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Chapter or Story
Part 24
by N.R. Levy
There is something absolutely perfect about waking up with a baby snuggled against your chest. Parker had never imagined she'd know that sort of thing for herself. Childhood fantasies about motherhood had given way to the harsh realities of her life. Briefly, during her time with Thomas, she'd let herself consider that the long ago dream might be possible again, but the Centre had killed her hopes along with her lover.
It seemed the height of irony then that the Centre had given her the gift of motherhood, even if they had taken away her rights in the process. As much as she hated what they had done and how they'd done it, Parker knew she would never regret the two lives that had resulted from their actions--not the nearly grown man who had stolen her heart the first time she'd spoken with him and not the little boy who slept against her body, his small hand twisted into a fist in her robe to make sure she didn't disappear again.
"Don't worry, Matthew," she whispered. "Mama's never leaving you, I promise.
She was surprised the infant had not awakened during the night. He was far from the stage where they could count on a nice, quiet five or six hours of sleep as part of a routine. But Parker loved the idea that his security in her presence had allowed him to just rest. No doubt he'd gotten very little relaxing sleep since she had left him to go back and get Will from the Centre.
Will... thinking about her eldest son made Parker restless. As much as she was enjoying her snuggle with Matthew, she couldn't shake the feeling that she also needed to check in on her big boy and see what was happening with him. Easing into a seated position, Parker carefully stood up with her baby cradled in her arms. She took a moment to be sure her feet were really under her before heading to the door.
A small light burned in the room that had been co-opted as Matthew's nursery since his arrival. More and more, it was filling up with toys and blankets and clothes that claimed his ownership of it, and Parker chuckled softly, knowing that everyone from his great-aunt to his grandfather was probably responsible for the growing bounty in the room.
"There will never be a shortage of love around you," she whispered to the sleeping baby as she lowered him into his crib. Parker stayed beside him, her hand resting gently on his tummy as he squirmed around a bit, seemingly trying to decide if he was going to wake up or drift back into whatever dream had been disturbed. After a moment, Matthew took a deep breath and then relaxed. More dreaming had won out.
Moving gingerly, Parker made her way out into the hall. She kept one hand against the wall for a little extra support as she walked to the stairs to start down them. Voices trickling out from the attic above drew her that direction instead, however, and Parker climbed the steps up to Angelo's room to find what looked like a student film production in progress. Her eyes panned from Angelo at the computer to Emily holding a harsh spotlight that was pointed toward Jarod and Will, the later laying prone on Angelo's bed, directly in the line of sight of Charles, who was aiming a digital video camera toward them.
Will looked like death warmed over, and the newly tuned mother instinct in Parker almost made her bolt toward him. But reason told her that if her son were ill, nobody would be standing around holding lights and cameras. Her eyes flashed to Angelo and he put a finger to his lips and nodded his head. Parker gave a single nod back and sat down where she'd been standing on the top step.
Angelo gave a signal to Jarod, and the pretender's voice suddenly filled the room. The words chilled Parker even as the meaning for all that was taking place became clearer.
"Mr. Parker, your daughter is dead. I doubt that means anything to you, but if you don't want your grandson to follow her, you better do something, and now. The nerve gas that killed Miss Parker... Will was exposed to it. I can't come up with an antidote. You have to get Raines to tell you what he used or Will is going to die. I'll contact you in two hours."
A moment after Jarod finished speaking, Angelo waved his arm. A beat later, Emily shut down the light, Charles let the camera down and Will popped up from the bed with a gigantic smile on his face.
"Do you think it worked?"
"Do we think what worked?" Parker asked as she drew herself up and stepped onto the landing. Every eye in the room turned toward her and as her hands came to rest on her hips, Will jumped off the bed, cutting Jarod off as he rushed toward her.
"Mom, don't get mad."
She felt her right eyebrow lift of its own accord. "What am I not getting mad about?"
"Well, before they start groveling..." Emily moved toward Parker. "Get over there and sit down." She pointed toward the bed with one hand while she reached for Parker with the other. "I mean it, sit! Elizabeth isn't yelling at me when you pass out somewhere."
Parker glared at Emily, but she moved nonetheless. She could see Jarod and Will with their heads together off to the side as she turned to sit down.
"Okay, so clearly my son is not near death and I'm still among the living. So you're scamming my father to..."
"Get Raines brought back to the country."
She wasn't sure what words anyone would use to describe the expression that took hold of her face, but she knew it was enough for Charles and Emily to both walk over to Angelo and guide him toward the stairs.
"We'll, uh, see you down at breakfast," Emily said.
"Good luck," Charles added.
Angelo giggled.
When it was just mother, father and son, silence took command of the room. Parker looked from Jarod to Will and then shook her head.
"I'm not angry, but I would like an explanation."
Jarod wasted no time preparing to provide one.
"Well, we saw something and--"
"Dad..." Will's words cut off his father mid-sentence. "Can I have a minute with Mom, please?"
Parker knew instantly what Jarod was feeling. He wanted to say no and be the one to confess whatever activity they'd been up to because just in case she was about to lose her temper, his fatherly instinct was to protect Will from her anger.
"It'll be fine, Dad. Just give us a second to talk, okay?"
"All right. I'll, uh, I'll get your mom some tea."
"Coffee," Parker corrected, earning a grudging smile from Jarod.
"Coffee."
She could feel his reluctance to go, but Jarod made his exit and once they were alone, Will walked over and sat down on the floor in front of her, his legs crossed Indian style.
"So Cox found out that there was another genetics lab, one they used before they ever built the arctic place. And then Angelo found this picture of this man and Raines, who's one of the people who worked at that lab but who disappeared. We can't figure out what happened to him and Dad thinks they're connected to information we could use on... um, Garvey. We searched everything, Mom, and we couldn't find anything that told us where they were. And so Dad thought that--"
"That Mr. Raines could tell you," Parker finished, giving her son a chance to catch his breath after the rambly summation of recent events. She smiled, hoping to relieve some of his obvious anxiety.
"That makes sense. If the Centre's about to take him down, Raines will be looking for someone to save him. He could be made to talk."
Will nodded. "That's what Dad thought. And he had this idea that the thing that would make them keep Raines alive would be if they found out that I was sick."
"You did a good job with the makeup," Parker teased, her finger making contact with his face as she drew a small mark in the powder on his cheek. Will chuckled softly the same way that Matthew did when she tickled his dimples.
"Emily did most of it," he said. "And Dad added some weird coloring he said he learned how to mix up when he worked as a special effects guy."
Parker groaned at the memory of Jarod's foray into the movie business. "Lord. Igor. Oh, I remember."
"Igor?"
She shook her head, dismissing her son's inquisitive look. "Another story for another time, and I'm sure it'll be far more amusing if your father tells it since he was the only one who thought it was funny."
Will smiled. "Does, um, does the fact that your joking now mean you're not mad?"
Parker reached out and took hold of both his hands in hers. "I'm not mad. I'd like very much to protect you from all of this, but... well, I may have just found out that you are my little boy, but you're hardly little anymore, are you?"
He grew shy under her gaze and a slight blush colored his face despite the heavy makeup that remained there.
"Will, look at me."
Parker waited as the young man drew his eyes back to hers.
"I know how much the Centre has hurt you, all the things they've taken from you. And I know who your parents are. So I know better than to think that you wouldn't want to help and be part of whatever we all do to try to make our family safe."
He nodded, clearly glad that she understood, and prepared to speak, but Parker cut him off with a slight squeeze of his hands.
"But one point is nonnegotiable with me," she continued. "Whatever your father and Cox decide to do about Raines, you will not be going anywhere near him. That is absolutely unacceptable to me."
Will's expression morphed quickly. She had expected him to perhaps feel defiant, even angry. What Parker had never thought to see on her son's face was a look of utter and complete disappointment.
"You don't trust me," he declared, his body twisting as he pushed himself up and turned his back on her. "You think if I get near Mr. Raines, he'll be able to talk me into helping him again. But he won't. He won't!"
Parker's mouth fell open. Will's body had tightened, his form literally trembling from tension and emotion. Alarmed, she stood and moved behind him, her hands falling on his shoulders. When he tried to jerk away, she was hurt, but she understood. However Parker didn't let him go. She pooled all of the strength she had regained and held tight to him.
"Of course I trust you, Will. I love you and I trust you."
Her heart broke when she heard a small sob escape him. Parker wrapped her whole arms around her son and leaned her cheek against the top of his head.
"Then why would you try to keep me away? I need to be there, Mom. I need to... I need to make sure..."
With a sigh, Parker stepped back now and turned Will to face her, her hands coming to rest on his face so she could lift his eyes to hers. She understood now.
"You need to prove to yourself that you'd never let him use you again. You need to make sure he can't hurt you anymore."
His eyes flooded with new tears as her soft voice called out his insecurities.
"Oh, sweetheart, do you think I don't understand that, that your father wouldn't understand? Raines and my father, the whole lot of them, they've been manipulating us and using us our whole lives."
"But they can't get to me now. They can't." Will's chin quivered as he fought a losing battle with his own fears.
"No, they can't. Because you are home where you belong with you family," Parker assured her son. "You are learning the truth about yourself and who you are and where you come from, and you are too strong now for Raines or anyone else to make you do something you don't want to do."
"Then let me go face him," Will pleaded. "Please, Mom."
"No." She was firm, but her voice was low and soft. "I am your mother, Will. And I know William Raines. I know how cold and evil that bastard really is. I'm not afraid that you would fall prey to his manipulation, honey. I'm afraid that he will go to his grave trying to take you away from me. And that is why I won't let you anywhere near him. No one is ever taking you from me again."
Her own emotions had grabbed hold of her as she realized how just the thought of Raines near her son had fueled her fear. She did understand Will's need to be involved, and she saw the wisdom of Jarod's plan. But as long as Raines drew breath, her children were still in danger. She could not let them be hurt anymore, not by anyone or for any reason.
Will must have sensed her resoluteness and her own desperation because instead of fighting, he nodded, indicating his surrender. Parker reached out and pulled her son into her arms.
"Why don't you go get all this off your face, okay? And then we'll have breakfast together and talk about what else we need to do about figuring out who these men are."
"Okay. I'll check on Matthew after I get cleaned up."
Parker planted a quick kiss on his cheek as he started to pull back. "Okay. I'll see you downstairs."
Will nodded and moved toward the stairs. As his footsteps sounded against the steps and out of range, Parker walked back to Angelo's bed and sat down. Her body had no hesitation reminding her it wasn't back to full speed, and a sudden wave of dizziness had her gripping the edges of the bed.
"You okay there?"
Parker looked over toward the stairs and saw Major Charles' concerned face staring at her.
"I think my body just reminded me it's not quite up to snuff yet. Thoughts of tearing Raines limb from limb might have to wait."
Charles chuckled and moved to her side, sitting beside her.
"I wish you were completely joking, but I'm very familiar with that impulse. Seeing the effect that bastard has had on your children is hard to take."
Parker nodded. "How have you managed to not let the anger drive you crazy after all these years?"
The older man held her eyes a moment before he broke their gaze. His head leaned back against the wall as his thoughts drifted a moment, then gathered, and he sighed softly.
"It has at times. And some days, all I could think about was finding Raines and the others and punishing them for what they'd done to my family."
His hand reached for hers, and Parker marveled that this man whom she had once hated was now one of the only people on earth who could truly understand the bizarre mix of emotions going on inside of her.
"Other times, I think about the things that wouldn't be if we'd all been spared this. And as much as I wish Jarod's life had been different, Jarod wouldn't be who he is if he had never loved you. And so I try to be grateful for that good even if I know it won't stop me from hating those bastards for what they put my boy through."
Her eyes burned with salty wetness not only because of Charles' loving words, but because of how completely he'd summed up what she was feeling. As much as she wanted how things had happened to be different, her sons, her love for Jarod -- they were so precious to her. The hate she felt for the Centre was nothing compared to her love for them.
"I want better for my boys than the way Jarod and I have lived, Charles." Parker felt her throat tighten and she cleared it before going on. "I don't want Will to know what it feels like to want to take another man's life, to have the power to do it."
Her sons' grandfather squeezed her hand, and Parker turned to see his face spread into an easy smile.
"They already have better, Parker, because they're not alone anymore. The lessons you and Jarod learned alone, now you're together to pass them onto your boys. And we'll all be here to help."
She managed to give him a slight grin in response to his reassuring words.
"Good. Then you can remind me later of all the reasons I shouldn't go beat Raines senseless while I'm keeping Will from going near him. Think you can handle that?"
Charles laughed and stood, helping her to her feet.
"I'll do my best. But if I end up having to tie you to something in order to hold you back, remember you asked me to help."
*****
Even in his semi-drugged state, Raines felt the change in the plane's position as it turned and changed altitude. He struggled to draw in another rattled breath, unsure what this development meant. He had yet to accept he was going to die. He'd been cheating that dark specter far too long to give in now. But there was no ignoring the fact that the deck was not stacked in his favor. The fact that Garvey had given the orders for his "re-education" meant one thing--Africa was supposed to be his final stop, period. That limited the angles he could play, but the game wasn't over yet.
Pulling at the bonds that held him to the metal table was a pointless exercise, but Raines did it anyway. Assured that the sweepers attending him had taken no chances of suffering Garvey's wrath by letting him get away, the former doctor then turned his mind to an assessment of his physical condition.
His lungs were stressed after the rather rigorous interrogation he'd endured. Bruises and cuts screamed out as reminders of how his mistakes had cost him. And as usual, his greatest mistake had been underestimating his enemy.
Jarod had ruined his plans again. He was only glad to know that his revenge on the pretender had already been exacted. He had overheard one of the sweepers say that Miss Parker was dead. The satisfaction that gave him was incalculable. Seeing her suffer in the machine had been like payback for all the times she had gotten in his way or compromised his power. That her death would surely crush Jarod's spirit only added to the victory. If it were his final one, it was truly sweet.
"It seems Mr. Parker has some questions for you."
Raines felt his vengeful reverie break as he looked up and saw the sweeper who had spoken to him.
"You've got a command performance back at the Centre, Mr. Raines."
The sweeper kept talking, trying to taunt his prisoner but Raines had stopped listening immediately after finding out he was headed back to Blue Cove. Parker needed something from him. Excellent. Perhaps the grim reaper could be held off one last time.
*****
"All right, Dad. I should be there in 30 minutes."
Jarod hung up the phone, check his gear one more time and prepared to head out to the airfield where his father was waiting with the plane that would take them back to Blue Cove. He would call the Centre for an "update" just before he flew out.
His mind was swirling as he thought about what lay ahead. He had faced Raines before. On one heartbreaking day in Boston, Jarod had nearly killed the monster who had terrorized him for most of his life. But at the last minute something in Jarod had said, 'no, he's not worth your humanity.'
Jarod paused at the bottom of the stairs and looked over into the living room. Parker was on the couch with Emily and Matthew, the three of them engrossed in a game of peek-a-boo that had the baby boy giggling and his mother and aunt totally enraptured.
The sound of his son's laughter continued to filter toward him as Jarod's eyelids fluttered shut. He saw Parker laying in bed upstairs, her body shaking, her breathing labored. He saw her fighting for her life against the damage Raines had done to her. He felt the pain of imagining how his sons' joy would've disappeared possibly forever had they lost their mother due to that bastard's cruelty. As the memories and musings taunted him, he realized his humanity felt very, very far away.
A deep breath helped restore his composure, at least for the moment, and Jarod turned in the hall and headed for the kitchen. Elizabeth was standing over a cutting board full of partially chopped vegetables, her attention fixed at some far away point outside the window.
"I'm about to head off," he said softly, not wanting to startle her. The older version of the woman he adored turned and smiled at him as she wiped her hands on her apron.
"Well, I'll take care of Little Cat and the boys. And you take care of my boy, all right?"
It was still so hard for Jarod to fathom that Cox, who had seemed like such a threat since his appearance in their lives, was instead another victim of Garvey and the Centre's evil. He truly hoped the man realized what a gift he was being given--this family, their trust and Elizabeth's waiting arms. He also prayed for all their sakes that their hope and faith wasn't being misplaced.
"Co--Daniel got me a message with the location he's using. He thinks on his feet. We'll be fine."
Elizabeth nodded and moved in to hug him. "You better be."
Jarod returned the embrace and then stepped back. He gave a final wink to Parker's aunt and then he made his way into the living room. He showered Matthew with kisses and then hugged his sister. A few moments later, he was alone with the woman he loved. They had stolen a little time together earlier to discuss Will and the conversation Parker had shared with their son that morning. Together... a word Jarod loved to use in reference to them... together they had come up with a plan to involve the confused teen in the family's fight without putting him in danger.
"He's waiting for you outside," Parker said as she stood and leaned against him, her arms wrapping around Jarod's waist. He pulled her closer, savoring the few moments of contact before he put his whole focus on figuring out the Centre mysteries that Raines still held the key to... secrets that could hopefully be used to set Jarod's loved ones free once and for all.
"I'll be home as soon as I can," he promised.
Parker nodded against his chest and pulled back just enough to look at him.
"We'll be here waiting for you. And tell your father it turns out I'm too tired to do anything requiring being tied up, so he doesn't need to worry."
He laughed, shocked that he could in this situation but aware she was probably the only person who could've made it happen. Jarod leaned in and kissed her once, his love for her obvious in the tenderness of the caress of his lips against Parker's. Then it was time for him to say his final good-bye to the young man waiting outside on the front porch.
"Hey, Dad."
The greeting brought a smile to Jarod's face even as the tension of his coming tasks began to seriously simmer inside of him. He walked to his son and dropped his right hand onto Will's shoulder.
"You all set?"
Will nodded. "Angelo and I are ready. Broots turned the system on for a few minutes so we could check, and we're good to go."
Jarod squeezed his son's shoulder. "Good. You know, Will, it's going to make this easier for me, knowing you're here working on the information we get. There's no one I'd trust more to do it if I can't do it myself."
There was no mistaking that Will still wanted to be heading to the plane with his father, heading off to face their mutual demon together. But being asked to handle an important task, something Will knew Jarod would've done himself had he been staying behind, had boosted Will's spirits. Parker had commented more than once on the fascinating man/child line Will was straddling, how sometimes he could be both in a matter of seconds. Jarod saw that firsthand now. The teen looked like he wanted to throw his arms around his father because he'd been given an important task in the operation, but the part of Will that wanted to be grown up held the younger boy back.
"I'll... I'll be ready whenever you are," Will said when we finally found his voice again. "I won't let you down."
"I know you won't."
Jarod knew that right now his son was trying to be a strong man. But too many days had passed without him knowing the power of a father's love or the comfort of a hug from someone who loved him. As he hugged Will, providing him both of those things, Jarod was pleasantly surprised to find the embrace returned just as strongly with just as much emotion behind it.
"Be careful, Dad, please."
Time was racing by when Jarod wanted nothing more than to stay right where he was, with his family together and hidden from the Centre. But he knew that they weren't safe, not yet. And so as he had done with Parker moments earlier, he broke the moment with his son and stepped back.
"I'll be back before you know it."
It was a promise made not just to Will, but to himself. As he walked to the truck to go and meet his own father, Jarod knew that the next several hours would probably some of the most difficult of his life. But it was for his family... and that was what he would hold on to in the moments of pure rage he knew were sure to come. Raines would make certain of that.
*****
Cox parked his car and stared at the once familiar building. It had been part of his life for as long as he could remember, but now it seemed foreign; as alien as some strange new place he'd been sent for Centre business.
His earlier summons was hardly unexpected given the jolt that Jarod's actions had sent through the Centre. He had walked confidently into Garvey's office and stopped just before the older man's desk. No question had been posed because both men knew why the command performance was taking place.
"Mr. Parker did the only thing he could do." Cox stated his assessment matter-of-factly, simply reporting unemotionally as he would have any other day. Too much was at stake for even a hint of this day, this event being more than another pretender-created crisis. "The boy's value outweighs any threat Raines might pose to us. He can be dispatched as soon as this new interrogation is completed."
Garvey stood and walked around his desk. Cox felt his grandfather's imposing presence closing in on him and soon, the men were eye to eye.
"I want you to personally supervise Raines once he's returned to the Centre. Jarod implied we have a serious time constraint, and that boy cannot be lost to us. Raines will not want to cooperate. I need you to assure that he does, and quickly."
Cox nodded. He had been anticipating this move from Garvey, and he had been calculating his countermove since Jarod's video message had ended.
"Sir, I've been thinking, Mr. Raines still has allies within the Centre. None foolish enough to make a move openly, but there could be some subversive activity once they find out he's returning to Blue Cove."
"I've considered that," Garvey replied. "I don't think anyone could mount any sort of effort that would interfere significantly in our work."
Now was the time to make his move. Every seed of doubt Cox planted now would be useful to them later. He and Jarod hadn't known when the opportunities might come, but they had discussed how to capitalize on them when they did.
"Mr. Garvey, I wouldn't be voicing any concern if I thought that we weren't vulnerable."
The older man looked at him sharply now, and Cox did not so much as flinch.
"Meaning we're vulnerable to whom?"
"Sir... I said Mr. Parker did the only thing he could do given the situation, which is true, but that doesn't eliminate the possibility that he is also doing what is prudent for Mr. Parker. Raines' failures have occurred under his watch and sometimes with his direct involvement. The man's got to be concerned about what Raines' might reveal under Centre interrogation now that his death is certain. He's clearly been willing to gamble with Centre resources before--Miss Parker, Jarod, Mr. Lyle. Can we be certain he wouldn't risk the boy if he thought doing so would provide greater personal security for himself?"
It was a power play that Cox knew would appeal to Garvey on every level. That's why he had volunteered it, making it clear he was ready to try and oust the man directly in his way for apparent control of the Centre. It was based in fact, well thought out and posed a solution to a potential problem that required an immediate solution.
"You have a private work area, yes?"
Cox held any sense of victory in check and answered. "I do. It's quite adequate for what we need in this situation."
"Arrange for Raines to be transported there. Get the information we need, and then make certain that this chapter of the story is concluded... swiftly."
His first priority had of course been getting through to Jarod to let him know the where and when of Raines' return. After doing so through their circuitous website relay, as any good Centre employee would, especially the heir to the throne, Cox had put preparations in place to achieve his goals without fail. That his agenda wasn't quite what Garvey thought gave the younger man a feeling of satisfaction. Every hour that passed put Mr. Cox more in touch with the sense of outrage that Daniel Morgan was beginning to battle inside. The betrayal of his blind allegiance to Garvey was only beginning to really register as he watched his grandfather's cold resignation to the manipulation of his great-grandchildren, to the "death" of Miss Parker. None of it registered to the former David Jamison any more than if he had seen a bit of lint on his suit. And Cox realized that despite the horrible things he had done over the years to prove his loyalty to the evil old bastard, he would be just as insignificant were he to suddenly become an inconvenience or a liability.
But the disloyalty shown to him by another was more biting to Cox than anything Garvey could do. Cox exited his car and walked to the back door of the mortuary. His key code allowed him entry, and he found the rear office and the embalming room empty. It was only as he neared his personal workroom down in the basement that Cox heard movement. He didn't even try to convince himself that it was anyone other than the man he now dreaded seeing.
"Daniel. What are you doing here?"
Cox looked at his father and suddenly Elizabeth's pain-filled eyes flashed through his mind. A lifetime... this man had conspired with Garvey to steal a lifetime from him... and from his mother. And though now wasn't the moment to show even a flicker of his anger with Elias Morgan, the day was coming.
"Father, I'm going to be needing the workroom to take care of some business. You don't mind do you?"
Elias smiled warmly and assured his son he didn't mind at all. Cox felt his stomach roll over when his father's hand touched down on his shoulder as he headed out of the room to leave his son to his "work."
Tamping down his disgust, Cox closed the door and shrugged off his coat. He knew that Broots would be required to transmit the interrogation to the Centre. And so before his employer's prying eyes began to watch his every move, he walked to his work table and began to arrange the items there as he added an expensive silver pen. The disguised camera Broots had given him earlier would hardly be noticeable amongst all the medical instruments and writing utensils that littered the surface, which meant his family could spy on the goings-on in the room right under the Centre's nose.
"Well, then," Cox whispered to himself as he glanced down at his watch. "Time to get ready."
