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Chapter or Story
Disclaimer: The Characters Miss Parker, Sydney, Jarod, Broots and The Center are all property of MTM, TNT and NBC Productions and are used without permission. If I owed them we'd still be watching new episodes.yadda yadda yadda :P
One Good Turn Part 7
Sadness, Silk and a Lumberjack
By Phenyx
Parker rolled over in bed and stretched lazily. Early morning sunshine streamed through the windows. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful spring day.
Parker smiled to herself. She'd had a wonderful night's sleep in this old bed. She'd slept better last night than she had in a long time. The fact that Jarod had relinquished this luxury to spend the night in a sleeping bag on the livingroom floor didn't bother her a bit.
Jarod had been getting better every day. A night on the hard wood wasn't going to send him into any relapse. In the three days that had passed since he'd first gotten out of bed, Jarod's condition had improved dramatically. He ate constantly and slept often. As a result, the pale starved creature he'd been when they had first arrived at the cabin had quickly disappeared.
Parker was still a bit concerned about Jarod's state of mind however. He just didn't seem to be acting like the pretender Parker had always known. Whenever Jarod joined the rest of them in the common livingroom, he seemed wary and unsure of himself. Parker could feel him watching her closely every time he was in the room. Jarod kept to himself for the most part, always quietly and cautiously on guard. He seemed to be waiting for something. It was as though he expected to discover that this entire setting was an elaborate simulation and his performance was being tested somehow.
Only when Jarod was with Angelo did he seem to act more like his old self.
Last night, when Parker had retired for the evening, Jarod and Angelo were lying on the floor in front of the fireplace. With the two sleeping bags situated in a long line in front of the hearth, they had stretched on the floor, sharing the same pillow from opposite directions. Jarod had started a small fire in the fireplace earlier in the evening and had introduced Angelo to the joys of roasting marshmallows. Hopped up on sugar when Parker had left, the two of them were whispering and laughing at each other like little boys at a slumber party.
Poor Sydney, on the couch for the evening, had undoubtedly spent a frustrating few hours trying to get some shut-eye.
Parker sighed and rolled out of bed. It was still very early, just past dawn, but she got up anyway. Parker had never been one to lie around in bed all day. Padding across the room in her bare feet, Parker pulled on the only truly feminine article of clothing she currently owned. The pale yellow silk robe was satiny soft. The kimono style garment clashed horribly with the over-sized T-shirt she'd worn to bed. Stolen from the dryer days ago, Parker felt that the comfortable white cotton undershirt she wore was one of the few perks to living with four men.
Cinching the robe's belt around her waist with a yawn, Parker left the bedroom and made her way into the kitchen. As she passed the couch, she found Sydney snoring deeply so she made an effort to be quiet as she moved through the room. The floor in front of the fireplace was empty.
In the kitchenette, hot coffee had already been prepared and sat ready in the carafe. Two empty bowls, still damp with droplets of milk in the bottom, sat in the sink. An empty box of raisin bran on the counter gave evidence that someone had eaten breakfast already. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who was the culprit.
Quietly pouring herself a mug of coffee, Parker glanced out the window over the sink and saw two figures out back. With a wry smile, Parker took her cup and slipped out the back door. Tucking her robe around her legs, Parker sat on the wooden steps behind the cabin. Though the air was a little cool and dew still sparkled on the grass, the bright sunshine seemed to give the promise of a marvelous day.
Several yards away, hunched on all fours in the grass, Angelo was intently studying a small hole in the ground, occasionally poking at the tiny crevice with a stick. His hair stood up wildly around his head and the knees of his blue jeans were already caked with grass and mud. The long sleeved, hooded sweatshirt Angelo wore was in a similar state of disrepair. But Angelo seemed to be having a ball.
In the other direction, Jarod was standing with his back to Parker, an ax in one hand as he bent to pick up a log of wood. Dressed in jeans and a warm quilted shirt, Jarod balanced the piece of wood on top of a larger stump. With a glance to check on Angelo, Jarod grasped the ax with both hands, brought the blade over his head and with a swift movement brought the ax down on the log with a grunt. The blade embedded itself several inches into the wood and then stuck there.
Grimacing at himself in annoyance, Jarod flipped the ax over, log and all, and smacked the wide end of the ax against the stump. The force of the impact, in conjunction with gravity, served to split the smaller log into two relatively equal pieces that fell to the ground.
Jarod turned to retrieve another log from the pile nearby. As he moved, he saw Parker out of the corner of his eye and nodded in her direction in greeting. Without speaking, Jarod then repeated the task of splitting wood in half. When Jarod looked toward Angelo for the third time during this process, Parker offered, "I'll watch him for a while, Jarod. Pay attention to what you are doing." She chided him.
"Thanks." Jarod replied sheepishly.
Parker sipped quietly at her coffee, keeping an eye on Angelo as Jarod hacked at chucks of wood.
While Jarod was between chops Parker gestured toward Angelo and asked curiously, "What's in the hole?"
Jarod cast her a quick glance. "Chipmunk." was the reply.
"Ah." Parker nodded. Parker finished her coffee and set the empty cup on the step near her feet. Wrapping her arms around her legs and pulling her knees toward her chest, Parker watched over Angelo as Jarod worked nearby.
Jarod was getting irritated, Parker could tell. He was repeatedly forced to flip the ax over and smack it downward in order to loosen a jammed blade. His strength just had not recovered enough to split the wood with the initial blow.
With a frustrated sigh, Jarod huffed and looked up to see Parker grinning at him in amusement. Frowning at her unspoken challenge, Jarod unbuttoned his heavy shirt and shrugged it off of his shoulders. Tossing the quilted chambray over Parker's knees, he returned to his task.
As Parker huddled under the makeshift blanket, she could see that perspiration had dampened the cotton of Jarod's T-shirt between his shoulder blades.
"Jarod," Parker cautioned. "You've been ill. You shouldn't over strain yourself."
He ignored her. Putting another log in place, Jarod raised the ax and heaved with all his might. There was a satisfactory thwacking sound as the log split and two chunks of wood clacked onto the ground. Casting a pleased grin in Parker's direction, Jarod moved to the woodpile and retrieved another log.
Over the next several minutes, Jarod valiantly split log after log, each with a single blow. It wasn't easy for him. Sweat beaded his forehead and his T-shirt began to cling to his body like a second skin. Parker watched the muscles ripple across his back as Jarod brought the ax down over and over.
'Another perk to living with men.' Parker thought to herself as she stared at him.
It didn't take long for Jarod's burst of energy to falter. Panting heavily, Jarod stopped and wiped sweat from his brow with the back of one arm. Seeing Parker's wry smile at his predicament, Jarod frowned at her and asked testily, "Was there something you wanted, Miss Parker?"
Parker shook her head. "Not at all. I'm just admiring the view." She said.
Jarod cocked his head at her in confusion and then glared across the yard to study the scenery. "The landscape is much nicer when seen from the porch out front."
A mischievous smile curled the corners of Parker's mouth. "That depends on what you want to look at."
Jarod frowned for a moment then blinked at Parker in surprise when he realized the flirtatious nature of her comment. Playing along with her, Jarod held his arms out and turned in a circle for Parker's inspection, saying, "Do you approve of this view?"
Grinning slyly Parker purred in a deep husky voice, "Oh yes. Very nice, indeed."
The pretender stared wide-eyed at her for a long moment before shaking his head in astonishment and turning back to the chopping block. When Jarod swung at the log this time, his aim was way off and he missed the log and the stump all together. His momentum threw him forward and Jarod nearly toppled onto the ground.
Parker could not help laughing at the chagrined look on Jarod's face. Brushing off her bottom as she stood up Parker said, "I'll leave you to your task Jarod. Any more distractions and you may chop off your leg."
Still grinning, Parker picked her cup up off the ground and went back into the house. Sydney was standing over the sink with a mug of coffee in one hand as he watched the scene through the window.
"Good morning, Syd." Parker said. "Did you sleep well?"
"Eventually." Sydney answered with a wry grin. "I was about to make some eggs, will you join me?"
Parker poured herself a second cup of coffee and sat down at the table. "I will join you, but I'd rather just have some toast."
Sydney nodded and began gathering the items needed to prepare the light breakfast.
"What is Angelo looking for so intently?" The older man asked.
"Jarod said that it was a chipmunk." Parker smiled.
The two chatted about the weather and similar nonsense for the next several minutes. Sydney quickly whipped up some eggs and toast, then sat with Parker to enjoy a comfortable meal and light conversation. After eating they took their time, sipping languorously at the coffee and even tackling a second pot.
Debbie, in a pair of pink and blue pajamas, stumbled into the room with a yawn and poured herself a bowl of cereal. Her hair hung in tangles about her face as she munched at her frosted flakes. By the time Broots had also joined them at the table the morning was well established.
Sydney began to clear away the first wave of dishes. As he ran soap and water into the sink, Sydney looked out the window with a frown. Moving to stand at Sydney's shoulder, Parker placed a hand gently on his arm and followed his gaze with her own.
Jarod was still out back, chopping wood. Evidently he'd been at it nonstop this entire time. Jarod was perspiring heavily. He had removed his t-shirt and tossed in to the ground nearby. Even from this distance, Parker could see the white stripes across his glistening back where the whip-marks had not completely healed yet. The ax wasn't splitting the logs in one blow anymore. As a matter of fact, Jarod seemed to be having a difficult time getting the blade into the air.
Jarod would heave the ax over his head, smack it against the log and stop to breathe for a moment. Then struggling against the weight, he would turn the handle to pound the ax against the stump and pull the blade free. At this point, it was taking several attempts to split each piece of wood. He looked absolutely exhausted.
Parker frowned. "What is that moron trying to prove?" She growled.
Sydney sighed sadly. "He's in training." At Parker's disapproving glare, Sydney added, "He needs to get back into proper physical condition."
Parker slumped against the counter dejectedly. "He's getting ready to run isn't he?"
Sydney nodded. "The question is whether or not he'll take us with him when he goes."
"Jarod won't leave us behind, will he?" Debbie asked.
"That will be entirely up to Jarod." Sydney replied.
As though mentioning his name had conjured him up, the back door crashed open and Jarod ambled into the room with Angelo in tow. His had put his t- shirt back on and had the quilted shirt tossed over one shoulder. His hair was plastered to his forehead and sweaty rivulets ran down his neck.
Ignoring the sudden silence that fell over the room, Jarod went to the refrigerator and pulled it open with some difficulty. He carefully poured two glasses of orange juice, grimacing with pain as he taxed his weary muscles even further. Handing one to Angelo, Jarod gulped down the other.
"I'm going to take a shower." Jarod declared, rubbing at his lower back with a grimace. "Could someone make sure Angelo doesn't wander off?" Without waiting for an answer Jarod plucked an apple from a bowl on the table. Sinking his teeth into the fresh fruit, he walked over to the master bedroom and disappeared through the door.
Jarod woke slowly, and gradually became aware of soft sounds filtering through the walls. He had come into the bedroom earlier to shower and shave. When he had finished, he sat on the edge of the bed to tie his shoes. At the time, he'd only planned to rest for a moment. His back ached and his shoulders were screaming in pain. He thought he would simply lie back and catch his breath before heading into the kitchen for some aspirin.
Settling back on the unmade bed, Jarod had been mesmerized by the soft fragrance that clung to the pillow. A mixture of jasmine and spice, the aroma was instantly recognizable to Jarod. Jarod had always thought that Miss Parker's distinct scent was a combination of herbal salon shampoo and expensive perfume. He'd even once spent a superfluous weekend attempting to recreate the mixture. But since leaving The Centre, Parker had been using the same shampoo as the rest of them and she didn't have any perfume with her. Yet the tantalizing bouquet still clung to her.
Jarod had buried his face in her pillow and sniffed, telling himself that he was trying to distinguish the specific scents hidden within the combined odor. He'd drifted off to sleep without even realizing it.
Without opening his eyes, Jarod sighed. Curled on his side with his arms against his chest, he could already feel the tightness in his limbs. Getting up and moving around was going to be a painful experience. So he decided to just stay put for a few more minutes.
Listening to the muffled sounds around him, Jarod could hear Sydney talking with Debbie in the next room. Occasionally, Jarod would hear a slapping sound followed by peals of laughter from Debbie and a deep voiced man that Jarod assumed was Angelo. It seemed that Debbie was teaching Angelo some sort of game that she called Slap Jack. Jarod had never heard of it.
A window in the bedroom was open. Jarod could hear birds singing merrily outside. The air had warmed up a bit since this morning. Wearing only a pair of jeans and an unbuttoned cotton shirt, Jarod was still quite comfortable with the temperature in the room.
It seemed so odd, somehow, to be able to hear so much going on. This wasn't like a hotel room or a shabby apartment complex where other strangers shared the building. Jarod was actually living in close quarters with other people. After so many years alone and in isolation, it took some getting used to. Just this morning, Jarod had caught himself drinking his milk straight from the carton. If Parker had caught him she'd have had a cow. It was the little adjustments like that which were the hardest for Jarod to comprehend.
With his eyes still closed, Jarod became aware of a sound that he couldn't immediately identify. It was a wet sound, like the occasional lapping of waves against the side of a small boat. Quickly dripping water, followed by another rippling sound forced Jarod to open his eyes in curiosity.
Jarod didn't need to move. Positioned in one corner of the room was an old- fashioned, full-length mirror. The mirror was held in an ornate wooden frame with a pivot point holding it to a sturdy carved stand. From Jarod's vantage point, he could readily see the mirror and the reflection within.
The bathroom door was ajar and Miss Parker was lazily soaking in the bathtub. Her hair was piled haphazardly on top of her head, held there with a brown clip. Her position in relation to the door caused her reflection to appear in the large mirror facing Jarod.
He had a wonderful view of Parker's bath. She was actually only visible from the shoulders up. The tub itself hid the rest of her body from view. But Jarod's reaction couldn't have been more extreme if he'd seen her standing there naked.
As Jarod watched, one delicate leg rose from the water and perched on the edge of the cast iron tub. Parker sprayed lather from an orange can into her palm and smoothed it over her shin. Using a blue disposable razor, she began to shave her leg.
Jarod abruptly realized that Parker was using the same blade and shaving cream that he'd used on his whiskers a short time ago. Arousal slammed into Jarod's midsection like a physical blow. It was so domestic, so intimate to be using the same toiletries. Parker finished with one leg and then repeated her task on the other. Jarod felt his mouth go dry.
When Parker was done, she dropped the razor to the floor and eased back into the water. She glanced up and looked straight at the mirror. Jarod froze. Too stunned to even bother feigning sleep, Jarod stared at her reflection like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. Parker's lips curled with a mischievous grin.
"Do you approve of this view?" She purred seductively.
Jarod swallowed hard and had to clear his throat before his voice would work. "Oh yes. Very nice, indeed." He croaked hoarsely.
Parker's low sexy laughter echoed on the ceramic tile. Jarod felt a shiver of pure lust run down his spine. With a groan, Jarod looked away and pushed himself up off of the bed. He didn't get far. The muscles in his torso were stiff and uncooperative from his extreme workout that morning. When Jarod tried to leave the room, his back protested, sending shooting pains throughout his body. Jarod gasped in pain as one knee buckled beneath him. Unable to react quickly enough to catch himself, Jarod stumbled and fell to the floor with a crash.
Lying in a helpless heap, Jarod stared at the ceiling in an anguish of embarrassment. He heard Parker call out to him in concern. "Jarod?"
"I'm okay." He moaned dejectedly.
"Bullshit." She replied.
Jarod heard the plug pop in the drain and the distinct sounds of Parker standing and stepping out of the tub. He knew that if he turned his head to the right just a bit, he would be able to see her full reflection in the mirror. Jarod squeezed his eyes shut as desire wrapped itself into a hard coil in his stomach.
A moment later, a warm, wet hand touched his face. "Jarod? Did you hit your head?"
"No." he whispered.
"Can you get up?" Parker asked.
Jarod sighed. "Probably not."
Parker huffed at him in frustration. "I told you not to over do it." She scolded.
Jarod sighed again without comment.
"Come on," Parker ordered as she hauled on his arm.
Jarod was forced to open his eyes as Parker helped him off of the floor. She was sopping wet, her silky robe wrapped around her dripping body. In certain areas, the robe clung enticingly to Parker's skin and had become slightly transparent from the water.
Jarod groaned.
Angling his trajectory just so, Parker released Jarod's arm and let him flop backward on to the bed. He gasped at the pull on his sore muscles.
Parker rolled her eyes in irritation. "Roll over." She commanded.
Jarod obeyed with some difficulty, rolling onto his stomach. At least with his back to her, Jarod would not be tempted by the sight of Parker's damp body through her robe. Not looking at her would make the situation easier to deal with. A moment later, Jarod realized just how wrong he could be.
Sliding his shirt from his shoulders, Parker began to massage the muscles of Jarod's back and shoulders. Never had Jarod experienced such an erotic combination of pleasure and pain at the same time. Parker's hands were soft but strong as she kneaded his flesh in all the right spots. As if by magic, her fingers found the tightest spots and rubbed them until the soreness seeped away.
Working silently, Parker straddled Jarod's thighs in order to apply pressure with the heels of her hands to the latissimus muscles along Jarod's ribs. He gasped as she pressed at a particularly tender area.
"Does it hurt?" She asked nonchalantly.
"Yes." Jarod hissed through clenched teeth.
"Good." Parker said, emphasizing her words with a rough shove at his back. "You deserve every ache and pain. What were you trying to accomplish anyway?" She growled.
"I was chopping firewood." Jarod mumbled into the pillow beneath him.
"A week ago, you couldn't lift your head to eat and today you think you are a lumberjack." Parker admonished.
"I haven't got time to lie around like an invalid, Parker." Jarod said. His words came out sounding harsher than he had intended.
"I didn't realize that you had somewhere else you needed to be." Parker snapped angrily.
Turning beneath her, Jarod flipped over to stare at Parker in frustration. "What am I supposed to do, Miss Parker? Did you think we could all hide out here indefinitely?" He ground out irritably. "Did you think The Centre would just forget about us?"
"No!" Parker cried defensively. "I just thought we could follow that path you once spoke of so eloquently. Or have you forgotten?"
Jarod grabbed Parker's arms tightly. "I didn't forget, Parker." He said in a soft growl. Holding her this way, with Parker nearly naked and straddling his lap, Jarod felt dizzy with desperate need. Gripping her upper arms in his fingers, Jarod pulled Parker toward him several inches. Her weight shifted, pressing her inner thigh against the hard bulge in Jarod's jeans.
Jarod had a sudden, heady sensation of falling. He had desired Miss Parker in the past. Hell, for years she had been the only female he knew and the sole object of pubescent fantasies. But never had he wanted her as badly as he did at that moment. With her hair tumbled about her head and a wide-eyed look on her face, Jarod felt his desire for Parker pulling at him like a sailor being drawn toward the fateful siren's song.
Jarod's feeling of need was quickly followed by a rush of self-preservation and fear. Years of training couldn't be ignored. Over the past decade, Jarod had been taught that Parker was a dangerous woman. Though logically, Jarod knew she would never intentionally harm him, his gut reaction was still stuck on 'You run and I chase'. Jarod's instinct for self-protection kicked in and he reacted in the only way the pretender had ever learned.
Shoving Parker off to one side, Jarod sat up quickly. Ignoring the stiffness still lingering in his back, Jarod snatched his shirt and shoes from the floor and fled from the room.
Pulling his shirt on as he stormed across the livingroom, Jarod hurried toward the front door. He heard Parker call to him as she came from the bedroom.
"Jarod!" She growled. "Don't you dare run from me!"
Sydney and Broots exchanged a look of surprise at the other pair's awkward state of dress but neither voiced an opinion about the situation.
Ignoring Parker's outburst and the stunned looks from the other two men in the room, Jarod headed outside, slamming the door behind him. Stomping across the porch, his shoes dangling from one hand, Jarod felt his legs itching to run. Adrenaline pumped through him and he looked around frantically, calculating his options.
"Those turning points are so much easier to deal with when your life isn't the one changing." a soft voice stopped Jarod in his tracks.
Jarod sighed and sat down in the grass to put on his shoes. He took his time, carefully tying the knots and doing his best to calm down before he looked up at her. Parker stood over him in her robe, arms folded over her chest.
"What to you want from me, Miss Parker?" Jarod said in resignation.
"A little gratitude would be nice." She huffed at him. "There's a houseful of people here who have walked away from everything in order to save your sorry ass."
Jarod rolled his eyes. "I am so sorry your glacial majesty!" He growled sarcastically. "Nearly drowning in an ice cold river must have damaged my brain." He added meaningfully. "None of this would have happened if you hadn't been so damned stubborn."
"Look who's being stubborn!" Parker cried, stomping her foot.
"I learned from the best." Jarod hissed.
With a heavy sigh, Parker plopped down in the grass beside Jarod. "I don't want to fight with you, Jarod." She said softly.
Jarod scoffed rudely.
Parker stared at the pretender intently. "Jarod." She said. "You were the one who said I should leave The Centre. You wanted me to go with you. I thought you would be relieved that I've finally found a new path."
Jarod shook his head sadly. "This isn't what I meant, Parker."
Frowning, she said. "I don't understand."
Gesturing helplessly toward the cabin behind them Jarod asked, "How do we protect them, Parker? You and I, we can take care of ourselves. But how can we protect them?"
Parker shrugged. "I hadn't thought about it. You're the genius, you'll figure something out."
Jarod gazed at her with a look of deep sadness. "I already have."
They sat staring at each other for several silent moments, as though communicating volumes through vibrations in the air around them.
Parker lower lip trembled. "You are going to leave us." She whispered.
Jarod's eyes sparkled with moisture and he laughed caustically. "The irony of it is that for the past 6 years, my interaction with you has been the most stable relationship in my life. I'll never see you again and I can't find a way to tell you how much that bothers me."
"You're going to leave us behind." Parker said again accusingly.
"Listen to me, Parker." Jarod said slowly and firmly as though speaking to a child. "They will never stop looking for us. You and Angelo and I are all too valuable. We are the last of the Red Files, aside from Lyle. The Centre will stop at nothing to get us back. We can not stop running."
Jarod paused for a moment to let that sink in.
"Do you really think Angelo can live incognito? He will always draw attention to himself, though he will never do it intentionally." Jarod went on. "How do we hide him without locking him up somewhere just as bad as The Centre was?"
"What about Sydney?" Jarod went on quickly. "They don't want Sydney back. They want Sydney dead. I don't think they will even waste the effort to look for him." Jarod sighed. "There is probably a very lucrative contract out on his head right now. Every bounty hunter and assassin in the country will be looking for him."
Parker blinked in shock as understanding of their predicament began to dawn on her.
But Jarod kept talking. "What about Debbie? I don't know about you but I don't want to be responsible for stealing that little girl's childhood from her. A life on the run is no life for a child. She deserves to have friends, dates, and trips to the prom. Will you deny her those things?"
Parker shook her head sadly as a single tear ran down her cheek. "What do you plan to do?" She asked quietly.
Jarod plucked a blade of grass and twiddled it between his fingers. "I don't think The Centre will look for Broots too intensely. In their eyes, he's just a peon, not worth wasting time over. I think we can create new identities for him and Debbie. As long as they lay low, they should be able to live relatively normal lives."
"Sydney and Angelo are a different story." Jarod went on. "Let's face it, neither of them would last long on his own. Someone needs to look after them. Someone strong and smart needs to stay with them and protect them from whatever may come along."
Jarod stared at Parker meaningfully.
"Why me?" Parker asked. "You could protect them better than I can."
"Because I am the bigger prize." Jarod answered simply. "If I leave a trail of breadcrumbs for them to follow, they will chase me. The three of you can keep a low profile. They won't be able to find you because it will be so easy to follow me instead."
Parker stared at Jarod in astonishment. "You'll act as a decoy so that we can get away."
Jarod nodded. "It will work." He said confidently.
"For how long?" Parker whispered.
Jarod sighed. "For as long as necessary." He answered.
Parker looked up at him with sadness in her eyes. All Jarod had ever wanted for her was to rid her face of that sadness. Looking at her now, Jarod felt his earlier desire melt away, replaced by a deep need to protect her from all of this. He wanted to shield Parker from the loneliness that he'd been forced to endure, but he knew that he could not. Fate had never been kind to either of them in that area. The connection between Parker and Jarod would always be there, preventing any meaningful relationship with anyone else. Yet it seemed they were doomed to spend their lives apart, running from a destiny that had been written long before either of them had been born.
Angelo suddenly appeared beside them, grinning from ear to ear like the idiot savant that he was.
"Another way." Angelo giggled. "Angelo knows another way."
Jarod sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Another way for what, Angelo?" he said patiently.
Angelo giggled again and clapped his hands. Sitting cross-legged beside Jarod, the empath rocked excitedly back and forth. "A way to be safe. All be safe." Angelo said.
Jarod frowned. "How?"
Leaning forward conspiratorially, Angelo whispered, "Stop running."
Jarod and Parker blinked at each other in confusion. "If we stop running, they will catch us." Parker said gently.
Angelo shook his head, his hair flying in all directions. "Stop running." He repeated. "Now WE chase."
Jarod thought about that for a moment. "We go on the attack. Get them before they get us." He said slowly.
Angelo nodded excitedly. "We get them." He agreed.
Jarod shook his head. "It's risky, very risky. There are only the five of us."
Angelo put one hand on Jarod's knee. "Alone, each of us can be dangerous." Angelo said with a firm lucidity. "Together we are an army."
Parker could see the wheels turning in Jarod's head as he began to process the scenarios. When his eyes began to sparkle mischievously, Parker knew that he was beginning to believe in the possibility.
Jarod glanced at Parker. "You're in charge of this little outlaw brigade of ours. Ultimately we'll do whatever you decide."
Parker pondered for a moment. "Do you think we can pull this off?" She asked Jarod.
He shrugged. "Angelo has a point. The Centre has trained us very well." Jarod nodded. "I think we have a chance. It might be remote, but it is a chance."
Parker nodded in agreement.
Sitting in a triangle in the grass, the three Centre offspring began to plot its demise under the bright sunshine of a warm spring day.
One Good Turn Part 7
Sadness, Silk and a Lumberjack
By Phenyx
Parker rolled over in bed and stretched lazily. Early morning sunshine streamed through the windows. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful spring day.
Parker smiled to herself. She'd had a wonderful night's sleep in this old bed. She'd slept better last night than she had in a long time. The fact that Jarod had relinquished this luxury to spend the night in a sleeping bag on the livingroom floor didn't bother her a bit.
Jarod had been getting better every day. A night on the hard wood wasn't going to send him into any relapse. In the three days that had passed since he'd first gotten out of bed, Jarod's condition had improved dramatically. He ate constantly and slept often. As a result, the pale starved creature he'd been when they had first arrived at the cabin had quickly disappeared.
Parker was still a bit concerned about Jarod's state of mind however. He just didn't seem to be acting like the pretender Parker had always known. Whenever Jarod joined the rest of them in the common livingroom, he seemed wary and unsure of himself. Parker could feel him watching her closely every time he was in the room. Jarod kept to himself for the most part, always quietly and cautiously on guard. He seemed to be waiting for something. It was as though he expected to discover that this entire setting was an elaborate simulation and his performance was being tested somehow.
Only when Jarod was with Angelo did he seem to act more like his old self.
Last night, when Parker had retired for the evening, Jarod and Angelo were lying on the floor in front of the fireplace. With the two sleeping bags situated in a long line in front of the hearth, they had stretched on the floor, sharing the same pillow from opposite directions. Jarod had started a small fire in the fireplace earlier in the evening and had introduced Angelo to the joys of roasting marshmallows. Hopped up on sugar when Parker had left, the two of them were whispering and laughing at each other like little boys at a slumber party.
Poor Sydney, on the couch for the evening, had undoubtedly spent a frustrating few hours trying to get some shut-eye.
Parker sighed and rolled out of bed. It was still very early, just past dawn, but she got up anyway. Parker had never been one to lie around in bed all day. Padding across the room in her bare feet, Parker pulled on the only truly feminine article of clothing she currently owned. The pale yellow silk robe was satiny soft. The kimono style garment clashed horribly with the over-sized T-shirt she'd worn to bed. Stolen from the dryer days ago, Parker felt that the comfortable white cotton undershirt she wore was one of the few perks to living with four men.
Cinching the robe's belt around her waist with a yawn, Parker left the bedroom and made her way into the kitchen. As she passed the couch, she found Sydney snoring deeply so she made an effort to be quiet as she moved through the room. The floor in front of the fireplace was empty.
In the kitchenette, hot coffee had already been prepared and sat ready in the carafe. Two empty bowls, still damp with droplets of milk in the bottom, sat in the sink. An empty box of raisin bran on the counter gave evidence that someone had eaten breakfast already. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who was the culprit.
Quietly pouring herself a mug of coffee, Parker glanced out the window over the sink and saw two figures out back. With a wry smile, Parker took her cup and slipped out the back door. Tucking her robe around her legs, Parker sat on the wooden steps behind the cabin. Though the air was a little cool and dew still sparkled on the grass, the bright sunshine seemed to give the promise of a marvelous day.
Several yards away, hunched on all fours in the grass, Angelo was intently studying a small hole in the ground, occasionally poking at the tiny crevice with a stick. His hair stood up wildly around his head and the knees of his blue jeans were already caked with grass and mud. The long sleeved, hooded sweatshirt Angelo wore was in a similar state of disrepair. But Angelo seemed to be having a ball.
In the other direction, Jarod was standing with his back to Parker, an ax in one hand as he bent to pick up a log of wood. Dressed in jeans and a warm quilted shirt, Jarod balanced the piece of wood on top of a larger stump. With a glance to check on Angelo, Jarod grasped the ax with both hands, brought the blade over his head and with a swift movement brought the ax down on the log with a grunt. The blade embedded itself several inches into the wood and then stuck there.
Grimacing at himself in annoyance, Jarod flipped the ax over, log and all, and smacked the wide end of the ax against the stump. The force of the impact, in conjunction with gravity, served to split the smaller log into two relatively equal pieces that fell to the ground.
Jarod turned to retrieve another log from the pile nearby. As he moved, he saw Parker out of the corner of his eye and nodded in her direction in greeting. Without speaking, Jarod then repeated the task of splitting wood in half. When Jarod looked toward Angelo for the third time during this process, Parker offered, "I'll watch him for a while, Jarod. Pay attention to what you are doing." She chided him.
"Thanks." Jarod replied sheepishly.
Parker sipped quietly at her coffee, keeping an eye on Angelo as Jarod hacked at chucks of wood.
While Jarod was between chops Parker gestured toward Angelo and asked curiously, "What's in the hole?"
Jarod cast her a quick glance. "Chipmunk." was the reply.
"Ah." Parker nodded. Parker finished her coffee and set the empty cup on the step near her feet. Wrapping her arms around her legs and pulling her knees toward her chest, Parker watched over Angelo as Jarod worked nearby.
Jarod was getting irritated, Parker could tell. He was repeatedly forced to flip the ax over and smack it downward in order to loosen a jammed blade. His strength just had not recovered enough to split the wood with the initial blow.
With a frustrated sigh, Jarod huffed and looked up to see Parker grinning at him in amusement. Frowning at her unspoken challenge, Jarod unbuttoned his heavy shirt and shrugged it off of his shoulders. Tossing the quilted chambray over Parker's knees, he returned to his task.
As Parker huddled under the makeshift blanket, she could see that perspiration had dampened the cotton of Jarod's T-shirt between his shoulder blades.
"Jarod," Parker cautioned. "You've been ill. You shouldn't over strain yourself."
He ignored her. Putting another log in place, Jarod raised the ax and heaved with all his might. There was a satisfactory thwacking sound as the log split and two chunks of wood clacked onto the ground. Casting a pleased grin in Parker's direction, Jarod moved to the woodpile and retrieved another log.
Over the next several minutes, Jarod valiantly split log after log, each with a single blow. It wasn't easy for him. Sweat beaded his forehead and his T-shirt began to cling to his body like a second skin. Parker watched the muscles ripple across his back as Jarod brought the ax down over and over.
'Another perk to living with men.' Parker thought to herself as she stared at him.
It didn't take long for Jarod's burst of energy to falter. Panting heavily, Jarod stopped and wiped sweat from his brow with the back of one arm. Seeing Parker's wry smile at his predicament, Jarod frowned at her and asked testily, "Was there something you wanted, Miss Parker?"
Parker shook her head. "Not at all. I'm just admiring the view." She said.
Jarod cocked his head at her in confusion and then glared across the yard to study the scenery. "The landscape is much nicer when seen from the porch out front."
A mischievous smile curled the corners of Parker's mouth. "That depends on what you want to look at."
Jarod frowned for a moment then blinked at Parker in surprise when he realized the flirtatious nature of her comment. Playing along with her, Jarod held his arms out and turned in a circle for Parker's inspection, saying, "Do you approve of this view?"
Grinning slyly Parker purred in a deep husky voice, "Oh yes. Very nice, indeed."
The pretender stared wide-eyed at her for a long moment before shaking his head in astonishment and turning back to the chopping block. When Jarod swung at the log this time, his aim was way off and he missed the log and the stump all together. His momentum threw him forward and Jarod nearly toppled onto the ground.
Parker could not help laughing at the chagrined look on Jarod's face. Brushing off her bottom as she stood up Parker said, "I'll leave you to your task Jarod. Any more distractions and you may chop off your leg."
Still grinning, Parker picked her cup up off the ground and went back into the house. Sydney was standing over the sink with a mug of coffee in one hand as he watched the scene through the window.
"Good morning, Syd." Parker said. "Did you sleep well?"
"Eventually." Sydney answered with a wry grin. "I was about to make some eggs, will you join me?"
Parker poured herself a second cup of coffee and sat down at the table. "I will join you, but I'd rather just have some toast."
Sydney nodded and began gathering the items needed to prepare the light breakfast.
"What is Angelo looking for so intently?" The older man asked.
"Jarod said that it was a chipmunk." Parker smiled.
The two chatted about the weather and similar nonsense for the next several minutes. Sydney quickly whipped up some eggs and toast, then sat with Parker to enjoy a comfortable meal and light conversation. After eating they took their time, sipping languorously at the coffee and even tackling a second pot.
Debbie, in a pair of pink and blue pajamas, stumbled into the room with a yawn and poured herself a bowl of cereal. Her hair hung in tangles about her face as she munched at her frosted flakes. By the time Broots had also joined them at the table the morning was well established.
Sydney began to clear away the first wave of dishes. As he ran soap and water into the sink, Sydney looked out the window with a frown. Moving to stand at Sydney's shoulder, Parker placed a hand gently on his arm and followed his gaze with her own.
Jarod was still out back, chopping wood. Evidently he'd been at it nonstop this entire time. Jarod was perspiring heavily. He had removed his t-shirt and tossed in to the ground nearby. Even from this distance, Parker could see the white stripes across his glistening back where the whip-marks had not completely healed yet. The ax wasn't splitting the logs in one blow anymore. As a matter of fact, Jarod seemed to be having a difficult time getting the blade into the air.
Jarod would heave the ax over his head, smack it against the log and stop to breathe for a moment. Then struggling against the weight, he would turn the handle to pound the ax against the stump and pull the blade free. At this point, it was taking several attempts to split each piece of wood. He looked absolutely exhausted.
Parker frowned. "What is that moron trying to prove?" She growled.
Sydney sighed sadly. "He's in training." At Parker's disapproving glare, Sydney added, "He needs to get back into proper physical condition."
Parker slumped against the counter dejectedly. "He's getting ready to run isn't he?"
Sydney nodded. "The question is whether or not he'll take us with him when he goes."
"Jarod won't leave us behind, will he?" Debbie asked.
"That will be entirely up to Jarod." Sydney replied.
As though mentioning his name had conjured him up, the back door crashed open and Jarod ambled into the room with Angelo in tow. His had put his t- shirt back on and had the quilted shirt tossed over one shoulder. His hair was plastered to his forehead and sweaty rivulets ran down his neck.
Ignoring the sudden silence that fell over the room, Jarod went to the refrigerator and pulled it open with some difficulty. He carefully poured two glasses of orange juice, grimacing with pain as he taxed his weary muscles even further. Handing one to Angelo, Jarod gulped down the other.
"I'm going to take a shower." Jarod declared, rubbing at his lower back with a grimace. "Could someone make sure Angelo doesn't wander off?" Without waiting for an answer Jarod plucked an apple from a bowl on the table. Sinking his teeth into the fresh fruit, he walked over to the master bedroom and disappeared through the door.
Jarod woke slowly, and gradually became aware of soft sounds filtering through the walls. He had come into the bedroom earlier to shower and shave. When he had finished, he sat on the edge of the bed to tie his shoes. At the time, he'd only planned to rest for a moment. His back ached and his shoulders were screaming in pain. He thought he would simply lie back and catch his breath before heading into the kitchen for some aspirin.
Settling back on the unmade bed, Jarod had been mesmerized by the soft fragrance that clung to the pillow. A mixture of jasmine and spice, the aroma was instantly recognizable to Jarod. Jarod had always thought that Miss Parker's distinct scent was a combination of herbal salon shampoo and expensive perfume. He'd even once spent a superfluous weekend attempting to recreate the mixture. But since leaving The Centre, Parker had been using the same shampoo as the rest of them and she didn't have any perfume with her. Yet the tantalizing bouquet still clung to her.
Jarod had buried his face in her pillow and sniffed, telling himself that he was trying to distinguish the specific scents hidden within the combined odor. He'd drifted off to sleep without even realizing it.
Without opening his eyes, Jarod sighed. Curled on his side with his arms against his chest, he could already feel the tightness in his limbs. Getting up and moving around was going to be a painful experience. So he decided to just stay put for a few more minutes.
Listening to the muffled sounds around him, Jarod could hear Sydney talking with Debbie in the next room. Occasionally, Jarod would hear a slapping sound followed by peals of laughter from Debbie and a deep voiced man that Jarod assumed was Angelo. It seemed that Debbie was teaching Angelo some sort of game that she called Slap Jack. Jarod had never heard of it.
A window in the bedroom was open. Jarod could hear birds singing merrily outside. The air had warmed up a bit since this morning. Wearing only a pair of jeans and an unbuttoned cotton shirt, Jarod was still quite comfortable with the temperature in the room.
It seemed so odd, somehow, to be able to hear so much going on. This wasn't like a hotel room or a shabby apartment complex where other strangers shared the building. Jarod was actually living in close quarters with other people. After so many years alone and in isolation, it took some getting used to. Just this morning, Jarod had caught himself drinking his milk straight from the carton. If Parker had caught him she'd have had a cow. It was the little adjustments like that which were the hardest for Jarod to comprehend.
With his eyes still closed, Jarod became aware of a sound that he couldn't immediately identify. It was a wet sound, like the occasional lapping of waves against the side of a small boat. Quickly dripping water, followed by another rippling sound forced Jarod to open his eyes in curiosity.
Jarod didn't need to move. Positioned in one corner of the room was an old- fashioned, full-length mirror. The mirror was held in an ornate wooden frame with a pivot point holding it to a sturdy carved stand. From Jarod's vantage point, he could readily see the mirror and the reflection within.
The bathroom door was ajar and Miss Parker was lazily soaking in the bathtub. Her hair was piled haphazardly on top of her head, held there with a brown clip. Her position in relation to the door caused her reflection to appear in the large mirror facing Jarod.
He had a wonderful view of Parker's bath. She was actually only visible from the shoulders up. The tub itself hid the rest of her body from view. But Jarod's reaction couldn't have been more extreme if he'd seen her standing there naked.
As Jarod watched, one delicate leg rose from the water and perched on the edge of the cast iron tub. Parker sprayed lather from an orange can into her palm and smoothed it over her shin. Using a blue disposable razor, she began to shave her leg.
Jarod abruptly realized that Parker was using the same blade and shaving cream that he'd used on his whiskers a short time ago. Arousal slammed into Jarod's midsection like a physical blow. It was so domestic, so intimate to be using the same toiletries. Parker finished with one leg and then repeated her task on the other. Jarod felt his mouth go dry.
When Parker was done, she dropped the razor to the floor and eased back into the water. She glanced up and looked straight at the mirror. Jarod froze. Too stunned to even bother feigning sleep, Jarod stared at her reflection like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. Parker's lips curled with a mischievous grin.
"Do you approve of this view?" She purred seductively.
Jarod swallowed hard and had to clear his throat before his voice would work. "Oh yes. Very nice, indeed." He croaked hoarsely.
Parker's low sexy laughter echoed on the ceramic tile. Jarod felt a shiver of pure lust run down his spine. With a groan, Jarod looked away and pushed himself up off of the bed. He didn't get far. The muscles in his torso were stiff and uncooperative from his extreme workout that morning. When Jarod tried to leave the room, his back protested, sending shooting pains throughout his body. Jarod gasped in pain as one knee buckled beneath him. Unable to react quickly enough to catch himself, Jarod stumbled and fell to the floor with a crash.
Lying in a helpless heap, Jarod stared at the ceiling in an anguish of embarrassment. He heard Parker call out to him in concern. "Jarod?"
"I'm okay." He moaned dejectedly.
"Bullshit." She replied.
Jarod heard the plug pop in the drain and the distinct sounds of Parker standing and stepping out of the tub. He knew that if he turned his head to the right just a bit, he would be able to see her full reflection in the mirror. Jarod squeezed his eyes shut as desire wrapped itself into a hard coil in his stomach.
A moment later, a warm, wet hand touched his face. "Jarod? Did you hit your head?"
"No." he whispered.
"Can you get up?" Parker asked.
Jarod sighed. "Probably not."
Parker huffed at him in frustration. "I told you not to over do it." She scolded.
Jarod sighed again without comment.
"Come on," Parker ordered as she hauled on his arm.
Jarod was forced to open his eyes as Parker helped him off of the floor. She was sopping wet, her silky robe wrapped around her dripping body. In certain areas, the robe clung enticingly to Parker's skin and had become slightly transparent from the water.
Jarod groaned.
Angling his trajectory just so, Parker released Jarod's arm and let him flop backward on to the bed. He gasped at the pull on his sore muscles.
Parker rolled her eyes in irritation. "Roll over." She commanded.
Jarod obeyed with some difficulty, rolling onto his stomach. At least with his back to her, Jarod would not be tempted by the sight of Parker's damp body through her robe. Not looking at her would make the situation easier to deal with. A moment later, Jarod realized just how wrong he could be.
Sliding his shirt from his shoulders, Parker began to massage the muscles of Jarod's back and shoulders. Never had Jarod experienced such an erotic combination of pleasure and pain at the same time. Parker's hands were soft but strong as she kneaded his flesh in all the right spots. As if by magic, her fingers found the tightest spots and rubbed them until the soreness seeped away.
Working silently, Parker straddled Jarod's thighs in order to apply pressure with the heels of her hands to the latissimus muscles along Jarod's ribs. He gasped as she pressed at a particularly tender area.
"Does it hurt?" She asked nonchalantly.
"Yes." Jarod hissed through clenched teeth.
"Good." Parker said, emphasizing her words with a rough shove at his back. "You deserve every ache and pain. What were you trying to accomplish anyway?" She growled.
"I was chopping firewood." Jarod mumbled into the pillow beneath him.
"A week ago, you couldn't lift your head to eat and today you think you are a lumberjack." Parker admonished.
"I haven't got time to lie around like an invalid, Parker." Jarod said. His words came out sounding harsher than he had intended.
"I didn't realize that you had somewhere else you needed to be." Parker snapped angrily.
Turning beneath her, Jarod flipped over to stare at Parker in frustration. "What am I supposed to do, Miss Parker? Did you think we could all hide out here indefinitely?" He ground out irritably. "Did you think The Centre would just forget about us?"
"No!" Parker cried defensively. "I just thought we could follow that path you once spoke of so eloquently. Or have you forgotten?"
Jarod grabbed Parker's arms tightly. "I didn't forget, Parker." He said in a soft growl. Holding her this way, with Parker nearly naked and straddling his lap, Jarod felt dizzy with desperate need. Gripping her upper arms in his fingers, Jarod pulled Parker toward him several inches. Her weight shifted, pressing her inner thigh against the hard bulge in Jarod's jeans.
Jarod had a sudden, heady sensation of falling. He had desired Miss Parker in the past. Hell, for years she had been the only female he knew and the sole object of pubescent fantasies. But never had he wanted her as badly as he did at that moment. With her hair tumbled about her head and a wide-eyed look on her face, Jarod felt his desire for Parker pulling at him like a sailor being drawn toward the fateful siren's song.
Jarod's feeling of need was quickly followed by a rush of self-preservation and fear. Years of training couldn't be ignored. Over the past decade, Jarod had been taught that Parker was a dangerous woman. Though logically, Jarod knew she would never intentionally harm him, his gut reaction was still stuck on 'You run and I chase'. Jarod's instinct for self-protection kicked in and he reacted in the only way the pretender had ever learned.
Shoving Parker off to one side, Jarod sat up quickly. Ignoring the stiffness still lingering in his back, Jarod snatched his shirt and shoes from the floor and fled from the room.
Pulling his shirt on as he stormed across the livingroom, Jarod hurried toward the front door. He heard Parker call to him as she came from the bedroom.
"Jarod!" She growled. "Don't you dare run from me!"
Sydney and Broots exchanged a look of surprise at the other pair's awkward state of dress but neither voiced an opinion about the situation.
Ignoring Parker's outburst and the stunned looks from the other two men in the room, Jarod headed outside, slamming the door behind him. Stomping across the porch, his shoes dangling from one hand, Jarod felt his legs itching to run. Adrenaline pumped through him and he looked around frantically, calculating his options.
"Those turning points are so much easier to deal with when your life isn't the one changing." a soft voice stopped Jarod in his tracks.
Jarod sighed and sat down in the grass to put on his shoes. He took his time, carefully tying the knots and doing his best to calm down before he looked up at her. Parker stood over him in her robe, arms folded over her chest.
"What to you want from me, Miss Parker?" Jarod said in resignation.
"A little gratitude would be nice." She huffed at him. "There's a houseful of people here who have walked away from everything in order to save your sorry ass."
Jarod rolled his eyes. "I am so sorry your glacial majesty!" He growled sarcastically. "Nearly drowning in an ice cold river must have damaged my brain." He added meaningfully. "None of this would have happened if you hadn't been so damned stubborn."
"Look who's being stubborn!" Parker cried, stomping her foot.
"I learned from the best." Jarod hissed.
With a heavy sigh, Parker plopped down in the grass beside Jarod. "I don't want to fight with you, Jarod." She said softly.
Jarod scoffed rudely.
Parker stared at the pretender intently. "Jarod." She said. "You were the one who said I should leave The Centre. You wanted me to go with you. I thought you would be relieved that I've finally found a new path."
Jarod shook his head sadly. "This isn't what I meant, Parker."
Frowning, she said. "I don't understand."
Gesturing helplessly toward the cabin behind them Jarod asked, "How do we protect them, Parker? You and I, we can take care of ourselves. But how can we protect them?"
Parker shrugged. "I hadn't thought about it. You're the genius, you'll figure something out."
Jarod gazed at her with a look of deep sadness. "I already have."
They sat staring at each other for several silent moments, as though communicating volumes through vibrations in the air around them.
Parker lower lip trembled. "You are going to leave us." She whispered.
Jarod's eyes sparkled with moisture and he laughed caustically. "The irony of it is that for the past 6 years, my interaction with you has been the most stable relationship in my life. I'll never see you again and I can't find a way to tell you how much that bothers me."
"You're going to leave us behind." Parker said again accusingly.
"Listen to me, Parker." Jarod said slowly and firmly as though speaking to a child. "They will never stop looking for us. You and Angelo and I are all too valuable. We are the last of the Red Files, aside from Lyle. The Centre will stop at nothing to get us back. We can not stop running."
Jarod paused for a moment to let that sink in.
"Do you really think Angelo can live incognito? He will always draw attention to himself, though he will never do it intentionally." Jarod went on. "How do we hide him without locking him up somewhere just as bad as The Centre was?"
"What about Sydney?" Jarod went on quickly. "They don't want Sydney back. They want Sydney dead. I don't think they will even waste the effort to look for him." Jarod sighed. "There is probably a very lucrative contract out on his head right now. Every bounty hunter and assassin in the country will be looking for him."
Parker blinked in shock as understanding of their predicament began to dawn on her.
But Jarod kept talking. "What about Debbie? I don't know about you but I don't want to be responsible for stealing that little girl's childhood from her. A life on the run is no life for a child. She deserves to have friends, dates, and trips to the prom. Will you deny her those things?"
Parker shook her head sadly as a single tear ran down her cheek. "What do you plan to do?" She asked quietly.
Jarod plucked a blade of grass and twiddled it between his fingers. "I don't think The Centre will look for Broots too intensely. In their eyes, he's just a peon, not worth wasting time over. I think we can create new identities for him and Debbie. As long as they lay low, they should be able to live relatively normal lives."
"Sydney and Angelo are a different story." Jarod went on. "Let's face it, neither of them would last long on his own. Someone needs to look after them. Someone strong and smart needs to stay with them and protect them from whatever may come along."
Jarod stared at Parker meaningfully.
"Why me?" Parker asked. "You could protect them better than I can."
"Because I am the bigger prize." Jarod answered simply. "If I leave a trail of breadcrumbs for them to follow, they will chase me. The three of you can keep a low profile. They won't be able to find you because it will be so easy to follow me instead."
Parker stared at Jarod in astonishment. "You'll act as a decoy so that we can get away."
Jarod nodded. "It will work." He said confidently.
"For how long?" Parker whispered.
Jarod sighed. "For as long as necessary." He answered.
Parker looked up at him with sadness in her eyes. All Jarod had ever wanted for her was to rid her face of that sadness. Looking at her now, Jarod felt his earlier desire melt away, replaced by a deep need to protect her from all of this. He wanted to shield Parker from the loneliness that he'd been forced to endure, but he knew that he could not. Fate had never been kind to either of them in that area. The connection between Parker and Jarod would always be there, preventing any meaningful relationship with anyone else. Yet it seemed they were doomed to spend their lives apart, running from a destiny that had been written long before either of them had been born.
Angelo suddenly appeared beside them, grinning from ear to ear like the idiot savant that he was.
"Another way." Angelo giggled. "Angelo knows another way."
Jarod sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Another way for what, Angelo?" he said patiently.
Angelo giggled again and clapped his hands. Sitting cross-legged beside Jarod, the empath rocked excitedly back and forth. "A way to be safe. All be safe." Angelo said.
Jarod frowned. "How?"
Leaning forward conspiratorially, Angelo whispered, "Stop running."
Jarod and Parker blinked at each other in confusion. "If we stop running, they will catch us." Parker said gently.
Angelo shook his head, his hair flying in all directions. "Stop running." He repeated. "Now WE chase."
Jarod thought about that for a moment. "We go on the attack. Get them before they get us." He said slowly.
Angelo nodded excitedly. "We get them." He agreed.
Jarod shook his head. "It's risky, very risky. There are only the five of us."
Angelo put one hand on Jarod's knee. "Alone, each of us can be dangerous." Angelo said with a firm lucidity. "Together we are an army."
Parker could see the wheels turning in Jarod's head as he began to process the scenarios. When his eyes began to sparkle mischievously, Parker knew that he was beginning to believe in the possibility.
Jarod glanced at Parker. "You're in charge of this little outlaw brigade of ours. Ultimately we'll do whatever you decide."
Parker pondered for a moment. "Do you think we can pull this off?" She asked Jarod.
He shrugged. "Angelo has a point. The Centre has trained us very well." Jarod nodded. "I think we have a chance. It might be remote, but it is a chance."
Parker nodded in agreement.
Sitting in a triangle in the grass, the three Centre offspring began to plot its demise under the bright sunshine of a warm spring day.
