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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer in part 1
Well, sorry it took so long, but you guys know how real life is. Anyway, here's part four of our little epic. If you need to catch up on the first three parts again, their posted at Nic's site, www.the-pretender.de, under our group name Renewal Wing. Enjoy...Niceole
This little piece is dedicated to Lois for her utter devotion to "The Pretender" overall, and to Mr. Lyle in particular.
The Road Taken
part 4
by Renewal Wing
Sydney had spent years watching Jarod's frustration when a pretend wasn't going well. The signs were obvious. First, his eyes would begin to wander, as if he were looking around the room for the answer to what came next. Then his hands would begin to fidget. Finally, there was the pacing. That was the stage the Pretender was in now. Both Jarod and Broots had spent nearly six hours looking through Centre records on Lyle's travel patterns hoping to get some idea of where he might have taken Parker and the baby. Six hours, and still they knew nothing.
The doctor knew his protégé well enough to know that what was really upsetting Jarod were his feelings of culpability in what had happened.
There was no proof, of course, that the information he'd sent Parker had triggered this latest chain of events, but Jarod would not believe that until circumstance proved it. He believed he had endangered not only Parker but the little boy she loved so fiercely, and there would be no rest for any of them until they found her.
Sydney looked up as Broots walked back into the room, a cell phone in his hand. The technician had hated being chosen to call in and report on his and Sydney's whereabouts, but it was important to keep up the appearance that their search for Miss Parker had nothing to do with
Lyle. There was no telling what kind of crossfire their friend could get caught in if the Centre were to learn of Mr. Lyle's involvement in her disappearance.
"Damn it." Jarod's angry and frustrated words startled Broots and sent the rattled technician scrambling back to his keyboard. Sydney stood and walked over to the pretender he knew so well.
"You have to relax, Jarod. You have to look at Lyle dispassionately. You cannot indulge in hate." Jarod wasn't listening to him. Instead, he had started to pace again. His fists kept clenching and unclenching, as if he was envisioning what it would be like to have Lyle's throat between his fingers.
"I can't relax, Sydney, and it's rather hard not to hate Lyle. We have to figure out where she is. If anything happens to her..."
"We are giving Lyle all of our time and attention, Jarod. Yet, if we truly resent and hate someone, then it becomes too hard to focus. You need to be more interested in him than you have in anyone else in your life. We all do."
"I know. Usually I'm victim driven. This time I have to get into the soul and mind of an asshole."
"What the hell?"
The sound of Broots' voice stopped Jarod's speech in its tracks. Both he and Sydney rushed to the techie's side.
"What is it, Broots?" Jarod asked excitedly. "What did you find?"
"Well, something that seems kind of strange. Of course, after that information you found out about Mr. Lyle, I guess nothing should seem strange."
Jarod's shoulders tensed as he waited for Broots to explain what clue he might have found. Sydney almost smiled at the similarity in Jarod's reaction to the one Miss Parker often had to Broots' need to editorialize his findings. Hoping to head off any confrontation, Sydney cleared his throat, cluing his friend in to the situation.
"Oh, uh, anyway, I had programmed the computer to search for any regular pattern in Lyle's travel habits. I was hoping it would give us a target location."
"And did it?" Jarod's eyes glistened with hope and anticipation.
"Well, for some reason, he made five trips to San Francisco during his first three months back at the Centre...I mean, after he came back from the whole thumb thing."
Jarod placed his hand on Broots' shoulder. "Does it say where exactly he went?"
"No. He used the corporate jet to fly out there the first four times, but he didn't expense any hotel charges. The fifth time, he flew commercial. I checked against Centre records...we had the jet that day chasing after you. He must have been in a hurry not to wait for it."
Jarod was glaring at the screen with the kind of quizzical look that usually indicated something was amiss. He smelled a hidden clue between those lines and was suddenly dissecting the words like a surgeon, cutting into soft flesh.
"What is it, Jarod?" Sydney asked, having seen that look on many occasions before, "You see something, don't you?"
Jarod's mouth was set in a grim smile, and his eyes looked very far away, as if he was drawing on something far away or into himself. He stood, finally feeling as if they had something to go on.
"Let's get ready. We have a trip to take."
***
She had always found him repulsive. Yet, in a single microsecond, she was certain she saw truth. Could she believe him? Did she need to believe him? If he could protect his son--she shuddered slightly at acknowledging that connection--but if he could protect Thane from living inside the Centre's dark walls, what was holding her back? Was it fear of failure? She had recalled the vow that she made to protect the baby that night and yet it was Lyle that had acted. Perhaps she was just resentful of that fact. If that were true, then she knew she had to fight against it. She couldn't allow her nephew to suffer because of her own ego.
As all of these thoughts ran through Parker's mind, Lyle watched her closely. In a fraction of an instant he saw fear and uncertainty, and then something else in those clear, blue eyes. He saw candor.
Then the lids narrowed and the bravado was back.
"Fine, Lyle, tell me about this Li Nam."
Lyle smiled and stood, his hand reaching out toward her.
"I'll tell you on the way. Right now, why don't you let me help you into the bathroom and you can take a hot bath before we leave."
"I don't have anything to put on after a bath, Lyle."
"Shame on you, Parker. You don't think I'd kidnap you without being prepared, do you? Those bags I brought in earlier have clothes for you in them, too."
A small laugh threatened to break free of Parker's lips, but she fought it down. It was far too soon for her to take Lyle's new personality at face value. Still, a hot bath sounded wonderful, and so she took his hand and let him help her off the couch.
"Fine, a hot bath and then we leave. But remember our deal, brother.
If I don't like what I hear or see, how to best care for Thane is my decision."
Lyle felt his oft-used muscle start to reflex, and a smart-mouthed retort came to mind, but he pushed it aside. He was nearing some newfound understanding with his sister, and he was not willing to risk it to score the last point in their conversation. Instead he helped his sister across the room. And it didn't escape either's attention that the last thing they both did before crossing the threshold of the bathroom was to cast back a glance at Thane, who was sleeping peacefully in his seat as if he was in the safest place on Earth.
An hour later, Parker emerged from the bedroom, dressed not in the usually tailored skirt-suit, but in the jeans and shirt that Lyle had brought. His taste in casual wear was as impeccable as his taste in the finely tailored suits he wore. The clothes were top quality, but soft and comfortable. She took a few steps forward, but stopped, standing in the shadow of the doorframe. From there she could see him sitting in the chair, dressed in jeans and a polo shirt. Thane was nestled in his arms, the baby dressed in fresh clothes, and Lyle was--she blinked, a little stunned--talking to his son about her. She couldn't make out exactly what he was saying, but she'd definitely heard her name.
"Lyle?" she called out.
"Parker, how long have you been standing there?" Lyle answered, a flush coloring his cheeks. "Do you need help?"
"Not long and no, I don't," she hobbled over to the couch, "but some answers would be nice." She opened her hand to reveal the prescription bottle. "I found it in the medicine chest. That is your name on it, isn't it? Prozac? How long, Lyle?"
"It started several months ago, shortly after I discovered the truth about Thomas' death..." he stopped and looked into his sister's blue eyes, waiting for the snipe that never came. "Anxiety, depression, all the stress...can you really blame me?"
Parker's eyes widened, a stricken expression on her face.
"It was me that left you the Rumor file," he said softly, not taking his eyes off of Thane. "You can't imagine the thoughts that were going through my head then. I didn't want you to kill Brigitte, but I knew you had a right to your answer. And I knew that you would never do anything to hurt the baby. Ironic, isn't it, you being the first person to hold my son? It's a bond between us that can't be broken, Parker, not by anything. The three of us are a family. I hope I can convince you of that."
Lyle turned away then, and placed Thane in his baby seat. "I thought we'd have dinner before heading to the airport. Lyle indicated the plates on the table located off the living room. "I made La Chiso Ch'ao Chi--your favorite."
Parker set the medicine bottle on the coffee table and looked at him curiously. "Lyle, if I recall that last time we had a meal together, it was...by the way, how would you know what my favorite meal is?"
He favored her with a reproachful look. "Now what kind of brother would I be if I couldn't find out a simple thing like that?" She took a seat at the small dining room table and scooped out some of the chicken chunks laden with red Szechwan peppers. Taking a whiff of the aromatic spices, she snagged the chopsticks next to the napkins. Parker finished her meal and watched as Lyle tossed their paper plates into a garbage bag. For a brief moment, he looked sorrowfully at the remains of the food in the bowl, and then without another thought dumped them in the garbage as well. "What a shame!" he muttered, as Parker watched in astonishment. "It's so good at breakfast, especially when you add a few scrambled eggs. Delicious."
"Strange, Lyle. You are really strange."
He laughed. That's when Parker saw that he'd already packed up the rest of their things, and her brother smiled at her nervously as he went into the bathroom to gather up the toiletries she'd used in her bath. He returned moments later, and as he put the few items away, Parker couldn't help but say the words that came into her mind.
"It was the most incredible moment of my life, you know. Holding him, looking down into that new face...I didn't know I could..."
Parker's voice caught in her throat and she turned away, unable to go on. Then she heard Lyle's voice come from behind her.
"I knew, Parker. I knew you could love like that. I counted on it."
"So, where are we off to Lyle?" Parker asked, the shakiness in her voice evidence that she was changing the subject for her own benefit.
"Wherever the road may lead," Lyle said.
Something about his tone struck Parker as almost wistful, and she had to put a hand to her mouth to cover her broad smile as Lyle sat down next to her. For his part, Lyle took a deep breath, the ramifications of what had just transpired between them still sorting themselves in his brain.
You're crazy, she kept telling herself, but she knew that it was too late. She'd made the choice and now she was going to have to live with it. At least, she hoped she could live with it. Her inner voice kept saying that, and yet she felt as if, when she looked him in the eyes, she knew everything about him...everything and nothing. She saw pain in those eyes, pain as endless as the skies, but also the strength to endure the circumstances that had inflicted that pain on him. His face was a literal roadmap of all that he had endured. Some of the places he had been were not clear, but the roads used to get there were certainly evident enough. There had never been a time in Parker's life when she didn't know what she was supposed to do, supposed to be, and supposed to accomplish. The fact that there was no uncertainty in her life had become so normal for her that she had simply learned to take
it for granted. Until now.
***
Cyrus was pacing, and that he was only served to add to his ire. He hated to be pushed to this point, and when he was, Lyle was usually involved. Damn it. Of all the horrible timing for something like this to happen. The President himself had called for a more intense action against the Centre, and Lyle had to choose now to go off and play one of his bizarre games?
Finally exhausted, Cyrus walked back to his desk and plopped down in his chair. Corinna had better find him and get him back, and she'd better do it fast. Because this time, Cyrus was certain he could not save Lyle from another mistake.
***
Corinna felt a sudden sharp, icy pang of fear, like a cold hand on her back, when she pulled the car up the long driveway of her cabin. There were tire tracks, new tire tracks, in the driveway, but no vehicle was present. Corinna had a bad feeling. This feeling seemed stronger than usual, and hoping that she was wrong, she stepped through the door and was greeted with the aroma of cumin and turmeric, as well as the wood smoke from the fireplace. Another scent wafted in the air as well. Perfume. Chanel, if she wasn't mistaken. What had Lyle done?
She continued looking around the cabin, but she stopped in the kitchen when she saw a white sheet of paper tacked to one of the cabinet doors. She reached for it and read its words, her stomach tightening as she did so.
"Corinna, I knew you'd come here looking for me. I'm trying to save my family. I promise, I haven't lost sight of the goal, but if I don't do this now, there will never be another chance. Lyle."
Taking a deep breath, Corinna turned so she could lean against the counter for support. He seemed rational enough. No ravings, no declarations of forgetting their larger mission. He simply wanted a few days to try and make things right with Parker. The question was, how could Corinna help him do that and keep them both out of Cyrus' crosshairs? She can hear it now, undercover partners are suppose to keep track of each other and...God, Cyrus will crucify him. And yet, Corinna knew that they all still faced an even greater threat...the Centre.
***
Chinatown. Brightly lit. The shops and restaurants were open even though it was late. Tourists and locals walked the sidewalks. A city within a city, rooftops shaped like ancient pagodas, dragons edged the streetlights, neon business signs in both Chinese and English flashed in the night.
Drums and cymbals crashed, sparklers burned white-gold starbursts. A festival dragon was winding its way through the streets. The lead dancer held the great paper-mache dragonhead in his hands---silver eyes, a massive forehead with a fringe of white beard, and a bright green collar. Behind him, a line of dancers meandered carrying the long body.
While everyone else was involved in the festivities, three people obviously were not. They had more important matters on their minds as they hurried away from the crowds and the brightly lit streets.
The three men approached a busy shop on one of the side streets that seemed to have heavy pedestrian traffic. Broots had entered cautiously with Syd, but Jarod strode into the shop as if he owned the place and the chattering inside dwindled to urgent whispers, and finally to silence. Broots had to admit that Jarod's sheer presence was nothing short of remarkable. Jarod did not move so much as an inch, had not made the slightest threatening gesture, and by letting the silence hang for what seemed an unconscionably long time, he was changing the mood of the whole place. Surprisingly, Jarod seemed in no hurry to move things along. This seemed like a place where someone might know something. Surely they would get some answers here.
Jarod was trembling with rage once they had left the shop, albeit suppressed rage, Syd not quite believing it. This was the man who had been the epitome of peace, the advocate of negotiations. Sydney could see that Jarod's temper was seesawing with the heat, and by dusk he was downright nasty. Frustrated, the men headed back to their car with the bit of information they had been able to gather.
"It's better than nothing."
The look Jarod leveled at Broots reminded the technician of one of Miss Parker's famous glares. He quickly turned away, regretting ever speaking.
Having forced Broots into silence, Jarod turned his eyes back to the street ahead of him. Better than nothing...they had less than nothing. He was certain his hunch had been right. The travel records had certainly pointed to this as Lyle's likely destination on all of those mysterious trips. Yet everyone they'd spoken to seemed to have no recollection of Lyle, including several key players in the Chinatown district and people Jarod knew from his days on a pretend as an undercover organized crime officer here in San Francisco. If any of them knew Lyle, they weren't talking, only vaguely saying they'd seen a man who "looked like" Lyle, but they couldn't remember when. This mystified Jarod, because deep down, he knew that he was on the right path. The question was, what could inspire anyone to keep a secret for Lyle, and what secret were they hiding?
***
The road ahead of them was fairly clear, at least as far as the weather was concerned. What it would lead to, Parker had no idea. Still, she felt remarkably certain she had made the right choice in coming with Lyle. Stretching, she glanced at her brother, and than back at Thane, who was enjoying some sweet dream in his car seat. They had been driving for a little over three hours, and she knew they would have to stop soon in order to eat and feed the baby. The trip had, so far, been conducted mostly in silence. She had tried to prod a few bits of information out of her brother, but so far, not much had resulted from her attempts.
"How much farther do we have to go?"
Lyle, whose thoughts seemed to be someplace far away from the moving vehicle, glanced sideways at his sister before returning his eyes to the Interstate.
"We'll go another hour if Thane can make it. Then after we eat, we have a few more hours."
"Are you ever going to tell me where we're going? Other than knowing it has something to do with someone named Li Nam...I'm pretty much running on blind faith over here."
Lyle sighed heavily, knowing the truth of what his sister was saying. He had promised her answers, yet as they drove, he found himself trying to organize all of the jumbled facts that made up the long story of his journey with Li Nam.
"I'm sorry, I guess I just kind of got lost in the past and forgot I was supposed to be sharing it with you."
Parker nodded, and Lyle glanced up in the rear-view mirror, taking in the sweetness of his son's face once more before he returned to the terrible details of Li Nam's past.
"The first thing you need to know is that Che Ling was more than just some mail-order bride, some woman I used. And I did not hurt her."
"So you've said."
"I did let Dad help me fix the situation, but only to gain his trust. If he thought he had something on me, it made it easier for him to open up to me. I was less of a threat that way."
Now it was Parker's turn to sigh. Much as she hated to admit it, that was definitely the way her father operated - get leverage on your kids, then use it.
"Anyway," her brother continued, "that's not the important part. But Che Ling is. She was a Chinese Intelligence officer, working on a joint venture with the CIA. She was my...partner, I guess, is the best way to describe it."
Emotion--deep, heart-wrenching emotion--crept into Lyle's voice, and Parker couldn't help but feel it in her own heart. Clearly, Che Ling was far more to her brother than a "partner." Yet he chose to gloss over this fact as he kept going with the story of how he'd spiraled out of control after learning he was really a Parker, about the criminal and cruel way he'd been robbed of the life he should have had. It was during those months that he had attacked the Centre's Hartford office, killing its staff to get the Centre's attention. It was also during this time-period that he had done the one thing for which there would never be full redemption - he had killed Kyle.
"That was never my intention, Parker. I know that doesn't make any difference, but..."
Choosing to ignore the statement, what could she say really, Parker asked a question to which she needed an answer. "Would you have really killed me?"
"That day in Arizona?" Lyle considered for a moment, remembering the terrible state he'd been in that day. "I honestly don't know, Parker. I think I could have. I was so out of control then. I don't even think it had registered to me that you were my sister - I just wanted to make someone pay for what had happened to me."
Parker nodded, understanding. She'd felt that way many times in her life, and she, like her brother, had made Jarod the target of those feelings. Not liking the feelings that thought brought up, she directed another question at Lyle.
"Do you know what really happened to Che Ling?"
"She was killed by the drug dealers we were investigating. The CIA 'allowed' the Centre to find the information and helped make it look like I'd been involved somehow. The rest you know."
"So what does all of this have to do with this Li Nam person?"
Lyle swallowed hard, feeling once again as if he were about to jump off of a very steep cliff. He knew this was the one thing that could make his sister see and believe the truth about him, and if he blew it, he might lose her and his son forever, because he meant to honor his deal - if Parker decided after this that Thane wasn't safe with him, he would let the boy go.
"Li Nam was, back when all this started, a very scared little girl in Thailand. She is Che Ling's cousin, and I'm afraid her story makes even ours look like a happy one."
***
The press had learned about the bombing of the subway train, and it made for sensational headlines. A sketch artist's rendition of a possible suspect was featured in story after story, and terrorist groups were still climbing out of the woodwork to claim responsibility, which meant that the case continued to be a full-blown media event. This was all serving to make Mr. Parker increasingly nervous, not to mention irritated.
Picking up the latest article clipped from the "Washington Post", he stared at the picture. The likeness wasn't completely accurate, and no one who didn't know Ethan would ever be able to put the two together. That was good news. What was not were reports that the crime-scene investigators had blanketed the site, combing it for evidence. Government agency technicians had also gone over every square inch of the subway, and they had discovered small pieces of highly sophisticated computer components in the debris. Mr. Parker had been led to believe that Lyle and his cleaner team had taken care of the site, obliterating any traces of his sister, Jarod and Ethan. News that anything had been recovered now called that into question.
Angrily he threw the slip of paper back on his desk. It was all going to hell. He couldn't afford to have the Triumvirate looking for answers about the bombing and the cover up, not when he had to get the baby back where he belonged. Damn Jarod for interfering. It had to have been him that had taken his daughter and the child away...and Mr. Parker swore silently to make the pretender pay dearly for putting all that he had planned in jeopardy.
***
Corrina's beeper went off as she searched the cabin for any clues as to
the whereabouts of Lyle or his sister and son. What she found was a pacifier wedged between two sofa cushions. It only confirmed what she already knew...Lyle was somewhere with his family, the question was where.
She unhooked the pager from her hip expecting to find Cyrus's number flashing, instead it was a special code that she and Lyle used to let the other one know that things were all right. Well, that was good news, she supposed. But what she needed was to actually hear from him, to let him know how unhappy Cyrus was. Quickly moving to the phone, Corinna dialed in Lyle's pager number and punched in a return code of 555. It meant call immediately, and she hoped that Lyle would heed her advice.
As she waited, Corinna opened her briefcase and pulled her laptop free. After a few moments, it hummed to life, and she used her wireless modem to check on the status of the subway bombing investigation. Thankfully, the few steps she had taken before leaving to search for Lyle were working beautifully. A media frenzy now surrounded the aftermath of the explosion, and Corinna was hoping that it would keep Mr. Parker distracted long enough to buy Lyle some time, but she was the first to admit she wasn't as attuned to Centre politics as Lyle was. She may have caused him more trouble, she wasn't sure. But it was a chance she'd had to take.
Anxiously, Corinna leaned back, hoping the phone would ring soon, and praying that she could keep Cyrus happy until Lyle resurfaced.
***
"I think a cup of hot coffee would be something we could both use right about now."
Parker nodded in agreement with Lyle's words as the car pulled into the parking lot of a small diner. They were, in truth, only 30 minutes from the airport and the plane that would take them on the rest of their journey, but he was tired and Thane was definitely hungry. Lyle watched as his sister opened the passenger door and reached around to the back seat to take out the baby.
Somehow, he felt a surreal urge to laugh. Anyone watching them would think they where a normal family. The whole situation was so normal, but so strange for the three people involved.
The smile disappeared as he thought of what came next. He knew the hardest part was still to come. It would do no good to push it away any longer, in fact, it might make it harder, and he could feel his courage slipping. If he was right, Jarod was in contact with Broots and Sydney by now, and the pretender would understand the meaning of his sister's gun laying on the floor inside the nursery. Lyle could kick himself for not taking it with him. It would have bought him
a little more time. And right now, he needed time.
His gaze was still on his sister as she picked up his son. Seeing her move a bit clumsily, he remembered that she should not be moving much at all, let alone with an additional weight in her arms.
"Wait, let me help you," Lyle said as he moved out of the car. Slamming the door shut, he hurried around the car and took the baby out of his sister's arms. Carefully he unclenched the small hand that his son had wrapped around a handful of fabric from Parker's shirt.
Holding the baby always had a calming effect on him, but it wasn't quieting his thoughts today, and his mind began to wander again. The mother of his son would have not been his first choice, if he had a choice back then, but looking back, it could have be worse. The reality was he hadn't know Brigitte very well, but in a way she was a victim of the Centre, too, and the power struggles of those old men in charge. Often he wondered what would bring a woman to give her child to an organization like the Centre. Often he imagined that her reasons for agreeing to this deal had been as complicated as his own, fighting for something they both thought would be worth risking everything. He only hoped that what she'd wanted was as important to her as his family was to him.
Miss Parker watched her brother carefully. After he'd taken the boy from her arms, he seemed to be lost in his memory. The little boy seemed not to mind. He was still smiling and his eyes followed
every movement of his father's hands as he tried to grab it and softly
squeaked with pleasure every time he was able to touch Lyle.
'Listen to him, give him a chance, he loves you both.'
The words of her mother was suddenly so clear it was like the woman was standing next to her and whispering them into her ear. Ever since she had asked Sydney to help her and they'd had their first session, the voices had grown clearer every day, though that was her secret. She didn't dare to say anything, not even to Sydney. And though she had a million reasons why, the truth was she was still too unsure what was happening to her to want others involved too deeply. If she was hearing her mother's voice, who the hell's voice had her mother heard? And why did she hear them when it seemed Lyle did not? Thoughts like this plagued her more and more, and only added to the uneasiness she was feeling with her brother.
"Do you need help?" Lyle stood halfway between the door and the car, looking at her. She realized that he had said something to her before, but she had been lost in her thoughts. 'Damn it, Parker,' she scolded herself silently. If she really wanted to find out what was going on, she needed to stay alert and not loose herself in thoughts best left for another time. At the moment the safety of her little brother...no not brother, nephew she corrected herself, was priority number one. Everything else could wait.
"Just go ahead I will follow." Carefully she hobbled after her brother into the building, her ankle throbbing. When she'd dismissed his offer to help she had seen a flash in his eyes that he wanted to object. Luckily he had decided against it, maybe sensing that she still needed some space.
Carefully Miss Parker followed her brother inside, making sure she didn't wobble too much, thus gaining the attention of the other visitors. It was important to stay inconspicuous, but on the other hand, every step was hurting like hell and by the time she finally reached the table, Lyle had already placed his son in a high chair. The effort had taken a lot out of her, and she could feel cold sweat running down her back. Gratefully, she sat down.
Lyle and Parker were both quiet as they settled into the booth, feeling a little uncomfortable, maybe a lot uncomfortable. It was Thane who made the situation more tolerable, his big blue eyes alert to his new surroundings and his toothless smile comforting them both. Parker reached into the baby bag she had dragged along with her and pulled out his bottle. The baby smiled widely when he saw it, and both his father and aunt couldn't help but chuckle when he eagerly slapped his hands on the sides of the plastic, greedily sipping down the formula inside.
A bored and slightly overweight waitress came and took their order for coffee. She returned after a moment and placed big mugs in front of both of them, shoving two menus onto the table. Lyle watched her waddle away, knowing that with every step the waitress took, the point came closer when he would had to face his sister again and pick up the story of Li Nam. He could not remember when he had been so nervous before. Not even the Yakuza could terrify him the way her blue-eyed glare could.
When he turned back to face his sister, he could see that walking in from the parking lot had caused her a lot of pain, but his past experiences with her told him that she would never give into it, so he said nothing. Inwardly he sighed, but on the other hand, he was grateful that she was so stubborn. No matter what the future held for him, she would never give up on his son. Not for the first time, he wondered if maybe it had been a mistake to step in for her. Maybe if Thane had been her son or daughter, she would have taken the baby and left already, and a lot of the horrible events of the last few months would have never happened. But this train of thought was fruitless because there was no possibility to change the past, only a hope for the future.
"So where was I?"
"You were about to tell me how you started looking for Li Nam."
Miss Parker studied Lyle's behavior carefully as he tried to gather his thoughts. Already he had revealed so much to her about his relationship with Che Ling and how their mission had gone so wrong, all because of him, or so he thought. As he spoke of her, she saw so much emotion in him. It was a level of feeling she'd never expected to see in him, and it meant she was faced with only two options: he was a much better pretender than anybody knew, or he was telling her the truth.
Honestly she was not sure what was the better option. If he was now being honest, it meant he had been lying since his return to the Centre and she had not even suspected it. The side of Parker that hated to be fooled in this way felt very defensive. That in this case, their great pretender Jarod would have also been fooled was, at present, no real comfort for her troubled mind.
The truth was, she wanted to believe him, and this realization shocked her. Parker wanted him to be the brother she wished for from the moment she knew he existed.
"Just tell me, Lyle."
"What?" Lyle looked up at Parker, then he smiled slightly. She'd said that to him at least half a dozen times today. 'Just tell me.' How miraculous was that? He knew that just a few hours ago, he'd have been lucky to keep her from shooting him if he hesitated even a moment. But she had not shot him. She was ready to listen, and he had to make her believe his words. He had to make that belief so strong that it could not be shaken, not by anything Sydney or Broots might find, and not by Jarod.
Even thinking about the pretender gave him a big headache. Every time he thought things where under control, that he might be able to come a step closer to his sister, Jarod had stepped in and made things worse than before. He was not sure how long they would have before the Centre or the agency would be on their tails again. As if on cue, he felt his pager begin to vibrate. Cautiously, he looked down at the message. He was about to excuse himself to call Corinna back when the door opened and a man walked in black jeans and a black leather jacket.
For just a second Lyle thought his heart would stop and that everything was over. Then he realized it was not Jarod, just a man who looked like him, and on a second look, not as much as one might expect for the reaction it had sent through Lyle's overstressed nerves. His mind was just playing a trick on him, but it also made it clear that his time was running out rapidly. Corinna would have to wait.
"The agency wanted me back at the Centre right away, and I was in no position to put them off. Still, I needed to go back and see if I could find anything about who had killed Che Ling. I wanted to know his name."
Parker nodded, understanding. It was exactly how she'd felt about finding out who Thomas' killer was.
"Anyway, I went back and met this couple who had taken over our apartment in Vegas."
As Lyle related the story, it came to life in his memory. He remembered the moment when Grace, the woman at the apartment, had told him about the mysterious phone call they'd received just a week before his return.
"The woman's name is Linda Reed. She works with some organization in Thailand. She mentioned UNICEF, but it's not them. She said something about finding a girl on the street who said she was related to 'Che Ling.' I thought the girl had given her a wrong number, but I kept the information just in case." As she had finished speaking, the woman handed him a small notepad with a name and phone number written on it.
"If I had known she had the right number, I would have looked into it. It's just, we didn't know the names of the couple who...I'm sorry."
Lyle nodded, understanding so much more about the situation than the woman could have known. Che Ling had spoken about wanting to take a leave of absence to go to Vietnam and search for her missing cousins. They were all the family she had left, and it had mattered a great deal to her. The Vietnamese authorities had said simply that the family was dead, but Che Ling was not so easily dissuaded. She had spoken often about finding them, but Lyle had not paid a great deal of attention. After all, there had been time to listen later...
"You loved her," Miss Parker said with a warm clarity that made Lyle look up at her. "You loved Che Ling."
"Yes, I did. I still do."
Parker nodded and watched as her brother's eyes cast downward to the table.
"I had some fake FBI credentials, so I checked out the name of the woman who called and found out her name was Monica Saunders. She was an attorney who was overseas working to help exploited children. I tracked her down and she told me about the condition Li Nam had been in when she'd seen her."
"But you said the family was from Vietnam, and this woman called about a girl in Thailand?"
Lyle took a deep breath, wishing he could spare Parker the gory details, yet knowing there was no other way to win her over but to tell her the whole truth.
"Che Ling's cousin Li An had been going to college in Nanjing. She met and married a Vietnamese man named Troung Van Than. Than became a historical researcher for the Vietnamese government, and so they moved back there and had Li Nam and a little boy, Van Son."
"And then something went wrong?" Parker could sense the darkening in her brother's mood, and it indicated the direction the story was about to take, still she sensed that she needed to hear it.
"Than complained about some corrupt government officials, and the family ended up on the run. They hid all over the place trying to find safety. They were hoping they could reach Bangkok and contact Che Ling to help get them into the U.S., but the trip through Laos was very difficult. They all got dengue fever and it took a long time to reach a town that had a doctor.
"Once they finally got help, Li Nam and her mother and brother got better, but Than died. The family was destitute and couldn't pay the doctor for what he'd done. So the doctor came up with a plan to help them repay the debt. Li Nam was seven then, and the doctor and a "friend" of his suggested she go work as a servant in one of the homes in Bangkok to help pay off her family's debt. Li Nam wanted to help her family, and she thought she could try and reach Che Ling once she was in the city. Of course, things weren't what any of them were expecting once she got there."
Parker closed her eyes and nodded, understanding completely what her brother was saying. She had seen the news reports about children being sold into prostitution in Thailand, girls and boys as young as five being given over to the sick men and women who used them. It made her stomach turn, and it seemed a thousand times worse than the exploitation the Centre had perpetrated against "their" children. Looking up, she noticed the pain in her brother's eyes. This was no pretend, and she knew it.
"What did you do?"
"The only thing I could do, Parker. I found her."
***
Jarod lay on the bed, fingers interlaced behind his head, gazing up at the ceiling. His eyes had become sore with fatigue and that was usually a good indicator for Sydney to tell him it was time to call it a night. But once he was reclining, he felt his fatigue evaporating as he replayed in his head, once again, the past eighteen hours.
He didn't want to. There was no purpose to it, nothing to gain. And yet, no matter how many times he thought about it, he kept wondering... had there been something he'd overlooked? He had tried to warn Parker. Could he have prevented...this? His mind spun, questioning and second-guessing over and over and finally it was very clear why he wasn't able to sleep. With everything tumbling about in his mind, what person could have slept?
"Damn you," Jarod muttered, although it wasn't clear, even to himself, just who he was cursing. Was it him for starting this by sending the e-mail or Lyle for starting it by being born?
***
Ethan rolled over in the bed, his body aching with soreness from his injuries. Still, he was lucky to be alive at all, and he knew that he had his brother and sister to thank for that. His sister - just thinking the words filled him with a sense of longing and worry. He knew she was in some kind of trouble - it's why Jarod had left, and why his mother's voice had told him to let Jarod go in search of her. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that something else was happening, something different than what Jarod thought.
"He's not what he seems. His truth is in his past."
Cringing with the pain his voices often brought crashing in on him, Ethan clutched at his head. Who was he? He'd been thinking of Jarod, but surely it wasn't him who...no, Lyle, it was Lyle they were speaking of.
Moving carefully, Ethan climbed from the bed and found his cell phone. He hit the speed dial button that would reach his brother and relayed the cryptic message of his inner sense. Then, exhausted, Ethan returned to his bed. Lying there, he felt the slightest hint of his sister's tumultuous emotions, but sleep quickly overcame the connection. This mystery was one for his older siblings to play out - his job now was to get well.
***
Cyrus sat in his darkened living room, a drink in his right hand. He stared at the only source of light in the room, the remaining embers of the fire that was about to die out. On nights like these, when work seemed to have spun out of control, he missed his wife, and he wished that he could have her back for just a few hours. He could have called his daughter, but interrupting her life with the ugliness of his seemed wrong to him somehow.
The ringing of his phone broke the quiet of the room, and Cyrus rose and walked over to the entry hall table, taking the receiver in his hands.
"Yes?"
"Where is he?"
Cyrus knew the voice on the other end of the phone all too well. The director...and there was no doubt who the "he" was in the question.
"He's taking care of some loose ends. Nothing to worry about."
"There better not be, Cyrus. Our timetable has been set. This thing with the Centre, it has to end sooner than later. You understand that, don't you?"
"Of course I do."
"Good, then make sure Lyle and Corinna do as well. The president wants this settled before he has to start campaigning again. That's our deadline."
"We'll make it."
The other end of the line went dead, and Cyrus sighed as he hung up the phone. Corinna and Lyle...of the many agents he'd recruited over the years, these two had proven more exceptional and more troublesome than any of the others. He only hoped he hadn't misjudged them.
***
That's the end of this one. We'll try not to let it take quite so long for the Part 5, but no promises. Feedback will help encourage us (hint, hint.)
Feedback please
This little piece is dedicated to Lois for her utter devotion to "The Pretender" overall, and to Mr. Lyle in particular.
The Road Taken
part 4
by Renewal Wing
Sydney had spent years watching Jarod's frustration when a pretend wasn't going well. The signs were obvious. First, his eyes would begin to wander, as if he were looking around the room for the answer to what came next. Then his hands would begin to fidget. Finally, there was the pacing. That was the stage the Pretender was in now. Both Jarod and Broots had spent nearly six hours looking through Centre records on Lyle's travel patterns hoping to get some idea of where he might have taken Parker and the baby. Six hours, and still they knew nothing.
The doctor knew his protégé well enough to know that what was really upsetting Jarod were his feelings of culpability in what had happened.
There was no proof, of course, that the information he'd sent Parker had triggered this latest chain of events, but Jarod would not believe that until circumstance proved it. He believed he had endangered not only Parker but the little boy she loved so fiercely, and there would be no rest for any of them until they found her.
Sydney looked up as Broots walked back into the room, a cell phone in his hand. The technician had hated being chosen to call in and report on his and Sydney's whereabouts, but it was important to keep up the appearance that their search for Miss Parker had nothing to do with
Lyle. There was no telling what kind of crossfire their friend could get caught in if the Centre were to learn of Mr. Lyle's involvement in her disappearance.
"Damn it." Jarod's angry and frustrated words startled Broots and sent the rattled technician scrambling back to his keyboard. Sydney stood and walked over to the pretender he knew so well.
"You have to relax, Jarod. You have to look at Lyle dispassionately. You cannot indulge in hate." Jarod wasn't listening to him. Instead, he had started to pace again. His fists kept clenching and unclenching, as if he was envisioning what it would be like to have Lyle's throat between his fingers.
"I can't relax, Sydney, and it's rather hard not to hate Lyle. We have to figure out where she is. If anything happens to her..."
"We are giving Lyle all of our time and attention, Jarod. Yet, if we truly resent and hate someone, then it becomes too hard to focus. You need to be more interested in him than you have in anyone else in your life. We all do."
"I know. Usually I'm victim driven. This time I have to get into the soul and mind of an asshole."
"What the hell?"
The sound of Broots' voice stopped Jarod's speech in its tracks. Both he and Sydney rushed to the techie's side.
"What is it, Broots?" Jarod asked excitedly. "What did you find?"
"Well, something that seems kind of strange. Of course, after that information you found out about Mr. Lyle, I guess nothing should seem strange."
Jarod's shoulders tensed as he waited for Broots to explain what clue he might have found. Sydney almost smiled at the similarity in Jarod's reaction to the one Miss Parker often had to Broots' need to editorialize his findings. Hoping to head off any confrontation, Sydney cleared his throat, cluing his friend in to the situation.
"Oh, uh, anyway, I had programmed the computer to search for any regular pattern in Lyle's travel habits. I was hoping it would give us a target location."
"And did it?" Jarod's eyes glistened with hope and anticipation.
"Well, for some reason, he made five trips to San Francisco during his first three months back at the Centre...I mean, after he came back from the whole thumb thing."
Jarod placed his hand on Broots' shoulder. "Does it say where exactly he went?"
"No. He used the corporate jet to fly out there the first four times, but he didn't expense any hotel charges. The fifth time, he flew commercial. I checked against Centre records...we had the jet that day chasing after you. He must have been in a hurry not to wait for it."
Jarod was glaring at the screen with the kind of quizzical look that usually indicated something was amiss. He smelled a hidden clue between those lines and was suddenly dissecting the words like a surgeon, cutting into soft flesh.
"What is it, Jarod?" Sydney asked, having seen that look on many occasions before, "You see something, don't you?"
Jarod's mouth was set in a grim smile, and his eyes looked very far away, as if he was drawing on something far away or into himself. He stood, finally feeling as if they had something to go on.
"Let's get ready. We have a trip to take."
***
She had always found him repulsive. Yet, in a single microsecond, she was certain she saw truth. Could she believe him? Did she need to believe him? If he could protect his son--she shuddered slightly at acknowledging that connection--but if he could protect Thane from living inside the Centre's dark walls, what was holding her back? Was it fear of failure? She had recalled the vow that she made to protect the baby that night and yet it was Lyle that had acted. Perhaps she was just resentful of that fact. If that were true, then she knew she had to fight against it. She couldn't allow her nephew to suffer because of her own ego.
As all of these thoughts ran through Parker's mind, Lyle watched her closely. In a fraction of an instant he saw fear and uncertainty, and then something else in those clear, blue eyes. He saw candor.
Then the lids narrowed and the bravado was back.
"Fine, Lyle, tell me about this Li Nam."
Lyle smiled and stood, his hand reaching out toward her.
"I'll tell you on the way. Right now, why don't you let me help you into the bathroom and you can take a hot bath before we leave."
"I don't have anything to put on after a bath, Lyle."
"Shame on you, Parker. You don't think I'd kidnap you without being prepared, do you? Those bags I brought in earlier have clothes for you in them, too."
A small laugh threatened to break free of Parker's lips, but she fought it down. It was far too soon for her to take Lyle's new personality at face value. Still, a hot bath sounded wonderful, and so she took his hand and let him help her off the couch.
"Fine, a hot bath and then we leave. But remember our deal, brother.
If I don't like what I hear or see, how to best care for Thane is my decision."
Lyle felt his oft-used muscle start to reflex, and a smart-mouthed retort came to mind, but he pushed it aside. He was nearing some newfound understanding with his sister, and he was not willing to risk it to score the last point in their conversation. Instead he helped his sister across the room. And it didn't escape either's attention that the last thing they both did before crossing the threshold of the bathroom was to cast back a glance at Thane, who was sleeping peacefully in his seat as if he was in the safest place on Earth.
An hour later, Parker emerged from the bedroom, dressed not in the usually tailored skirt-suit, but in the jeans and shirt that Lyle had brought. His taste in casual wear was as impeccable as his taste in the finely tailored suits he wore. The clothes were top quality, but soft and comfortable. She took a few steps forward, but stopped, standing in the shadow of the doorframe. From there she could see him sitting in the chair, dressed in jeans and a polo shirt. Thane was nestled in his arms, the baby dressed in fresh clothes, and Lyle was--she blinked, a little stunned--talking to his son about her. She couldn't make out exactly what he was saying, but she'd definitely heard her name.
"Lyle?" she called out.
"Parker, how long have you been standing there?" Lyle answered, a flush coloring his cheeks. "Do you need help?"
"Not long and no, I don't," she hobbled over to the couch, "but some answers would be nice." She opened her hand to reveal the prescription bottle. "I found it in the medicine chest. That is your name on it, isn't it? Prozac? How long, Lyle?"
"It started several months ago, shortly after I discovered the truth about Thomas' death..." he stopped and looked into his sister's blue eyes, waiting for the snipe that never came. "Anxiety, depression, all the stress...can you really blame me?"
Parker's eyes widened, a stricken expression on her face.
"It was me that left you the Rumor file," he said softly, not taking his eyes off of Thane. "You can't imagine the thoughts that were going through my head then. I didn't want you to kill Brigitte, but I knew you had a right to your answer. And I knew that you would never do anything to hurt the baby. Ironic, isn't it, you being the first person to hold my son? It's a bond between us that can't be broken, Parker, not by anything. The three of us are a family. I hope I can convince you of that."
Lyle turned away then, and placed Thane in his baby seat. "I thought we'd have dinner before heading to the airport. Lyle indicated the plates on the table located off the living room. "I made La Chiso Ch'ao Chi--your favorite."
Parker set the medicine bottle on the coffee table and looked at him curiously. "Lyle, if I recall that last time we had a meal together, it was...by the way, how would you know what my favorite meal is?"
He favored her with a reproachful look. "Now what kind of brother would I be if I couldn't find out a simple thing like that?" She took a seat at the small dining room table and scooped out some of the chicken chunks laden with red Szechwan peppers. Taking a whiff of the aromatic spices, she snagged the chopsticks next to the napkins. Parker finished her meal and watched as Lyle tossed their paper plates into a garbage bag. For a brief moment, he looked sorrowfully at the remains of the food in the bowl, and then without another thought dumped them in the garbage as well. "What a shame!" he muttered, as Parker watched in astonishment. "It's so good at breakfast, especially when you add a few scrambled eggs. Delicious."
"Strange, Lyle. You are really strange."
He laughed. That's when Parker saw that he'd already packed up the rest of their things, and her brother smiled at her nervously as he went into the bathroom to gather up the toiletries she'd used in her bath. He returned moments later, and as he put the few items away, Parker couldn't help but say the words that came into her mind.
"It was the most incredible moment of my life, you know. Holding him, looking down into that new face...I didn't know I could..."
Parker's voice caught in her throat and she turned away, unable to go on. Then she heard Lyle's voice come from behind her.
"I knew, Parker. I knew you could love like that. I counted on it."
"So, where are we off to Lyle?" Parker asked, the shakiness in her voice evidence that she was changing the subject for her own benefit.
"Wherever the road may lead," Lyle said.
Something about his tone struck Parker as almost wistful, and she had to put a hand to her mouth to cover her broad smile as Lyle sat down next to her. For his part, Lyle took a deep breath, the ramifications of what had just transpired between them still sorting themselves in his brain.
You're crazy, she kept telling herself, but she knew that it was too late. She'd made the choice and now she was going to have to live with it. At least, she hoped she could live with it. Her inner voice kept saying that, and yet she felt as if, when she looked him in the eyes, she knew everything about him...everything and nothing. She saw pain in those eyes, pain as endless as the skies, but also the strength to endure the circumstances that had inflicted that pain on him. His face was a literal roadmap of all that he had endured. Some of the places he had been were not clear, but the roads used to get there were certainly evident enough. There had never been a time in Parker's life when she didn't know what she was supposed to do, supposed to be, and supposed to accomplish. The fact that there was no uncertainty in her life had become so normal for her that she had simply learned to take
it for granted. Until now.
***
Cyrus was pacing, and that he was only served to add to his ire. He hated to be pushed to this point, and when he was, Lyle was usually involved. Damn it. Of all the horrible timing for something like this to happen. The President himself had called for a more intense action against the Centre, and Lyle had to choose now to go off and play one of his bizarre games?
Finally exhausted, Cyrus walked back to his desk and plopped down in his chair. Corinna had better find him and get him back, and she'd better do it fast. Because this time, Cyrus was certain he could not save Lyle from another mistake.
***
Corinna felt a sudden sharp, icy pang of fear, like a cold hand on her back, when she pulled the car up the long driveway of her cabin. There were tire tracks, new tire tracks, in the driveway, but no vehicle was present. Corinna had a bad feeling. This feeling seemed stronger than usual, and hoping that she was wrong, she stepped through the door and was greeted with the aroma of cumin and turmeric, as well as the wood smoke from the fireplace. Another scent wafted in the air as well. Perfume. Chanel, if she wasn't mistaken. What had Lyle done?
She continued looking around the cabin, but she stopped in the kitchen when she saw a white sheet of paper tacked to one of the cabinet doors. She reached for it and read its words, her stomach tightening as she did so.
"Corinna, I knew you'd come here looking for me. I'm trying to save my family. I promise, I haven't lost sight of the goal, but if I don't do this now, there will never be another chance. Lyle."
Taking a deep breath, Corinna turned so she could lean against the counter for support. He seemed rational enough. No ravings, no declarations of forgetting their larger mission. He simply wanted a few days to try and make things right with Parker. The question was, how could Corinna help him do that and keep them both out of Cyrus' crosshairs? She can hear it now, undercover partners are suppose to keep track of each other and...God, Cyrus will crucify him. And yet, Corinna knew that they all still faced an even greater threat...the Centre.
***
Chinatown. Brightly lit. The shops and restaurants were open even though it was late. Tourists and locals walked the sidewalks. A city within a city, rooftops shaped like ancient pagodas, dragons edged the streetlights, neon business signs in both Chinese and English flashed in the night.
Drums and cymbals crashed, sparklers burned white-gold starbursts. A festival dragon was winding its way through the streets. The lead dancer held the great paper-mache dragonhead in his hands---silver eyes, a massive forehead with a fringe of white beard, and a bright green collar. Behind him, a line of dancers meandered carrying the long body.
While everyone else was involved in the festivities, three people obviously were not. They had more important matters on their minds as they hurried away from the crowds and the brightly lit streets.
The three men approached a busy shop on one of the side streets that seemed to have heavy pedestrian traffic. Broots had entered cautiously with Syd, but Jarod strode into the shop as if he owned the place and the chattering inside dwindled to urgent whispers, and finally to silence. Broots had to admit that Jarod's sheer presence was nothing short of remarkable. Jarod did not move so much as an inch, had not made the slightest threatening gesture, and by letting the silence hang for what seemed an unconscionably long time, he was changing the mood of the whole place. Surprisingly, Jarod seemed in no hurry to move things along. This seemed like a place where someone might know something. Surely they would get some answers here.
Jarod was trembling with rage once they had left the shop, albeit suppressed rage, Syd not quite believing it. This was the man who had been the epitome of peace, the advocate of negotiations. Sydney could see that Jarod's temper was seesawing with the heat, and by dusk he was downright nasty. Frustrated, the men headed back to their car with the bit of information they had been able to gather.
"It's better than nothing."
The look Jarod leveled at Broots reminded the technician of one of Miss Parker's famous glares. He quickly turned away, regretting ever speaking.
Having forced Broots into silence, Jarod turned his eyes back to the street ahead of him. Better than nothing...they had less than nothing. He was certain his hunch had been right. The travel records had certainly pointed to this as Lyle's likely destination on all of those mysterious trips. Yet everyone they'd spoken to seemed to have no recollection of Lyle, including several key players in the Chinatown district and people Jarod knew from his days on a pretend as an undercover organized crime officer here in San Francisco. If any of them knew Lyle, they weren't talking, only vaguely saying they'd seen a man who "looked like" Lyle, but they couldn't remember when. This mystified Jarod, because deep down, he knew that he was on the right path. The question was, what could inspire anyone to keep a secret for Lyle, and what secret were they hiding?
***
The road ahead of them was fairly clear, at least as far as the weather was concerned. What it would lead to, Parker had no idea. Still, she felt remarkably certain she had made the right choice in coming with Lyle. Stretching, she glanced at her brother, and than back at Thane, who was enjoying some sweet dream in his car seat. They had been driving for a little over three hours, and she knew they would have to stop soon in order to eat and feed the baby. The trip had, so far, been conducted mostly in silence. She had tried to prod a few bits of information out of her brother, but so far, not much had resulted from her attempts.
"How much farther do we have to go?"
Lyle, whose thoughts seemed to be someplace far away from the moving vehicle, glanced sideways at his sister before returning his eyes to the Interstate.
"We'll go another hour if Thane can make it. Then after we eat, we have a few more hours."
"Are you ever going to tell me where we're going? Other than knowing it has something to do with someone named Li Nam...I'm pretty much running on blind faith over here."
Lyle sighed heavily, knowing the truth of what his sister was saying. He had promised her answers, yet as they drove, he found himself trying to organize all of the jumbled facts that made up the long story of his journey with Li Nam.
"I'm sorry, I guess I just kind of got lost in the past and forgot I was supposed to be sharing it with you."
Parker nodded, and Lyle glanced up in the rear-view mirror, taking in the sweetness of his son's face once more before he returned to the terrible details of Li Nam's past.
"The first thing you need to know is that Che Ling was more than just some mail-order bride, some woman I used. And I did not hurt her."
"So you've said."
"I did let Dad help me fix the situation, but only to gain his trust. If he thought he had something on me, it made it easier for him to open up to me. I was less of a threat that way."
Now it was Parker's turn to sigh. Much as she hated to admit it, that was definitely the way her father operated - get leverage on your kids, then use it.
"Anyway," her brother continued, "that's not the important part. But Che Ling is. She was a Chinese Intelligence officer, working on a joint venture with the CIA. She was my...partner, I guess, is the best way to describe it."
Emotion--deep, heart-wrenching emotion--crept into Lyle's voice, and Parker couldn't help but feel it in her own heart. Clearly, Che Ling was far more to her brother than a "partner." Yet he chose to gloss over this fact as he kept going with the story of how he'd spiraled out of control after learning he was really a Parker, about the criminal and cruel way he'd been robbed of the life he should have had. It was during those months that he had attacked the Centre's Hartford office, killing its staff to get the Centre's attention. It was also during this time-period that he had done the one thing for which there would never be full redemption - he had killed Kyle.
"That was never my intention, Parker. I know that doesn't make any difference, but..."
Choosing to ignore the statement, what could she say really, Parker asked a question to which she needed an answer. "Would you have really killed me?"
"That day in Arizona?" Lyle considered for a moment, remembering the terrible state he'd been in that day. "I honestly don't know, Parker. I think I could have. I was so out of control then. I don't even think it had registered to me that you were my sister - I just wanted to make someone pay for what had happened to me."
Parker nodded, understanding. She'd felt that way many times in her life, and she, like her brother, had made Jarod the target of those feelings. Not liking the feelings that thought brought up, she directed another question at Lyle.
"Do you know what really happened to Che Ling?"
"She was killed by the drug dealers we were investigating. The CIA 'allowed' the Centre to find the information and helped make it look like I'd been involved somehow. The rest you know."
"So what does all of this have to do with this Li Nam person?"
Lyle swallowed hard, feeling once again as if he were about to jump off of a very steep cliff. He knew this was the one thing that could make his sister see and believe the truth about him, and if he blew it, he might lose her and his son forever, because he meant to honor his deal - if Parker decided after this that Thane wasn't safe with him, he would let the boy go.
"Li Nam was, back when all this started, a very scared little girl in Thailand. She is Che Ling's cousin, and I'm afraid her story makes even ours look like a happy one."
***
The press had learned about the bombing of the subway train, and it made for sensational headlines. A sketch artist's rendition of a possible suspect was featured in story after story, and terrorist groups were still climbing out of the woodwork to claim responsibility, which meant that the case continued to be a full-blown media event. This was all serving to make Mr. Parker increasingly nervous, not to mention irritated.
Picking up the latest article clipped from the "Washington Post", he stared at the picture. The likeness wasn't completely accurate, and no one who didn't know Ethan would ever be able to put the two together. That was good news. What was not were reports that the crime-scene investigators had blanketed the site, combing it for evidence. Government agency technicians had also gone over every square inch of the subway, and they had discovered small pieces of highly sophisticated computer components in the debris. Mr. Parker had been led to believe that Lyle and his cleaner team had taken care of the site, obliterating any traces of his sister, Jarod and Ethan. News that anything had been recovered now called that into question.
Angrily he threw the slip of paper back on his desk. It was all going to hell. He couldn't afford to have the Triumvirate looking for answers about the bombing and the cover up, not when he had to get the baby back where he belonged. Damn Jarod for interfering. It had to have been him that had taken his daughter and the child away...and Mr. Parker swore silently to make the pretender pay dearly for putting all that he had planned in jeopardy.
***
Corrina's beeper went off as she searched the cabin for any clues as to
the whereabouts of Lyle or his sister and son. What she found was a pacifier wedged between two sofa cushions. It only confirmed what she already knew...Lyle was somewhere with his family, the question was where.
She unhooked the pager from her hip expecting to find Cyrus's number flashing, instead it was a special code that she and Lyle used to let the other one know that things were all right. Well, that was good news, she supposed. But what she needed was to actually hear from him, to let him know how unhappy Cyrus was. Quickly moving to the phone, Corinna dialed in Lyle's pager number and punched in a return code of 555. It meant call immediately, and she hoped that Lyle would heed her advice.
As she waited, Corinna opened her briefcase and pulled her laptop free. After a few moments, it hummed to life, and she used her wireless modem to check on the status of the subway bombing investigation. Thankfully, the few steps she had taken before leaving to search for Lyle were working beautifully. A media frenzy now surrounded the aftermath of the explosion, and Corinna was hoping that it would keep Mr. Parker distracted long enough to buy Lyle some time, but she was the first to admit she wasn't as attuned to Centre politics as Lyle was. She may have caused him more trouble, she wasn't sure. But it was a chance she'd had to take.
Anxiously, Corinna leaned back, hoping the phone would ring soon, and praying that she could keep Cyrus happy until Lyle resurfaced.
***
"I think a cup of hot coffee would be something we could both use right about now."
Parker nodded in agreement with Lyle's words as the car pulled into the parking lot of a small diner. They were, in truth, only 30 minutes from the airport and the plane that would take them on the rest of their journey, but he was tired and Thane was definitely hungry. Lyle watched as his sister opened the passenger door and reached around to the back seat to take out the baby.
Somehow, he felt a surreal urge to laugh. Anyone watching them would think they where a normal family. The whole situation was so normal, but so strange for the three people involved.
The smile disappeared as he thought of what came next. He knew the hardest part was still to come. It would do no good to push it away any longer, in fact, it might make it harder, and he could feel his courage slipping. If he was right, Jarod was in contact with Broots and Sydney by now, and the pretender would understand the meaning of his sister's gun laying on the floor inside the nursery. Lyle could kick himself for not taking it with him. It would have bought him
a little more time. And right now, he needed time.
His gaze was still on his sister as she picked up his son. Seeing her move a bit clumsily, he remembered that she should not be moving much at all, let alone with an additional weight in her arms.
"Wait, let me help you," Lyle said as he moved out of the car. Slamming the door shut, he hurried around the car and took the baby out of his sister's arms. Carefully he unclenched the small hand that his son had wrapped around a handful of fabric from Parker's shirt.
Holding the baby always had a calming effect on him, but it wasn't quieting his thoughts today, and his mind began to wander again. The mother of his son would have not been his first choice, if he had a choice back then, but looking back, it could have be worse. The reality was he hadn't know Brigitte very well, but in a way she was a victim of the Centre, too, and the power struggles of those old men in charge. Often he wondered what would bring a woman to give her child to an organization like the Centre. Often he imagined that her reasons for agreeing to this deal had been as complicated as his own, fighting for something they both thought would be worth risking everything. He only hoped that what she'd wanted was as important to her as his family was to him.
Miss Parker watched her brother carefully. After he'd taken the boy from her arms, he seemed to be lost in his memory. The little boy seemed not to mind. He was still smiling and his eyes followed
every movement of his father's hands as he tried to grab it and softly
squeaked with pleasure every time he was able to touch Lyle.
'Listen to him, give him a chance, he loves you both.'
The words of her mother was suddenly so clear it was like the woman was standing next to her and whispering them into her ear. Ever since she had asked Sydney to help her and they'd had their first session, the voices had grown clearer every day, though that was her secret. She didn't dare to say anything, not even to Sydney. And though she had a million reasons why, the truth was she was still too unsure what was happening to her to want others involved too deeply. If she was hearing her mother's voice, who the hell's voice had her mother heard? And why did she hear them when it seemed Lyle did not? Thoughts like this plagued her more and more, and only added to the uneasiness she was feeling with her brother.
"Do you need help?" Lyle stood halfway between the door and the car, looking at her. She realized that he had said something to her before, but she had been lost in her thoughts. 'Damn it, Parker,' she scolded herself silently. If she really wanted to find out what was going on, she needed to stay alert and not loose herself in thoughts best left for another time. At the moment the safety of her little brother...no not brother, nephew she corrected herself, was priority number one. Everything else could wait.
"Just go ahead I will follow." Carefully she hobbled after her brother into the building, her ankle throbbing. When she'd dismissed his offer to help she had seen a flash in his eyes that he wanted to object. Luckily he had decided against it, maybe sensing that she still needed some space.
Carefully Miss Parker followed her brother inside, making sure she didn't wobble too much, thus gaining the attention of the other visitors. It was important to stay inconspicuous, but on the other hand, every step was hurting like hell and by the time she finally reached the table, Lyle had already placed his son in a high chair. The effort had taken a lot out of her, and she could feel cold sweat running down her back. Gratefully, she sat down.
Lyle and Parker were both quiet as they settled into the booth, feeling a little uncomfortable, maybe a lot uncomfortable. It was Thane who made the situation more tolerable, his big blue eyes alert to his new surroundings and his toothless smile comforting them both. Parker reached into the baby bag she had dragged along with her and pulled out his bottle. The baby smiled widely when he saw it, and both his father and aunt couldn't help but chuckle when he eagerly slapped his hands on the sides of the plastic, greedily sipping down the formula inside.
A bored and slightly overweight waitress came and took their order for coffee. She returned after a moment and placed big mugs in front of both of them, shoving two menus onto the table. Lyle watched her waddle away, knowing that with every step the waitress took, the point came closer when he would had to face his sister again and pick up the story of Li Nam. He could not remember when he had been so nervous before. Not even the Yakuza could terrify him the way her blue-eyed glare could.
When he turned back to face his sister, he could see that walking in from the parking lot had caused her a lot of pain, but his past experiences with her told him that she would never give into it, so he said nothing. Inwardly he sighed, but on the other hand, he was grateful that she was so stubborn. No matter what the future held for him, she would never give up on his son. Not for the first time, he wondered if maybe it had been a mistake to step in for her. Maybe if Thane had been her son or daughter, she would have taken the baby and left already, and a lot of the horrible events of the last few months would have never happened. But this train of thought was fruitless because there was no possibility to change the past, only a hope for the future.
"So where was I?"
"You were about to tell me how you started looking for Li Nam."
Miss Parker studied Lyle's behavior carefully as he tried to gather his thoughts. Already he had revealed so much to her about his relationship with Che Ling and how their mission had gone so wrong, all because of him, or so he thought. As he spoke of her, she saw so much emotion in him. It was a level of feeling she'd never expected to see in him, and it meant she was faced with only two options: he was a much better pretender than anybody knew, or he was telling her the truth.
Honestly she was not sure what was the better option. If he was now being honest, it meant he had been lying since his return to the Centre and she had not even suspected it. The side of Parker that hated to be fooled in this way felt very defensive. That in this case, their great pretender Jarod would have also been fooled was, at present, no real comfort for her troubled mind.
The truth was, she wanted to believe him, and this realization shocked her. Parker wanted him to be the brother she wished for from the moment she knew he existed.
"Just tell me, Lyle."
"What?" Lyle looked up at Parker, then he smiled slightly. She'd said that to him at least half a dozen times today. 'Just tell me.' How miraculous was that? He knew that just a few hours ago, he'd have been lucky to keep her from shooting him if he hesitated even a moment. But she had not shot him. She was ready to listen, and he had to make her believe his words. He had to make that belief so strong that it could not be shaken, not by anything Sydney or Broots might find, and not by Jarod.
Even thinking about the pretender gave him a big headache. Every time he thought things where under control, that he might be able to come a step closer to his sister, Jarod had stepped in and made things worse than before. He was not sure how long they would have before the Centre or the agency would be on their tails again. As if on cue, he felt his pager begin to vibrate. Cautiously, he looked down at the message. He was about to excuse himself to call Corinna back when the door opened and a man walked in black jeans and a black leather jacket.
For just a second Lyle thought his heart would stop and that everything was over. Then he realized it was not Jarod, just a man who looked like him, and on a second look, not as much as one might expect for the reaction it had sent through Lyle's overstressed nerves. His mind was just playing a trick on him, but it also made it clear that his time was running out rapidly. Corinna would have to wait.
"The agency wanted me back at the Centre right away, and I was in no position to put them off. Still, I needed to go back and see if I could find anything about who had killed Che Ling. I wanted to know his name."
Parker nodded, understanding. It was exactly how she'd felt about finding out who Thomas' killer was.
"Anyway, I went back and met this couple who had taken over our apartment in Vegas."
As Lyle related the story, it came to life in his memory. He remembered the moment when Grace, the woman at the apartment, had told him about the mysterious phone call they'd received just a week before his return.
"The woman's name is Linda Reed. She works with some organization in Thailand. She mentioned UNICEF, but it's not them. She said something about finding a girl on the street who said she was related to 'Che Ling.' I thought the girl had given her a wrong number, but I kept the information just in case." As she had finished speaking, the woman handed him a small notepad with a name and phone number written on it.
"If I had known she had the right number, I would have looked into it. It's just, we didn't know the names of the couple who...I'm sorry."
Lyle nodded, understanding so much more about the situation than the woman could have known. Che Ling had spoken about wanting to take a leave of absence to go to Vietnam and search for her missing cousins. They were all the family she had left, and it had mattered a great deal to her. The Vietnamese authorities had said simply that the family was dead, but Che Ling was not so easily dissuaded. She had spoken often about finding them, but Lyle had not paid a great deal of attention. After all, there had been time to listen later...
"You loved her," Miss Parker said with a warm clarity that made Lyle look up at her. "You loved Che Ling."
"Yes, I did. I still do."
Parker nodded and watched as her brother's eyes cast downward to the table.
"I had some fake FBI credentials, so I checked out the name of the woman who called and found out her name was Monica Saunders. She was an attorney who was overseas working to help exploited children. I tracked her down and she told me about the condition Li Nam had been in when she'd seen her."
"But you said the family was from Vietnam, and this woman called about a girl in Thailand?"
Lyle took a deep breath, wishing he could spare Parker the gory details, yet knowing there was no other way to win her over but to tell her the whole truth.
"Che Ling's cousin Li An had been going to college in Nanjing. She met and married a Vietnamese man named Troung Van Than. Than became a historical researcher for the Vietnamese government, and so they moved back there and had Li Nam and a little boy, Van Son."
"And then something went wrong?" Parker could sense the darkening in her brother's mood, and it indicated the direction the story was about to take, still she sensed that she needed to hear it.
"Than complained about some corrupt government officials, and the family ended up on the run. They hid all over the place trying to find safety. They were hoping they could reach Bangkok and contact Che Ling to help get them into the U.S., but the trip through Laos was very difficult. They all got dengue fever and it took a long time to reach a town that had a doctor.
"Once they finally got help, Li Nam and her mother and brother got better, but Than died. The family was destitute and couldn't pay the doctor for what he'd done. So the doctor came up with a plan to help them repay the debt. Li Nam was seven then, and the doctor and a "friend" of his suggested she go work as a servant in one of the homes in Bangkok to help pay off her family's debt. Li Nam wanted to help her family, and she thought she could try and reach Che Ling once she was in the city. Of course, things weren't what any of them were expecting once she got there."
Parker closed her eyes and nodded, understanding completely what her brother was saying. She had seen the news reports about children being sold into prostitution in Thailand, girls and boys as young as five being given over to the sick men and women who used them. It made her stomach turn, and it seemed a thousand times worse than the exploitation the Centre had perpetrated against "their" children. Looking up, she noticed the pain in her brother's eyes. This was no pretend, and she knew it.
"What did you do?"
"The only thing I could do, Parker. I found her."
***
Jarod lay on the bed, fingers interlaced behind his head, gazing up at the ceiling. His eyes had become sore with fatigue and that was usually a good indicator for Sydney to tell him it was time to call it a night. But once he was reclining, he felt his fatigue evaporating as he replayed in his head, once again, the past eighteen hours.
He didn't want to. There was no purpose to it, nothing to gain. And yet, no matter how many times he thought about it, he kept wondering... had there been something he'd overlooked? He had tried to warn Parker. Could he have prevented...this? His mind spun, questioning and second-guessing over and over and finally it was very clear why he wasn't able to sleep. With everything tumbling about in his mind, what person could have slept?
"Damn you," Jarod muttered, although it wasn't clear, even to himself, just who he was cursing. Was it him for starting this by sending the e-mail or Lyle for starting it by being born?
***
Ethan rolled over in the bed, his body aching with soreness from his injuries. Still, he was lucky to be alive at all, and he knew that he had his brother and sister to thank for that. His sister - just thinking the words filled him with a sense of longing and worry. He knew she was in some kind of trouble - it's why Jarod had left, and why his mother's voice had told him to let Jarod go in search of her. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling that something else was happening, something different than what Jarod thought.
"He's not what he seems. His truth is in his past."
Cringing with the pain his voices often brought crashing in on him, Ethan clutched at his head. Who was he? He'd been thinking of Jarod, but surely it wasn't him who...no, Lyle, it was Lyle they were speaking of.
Moving carefully, Ethan climbed from the bed and found his cell phone. He hit the speed dial button that would reach his brother and relayed the cryptic message of his inner sense. Then, exhausted, Ethan returned to his bed. Lying there, he felt the slightest hint of his sister's tumultuous emotions, but sleep quickly overcame the connection. This mystery was one for his older siblings to play out - his job now was to get well.
***
Cyrus sat in his darkened living room, a drink in his right hand. He stared at the only source of light in the room, the remaining embers of the fire that was about to die out. On nights like these, when work seemed to have spun out of control, he missed his wife, and he wished that he could have her back for just a few hours. He could have called his daughter, but interrupting her life with the ugliness of his seemed wrong to him somehow.
The ringing of his phone broke the quiet of the room, and Cyrus rose and walked over to the entry hall table, taking the receiver in his hands.
"Yes?"
"Where is he?"
Cyrus knew the voice on the other end of the phone all too well. The director...and there was no doubt who the "he" was in the question.
"He's taking care of some loose ends. Nothing to worry about."
"There better not be, Cyrus. Our timetable has been set. This thing with the Centre, it has to end sooner than later. You understand that, don't you?"
"Of course I do."
"Good, then make sure Lyle and Corinna do as well. The president wants this settled before he has to start campaigning again. That's our deadline."
"We'll make it."
The other end of the line went dead, and Cyrus sighed as he hung up the phone. Corinna and Lyle...of the many agents he'd recruited over the years, these two had proven more exceptional and more troublesome than any of the others. He only hoped he hadn't misjudged them.
***
That's the end of this one. We'll try not to let it take quite so long for the Part 5, but no promises. Feedback will help encourage us (hint, hint.)
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