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Title - High Price of Freedom
Author - Nicky
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.
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chapter 1
* * * * * * * * * *
Miss Parker gently pushes open the doors of the Centre Nursery, smiling briefly at the nurse inside. The nurse nods back and finishes the notes she's making before leaving Miss Parker alone. This was their daily ritual. Miss Parker would arrive mid-
morning to see her baby brother and the nurse would find something else that needed her attention in order to give Miss Parker some time alone with the child.
"Oh, Miss Parker," the nurse said suddenly just as she got to the door. "I may be popping in and out during this visit. We got in some new babies just this morning. They're having a tough time adjusting."
"Babies?" Miss Parker asks, a knot growing in her stomach. It was bad enough she had to grow up here. It was even worse that her little brother had to be here. She can't imagine what they would need small infants for.
"Yes, Ma'am. Six month old twins," the nurse tells her.
"We'll try to keep it down." She smiles an uneasy smile at the nurse as she finally leaves.
Her curiosity getting the better of her, Miss Parker leaves her baby brother by a pile of blocks that he eagerly starts chewing on. She walks over and peeks into the crib holding the Centre's newest acquisitions. Two angelic sleeping faces lay below, a little boy and a little girl. Her hand finds it's way inside the crib on it's own somehow and she gently strokes a finger along the little boy's cheek. She can't resist running her fingers through his reddish brown curls, smiling as the soft silkiness tickles her hand. Looking back at his face, she notices his big brown eyes are now wide open, staring at her inquisitively. For a moment, it seems like he can't decide on whether he wants to laugh or cry and his eyes start to tear up a little. But instead of a wail, he lets out a contented sigh as his little pudgy hand grab onto Miss Parker's finger. Before she can even think about it, she has the little boy in her arms and out of the crib. She makes her way over to the rocking chair and sits with him.
"Baby," her little brother says in his garbled toddler language. Having lost interest in his blocks, he walked over to his big sister and the foreign creature in his place on her lap.
"That's right, Tyler," she says to her brother. "It's a baby. You wanna say hi?"
"Hi Baby," Tyler says.
"Hi Tyler," Miss Parker says from behind the baby's head, making it seem like he was talking to her brother. Both the baby and Tyler start to giggle. Their laughs make her smile.
"Momma silly," Tyler laughs, sobering Miss Parker's mood. He was doing that all the time now, calling her 'Momma'. For the past 18 months, she's been the only mother he's ever known, so she can understand his confusion. But as much as she would love to be his mother, she wasn't. And having him call her that just hurts her all the more.
"No Tyler, Lanie. Can you say that? La-nie." She figured she'd teach him to call her Lanie, since Mary Elainna was probably too hard for a baby. That's the nickname Jarod used to call her. "Not Momma. Lanie," she tries again pointing to herself as she says it. But she sees that his attention is already elsewhere.
"Look, Momma. 'Nutter baby," Tyler calls excitedly when he notices the other baby in the crib.
"I know it's another baby, Tyler. But she's asleep. We have to be quiet," she whispers.
"Sleepy Momma," Tyler says with a yawn.
Miss Parker looks at her watch and realizes it's close to his naptime. So she goes to lay the baby back in the crib so that she can rock her brother to sleep. Just when she walks away from the crib, the baby lets out a loud cry, his face instantly getting red from the effort.
"What happened?" the nurse asks, slightly out of breath having run back into the nursery after hearing the child scream. She picks up the baby and tries to calm him down with no success.
"He started crying when I put him back in the crib," Miss Parker explains over the child's cries.
"Like I said, they were having trouble adjusting," the nurse says accusingly, staring at with Miss Parker with a not so nice look in her eyes. "I don't think he appreciated being bothered."
"I didn't bother him," Miss Parker responds in an equally icy tone. "He didn't start crying until after I put him down." She walks over to the nurse and holds her arms out for the baby, who eagerly reaches for her. He stops crying once he's back in Miss Parker's arms.
"I guess he just likes you," the nurse reluctantly admits. "He hasn't been going to strangers. You're the first. Let me know if you have anymore trouble," she mumbles before making her way back out of the nursery.
Miss Parker rolls her eyes at the woman's retreating form before a tugging at her skirt gets her attention. Tyler's still standing there, still looking very sleepy. She grabs his hand and walks over to the rocking chair. She holds the baby on one side of her lap and allows Tyler to climb up on the other side. Before long, both little boys were sleeping peacefully. Unable to move, Miss Parker just stays there, enjoying the brief feeling of motherhood.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Jarod throws his stuff in a chair next to the door of yet another hotel room. He's done more traveling in the past few weeks than usual. Nothing seems to be capturing his attention like before. He goes from town to town investigating what initially seems like worthwhile cases, only for them to turn out to be nothing. Really, it was more like he was suffering the effects of burnout and was in need of a vacation. Atlanta, Georgia was just the place to do that. It wasn't hugely populated, but large enough for him to get easily lost. And that's what he needed to be for a few days - lost.
He flips the TV on to be background noise as he unpacked his meager belongings. Several years on the run and he hasn't accumulated many personal belongings. Just a few things that he like to keep close made the move with him from city to city. He takes his toiletry kit into the bathroom, and adjusts the volume on the TV to hear the news while he's unpacking his shaving kit.
" . . . and there has finally been an arrest in the Burke kidnapping case," the anchor starts. The name catches Jarod's attention and he leaves the shaving kit in the sink to watch the news report. "After weeks of insisting she had nothing to do with the disappearance of 6 month old twins Madison and Ryan, Special Agent Rachel Burke has finally confessed that she in fact did murder her children. . . ."
The rest of the news report goes by unheard by Jarod. Twins. Rachel Burke has 6 month old twins. Thinking back to the time he spent with the FBI profiler, he realizes it's a distinct possibility that those twins are his as well. The timing was just about right. He tunes back into the TV to find out more details of the story, but sees that they've moved on to something else. He turns on his computer and promptly connects to the local police department and finds the case.
Two weeks ago, Rachel Burke reported her twins missing. After days of searching, police uncovered evidence containing the children's blood. They concluded that the children were more than likely dead, seeing as how no ransom demands had been made. Throughout the entire investigation, Rachel denied any wrongdoing on her part. A few days ago, however, that changed. She was rushed to the hospital, an apparent suicide attempt. Along with the suicide note, there was a journal with details of how she killed the children. The police has the journal now as evidence.
Jarod shuts off the computer to avoid risk of being detected snooping around the police database. He thinks over the evidence and realizes that something wasn't quite right with the situation. According to the police report, she hasn't actually confessed. They just have a journal and a note supposedly written by her. The Rachel he knew wouldn't kill herself. And she wouldn't kill her children. Of that he's sure. Chances are if he figured out that the children could be his, then it's possible someone else may have figured it out as well. Possibly someone at the Centre. He had to talk to Rachel as soon as possible. He grabs his jacket and heads to the hospital.
Northside Hospital
Atlanta, GA
Jarod peeks his head into the door to Rachel's room. She appears to be sleeping, but he sees that she isn't when she turns her head in his direction when he enters.
"Hi," he says quietly, shyly looking around the room to avoid making immediate eye contact with her.
"What are you doing here, Jarod?" she asks. "The last time I saw you was after that night. You were gone the next morning. How could you do that to me?"
"I know you're angry . . . " he starts.
"Angry? Actually, I was angry for awhile. For a long time. I was hurt. I was confused. But then I got over it. I had to," she says sadly.
"Because of them? The babies?" he asks as delicately as he can. But the question still brings tears to her eyes and she's unable to speak for a few minutes.
"I'm sorry," she says, wiping away her tears. "They were my life. I can't believe they're gone. That I'm responsible for . . . "
"No, Rachel. I don't believe that," he tells her. "There's no way you were responsible for what happened to them. You couldn't do that."
"I didn't think so either, Jarod. But I was so tired all the time. And so cranky. They're a handful," she admits. "There were times when I didn't know why I was even trying to raise two kids on my own."
"Because their deadbeat father left you pregnant," he says guiltily. "Rachel, I'm sorry. If I had known . . . "
"But you didn't know, did you? You didn't stick around long enough to find out. Besides, sorry's not going to bring them back, Jarod," she cries. She wasn't ready to forgive him. She couldn't forgive him. Even though he didn't know she was pregnant, that still doesn't make the situation any easier.
"Do you really think they're gone? That you . . . "
"Killed my babies?" she asks point blank. "Of course not. But the journal was pretty clear and explicit. And it looks like my handwriting."
"But do you remember writing it? Or the suicide note?" he asks her. "Do you remember trying to kill yourself, Rachel? Or the kids?"
"You think this could be a setup?" she asks grabbing onto the glimmer of hope he was offering. "That somebody else is responsible? But who? Why?"
"Rachel, do you know the reason why I can never stay for very long? Why I disappear at the drop of a hat? Why you can't find anything about my past? That's because I don't really have one. I promised when we first met to tell you about myself. It's past time you knew the truth."
"What is it, Jarod? You're scaring me."
"There's this place called the Centre. They stole me when I was just a boy because I have special abilities. I'm what they call a pretender. A genius with the ability to do anything and become anyone. Up until a few years ago, I was held there against my will and was made to perform simulations of certain situations, the results of which they sold to the highest bidder. More often than not, the results of those simulations were used to hurt other people. When I found that out, I left. I ran away. They've been trying to get me back ever since."
"How is it even possible for a place like that to even exist?" she wonders aloud. "Why couldn't the government . . ."
"The government? I hate to tell you this, but that same government you work for is one of the Centre's best clients, Rachel. Believe me, these people will do anything to get what they want. And if they can't have me, I'm sure my children will be acceptable."
"You think they have Maddie and Ryan?"
"Those are their names?" he asks quietly, tears starting to form in his eyes. "Maddie and Ryan," he repeats, letting the names roll off of his tongue before his mood darkens even more. "I don't even have a last name to give them."
"Jarod, this is all so unbelievable," she says. "You grew up in a place like that? And you're constantly on the run now?"
"It was a terrible place to be, Rachel. And I won't allow our children to grow up the way that I did. I'm getting them out of there. I swear." He grabs her hand and holds it up to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on the back. She didn't deserve to be put in the middle of his war with the Centre. It was his responsibility to get her and the children out of it, even if it meant giving up the one thing that he valued the most - his freedom.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 2
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Miss Parker awakens to the sensation of being watched. Slowly, she turns in bed, reaching under her pillow for her gun. In a flash, she's sitting up, facing her intruder with the gun pointed in his direction.
"Don't shoot. It's just me," he says.
"Jarod? You have to stop surprising me like that. One of these days, I'm going to shoot first," she warns. "What time is it? What are you doing here?"
"I needed to talk to you. I need your help."
"You need my help?" she laughs incredulously. "You're kidding, right? Jarod, what could you possibly be so desperate for that you would need my help?"
"A rescue. A woman had her infant twins stolen by the Centre. It's my job to get them back," Jarod explains, purposely leaving out the fact that he's their father.
"Oh, those twins," she says, instantly sobering when he mentions the babies. It's been so sad to see them cry, day in and day out. She felt so sorry for them. They were obviously missing their family.
"You've seen them?" Jarod asks excitedly.
"A few times. I met them a few days ago when I was visiting my little brother Tyler," she tells him. "They're adorable. But so sad. I felt bad that they had to be there."
"So, will you help me get them out?" he asks hopefully.
"I don't know about that, Jarod. Stunts like that get you killed around the Centre. Look at what happened to my mother when she was trying to help you. I don't plan on ending up that way." She gets up from her bed and quickly pulls on a robe. She makes her way to the door to move this little meeting out of her bedroom and into the living room.
"What if you wouldn't have to be there anymore?" he asks quietly. She stops in her tracks at this proposal.
"What are you saying, Jarod? You know there's only one way for me to be free of that place. That's if I take you in. And you've been pretty adamant about not going back to that . . . "
"What if that's exactly what I'm saying?" he interrupts. "You help me rescue the twins, and after I return them to their mother, you can bring me back. No hassles. No tricks. No escaping."
She sits rather ungracefully on the bed next to her, her legs no longer able to support her. This was a proposition she never expected to receive from Jarod. And by the look on his face, he was completely serious.
"How do I know I can trust you?" she asks, knowing the question was pointless. She trusted Jarod. In a sick, twisted kind of way, that was the one truth in her life, her trust of Jarod.
"Oh ye of little faith," he says with a small smile. "You know you can trust me. But I didn't expect you to take my word for it. So I'll leave this with you." He reaches down next to him picks up a silver case that was on the floor next to his chair. She must have missed seeing it in the darkness of the room.
"The DSA's?" she asks.
"Just the player. After we make sure the children are safe with their mother, I'll give you the key to a safety deposit box that contains the DSA's." He pauses to let it all soak in. "I thought through this, Miss Parker. If you agree to help me, then I won't back down on this deal. You have my word that I'll let you take me back to the Centre. You'll be free. And you'll have the DSA's in case there's more bargaining you need to do with the Centre."
"Why, Jarod? Why are you doing this? Giving up your freedom for these children? For me?"
"Is it a deal or not?" he asks impatiently, purposely avoiding her question. He looks into her eyes to convey how serious this whole situation is. He can see that she's thinking about the matter, trying to figure out why it's so important to him. But also trying to decide if her freedom was worth risking her life over.
"Okay. I agree. When do we do this?" She asks, trying not to smile at the adorable and grateful grin that's now spreading across Jarod's face.
"As soon as you can get dressed," he tells her.
"Alright, then. Get out of here and let me get changed," she orders, shooing him out of her room.
"You sure you won't need any help zipping or buttoning something?" he says with a suggestive wink and leer.
"Out!" she says a bit louder, but unable to hide her amusement.
"Okay, okay, I'm leaving," he laughs a little, walking to the door. Just as his hand reaches the doorknob, he turns around once more. "Miss Parker?"
"Yes, Jarod," she sighs impatiently.
"Thanks," he says with a shy smile. "Thanks for doing this."
"You're welcome," she smiles back.
For a moment they stand there, not remembering anything that's happened between them the past few years. Instead, it was almost as if they were looking at each other when they were children, when they used to mean everything to each other.
"You should get dressed," Jarod whispers, breaking the moment. "I'll leave now." He steps into the hallway outside her room, shutting the door behind him.
* * * * * * * * * *
An hour later finds Jarod and Miss Parker in Jarod's Nissan X-
Terra on the way to the Centre. The trip is a quiet one, each thinking about how this one night will inevitably change their lives.
"Jarod?" she asks, breaking the silence.
"Yes?" He looks over at her, waiting on her question. When she doesn't say anything he turns his sight back to the road ahead of them.
"Nothing," she says quietly, changing her mind about asking him again why this is so important to him. He'll tell her when he's ready, she assumes. "We're just about there," she says instead, even though she wants to know so badly what's making him do this. Why after all this time would he give up his freedom.
He shuts off the lights and rolls to a stop next to a wooded area about a mile from the Centre. Instead of taking the main road to the Centre, they figure it would be better to cut through the woods and enter through the storm tunnel on the west end of the building. The tunnel goes on for about a mile before leading to the airvents that will eventually take them to the nursery.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asks her one more time to be sure. "It could be dangerous."
"Jarod, it'll be faster for me to show you where the babies are. Plus, you won't be able to carry them both out at one time," she rationalizes.
"Alright then. Let's go," he says, opening his door. She does the same and meets him on the other side of the car.
They move quickly and quietly through the forest, keeping a watchful eye out for alarm triggers and cameras. They manage make it to the entrance undetected and sneak inside. The trip through the tunnel was uneventful as well and soon they find themselves at an opening with several airvents going off in different directions.
"Which way do we go?" she asks him.
"This one," he says, pointing to the vent to the left. "It'll lead us to your office. I'll wait there while you go get the babies and bring them back to me."
"Why can't we just take the vents to the nursery?" she wonders.
"Because they have a special ventilation system in there. The air vents don't share the same passage ways as the other air vents in the building. It's supposed to deliver purer air to the children," he explains. He reaches up to pull off the vent cover and lifts himself into the vent. He reaches to give her a hand and pulls her up as well.
"Make sure to take off their clothes before you leave the nursery," he says once they reach her office. He pulls off his backpack and pulls out a bundle of clothes and a couple of Snugli carriers. "We'll redress them in here. I don't want to take the risk of tracking devices being in the clothing."
She nods her head in understanding and eases out of her door. It was the middle of the night, so she didn't expect to see anyone. But still, the quiet, empty halls were eerie and a bit unnerving. It doesn't take long to get to the nursery. And just as Jarod suspected, they babies were sound asleep. Taking them this time of night offered less risk of them crying. She quickly works and removes their sleepers, leaving them in just their diapers. She grabs them both securely in her arms and makes her way back to the office.
"What are you doing?" she whispers to Jarod when she returns. He was sitting behind her desk messing with her computer.
"You need to leave a voice mail message for Broots and Sydney. Tell them you found a lead on me and you're on your way to pick me up. I was using the computer to change the system time in the database. That way, they'll think the call came in earlier than it really did. I've already arranged for you to have been 'seen' on a commercial flight to Tulsa. You'll have an alibi for the time the babies went missing. By the time they figure it all out, you'll be back here with me." He stops his explanation to take one of the babies from her, quickly pulling the new pajamas on her. Miss Parker does the same with the other baby.
"You've thought of everything, haven't you?" she asks.
"Lives are at stake, Miss Parker. I have to think of everything or somebody dies," he says seriously.
"This is more than just another pretend for you, isn't it Jarod? This is personal." She watches him gently place the baby in the carrier and fasten it close to his body.
"Let's go," he whispers through a raspy voice, ignoring her question. "We need to get out of here."
He climbs up into the air vent and helps Miss Parker do the same. An hour later, they find themselves back at the car where they first started. Jarod takes the babies and gets them strapped into the car seats while Miss Parker drives.
"Where are we going, Jarod?"
"Just stay on the interstate for a few hours," he says with a yawn. "I'll let you know when we get closer." He closes his eyes and leans his head to the window, allowing sleep to take over for the first time in days.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"This is it. Home sweet home. At least for the next few days." Jarod takes the keys from the ignition and opens his door, eagerly stretching his legs from the long trip. They had to stop for gas and then again once more along the way to change the really stinky diapers, but for the most part, they had everything they needed. The babies slept for the majority of the trip. But now, they were starting to get cranky having spent the past 7 hours in a car.
"Let's get them inside," Miss Parker suggests. "If they feel anything like I do, then they're not going to be in a good mood."
"I'm sorry about all this," Jarod apologizes. "I shouldn't have put you in the middle of it. I just . . . had to get them out."
Miss Parker waits on him to continue, but it soon becomes obvious that he's done talking. She eases Ryan from his car seat and takes the baby in the house.
Once inside, she sees that Jarod was really prepared for this. Several packages of disposable diapers lined half the wall opposite the door. Other items necessary for the babies were scattered about the room.
"You really did think of everything," she says as she sets Ryan down inside one of the playpens, dropping in a toy for him to play with. "How long did you plan all of this?" She reaches to take Madison from Jarod to place her in the play pen as well, but Jarod is reluctant to give her up.
"I'll just hold onto her for a little while longer," he says, trying hard to hold back tears. This was the first chance he had to actually just sit and look at them - his children. He was struck by Madison's beauty. She looked like Rachel, he decided, with her red hair and porcelain skin. Her big green eyes scanned his face and instantly decided he was friendly. She rewards him with a wide, toothless grin.
"She's perfect, don't you think?" he asks Miss Parker with complete awe. "I mean, she's got all ten fingers and toes and everything." He can't help but smile at the little angel squirming around his arms. His smile fades as the baby lets out a loud cry.
"Let me take her," Miss Parker offers. "She doesn't like being held as much as Ryan does." She takes Madison and places her in the crib, picking up Ryan in exchange. She takes the boy to Jarod's waiting arms and watches as he gets the same awe struck look on his face as he did when he held Madison. It was almost as if her were a proud father holding his children for the first time. Miss Parker shakes that thought from her head, dismissing it as absurd.
"You seem to get along with them well," Jarod comments.
"Like I said before, I spent the past few days getting to know them. I noticed that Ryan likes to be held a lot while Madison prefers to stay to herself." Miss Parker coos at the baby and kisses his small baby feet. She makes silly faces and noises at the baby for a few minutes before turning her attention back to Jarod who's now staring at her with utter fascination. "What are you looking at me like that for?"
"Look at you. I never would have imagined you going all soft over a baby," Jarod laughs. "But here you are. This mothering thing is natural for you."
"Spending an hour a day with them during my lunch break is one thing, Jarod. It's hardly what I'd call 'mothering'. I don't know what I'm going to do over the next few days if I'm going to be around them full time," she admits. "What is the plan anyway?"
"Their mother should be here soon. I left instructions for her to meet us here. After that, we all stay here to make sure we weren't followed. Then, I'm all yours," he says, waggling his eyebrows suggestively to make light of the situation. But they both knew what she really had in store for him.
"Well as fascinating as that plan is, Jarod, it put the baby to sleep. Why don't you take them to whichever room the nursery is going to be and I'll try to put away some of this stuff." She watches Jarod get up with ease and take the baby up the stairs. He was the true natural with the kids, she noticed. When he disappears from her view, she turns her attention to Madison in the playpen.
"Okay, little lady. How about we get this place cleaned up?" She smiles at the slobbery grin Madison flashes her, getting lost momentarily in the sweet innocence in the little girl's eyes. She's shocked out of her daze by the sounds coming from outside. A car door slams and she instantly goes on alert, reaching for her gun.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 3
* * * * * * * * * *
The front door opens and she prays a quick prayer that Madison doesn't cry out, startling the intruder.
"Stop where you are," she hisses. "Don't go any further." Her gun is up and her body is between the intruder and the baby, trying to shield her from any harm.
"FBI," the woman at the door says. "I just came for the babies." She reaches in her pocket for something, but Miss Parker stops her, not sure what she was looking for.
"Keep your hands where I can see them," Miss Parker orders loudly. Her shouts alert Jarod and he comes running down the stairs.
"What's going on down here?" He stops in his tracks when he sees the woman at the door. "Rachel?"
"Jarod, where are my babies?" she cries, running to Jarod.
"I'm sorry, Rachel. I didn't think you'd be here this soon. This is Miss Parker," Jarod introduces. "She helped me rescue the twins. Miss Parker, this is Agent Rachel Burke. She's the twins' mother."
"Sorry about the gun," Miss Parker apologizes, somewhat embarrassed. She puts the gun away and sticks out her hand to Rachel. "Nice to meet you."
"Where are my babies?" Rachel asks again, ignoring Miss Parker's gesture.
"Madison's in the playpen," Miss Parker says, stepping out of the way. "Jarod just took Ryan up. He's asleep, but I'll go get him if you want."
But she sees that Rachel has already scooped up her baby girl into her arms and is desperately looking for Ryan. Jarod leads the way as the woman rushes to get up to her other child. Following slower behind them, Miss Parker finally catches up to the teary reunion in the nursery. She suddenly feels like an outsider intruding on a private family moment. Miss Parker turns to go back downstairs, determined to finish the cleaning job she started earlier. She definitely had questions for both Rachel and Jarod, but it wasn't anything that couldn't wait until later.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Miss Parker is putting the last of the stuff away when she hears someone descending the steps. Turning to look that way, she sees that it's Jarod.
"They're all asleep," Jarod tells her.
"I'm sure she was happy to be reunited with her children," Miss Parker says, trying to make conversation, but not really knowing what to say. "They sure were happy to see her. I don't think I've seen Madison smile that much. She was always the serious one. But I guess she was just missing her mom." She nervously picks at an invisible spot on her pants, waiting on Jarod to tell her what's really going on. Because by the looks of things in that room earlier, there was more between him and Rachel than he was letting on.
"I know you're curious about this whole thing," he says quietly, staring out of the window. "Why don't we get out of here. Take a walk. Check to make sure things are secure." Without turning to look at her or to see if she was following, he walks out the door and stands on the porch. A few seconds later he hears her behind him.
"What's going on, Jarod? How do you know this woman?" she starts. She figured she'd just come out and ask.
"This starts a few years ago when I worked on the kidnapping case with the FBI. This guy would take these kids and brainwash them, making them believe they were his sons. The ones that were considered 'worthy' became his foot soldiers so to speak. The rest were . . . disposed of. During that case, I worked with a profiler named Samantha Waters. We worked well together. But, when the case was over, I disappeared. I guess maybe a year later, I had the occasion to work with the same group in the FBI. I was expecting to be working with Samantha, but she was gone. Rachel was her replacement. I worked so well with Samantha, that working with Rachel was a big let down at first. Things were difficult with Rachel. We were like oil and water - we didn't mix at all. But, she was passionate about a lot of things. About her job. About the case. About me." He stops his narrative there and begins to pay more attention to the surroundings.
"So you two had a relationship," Miss Parker says, not really sure how it makes her feel. A little jealous. A little surprised.
"I wouldn't call it that. Rachel and I were a bad fit from the start," is his only answer. "She wanted me. I liked being wanted. I felt like, for once, I was the one in control of things. But afterwards . . . I couldn't even stay the whole night. I was gone before she got up the next morning and didn't look back."
"When was all this?" she asks with a shaky voice. She was trying to hold back her feelings, but it was hard to ignore the blatantly obvious question on both of their minds.
"I'm sure you can guess the 'when', Miss Parker," he says with a completely joyless laugh. "I'm going to say this all happened about 15 months ago."
"So, they're yours," she concludes. "Madison and Ryan are your kids."
He just nods his head, unable to speak. He's only known for a few days himself and he was still in shock over the whole idea. He can only imagine the surprise and confusion Miss Parker is feeling right now.
"That's why you were so desperate to get them out of the Centre," she rambles. "That's probably why the Centre took them in the first place. They knew they were your children. And to keep them safe, you're giving yourself up. That's really why you're going back to the Centre."
"Miss Parker, to tell you the truth, I don't know what I'm doing. All I know is that the Centre kidnapped my children. I had to get them out," he says, finally turning towards her, finally looking her in the eye. "And I couldn't have done it without you. You put your life on the line to help me. I don't know how to thank you for that. So I may have agreed to go back to the Centre with you to protect the kids, but it was also to protect you. If they ever find out what you did, you wouldn't be safe. You can't be there. Taking me back would guarantee your freedom and safety."
"But what is it that *you* want, Jarod? To never know your children? To never make a family for them?" she asks.
"I honestly don't know what kind of family Rachel and I could make for them," he sighs. "I don't love her. I don't even know her. Sleeping with her was a mistake. But my children aren't. I already love them with my whole heart. I'd do anything for them."
"Jarod what if I didn't take you back?" she ponders. "What if you and Rachel and the kids just . . . ."
"No. Absolutely not. They'd kill you, Parker. You know that." He steps towards her and gently cups her cheeks with his hands. "I can survive that place knowing my babies are safe. Rachel's an FBI agent. She can take care of them now that she knows that the Centre wants them. But there's no way I could live knowing you were in any kind of danger."
She closes her eyes and allows his warm breath to wash over her face. After a few moments of enjoying his closeness, she falls into his arms and buries her head in his neck. He fully encloses her in his embrace and holds her tightly.
"Jarod," she gasps, pulling slightly away to look into his eyes. "I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything," he whispers, tracing her bottom lip with the tip of this thumb. He leans forward, slowing creeping closer to her, moving in for a kiss, but doesn't quite make it.
"Jarod!" Rachel calls from the porch. She was holding a screaming twin in each arm and wasn't looking too happy herself. "A little help, please."
Jarod lets out a disappointed groan, resting his forehead against Miss Parker's. "I should go help her."
"Go," she gently orders. "We can finish our . . . um . . . *discussion* later," she says with a smile.
"Later," he says with a final sigh. "It's a date." He flashes her his own patented grin before jogging back towards the cabin. He takes one of the babies from Rachel's arms and walks inside.
Rachel looks back over her shoulder at Miss Parker and shoots her a cocky glare. It was a look warning Miss Parker not to mess with the family she was trying to form.
Miss Parker stares back, shooting Rachel a warning of her own. Right then and there she realized that her and Jarod belonged together and that's the way it was going to be, despite Rachel and the children. And she wasn't going to give him up, not now after all these years. If it was a fight Rachel wanted, then it was a fight she was going to get.
* * * * * * * * * *
Over the next few days, much of the same thing went on. The twins and their safety was the top priority of the adults. Jarod wanted to spend as much time with them as possible in the short time he would have to get to know them. Rachel used that to her advantage. Any time he spent with the babies was also time spent with her. Which didn't make Miss Parker very happy. She didn't get to spend any time with Jarod alone. Today, she was determined to change that.
"Jarod," Miss Parker calls one afternoon when things were quiet. The kids were napping peacefully and Rachel was in the kitchen preparing more bottles. "How about we take a walk or something. We've been cooped up in the house for days. And the kids are asleep right now, so . . . "
"You don't have to ask me twice," he says with a big grin. He jumps up from his spot on the floor where he was folding the babies' freshly laundered clothes. He grabs her hand and heads for the door.
"Jarod, was that one of the babies?" Rachel asks, poking her head from the kitchen. "I thought I heard one of them crying."
"I didn't hear anything, Rachel. Maybe you're just being overly sensitive," Miss Parker manages to say through clenched teeth. She had been very patient with the situation this entire time. And it may be selfish, but she just wanted a minute alone with Jarod, away from Rachel and the kids.
"Well, *you're* not their mother. I am," Rachel snaps. "When you become a parent, you'll realize that the safety and comfort of your children are the only things that matter. Isn't that right, Jarod?"
"Why don't I just go up and check on them," he offers, giving Miss Parker's hand a gentle squeeze before letting it go. "I'll be right back and then we can go for that walk." He flashes her a reassuring smile before going up the stairs to the nursery.
"When are you going to give it up, Miss Parker? Family is the most important thing to Jarod. The twins and I are his family now. I know you helped him rescue the kids and I'm grateful for that. But I think it'll be safe enough for you to leave now. You're just in the way," Rachel says.
"That's not the plan," Miss Parker tells her. "I leave when it's time to leave. And Jarod's coming with me."
"I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that you can seduce him and break us up. But that's not going to happen. I know that you want him, but you can't have him. I won't let you," Rachel vows.
"You don't know anything," Miss Parker growls, standing close to the other woman's face. "You don't know anything about me or about Jarod. He's not stupid. Don't you think he can see through what you're doing? You're using these children to control him. You're no better than the people who stole the twins. You think that's going to make him love you? Well, you're wrong. He's never going to love you. It's not even possible."
"What makes you so sure of that? Because of you? Because you think he loves you?" Rachel asks with a laugh. "I'm sure that whatever you feel you can offer him, it doesn't compare to being in his children's lives."
"Ladies," Jarod says from the steps. Both women look up, shocked to see him standing there. "Is there something going on here?"
"I was just telling Rachel that we have some unfinished business," Miss Parker says, back in her Ice Queen mode. Whatever she was starting to feel for Jarod, she couldn't allow it to get in the way. Because Rachel was right about one thing. She wasn't going to be able to be with Jarod, no matter what. Whether he stayed with Rachel or went back to the Centre. It was time she faced that.
"And I was telling her that it was no longer necessary for her to be here with us, Jarod," Rachel says. "I think we can safely take the babies away from here. Now thank your little friend for helping us and let's take our children home."
"That's not going to happen, Rachel," Jarod tells her. "Miss Parker is right. There's more to consider here. And it's about time we started thinking about those things."
"Jarod, you're not telling me that you would give up the chance to raise your children to be with her, are you? Are you in love with her? Because it certainly didn't feel like it to me that night you were with me. The night we made those children."
"Don't go there, Rachel," Jarod warns, ignoring her question. He chances a glance in Miss Parker's direction and sees that her moist eyes were avoiding looking at him. "Don't start this."
"Don't start what, Jarod? Don't I have a right to know why you're ditching me and our children yet again?" Rachel yells. "Is it all for her?"
"You have no idea what's going on, Rachel," Miss Parker growls. "Don't you see that there's only one way for your children to be safe? And unfortunately, that means he can't be with either of us."
"What's she talking about, Jarod? Tell her to leave and then we can get on with our lives," Rachel demands.
"I can't do that. She's right," Jarod confesses. "There's only one solution to this. For me to go back there."
Rachel looks at Jarod in disbelief. Then she glances over at Miss Parker in time to see her flick one renegade tear from her cheek.
"Oh, I see what's going on," Rachel says. "This is just an excuse to bail on me and our children again. Jarod, you should have at least found someone believable. You expect me to believe you'd leave me for her? That you'd leave your children for her? Someone so cold. So icy. Probably frigid." Rachel smiles inwardly at the spark of anger she sees flash in Miss Parker's eyes. But it wasn't enough. She pushes even further. "Look at her, Jarod. What does she have that I don't? What does she know about you that I don't? How could she ever satisfy you like I . . ."
The loud snap of Miss Parker's hand striking Rachel's face drops a deadly silence on the entire room. The flaming red hand print appears instantly on the woman's milky skin. Rachel covers her stinging skin with her cool hand and lifts her eyes to Miss Parker, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. Instantly Miss Parker realizes the game the woman was playing with her. And how she walked right into the trap.
"You little conniving . . ." Miss Parker growls.
"Parker!" Jarod yells, trying to calm the woman down. "That's enough." He stands facing Miss Parker, his back to Rachel so he misses the little smirk playing on her lips.
Miss Parker sees it, though. And she realizes to herself that Jarod was right. Enough is enough. It was time to end this little game once and for all. She slips into her huntress mode, cutting off any emotions she may have been feeling. Emotions that had clouded her judgment. She reaches behind her and pulls out her weapon, the only friend she's truly been able to count on.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 4
* * * * * * * * * *
"You're right, Jarod," she says icily. "I've had enough, too. I've had enough of you, your little girlfriend and this whole big mess you dragged me into." Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Rachel move slightly as if she were going for her gun as well. Miss Parker swings the gun in that direction, keeping one eye on Jarod as well. "Keep your hands where I can see them, Rachel."
Miss Parker reaches down into the holster strapped around her ankles and reveals another gun. She takes it out and points that one at Jarod.
"This ankle holster's a neat little contraption, Rachel. I should get one too." Miss Parker glares at the woman. This time, she's the one with the triumphant gleam in her eyes seeing the fear in Rachel's. Rachel's countenance instantly falls, realizing that Miss Parker had her gun.
"Jarod, go get the cuffs," she orders.
"Parker, what's . . "
"Jarod, now!" she screams, taking the safety off one of the gun to ensure them she was serious. He obeys, getting back instantly, looking to her for the next set of instructions.
"Cuff her," she barks, gesturing towards Rachel with one of the guns. "Make sure she can't get out."
"Why are you doing this?" Rachel screams, more from irritation than from actual fear.
"Just shut up," Miss Parker yells back. "Before I have him gag you as well."
"Jarod, do you see what you threw our future away for? She's a lunatic," Rachel says, despite Miss Parker's warning. "She's probably going to kill us."
"You're tempting me, Rachel." Miss Parker moves closer and puts the gun to the other woman's head.
"Parker," Jarod says softly, placing his hands around the hand Miss Parker's holding the gun in. For a brief moment, he's able to catch her eyes with his own. She softens visibly in his grasp.
"Don't do this. She's cuffed. And she's not going anywhere. Not without the kids." He's able to slip the gun from her hands, removing the clip and placing them both on the counter. Miss Parker follows suit and places Rachel's gun back into the holster around her ankle. Jarod takes Miss Parker's hand again and leads her over to the couch, just out of Rachel's earshot.
"We have to get back to Blue Cove now, Jarod," Miss Parker says, avoiding his eyes so he won't see the tears building up. "I don't want to take you back, but . . . "
"I know. We made a deal. I made a promise to you."
"Forget about the deal. I would let you walk out of here with Rachel and the babies if that were possible. As much as it would hurt me, I'd tell you to forget about me and to go raise your children with her. But I can't do that."
"You'd miss me, wouldn't you?" he teases, trying to lighten the moment. But she stays serious, stroking his cheek with her fingers, as if she were trying to memorize his face.
"Like I'd miss my heartbeat," she whispers. "But I'd do it for you anyway. Unfortunately it's too late for that option. I've been gone too long to go back without you. They'd kill me. And then do God only knows what to Tyler. I can't leave him in there all alone. I can't believe I've been gone from him for this long. He must be so scared."
"Your little brother," Jarod suddenly realizes. "I forgot about him. I didn't realize you two were so close. Parker, we never should have done this. I never would have asked you to jeopardize his safety." He pulls her into his arms, forgetting all about the cuffed woman standing a few feet away from them.
"This was my choice, Jarod." She reluctantly pulls out of his embrace. "I thought this was my ticket to freedom. For me and Tyler. I never thought I'd . . . " Miss Parker bites her lip to stop her flow of words. She couldn't admit that. Not now. Not like this. She couldn't tell him that somewhere in the middle of this little adventure she fell back in love with him. She couldn't reveal that she can't stop thinking about the pure love they shared as children and how that love has returned full force. She couldn't tell him how the past week has reminded her of her childhood dream to marry him and move far away from the Centre with their perfect babies. But that couldn't be now. There was love. And there were children. But the protection of those children prevented the rest of her dream from coming true.
"Never thought you'd what, Parker?" Jarod is curious.
"Never mind," she sighs, trying to paste on a reassuring smile. "Why don't you go get the kids and strap them in the car. We need to go."
"Where are we going? Where are we taking Rachel and the kids?"
"To my place," she says after a minute to think. "Maybe between now and then, we can combine our genius and come up with some other alternative."
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod looks up from road for a second to take a glance around the car. Next to him, Rachel was dozing, her head leaning against the window. In the back, Miss Parker had situated herself between Madison and Ryan to make sure Rachel would behave. There's no way Rachel would do anything to endanger their lives. She had no choice but to comply with Miss Parker's wishes.
What a mess he'd gotten himself in. For a grown man, he has certainly done some dumb things. Starting with ever sleeping with Rachel Burke in the first place. He doesn't even know why he did it. She wanted to talk that night. Talk about his past. Things he didn't want to discuss. So he seduced her instead. Then slipped out the next morning, never looking back.
Now, he has two children to protect. And to rescue them from the Centre, he's sacrificed his life to that very place. Knowing Miss Parker couldn't resist the chance at freedom, he engaged in one last game with her. A game she couldn't lose. She'd be able to take him in, earn her freedom, and have the SIM's as leverage. He just never counted on falling in love with her. And now the fact that he'll never see her again was tearing at his heart. She'll be free. She'll take him in and then walk away, getting as far away from a place she's been held prisoner her entire life.
He looks in his rear view mirror again to try to catch another glimpse of her. Through the darkness, he's able to make out the wetness of tears on her cheek and he instantly starts to worry.
"Lanie, what is it?" he asks. Her eyes pop open wide in shock. She can't believe he remembered what he used to call her. Hearing that name from his lips is somewhat comforting.
"Do you remember when we were kids?" Her voice was low and gravelly, as if she had been crying for hours. "That day when we first met?"
"Yeah," he smiles. "The best day of my life."
She gasps out loud, almost in tears at his words and is stunned into silence for a few moments.
"I loved you so much back then," she says finally. She pauses when this time, it's Jarod who gasps. "At first, you were just a distraction for me. My father used to give me trinkets and toys to keep me out of his hair. I usually got bored with them after awhile. I guess that's what he was counting on with you. They'd be able to observe you with me for whatever little studies they were doing. And I'd have a new toy for the summer. But I never got bored with you. And after my mother died, you became the most important person in my life."
"Lanie, you were the only good thing in my life. That place was . . . . horrible beyond words. But I was able to survive with you there. And knowing that you'll be safe, I think I'll be able to survive again."
"I'm sorry, Jarod," she whispers. The tears begin to fall again as she thinks about the unwinnable situation they're in. "I'm sorry for making you go back there. But I have to. I have to go back for Tyler. I can't just leave him there. And I can't go back without you," she tries to make some sense of their situation.
"I know. You never would have gotten into this if I hadn't promised you your freedom," he says.
"That's all I've ever wanted," she says. "To be free. But I always thought I'd be free . . . . with you."
One of the babies starts fussing and Miss Parker has to settle him down, essentially ending the conversation. Which was good for Miss Parker. Too many implications were being made that needed to be dealt with. She was glad for a brief respite.
"We're almost there, little one," she coos to Ryan, gently easing him back to sleep. Jarod watches the whole exchange as much as he can while still concentrating on driving. Seeing her with the kids always amazed him. There was a gentleness in her that never got to come out, except for when she was with the kids. Her whole face lit up and it looked like she was meant to be a mother. A mother to his children. He pushes that thought back down, along with the tears that seemed to accompany it. There was nothing to be done about that now. He's made his bed, with the wrong woman unfortunately. Now, he has to lie in it.
* * * * * * * * * *
Rachel opens her eyes when the car comes to a stop. For the past hour, she pretended to be asleep and learned some interesting things about Jarod and Miss Parker from their conversation. For one thing, Rachel had no clue they shared such a connected past. She realizes now that she never really stood a chance with Jarod. A love like the one they described doesn't just go away. She realizes now that she was nothing to Jarod. Just a blip on his radar. He's giving up his life for this woman. He's giving up his chance to raise his children for this woman. And she didn't deserve him.
She works for the very same place that took her children. They made a habit out of kidnapping children and holding them hostage to run tests on them. Rachel can't understand why Jarod would want to protect that woman. A woman who's hunted him like an animal for years just to take him back to that torture palace. It's like an extremely severe case of Stockholm Syndrome. He was held so long that he sympathizes with his captor. This woman. This *Miss Parker*. A sick psychological terrorist that needs to be stopped. And it's going to be Rachel's pleasure to stop her. A little grin spreads across her face as she realizes she's not yet out of the game. No Miss Parker - no need for Jarod feel he has to protect her by going back to that place. He'll be free to come with her and the babies. It's so simple. She doesn't know how she didn't think of it in the first place. Get rid of Miss Parker and Jarod will be hers.
"What are you smiling about?" Jarod asks, noticing the 'cat that ate the canary' look on Rachel's face.
"Nothing," she claims. "I just never pictured Miss Parker in a rustic little cabin in the woods. She seems more the penthouse type."
"I've lived in this house all of my life," Miss Parker snaps. "It's pretty much all I have left of my mother."
Her words bring silence to them all. Rachel almost feels guilty for teasing about it. But the guilt is quickly pushed away when she sees Jarod and Miss Parker each scoop up one of the babies and take them inside. The anger starts to grow again with each clank of the handcuffs. Every welt left by the cuffs on her wrist fuels her resolve to take care of this Parker situation once and for all.
They all move inside and Miss Parker finally allows for the cuffs to come off. Jarod hands Madison over to Rachel and then goes outside to finish unloading the car. Miss Parker and Rachel handle the tasks of bathing, feeding, and getting the kids ready for bed. Miss Parker is amused by Ryan's seemingly unending quest to get his foot into his mouth. He was so determined and she couldn't help but watch him in amazement.
"He gets that look from Jarod," she comments, catching Rachel slightly off guard. "His little eyebrows all scrunched up like that. He's trying to hard to get to his foot. It's like he's not going to give up until he figures it all out. Jarod looked like that all the time when he was younger when he couldn't figure out one of his problems."
"So you two have known each other for a long time?" Rachel asks, although she knows the answer. She learned all she needed to know from their conversation earlier.
"Jarod came to the Centre when he was just a boy. Not quite this young, though," Miss Parker says with a loving smile in Ryan's direction, tickling the boy on his belly. "We've known each other for about as long as I can remember. We've been together for a long time Rachel. Longer than you may have realized. He's been a part of my life for . . . forever. And I'm trying to come up with a way for things to stay that way. Despite you. Despite these children. Despite the Centre. Can't you see it? Jarod can never be a part of your life. Not the way you want him to be."
"And you think that's because of you?" Rachel asks incredulously.
"I know it is," Miss Parker responds with absolute certainty. "I've tried to deny it for a long time, but as cliche as this sounds, Jarod and I were made for each other. Our lives are so interconnected that I know I couldn't live without him. And frankly, I don't even want to try. If you fight me on this, then you'll lose." Miss Parker finishes up dressing Ryan and lifts him up to her shoulder. She shoots Rachel one last warning glare before taking him down to Jarod.
"There's my boy," he says with pride holding his arms out for the baby.
"Did you get all the stuff inside?" Miss Parker asks, leading them out to the back deck. He nods his head while opening the door for her.
"Then why didn't you come up and referee the latest bout between me and your little chickadee?"
"Had to make a few phone calls. You know how Syd worries." Jarod settles on the swing with the baby in one arm and throws his other arm around Miss Parker. "So this latest fight couldn't have been that bad. I didn't hear any screaming this time. No gunshots. No blood. I'd say you two were learning to get along."
"Funny," she chuckles. "You can give up on us ever getting along. You know how selfish I am. I'm not going to sit back and let her take what's rightfully mine."
"Rightfully yours? Why am I starting to feel like a slab of meat?" he laughs.
"Whatever. You know you love this. Isn't this every man's fantasy? Having two women fighting over him. I'm surprised you haven't built us a mud wrestling pit."
"Ooh, good idea, Parker. I didn't think the fantasy of two women fighting over me could be topped. But two dirty and slippery women fighting over me is an even better image," he teases with a big grin.
"You're incorrigible," she groans, rolling her eyes.
"Yeah, but you love me anyway," he says, leaning forward to rest his forehead on hers.
"Yeah, I do," she admits quietly. Suddenly, this wasn't a joke anymore. She was very serious. She lifts her hands to his face, gently running her thumb across his lips. "I really do love you. I always have."
"I know," he whispers. "I love you, too, Mary Elainna Parker. Always remember that. No matter what happens . . . "
"Jarod, don't," she interrupts him. "Let's not think about what may happen. Let's just enjoy this moment. Right here, right now. I've been waiting too long for this."
"For what?" he manages to gasp. Her warm breath washing over his face was starting to make him dizzy.
"Our second kiss," she says before closing the gap and covering his mouth with her own. She leans as close to him as she can, keeping in mind that the baby was between them. For a moment, she just enjoys the feel of his lips between her own before they both begin grunting impatiently for more. Her tongue begs for entrance and he eagerly complies, allowing her to explore the deepest recesses. Her hands move up his neck into his thick hair
and she gently massages his scalp.
"Wow," he says as he breaks away.
"Wow," she repeats. Her eyes are heavily lidded with desire she can't hide.
"That was almost worth the wait," he says breathlessly, placing small butterfly kisses along her jaw line.
"Almost," she responds, equally breathless. "But you better not make me wait that long again," she warns playfully, tilting her head to allow him better access.
"Wild horses couldn't stop me," he groans before capturing her lips once more to start the dance all over again.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 5
* * * * * * * * * *
Rachel fumes, watching the whole scene from the upstairs window. She races downstairs, anxious to put a stop to the whole thing. She's got to admit. That *woman* moves quickly. She had Jarod all hot and panting for her in about 5 minutes flat. She was going to be more trouble than Rachel initially thought.
Just as she gets downstairs, a slight ringing noise tingles in her ears. She hunts around until she finds Miss Parker's cell phone in her jacket pocket.
"Hello?" she answers.
"Parker?" the deep voice on the other end asks.
"No, she's busy right now," Rachel says with a smile. She wonders if the man on the other end could be a boyfriend of Miss Parker's. She's sure he'd want to know about her current activities. "She's got a hot date out on the back porch."
"Yeah, that doesn't surprise me. I hear my sister would sleep with anything in pants," Lyle laughs.
"Sister?" Rachel's disappointed. She thought this would be a jealous boyfriend who'd race over here and put a stop to the awful display on the back porch. So much for that plan.
"Listen, could you tell her to let the poor sap get some air? I need to talk to her about work," Lyle says.
"You work with her at the Centre?" Rachel asks. Her mind starts churning again with another plan. Who says Jarod's the only genius around there? "It must be nice working with family. I bet you two share all kinds of secrets. Like her secret plan to run off with Jarod instead of bringing him in."
"Jarod? What do you know about Jarod?"
"He's the guy she's making out with," Rachel tells him, feigning innocence. "You did know those two were an item, didn't you?"
"Of course I knew about them," Lyle sputters, his voice betraying his excitement. Rachel knows she has him right where she wants him. "Listen, just forget about that message. I think I'm going to come by and surprise my sister instead. You'll keep this our little secret, right?"
"Our little secret," she says with an evil grin before hanging the phone up. This may work out just yet to her favor. If she guessed right about these people, this brother of Miss Parker's wouldn't be very happy about Jarod being here. And the idea of Miss Parker betraying the Centre was probably an act of treason punishable by extreme measures. All Rachel had to do now was get Jarod, herself and the twins out the house before those people came, guns blazing. The only person caught in the crossfire will be dear Miss Parker. She shifts Madison to her hip and heads to the back of the house to begin the next phase of her plan.
She peeks through the window and is sickened by the display of adolescent hormonal behavior going on out there. She had to put a stop to it and get Jarod out of the house. She'll worry about herself and the kids later.
"Sorry, Princess. But I gotta do this," she whispers to Madison before pinching the girl smartly on the stomach. Rachel's heart breaks at the cry of pain from her daughter, but it's a price she's willing to pay.
"Jarod," she says, sticking her head out of the back door. "I need you."
"What is it now, Rachel?" Miss Parker groans. She releases Jarod from her embrace and takes Ryan from his arms.
"Can't you hear Maddie? She's in pain," Rachel almost screams, trying to add to the hysteria.
"Is she okay?" Jarod panics, grabbing Madison and giving her a quick once over.
"She's fine," Rachel assures him. "Just a little gas, I think. She's been switching back and forth between the formula and the breast milk during this little escapade. I'm sure her stomach's just a little upset. I was looking through the stuff and I don't think you have any gas drops. I'll just run to the store for some real quick."
"I don't think so," Miss Parker interrupts. "You're not going anywhere." She glances over at Jarod with pleading eyes and misses the quick smirk cross Rachel's lips.
"I'll go," Jarod offers, answering Miss Parker's unasked question. Little did they know, it was just what Rachel was counting on. "And I'll take Maddie. Maybe the drive to the store will calm her down a bit. I think the CVS 2 blocks over on Elmwood is open late."
They walk into the house and Jarod goes to get the keys to the car. A knocking at the door stops them all in their tracks. Miss Parker puts her fingers to her lips to quiet them all, reaching behind her for her gun.
"Who is it?" she calls out.
"Sydney," the voice responds through the door. Miss Parker visibly relaxes and puts her gun back. She runs over to the door to let the older man inside.
"Sydney," she says, flinging the door open. "What are you doing . . . "
Her words get caught in her throat when she notices something move at Sydney's side.
"Momma home!" Tyler screams, pulling himself from Sydney and running to Miss Parker.
"Tyler," she cries, holding her arms out for the boy. Like a pro, she shifts Ryan to one hip and scoops up Tyler in one flawless motion. She places little kisses all over his face, trying hard to hold back her tears.
"Oh, I missed you so much Baby Boy." She looks over at Jarod and gives him an appreciating smile. *Thank you* she mouths to him before turning her attention back to the two babies in her arms.
"We'll talk when I get back from the store," Jarod whispers into her ear. "With Tyler here, I'd say we just got ourselves a couple more options. None of us may have to end up in the Centre after all." He kisses her quickly on the lips, then places a kiss on Ryan's forehead and ruffling Tyler's hair.
"Close your mouth, Syd," Miss Parker teases, amused at the man's obvious confusion. "Go with Jarod. He'll explain it all to you."
Sydney just nods and follows Jarod out the door.
With the men gone, Rachel reaches out for Ryan. Miss Parker gives up the child, no longer thinking of using the boy as leverage. She was just happy to have Tyler again.
"So who's this little handsome fellow? Your son?" Rachel asks, reaching out to stroke Tyler's cheek. Out of reflex, Miss Parker pulls away, not letting the woman touch the child.
"This is Tyler. My little brother. But I've practically raised him. His mother died during childbirth," Miss Parker explains.
Rachel glances nervously around the room, catching the time. She didn't know how far away Miss Parker's brother would be. But she was sure he'd be there any minute. She had to figure out a way to get out before it was too late. She has to hold back a grin when an idea comes to her.
"He's your brother? I thought he called you 'Momma'. Must be strange for you. Having this little one depend on you. But you not really being what he needs. You weren't the one who carried him for nine months inside of you. And you aren't the one who can nourish him with your body. You're not a *true* mother." Rachel pulls up a corner of her shirt and allows Ryan to reach up and find her breast. She sighs with over exaggerated contentment to further annoy Miss Parker as the baby nurses. Just as she suspected, Miss Parker gets nervous and stands up with her brother.
"I'll be in the kitchen getting a snack for Tyler," Miss Parker grumbles, allowing Rachel's words to make her feel inadequate. She's in the kitchen for a few minutes, cutting up an apple for the boy when she hears the front door open. She immediately realizes her mistake in leaving Rachel alone with Ryan, allowing her the chance to escape.
"That little sneak," she growls. She leaves Tyler at the table with his snack and runs out of the kitchen, pulling out her gun in the process. She didn't want to hold the gun on Rachel with the baby, but she had no choice.
"Rach - " she starts just as she runs into a scene she didn't expect.
"Ah, there you are, Sis," Lyle grins. He had his own gun trained on Rachel and a gleam in his eyes that says he's not afraid to use it. Slowly Miss Parker lowers her weapon, placing it back in her pants waistband. "Your little friend here says you had a hot date with our favorite lab rat. Where is he?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Miss Parker lies easily. She glares at Rachel, trying to figure out what was going on with the woman. "Why would Jarod be here? What would even give you that idea?"
"Parker, I think you better pick your friends better," Lyle laughs. "She's got a pretty big mouth.
"She's *not* my friend," Miss Parker emphasizes, glaring at Rachel again.
"Well, whatever the case may be. Your houseguest has a big mouth. I called about an hour ago. And she was more than eager to tell me about a pressing activity you were engaged in."
Before she realizes it, Miss Parker feels a flush rising to her cheeks. She has to force herself to think of anything other than Jarod's lips all over her.
"The only activity I was engaged in an hour ago was an interrogation of my witness. That's all this woman is. She told me she knew where Jarod was and I brought her here to question her."
"Question her," Lyle repeats incredulously. "Right."
"You can believe me or not, Lyle," Miss Parker sighs her exasperation. "You can question this woman yourself and waste time trying to get information that I already got. Or we can go get Jarod now before it's too late and he disappears again."
"I guess that's a no brainer," Lyle says before releasing Rachel. "Miss, you're free to go. I'm sorry about the inconvenience," he apologizes insincerely.
"Yeah, thanks again for the information," Miss Parker says to Rachel. "I parked your car in the garage. The keys are on the counter. You can go through the kitchen to get to it." She assumes Jarod took the X-Terra to the store, so the only vehicle left for Rachel was her car.
"Sure, I'm glad I can help." Rachel looks to Miss Parker to make sure it was okay to be leaving and she nods quickly in response. Lyle doesn't notice the silent communication between the two women. She takes the keys off the counter and heads toward the kitchen door.
"Oh, and Rachel? Take good care of those babies." She silently pleads with Rachel and hopes she understands what she's trying to say.
"I will," Rachel promises. "I'll guard them with my life. All three of them."
Miss Parker closes her eyes to hold in the tears, sighing in relief that Tyler will be safe. Now, all she had to do was give Rachel enough time to get away and pray that she reaches the drug store to find Jarod.
"Alright," Miss Parker finally says after hearing the car start and drive away. "Let's go get Jarod."
"Not so fast," Lyle says. Miss Parker looks at him and notices that he now has his gun on her.
"What are you doing, Lyle?"
"You don't think I believed that little act, did you?" he asks with a laugh. "Like it or not, Parker, we're blood. And I know how your mind works. I'm guessing is that you really do know where Jarod is. But that there was no way you were actually going to take me there."
"So why did you let Rachel go?"
"Come on, Parker. Like I said, we're blood. I'm sure you can figure out how my mind works too."
"No thanks. I'd rather stay out of psycholand, if you don't mind," she says sarcastically, drawing another laugh from him.
"Why is it that the first thing that comes to mind is 'Takes on to know one'? But I won't go there. I can see you're not in the mood to play." His laughter dies down and he gets a dangerous gleam in his eyes. "When I was 8, my adopted father taught me how to fish. He told me that the secret of a true fisherman was to know which bait to use. Something told me that Rachel wasn't the right bait for the type of fish I'm trying to catch."
"And what is the right bait?" she asks, true fear beginning to settle in her heart.
"To catch a fish named Jarod? You, dear sister," Lyle says as if it should have been totally clear. "I'm going to use you. I'm sure that as we speak, your little friend is scurrying off to tell Jarod about your little predicament. It's only a matter of time before your knight in shining armor attempts to rescue his damsel in distress."
"Unless he doesn't come," Miss Parker counters, praying desperately that he doesn't come, while at the same time hoping that he does. "Rachel wants Jarod for herself. Now that I'm out of the picture, what makes you think she'll even tell him about this?"
"He'll come," Lyle says confidently. "He'll always come for you. And when he does, I'll be here waiting."
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 6
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod pulls into the parking space at the CVS and marvels at the silence from the back seat. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with Madison. She was silently looking out the window, in awe at all the street lights.
"Syd, does she look like she has gas to you?" Jarod asks.
"I really wouldn't know, Jarod," the older man chuckles. "She looks fine to me."
"She was screaming earlier. Rachel said it was from an upset stomach. She looks fine to me, too." Jarod chews on his bottom lip, trying to shake a sudden feeling of uneasiness.
"Rachel. She's the other young woman at the house? The mother of these children?"
"Yeah," Jarod sighs. "This is a big mess. Too bad I didn't hang around the Centre long enough to learn the virtues of safe sex." Jarod laughs uneasily at his situation.
"So they're yours as well," Sydney comments.
"That's Madison. Ryan is at the house with Parker and Rachel," he explains.
"Jarod, how did this all happen?"
"How far back do you need me to start?" Jarod jokes.
"Not that far," Sydney blushes. "How did you all end up at Parker's house together? And might I add that neither woman looked very happy with the situation."
"Trust me, Syd. They were on their best behavior for you. They were coexisting rather peacefully without the need for guns and cuffs," Jarod laughs.
"Sounds like two dangerous women. I'd hate to be in the middle of them. How is it that's exactly where you are, Jarod?"
"The Centre kidnapped Maddie and Ryan. I asked Miss Parker to help me rescue them. In exchange, I'd let her take me back so she can earn her freedom. But as we spent more time together, one thing led to another, and we realized that we didn't want to live without each other anymore. Unfortunately, she had been gone so long supposedly looking for me that she had to bring me back. For her own safety and for Tyler's. He's the only reason we came back. But now that we have him, the situation might not be as hopeless as we originally thought. There are some other options now. As for things with . . ."
"Rachel," Sydney finishes.
"Yeah, things with Rachel are going to be a bit more difficult."
"No, it's Rachel," Sydney points. "Walking across the parking lot. It looks like she has the boys with her."
"Oh no," Jarod mumbles, quickly pushing the car door open and running across the parking lot to catch up with Rachel. "What happened. What are you doing here?" He bends down and lifts up Tyler into his arms.
"We have to go. Now, Jarod," she warns him. Spotting the X-
Terra, she starts to run towards it. Jarod follows her.
"Rachel, what's going on?" he asks again.
"Start driving and I'll tell you," she says, buckling Ryan in the other car seat and then reaching for Tyler.
"Where's Miss Parker?" Jarod asks impatiently. He wasn't going anywhere until they got answers.
"They're coming for you," Rachel lies. "As soon as you left, she called that scary brother of hers. Now they're coming to track you down. We have to go."
"Something's not right. I can feel it. Parker wouldn't do that," Jarod insists.
"Oh really? She's the type of woman who'd hold me and my children hostage, but you don't think she'd do the job she's been paid to do for years now? You think you know her well enough to bet your life on that? To bet our children's lives?"
"I'm not going to risk the children," he says quietly. Rachel sighs in relief. He hands Tyler over to her. And while she's busy trying to get him buckled on her lap, Jarod grabs the keys to Miss Parker's car off the seat.
"Jarod, what are you doing?" Rachel panics.
"I'm not going to risk the children," he repeats. "But I know something's wrong. Sydney, take them up to your cabin. I'm going to go get Miss Parker."
"Jarod," Rachel calls. But it's too late. He's already gone.
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod parks the car down the street, opting to walk the rest of the way. Each step brings him closer to Miss Parker's house, but it also brings him more and more certainty that she's in danger. No matter what Rachel said, he knew that Miss Parker wouldn't be working with Lyle to bring him in. Not after this past week. He refused to believe that.
He approaches the house from the rear, scanning the area carefully for signs this is a trap. He manages to make his way to the back porch without spotting any sweepers waiting for him. So far so good. But he wouldn't put anything past Lyle. Peeking inside the house, he sees Miss Parker sitting on the couch, her back to him. No one appears to be in the room with her. He quietly slides the door open and creeps inside.
"Parker," he whispers. Her head snaps up she struggles to look around. He can see as he gets closer that she's been gagged. More than likely, she's also been bound.
"Parker, I'm here," he says a little louder, moving to where he's now in front of her. He works to remove the gag from her mouth first before moving to the restraints around her legs.
"Jarod, you gotta go. Rachel told Lyle you were here and he came for you," she spits out as soon as the gag is removed.
"Not without you," he refuses.
"Don't worry about me. Just go," she orders. With her feet free, Jarod pulls out his pocket knife to work on the ropes around her wrists. So intent on his task, he misses the look of horror cross her face. "Jarod watch out!"
But the warning comes too late. A sharp pain cracks Jarod skull and all he sees is darkness.
* * * * * * * * * *
"Sydney?" Rachel asks meekly. "You think you can pull over for a minute? I need to use the restroom and I'm sure the kids could use a diaper change."
Sydney glances down at the clock. They'd only been driving an hour, but he figures they were far enough outside of Blue Cove to safely stop for a minute. He nods at her and smiles gently as he begins to search for a place to stop. A few minutes later, he takes the next exit and follows the signs to a grocery store, passing by a number of gas stations along the way.
"All of Tyler's stuff is still at Parker's house. I'll need to run in and get him some diapers and snacks," Sydney explains his strange stopping place. "You stay here and get started changing the babies."
Rachel smiles at him until he disappears into the store. As soon as he's out of view, she reaches for the cell phone he left. She thinks for a second before dialing a number. She goes through a series of automated questions before finally reaching a live person.
"FBI, Dover. Can I help you?"
"Yes, this is Agent Rachel Burke. My badge number is AQ-4390657. I'm calling to report a hostage situation that I need immediate assistance on."
"Hold please," the operator calmly says. Rachel nervously taps her fingers, waiting for someone to get back on the line.
"Agent Burke? This is Agent Charles. Now I need for you to tell me your exact location."
"I'm about 75 miles outside of Blue Cove, Delaware. At a Safeway right off of exit 29 of I-47," she reports. "The hostage is back in Blue Cove, last seen at the residence of one of the kidnappers. 1720 Mountainbrook Lane. The hostage could possibly have been relocated to a business in the area. A place called the Centre."
"The Centre? How did you get mixed up with them?" Agent Charles asks, noticeably shaken by mention of the place.
"It's a long story. They had my children, who have been rescued. But their father is still there."
"Agent Burke, stay where you are. There will be agents there to retrieve you in a few minutes. They've already been dispatched."
"Thank you," she says before hanging up the phone. She unstraps Madison from her seat and changes her quickly. She was in the middle of changing Ryan's diaper when Sydney emerges from the store.
"Sorry it took so long. There was only one register open," he explains.
"No problem," she comments distractedly. She's focusing on a sound in the distance that was getting closer and closer. Sirens! The cavalry was near. She turns back to Sydney and gives him a sympathetic glance. "I'm sorry, Sydney. But there's been a change of plans."
"What are you talking about?" Sydney looks around and notices the sirens were surrounding them now. "What is all this?"
"I'm not playing this game the Centre way anymore," she snarls. "I'm going to get Jarod and then that place is going down." She holds up her badge as the other agents get closer to identify herself.
"Agent Burke?" one of them calls.
"Right here," Rachel answers. "Who's in charge?"
"Agent Daniels is leading the rescue. He'll be here momentarily," the agent tells her.
"I need this man and these children to be placed in protective custody," Rachel orders.
"We can take them back to headquarters, Ma'am. They'll be safe there."
Rachel kisses her babies on the cheeks before handing them over to a female agent. She watches the children get safely inside the FBI vehicles and pull away. Sydney glances back at her before he's placed in a separate car.
"You don't know what you're getting into," he warns Rachel. "These are dangerous people. And Miss Parker isn't one of them."
"As far as I'm concerned, she is. I'm going to get Jarod. And whatever happens to her . . . well, I'll have no control over that," she says coldly before turning back to the other agent.
Sydney sighs heavily and allows the agents to place him in the car. He says a silent prayer for the safety of the two people he loves as if they were his own children. The car pulls away and he realizes that all he can do now is hope for the best.
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod works hard to pry his eyes open and quickly realizes that one of them is swollen shut. With the one eye that did open, he glances around at his surroundings and knows immediately he's not at Miss Parker's house anymore. All he can see are bars. He pushes is aching body up off the floor and reaches out for one of the bars to help pull himself up. Once he's on his feet, he can get a better look around. But he realizes that may have been a mistake. With a groan, his mind begins to process where he is. He's back at the Centre. Locked in that cage he was in the last time he was here. Right after he was captured when Miss Parker was shot.
Parker! His mind picks up on the name and he goes on alert again, looking around for her. His heart sinks when he notices a lump huddled in the far corner. He moves his battered body as quickly as he can until he's right next to the body. He prays desperately that it's not her as he gently rolls the body over.
"No," he gasps when it's her face he sees. "Parker. Wake up, Honey."
With a groan, she begins to stir, not yet opening her eyes.
"That's it," he encourages her. "Wake up, Parker. Open those gorgeous eyes for me."
"Jarod?" she asks. Her eyes pop open and he can see the fear in them. "Where are we?"
He helps her sit up while he checks her for any injury. Not seeing any, he's relieved to know they left her alone. All he can see is a small needle-sized mark on her upper arm.
"I think we're at the Centre. The accommodations seem to be a bit familiar," he tells her.
"Jarod, what did they do to you?" She lifts a shaky hand up to his bruised face.
"I don't know." He hisses when her fingers touch a sensitive spot. "But something tells me I'm glad I don't remember. They may have drugged me like they probably did you." He points to the mark on her arm.
"We have to get out of here. What if they come back for you?"
"There's no way out," he whispers, dropping his head so he won't have to look at her. "I've been here before. Right after you were shot and they captured me."
"They had you caged up like an animal?" she asks incredulously. "You had a room when you were here before."
"When I was here before, I may not have had any rights, but they at least treated me like a person. I wasn't just a pet for you demented brother. Lyle's not as accommodating as Sydney was. He drugs me. He tortures me. He keeps me in this cage. And there's no way out."
"There's got to be a way out," she insists. "Jarod, I'm not going to let us die in here."
"That won't happen," he promises. He grabs her face and kisses her gently on the lips. "I won't let anything happen to you." He bites back the pain shooting through his chest as he pulls himself from her arms. Holding on to the bars, he pulls himself back up.
"Hey," he yells up towards where he knows the camera is hidden. "I know you can hear me."
"Jarod, what are you doing?" she asks.
"Just what I was going to ask," a voice says from the darkness. They hear a couple of footsteps before Lyle's face is visible. "What do you want, Jarod? Is your room not to your liking?" he laughs.
"Listen, you sick freak. I don't care what you do to me. But she doesn't need to be in here," Jarod says, nodding his head in Miss Parker's direction. Miss Parker looks at Jarod with surprise.
"Oh, isn't that sweet. Trying to save her. How noble of you. Sis, I told you your white knight would come to your rescue, didn't I?"
"Shut up," she growls. "Both of you. Jarod, I'm not going anywhere without you."
"She has something you need, Lyle," Jarod continues, ignoring Miss Parker's words. "Capturing me is only half of it. There's something else the Triumvirate wants returned."
"You mean the DSA's? I took them from your place, Parker."
"That was just the case, you moron," she spits.
"The DSA's are some place safe," Jarod continues. "Some place only she can get to."
"Where are they?" Lyle demands to know, sighing impatiently when Jarod just smiles.
"I think someone's ready to make a deal," he says with his trademark smirk. "Release her and then we talk."
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 7
* * * * * * * * * *
Rachel leads the team into Miss Parker's house, carelessly searching through the wreckage left behind. It was obvious that some kind of struggle had taken place before. And there were a few splotches on the floor that looks suspiciously like blood. Although it was impossible to tell who's blood it was. But she had a feeling that it belonged to Jarod.
"Bag it," she says with a quivering voice, pointing to the stains on the floor. She moves through the house sifting through Miss Parker's personal belongings. She tries to tell herself she's looking for clues to their where-a-bouts, but in all honesty she's just trying to get a feel of the woman who owns Jarod's heart.
"Agent Daniels?" she calls, finally giving up when her search through Miss Parker's racy underwear drawer only made her more depressed. Not a panty girdle or nursing bra in sight. "I think they may be headed towards the Centre since both Miss Parker and her brother work there. We should move our search there."
"Agent Burke, we have no idea where this so called place is. It's a bit of an urban legend around here. Everyone's heard of it, but no one knows if it actually exists," Agent Daniels explains. "We wouldn't know where to begin to look for this place. And once we found it, we wouldn't know where to begin to look for the hostage."
Rachel lets out an impatient sigh. She didn't come this far for nothing. She was going to find the Centre. And she was going to find Jarod. She wasn't going to let anyone stop her.
"Agent Burke. There's someone down here claiming to know the suspects," a young agent calls from downstairs. Rachel instantly perks back up. Maybe all hope wasn't lost after all. She straightens her shoulders and marches downstairs. She'd scare the information from this person if necessary.
"I'm Agent Burke," she introduces herself the tall, gangly man. "And you are?"
"Broots," he replies nervously. "What's going on here? What are you all doing here?"
"Mr. Broots," Rachel drawls, pulling out the southern charm. She can see this man is harmless and won't be needing intimidation. "You know the owner of this home?"
"Miss Parker? Yeah, we're coworkers. And friends. I've known her for years," he says. He looks around at the condition the house is in and starts to panic. "Did something happen to her?"
"We're trying to find her now," Rachel admits. "We have some questions for her. We think she may have gone to The Centre, but we don't know where that is. You think you could tell us?" A couple of bats of her eyelashes and she has Broots eating out of her hand. He tells her all he needs to know and then some. When she has enough information, she dismisses him.
"Agent Burke?" Broots asks before leaving. "There was an older gentleman here earlier. Sydney. Do you know where he is?"
"Check with FBI Headquarters in Dover. He should be there," she tells him, smiling when the man is visibly relieved. Miss Parker seemed to have very good and very loyal friends for some reason. She didn't deserve them.
Rachel watches Broots get in his car and pull away, presumably to retrieve his friend from FBI Headquarters. She then turns to search for Agent Daniels. She's surprised to find he's right next to her.
"Did you get the address?" he asks.
"Yeah. It's not too far from here," she tells him. "Let's move out. It's going to be dark soon."
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod lets out a painful moan as he tries to shift his body into a more comfortable position.
"I think they may have broken a few ribs," he groans.
"Are you going to be okay, Jarod?" Miss Parker asks, concern masking her face. She moves his head onto her lap and soothingly runs her fingers through his hair.
"I will be when they let you out of here," he says.
"Jarod, I'm not leaving you in here all . . ."
"You can't be here," he interrupts her. "I promised you your freedom."
"That freedom's not going to mean anything without you," she whispers, leaning over to kiss him on the forehead.
"Well, Lyle's talking to your father right now to see if they agree to the deal."
"You really think they want the DSA's that badly?" she wonders out loud. "Why? Is it all just about the money?" She looks down on him when he noticeably tenses. "Jarod?"
"Don't worry about the why, Lanie." Jarod lifts his head from off of Miss Parker's lap, taking a moment to get his equilibrium back before standing up all the way. He stumbles across the cell and turns away from her.
"You know what's so important about them." She stands up and walks right behind him, hands on her hips ready to drag the truth out of him if necessary. "Jarod, why are they so desperate to get these DSA's? What's on them that's so important?"
"The secrets of the universe," he laughs cynically. "One of life's biggest mysteries, unraveled and reduced to a simple scientific equation."
"Jarod, what did you do?" she whispers. "What did you discover?" He turns to face her and his dark eyes bore straight into her soul.
"Something that no man should *ever* know," he growls through clenched teeth. Shutting his eyes, he leans back against the wall and slides down until he's sitting again. A moment later, she can hear his sobs wracking his body, obviously causing pain to his battered frame.
"What is it, Baby?" she cries along with him. Sitting on the floor next to him, she wraps him in her arms and rubs his back to calm him down. "You're scaring me."
"I scared myself," he sniffs. "The things that I'm capable of thinking up are terrifying. The things that I'm able to do. Things that I refused to allow them to do to you. To us. That's the real reason I left all those years ago. And I took the DSA's with me so that my SIMs wouldn't allow them to . . . " He stops, not wanting to say any more than that.
"To what?" She's shaking now, truly afraid of what he has to say. But she notices that he's gone still. "Jarod? Jarod can you hear me?" She shakes him and gets no response.
"Jarod," she screams. She lays him out on the ground and tries to revive him. "Please wake up, Jarod."
None of her efforts are successful and she gets scared. Remembering how Jarod summoned Lyle earlier, she runs over to where the camera is situated and screams for help. A second later she hears Lyle's footsteps come through the door.
"What's the problem now?" he asks in an irritated tone. "What's wrong with Loverboy? He's not a pro like you, Sis. You really should take it easy on him."
"Shut up, you idiot. There's something wrong with him," she yells.
"Hey, it's not my fault if he can't handle your stamina . . ." His words are cut off by her hand shooting through the bars and grabbing around his neck.
"I suggest you get him medical attention immediately," she growls. "Especially if you want to see your precious DSA's again. If he dies, then all the secrets die with him."
"Fine," he gasps, finally pulling out of her grip. He reaches in his pocket for his cell phone and dials a few numbers.
"It's me," he says, rubbing his sore neck. "Send a medical team down. We need to transfer him to the renewal wing." He hangs up the phone and places it back in his pocket.
"Happy now? He's going to be taken care of. So that when he wakes up, he can tell you where the DSA's are and you can run and go get them like a good little girl."
"Daddy agreed to the deal," she comments with some surprise, her emotions mixed. Part of her hoped he would so that she could get out. But part of her wanted to stay with Jarod, even if she had to be a prisoner of that place along with him.
She walks over to Jarod's unconscious form and kneels next to him, bending over his head.
"Get better," she whispers into his ear. "Get better so that you can help me think of a way out of here. For both of us." She kisses his lips gently just as the medical team arrives to take him away.
* * * * * * * * * *
"How do you want to do this?" Rachel asks Agent Daniels once they arrived at the Centre. They didn't know much about the place and didn't want to rush in with guns blazing. They just needed to make sure that Jarod was inside before deciding how to proceed.
"It's your call," he replies, looking at the intimidating building. "Like I said, this is the first any of us have ever seen this place. Up until now, it was just a myth."
"The place seems to be very well guarded. Too guarded for us to try to sneak in. We're going to have to go in through the front doors," she says. Agent Daniels widens his eyes at her nerve, but follows her anyway after making a quick check for his weapon.
Rachel leads him to the doors and waits patiently for him to open them for her. Smiling her thanks, she walks through and looks for an information desk or something. Spotting a guard off to the left, she heads that way, grabbing Agent Daniels' arm in mock affection.
"Just play along," she whispers to him, leading him to the desk with her.
"May I help you?" the young officer asks.
"Hi. My name's Rachel. And this is my husband, Jamie," she says by way of introduction. "I have an old friend who works here. I wanted to stop by and surprise her."
"What's the name?"
"Parker. Miss Parker," Rachel tells him nervously. She begins to panic for a second when a terrified look crosses the officer's face.
"M-M-Miss Parker? Ho-hold on a second," he stutters in obvious fear. He quickly turns and dials a number on the phone behind him. After a few 'uhm-hmms' and 'are you sures', the officer hangs up and faces them again. "Take those elevators over there up to the fourth floor. Turn left and her secretary's at the end of the hall."
"Thanks a lot," Rachel smiles, squeezing Agent Daniels to prompt him to do the same.
"I can't believe it was that easy," Agent Daniels says once they're in the elevator. "But why are we going to this woman's office? She wouldn't be holding your hostage in there, would she?"
"No, but I think I'll be able to persuade her to lead me to him," Rachel says, imagining her sweet revenge. "It won't be long now. I'll have Jarod back and Miss Parker will have what she deserves - nothing."
Agent Daniels takes a breath like he's about to say something, but the look in Rachel's eyes suggest he should just keep his mouth shut. Something tells him that there was more to this situation than what Agent Burke was telling him. She was in this for personal reasons. Suddenly he began to wonder what he'd gotten himself involved in.
* * * * * * * * * *
The Centre medics take Jarod into a room in the renewal wing and unceremoniously dumps him on a bed, causing Miss Parker to cringe at the pain he would be feeling if her were awake.
"Watch it," she yells, pushing one of the orderlies out of her way. She stands next to Jarod's bed and lays her hand on his chest to reassure herself he was still breathing.
"That'll be all," Lyle tells the men. "Let the doctor know he's here." The orderlies nod and silently let themselves out.
"Alright. Your little Boy Toy is all safe and tucked in. Let's go talk to Dad now," Lyle says, grabbing Miss Parker's arm.
"I'm not leaving him," she insists, yanking her arm from Lyle's grasp. "Not until I know he's going to be okay. Not until I know what you had your goons do to him." She narrows her eyes, shooting him an accusing glare.
"Parker, we need to . . ."
"Ah, Miss Parker," the doctor says as he walks into the room, cutting off whatever Lyle was about to say. He smiles at the woman standing next to the bed and holds out his arms. "It's been so long."
"Dr. Parini!" she exclaims cheerfully, running to the man like she did when she was a little girl. Next to Sydney, he was the nicest adult working at the Centre. He was the only doctor ever able to give her shots without a big fuss. "I thought you retired years ago."
"Just took a sabbatical for awhile," he tells her. "I've been back for a few months."
Her smile turns into a grimace when she turns back to Jarod's badly broken form. The doctor hears her dejected sigh and takes note of the patient on the bed.
"I see you two are still inseparable." He places a hand on her shoulder and feels her lean slightly into his touch. "Don't worry. I'll patch Jarod up, good as new. Just like always. So, what kind of trouble have you gotten him in this time?"
"I know some of our adventures back then got a little . . . dangerous. And that most of them were my idea," she smiles in reminiscence. "But it wasn't me this time. I swear."
They both laugh for a minute at how many times in the past she's given Dr. Parini that same excuse after her and Jarod showed up in his office with various mysterious injuries. The moment is short lived as they look over in Lyle's direction, shooting daggers at him. They know he's to blame this time.
"Do you have any idea what's wrong with him?" she asks.
"I'm assuming he was beaten pretty badly, but I don't see any evidence of internal bleeding. Probably a couple of bruised or broken ribs. I'll wrap his chest and give him something for the pain. Once his body recovers a bit from the shock, I'm sure he'll wake up." He sends her a gentle smile to let her know Jarod would be fine. His smile is contagious and Miss Parker soon finds herself smiling back, believing everything would be alright.
"You heard the man, Sis. Now, let's go," Lyle insists, bringing a frown to Miss Parker's face.
"Go on," the doctor nudges her. "He's in good hands."
"Alright," she relents. "But I'll be right back to check on him as soon as I'm done." She leans down to give Jarod one more kiss on the cheek before following Lyle out the door.
Halfway down the hall, she turns in the opposite direction from her father's office.
"Where are you going?" Lyle is puzzled.
"Lyle, you kidnapped me from my home sometime last night, I assume. I'd like to get into some fresh clothes, if you don't mind,"
"Whatever," he sighs. "Just hurry it up." He sits on the sofa outside her office to give her some privacy.
She rolls her eyes and then pushes her door open, barely taking time to notice her assistant absent from his desk. She walks straight to the little closet she keeps for times such as this, stopping only when she sees her missing assistant now sitting at her desk.
"Dennis, what are you doing in here?" she asks with some annoyance. She continues on to the closet and pulls out the first suit she comes to.
"He's here with me," an icy voice drips behind her.
Miss Parker starts to turn around, only to feel the butt of a gun pressed into her back, mere inches from where the last bullet pierced. She looks at Dennis and can now see that the man is sitting there in handcuffs, not trying very hard to mask his fear.
"Put your hands up and turn around very slowly," the voice says again.
Miss Parker complies, her anger growing once she realizes who her assailant is. And she can see that she's not alone this time.
"Rachel," Miss Parker growls. "What brings you here?"
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 8
* * * * * * * * * *
"Oh, you know good and well what I want, Miss Parker. Now where is he?"
"You think I'm just going to tell you that?" Miss Parker asks with a joyless laugh. "I don't think so."
"I figured you'd make this difficult," Rachel says, rolling her eyes. "I was giving you one last chance. But since you don't want to cooperate, I guess I no longer have any use for you." She takes the safety off the gun and points it at Miss Parker's heart.
"Agent, stand down," Agent Daniels says finally. He realizes that Rachel was about to seriously cross a line. He raises his own gun and points it at Rachel.
"Stay out of this, Daniels. This is between me and her. She's the only thing standing in the way of the my life. My happiness."
"Listen to yourself, Rachel," Miss Parker spits out. "You're pathetic. You're thinking about your life. Your happiness. What about what Jarod wants? You think he wants you? It's me he wants. And you know it. You have to accept that."
"Shut up!" Rachel screams. "Both of you."
"Calm down, Burke. Put the gun down. I don't want to have to shoot you," Agent Daniels warns. "She hasn't done anything."
"Oh, she's done plenty. She's guilty of hurting my Jarod. And I'm not going to let her do it again." Rachel rationalizes in her own mind. Her voice is colder and her movements are more resolute. It's as if she's made her decision and she knows exactly what she has to do. Her eyes lose any light they once had, and turn glaring at Miss Parker with a chilling darkness.
Miss Parker closes her eyes, knowing that her death is imminent. She squeezes them tight, waiting for the gunshot. She jumps when she hears it, but it takes a moment for her to realizes she wasn't hit. Opening her eyes, she sees Rachel, writhing on the floor in pain, holding onto her right shoulder. Agent Daniels is bending over her, trying to stop the blood flow.
"What's going on in here?" Lyle asks, rushing into the room after hearing the gunshot, his own gun in hand. He surprised to see the two agents, one shot, and one holding a smoking gun.
"Stay where you are," Agent Daniels warns, standing up to get control of the situation. "I don't know who you people are or what's going on here. All I know is that I just had to shoot a fellow agent."
"What's going on here, you ask? Well, let me explain a little something to you," Lyle sneers. "Here at the Centre, we don't like questions. I mean, we could answer them, but then we'd just have to kill you. So how about I just skip the answering part."
Before anyone could blink, Lyle shoots Agent Daniels in the head. The man's surprised corpse falling instantly dead to the floor. He turns the gun to Rachel next, finishing the job the other agent started. Miss Parker stares into the dying woman's eyes until all the life leaves them. She bends down and out of some strange notion of respect, closes Rachel's still open eyes. She barely registers the last shot, killing her assistant.
"Lyle, you just executed 3 people," she cries, terrified he was about to do the same to her. Or worse. Scared that he's go after Jarod, too.
"Don't worry, Sis. No harm can come to you," he assures. But some how his words just frighten her even more. "You're too important to the project."
"Project? What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about the grand scheme of things, Parker," he laughs. "What? You didn't think we thought you'd actually catch Jarod and let you free, did you? No. We have big plans for the two of you. Just as soon as we get those DSA's back. We can finish the work that Jarod ironically enough started."
"What work?" she asks, stalling him for time while her mind tried to come up with a way out of this.
"Just before he escaped, Jarod unwittingly developed the key that unlocked the mysteries of the universe. He was basically a fluke of nature. A natural born pretender. A gift from God. But he came up with a way for us to be God and make our own pretenders. Once he figured out what we would be doing with that information and who we'd be using, he took off."
"You were going to use him. And me," she realizes, suddenly understanding why Jarod was so upset before. She wobbles a bit from the shock, grabbing onto the back of a chair for support.
Lyle shrugs his shoulder at her as if the notion weren't that big a deal. He bends down to take the weapon from Agent Daniels and Miss Parker sees her chance. She quickly picks up the chair she's holding on to, not even bothering to try to stay quiet. She needs as much force as she can gather. Lyle hears her and turns around, but all he sees is the chair swinging towards his head.
He hits the ground with a thump, a stream of blood dripping from his head. She checks to see if he's dead or not and then takes the cuffs from Agent Daniels to cuff Lyle to her closet door. She gets all of the guns that have been scattered across the floor and moves to her desk to dial a number on the phone.
"This is Sydney," the deep voice answers on the other end.
"Sydney, thank God," she cries.
"Parker! It's Parker," he says to someone on the background. "Are you okay? Broots went by your house and saw the place crawling with FBI."
"I'm fine," she tries to assure him. Although she's not so sure of that fact herself. "I just need to get me and Jarod out of here. And quickly. Where are you? Are the kids with you?"
"On the way back to the Centre. We figured that's where you and Jarod would be. And yes, the kids are here. They're fine."
"They're fine. I'm fine. Jarod's going to be fine. It's all over," she sighs in relief before she feels her legs give away under her. Tears begin to stream down her face from the extreme emotion she feels flowing throughout her body. She feels lucky she cheated death. She feels sad that three people had to die in her office today. She feels confused at the strong maternal instinct she seems to have naturally developed over the past week. But mostly she feels the pains of impending change. Like she told Sydney, it was all over. And she knew things would never be the same again.
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod looks out into the silent woods surrounding the cabin. They'd been there for 3 days. And there's been no sign that anyone had followed them. They were probably safe. He takes his first deep breath in a long time, releasing a lot of the pent up tension of fear of being captured he once held. Freedom never felt better. Because this time he wasn't alone.
"Deep cleansing breaths?" Miss Parker asks, coming up from behind him and scaring him a bit.
"Just taking in the sweet smell of freedom," he smiles, pulling her into his arms. "The kids asleep?"
"Maddie is. But the boys were playing together so quietly. I didn't want to disturb them," she says, snuggling into his hug. "They get along well. Maybe in time, this will all be just an unhappy memory. Maybe they'll . . . "
"They'll forget. They're not going to remember this. None of it. They're too young," he whispers assuringly before giving her a quick kiss on the forehead. They reluctantly pull apart and go to sit on the porch swing, swinging in a soothing motion for a few minutes.
"I got an e-mail today from Broots," she says suddenly, breaking the comfortable silence. "A memorial service is being held by the FBI for Rachel and that other agent that was with her." She buries her face in his chest and begins sobbing, confusing Jarod with her obvious overwhelming grief.
"It's okay, Lanie," he tries to calm her. "This may sound cruel and heartless, but Rachel got what she deserved. I don't wish what happened to her on anyone. But Syd warned her about the type of people at the Centre. She was so bent on revenge and getting at me, that she got careless. And that got her killed."
"I know that in my head," she sniffs. "But like her or not, she was everything to those twins. Now, they have to grow up without a mother. I know what that's like. I wouldn't wish *that* on anyone." She's puzzled when he gets a dreamy smile on his face before leaning down to capture her lips with his own.
"They'll have a mother," he says gently, stroking her cheek with his thumb.
"I know you're a pretender, Jarod. But I'm sure even this is beyond your capabilities. You'd make a hideous woman," she says with a laugh.
"Oh darn," he jokes. "I guess I'll have to find an actual woman to fill the position, then. Any ideas?"
"I may know of someone who's interested," she says, climbing into his lap and throwing her arms around his neck. She pulls his earlobe into her mouth before giving it a light bite. "For a price, of course." She moves lower and starts kissing his neck.
"I'll give her anything if she does this to me, too," he smiles, starting to get a little short of breath from the teasing her mouth was doing. He decides to play, too, slipping his hand beneath her shirt and running his fingers up and down her back. She lets out a small moan when his lips find her neck and he starts torturing her the same way she did him.
"I, um . . . boy that feels good," she gasps, closing her eyes in ecstasy. She completely forgets what she was about to say and just enjoys the feel of him. He suddenly breaks contact, sending her eyes back open with a look of impatient annoyance in them. A little straggled groan escapes her pouted lips.
"Lanie? The price? What would this woman want?" He grins smugly when he sees her cheeks flush in embarrassment. He actually made her lose her train of thought.
"Well, she'll want to get married," she starts, tilting her head to expose more neck to Jarod. He eagerly takes the hint and starts back to his ministrations.
"No problem," he mutters between kisses. "We'll be glad to have her."
"But she doesn't come alone. She's a package deal. Her and her little boy." She looks at him nervously when his lips suddenly go still on her neck. "Would that be asking too much?"
"Lanie, are you serious? I'd take you if you had 15 kids. And I'd love them all like my own," he says with a deep, promising kiss. "And who knows. Maybe some day they *will* all be mine."
"Let's get these out of diapers first," she smiles before returning his kiss. "Then we'll talk about evening things out. You guys outnumber me and Maddie. We need another girl around here." She laughs when his stubble tickles her neck.
"You know, baby making can be kind of tricky. Maybe we should make a couple of practice runs," he says, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. He goes to kiss her again when a hand on his chest stops him.
"Not so fast, Genius. You're making an honest woman out of me FIRST." She turns her hand and curls it around his shirt, pulling him until their lips meet in a fiery crash. She kisses him until he's within an inch of his life before rising from his lap, leaving him panting and breathless on the swing. "And then I promise you that we'll do so much . . . practicing . . . that we'll be experts by the time the kids are ready for that baby sister." She gives him one more quick kiss and heads back into the cabin, leaving him stunned and fighting for coherence.
The blood starts to flow towards his brain again and he's finally able to shake himself from the trance she left him in. He never pegged her for the 'waiting until we're married' type. The thought rushes through his brain, causing him to chuckle a bit. It would be tough to wait. He wanted her so bad his teeth ached. But she was worth it. They've waited this long, what was another . . . hour, he thinks with a smile as he looks down at his watch. Just the length of time it would take to pack the kids up and head to the nearest justice of the peace.
"Hey, Parker," he calls into the house, unable to hide the glee from his voice. She steps back to the door and he suddenly sees her in a different light. He sees a wife. He sees a mother. It momentarily takes away his breath. "Why don't you call up that friend of yours. I think she'll be perfect for us. Tell her to meet us in town at the courthouse. I thought it would be fun to get married on our first date. That way, I stand a good chance of getting past first base with her," he winks.
"Jarod," she gasps. She runs out the house and jumps in his arms. "You mean it?" She pulls back and he sees tears sparkling in her eyes. He decides he has to be serious and honest with her.
"I mean it," he swears. "I love you, Lanie. I want you to be my wife and the mother of my children. I want to be the father of yours."
The tears keep on falling down her face, but she manages a joy- filled smile that threatened to crack her cheeks.
"I love you too, Jarod," she says through her happy tears. She meets his mouth halfway and they seal the deal with a kiss.
Jarod was beyond happy too. The woman of his dreams was in his arms, kissing him with all she had because she wanted to. Because she wanted him. She wanted to marry him. And to raise his children. She wanted the happily ever after. It was more than he could have ever hoped for. It was the stuff, literally, of his wildest dreams.
She breaks the kiss and goes back in to get the kids ready while he lags behind a moment. He looks out one more time at the silent forest and takes one more deep breath. Suddenly, freedom smelled so much sweeter. The price had been high, but in the end, it was worth it.
The End.
Author - Nicky
Rating - PG to PG-13 (for some violence)
Category - JMPR, Pretender/Profiler Crossover
Summary - The ramifications of a past mistake come back to haunt Jarod and could be the key to the freedom Miss Parker's searching for. But is the high price worth it in the end?
Disclaimer - Most of these characters don't belong to me. Just using them for a bit. No harm intended.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 1
* * * * * * * * * *
Miss Parker gently pushes open the doors of the Centre Nursery, smiling briefly at the nurse inside. The nurse nods back and finishes the notes she's making before leaving Miss Parker alone. This was their daily ritual. Miss Parker would arrive mid-
morning to see her baby brother and the nurse would find something else that needed her attention in order to give Miss Parker some time alone with the child.
"Oh, Miss Parker," the nurse said suddenly just as she got to the door. "I may be popping in and out during this visit. We got in some new babies just this morning. They're having a tough time adjusting."
"Babies?" Miss Parker asks, a knot growing in her stomach. It was bad enough she had to grow up here. It was even worse that her little brother had to be here. She can't imagine what they would need small infants for.
"Yes, Ma'am. Six month old twins," the nurse tells her.
"We'll try to keep it down." She smiles an uneasy smile at the nurse as she finally leaves.
Her curiosity getting the better of her, Miss Parker leaves her baby brother by a pile of blocks that he eagerly starts chewing on. She walks over and peeks into the crib holding the Centre's newest acquisitions. Two angelic sleeping faces lay below, a little boy and a little girl. Her hand finds it's way inside the crib on it's own somehow and she gently strokes a finger along the little boy's cheek. She can't resist running her fingers through his reddish brown curls, smiling as the soft silkiness tickles her hand. Looking back at his face, she notices his big brown eyes are now wide open, staring at her inquisitively. For a moment, it seems like he can't decide on whether he wants to laugh or cry and his eyes start to tear up a little. But instead of a wail, he lets out a contented sigh as his little pudgy hand grab onto Miss Parker's finger. Before she can even think about it, she has the little boy in her arms and out of the crib. She makes her way over to the rocking chair and sits with him.
"Baby," her little brother says in his garbled toddler language. Having lost interest in his blocks, he walked over to his big sister and the foreign creature in his place on her lap.
"That's right, Tyler," she says to her brother. "It's a baby. You wanna say hi?"
"Hi Baby," Tyler says.
"Hi Tyler," Miss Parker says from behind the baby's head, making it seem like he was talking to her brother. Both the baby and Tyler start to giggle. Their laughs make her smile.
"Momma silly," Tyler laughs, sobering Miss Parker's mood. He was doing that all the time now, calling her 'Momma'. For the past 18 months, she's been the only mother he's ever known, so she can understand his confusion. But as much as she would love to be his mother, she wasn't. And having him call her that just hurts her all the more.
"No Tyler, Lanie. Can you say that? La-nie." She figured she'd teach him to call her Lanie, since Mary Elainna was probably too hard for a baby. That's the nickname Jarod used to call her. "Not Momma. Lanie," she tries again pointing to herself as she says it. But she sees that his attention is already elsewhere.
"Look, Momma. 'Nutter baby," Tyler calls excitedly when he notices the other baby in the crib.
"I know it's another baby, Tyler. But she's asleep. We have to be quiet," she whispers.
"Sleepy Momma," Tyler says with a yawn.
Miss Parker looks at her watch and realizes it's close to his naptime. So she goes to lay the baby back in the crib so that she can rock her brother to sleep. Just when she walks away from the crib, the baby lets out a loud cry, his face instantly getting red from the effort.
"What happened?" the nurse asks, slightly out of breath having run back into the nursery after hearing the child scream. She picks up the baby and tries to calm him down with no success.
"He started crying when I put him back in the crib," Miss Parker explains over the child's cries.
"Like I said, they were having trouble adjusting," the nurse says accusingly, staring at with Miss Parker with a not so nice look in her eyes. "I don't think he appreciated being bothered."
"I didn't bother him," Miss Parker responds in an equally icy tone. "He didn't start crying until after I put him down." She walks over to the nurse and holds her arms out for the baby, who eagerly reaches for her. He stops crying once he's back in Miss Parker's arms.
"I guess he just likes you," the nurse reluctantly admits. "He hasn't been going to strangers. You're the first. Let me know if you have anymore trouble," she mumbles before making her way back out of the nursery.
Miss Parker rolls her eyes at the woman's retreating form before a tugging at her skirt gets her attention. Tyler's still standing there, still looking very sleepy. She grabs his hand and walks over to the rocking chair. She holds the baby on one side of her lap and allows Tyler to climb up on the other side. Before long, both little boys were sleeping peacefully. Unable to move, Miss Parker just stays there, enjoying the brief feeling of motherhood.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Jarod throws his stuff in a chair next to the door of yet another hotel room. He's done more traveling in the past few weeks than usual. Nothing seems to be capturing his attention like before. He goes from town to town investigating what initially seems like worthwhile cases, only for them to turn out to be nothing. Really, it was more like he was suffering the effects of burnout and was in need of a vacation. Atlanta, Georgia was just the place to do that. It wasn't hugely populated, but large enough for him to get easily lost. And that's what he needed to be for a few days - lost.
He flips the TV on to be background noise as he unpacked his meager belongings. Several years on the run and he hasn't accumulated many personal belongings. Just a few things that he like to keep close made the move with him from city to city. He takes his toiletry kit into the bathroom, and adjusts the volume on the TV to hear the news while he's unpacking his shaving kit.
" . . . and there has finally been an arrest in the Burke kidnapping case," the anchor starts. The name catches Jarod's attention and he leaves the shaving kit in the sink to watch the news report. "After weeks of insisting she had nothing to do with the disappearance of 6 month old twins Madison and Ryan, Special Agent Rachel Burke has finally confessed that she in fact did murder her children. . . ."
The rest of the news report goes by unheard by Jarod. Twins. Rachel Burke has 6 month old twins. Thinking back to the time he spent with the FBI profiler, he realizes it's a distinct possibility that those twins are his as well. The timing was just about right. He tunes back into the TV to find out more details of the story, but sees that they've moved on to something else. He turns on his computer and promptly connects to the local police department and finds the case.
Two weeks ago, Rachel Burke reported her twins missing. After days of searching, police uncovered evidence containing the children's blood. They concluded that the children were more than likely dead, seeing as how no ransom demands had been made. Throughout the entire investigation, Rachel denied any wrongdoing on her part. A few days ago, however, that changed. She was rushed to the hospital, an apparent suicide attempt. Along with the suicide note, there was a journal with details of how she killed the children. The police has the journal now as evidence.
Jarod shuts off the computer to avoid risk of being detected snooping around the police database. He thinks over the evidence and realizes that something wasn't quite right with the situation. According to the police report, she hasn't actually confessed. They just have a journal and a note supposedly written by her. The Rachel he knew wouldn't kill herself. And she wouldn't kill her children. Of that he's sure. Chances are if he figured out that the children could be his, then it's possible someone else may have figured it out as well. Possibly someone at the Centre. He had to talk to Rachel as soon as possible. He grabs his jacket and heads to the hospital.
Northside Hospital
Atlanta, GA
Jarod peeks his head into the door to Rachel's room. She appears to be sleeping, but he sees that she isn't when she turns her head in his direction when he enters.
"Hi," he says quietly, shyly looking around the room to avoid making immediate eye contact with her.
"What are you doing here, Jarod?" she asks. "The last time I saw you was after that night. You were gone the next morning. How could you do that to me?"
"I know you're angry . . . " he starts.
"Angry? Actually, I was angry for awhile. For a long time. I was hurt. I was confused. But then I got over it. I had to," she says sadly.
"Because of them? The babies?" he asks as delicately as he can. But the question still brings tears to her eyes and she's unable to speak for a few minutes.
"I'm sorry," she says, wiping away her tears. "They were my life. I can't believe they're gone. That I'm responsible for . . . "
"No, Rachel. I don't believe that," he tells her. "There's no way you were responsible for what happened to them. You couldn't do that."
"I didn't think so either, Jarod. But I was so tired all the time. And so cranky. They're a handful," she admits. "There were times when I didn't know why I was even trying to raise two kids on my own."
"Because their deadbeat father left you pregnant," he says guiltily. "Rachel, I'm sorry. If I had known . . . "
"But you didn't know, did you? You didn't stick around long enough to find out. Besides, sorry's not going to bring them back, Jarod," she cries. She wasn't ready to forgive him. She couldn't forgive him. Even though he didn't know she was pregnant, that still doesn't make the situation any easier.
"Do you really think they're gone? That you . . . "
"Killed my babies?" she asks point blank. "Of course not. But the journal was pretty clear and explicit. And it looks like my handwriting."
"But do you remember writing it? Or the suicide note?" he asks her. "Do you remember trying to kill yourself, Rachel? Or the kids?"
"You think this could be a setup?" she asks grabbing onto the glimmer of hope he was offering. "That somebody else is responsible? But who? Why?"
"Rachel, do you know the reason why I can never stay for very long? Why I disappear at the drop of a hat? Why you can't find anything about my past? That's because I don't really have one. I promised when we first met to tell you about myself. It's past time you knew the truth."
"What is it, Jarod? You're scaring me."
"There's this place called the Centre. They stole me when I was just a boy because I have special abilities. I'm what they call a pretender. A genius with the ability to do anything and become anyone. Up until a few years ago, I was held there against my will and was made to perform simulations of certain situations, the results of which they sold to the highest bidder. More often than not, the results of those simulations were used to hurt other people. When I found that out, I left. I ran away. They've been trying to get me back ever since."
"How is it even possible for a place like that to even exist?" she wonders aloud. "Why couldn't the government . . ."
"The government? I hate to tell you this, but that same government you work for is one of the Centre's best clients, Rachel. Believe me, these people will do anything to get what they want. And if they can't have me, I'm sure my children will be acceptable."
"You think they have Maddie and Ryan?"
"Those are their names?" he asks quietly, tears starting to form in his eyes. "Maddie and Ryan," he repeats, letting the names roll off of his tongue before his mood darkens even more. "I don't even have a last name to give them."
"Jarod, this is all so unbelievable," she says. "You grew up in a place like that? And you're constantly on the run now?"
"It was a terrible place to be, Rachel. And I won't allow our children to grow up the way that I did. I'm getting them out of there. I swear." He grabs her hand and holds it up to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on the back. She didn't deserve to be put in the middle of his war with the Centre. It was his responsibility to get her and the children out of it, even if it meant giving up the one thing that he valued the most - his freedom.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 2
* * * * * * * * * *
Miss Parker awakens to the sensation of being watched. Slowly, she turns in bed, reaching under her pillow for her gun. In a flash, she's sitting up, facing her intruder with the gun pointed in his direction.
"Don't shoot. It's just me," he says.
"Jarod? You have to stop surprising me like that. One of these days, I'm going to shoot first," she warns. "What time is it? What are you doing here?"
"I needed to talk to you. I need your help."
"You need my help?" she laughs incredulously. "You're kidding, right? Jarod, what could you possibly be so desperate for that you would need my help?"
"A rescue. A woman had her infant twins stolen by the Centre. It's my job to get them back," Jarod explains, purposely leaving out the fact that he's their father.
"Oh, those twins," she says, instantly sobering when he mentions the babies. It's been so sad to see them cry, day in and day out. She felt so sorry for them. They were obviously missing their family.
"You've seen them?" Jarod asks excitedly.
"A few times. I met them a few days ago when I was visiting my little brother Tyler," she tells him. "They're adorable. But so sad. I felt bad that they had to be there."
"So, will you help me get them out?" he asks hopefully.
"I don't know about that, Jarod. Stunts like that get you killed around the Centre. Look at what happened to my mother when she was trying to help you. I don't plan on ending up that way." She gets up from her bed and quickly pulls on a robe. She makes her way to the door to move this little meeting out of her bedroom and into the living room.
"What if you wouldn't have to be there anymore?" he asks quietly. She stops in her tracks at this proposal.
"What are you saying, Jarod? You know there's only one way for me to be free of that place. That's if I take you in. And you've been pretty adamant about not going back to that . . . "
"What if that's exactly what I'm saying?" he interrupts. "You help me rescue the twins, and after I return them to their mother, you can bring me back. No hassles. No tricks. No escaping."
She sits rather ungracefully on the bed next to her, her legs no longer able to support her. This was a proposition she never expected to receive from Jarod. And by the look on his face, he was completely serious.
"How do I know I can trust you?" she asks, knowing the question was pointless. She trusted Jarod. In a sick, twisted kind of way, that was the one truth in her life, her trust of Jarod.
"Oh ye of little faith," he says with a small smile. "You know you can trust me. But I didn't expect you to take my word for it. So I'll leave this with you." He reaches down next to him picks up a silver case that was on the floor next to his chair. She must have missed seeing it in the darkness of the room.
"The DSA's?" she asks.
"Just the player. After we make sure the children are safe with their mother, I'll give you the key to a safety deposit box that contains the DSA's." He pauses to let it all soak in. "I thought through this, Miss Parker. If you agree to help me, then I won't back down on this deal. You have my word that I'll let you take me back to the Centre. You'll be free. And you'll have the DSA's in case there's more bargaining you need to do with the Centre."
"Why, Jarod? Why are you doing this? Giving up your freedom for these children? For me?"
"Is it a deal or not?" he asks impatiently, purposely avoiding her question. He looks into her eyes to convey how serious this whole situation is. He can see that she's thinking about the matter, trying to figure out why it's so important to him. But also trying to decide if her freedom was worth risking her life over.
"Okay. I agree. When do we do this?" She asks, trying not to smile at the adorable and grateful grin that's now spreading across Jarod's face.
"As soon as you can get dressed," he tells her.
"Alright, then. Get out of here and let me get changed," she orders, shooing him out of her room.
"You sure you won't need any help zipping or buttoning something?" he says with a suggestive wink and leer.
"Out!" she says a bit louder, but unable to hide her amusement.
"Okay, okay, I'm leaving," he laughs a little, walking to the door. Just as his hand reaches the doorknob, he turns around once more. "Miss Parker?"
"Yes, Jarod," she sighs impatiently.
"Thanks," he says with a shy smile. "Thanks for doing this."
"You're welcome," she smiles back.
For a moment they stand there, not remembering anything that's happened between them the past few years. Instead, it was almost as if they were looking at each other when they were children, when they used to mean everything to each other.
"You should get dressed," Jarod whispers, breaking the moment. "I'll leave now." He steps into the hallway outside her room, shutting the door behind him.
* * * * * * * * * *
An hour later finds Jarod and Miss Parker in Jarod's Nissan X-
Terra on the way to the Centre. The trip is a quiet one, each thinking about how this one night will inevitably change their lives.
"Jarod?" she asks, breaking the silence.
"Yes?" He looks over at her, waiting on her question. When she doesn't say anything he turns his sight back to the road ahead of them.
"Nothing," she says quietly, changing her mind about asking him again why this is so important to him. He'll tell her when he's ready, she assumes. "We're just about there," she says instead, even though she wants to know so badly what's making him do this. Why after all this time would he give up his freedom.
He shuts off the lights and rolls to a stop next to a wooded area about a mile from the Centre. Instead of taking the main road to the Centre, they figure it would be better to cut through the woods and enter through the storm tunnel on the west end of the building. The tunnel goes on for about a mile before leading to the airvents that will eventually take them to the nursery.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asks her one more time to be sure. "It could be dangerous."
"Jarod, it'll be faster for me to show you where the babies are. Plus, you won't be able to carry them both out at one time," she rationalizes.
"Alright then. Let's go," he says, opening his door. She does the same and meets him on the other side of the car.
They move quickly and quietly through the forest, keeping a watchful eye out for alarm triggers and cameras. They manage make it to the entrance undetected and sneak inside. The trip through the tunnel was uneventful as well and soon they find themselves at an opening with several airvents going off in different directions.
"Which way do we go?" she asks him.
"This one," he says, pointing to the vent to the left. "It'll lead us to your office. I'll wait there while you go get the babies and bring them back to me."
"Why can't we just take the vents to the nursery?" she wonders.
"Because they have a special ventilation system in there. The air vents don't share the same passage ways as the other air vents in the building. It's supposed to deliver purer air to the children," he explains. He reaches up to pull off the vent cover and lifts himself into the vent. He reaches to give her a hand and pulls her up as well.
"Make sure to take off their clothes before you leave the nursery," he says once they reach her office. He pulls off his backpack and pulls out a bundle of clothes and a couple of Snugli carriers. "We'll redress them in here. I don't want to take the risk of tracking devices being in the clothing."
She nods her head in understanding and eases out of her door. It was the middle of the night, so she didn't expect to see anyone. But still, the quiet, empty halls were eerie and a bit unnerving. It doesn't take long to get to the nursery. And just as Jarod suspected, they babies were sound asleep. Taking them this time of night offered less risk of them crying. She quickly works and removes their sleepers, leaving them in just their diapers. She grabs them both securely in her arms and makes her way back to the office.
"What are you doing?" she whispers to Jarod when she returns. He was sitting behind her desk messing with her computer.
"You need to leave a voice mail message for Broots and Sydney. Tell them you found a lead on me and you're on your way to pick me up. I was using the computer to change the system time in the database. That way, they'll think the call came in earlier than it really did. I've already arranged for you to have been 'seen' on a commercial flight to Tulsa. You'll have an alibi for the time the babies went missing. By the time they figure it all out, you'll be back here with me." He stops his explanation to take one of the babies from her, quickly pulling the new pajamas on her. Miss Parker does the same with the other baby.
"You've thought of everything, haven't you?" she asks.
"Lives are at stake, Miss Parker. I have to think of everything or somebody dies," he says seriously.
"This is more than just another pretend for you, isn't it Jarod? This is personal." She watches him gently place the baby in the carrier and fasten it close to his body.
"Let's go," he whispers through a raspy voice, ignoring her question. "We need to get out of here."
He climbs up into the air vent and helps Miss Parker do the same. An hour later, they find themselves back at the car where they first started. Jarod takes the babies and gets them strapped into the car seats while Miss Parker drives.
"Where are we going, Jarod?"
"Just stay on the interstate for a few hours," he says with a yawn. "I'll let you know when we get closer." He closes his eyes and leans his head to the window, allowing sleep to take over for the first time in days.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"This is it. Home sweet home. At least for the next few days." Jarod takes the keys from the ignition and opens his door, eagerly stretching his legs from the long trip. They had to stop for gas and then again once more along the way to change the really stinky diapers, but for the most part, they had everything they needed. The babies slept for the majority of the trip. But now, they were starting to get cranky having spent the past 7 hours in a car.
"Let's get them inside," Miss Parker suggests. "If they feel anything like I do, then they're not going to be in a good mood."
"I'm sorry about all this," Jarod apologizes. "I shouldn't have put you in the middle of it. I just . . . had to get them out."
Miss Parker waits on him to continue, but it soon becomes obvious that he's done talking. She eases Ryan from his car seat and takes the baby in the house.
Once inside, she sees that Jarod was really prepared for this. Several packages of disposable diapers lined half the wall opposite the door. Other items necessary for the babies were scattered about the room.
"You really did think of everything," she says as she sets Ryan down inside one of the playpens, dropping in a toy for him to play with. "How long did you plan all of this?" She reaches to take Madison from Jarod to place her in the play pen as well, but Jarod is reluctant to give her up.
"I'll just hold onto her for a little while longer," he says, trying hard to hold back tears. This was the first chance he had to actually just sit and look at them - his children. He was struck by Madison's beauty. She looked like Rachel, he decided, with her red hair and porcelain skin. Her big green eyes scanned his face and instantly decided he was friendly. She rewards him with a wide, toothless grin.
"She's perfect, don't you think?" he asks Miss Parker with complete awe. "I mean, she's got all ten fingers and toes and everything." He can't help but smile at the little angel squirming around his arms. His smile fades as the baby lets out a loud cry.
"Let me take her," Miss Parker offers. "She doesn't like being held as much as Ryan does." She takes Madison and places her in the crib, picking up Ryan in exchange. She takes the boy to Jarod's waiting arms and watches as he gets the same awe struck look on his face as he did when he held Madison. It was almost as if her were a proud father holding his children for the first time. Miss Parker shakes that thought from her head, dismissing it as absurd.
"You seem to get along with them well," Jarod comments.
"Like I said before, I spent the past few days getting to know them. I noticed that Ryan likes to be held a lot while Madison prefers to stay to herself." Miss Parker coos at the baby and kisses his small baby feet. She makes silly faces and noises at the baby for a few minutes before turning her attention back to Jarod who's now staring at her with utter fascination. "What are you looking at me like that for?"
"Look at you. I never would have imagined you going all soft over a baby," Jarod laughs. "But here you are. This mothering thing is natural for you."
"Spending an hour a day with them during my lunch break is one thing, Jarod. It's hardly what I'd call 'mothering'. I don't know what I'm going to do over the next few days if I'm going to be around them full time," she admits. "What is the plan anyway?"
"Their mother should be here soon. I left instructions for her to meet us here. After that, we all stay here to make sure we weren't followed. Then, I'm all yours," he says, waggling his eyebrows suggestively to make light of the situation. But they both knew what she really had in store for him.
"Well as fascinating as that plan is, Jarod, it put the baby to sleep. Why don't you take them to whichever room the nursery is going to be and I'll try to put away some of this stuff." She watches Jarod get up with ease and take the baby up the stairs. He was the true natural with the kids, she noticed. When he disappears from her view, she turns her attention to Madison in the playpen.
"Okay, little lady. How about we get this place cleaned up?" She smiles at the slobbery grin Madison flashes her, getting lost momentarily in the sweet innocence in the little girl's eyes. She's shocked out of her daze by the sounds coming from outside. A car door slams and she instantly goes on alert, reaching for her gun.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 3
* * * * * * * * * *
The front door opens and she prays a quick prayer that Madison doesn't cry out, startling the intruder.
"Stop where you are," she hisses. "Don't go any further." Her gun is up and her body is between the intruder and the baby, trying to shield her from any harm.
"FBI," the woman at the door says. "I just came for the babies." She reaches in her pocket for something, but Miss Parker stops her, not sure what she was looking for.
"Keep your hands where I can see them," Miss Parker orders loudly. Her shouts alert Jarod and he comes running down the stairs.
"What's going on down here?" He stops in his tracks when he sees the woman at the door. "Rachel?"
"Jarod, where are my babies?" she cries, running to Jarod.
"I'm sorry, Rachel. I didn't think you'd be here this soon. This is Miss Parker," Jarod introduces. "She helped me rescue the twins. Miss Parker, this is Agent Rachel Burke. She's the twins' mother."
"Sorry about the gun," Miss Parker apologizes, somewhat embarrassed. She puts the gun away and sticks out her hand to Rachel. "Nice to meet you."
"Where are my babies?" Rachel asks again, ignoring Miss Parker's gesture.
"Madison's in the playpen," Miss Parker says, stepping out of the way. "Jarod just took Ryan up. He's asleep, but I'll go get him if you want."
But she sees that Rachel has already scooped up her baby girl into her arms and is desperately looking for Ryan. Jarod leads the way as the woman rushes to get up to her other child. Following slower behind them, Miss Parker finally catches up to the teary reunion in the nursery. She suddenly feels like an outsider intruding on a private family moment. Miss Parker turns to go back downstairs, determined to finish the cleaning job she started earlier. She definitely had questions for both Rachel and Jarod, but it wasn't anything that couldn't wait until later.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Miss Parker is putting the last of the stuff away when she hears someone descending the steps. Turning to look that way, she sees that it's Jarod.
"They're all asleep," Jarod tells her.
"I'm sure she was happy to be reunited with her children," Miss Parker says, trying to make conversation, but not really knowing what to say. "They sure were happy to see her. I don't think I've seen Madison smile that much. She was always the serious one. But I guess she was just missing her mom." She nervously picks at an invisible spot on her pants, waiting on Jarod to tell her what's really going on. Because by the looks of things in that room earlier, there was more between him and Rachel than he was letting on.
"I know you're curious about this whole thing," he says quietly, staring out of the window. "Why don't we get out of here. Take a walk. Check to make sure things are secure." Without turning to look at her or to see if she was following, he walks out the door and stands on the porch. A few seconds later he hears her behind him.
"What's going on, Jarod? How do you know this woman?" she starts. She figured she'd just come out and ask.
"This starts a few years ago when I worked on the kidnapping case with the FBI. This guy would take these kids and brainwash them, making them believe they were his sons. The ones that were considered 'worthy' became his foot soldiers so to speak. The rest were . . . disposed of. During that case, I worked with a profiler named Samantha Waters. We worked well together. But, when the case was over, I disappeared. I guess maybe a year later, I had the occasion to work with the same group in the FBI. I was expecting to be working with Samantha, but she was gone. Rachel was her replacement. I worked so well with Samantha, that working with Rachel was a big let down at first. Things were difficult with Rachel. We were like oil and water - we didn't mix at all. But, she was passionate about a lot of things. About her job. About the case. About me." He stops his narrative there and begins to pay more attention to the surroundings.
"So you two had a relationship," Miss Parker says, not really sure how it makes her feel. A little jealous. A little surprised.
"I wouldn't call it that. Rachel and I were a bad fit from the start," is his only answer. "She wanted me. I liked being wanted. I felt like, for once, I was the one in control of things. But afterwards . . . I couldn't even stay the whole night. I was gone before she got up the next morning and didn't look back."
"When was all this?" she asks with a shaky voice. She was trying to hold back her feelings, but it was hard to ignore the blatantly obvious question on both of their minds.
"I'm sure you can guess the 'when', Miss Parker," he says with a completely joyless laugh. "I'm going to say this all happened about 15 months ago."
"So, they're yours," she concludes. "Madison and Ryan are your kids."
He just nods his head, unable to speak. He's only known for a few days himself and he was still in shock over the whole idea. He can only imagine the surprise and confusion Miss Parker is feeling right now.
"That's why you were so desperate to get them out of the Centre," she rambles. "That's probably why the Centre took them in the first place. They knew they were your children. And to keep them safe, you're giving yourself up. That's really why you're going back to the Centre."
"Miss Parker, to tell you the truth, I don't know what I'm doing. All I know is that the Centre kidnapped my children. I had to get them out," he says, finally turning towards her, finally looking her in the eye. "And I couldn't have done it without you. You put your life on the line to help me. I don't know how to thank you for that. So I may have agreed to go back to the Centre with you to protect the kids, but it was also to protect you. If they ever find out what you did, you wouldn't be safe. You can't be there. Taking me back would guarantee your freedom and safety."
"But what is it that *you* want, Jarod? To never know your children? To never make a family for them?" she asks.
"I honestly don't know what kind of family Rachel and I could make for them," he sighs. "I don't love her. I don't even know her. Sleeping with her was a mistake. But my children aren't. I already love them with my whole heart. I'd do anything for them."
"Jarod what if I didn't take you back?" she ponders. "What if you and Rachel and the kids just . . . ."
"No. Absolutely not. They'd kill you, Parker. You know that." He steps towards her and gently cups her cheeks with his hands. "I can survive that place knowing my babies are safe. Rachel's an FBI agent. She can take care of them now that she knows that the Centre wants them. But there's no way I could live knowing you were in any kind of danger."
She closes her eyes and allows his warm breath to wash over her face. After a few moments of enjoying his closeness, she falls into his arms and buries her head in his neck. He fully encloses her in his embrace and holds her tightly.
"Jarod," she gasps, pulling slightly away to look into his eyes. "I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything," he whispers, tracing her bottom lip with the tip of this thumb. He leans forward, slowing creeping closer to her, moving in for a kiss, but doesn't quite make it.
"Jarod!" Rachel calls from the porch. She was holding a screaming twin in each arm and wasn't looking too happy herself. "A little help, please."
Jarod lets out a disappointed groan, resting his forehead against Miss Parker's. "I should go help her."
"Go," she gently orders. "We can finish our . . . um . . . *discussion* later," she says with a smile.
"Later," he says with a final sigh. "It's a date." He flashes her his own patented grin before jogging back towards the cabin. He takes one of the babies from Rachel's arms and walks inside.
Rachel looks back over her shoulder at Miss Parker and shoots her a cocky glare. It was a look warning Miss Parker not to mess with the family she was trying to form.
Miss Parker stares back, shooting Rachel a warning of her own. Right then and there she realized that her and Jarod belonged together and that's the way it was going to be, despite Rachel and the children. And she wasn't going to give him up, not now after all these years. If it was a fight Rachel wanted, then it was a fight she was going to get.
* * * * * * * * * *
Over the next few days, much of the same thing went on. The twins and their safety was the top priority of the adults. Jarod wanted to spend as much time with them as possible in the short time he would have to get to know them. Rachel used that to her advantage. Any time he spent with the babies was also time spent with her. Which didn't make Miss Parker very happy. She didn't get to spend any time with Jarod alone. Today, she was determined to change that.
"Jarod," Miss Parker calls one afternoon when things were quiet. The kids were napping peacefully and Rachel was in the kitchen preparing more bottles. "How about we take a walk or something. We've been cooped up in the house for days. And the kids are asleep right now, so . . . "
"You don't have to ask me twice," he says with a big grin. He jumps up from his spot on the floor where he was folding the babies' freshly laundered clothes. He grabs her hand and heads for the door.
"Jarod, was that one of the babies?" Rachel asks, poking her head from the kitchen. "I thought I heard one of them crying."
"I didn't hear anything, Rachel. Maybe you're just being overly sensitive," Miss Parker manages to say through clenched teeth. She had been very patient with the situation this entire time. And it may be selfish, but she just wanted a minute alone with Jarod, away from Rachel and the kids.
"Well, *you're* not their mother. I am," Rachel snaps. "When you become a parent, you'll realize that the safety and comfort of your children are the only things that matter. Isn't that right, Jarod?"
"Why don't I just go up and check on them," he offers, giving Miss Parker's hand a gentle squeeze before letting it go. "I'll be right back and then we can go for that walk." He flashes her a reassuring smile before going up the stairs to the nursery.
"When are you going to give it up, Miss Parker? Family is the most important thing to Jarod. The twins and I are his family now. I know you helped him rescue the kids and I'm grateful for that. But I think it'll be safe enough for you to leave now. You're just in the way," Rachel says.
"That's not the plan," Miss Parker tells her. "I leave when it's time to leave. And Jarod's coming with me."
"I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that you can seduce him and break us up. But that's not going to happen. I know that you want him, but you can't have him. I won't let you," Rachel vows.
"You don't know anything," Miss Parker growls, standing close to the other woman's face. "You don't know anything about me or about Jarod. He's not stupid. Don't you think he can see through what you're doing? You're using these children to control him. You're no better than the people who stole the twins. You think that's going to make him love you? Well, you're wrong. He's never going to love you. It's not even possible."
"What makes you so sure of that? Because of you? Because you think he loves you?" Rachel asks with a laugh. "I'm sure that whatever you feel you can offer him, it doesn't compare to being in his children's lives."
"Ladies," Jarod says from the steps. Both women look up, shocked to see him standing there. "Is there something going on here?"
"I was just telling Rachel that we have some unfinished business," Miss Parker says, back in her Ice Queen mode. Whatever she was starting to feel for Jarod, she couldn't allow it to get in the way. Because Rachel was right about one thing. She wasn't going to be able to be with Jarod, no matter what. Whether he stayed with Rachel or went back to the Centre. It was time she faced that.
"And I was telling her that it was no longer necessary for her to be here with us, Jarod," Rachel says. "I think we can safely take the babies away from here. Now thank your little friend for helping us and let's take our children home."
"That's not going to happen, Rachel," Jarod tells her. "Miss Parker is right. There's more to consider here. And it's about time we started thinking about those things."
"Jarod, you're not telling me that you would give up the chance to raise your children to be with her, are you? Are you in love with her? Because it certainly didn't feel like it to me that night you were with me. The night we made those children."
"Don't go there, Rachel," Jarod warns, ignoring her question. He chances a glance in Miss Parker's direction and sees that her moist eyes were avoiding looking at him. "Don't start this."
"Don't start what, Jarod? Don't I have a right to know why you're ditching me and our children yet again?" Rachel yells. "Is it all for her?"
"You have no idea what's going on, Rachel," Miss Parker growls. "Don't you see that there's only one way for your children to be safe? And unfortunately, that means he can't be with either of us."
"What's she talking about, Jarod? Tell her to leave and then we can get on with our lives," Rachel demands.
"I can't do that. She's right," Jarod confesses. "There's only one solution to this. For me to go back there."
Rachel looks at Jarod in disbelief. Then she glances over at Miss Parker in time to see her flick one renegade tear from her cheek.
"Oh, I see what's going on," Rachel says. "This is just an excuse to bail on me and our children again. Jarod, you should have at least found someone believable. You expect me to believe you'd leave me for her? That you'd leave your children for her? Someone so cold. So icy. Probably frigid." Rachel smiles inwardly at the spark of anger she sees flash in Miss Parker's eyes. But it wasn't enough. She pushes even further. "Look at her, Jarod. What does she have that I don't? What does she know about you that I don't? How could she ever satisfy you like I . . ."
The loud snap of Miss Parker's hand striking Rachel's face drops a deadly silence on the entire room. The flaming red hand print appears instantly on the woman's milky skin. Rachel covers her stinging skin with her cool hand and lifts her eyes to Miss Parker, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. Instantly Miss Parker realizes the game the woman was playing with her. And how she walked right into the trap.
"You little conniving . . ." Miss Parker growls.
"Parker!" Jarod yells, trying to calm the woman down. "That's enough." He stands facing Miss Parker, his back to Rachel so he misses the little smirk playing on her lips.
Miss Parker sees it, though. And she realizes to herself that Jarod was right. Enough is enough. It was time to end this little game once and for all. She slips into her huntress mode, cutting off any emotions she may have been feeling. Emotions that had clouded her judgment. She reaches behind her and pulls out her weapon, the only friend she's truly been able to count on.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 4
* * * * * * * * * *
"You're right, Jarod," she says icily. "I've had enough, too. I've had enough of you, your little girlfriend and this whole big mess you dragged me into." Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Rachel move slightly as if she were going for her gun as well. Miss Parker swings the gun in that direction, keeping one eye on Jarod as well. "Keep your hands where I can see them, Rachel."
Miss Parker reaches down into the holster strapped around her ankles and reveals another gun. She takes it out and points that one at Jarod.
"This ankle holster's a neat little contraption, Rachel. I should get one too." Miss Parker glares at the woman. This time, she's the one with the triumphant gleam in her eyes seeing the fear in Rachel's. Rachel's countenance instantly falls, realizing that Miss Parker had her gun.
"Jarod, go get the cuffs," she orders.
"Parker, what's . . "
"Jarod, now!" she screams, taking the safety off one of the gun to ensure them she was serious. He obeys, getting back instantly, looking to her for the next set of instructions.
"Cuff her," she barks, gesturing towards Rachel with one of the guns. "Make sure she can't get out."
"Why are you doing this?" Rachel screams, more from irritation than from actual fear.
"Just shut up," Miss Parker yells back. "Before I have him gag you as well."
"Jarod, do you see what you threw our future away for? She's a lunatic," Rachel says, despite Miss Parker's warning. "She's probably going to kill us."
"You're tempting me, Rachel." Miss Parker moves closer and puts the gun to the other woman's head.
"Parker," Jarod says softly, placing his hands around the hand Miss Parker's holding the gun in. For a brief moment, he's able to catch her eyes with his own. She softens visibly in his grasp.
"Don't do this. She's cuffed. And she's not going anywhere. Not without the kids." He's able to slip the gun from her hands, removing the clip and placing them both on the counter. Miss Parker follows suit and places Rachel's gun back into the holster around her ankle. Jarod takes Miss Parker's hand again and leads her over to the couch, just out of Rachel's earshot.
"We have to get back to Blue Cove now, Jarod," Miss Parker says, avoiding his eyes so he won't see the tears building up. "I don't want to take you back, but . . . "
"I know. We made a deal. I made a promise to you."
"Forget about the deal. I would let you walk out of here with Rachel and the babies if that were possible. As much as it would hurt me, I'd tell you to forget about me and to go raise your children with her. But I can't do that."
"You'd miss me, wouldn't you?" he teases, trying to lighten the moment. But she stays serious, stroking his cheek with her fingers, as if she were trying to memorize his face.
"Like I'd miss my heartbeat," she whispers. "But I'd do it for you anyway. Unfortunately it's too late for that option. I've been gone too long to go back without you. They'd kill me. And then do God only knows what to Tyler. I can't leave him in there all alone. I can't believe I've been gone from him for this long. He must be so scared."
"Your little brother," Jarod suddenly realizes. "I forgot about him. I didn't realize you two were so close. Parker, we never should have done this. I never would have asked you to jeopardize his safety." He pulls her into his arms, forgetting all about the cuffed woman standing a few feet away from them.
"This was my choice, Jarod." She reluctantly pulls out of his embrace. "I thought this was my ticket to freedom. For me and Tyler. I never thought I'd . . . " Miss Parker bites her lip to stop her flow of words. She couldn't admit that. Not now. Not like this. She couldn't tell him that somewhere in the middle of this little adventure she fell back in love with him. She couldn't reveal that she can't stop thinking about the pure love they shared as children and how that love has returned full force. She couldn't tell him how the past week has reminded her of her childhood dream to marry him and move far away from the Centre with their perfect babies. But that couldn't be now. There was love. And there were children. But the protection of those children prevented the rest of her dream from coming true.
"Never thought you'd what, Parker?" Jarod is curious.
"Never mind," she sighs, trying to paste on a reassuring smile. "Why don't you go get the kids and strap them in the car. We need to go."
"Where are we going? Where are we taking Rachel and the kids?"
"To my place," she says after a minute to think. "Maybe between now and then, we can combine our genius and come up with some other alternative."
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod looks up from road for a second to take a glance around the car. Next to him, Rachel was dozing, her head leaning against the window. In the back, Miss Parker had situated herself between Madison and Ryan to make sure Rachel would behave. There's no way Rachel would do anything to endanger their lives. She had no choice but to comply with Miss Parker's wishes.
What a mess he'd gotten himself in. For a grown man, he has certainly done some dumb things. Starting with ever sleeping with Rachel Burke in the first place. He doesn't even know why he did it. She wanted to talk that night. Talk about his past. Things he didn't want to discuss. So he seduced her instead. Then slipped out the next morning, never looking back.
Now, he has two children to protect. And to rescue them from the Centre, he's sacrificed his life to that very place. Knowing Miss Parker couldn't resist the chance at freedom, he engaged in one last game with her. A game she couldn't lose. She'd be able to take him in, earn her freedom, and have the SIM's as leverage. He just never counted on falling in love with her. And now the fact that he'll never see her again was tearing at his heart. She'll be free. She'll take him in and then walk away, getting as far away from a place she's been held prisoner her entire life.
He looks in his rear view mirror again to try to catch another glimpse of her. Through the darkness, he's able to make out the wetness of tears on her cheek and he instantly starts to worry.
"Lanie, what is it?" he asks. Her eyes pop open wide in shock. She can't believe he remembered what he used to call her. Hearing that name from his lips is somewhat comforting.
"Do you remember when we were kids?" Her voice was low and gravelly, as if she had been crying for hours. "That day when we first met?"
"Yeah," he smiles. "The best day of my life."
She gasps out loud, almost in tears at his words and is stunned into silence for a few moments.
"I loved you so much back then," she says finally. She pauses when this time, it's Jarod who gasps. "At first, you were just a distraction for me. My father used to give me trinkets and toys to keep me out of his hair. I usually got bored with them after awhile. I guess that's what he was counting on with you. They'd be able to observe you with me for whatever little studies they were doing. And I'd have a new toy for the summer. But I never got bored with you. And after my mother died, you became the most important person in my life."
"Lanie, you were the only good thing in my life. That place was . . . . horrible beyond words. But I was able to survive with you there. And knowing that you'll be safe, I think I'll be able to survive again."
"I'm sorry, Jarod," she whispers. The tears begin to fall again as she thinks about the unwinnable situation they're in. "I'm sorry for making you go back there. But I have to. I have to go back for Tyler. I can't just leave him there. And I can't go back without you," she tries to make some sense of their situation.
"I know. You never would have gotten into this if I hadn't promised you your freedom," he says.
"That's all I've ever wanted," she says. "To be free. But I always thought I'd be free . . . . with you."
One of the babies starts fussing and Miss Parker has to settle him down, essentially ending the conversation. Which was good for Miss Parker. Too many implications were being made that needed to be dealt with. She was glad for a brief respite.
"We're almost there, little one," she coos to Ryan, gently easing him back to sleep. Jarod watches the whole exchange as much as he can while still concentrating on driving. Seeing her with the kids always amazed him. There was a gentleness in her that never got to come out, except for when she was with the kids. Her whole face lit up and it looked like she was meant to be a mother. A mother to his children. He pushes that thought back down, along with the tears that seemed to accompany it. There was nothing to be done about that now. He's made his bed, with the wrong woman unfortunately. Now, he has to lie in it.
* * * * * * * * * *
Rachel opens her eyes when the car comes to a stop. For the past hour, she pretended to be asleep and learned some interesting things about Jarod and Miss Parker from their conversation. For one thing, Rachel had no clue they shared such a connected past. She realizes now that she never really stood a chance with Jarod. A love like the one they described doesn't just go away. She realizes now that she was nothing to Jarod. Just a blip on his radar. He's giving up his life for this woman. He's giving up his chance to raise his children for this woman. And she didn't deserve him.
She works for the very same place that took her children. They made a habit out of kidnapping children and holding them hostage to run tests on them. Rachel can't understand why Jarod would want to protect that woman. A woman who's hunted him like an animal for years just to take him back to that torture palace. It's like an extremely severe case of Stockholm Syndrome. He was held so long that he sympathizes with his captor. This woman. This *Miss Parker*. A sick psychological terrorist that needs to be stopped. And it's going to be Rachel's pleasure to stop her. A little grin spreads across her face as she realizes she's not yet out of the game. No Miss Parker - no need for Jarod feel he has to protect her by going back to that place. He'll be free to come with her and the babies. It's so simple. She doesn't know how she didn't think of it in the first place. Get rid of Miss Parker and Jarod will be hers.
"What are you smiling about?" Jarod asks, noticing the 'cat that ate the canary' look on Rachel's face.
"Nothing," she claims. "I just never pictured Miss Parker in a rustic little cabin in the woods. She seems more the penthouse type."
"I've lived in this house all of my life," Miss Parker snaps. "It's pretty much all I have left of my mother."
Her words bring silence to them all. Rachel almost feels guilty for teasing about it. But the guilt is quickly pushed away when she sees Jarod and Miss Parker each scoop up one of the babies and take them inside. The anger starts to grow again with each clank of the handcuffs. Every welt left by the cuffs on her wrist fuels her resolve to take care of this Parker situation once and for all.
They all move inside and Miss Parker finally allows for the cuffs to come off. Jarod hands Madison over to Rachel and then goes outside to finish unloading the car. Miss Parker and Rachel handle the tasks of bathing, feeding, and getting the kids ready for bed. Miss Parker is amused by Ryan's seemingly unending quest to get his foot into his mouth. He was so determined and she couldn't help but watch him in amazement.
"He gets that look from Jarod," she comments, catching Rachel slightly off guard. "His little eyebrows all scrunched up like that. He's trying to hard to get to his foot. It's like he's not going to give up until he figures it all out. Jarod looked like that all the time when he was younger when he couldn't figure out one of his problems."
"So you two have known each other for a long time?" Rachel asks, although she knows the answer. She learned all she needed to know from their conversation earlier.
"Jarod came to the Centre when he was just a boy. Not quite this young, though," Miss Parker says with a loving smile in Ryan's direction, tickling the boy on his belly. "We've known each other for about as long as I can remember. We've been together for a long time Rachel. Longer than you may have realized. He's been a part of my life for . . . forever. And I'm trying to come up with a way for things to stay that way. Despite you. Despite these children. Despite the Centre. Can't you see it? Jarod can never be a part of your life. Not the way you want him to be."
"And you think that's because of you?" Rachel asks incredulously.
"I know it is," Miss Parker responds with absolute certainty. "I've tried to deny it for a long time, but as cliche as this sounds, Jarod and I were made for each other. Our lives are so interconnected that I know I couldn't live without him. And frankly, I don't even want to try. If you fight me on this, then you'll lose." Miss Parker finishes up dressing Ryan and lifts him up to her shoulder. She shoots Rachel one last warning glare before taking him down to Jarod.
"There's my boy," he says with pride holding his arms out for the baby.
"Did you get all the stuff inside?" Miss Parker asks, leading them out to the back deck. He nods his head while opening the door for her.
"Then why didn't you come up and referee the latest bout between me and your little chickadee?"
"Had to make a few phone calls. You know how Syd worries." Jarod settles on the swing with the baby in one arm and throws his other arm around Miss Parker. "So this latest fight couldn't have been that bad. I didn't hear any screaming this time. No gunshots. No blood. I'd say you two were learning to get along."
"Funny," she chuckles. "You can give up on us ever getting along. You know how selfish I am. I'm not going to sit back and let her take what's rightfully mine."
"Rightfully yours? Why am I starting to feel like a slab of meat?" he laughs.
"Whatever. You know you love this. Isn't this every man's fantasy? Having two women fighting over him. I'm surprised you haven't built us a mud wrestling pit."
"Ooh, good idea, Parker. I didn't think the fantasy of two women fighting over me could be topped. But two dirty and slippery women fighting over me is an even better image," he teases with a big grin.
"You're incorrigible," she groans, rolling her eyes.
"Yeah, but you love me anyway," he says, leaning forward to rest his forehead on hers.
"Yeah, I do," she admits quietly. Suddenly, this wasn't a joke anymore. She was very serious. She lifts her hands to his face, gently running her thumb across his lips. "I really do love you. I always have."
"I know," he whispers. "I love you, too, Mary Elainna Parker. Always remember that. No matter what happens . . . "
"Jarod, don't," she interrupts him. "Let's not think about what may happen. Let's just enjoy this moment. Right here, right now. I've been waiting too long for this."
"For what?" he manages to gasp. Her warm breath washing over his face was starting to make him dizzy.
"Our second kiss," she says before closing the gap and covering his mouth with her own. She leans as close to him as she can, keeping in mind that the baby was between them. For a moment, she just enjoys the feel of his lips between her own before they both begin grunting impatiently for more. Her tongue begs for entrance and he eagerly complies, allowing her to explore the deepest recesses. Her hands move up his neck into his thick hair
and she gently massages his scalp.
"Wow," he says as he breaks away.
"Wow," she repeats. Her eyes are heavily lidded with desire she can't hide.
"That was almost worth the wait," he says breathlessly, placing small butterfly kisses along her jaw line.
"Almost," she responds, equally breathless. "But you better not make me wait that long again," she warns playfully, tilting her head to allow him better access.
"Wild horses couldn't stop me," he groans before capturing her lips once more to start the dance all over again.
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 5
* * * * * * * * * *
Rachel fumes, watching the whole scene from the upstairs window. She races downstairs, anxious to put a stop to the whole thing. She's got to admit. That *woman* moves quickly. She had Jarod all hot and panting for her in about 5 minutes flat. She was going to be more trouble than Rachel initially thought.
Just as she gets downstairs, a slight ringing noise tingles in her ears. She hunts around until she finds Miss Parker's cell phone in her jacket pocket.
"Hello?" she answers.
"Parker?" the deep voice on the other end asks.
"No, she's busy right now," Rachel says with a smile. She wonders if the man on the other end could be a boyfriend of Miss Parker's. She's sure he'd want to know about her current activities. "She's got a hot date out on the back porch."
"Yeah, that doesn't surprise me. I hear my sister would sleep with anything in pants," Lyle laughs.
"Sister?" Rachel's disappointed. She thought this would be a jealous boyfriend who'd race over here and put a stop to the awful display on the back porch. So much for that plan.
"Listen, could you tell her to let the poor sap get some air? I need to talk to her about work," Lyle says.
"You work with her at the Centre?" Rachel asks. Her mind starts churning again with another plan. Who says Jarod's the only genius around there? "It must be nice working with family. I bet you two share all kinds of secrets. Like her secret plan to run off with Jarod instead of bringing him in."
"Jarod? What do you know about Jarod?"
"He's the guy she's making out with," Rachel tells him, feigning innocence. "You did know those two were an item, didn't you?"
"Of course I knew about them," Lyle sputters, his voice betraying his excitement. Rachel knows she has him right where she wants him. "Listen, just forget about that message. I think I'm going to come by and surprise my sister instead. You'll keep this our little secret, right?"
"Our little secret," she says with an evil grin before hanging the phone up. This may work out just yet to her favor. If she guessed right about these people, this brother of Miss Parker's wouldn't be very happy about Jarod being here. And the idea of Miss Parker betraying the Centre was probably an act of treason punishable by extreme measures. All Rachel had to do now was get Jarod, herself and the twins out the house before those people came, guns blazing. The only person caught in the crossfire will be dear Miss Parker. She shifts Madison to her hip and heads to the back of the house to begin the next phase of her plan.
She peeks through the window and is sickened by the display of adolescent hormonal behavior going on out there. She had to put a stop to it and get Jarod out of the house. She'll worry about herself and the kids later.
"Sorry, Princess. But I gotta do this," she whispers to Madison before pinching the girl smartly on the stomach. Rachel's heart breaks at the cry of pain from her daughter, but it's a price she's willing to pay.
"Jarod," she says, sticking her head out of the back door. "I need you."
"What is it now, Rachel?" Miss Parker groans. She releases Jarod from her embrace and takes Ryan from his arms.
"Can't you hear Maddie? She's in pain," Rachel almost screams, trying to add to the hysteria.
"Is she okay?" Jarod panics, grabbing Madison and giving her a quick once over.
"She's fine," Rachel assures him. "Just a little gas, I think. She's been switching back and forth between the formula and the breast milk during this little escapade. I'm sure her stomach's just a little upset. I was looking through the stuff and I don't think you have any gas drops. I'll just run to the store for some real quick."
"I don't think so," Miss Parker interrupts. "You're not going anywhere." She glances over at Jarod with pleading eyes and misses the quick smirk cross Rachel's lips.
"I'll go," Jarod offers, answering Miss Parker's unasked question. Little did they know, it was just what Rachel was counting on. "And I'll take Maddie. Maybe the drive to the store will calm her down a bit. I think the CVS 2 blocks over on Elmwood is open late."
They walk into the house and Jarod goes to get the keys to the car. A knocking at the door stops them all in their tracks. Miss Parker puts her fingers to her lips to quiet them all, reaching behind her for her gun.
"Who is it?" she calls out.
"Sydney," the voice responds through the door. Miss Parker visibly relaxes and puts her gun back. She runs over to the door to let the older man inside.
"Sydney," she says, flinging the door open. "What are you doing . . . "
Her words get caught in her throat when she notices something move at Sydney's side.
"Momma home!" Tyler screams, pulling himself from Sydney and running to Miss Parker.
"Tyler," she cries, holding her arms out for the boy. Like a pro, she shifts Ryan to one hip and scoops up Tyler in one flawless motion. She places little kisses all over his face, trying hard to hold back her tears.
"Oh, I missed you so much Baby Boy." She looks over at Jarod and gives him an appreciating smile. *Thank you* she mouths to him before turning her attention back to the two babies in her arms.
"We'll talk when I get back from the store," Jarod whispers into her ear. "With Tyler here, I'd say we just got ourselves a couple more options. None of us may have to end up in the Centre after all." He kisses her quickly on the lips, then places a kiss on Ryan's forehead and ruffling Tyler's hair.
"Close your mouth, Syd," Miss Parker teases, amused at the man's obvious confusion. "Go with Jarod. He'll explain it all to you."
Sydney just nods and follows Jarod out the door.
With the men gone, Rachel reaches out for Ryan. Miss Parker gives up the child, no longer thinking of using the boy as leverage. She was just happy to have Tyler again.
"So who's this little handsome fellow? Your son?" Rachel asks, reaching out to stroke Tyler's cheek. Out of reflex, Miss Parker pulls away, not letting the woman touch the child.
"This is Tyler. My little brother. But I've practically raised him. His mother died during childbirth," Miss Parker explains.
Rachel glances nervously around the room, catching the time. She didn't know how far away Miss Parker's brother would be. But she was sure he'd be there any minute. She had to figure out a way to get out before it was too late. She has to hold back a grin when an idea comes to her.
"He's your brother? I thought he called you 'Momma'. Must be strange for you. Having this little one depend on you. But you not really being what he needs. You weren't the one who carried him for nine months inside of you. And you aren't the one who can nourish him with your body. You're not a *true* mother." Rachel pulls up a corner of her shirt and allows Ryan to reach up and find her breast. She sighs with over exaggerated contentment to further annoy Miss Parker as the baby nurses. Just as she suspected, Miss Parker gets nervous and stands up with her brother.
"I'll be in the kitchen getting a snack for Tyler," Miss Parker grumbles, allowing Rachel's words to make her feel inadequate. She's in the kitchen for a few minutes, cutting up an apple for the boy when she hears the front door open. She immediately realizes her mistake in leaving Rachel alone with Ryan, allowing her the chance to escape.
"That little sneak," she growls. She leaves Tyler at the table with his snack and runs out of the kitchen, pulling out her gun in the process. She didn't want to hold the gun on Rachel with the baby, but she had no choice.
"Rach - " she starts just as she runs into a scene she didn't expect.
"Ah, there you are, Sis," Lyle grins. He had his own gun trained on Rachel and a gleam in his eyes that says he's not afraid to use it. Slowly Miss Parker lowers her weapon, placing it back in her pants waistband. "Your little friend here says you had a hot date with our favorite lab rat. Where is he?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Miss Parker lies easily. She glares at Rachel, trying to figure out what was going on with the woman. "Why would Jarod be here? What would even give you that idea?"
"Parker, I think you better pick your friends better," Lyle laughs. "She's got a pretty big mouth.
"She's *not* my friend," Miss Parker emphasizes, glaring at Rachel again.
"Well, whatever the case may be. Your houseguest has a big mouth. I called about an hour ago. And she was more than eager to tell me about a pressing activity you were engaged in."
Before she realizes it, Miss Parker feels a flush rising to her cheeks. She has to force herself to think of anything other than Jarod's lips all over her.
"The only activity I was engaged in an hour ago was an interrogation of my witness. That's all this woman is. She told me she knew where Jarod was and I brought her here to question her."
"Question her," Lyle repeats incredulously. "Right."
"You can believe me or not, Lyle," Miss Parker sighs her exasperation. "You can question this woman yourself and waste time trying to get information that I already got. Or we can go get Jarod now before it's too late and he disappears again."
"I guess that's a no brainer," Lyle says before releasing Rachel. "Miss, you're free to go. I'm sorry about the inconvenience," he apologizes insincerely.
"Yeah, thanks again for the information," Miss Parker says to Rachel. "I parked your car in the garage. The keys are on the counter. You can go through the kitchen to get to it." She assumes Jarod took the X-Terra to the store, so the only vehicle left for Rachel was her car.
"Sure, I'm glad I can help." Rachel looks to Miss Parker to make sure it was okay to be leaving and she nods quickly in response. Lyle doesn't notice the silent communication between the two women. She takes the keys off the counter and heads toward the kitchen door.
"Oh, and Rachel? Take good care of those babies." She silently pleads with Rachel and hopes she understands what she's trying to say.
"I will," Rachel promises. "I'll guard them with my life. All three of them."
Miss Parker closes her eyes to hold in the tears, sighing in relief that Tyler will be safe. Now, all she had to do was give Rachel enough time to get away and pray that she reaches the drug store to find Jarod.
"Alright," Miss Parker finally says after hearing the car start and drive away. "Let's go get Jarod."
"Not so fast," Lyle says. Miss Parker looks at him and notices that he now has his gun on her.
"What are you doing, Lyle?"
"You don't think I believed that little act, did you?" he asks with a laugh. "Like it or not, Parker, we're blood. And I know how your mind works. I'm guessing is that you really do know where Jarod is. But that there was no way you were actually going to take me there."
"So why did you let Rachel go?"
"Come on, Parker. Like I said, we're blood. I'm sure you can figure out how my mind works too."
"No thanks. I'd rather stay out of psycholand, if you don't mind," she says sarcastically, drawing another laugh from him.
"Why is it that the first thing that comes to mind is 'Takes on to know one'? But I won't go there. I can see you're not in the mood to play." His laughter dies down and he gets a dangerous gleam in his eyes. "When I was 8, my adopted father taught me how to fish. He told me that the secret of a true fisherman was to know which bait to use. Something told me that Rachel wasn't the right bait for the type of fish I'm trying to catch."
"And what is the right bait?" she asks, true fear beginning to settle in her heart.
"To catch a fish named Jarod? You, dear sister," Lyle says as if it should have been totally clear. "I'm going to use you. I'm sure that as we speak, your little friend is scurrying off to tell Jarod about your little predicament. It's only a matter of time before your knight in shining armor attempts to rescue his damsel in distress."
"Unless he doesn't come," Miss Parker counters, praying desperately that he doesn't come, while at the same time hoping that he does. "Rachel wants Jarod for herself. Now that I'm out of the picture, what makes you think she'll even tell him about this?"
"He'll come," Lyle says confidently. "He'll always come for you. And when he does, I'll be here waiting."
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 6
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod pulls into the parking space at the CVS and marvels at the silence from the back seat. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with Madison. She was silently looking out the window, in awe at all the street lights.
"Syd, does she look like she has gas to you?" Jarod asks.
"I really wouldn't know, Jarod," the older man chuckles. "She looks fine to me."
"She was screaming earlier. Rachel said it was from an upset stomach. She looks fine to me, too." Jarod chews on his bottom lip, trying to shake a sudden feeling of uneasiness.
"Rachel. She's the other young woman at the house? The mother of these children?"
"Yeah," Jarod sighs. "This is a big mess. Too bad I didn't hang around the Centre long enough to learn the virtues of safe sex." Jarod laughs uneasily at his situation.
"So they're yours as well," Sydney comments.
"That's Madison. Ryan is at the house with Parker and Rachel," he explains.
"Jarod, how did this all happen?"
"How far back do you need me to start?" Jarod jokes.
"Not that far," Sydney blushes. "How did you all end up at Parker's house together? And might I add that neither woman looked very happy with the situation."
"Trust me, Syd. They were on their best behavior for you. They were coexisting rather peacefully without the need for guns and cuffs," Jarod laughs.
"Sounds like two dangerous women. I'd hate to be in the middle of them. How is it that's exactly where you are, Jarod?"
"The Centre kidnapped Maddie and Ryan. I asked Miss Parker to help me rescue them. In exchange, I'd let her take me back so she can earn her freedom. But as we spent more time together, one thing led to another, and we realized that we didn't want to live without each other anymore. Unfortunately, she had been gone so long supposedly looking for me that she had to bring me back. For her own safety and for Tyler's. He's the only reason we came back. But now that we have him, the situation might not be as hopeless as we originally thought. There are some other options now. As for things with . . ."
"Rachel," Sydney finishes.
"Yeah, things with Rachel are going to be a bit more difficult."
"No, it's Rachel," Sydney points. "Walking across the parking lot. It looks like she has the boys with her."
"Oh no," Jarod mumbles, quickly pushing the car door open and running across the parking lot to catch up with Rachel. "What happened. What are you doing here?" He bends down and lifts up Tyler into his arms.
"We have to go. Now, Jarod," she warns him. Spotting the X-
Terra, she starts to run towards it. Jarod follows her.
"Rachel, what's going on?" he asks again.
"Start driving and I'll tell you," she says, buckling Ryan in the other car seat and then reaching for Tyler.
"Where's Miss Parker?" Jarod asks impatiently. He wasn't going anywhere until they got answers.
"They're coming for you," Rachel lies. "As soon as you left, she called that scary brother of hers. Now they're coming to track you down. We have to go."
"Something's not right. I can feel it. Parker wouldn't do that," Jarod insists.
"Oh really? She's the type of woman who'd hold me and my children hostage, but you don't think she'd do the job she's been paid to do for years now? You think you know her well enough to bet your life on that? To bet our children's lives?"
"I'm not going to risk the children," he says quietly. Rachel sighs in relief. He hands Tyler over to her. And while she's busy trying to get him buckled on her lap, Jarod grabs the keys to Miss Parker's car off the seat.
"Jarod, what are you doing?" Rachel panics.
"I'm not going to risk the children," he repeats. "But I know something's wrong. Sydney, take them up to your cabin. I'm going to go get Miss Parker."
"Jarod," Rachel calls. But it's too late. He's already gone.
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod parks the car down the street, opting to walk the rest of the way. Each step brings him closer to Miss Parker's house, but it also brings him more and more certainty that she's in danger. No matter what Rachel said, he knew that Miss Parker wouldn't be working with Lyle to bring him in. Not after this past week. He refused to believe that.
He approaches the house from the rear, scanning the area carefully for signs this is a trap. He manages to make his way to the back porch without spotting any sweepers waiting for him. So far so good. But he wouldn't put anything past Lyle. Peeking inside the house, he sees Miss Parker sitting on the couch, her back to him. No one appears to be in the room with her. He quietly slides the door open and creeps inside.
"Parker," he whispers. Her head snaps up she struggles to look around. He can see as he gets closer that she's been gagged. More than likely, she's also been bound.
"Parker, I'm here," he says a little louder, moving to where he's now in front of her. He works to remove the gag from her mouth first before moving to the restraints around her legs.
"Jarod, you gotta go. Rachel told Lyle you were here and he came for you," she spits out as soon as the gag is removed.
"Not without you," he refuses.
"Don't worry about me. Just go," she orders. With her feet free, Jarod pulls out his pocket knife to work on the ropes around her wrists. So intent on his task, he misses the look of horror cross her face. "Jarod watch out!"
But the warning comes too late. A sharp pain cracks Jarod skull and all he sees is darkness.
* * * * * * * * * *
"Sydney?" Rachel asks meekly. "You think you can pull over for a minute? I need to use the restroom and I'm sure the kids could use a diaper change."
Sydney glances down at the clock. They'd only been driving an hour, but he figures they were far enough outside of Blue Cove to safely stop for a minute. He nods at her and smiles gently as he begins to search for a place to stop. A few minutes later, he takes the next exit and follows the signs to a grocery store, passing by a number of gas stations along the way.
"All of Tyler's stuff is still at Parker's house. I'll need to run in and get him some diapers and snacks," Sydney explains his strange stopping place. "You stay here and get started changing the babies."
Rachel smiles at him until he disappears into the store. As soon as he's out of view, she reaches for the cell phone he left. She thinks for a second before dialing a number. She goes through a series of automated questions before finally reaching a live person.
"FBI, Dover. Can I help you?"
"Yes, this is Agent Rachel Burke. My badge number is AQ-4390657. I'm calling to report a hostage situation that I need immediate assistance on."
"Hold please," the operator calmly says. Rachel nervously taps her fingers, waiting for someone to get back on the line.
"Agent Burke? This is Agent Charles. Now I need for you to tell me your exact location."
"I'm about 75 miles outside of Blue Cove, Delaware. At a Safeway right off of exit 29 of I-47," she reports. "The hostage is back in Blue Cove, last seen at the residence of one of the kidnappers. 1720 Mountainbrook Lane. The hostage could possibly have been relocated to a business in the area. A place called the Centre."
"The Centre? How did you get mixed up with them?" Agent Charles asks, noticeably shaken by mention of the place.
"It's a long story. They had my children, who have been rescued. But their father is still there."
"Agent Burke, stay where you are. There will be agents there to retrieve you in a few minutes. They've already been dispatched."
"Thank you," she says before hanging up the phone. She unstraps Madison from her seat and changes her quickly. She was in the middle of changing Ryan's diaper when Sydney emerges from the store.
"Sorry it took so long. There was only one register open," he explains.
"No problem," she comments distractedly. She's focusing on a sound in the distance that was getting closer and closer. Sirens! The cavalry was near. She turns back to Sydney and gives him a sympathetic glance. "I'm sorry, Sydney. But there's been a change of plans."
"What are you talking about?" Sydney looks around and notices the sirens were surrounding them now. "What is all this?"
"I'm not playing this game the Centre way anymore," she snarls. "I'm going to get Jarod and then that place is going down." She holds up her badge as the other agents get closer to identify herself.
"Agent Burke?" one of them calls.
"Right here," Rachel answers. "Who's in charge?"
"Agent Daniels is leading the rescue. He'll be here momentarily," the agent tells her.
"I need this man and these children to be placed in protective custody," Rachel orders.
"We can take them back to headquarters, Ma'am. They'll be safe there."
Rachel kisses her babies on the cheeks before handing them over to a female agent. She watches the children get safely inside the FBI vehicles and pull away. Sydney glances back at her before he's placed in a separate car.
"You don't know what you're getting into," he warns Rachel. "These are dangerous people. And Miss Parker isn't one of them."
"As far as I'm concerned, she is. I'm going to get Jarod. And whatever happens to her . . . well, I'll have no control over that," she says coldly before turning back to the other agent.
Sydney sighs heavily and allows the agents to place him in the car. He says a silent prayer for the safety of the two people he loves as if they were his own children. The car pulls away and he realizes that all he can do now is hope for the best.
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod works hard to pry his eyes open and quickly realizes that one of them is swollen shut. With the one eye that did open, he glances around at his surroundings and knows immediately he's not at Miss Parker's house anymore. All he can see are bars. He pushes is aching body up off the floor and reaches out for one of the bars to help pull himself up. Once he's on his feet, he can get a better look around. But he realizes that may have been a mistake. With a groan, his mind begins to process where he is. He's back at the Centre. Locked in that cage he was in the last time he was here. Right after he was captured when Miss Parker was shot.
Parker! His mind picks up on the name and he goes on alert again, looking around for her. His heart sinks when he notices a lump huddled in the far corner. He moves his battered body as quickly as he can until he's right next to the body. He prays desperately that it's not her as he gently rolls the body over.
"No," he gasps when it's her face he sees. "Parker. Wake up, Honey."
With a groan, she begins to stir, not yet opening her eyes.
"That's it," he encourages her. "Wake up, Parker. Open those gorgeous eyes for me."
"Jarod?" she asks. Her eyes pop open and he can see the fear in them. "Where are we?"
He helps her sit up while he checks her for any injury. Not seeing any, he's relieved to know they left her alone. All he can see is a small needle-sized mark on her upper arm.
"I think we're at the Centre. The accommodations seem to be a bit familiar," he tells her.
"Jarod, what did they do to you?" She lifts a shaky hand up to his bruised face.
"I don't know." He hisses when her fingers touch a sensitive spot. "But something tells me I'm glad I don't remember. They may have drugged me like they probably did you." He points to the mark on her arm.
"We have to get out of here. What if they come back for you?"
"There's no way out," he whispers, dropping his head so he won't have to look at her. "I've been here before. Right after you were shot and they captured me."
"They had you caged up like an animal?" she asks incredulously. "You had a room when you were here before."
"When I was here before, I may not have had any rights, but they at least treated me like a person. I wasn't just a pet for you demented brother. Lyle's not as accommodating as Sydney was. He drugs me. He tortures me. He keeps me in this cage. And there's no way out."
"There's got to be a way out," she insists. "Jarod, I'm not going to let us die in here."
"That won't happen," he promises. He grabs her face and kisses her gently on the lips. "I won't let anything happen to you." He bites back the pain shooting through his chest as he pulls himself from her arms. Holding on to the bars, he pulls himself back up.
"Hey," he yells up towards where he knows the camera is hidden. "I know you can hear me."
"Jarod, what are you doing?" she asks.
"Just what I was going to ask," a voice says from the darkness. They hear a couple of footsteps before Lyle's face is visible. "What do you want, Jarod? Is your room not to your liking?" he laughs.
"Listen, you sick freak. I don't care what you do to me. But she doesn't need to be in here," Jarod says, nodding his head in Miss Parker's direction. Miss Parker looks at Jarod with surprise.
"Oh, isn't that sweet. Trying to save her. How noble of you. Sis, I told you your white knight would come to your rescue, didn't I?"
"Shut up," she growls. "Both of you. Jarod, I'm not going anywhere without you."
"She has something you need, Lyle," Jarod continues, ignoring Miss Parker's words. "Capturing me is only half of it. There's something else the Triumvirate wants returned."
"You mean the DSA's? I took them from your place, Parker."
"That was just the case, you moron," she spits.
"The DSA's are some place safe," Jarod continues. "Some place only she can get to."
"Where are they?" Lyle demands to know, sighing impatiently when Jarod just smiles.
"I think someone's ready to make a deal," he says with his trademark smirk. "Release her and then we talk."
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 7
* * * * * * * * * *
Rachel leads the team into Miss Parker's house, carelessly searching through the wreckage left behind. It was obvious that some kind of struggle had taken place before. And there were a few splotches on the floor that looks suspiciously like blood. Although it was impossible to tell who's blood it was. But she had a feeling that it belonged to Jarod.
"Bag it," she says with a quivering voice, pointing to the stains on the floor. She moves through the house sifting through Miss Parker's personal belongings. She tries to tell herself she's looking for clues to their where-a-bouts, but in all honesty she's just trying to get a feel of the woman who owns Jarod's heart.
"Agent Daniels?" she calls, finally giving up when her search through Miss Parker's racy underwear drawer only made her more depressed. Not a panty girdle or nursing bra in sight. "I think they may be headed towards the Centre since both Miss Parker and her brother work there. We should move our search there."
"Agent Burke, we have no idea where this so called place is. It's a bit of an urban legend around here. Everyone's heard of it, but no one knows if it actually exists," Agent Daniels explains. "We wouldn't know where to begin to look for this place. And once we found it, we wouldn't know where to begin to look for the hostage."
Rachel lets out an impatient sigh. She didn't come this far for nothing. She was going to find the Centre. And she was going to find Jarod. She wasn't going to let anyone stop her.
"Agent Burke. There's someone down here claiming to know the suspects," a young agent calls from downstairs. Rachel instantly perks back up. Maybe all hope wasn't lost after all. She straightens her shoulders and marches downstairs. She'd scare the information from this person if necessary.
"I'm Agent Burke," she introduces herself the tall, gangly man. "And you are?"
"Broots," he replies nervously. "What's going on here? What are you all doing here?"
"Mr. Broots," Rachel drawls, pulling out the southern charm. She can see this man is harmless and won't be needing intimidation. "You know the owner of this home?"
"Miss Parker? Yeah, we're coworkers. And friends. I've known her for years," he says. He looks around at the condition the house is in and starts to panic. "Did something happen to her?"
"We're trying to find her now," Rachel admits. "We have some questions for her. We think she may have gone to The Centre, but we don't know where that is. You think you could tell us?" A couple of bats of her eyelashes and she has Broots eating out of her hand. He tells her all he needs to know and then some. When she has enough information, she dismisses him.
"Agent Burke?" Broots asks before leaving. "There was an older gentleman here earlier. Sydney. Do you know where he is?"
"Check with FBI Headquarters in Dover. He should be there," she tells him, smiling when the man is visibly relieved. Miss Parker seemed to have very good and very loyal friends for some reason. She didn't deserve them.
Rachel watches Broots get in his car and pull away, presumably to retrieve his friend from FBI Headquarters. She then turns to search for Agent Daniels. She's surprised to find he's right next to her.
"Did you get the address?" he asks.
"Yeah. It's not too far from here," she tells him. "Let's move out. It's going to be dark soon."
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod lets out a painful moan as he tries to shift his body into a more comfortable position.
"I think they may have broken a few ribs," he groans.
"Are you going to be okay, Jarod?" Miss Parker asks, concern masking her face. She moves his head onto her lap and soothingly runs her fingers through his hair.
"I will be when they let you out of here," he says.
"Jarod, I'm not leaving you in here all . . ."
"You can't be here," he interrupts her. "I promised you your freedom."
"That freedom's not going to mean anything without you," she whispers, leaning over to kiss him on the forehead.
"Well, Lyle's talking to your father right now to see if they agree to the deal."
"You really think they want the DSA's that badly?" she wonders out loud. "Why? Is it all just about the money?" She looks down on him when he noticeably tenses. "Jarod?"
"Don't worry about the why, Lanie." Jarod lifts his head from off of Miss Parker's lap, taking a moment to get his equilibrium back before standing up all the way. He stumbles across the cell and turns away from her.
"You know what's so important about them." She stands up and walks right behind him, hands on her hips ready to drag the truth out of him if necessary. "Jarod, why are they so desperate to get these DSA's? What's on them that's so important?"
"The secrets of the universe," he laughs cynically. "One of life's biggest mysteries, unraveled and reduced to a simple scientific equation."
"Jarod, what did you do?" she whispers. "What did you discover?" He turns to face her and his dark eyes bore straight into her soul.
"Something that no man should *ever* know," he growls through clenched teeth. Shutting his eyes, he leans back against the wall and slides down until he's sitting again. A moment later, she can hear his sobs wracking his body, obviously causing pain to his battered frame.
"What is it, Baby?" she cries along with him. Sitting on the floor next to him, she wraps him in her arms and rubs his back to calm him down. "You're scaring me."
"I scared myself," he sniffs. "The things that I'm capable of thinking up are terrifying. The things that I'm able to do. Things that I refused to allow them to do to you. To us. That's the real reason I left all those years ago. And I took the DSA's with me so that my SIMs wouldn't allow them to . . . " He stops, not wanting to say any more than that.
"To what?" She's shaking now, truly afraid of what he has to say. But she notices that he's gone still. "Jarod? Jarod can you hear me?" She shakes him and gets no response.
"Jarod," she screams. She lays him out on the ground and tries to revive him. "Please wake up, Jarod."
None of her efforts are successful and she gets scared. Remembering how Jarod summoned Lyle earlier, she runs over to where the camera is situated and screams for help. A second later she hears Lyle's footsteps come through the door.
"What's the problem now?" he asks in an irritated tone. "What's wrong with Loverboy? He's not a pro like you, Sis. You really should take it easy on him."
"Shut up, you idiot. There's something wrong with him," she yells.
"Hey, it's not my fault if he can't handle your stamina . . ." His words are cut off by her hand shooting through the bars and grabbing around his neck.
"I suggest you get him medical attention immediately," she growls. "Especially if you want to see your precious DSA's again. If he dies, then all the secrets die with him."
"Fine," he gasps, finally pulling out of her grip. He reaches in his pocket for his cell phone and dials a few numbers.
"It's me," he says, rubbing his sore neck. "Send a medical team down. We need to transfer him to the renewal wing." He hangs up the phone and places it back in his pocket.
"Happy now? He's going to be taken care of. So that when he wakes up, he can tell you where the DSA's are and you can run and go get them like a good little girl."
"Daddy agreed to the deal," she comments with some surprise, her emotions mixed. Part of her hoped he would so that she could get out. But part of her wanted to stay with Jarod, even if she had to be a prisoner of that place along with him.
She walks over to Jarod's unconscious form and kneels next to him, bending over his head.
"Get better," she whispers into his ear. "Get better so that you can help me think of a way out of here. For both of us." She kisses his lips gently just as the medical team arrives to take him away.
* * * * * * * * * *
"How do you want to do this?" Rachel asks Agent Daniels once they arrived at the Centre. They didn't know much about the place and didn't want to rush in with guns blazing. They just needed to make sure that Jarod was inside before deciding how to proceed.
"It's your call," he replies, looking at the intimidating building. "Like I said, this is the first any of us have ever seen this place. Up until now, it was just a myth."
"The place seems to be very well guarded. Too guarded for us to try to sneak in. We're going to have to go in through the front doors," she says. Agent Daniels widens his eyes at her nerve, but follows her anyway after making a quick check for his weapon.
Rachel leads him to the doors and waits patiently for him to open them for her. Smiling her thanks, she walks through and looks for an information desk or something. Spotting a guard off to the left, she heads that way, grabbing Agent Daniels' arm in mock affection.
"Just play along," she whispers to him, leading him to the desk with her.
"May I help you?" the young officer asks.
"Hi. My name's Rachel. And this is my husband, Jamie," she says by way of introduction. "I have an old friend who works here. I wanted to stop by and surprise her."
"What's the name?"
"Parker. Miss Parker," Rachel tells him nervously. She begins to panic for a second when a terrified look crosses the officer's face.
"M-M-Miss Parker? Ho-hold on a second," he stutters in obvious fear. He quickly turns and dials a number on the phone behind him. After a few 'uhm-hmms' and 'are you sures', the officer hangs up and faces them again. "Take those elevators over there up to the fourth floor. Turn left and her secretary's at the end of the hall."
"Thanks a lot," Rachel smiles, squeezing Agent Daniels to prompt him to do the same.
"I can't believe it was that easy," Agent Daniels says once they're in the elevator. "But why are we going to this woman's office? She wouldn't be holding your hostage in there, would she?"
"No, but I think I'll be able to persuade her to lead me to him," Rachel says, imagining her sweet revenge. "It won't be long now. I'll have Jarod back and Miss Parker will have what she deserves - nothing."
Agent Daniels takes a breath like he's about to say something, but the look in Rachel's eyes suggest he should just keep his mouth shut. Something tells him that there was more to this situation than what Agent Burke was telling him. She was in this for personal reasons. Suddenly he began to wonder what he'd gotten himself involved in.
* * * * * * * * * *
The Centre medics take Jarod into a room in the renewal wing and unceremoniously dumps him on a bed, causing Miss Parker to cringe at the pain he would be feeling if her were awake.
"Watch it," she yells, pushing one of the orderlies out of her way. She stands next to Jarod's bed and lays her hand on his chest to reassure herself he was still breathing.
"That'll be all," Lyle tells the men. "Let the doctor know he's here." The orderlies nod and silently let themselves out.
"Alright. Your little Boy Toy is all safe and tucked in. Let's go talk to Dad now," Lyle says, grabbing Miss Parker's arm.
"I'm not leaving him," she insists, yanking her arm from Lyle's grasp. "Not until I know he's going to be okay. Not until I know what you had your goons do to him." She narrows her eyes, shooting him an accusing glare.
"Parker, we need to . . ."
"Ah, Miss Parker," the doctor says as he walks into the room, cutting off whatever Lyle was about to say. He smiles at the woman standing next to the bed and holds out his arms. "It's been so long."
"Dr. Parini!" she exclaims cheerfully, running to the man like she did when she was a little girl. Next to Sydney, he was the nicest adult working at the Centre. He was the only doctor ever able to give her shots without a big fuss. "I thought you retired years ago."
"Just took a sabbatical for awhile," he tells her. "I've been back for a few months."
Her smile turns into a grimace when she turns back to Jarod's badly broken form. The doctor hears her dejected sigh and takes note of the patient on the bed.
"I see you two are still inseparable." He places a hand on her shoulder and feels her lean slightly into his touch. "Don't worry. I'll patch Jarod up, good as new. Just like always. So, what kind of trouble have you gotten him in this time?"
"I know some of our adventures back then got a little . . . dangerous. And that most of them were my idea," she smiles in reminiscence. "But it wasn't me this time. I swear."
They both laugh for a minute at how many times in the past she's given Dr. Parini that same excuse after her and Jarod showed up in his office with various mysterious injuries. The moment is short lived as they look over in Lyle's direction, shooting daggers at him. They know he's to blame this time.
"Do you have any idea what's wrong with him?" she asks.
"I'm assuming he was beaten pretty badly, but I don't see any evidence of internal bleeding. Probably a couple of bruised or broken ribs. I'll wrap his chest and give him something for the pain. Once his body recovers a bit from the shock, I'm sure he'll wake up." He sends her a gentle smile to let her know Jarod would be fine. His smile is contagious and Miss Parker soon finds herself smiling back, believing everything would be alright.
"You heard the man, Sis. Now, let's go," Lyle insists, bringing a frown to Miss Parker's face.
"Go on," the doctor nudges her. "He's in good hands."
"Alright," she relents. "But I'll be right back to check on him as soon as I'm done." She leans down to give Jarod one more kiss on the cheek before following Lyle out the door.
Halfway down the hall, she turns in the opposite direction from her father's office.
"Where are you going?" Lyle is puzzled.
"Lyle, you kidnapped me from my home sometime last night, I assume. I'd like to get into some fresh clothes, if you don't mind,"
"Whatever," he sighs. "Just hurry it up." He sits on the sofa outside her office to give her some privacy.
She rolls her eyes and then pushes her door open, barely taking time to notice her assistant absent from his desk. She walks straight to the little closet she keeps for times such as this, stopping only when she sees her missing assistant now sitting at her desk.
"Dennis, what are you doing in here?" she asks with some annoyance. She continues on to the closet and pulls out the first suit she comes to.
"He's here with me," an icy voice drips behind her.
Miss Parker starts to turn around, only to feel the butt of a gun pressed into her back, mere inches from where the last bullet pierced. She looks at Dennis and can now see that the man is sitting there in handcuffs, not trying very hard to mask his fear.
"Put your hands up and turn around very slowly," the voice says again.
Miss Parker complies, her anger growing once she realizes who her assailant is. And she can see that she's not alone this time.
"Rachel," Miss Parker growls. "What brings you here?"
* * * * * * * * * *
chapter 8
* * * * * * * * * *
"Oh, you know good and well what I want, Miss Parker. Now where is he?"
"You think I'm just going to tell you that?" Miss Parker asks with a joyless laugh. "I don't think so."
"I figured you'd make this difficult," Rachel says, rolling her eyes. "I was giving you one last chance. But since you don't want to cooperate, I guess I no longer have any use for you." She takes the safety off the gun and points it at Miss Parker's heart.
"Agent, stand down," Agent Daniels says finally. He realizes that Rachel was about to seriously cross a line. He raises his own gun and points it at Rachel.
"Stay out of this, Daniels. This is between me and her. She's the only thing standing in the way of the my life. My happiness."
"Listen to yourself, Rachel," Miss Parker spits out. "You're pathetic. You're thinking about your life. Your happiness. What about what Jarod wants? You think he wants you? It's me he wants. And you know it. You have to accept that."
"Shut up!" Rachel screams. "Both of you."
"Calm down, Burke. Put the gun down. I don't want to have to shoot you," Agent Daniels warns. "She hasn't done anything."
"Oh, she's done plenty. She's guilty of hurting my Jarod. And I'm not going to let her do it again." Rachel rationalizes in her own mind. Her voice is colder and her movements are more resolute. It's as if she's made her decision and she knows exactly what she has to do. Her eyes lose any light they once had, and turn glaring at Miss Parker with a chilling darkness.
Miss Parker closes her eyes, knowing that her death is imminent. She squeezes them tight, waiting for the gunshot. She jumps when she hears it, but it takes a moment for her to realizes she wasn't hit. Opening her eyes, she sees Rachel, writhing on the floor in pain, holding onto her right shoulder. Agent Daniels is bending over her, trying to stop the blood flow.
"What's going on in here?" Lyle asks, rushing into the room after hearing the gunshot, his own gun in hand. He surprised to see the two agents, one shot, and one holding a smoking gun.
"Stay where you are," Agent Daniels warns, standing up to get control of the situation. "I don't know who you people are or what's going on here. All I know is that I just had to shoot a fellow agent."
"What's going on here, you ask? Well, let me explain a little something to you," Lyle sneers. "Here at the Centre, we don't like questions. I mean, we could answer them, but then we'd just have to kill you. So how about I just skip the answering part."
Before anyone could blink, Lyle shoots Agent Daniels in the head. The man's surprised corpse falling instantly dead to the floor. He turns the gun to Rachel next, finishing the job the other agent started. Miss Parker stares into the dying woman's eyes until all the life leaves them. She bends down and out of some strange notion of respect, closes Rachel's still open eyes. She barely registers the last shot, killing her assistant.
"Lyle, you just executed 3 people," she cries, terrified he was about to do the same to her. Or worse. Scared that he's go after Jarod, too.
"Don't worry, Sis. No harm can come to you," he assures. But some how his words just frighten her even more. "You're too important to the project."
"Project? What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about the grand scheme of things, Parker," he laughs. "What? You didn't think we thought you'd actually catch Jarod and let you free, did you? No. We have big plans for the two of you. Just as soon as we get those DSA's back. We can finish the work that Jarod ironically enough started."
"What work?" she asks, stalling him for time while her mind tried to come up with a way out of this.
"Just before he escaped, Jarod unwittingly developed the key that unlocked the mysteries of the universe. He was basically a fluke of nature. A natural born pretender. A gift from God. But he came up with a way for us to be God and make our own pretenders. Once he figured out what we would be doing with that information and who we'd be using, he took off."
"You were going to use him. And me," she realizes, suddenly understanding why Jarod was so upset before. She wobbles a bit from the shock, grabbing onto the back of a chair for support.
Lyle shrugs his shoulder at her as if the notion weren't that big a deal. He bends down to take the weapon from Agent Daniels and Miss Parker sees her chance. She quickly picks up the chair she's holding on to, not even bothering to try to stay quiet. She needs as much force as she can gather. Lyle hears her and turns around, but all he sees is the chair swinging towards his head.
He hits the ground with a thump, a stream of blood dripping from his head. She checks to see if he's dead or not and then takes the cuffs from Agent Daniels to cuff Lyle to her closet door. She gets all of the guns that have been scattered across the floor and moves to her desk to dial a number on the phone.
"This is Sydney," the deep voice answers on the other end.
"Sydney, thank God," she cries.
"Parker! It's Parker," he says to someone on the background. "Are you okay? Broots went by your house and saw the place crawling with FBI."
"I'm fine," she tries to assure him. Although she's not so sure of that fact herself. "I just need to get me and Jarod out of here. And quickly. Where are you? Are the kids with you?"
"On the way back to the Centre. We figured that's where you and Jarod would be. And yes, the kids are here. They're fine."
"They're fine. I'm fine. Jarod's going to be fine. It's all over," she sighs in relief before she feels her legs give away under her. Tears begin to stream down her face from the extreme emotion she feels flowing throughout her body. She feels lucky she cheated death. She feels sad that three people had to die in her office today. She feels confused at the strong maternal instinct she seems to have naturally developed over the past week. But mostly she feels the pains of impending change. Like she told Sydney, it was all over. And she knew things would never be the same again.
* * * * * * * * * *
Jarod looks out into the silent woods surrounding the cabin. They'd been there for 3 days. And there's been no sign that anyone had followed them. They were probably safe. He takes his first deep breath in a long time, releasing a lot of the pent up tension of fear of being captured he once held. Freedom never felt better. Because this time he wasn't alone.
"Deep cleansing breaths?" Miss Parker asks, coming up from behind him and scaring him a bit.
"Just taking in the sweet smell of freedom," he smiles, pulling her into his arms. "The kids asleep?"
"Maddie is. But the boys were playing together so quietly. I didn't want to disturb them," she says, snuggling into his hug. "They get along well. Maybe in time, this will all be just an unhappy memory. Maybe they'll . . . "
"They'll forget. They're not going to remember this. None of it. They're too young," he whispers assuringly before giving her a quick kiss on the forehead. They reluctantly pull apart and go to sit on the porch swing, swinging in a soothing motion for a few minutes.
"I got an e-mail today from Broots," she says suddenly, breaking the comfortable silence. "A memorial service is being held by the FBI for Rachel and that other agent that was with her." She buries her face in his chest and begins sobbing, confusing Jarod with her obvious overwhelming grief.
"It's okay, Lanie," he tries to calm her. "This may sound cruel and heartless, but Rachel got what she deserved. I don't wish what happened to her on anyone. But Syd warned her about the type of people at the Centre. She was so bent on revenge and getting at me, that she got careless. And that got her killed."
"I know that in my head," she sniffs. "But like her or not, she was everything to those twins. Now, they have to grow up without a mother. I know what that's like. I wouldn't wish *that* on anyone." She's puzzled when he gets a dreamy smile on his face before leaning down to capture her lips with his own.
"They'll have a mother," he says gently, stroking her cheek with his thumb.
"I know you're a pretender, Jarod. But I'm sure even this is beyond your capabilities. You'd make a hideous woman," she says with a laugh.
"Oh darn," he jokes. "I guess I'll have to find an actual woman to fill the position, then. Any ideas?"
"I may know of someone who's interested," she says, climbing into his lap and throwing her arms around his neck. She pulls his earlobe into her mouth before giving it a light bite. "For a price, of course." She moves lower and starts kissing his neck.
"I'll give her anything if she does this to me, too," he smiles, starting to get a little short of breath from the teasing her mouth was doing. He decides to play, too, slipping his hand beneath her shirt and running his fingers up and down her back. She lets out a small moan when his lips find her neck and he starts torturing her the same way she did him.
"I, um . . . boy that feels good," she gasps, closing her eyes in ecstasy. She completely forgets what she was about to say and just enjoys the feel of him. He suddenly breaks contact, sending her eyes back open with a look of impatient annoyance in them. A little straggled groan escapes her pouted lips.
"Lanie? The price? What would this woman want?" He grins smugly when he sees her cheeks flush in embarrassment. He actually made her lose her train of thought.
"Well, she'll want to get married," she starts, tilting her head to expose more neck to Jarod. He eagerly takes the hint and starts back to his ministrations.
"No problem," he mutters between kisses. "We'll be glad to have her."
"But she doesn't come alone. She's a package deal. Her and her little boy." She looks at him nervously when his lips suddenly go still on her neck. "Would that be asking too much?"
"Lanie, are you serious? I'd take you if you had 15 kids. And I'd love them all like my own," he says with a deep, promising kiss. "And who knows. Maybe some day they *will* all be mine."
"Let's get these out of diapers first," she smiles before returning his kiss. "Then we'll talk about evening things out. You guys outnumber me and Maddie. We need another girl around here." She laughs when his stubble tickles her neck.
"You know, baby making can be kind of tricky. Maybe we should make a couple of practice runs," he says, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. He goes to kiss her again when a hand on his chest stops him.
"Not so fast, Genius. You're making an honest woman out of me FIRST." She turns her hand and curls it around his shirt, pulling him until their lips meet in a fiery crash. She kisses him until he's within an inch of his life before rising from his lap, leaving him panting and breathless on the swing. "And then I promise you that we'll do so much . . . practicing . . . that we'll be experts by the time the kids are ready for that baby sister." She gives him one more quick kiss and heads back into the cabin, leaving him stunned and fighting for coherence.
The blood starts to flow towards his brain again and he's finally able to shake himself from the trance she left him in. He never pegged her for the 'waiting until we're married' type. The thought rushes through his brain, causing him to chuckle a bit. It would be tough to wait. He wanted her so bad his teeth ached. But she was worth it. They've waited this long, what was another . . . hour, he thinks with a smile as he looks down at his watch. Just the length of time it would take to pack the kids up and head to the nearest justice of the peace.
"Hey, Parker," he calls into the house, unable to hide the glee from his voice. She steps back to the door and he suddenly sees her in a different light. He sees a wife. He sees a mother. It momentarily takes away his breath. "Why don't you call up that friend of yours. I think she'll be perfect for us. Tell her to meet us in town at the courthouse. I thought it would be fun to get married on our first date. That way, I stand a good chance of getting past first base with her," he winks.
"Jarod," she gasps. She runs out the house and jumps in his arms. "You mean it?" She pulls back and he sees tears sparkling in her eyes. He decides he has to be serious and honest with her.
"I mean it," he swears. "I love you, Lanie. I want you to be my wife and the mother of my children. I want to be the father of yours."
The tears keep on falling down her face, but she manages a joy- filled smile that threatened to crack her cheeks.
"I love you too, Jarod," she says through her happy tears. She meets his mouth halfway and they seal the deal with a kiss.
Jarod was beyond happy too. The woman of his dreams was in his arms, kissing him with all she had because she wanted to. Because she wanted him. She wanted to marry him. And to raise his children. She wanted the happily ever after. It was more than he could have ever hoped for. It was the stuff, literally, of his wildest dreams.
She breaks the kiss and goes back in to get the kids ready while he lags behind a moment. He looks out one more time at the silent forest and takes one more deep breath. Suddenly, freedom smelled so much sweeter. The price had been high, but in the end, it was worth it.
The End.
