ask me?"
"No." Miss Parker shook her head and looked at Margaret, who smiled, as if the request was no surprise. "You."
"Of course you can."
The younger woman pulled a sheet of paper out of her pocket, unfolded it and pushed it across the coffee table. Jarod glanced at it and turned to his mother, his expression expectant. Margaret took up the printout of the photograph with a smile before looking up.
"What's the question?"
"How did you know my mother?"
Margaret laughed softly, gazing down at the picture, before she spoke. "That's a rather strange thing to ask. You might just as well ask how the birds know how to fly as to ask how I know my own cousin."
"Cousin?" It came from the two people simultaneously.
"Of course. My mother and Catherine's were sisters. She and I were cousins and that, naturally, makes you three, including Emily, second cousins."
"Why didn't you ever say anything?
"When, Jarod?" Margaret looked at him, her eyes alight with amusement. "In the few seconds we had in 1997? Or when you were too sick to remember me even saying it? No, I decided it would be better to wait until I was asked or until you were together, so I wouldn't have to repeat myself."
"Tell us."
Margaret drained her mug and then put it on the table, placing the printed picture next to it.
"First I want to know where you got it. Catherine and I were the only people who had that photo." Margaret took out a picture wallet, from which she extracted the same image, placing it beside the larger one. Jarod could see small photos of himself, Kyle and Emily and smiled sadly. As he did so, Margaret looked at Miss Parker. "Did Catherine leave it to you after she died?"
"No." Miss Parker shook her head and glanced at Jarod. "We both received it just a few months ago, in an email."
"From Raines." Helen's lips twitched as she saw the expressions on the two people’s faces as they turned to her.
"How did you know?!"
"I know because I happened to be at the Centre and passing in the air vent. I saw a room with a light and looked in to see him and the photo on his monitor, as well as hearing the mechanical voice, saying it had been 'sent.' If I'd known it was the two of you who were the recipients, I would have said something earlier, but there was no way of me knowing that."
"And do you also happen to know how he got it?"
"Actually, yes, I do." Helen's expression hardened. "As you know, Raines' forest house has a very good security system. When I first learnt about the Centre, I was just as keen to find Kyle as I was to find Jarod, so I went and hacked into the system to see what I could learn."
Face sad, Helen glanced from Miss Parker to Jarod and then Margaret. "After he killed Catherine Parker, Raines ordered her body cremated but he was desperate to find the DSA he knew she'd made so he searched her first. During that search, he found the picture, in a wallet like that one." She nodded towards the leather item on the table. "Catherine must have felt that it wasn't a thing she wanted to part with. So Raines kept it, presumably to use against the two of you one day."
Getting up from her seat, she gently rested the sleeping girl against her father's arm and left the room, going into the kitchen and closing the door.
"When that photograph was taken, we promised each other that the only people who would ever have it were ourselves or our children." Margaret smiled at Miss Parker. "You were two and it was taken on Jarod's third birthday. The photo was developed and we promised that after we died, we would give them to our children so they’d be able to recognize one another, if they ever met later in life." Her expression saddened. "Neither of us imagined the circumstances under which you did meet."
"And…did you keep in contact?"
"Of course we did. We had been friends for our entire lives and we stayed friends until the end of Catherine's life. She even told me about Ethan."
Sydney's eyed widened slightly. "I didn't think she was going to tell anyone about that."
"Except you." Margaret looked at him. "She said that you and Jarod were the only two people, apart from those who organized it of course, who knew."
Nodding, the psychiatrist got out of his chair and also left the room, going into the kitchen and closing the door behind him.
"Helen?"
Looking around, he found the room empty. A quick look through the rooms of the cellar revealed that they, too, were free of occupation and, taking his coat from the hook near the door, he went into the back garden. Footsteps in the snow clearly showed where the object of his search had gone and Sydney followed the tracks until he found Helen leaning against the wall, head lowered. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and felt her jump as she turned.
"Are you all right?"
"You mean apart from the heart attack I just had?"
Sydney looked at her more closely, noting her red eyes, as he put his arm around her shoulders and felt her trembling slightly.
"It's not exactly the kind of weather to come out without a jacket."
"I… didn't really think about it." She looked at him. "Where are the others?"
"In the living room. Margaret was going to start telling them about Catherine." He paused. "Come back inside, Helen. You don't want to get sick too."
"That could be entertaining." She smiled faintly, allowing him to guide her back to the house. "You might never be able to leave."
Smiling, Sydney followed her into the kitchen, firmly closing the door after them and then pouring hot water from the jug into a mug. Mixing up a strong cup of coffee, he pushed it into her hands before taking a seat opposite her.
"What is it?"
She sipped the hot drink, staring down at the surface of the table for a moment before looking up at him. "An unpleasant memory."
"That footage from Raines' house?"
Nodding, she shut her eyes briefly and swallowed, her fingers tightening around the mug. "It… the things he did..." She stopped, unwilling and unable to continue, the last of the color fading from her face as her voice sank to a soft whisper. "At least nobody else will ever have to see that."
"You destroyed it?"
"I couldn't help myself. I was so… out of control. I’d never been like that, even when I ran away from the convent. This was just so much worse. It was something that simply terrified me. I was horrified to think that I might, one day, feel that way around the children I was trying to help. So I took out all my rage on the tape. When I was finished, it was in pieces on the floor and I left them there." Her voice became soft. "I wonder what he did when he found them..."
"But it's more than that." Sydney leaned forward. "What else is wrong?"
Slowly she shook her head. "I couldn't tell you."
"Why not?"
"It's… too silly."
He looked at her closely. "Just because Margaret is also related to Miss Parker, that doesn't mean her feelings for you will change. You're just as important to her as you ever were, Helen."
"How did you know?" Helen’s eyes, when she looked up, were wide with surprise, and Sydney laughed.
"Long years at medical school, and even longer specializing." He put his hand over hers. "As well as personal experience. I know how it feels when all the people around you seems to be finding family or people to care for them and you don't."
"That's why it seems so silly." She looked at him. "I've just been presented with a family and yet I still couldn't stop myself from feeling like that."
"What sort of a family is it, though? A brother who is the head of the organization you hate for what they do to people and an adoptive relationship you're afraid will end as soon as Debbie leaves."
"Those long years taught you a thing or two, didn't they?" Helen paused. "I don't want to ruin this for them, especially Miss Parker, and I can't help wondering if it wouldn't be better if I disappeared this time instead. I got over it when she stopped writing to me and she would cope if I left. She'd understand."
"Debbie wouldn't." Sydney tightened the hold he had on her hand. "Don't think of that kind of thing right now, not while you're still trying to deal with everything else as well. This isn't the time to be making decisions like that, especially ones that will only at best provide a short-term solution. You have to confront this at some stage and you can't confront it on your own."
Sydney watched as she slowly nodded, and he spoke quietly.
"Besides, you doing that to Debbie is nearly as selfish as what Jarod did. It's calling out for attention in much the same way as he did, and it would break Debbie’s heart to lose another mother. Even if she does change a little when she goes home, I think she's loyal enough not to forget it all. Her father is certainly very loyal and Debbie seems to have inherited the same trait from him."
"I know." Helen spoke quietly. "I thought of that myself. That’s why I didn't go, why I only stayed in the garden."
"I thought it might have been." Sydney watched he swallow the last of the coffee. "If I didn't think you’d came up with it yourself, I would never have said anything. I don't feel like having you hate me today."
Her lips curled into a small smile as she looked up at him. "I promise to hate you for that if you’ll promise to hate me for abducting you."
"You mean I have to remember something from that far back?" Sydney rolled his eyes, smiling. "I don't know if my memory's that good anymore."
Coming into the kitchen, Margaret put her arms around the woman standing at the sink, preparing to drain a large saucepan of boiled potatoes, and Helen came close to dropping the lot.
"What on earth...?"
"I just talked to Sydney."
"Well, if you and Sydney want to eat lunch. it might be a good idea if you don't give me a fright like that one again." Helen half-smiled and placed the large pot on the sink before she turned to look at the woman. "Where are the others?"
"Staying warm in front of the living room fire, rather than going for a wander in the snow because they're afraid of ruining a seeming ‘family reunion’." Margaret put a hand on either side of Helen's head, making the woman look at her. "And if you'd disappeared, don't you think that I would have found you as easily as you found me?"
"Probably." Helen paused. "Still, there are a lot of places for a thief to hide."
"If that was all you were, I wouldn't bother looking, but you never are, and you never will be, just that." Margaret brushed a stray strand of hair away from the woman's face. "You're so much more, Helen. Not just because of everything you've done in the past week for my family, but for a long time before that. You know I wouldn't have told a 'thief' all the things I've told you since you were fifteen." She smiled at the woman. "You're a very special part of my life, just as special as my son or my daughter, but for different reasons. Please believe me when I say that, and don't decide that my life would be better without you. We both know it wouldn't."
Soundlessly, Helen nodded, burying her face in the woman's shoulder and letting a few tears flow onto the woman's shirt. She put her arms around Margaret for a moment before pulling away and looking up, about to reply when a voice spoke from the doorway.
"Mommy?"
Helen looked over to find the girl standing in the doorway. "What is it, Debbie?"
"Can I come in and watch you make lunch?"
"Well," Helen walked over, picking up the girl, "it's much warmer in the living room than it is here."
"But you aren’t there." Debbie put her arms around Helen's neck, hugging her. "And, when I woke up, you were gone."
"I'm sorry, baby." Helen kissed her. "Next time, I'll try not to be."
"So can I stay? Please?"
Margaret sat down on one of the chairs and took the girl onto her lap. "What say you and I watch Helen finish making lunch, huh?"
"What are you making, Mommy?"
"A lot of different things, sweetheart. We've only got a lot of bits and pieces left in the house, with so many people here and after so long of not shopping."
"Will you go shopping again before we go?"
"I'm going to have to, Debbie, or we might all go hungry for the next day or two. I was thinking I might drag your dad and Sydney along with me tonight."
"And why not me?" Margaret looked up, curiosity on her face, and Helen laughed as she finished draining the potatoes.
"I didn't think you'd want your poor son to be left alone while he's recovering, but if you want to come along when I go, you're welcome to."
"Can I come?"
"We'll see how late it is when I go, sweetheart, and how you're feeling." Helen got a few trays out of the cupboard and put them on the table, putting piles of mugs and plates, as well as crockery, on one and, putting on oven mitts, moved dishes full of food from the oven onto the other. Tipping the potatoes into a warm bowl, she looked up at the other two people.
"Lunch appears to be served. Should we take it in to gladden the hearts of the mob in the living room?"
"What on earth was that?" Jarod ate the last mouthful of stew and looked at Helen questioningly. "I've never tasted anything like it."
"Is that good or bad?"
"Oh, it was good. I'm just interested to know what it was."
"An attempt to use up the last of the food in the house so that we can do a large shop tonight. I’m not sure what I'd call it, and I know it was an original, because I can't remember everything that went into it."
He grinned. "Still, it made a nice change from soup."
"Are you criticizing my cooking, Jarod?" Emily tried to look indignant.
"As if I would!"
"That wasn't the denial I was hoping for."
Jarod laughed and reached over to hug her. "Yes, I like your cooking, but I like a little variety, too."
"Like the variety of clothes you wear?" Emily snapped. "Black, black and, oh yes, of course, how could I forget black?"
"So teach him about fashion," Helen smiled. "After all, it's one of the things you're best at."
"And don't forget, Em," Margaret leaned over, "your brother wouldn't know much about good food anyway. He's only been eating it for six years, and, in all that time, I doubt it he's had many home-cooked meals. We'll have to get him used to them once we leave here."
Helen hid a smile as she stood up and collected the dirty dishes, piling them onto the trays and carrying the first of those into the kitchen. Glancing up, she saw two people standing at the back door and let them in before they had a chance to knock. The boy immediately threw both arms around her and hugged her.
"Hi Helen."
"Hey, short-stuff. How've you been?"
"I missed you. How come you didn't call?"
"I've been busy, kiddo. Your big brother's been sick."
"What was wrong with him?" Major Charles unwrapped the scarf from his neck as Helen took the boy's jacket and hung it up.
"He had the measles, but he's a lot better. The rash is fading fast and he's eating every meal as if it's his last." She looked at the boy, who still had his arms around her waist. "He's not back to full strength yet, though, so no rough stuff, okay?"
"Yup." The boy looked around as Emily walked into the kitchen with the other tray and a smile on her face. She hardly managed to put the tray down before he was hugging her tightly. "Hi Em."
"How's my favorite baby brother?"
"As good as your only baby brother." He looked up. "Were you sick, too?"
"No, just Jarod and Debbie."
Helen grinned as she began to stack the dishwasher. "Still offended, Em?"
"Oh, terribly." She hugged her father, laughing. "You mean you can't tell?"
"Just checking." The doctor laughed also. "Now, how could we introduce these two into the conversation?"
"You didn't tell them we were coming?"
"I thought it might be a nice surprise." Helen smiled. "Em knew, though. I wanted to make sure she wouldn't mention you by accident."
"Hmm," Emily looked from her father to the boy whom they had put into the place of the youngest child in the family. "I'm not sure."
"What say Jonathan and I go in first? That should give them a small hint." Helen poured hot water into the jug and added a number of heaped spoonfuls of cocoa and sugar before fixing on the lid. Putting the jug on the tray with a large number of mugs, the doctor smiled. "Ready?"
"Uh huh." He wrapped his arms around her waist again and she looked down.
"It's a bit hard to walk like this.
"You'll manage," he told her confidently, grinning. "I know you will."
