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Sonic
Near Highway 360, Arlington
“So, let me get this straight,” Jarod said. The two pretenders sat in their car at one of the stations at the drive-in restaurant, and Jarod was sitting with his window rolled down, staring at the menu. “They’re called car hops, but they don’t actually hop from car to car?”
“Well, they used to skate around on skates,” Samantha replied from the passenger’s side, “but that was a long time ago.” She grinned at Jarod. “Even before you were born, mister, which was around the time the wheel was invented, if I’m not mistaken.”
“Oh, ha, ha, ha,” Jarod replied, smiling. “So, what do you want to eat?”
Samantha smiled and craned her neck to see the menu. “I would like a Number One burger, no onions, no lettuce; medium fries; and a medium Dr. Pepper,” she replied. “And lots of ketchup.”
“Wow, you like ketchup?” Jarod feigned astonishment. “I would have never guessed.”
Samantha stuck her tongue out at her friend. “And what are you going to get?” Jarod just smiled and pressed the call button on the menu board.
A static, female voice blared out with, “Welcome to Sonic, may I take your order?”
“Yes, my friend would like a Number One burger, no onions, no lettuce; medium fries; and a medium Dr. Pepper. I would like a chili cheese Coney, large cheese fries, and a large Dr. Pepper.” The woman gave the total before hanging up. Jarod glanced over at Samantha and saw her expression. “What?”
“And I thought I was hungry,” Samantha smirked.
“I’m a growing boy,” Jarod replied.
“And if you don’t watch it, you’re going to be growing out instead of up.” Samantha playfully poked his abdomen for good measure. Jarod just stuck his tongue out. Samantha turned on the radio, and all was silent between the two pretenders as they listened to the music playing. Pretty soon a car hop arrived with their food. Jarod exchanged the food - and lots of ketchup, on Samantha’s insistence - for the money, plus a small tip.
The two didn’t talk as they ate, hungry from not eating earlier that morning. After they polished off their meal, they ordered large chocolate shakes for dessert. The car hop returned with their shakes after a few moments, and pretty soon the pretenders were enjoying their chocolate treats.
Jarod glanced over at his young friend, just watching her as she stared out the window, sipping her drink. “Sam?” Samantha jumped a little, startled, nearly spilling her shake. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Samantha replied. She put her shake in the cup holder and looked up at Jarod, trying to smile.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” The young woman noticed his ‘I don’t believe it’ _expression. She sighed. “Okay, okay. I’m still kicking myself from what happened at the apartment. And then that feeling outside . . . .” She shuddered a little bit. “I’m still a little freaked out, but I’m fine.” She turned back and faced her window.
Jarod noticed her last comment was sarcastic, and he put a hand on her shoulder. “Sam . . . .”
“I’m scared, Jarod,” she said softly.
“About what?”
“Me,” she replied. She turned to him with a look of fear in her eyes. “Jarod, what’s happening to me?”
Jarod took a deep breath. “Well, I know you don’t like talking much about it, but can you remember any times when you were younger that you had any episodes like when you first walked into Trask’s apartment, or even outside the apartment?” Samantha looked troubled and hesitant.
“Sam,” Jarod replied gently, “it’s really important that I know if it’s happened before.” He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. “Just trust me, honey.”
Samantha looked unsure, but she did trust him - more than she remembered ever trusting
anyone. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She sighed as she opened her eyes. “Well, I was about thirteen,” she said slowly. “My friend was really upset with his younger brother and sister, and he came to me. He just wanted to talk, and I let him. He was just tired of having siblings, how they would always bother him and get in his way and stuff, something I knew nothing about, but I found myself getting frustrated at them . . . not just because he was my friend and he was mad; it was like I was personally mad at his brother and sister.”
She chuckled mirthlessly before she continued. “I remember that more for the fact that he kept telling me he wished he was an only child like me; that was really the only time that I remember him ever telling me that. I always thought he was lucky to have siblings. Of course, that was almost ten years before I realized I had a brother myself, but back then I thought it would have been cool to have just one brother or a sister to grow up with.” She looked at Jarod. “That’s the only time I remember back then, but there was another time when I think it might have happened.”
“When?” Jarod asked.
“When we were in New York.” Samantha glanced at her window. “I remember being bombarded by all those feelings of fear, terror, despair, hope, and sadness. Half the time I remember that I was crying for no obvious reason.” She shrugged. “Course, I could have just been in shock.”
“I don’t think so,” Jarod replied. “It might even explain what happened in Cambridge.”
Samantha said. “Jarod, I don’t know why you think anything special happened there. I did something stupid, and I nearly got . . . .”
Jarod put a hand on her shoulder. “Sam, honey, we’ve been over that before: when Gries attacked you, that was not your fault. You did nothing to deserve that; nothing.” He sighed. “And something special did happen. Sam, look at me.” The young woman looked at Jarod. “I had no idea where you had wandered off to that night, and I was so worried about you . . . and then it was as if you were inside my head, guiding me. If that hadn’t happened . . . I don’t think I would have found you.”
“So, what are you saying?” Samantha asked wryly. “I’m telepathic or something?”
Jarod gently rolled his eyes, agreeing with her sarcasm. “Sam, to be honest, I don’t know what to call what it is you have, or even if there is a name for it, but you have something. Something special.” Samantha could see he was humbling himself, saying he didn’t know something. He took a deep breath. “The closest description for now might be a kind of empathy, and that the way you’re expressing it is a possible version of the inner sense.”
Samantha looked confused. “But I don’t hear voices, Jarod.”
Jarod smiled sadly, a bit touched that she remembered his brother. “I know you don’t, Sam, but you have this ability to ‘hear’ on a plane that no one else can, even me. That’s what’s so interesting and amazing about being a pretender: we may be able to be anyone that we want to, but we are still vastly different from each other. Ethan hears voices from a world that is as real as you or me, and your brother passes through the doorways between identities as smoothly as we pass from sleep to waking. I can do simulations as easily as taking a breath of air, and apparently you have this ability to . . .”
“To . . .?” Samantha asked.
“To draw part of someone else into yourself, even if just for a moment, as though you yourself are a doorway from one part of reality to another.”
“Where did I get it? I didn’t have the neuroshock treatments like my brother.”
“I don’t know, Sam. Your brother’s ability developed afterwards when he had to rely on another part of his brain to communicate with the world, but I have no idea about where your ability came from.” He noticed her apprehensive expression. “What is it?”
“I’m a freak,” she replied quietly.
“No, you’re not,” Jarod said firmly. He took a finger and turned her chin toward him. “Sam, I’ve been doing research on empathy, and it seems that all of it suggests that it’s physical - you are not a freak; it’s just possible that you are somehow using a part of your brain that most people can’t access. You are not a freak. You are special; we all are.”
“You think you can avoid coming across as sounding like something from an after school special?” Samantha asked, smiling.
“After school special?” Jarod asked.
Samantha shook her head. “Nevermind,” she replied as she reached for her shake. “So, where to now?”
“I want to get a look at that video,” Jarod answered.
“So, off to our place?”
Jarod shrugged and said, “Why not?”
“Okay,” Samantha replied. “To the bat cave!” She winced and touched her abdomen. “After we get some Midol.”
“You know, I don’t think Robin ever said that,” Jarod smiled.
“Just drive to the nearest Walgreens, Batman,” Samantha replied wryly. Jarod started the engine and pulled out of their spot, then drove to the street. As they waited for traffic to clear, Samantha’s eyes suddenly got wide. “Oh, no.”
“What?” Jarod asked. “What’s wrong?”
“We have to go back to the office,” Samantha answered.
“Sam, we can’t -”
“I left my notebook there,” Samantha interrupted. “If anyone saw all those clippings, especially Steele . . . .”
Jarod nodded, understanding. He turned onto the street and drove the car back toward the office. The car ride was silent until Samantha looked up, almost guilty.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
Jarod glanced over, surprised. “For what?”
“For not paying attention. For not focusing on the job.”
“Sam, it’s okay,” Jarod replied gently.
“No, it’s not. You’ve told me time and time again to never leave anything behind that we don’t leave intentionally. I wasn’t thinking, I was -”
“You were focused on Steele,” Jarod interrupted knowingly.
Samantha shuddered involuntarily. “That man . . .” She rubbed her arms, almost as if she was cold. The silence was broken by Jarod’s cellphone ringing, and Samantha jumped, hitting her head on the ceiling.
“You okay?” Jarod asked as he got out his phone.
“Yeah, I’m peachy,” Samantha mumbled as she rubbed her head.
Jarod glanced at the display before answering the phone. “Hello, Sydney,” he said, trying not to smile at his young friend’s misfortune. He did smile when he saw Samantha perk up at mentioning Sydney’s name.
Sydney chuckled. “Hello, Jarod,” he replied, trying hard not to laugh. “How are you and Samantha doing?”
“We’re fine,” Jarod answered slowly. It wasn’t like Sydney to just call for no real reason, but his mentor’s tone was strangely different. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh, nothing,” Sydney replied as innocently as he could. He suddenly dissolved into a fit of laughter.
Jarod couldn’t help but smiling, but he was very confused by Sydney’s behavior. “Sydney, what is going on? Why are you laughing?”
Samantha glanced over as Jarod, curious as to what he and Sydney were talking about. Suddenly, Jarod’s eyes went wide, and Samantha was glad she was buckled in as he suddenly swerved the car into the nearest parking lot and slammed on his brakes, putting the car into park. She looked over as Jarod switched ears with his phone.
“Wait a minute,” he said, his expression incredulous. “He thinks WHAT?!?”
“Who thinks what?” Samantha asked. “What’s going on?”
Jarod waved to for Samantha to be quiet. “You have *got* to be kidding me,” he said. “Where in the world did he get an insane idea like that?!” He listened. “What do you mean you don’t know?”
“Know what?” Samantha asked, louder, her patience growing thin again. “What is going on?”
“Sam, just hold a minute,” Jarod answered. “I have to sort this out before I tell you.” He turned his head to listen to Sydney.
Samantha narrowed her eyes, hating that she was being left out of the loop. She reached over and snatched the phone from Jarod, putting it to her ear. “What is going on, Sydney?” She switched to her right ear as Jarod tried to grab the phone.
“Samantha,” the older gentleman replied. “How are you?”
“I would be a lot less frustrated if someone would tell me what was going on,” she replied through clenched teeth.
“Samantha, give me the phone,” Jarod said. Samantha quickly undid her seatbelt and got out of the car before Jarod could grab her. Jarod got out as she leaned against the car, covering her other ear so she could hear Sydney.
“Well,” Sydney replied, taking a breath, “it concerns you, actually.”
“How so?” Samantha asked.
“In short, Lyle thinks your pregnant,” Sydney replied bluntly. “With Jarod’s child.”
“Well, he’s wrong,” Samantha replied.
“Of course he’s wrong,” Sydney replied. “It’s ridiculous, really.”
“Exactly,” Samantha added. “It’s not Jarod’s child.”
Samantha heard nothing but silence on the other end, something she expected to hear, and glanced up at Jarod. His eyes were as wide as dinner plates, and his face had paled, but it was slowly turning red as his lips set in a straight line. “Uh, Syd, you there?” she asked.
“I’m . . . here,” Sydney replied in a shaky voice.
“How did Lyle find out?” Samantha asked as Jarod started edging around the car towards her. She moved away from him, going in the opposite direction around the car.
“I don’t know. He wouldn’t tell any of us.”
Samantha thought about it as she and Jarod continued to circle the car slowly, and then it clicked. “Angelo,” she replied.
“You think so?”
“Wouldn’t be surprised,” Samantha replied. “And I gotta go. I’m not feeling well all of a sudden. Bye.” She hung up the phone. She glanced at Jarod as he picked up speed, and she picked up hers as well. “Jarod, before you get mad -”
“Too late,” Jarod replied. “Who is the father?”
“What?” Samantha asked.
“Who is the father?” Jarod repeated.
“Oh, that!” Samantha shrugged. “I don’t know, to tell you the truth.”
Jarod stopped in his tracks, just staring at her. His voice was low, but Samantha heard every word. “Get. In. The. Car.” Samantha didn’t argue as she got into the passenger’s side. Jarod got in on his side, put the car into gear, and quickly drove out of the parking lot.
The two pretenders talked on their way back to the offices, and by the time they were parked in the garage, Jarod wasn’t ready to throttle her, but he said they were going to have a talk later on. Jarod took the tape from the camcorder and put it in his pocket - there was no way he was going to leave it unguarded - before they hurried into the building and rode the elevator to their floor.
“Do you remember where you put it?” Jarod asked as they walked down the corridor to their desks.
“I think at my desk,” Samantha replied, pushing the bridge of her shades back up on her nose.
“You think?”
“I’ve had other things on my mind recently.”
Jarod sighed as they hurried over to their desks. While Samantha searched her drawers, Jarod kept a lookout; they hadn’t run into anyone on their way there, and there weren’t many people around, but Jarod was still ready for anything.
“It’s not here,” Samantha said.
Jarod looked down. “What do you mean?”
“I remember now,” Samantha replied, sound frantic and looking scared. “I slipped it in here before talking to Steele before we left for the firing range this morning. It’s not here.”
“Are you sure you put it in there?” Jarod asked.
“I’m pretty sure,” Samantha replied, trying not to look panicky. “I . . . I don’t know for sure.”
Jarod put a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up. “It’s okay, Sam.” He helped her to her feet. “Come on.”
“But what about -”
“We’ll look for it later,” he replied gently. She smiled, and the two left the offices, heading back towards the elevators. Halfway there, Jarod glanced over and saw Samantha tense as she reached up to touch her neck, just as he felt a tingle on the back of his own neck. He stiffened as well then gently grabbed her arm, guiding her around the corner.
“Going somewhere?”
The two stopped short at the familiar voice and glanced at each other before slowly turning around. Standing there, not ten feet from them, his hands behind his back, wearing his shades and his coat, was Steele. Even though his face was expressionless, they could feel his eyes burning holes into them, measuring them.
Samantha backed up half a step reflexively; behind her, Jarod drew himself to his full height, which was several inches taller than Agent Steele. Samantha’s back stiffened, and both pretenders subtly reached for their weapons, but both knew somewhere in their bones that they would not escape this hallway unscathed. Steele had anticipated and isolated them effectively for his purpose; there was no way out.
They were trapped.
(End of Chapter 5)
Sonic
Near Highway 360, Arlington
“So, let me get this straight,” Jarod said. The two pretenders sat in their car at one of the stations at the drive-in restaurant, and Jarod was sitting with his window rolled down, staring at the menu. “They’re called car hops, but they don’t actually hop from car to car?”
“Well, they used to skate around on skates,” Samantha replied from the passenger’s side, “but that was a long time ago.” She grinned at Jarod. “Even before you were born, mister, which was around the time the wheel was invented, if I’m not mistaken.”
“Oh, ha, ha, ha,” Jarod replied, smiling. “So, what do you want to eat?”
Samantha smiled and craned her neck to see the menu. “I would like a Number One burger, no onions, no lettuce; medium fries; and a medium Dr. Pepper,” she replied. “And lots of ketchup.”
“Wow, you like ketchup?” Jarod feigned astonishment. “I would have never guessed.”
Samantha stuck her tongue out at her friend. “And what are you going to get?” Jarod just smiled and pressed the call button on the menu board.
A static, female voice blared out with, “Welcome to Sonic, may I take your order?”
“Yes, my friend would like a Number One burger, no onions, no lettuce; medium fries; and a medium Dr. Pepper. I would like a chili cheese Coney, large cheese fries, and a large Dr. Pepper.” The woman gave the total before hanging up. Jarod glanced over at Samantha and saw her expression. “What?”
“And I thought I was hungry,” Samantha smirked.
“I’m a growing boy,” Jarod replied.
“And if you don’t watch it, you’re going to be growing out instead of up.” Samantha playfully poked his abdomen for good measure. Jarod just stuck his tongue out. Samantha turned on the radio, and all was silent between the two pretenders as they listened to the music playing. Pretty soon a car hop arrived with their food. Jarod exchanged the food - and lots of ketchup, on Samantha’s insistence - for the money, plus a small tip.
The two didn’t talk as they ate, hungry from not eating earlier that morning. After they polished off their meal, they ordered large chocolate shakes for dessert. The car hop returned with their shakes after a few moments, and pretty soon the pretenders were enjoying their chocolate treats.
Jarod glanced over at his young friend, just watching her as she stared out the window, sipping her drink. “Sam?” Samantha jumped a little, startled, nearly spilling her shake. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Samantha replied. She put her shake in the cup holder and looked up at Jarod, trying to smile.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” The young woman noticed his ‘I don’t believe it’ _expression. She sighed. “Okay, okay. I’m still kicking myself from what happened at the apartment. And then that feeling outside . . . .” She shuddered a little bit. “I’m still a little freaked out, but I’m fine.” She turned back and faced her window.
Jarod noticed her last comment was sarcastic, and he put a hand on her shoulder. “Sam . . . .”
“I’m scared, Jarod,” she said softly.
“About what?”
“Me,” she replied. She turned to him with a look of fear in her eyes. “Jarod, what’s happening to me?”
Jarod took a deep breath. “Well, I know you don’t like talking much about it, but can you remember any times when you were younger that you had any episodes like when you first walked into Trask’s apartment, or even outside the apartment?” Samantha looked troubled and hesitant.
“Sam,” Jarod replied gently, “it’s really important that I know if it’s happened before.” He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. “Just trust me, honey.”
Samantha looked unsure, but she did trust him - more than she remembered ever trusting
anyone. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She sighed as she opened her eyes. “Well, I was about thirteen,” she said slowly. “My friend was really upset with his younger brother and sister, and he came to me. He just wanted to talk, and I let him. He was just tired of having siblings, how they would always bother him and get in his way and stuff, something I knew nothing about, but I found myself getting frustrated at them . . . not just because he was my friend and he was mad; it was like I was personally mad at his brother and sister.”
She chuckled mirthlessly before she continued. “I remember that more for the fact that he kept telling me he wished he was an only child like me; that was really the only time that I remember him ever telling me that. I always thought he was lucky to have siblings. Of course, that was almost ten years before I realized I had a brother myself, but back then I thought it would have been cool to have just one brother or a sister to grow up with.” She looked at Jarod. “That’s the only time I remember back then, but there was another time when I think it might have happened.”
“When?” Jarod asked.
“When we were in New York.” Samantha glanced at her window. “I remember being bombarded by all those feelings of fear, terror, despair, hope, and sadness. Half the time I remember that I was crying for no obvious reason.” She shrugged. “Course, I could have just been in shock.”
“I don’t think so,” Jarod replied. “It might even explain what happened in Cambridge.”
Samantha said. “Jarod, I don’t know why you think anything special happened there. I did something stupid, and I nearly got . . . .”
Jarod put a hand on her shoulder. “Sam, honey, we’ve been over that before: when Gries attacked you, that was not your fault. You did nothing to deserve that; nothing.” He sighed. “And something special did happen. Sam, look at me.” The young woman looked at Jarod. “I had no idea where you had wandered off to that night, and I was so worried about you . . . and then it was as if you were inside my head, guiding me. If that hadn’t happened . . . I don’t think I would have found you.”
“So, what are you saying?” Samantha asked wryly. “I’m telepathic or something?”
Jarod gently rolled his eyes, agreeing with her sarcasm. “Sam, to be honest, I don’t know what to call what it is you have, or even if there is a name for it, but you have something. Something special.” Samantha could see he was humbling himself, saying he didn’t know something. He took a deep breath. “The closest description for now might be a kind of empathy, and that the way you’re expressing it is a possible version of the inner sense.”
Samantha looked confused. “But I don’t hear voices, Jarod.”
Jarod smiled sadly, a bit touched that she remembered his brother. “I know you don’t, Sam, but you have this ability to ‘hear’ on a plane that no one else can, even me. That’s what’s so interesting and amazing about being a pretender: we may be able to be anyone that we want to, but we are still vastly different from each other. Ethan hears voices from a world that is as real as you or me, and your brother passes through the doorways between identities as smoothly as we pass from sleep to waking. I can do simulations as easily as taking a breath of air, and apparently you have this ability to . . .”
“To . . .?” Samantha asked.
“To draw part of someone else into yourself, even if just for a moment, as though you yourself are a doorway from one part of reality to another.”
“Where did I get it? I didn’t have the neuroshock treatments like my brother.”
“I don’t know, Sam. Your brother’s ability developed afterwards when he had to rely on another part of his brain to communicate with the world, but I have no idea about where your ability came from.” He noticed her apprehensive expression. “What is it?”
“I’m a freak,” she replied quietly.
“No, you’re not,” Jarod said firmly. He took a finger and turned her chin toward him. “Sam, I’ve been doing research on empathy, and it seems that all of it suggests that it’s physical - you are not a freak; it’s just possible that you are somehow using a part of your brain that most people can’t access. You are not a freak. You are special; we all are.”
“You think you can avoid coming across as sounding like something from an after school special?” Samantha asked, smiling.
“After school special?” Jarod asked.
Samantha shook her head. “Nevermind,” she replied as she reached for her shake. “So, where to now?”
“I want to get a look at that video,” Jarod answered.
“So, off to our place?”
Jarod shrugged and said, “Why not?”
“Okay,” Samantha replied. “To the bat cave!” She winced and touched her abdomen. “After we get some Midol.”
“You know, I don’t think Robin ever said that,” Jarod smiled.
“Just drive to the nearest Walgreens, Batman,” Samantha replied wryly. Jarod started the engine and pulled out of their spot, then drove to the street. As they waited for traffic to clear, Samantha’s eyes suddenly got wide. “Oh, no.”
“What?” Jarod asked. “What’s wrong?”
“We have to go back to the office,” Samantha answered.
“Sam, we can’t -”
“I left my notebook there,” Samantha interrupted. “If anyone saw all those clippings, especially Steele . . . .”
Jarod nodded, understanding. He turned onto the street and drove the car back toward the office. The car ride was silent until Samantha looked up, almost guilty.
“I’m sorry,” she said softly.
Jarod glanced over, surprised. “For what?”
“For not paying attention. For not focusing on the job.”
“Sam, it’s okay,” Jarod replied gently.
“No, it’s not. You’ve told me time and time again to never leave anything behind that we don’t leave intentionally. I wasn’t thinking, I was -”
“You were focused on Steele,” Jarod interrupted knowingly.
Samantha shuddered involuntarily. “That man . . .” She rubbed her arms, almost as if she was cold. The silence was broken by Jarod’s cellphone ringing, and Samantha jumped, hitting her head on the ceiling.
“You okay?” Jarod asked as he got out his phone.
“Yeah, I’m peachy,” Samantha mumbled as she rubbed her head.
Jarod glanced at the display before answering the phone. “Hello, Sydney,” he said, trying not to smile at his young friend’s misfortune. He did smile when he saw Samantha perk up at mentioning Sydney’s name.
Sydney chuckled. “Hello, Jarod,” he replied, trying hard not to laugh. “How are you and Samantha doing?”
“We’re fine,” Jarod answered slowly. It wasn’t like Sydney to just call for no real reason, but his mentor’s tone was strangely different. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh, nothing,” Sydney replied as innocently as he could. He suddenly dissolved into a fit of laughter.
Jarod couldn’t help but smiling, but he was very confused by Sydney’s behavior. “Sydney, what is going on? Why are you laughing?”
Samantha glanced over as Jarod, curious as to what he and Sydney were talking about. Suddenly, Jarod’s eyes went wide, and Samantha was glad she was buckled in as he suddenly swerved the car into the nearest parking lot and slammed on his brakes, putting the car into park. She looked over as Jarod switched ears with his phone.
“Wait a minute,” he said, his expression incredulous. “He thinks WHAT?!?”
“Who thinks what?” Samantha asked. “What’s going on?”
Jarod waved to for Samantha to be quiet. “You have *got* to be kidding me,” he said. “Where in the world did he get an insane idea like that?!” He listened. “What do you mean you don’t know?”
“Know what?” Samantha asked, louder, her patience growing thin again. “What is going on?”
“Sam, just hold a minute,” Jarod answered. “I have to sort this out before I tell you.” He turned his head to listen to Sydney.
Samantha narrowed her eyes, hating that she was being left out of the loop. She reached over and snatched the phone from Jarod, putting it to her ear. “What is going on, Sydney?” She switched to her right ear as Jarod tried to grab the phone.
“Samantha,” the older gentleman replied. “How are you?”
“I would be a lot less frustrated if someone would tell me what was going on,” she replied through clenched teeth.
“Samantha, give me the phone,” Jarod said. Samantha quickly undid her seatbelt and got out of the car before Jarod could grab her. Jarod got out as she leaned against the car, covering her other ear so she could hear Sydney.
“Well,” Sydney replied, taking a breath, “it concerns you, actually.”
“How so?” Samantha asked.
“In short, Lyle thinks your pregnant,” Sydney replied bluntly. “With Jarod’s child.”
“Well, he’s wrong,” Samantha replied.
“Of course he’s wrong,” Sydney replied. “It’s ridiculous, really.”
“Exactly,” Samantha added. “It’s not Jarod’s child.”
Samantha heard nothing but silence on the other end, something she expected to hear, and glanced up at Jarod. His eyes were as wide as dinner plates, and his face had paled, but it was slowly turning red as his lips set in a straight line. “Uh, Syd, you there?” she asked.
“I’m . . . here,” Sydney replied in a shaky voice.
“How did Lyle find out?” Samantha asked as Jarod started edging around the car towards her. She moved away from him, going in the opposite direction around the car.
“I don’t know. He wouldn’t tell any of us.”
Samantha thought about it as she and Jarod continued to circle the car slowly, and then it clicked. “Angelo,” she replied.
“You think so?”
“Wouldn’t be surprised,” Samantha replied. “And I gotta go. I’m not feeling well all of a sudden. Bye.” She hung up the phone. She glanced at Jarod as he picked up speed, and she picked up hers as well. “Jarod, before you get mad -”
“Too late,” Jarod replied. “Who is the father?”
“What?” Samantha asked.
“Who is the father?” Jarod repeated.
“Oh, that!” Samantha shrugged. “I don’t know, to tell you the truth.”
Jarod stopped in his tracks, just staring at her. His voice was low, but Samantha heard every word. “Get. In. The. Car.” Samantha didn’t argue as she got into the passenger’s side. Jarod got in on his side, put the car into gear, and quickly drove out of the parking lot.
The two pretenders talked on their way back to the offices, and by the time they were parked in the garage, Jarod wasn’t ready to throttle her, but he said they were going to have a talk later on. Jarod took the tape from the camcorder and put it in his pocket - there was no way he was going to leave it unguarded - before they hurried into the building and rode the elevator to their floor.
“Do you remember where you put it?” Jarod asked as they walked down the corridor to their desks.
“I think at my desk,” Samantha replied, pushing the bridge of her shades back up on her nose.
“You think?”
“I’ve had other things on my mind recently.”
Jarod sighed as they hurried over to their desks. While Samantha searched her drawers, Jarod kept a lookout; they hadn’t run into anyone on their way there, and there weren’t many people around, but Jarod was still ready for anything.
“It’s not here,” Samantha said.
Jarod looked down. “What do you mean?”
“I remember now,” Samantha replied, sound frantic and looking scared. “I slipped it in here before talking to Steele before we left for the firing range this morning. It’s not here.”
“Are you sure you put it in there?” Jarod asked.
“I’m pretty sure,” Samantha replied, trying not to look panicky. “I . . . I don’t know for sure.”
Jarod put a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up. “It’s okay, Sam.” He helped her to her feet. “Come on.”
“But what about -”
“We’ll look for it later,” he replied gently. She smiled, and the two left the offices, heading back towards the elevators. Halfway there, Jarod glanced over and saw Samantha tense as she reached up to touch her neck, just as he felt a tingle on the back of his own neck. He stiffened as well then gently grabbed her arm, guiding her around the corner.
“Going somewhere?”
The two stopped short at the familiar voice and glanced at each other before slowly turning around. Standing there, not ten feet from them, his hands behind his back, wearing his shades and his coat, was Steele. Even though his face was expressionless, they could feel his eyes burning holes into them, measuring them.
Samantha backed up half a step reflexively; behind her, Jarod drew himself to his full height, which was several inches taller than Agent Steele. Samantha’s back stiffened, and both pretenders subtly reached for their weapons, but both knew somewhere in their bones that they would not escape this hallway unscathed. Steele had anticipated and isolated them effectively for his purpose; there was no way out.
They were trapped.
(End of Chapter 5)
