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Parker House
Blue Cove, DE
April 10, 1994 ~ 13:34
Miss Parker juggled the painting, a DSA player, and a Halliburton briefcase while trying to unlock the front door of her father's house. The door swung open and Miss Parker staggered in. She went up the wooden staircase and down the long hallway to her bedroom.
Miss Parker hadn't been home in over a year. During the previous summer break, her father had sent her to Japan, even though she had begged him to let her come home.
She dropped her things on the floor and wiped the thin layer of dust off her desk before setting the briefcase on the desktop.
Miss Parker's queen-sized bed had a white sheet over it, and pulling back the cloth revealed a cream colored comforter. She smiled as she remembered picking out the fabric with her mother. Later, Miss Parker sat at her mother's side, reading aloud as Mrs. Parker sewed the coverlet and added lace around the edges. Now, thirteen years later, Miss Parker fingered the embroidery lovingly, remembering the amazing woman her mother was.
Looking around the room with tears in her eyes, Miss Parker's eyes came to rest on the rocking chair with the intricate carving along the armrests. Her mother used to sit in that chair and tell her stories as she fell asleep at night. And Miss Parker herself had curled up in that chair eight years ago after a lengthy stay in the Centre's infirmary.
Wiping the tears from her eyes, Miss Parker took the DSA Mr. Broots had given her and inserted it in the DSA player. The screen flickered to life and Miss Parker sat back as Jarod's face filled the screen.
*****
Jarod was pacing his room impatiently. He had a SIM scheduled that day, but Sydney had been called away for a conference early this morning. That meant Jarod would be placed under the supervision of another mentor in the Pretender Program. He was hoping against hope that it would not be Dr. Raines.
Jarod straightened when he heard footsteps coming down the hallway. His heart began to beat in his throat and his palms were sweaty. The visitor stopped outside Jarod's door and the beeping of a code being entered into the keypad was heard. The door slid open and Jarod let out a heavy sigh as a 14 year-old girl entered the room.
"Miss Parker. I'm so glad it's you," Jarod said, his relief quite evident. Jarod took a step towards her hesitantly.
Miss Parker closed the distance between them. She threw her arms around Jarod's neck and smiled up at him. He was growing quickly these days and he was now almost a foot taller than her.
Jarod's eyes danced as he leaned down and let his lips brush against hers. Miss Parker kissed him back, more fervently.
*****
Miss Parker looked away from the DSA screen, tears falling into her lap. She hadn't known how hard this would be. Wiping her eyes carefully so as not to smear her mascara, Miss Parker forced herself to look at the screen.
*****
"Come on, Jarod," Miss Parker whispered, pulling the Pretender to the door.
"Where are we going?" Jarod asked, hesitating.
"Trust me," she giggled.
"You know what your mother used to say about trust, Miss Parker. It can kill you," Jarod said playfully, recalling one of Catherine Parker's visits.
"Or set you free, Jarod." Miss Parker leaned closer and whispered seductively into his ear. "And that's exactly what I plan to do."
Jarod grinned boyishly. Miss Parker was unlike anyone he knew. She was daring and spunky, and also broken and tender. She awoke something in him that had no one else could touch. Jarod remembered a kidnapping simulation he had performed a while ago and the feelings the mother and father had for each other. The father wanted to protect the mother from the pain she was experiencing. He wanted to hold her close and make everything right. Those were the same feelings Jarod had for Miss Parker. When he asked Sydney what that feeling was, Sydney had said it was love.
Giving in to her smile, Jarod allowed Miss Parker to lead him to the door. Miss Parker stepped out first to scan the corridor for Sweepers or wandering lab techs. Finding the coast clear, she reached back inside and jerked the Pretender into the hallway.
*****
The surveillance changed cameras to one hidden in the shadows of the corridor ceiling. They had been so naïve at the time, never suspecting that anyone was watching. Miss Parker smiled as the new angle of the film showed Jarod rubbing his wrist where she had grabbed to wrench him out of the room.
*****
"So, are you going to tell me where we are going?" Jarod asked on the DSA screen.
Miss Parker shook her head. "It's a surprise."
Jarod sighed and followed his companion to the stairs, bending to keep his long arms from pulling Miss Parker's backwards in an uncomfortable position. Miss Parker open the heavy door to the stairwell and the two listened for sounds in the shaft that might indicate they were not alone. Satisfied that they were safe, Miss Parker led Jarod up twelve flights of stairs and stopped on the landing before SL-10. Close to the ground was an opening for the ventilation system. Miss Parker had left the screws of the grate halfway undone when she had found this opening earlier in the week. Now she fell to her knees and unscrewed the bolts the rest of the way with her fingers. Seeing what she was doing, Jarod knelt down to help. In no time, they had the grate off of the wall and Miss Parker climbed inside the tunnel without hesitation. She called to Jarod and in a moment, he too had disappeared into the shaft.
*****
There would be no more surveillance coverage of the Pretender for just over an hour, but Miss Parker remembered the rest of that day perfectly.
*****
The duo crawled through the air vents for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, after following the path Angelo had taken her on before, the tunnel began to widen enough that she and Jarod could stand up. Ahead, a ladder led upwards to another ventilation covering. Miss Parker climbed the ladder first and yanked on a handle that unlocked the vent covering. Then she slid it to the side until there was a hole large enough for her to slip out of.
Jarod blinked as lighted poured into the tunnel when Miss Parker opened the hatch. When his eyes had adjusted to the light, he looked again just in time to see her disappear through the small exit. Jarod quickly followed and gasped when he saw where he was.
He was outside! Outside of the Centre!
Jarod closed his eyes and felt the sun warming his face.
"So this is sunlight," Jarod mused aloud. He had only been outside once in the past twelve years and that was at night and it had been snowing. Still those few seconds of freedom he had felt before the Sweepers found him had intoxicated Jarod's soul. He had always dreamed about going outside again and not a week went by that he did not beg Sydney to take him.
Miss Parker watched as the sunlight danced on Jarod's face. His round childish complexion had given way to chiseled features. His chin was square and pronounced, a symbol of his strong soul. The eyes that reminded her so much of warm chocolate were laughing as they looked around. This was why she had brought him here. Miss Parker wanted more than anything to make Jarod happy. She remembered her mother and father arguing about the children at the Centre. Mrs. Parker was concerned about the children's happiness, while her father only wanted results from his subjects. While Miss Parker had never seen Jarod cry, she had rarely seen him smile. There was always something about his eyes; the windows to his soul were clouded by a curtain of sadness that he would never talk about.
"Miss Parker, it's beautiful!" Jarod exclaimed. He looked around at the trees and flowers surrounding them, his smile growing larger.
Miss Parker giggled and ran down the cobblestone path that wound its way through the greenery. "Catch me if you can, Jarod!"
Jarod looked around for a moment as if wondering whether to follow. With a sigh, he swung his feet over the edge and jumped to the ground in one swift motion.
Jarod was surprised at how fast Miss Parker could run. When he finally caught up to her, he tackled her to the ground, the soft grass catching their fall. The two laughed as they rolled on the ground. To get back at Jarod for the sack, Miss Parker began to tickle him - a weakness of his that she had recently found. Jarod was howling with laughter and begging her to stop. She did, quite suddenly.
Jarod opened his eyes and the countenance hovering above him was enough to take his breath away. Miss Parker's soft, dark hair framed her heart-shaped face. There was a smudge of dirt on her nose that Jarod thought was adorable. Miss Parker's cheeks were rosy from their romp. But it was her gaze that had Jarod captivated. She was staring at him so intensely that Jarod felt like she was reading his soul through his eyes. The neutral grey was softening to an aqueous green and Jarod felt himself melting under her.
"Miss Parker…"
She put two delicate fingers to his lips to quiet him. Miss Parker began to slowly lean toward him. Jarod lifted his head from the ground to meet her. When their lips touched each other Jarod fell back, pulling her with him. He put one hand softly on her cheek and the other on the small of her back, holding her close.
*****
Miss Parker remembered dancing on air. She had dreamed of a moment like this ever since she had seen the little boy who walked beside Sydney. Miss Parker had been with many boys since her mother died, searching for the love that vanished with her mother. Each time she kissed a boy, she imagined it was Jarod. But the passion soon slipped away and they would take from her what they had wanted from the beginning and leave her trembling in the darkness.
Jarod was different. It had taken Miss Parker months to convince Jarod to accompany her on different adventures in the Centre. It had been years before their second kiss - the first was a statement Miss Parker was making about girls being more mature than boys. Every time he kissed her, Jarod asked for permission with his eyes, always waiting for her approval. Kissing Jarod was sensitive and passionate. He wore his heart on his sleeve when they were together.
*****
The two were lying beside each other in a meadow of hybridized flowers. Jarod's tunic was open to the breeze. It felt wonderful on his bare skin. Miss Parker's head was resting on his shoulder and she had her eyes closed.
"Jarod?"
"Mmm," he replied.
"Have you ever dreamt about going somewhere else - somewhere far away from the Centre?"
Jarod turned to look at her. "Of course, Miss Parker. Everyday I try to remember what it was like before I came here, what my parents were like, what my life was like," Jarod paused, his eyes clouding with anger and sadness. "But each day it gets harder and harder to imagine a life without SIMS, or Sweepers, or Mr. Raines. Did you know I can't remember my mother's face anymore?"
Miss Parker reached over and stroked his cheek, feeling his pain. Jarod looked down at her and smiled sadly.
"I'm sorry, Jarod," Miss Parker said softly. "I wish there was something I could do."
Jarod propped himself up and put a hand on her cheek. "But, Miss Parker, you're already doing so much! Your visits are bright moments in the bleakness of the Centre. And this day has been more than I could've ever hoped for!"
Miss Parker felt her eyes burning, warning her of gathering tears. It took so little to make him happy.
Jarod saw her tears and wiped them away with his long fingers whispering, "Don't cry, Miss Parker. Please don't be sad. I'm never sad when I'm with you." Jarod suddenly brightened. "After all, you've given me the sun."
Jarod gave Miss Parker the brightest smile she had ever seen. She couldn't help but grin back at him. Jarod leaned down and kissed her, tasting the salt from her tears.
*****
Miss Parker's heart began to beat faster as she remembered what had happened next. Shaking her head, she tried to force it from her mind, but it was in vain. The nightmares came with the fairytales.
*****
While Jarod and Miss Parker had been enjoying each other's company, the Centre was in a state of panic. Alarms were buzzing everywhere and Sweepers were scouring every nook and cranny of the building. The Pretender was missing. The last security tapes showed him leaving his room with the Chairman's daughter.
Mr. Raines was furious. He told Mr. Parker this would happen! The girl was too much like her mother. Now she was going to spoil the whole Pretender Program just to satisfy her own weak need for companionship! Mr. Raines closed his eyes and thought about where the two delinquents would go. What would Miss Parker want to show Jarod? Mr. Raines's cracked lips curled into a sickening smile as the answer dawned on him.
"Pete! Gar! Have your teams meet me in the lobby! Oh, and you'd better bring the toys," Raines chuckled maliciously. The wheezing man hurried to the medical bay where he grabbed a box of syringes filled with sedative. Then he met the Sweeper and Cleaner teams in the lobby.
The entourage walked swiftly through the Biotracts until they spotted two figures ahead of them. With a nod from Mr. Raines, the men silently approached the adolescents.
Miss Parker and Jarod were locked in a passionate kiss when they were suddenly pulled apart by strong hands. The two had completely lost track of time and the sun was beginning to set. Miss Parker screamed for Jarod and looked around frantically. She saw him standing stoically a few yards away. He was staring at something behind her with a look of sheer terror on his face. Miss Parker whipped her head around and could make out a stream of smoke coming from the shadows.
When he was sure he had their attention, Mr. Raines stepped into the lights along the Biotract. Miss Parker gasped and Jarod began to struggle against the three Sweepers holding him.
"Hello children. Are we having a good time?" Mr. Raines walked slowly to the Pretender. "Well, well. A Pretender out of the Centre. Now what's wrong with this picture? Garr?"
With a swift motion, Garr struck a blow to the side of Jarod's head and another to his gut that would have knocked him down if the Sweepers had not been holding him.
"No! Leave him alone you bastard!" Miss Parker cried. She ran toward Jarod, but a Cleaner grabbed her. "Let me go! You're hurting me!"
Blood was trickling from Jarod's ear and he seemed unsteady on his feet. The Sweepers loosened their grip, assuming Jarod to be less of a threat now that he was injured, but this was what Jarod was planning on.
As soon as Jarod felt his captors soften, he jerked free of them and ran to the Cleaner holding Miss Parker. He managed to throw a decent punch to the Cleaner's solar plexus before Mr. Raines took out a gun. Miss Parker screamed as he aimed it at the Pretender. But instead of a bullet, the taser shot out an electric current that ran through Jarod, instantaneously paralyzing his muscles. He fell to the ground as the current continued to pour from the gun.
Miss Parker could hear someone screaming and was startled to realize it was herself. She struggled to reach Jarod, who was lying just a few feet away. Miss Parker reached up to her neck as she felt a small prick. Almost immediately, warmth flowed through her and she felt her eyelids drooping.
"No… Jarod… stop…" Her voiced trailed off as the sedative rendered her unconscious.
*****
Miss Parker didn't know what happened after she passed out. She remembered waking up three days later in the Centre infirmary with a broken arm and multiple lacerations and bruises. She was alone, but as soon as the nurse saw that she was awake, Mr. Parker was called down.
*****
"Angel! I've been so worried about you!" her father exclaimed.
"What… happened?" she croaked. Her dry throat made it hard to talk. She swallowed a few times.
"Oh, it was terrible. I just can't bear to tell you," the chairman acted.
"Daddy, why am I in the infirmary?" Miss Parker demanded.
"Well, if you must know… You were attacked, Angel."
"Attacked?"
"Yes. It was that damned project of Sydney's," her father began.
"Jarod?" Miss Parker laughed dryly. "Jarod would never hurt me, Daddy."
"Angel, Jarod is a Pretender. He was Pretending with you. Why do you think we keep him locked up in SL-23? He's very dangerous," Mr. Parker lied.
"Jarod assaulted me? Why?" Miss Parker was growing more confused by the moment.
"You told him that you decided to go to that boarding school in New York, where your mother went for high school," Mr. Parker said. "Don't you remember, Angel? Jarod became angry because he wanted you to stay here, where he could continue to manipulate you."
Miss Parker felt her blood begin to boil. "No one manipulates me."
"That's the Parker spirit! Now, you get some rest Angel. When you're all better we'll get you settled in New York."
*****
Two weeks later, her father had a Sweeper drive her to upstate New York where she was left standing alone in front of St. Catherine of the Hills convent with her bags piled beside her. Those had been three very lonely years for Miss Parker. The sisters that ran the school wouldn't stop commenting on how much she looked like her mother, and these constant reminders of her grief were eating her up inside. For the first few weeks, she had written letters to her father. But when two months had gone by without any reply, Miss Parker snuck into the Reverend Mother's office and called the Chairman. That conversation had changed her forever.
*****
"Parker."
"Daddy, it's me," Miss Parker whispered, trying to hold back her tears.
"Angel? What is it? Has something happened?" her father asked in panic.
"No, no. I… I… Oh Daddy, please let me come home!" Miss Parker cried as the floodgates poured open. She sobbed quietly into the receiver.
"Angel, Angel listen to me," her father commanded sternly. "You cannot come back to Blue Cove right now. The best place for you is St. Catherine's."
"But, Daddy…"
"No. That's final. You should be ashamed of yourself - wanting to give up after a few days. You're a Parker! Parkers never give up!"
"Daddy, I miss you and Sydney and…" Miss Parker stopped herself before she said his name. Her father went into a rage when she mentioned Jarod. And after all of her father's stories, even she wasn't sure what to think of him anymore.
"What's the Parker family motto?" her father interrupted.
"Never count on anyone but yourself," Miss Parker recited with a sigh.
"That's right. This is a chance for you to practice that, Angel. Now, make your father proud."
*****
It was after that phone call, Miss Parker realized, that she began to form another self. She wore a mask of hostility that kept everyone at a distance. Everything she did was an attempt to win her father's approval. She discovered that she had a talent for acting, slipping easily in and out of characters. Miss Parker was the lead role in every school play, but her father never came to a production. But Miss Parker could have sworn she saw Sydney at a performance of Romeo & Juliet.
When she graduated from high school (at the top of her class by quite a margin), she was planning on attending Sarah Lawrence College the following fall. But when August rolled around and she still hadn't received registration information, she called the school. Sarah Lawrence had no record of her, not even her application, which she had mailed personally. Suspicious, she approached her father. Mr. Parker explained that he had already picked a college for her. Despite her pleas and reasoning, two weeks later she was on the Concorde headed for England. Before she left, her father had made it quite clear that she was to get degrees in international business and communications. Not wanting to cross her father, but also unwilling to give up her own dreams, Miss Parker called upon all of her intellect and triple-majored.
Now she was twenty-one years old with a degree in international business, communications, and art history. Miss Parker dreamed of becoming an artist, like her mother, and had her life to make that dream come true. This was supposed to be the most exciting time in her life, so why was she so unhappy?
Miss Parker looked at the DSA player and answered her own question. How could she be excited at the future if she was still tortured by her past?
