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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer: Please see Chapter 1 for the usual statements
Author’s note: For those of you interested, the name I chose for a certain character is Welsh in origin. Enjoy
Hostile Environment
Chapter 10
By Callisto
They had been on the road for more than a week and were now long past considering themselves road-weary. After dropping off their amenable passenger, a suggestion was made and a plan hastily formed. They decided immediately to take a little detour from their established itinerary. Once their destination finally came into view the tired group heaved a collective sigh of relief. They hadn’t anticipated the trip being quite so long or so draining.
The driveway was very long, narrow and almost dark despite the sunny day, caused mainly by the friendly canopy of trees which bordered the lane on both sides, giving the impression of welcome rather than encroachment. Soon a clearing appeared and they parked the sizeable sports utility vehicle next to a large barn. There they unloaded their belongings and trudged what seemed like half a city block to the main house.
They were surprised by the condition of the house and especially the surrounding yard area which was neat and well maintained. The home was obviously still in the mist of receiving repairs since a neat pile of shingles had been stacked and left on the roof waiting to be nailed into place. It looked as homey and comfortable as they each imagined.
Slightly surprised by the unlocked door the travelers entered and were greeted by the unexpected sound of a woman’s laughter. Without a word being passed between them, the four sojourners wandered further into the home and quietly placed their heavy backpacks and duffels down in the entryway. More delighted laughter came from the living room as the quartet walked quietly into the room, unsure of what they would find. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a soul in sight but the sounds of a man and woman softly murmuring and necking with an occasional pleasure-filled moan continued. It was quickly ascertained that the sounds were coming from a couple lying on a newer looking leather couch. Three of the intruders looked at each other with puzzled expressions, then turned to stare at the fourth, whose face displayed a sudden, knowing smile.
“Hey, what’s going on here?” the oldest of the group inquired in a stern and commanding voice. His intent was to scare what he believed to be a couple of amorous teenagers who happened to find the home unattended and perfect for a late afternoon tryst.
Shocked silence quickly enveloped the room. Then slowly a close-cropped dark head peered over the back of the couch. With rounded, widened eyes the man stared with incredulous bewilderment at the intruders. His companion, whose curiosity was piqued by her lover’s expression, propped herself on one elbow, placed a hand on the back of the couch and peeked over. Confusion clouded her mind until her eyes settled on two familiar figures. Softly muttering a mild oath, she settled back on the couch and closed her eyes, attempting to shut out the sight of her smirking brother and his bewildered father.
“Dad, what are you guys doing here?” Jarod asked with thorough confusion.
“Hey, Jarod. Ethan’s voices said you would be here, so we decided to drop by and surprise you. Guess we accomplished that, eh?” Emil, Jarod’s Centre manufactured clone, stated with a look of deep amusement. He hadn’t gotten a good look at his eldest brother’s companion but did get the impression she was even prettier than Zoë.
“Who the hell is she? What’s going on with Zoë, I thought you two were an item?” Emily asked with disappointment clearly evident in her voice. The fact they had just dropped Jarod’s girlfriend off at her grandmother’s new home disturbed Emily, especially since she liked the woman.
The Major who, like Ethan, had gotten a clear look at Jarod’s companion, answered for his oldest son. “Her name is Miss Parker, she works for the Centre and is the same person who has been hunting your brother down for the past several years.”
“Great, how much further south can this situation go? ‘Come along with me, we‘ll spend some time together, alone, without any interruptions.’ Per-fec-t.” Parker said in an annoyed, I-knew-this-wouldn’t-last tone of voice.
Poor Jarod, he was stuck between his shocked, confused and disappointed family on one side and his equally disappointed, quick-witted girlfriend who was lying underneath him. Jarod, still in the position of an upright pushup, glanced between his family and his lover and finally irritation at both parties arranged his brows in a straight unhappy line over his eyes.
“I’m glad to see you but you should have called instead of ‘surprising’ me,” he said with quiet firmness to his family. Looking down at his lover he said, “If I knew they were coming, I wouldn’t have brought you here.” He effortlessly stood up, ignoring the tightness in his jeans and stared at his family. Parker sat up on the couch, facing away from the intruders, still attempting to control and hide the admiring, desired-filled expression she knew was on her face.
Several tense seconds passed, before Ethan decided to break the stand-off with addressing his older sister. “Morwen, I’ve been wondering where you disappeared to, I’ve been trying to reach you for the past few weeks and was starting to worry. Did you forget?”
Having regained her composure, Parker stood up gracefully and straightening her clothing she smiled at her half-brother. “I’m sorry, Ethan, I did forget. My mind was on other things,” she said warmly to her brother, referring to their twice-monthly habit of engaging in a lengthy instant messaging conversation over a heavily encrypted link Ethan established for them specifically. With an affectionate grin, she moved around the couch and held out her arms, tentatively. Ethan stepped into her embrace and wrapped his arms around his sister, squeezed her tightly and swung her around playfully.
“Damn, I missed you. It’s great seeing you again; somehow just talking to you over the computer isn’t enough. I was planning on getting Jarod to help me break into your place in Blue Cove so I could visit,” he said after releasing her. Ethan held on to her hand and stared at her tenderly.
“Tell you what, why don’t we leave your older brother alone with the rest of his family, and all the accompanying explanations I’m sure they are going to demand of him, while we catch up out back,” she said quietly, allowing her sympathy at Jarod’s impending predicament show through in her words.
“Maybe we should stick around and help him out,” Ethan whispered hesitantly. He wanted to speak to his sister alone for a while but didn’t feel it would be right to abandon Jarod.
“As you can tell, I’m about as popular around here as the taxman after a sudden financial windfall. My presence will only exacerbate an already touchy subject. Besides I have a feeling Jarod already has an idea of what he wants to say to his family,” she replied, the brief, non-verbal communication between them confirming her accurate assessment. “Keep me company while they talk,” she asked invitingly.
His sister’s silent communication with his half-brother didn’t escape Ethan. He acquiesced immediately and they walked through the sliding glass doors towards the nearby lake.
The remaining family watched the siblings walk down the path that led to the lake adjacent to the property. Turning to his family, Jarod smiled at them and said, “It’s good to see all of you, I only wish I had some warning. It would have given me a chance to soften this blow. To answer your question, Emily, Zoë and I have already had this discussion; she understands my reasons and motives. She is the last person I would want to hurt, her friendship and regard mean a lot to me.”
“And the Centre? How can you be so sure this woman has left that life behind? She has been trying to drag you back there for over 6 years. Jarod, how can you even trust her?” Emily asked plaintively, unforeseen disillusionment lacing her words.
“She’s been a prisoner of the Centre almost as long as I have, I escaped sooner than she did. There were pressures being brought to bear on her, pressures so unreasonable that I knew I stood at least a slim chance of getting her to leave. I’m tired of all the secrets and lies we’ve been subjected to, by continuing to chase after them, we keep missing out on our own lives. It’s time for us all to start living.”
“There is still someone caught up in those lies,” she said softly.
“I will never stop looking for our mother. Right now, I believe a change in tactics will be more effective. The Centre knows I’m trying to find her, I wouldn’t put it pass them to have a trap already set up for me the second I get too close. There are a few loose ends left to tie up before I completely let go and I already have some ideas on how to wrap up my involvement with the Centre. Parker was a weakness I needed to shore up,” Jarod explained.
“So that was Miss Parker. She’s more beautiful than I remember but then it has been a few years. She gave me the impression of someone stuck in a bad situation and desperately hanging on to what’s decent. I hope it works out between the two of you,” Emil said with quiet but firm sincerity. Without looking at his sister and father, Emil walked back to the entry hall and gathering up his belongings, he bounded upstairs to take claim of the bath before Emily could.
Expelling a deep sigh, Emily looked at Jarod with a mixture of embarrassment and renewed confidence. “I’m sorry, I should have known that you would have thought this out thoroughly before acting. I want you to be happy and if she’s here and you’re happy then there isn’t anything more to be said.” She walked up to her brother, threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. As she released him, Emily kissed her brother’s cheek and smiled at him with genuine affection. Turning, she followed Emil upstairs.
The room was silent for several seconds when Jarod finally looked into his father’s eyes. Expecting to find disappointment and hurt, he found only love and understanding. Jarod gave his father a small smile and waited for his parent to make a comment.
“I’m still in shock. Every time I see her, it’s like looking into a window of the past. She’s an exact replica of her mother. Give me some time to adjust to this development. Right now I’m tired and your little brother just commandeered the bathroom. It’s wonderful seeing you again, Son,” the major said with gentle amusement.
Jarod answered with a relieved laugh and embraced his father. “Use our bathroom. As long as Emil doesn’t take all the hot water, you should be able to enjoy a leisurely bath.”
The Centre
Blue Cove, DE
The news of Klouchi’s’s death reverberated through the halls of the Centre like a shark fin at mother’s beach. Suppositions and assumptions were now confirmed as facts. The powerful Centre was under attack and the more powerful Triumvirate was not immune to the contagion. Mr. Lyle was taking on a more active role in directing Centre security and curtailed any further travel vouchers and use of the private jet until further notice. Sweepers were now required to accompany mid-level and higher managers home and to sweep their residences before allowing the potential targets to enter. An unaccustomed air of siege was prevalent and for once it was being generated from someone outside of the corporation.
Broots watched with wary cynicism as Mr. Raines quietly transferred large sums of Centre cash and commodities to off shore accounts. A small but growing number of elite employees were being relocated to two sister branches of the Centre. One in Australia and the other in a location Broots was still having trouble finding any information about. He released a frustrated sigh as he thought about his former boss. She would probably know where the second alternative site was located or would be able to direct his search.
Fortunately, no more clues had arrived from Alex. When Sydney heard this news a few days ago, he frowned pensively, then returned to his office. Broots continued his surreptitious search through the computer as he continued to monitor Raines’ actions. It had been several days since Broots had last seen Sydney, with that in mind he decided a visit was long over due.
A soft knock on the door, told Sydney it was time to set his thoughts in order and start acting on them immediately. He had postponed acting on his own suppositions long enough. Rising wearily, he opened the door to Broots and returned to his seat. Broots followed Sydney inside and settled on the couch, stretching his body along the cushions, in the attitude of a patient.
“It’s starting. Mr. Raines is already moving vast sums of Centre funds to the Australian branch and bifurcating the science and research divisions between two sites. I haven’t been able to figure out where the second branch is located but I suspect it’s somewhere in Europe.”
“Interesting. Alex has finally made an impression no one else with any power or ability has been able to do for decades. I wish there were a quicker way to contact Jarod and let him know what’s been going on here.”
“What do you think will happen to this place once the transfers are complete?” Broots asked as his curiosity forced him to sit up straight.
“Nothing much, I expect. This has occurred once before when there was a fire on SL-27, one that originally shut down the sublevel, before my humble attempt to keep them from reactivating it. There was so much damage and so many records destroyed that the scientific division was sent over to Australia for several months while repairs were being completed,” Sydney replied.
“What happened with Jarod and the other pretenders during that time?”
“The only permanent changes were imposed on a couple of the pretenders in the project. From what I understood, they were heavily sedated and moved to Centre-Europe in England. By the time they woke up, the transfer was complete and they were none the wiser. All they were told was that their previous quarters were requisitioned for other uses. They had no idea that they had spent several hours traveling and were no longer on the same continent,” Sydney answered quietly.
“Centre-Europe is in England? For some reason, I always thought it was in Germany. How many more secrets does this place have? Don’t answer that, I don’t think I want to know,” Broots said hastily. “Thanks for answering my first question, England must be where the research division is being set up.”
“Broot’s I’m afraid we’re running out of time. I think it’s time to try and contact Jarod and apprise him of the latest development.” At Broots’ astonished expression, Sydney nodded solemnly and continued, “there is a way for me to contact him, I can only hope that he still monitors the account often enough to respond to my email.”
Alex’s Lair
Annapolis, MD
In the close, darkened room the only sound that could be heard was the incessant rattle of the keyboard; the lone light source came from the glow of the computer monitor. He had been at this computer for several hours without respite. The lead he had gotten on Jarod proved to be another frustrating dead end. The other pretender completely changed his tactics and habits to the point of melting into the populace like Alex’s favorite lizard—the chameleon and while doing that Jarod seemed to have gotten a feel for how his competitor worked. Something that was unavoidable the minute Jarod realized who was on his heels. Alex absently wondered how Jarod had found out so quickly but it didn’t make any difference now—there were ways, still available, to get the pretender and his moll to expose themselves willingly.
Like Broots, Alex was monitoring the activity in and around the Centre and its subsidiaries, however he had certain advantages and disadvantages to his particular searches. While easily acknowledged as an extremely talented pretender, his acumen with the computer fell short of Broots’ natural talent, though his own competence kept him from falling into any traps. Alex’s advantage was his thorough understanding of the Centre, how it operated on all levels and the secret underpinnings of its purpose and goals.
The revelation of the Chairman’s attempt to retrench in an effort to recover from his unanticipated reduction in personnel was an interesting development. This wasn’t exactly the reaction Alex had been expecting; it appeared as though they were taking the threats he had been sending quite seriously. His lips formed an unconscious, cynical curl as he read the raw data fed into his hard drive from the Centre’s mainframe and annex network servers—courtesy of Klouchi’s access codes which he immediately reconfigured after finding them in the African’s home safe.
Centre-Australia would be next to impossible to breach. It was located in a remote area of the country where the advantages were all on the side of the home team. The design was ingenious and dreamt up by a pretender Alex would have found great satisfaction in killing on the spot. It’s main drawback was the remoteness of its location which tended to make those not used to living in the middle of nowhere more than a little stir crazy. He would have to keep up the pressure once he arrived in England. Centre-Europe’s defenses were more easily countered and once there Alex would be able to find the codes he needed to gain access to the Triumvirate’s African headquarters and Asian auxiliary branches. Information Klouchi had wisely and inconveniently memorized. The games were set to begin and all Alex had done was administer a light sting. Catherine Parker’s ashes must be rustling in indignation—her more destructive interruptions in Centre research and acquisition had barely registered the hiccup they deserved.
A soft restraining band in his mind recalled him to some loose ends he still had dangling in this country. His trip to Europe would have be postponed for a few weeks, there were a few more people left at the Centre’s main headquarters who needed tending. At least one of which was a certain Mr. Lyle. Alex had a special bone to pick with him and would take great pleasure in reacquainting himself with that sick, Asian woman obsessed, shed sleeping, cannibalistic freak. Alex had done some fairly horrific things in his time, but never did he eat the flesh of his victims. A deranged smile now dominated his face as he thought about giving his former torturer a ‘taste’ of his own medicine—literally. And then there will be only two left: the lovely Miss Parker, who was more than ready to find out another shocking detail about her family and last but not least Jarod, who would find out definitively who was the better, smarter pretender.
Author’s note: For those of you interested, the name I chose for a certain character is Welsh in origin. Enjoy
Hostile Environment
Chapter 10
By Callisto
They had been on the road for more than a week and were now long past considering themselves road-weary. After dropping off their amenable passenger, a suggestion was made and a plan hastily formed. They decided immediately to take a little detour from their established itinerary. Once their destination finally came into view the tired group heaved a collective sigh of relief. They hadn’t anticipated the trip being quite so long or so draining.
The driveway was very long, narrow and almost dark despite the sunny day, caused mainly by the friendly canopy of trees which bordered the lane on both sides, giving the impression of welcome rather than encroachment. Soon a clearing appeared and they parked the sizeable sports utility vehicle next to a large barn. There they unloaded their belongings and trudged what seemed like half a city block to the main house.
They were surprised by the condition of the house and especially the surrounding yard area which was neat and well maintained. The home was obviously still in the mist of receiving repairs since a neat pile of shingles had been stacked and left on the roof waiting to be nailed into place. It looked as homey and comfortable as they each imagined.
Slightly surprised by the unlocked door the travelers entered and were greeted by the unexpected sound of a woman’s laughter. Without a word being passed between them, the four sojourners wandered further into the home and quietly placed their heavy backpacks and duffels down in the entryway. More delighted laughter came from the living room as the quartet walked quietly into the room, unsure of what they would find. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a soul in sight but the sounds of a man and woman softly murmuring and necking with an occasional pleasure-filled moan continued. It was quickly ascertained that the sounds were coming from a couple lying on a newer looking leather couch. Three of the intruders looked at each other with puzzled expressions, then turned to stare at the fourth, whose face displayed a sudden, knowing smile.
“Hey, what’s going on here?” the oldest of the group inquired in a stern and commanding voice. His intent was to scare what he believed to be a couple of amorous teenagers who happened to find the home unattended and perfect for a late afternoon tryst.
Shocked silence quickly enveloped the room. Then slowly a close-cropped dark head peered over the back of the couch. With rounded, widened eyes the man stared with incredulous bewilderment at the intruders. His companion, whose curiosity was piqued by her lover’s expression, propped herself on one elbow, placed a hand on the back of the couch and peeked over. Confusion clouded her mind until her eyes settled on two familiar figures. Softly muttering a mild oath, she settled back on the couch and closed her eyes, attempting to shut out the sight of her smirking brother and his bewildered father.
“Dad, what are you guys doing here?” Jarod asked with thorough confusion.
“Hey, Jarod. Ethan’s voices said you would be here, so we decided to drop by and surprise you. Guess we accomplished that, eh?” Emil, Jarod’s Centre manufactured clone, stated with a look of deep amusement. He hadn’t gotten a good look at his eldest brother’s companion but did get the impression she was even prettier than Zoë.
“Who the hell is she? What’s going on with Zoë, I thought you two were an item?” Emily asked with disappointment clearly evident in her voice. The fact they had just dropped Jarod’s girlfriend off at her grandmother’s new home disturbed Emily, especially since she liked the woman.
The Major who, like Ethan, had gotten a clear look at Jarod’s companion, answered for his oldest son. “Her name is Miss Parker, she works for the Centre and is the same person who has been hunting your brother down for the past several years.”
“Great, how much further south can this situation go? ‘Come along with me, we‘ll spend some time together, alone, without any interruptions.’ Per-fec-t.” Parker said in an annoyed, I-knew-this-wouldn’t-last tone of voice.
Poor Jarod, he was stuck between his shocked, confused and disappointed family on one side and his equally disappointed, quick-witted girlfriend who was lying underneath him. Jarod, still in the position of an upright pushup, glanced between his family and his lover and finally irritation at both parties arranged his brows in a straight unhappy line over his eyes.
“I’m glad to see you but you should have called instead of ‘surprising’ me,” he said with quiet firmness to his family. Looking down at his lover he said, “If I knew they were coming, I wouldn’t have brought you here.” He effortlessly stood up, ignoring the tightness in his jeans and stared at his family. Parker sat up on the couch, facing away from the intruders, still attempting to control and hide the admiring, desired-filled expression she knew was on her face.
Several tense seconds passed, before Ethan decided to break the stand-off with addressing his older sister. “Morwen, I’ve been wondering where you disappeared to, I’ve been trying to reach you for the past few weeks and was starting to worry. Did you forget?”
Having regained her composure, Parker stood up gracefully and straightening her clothing she smiled at her half-brother. “I’m sorry, Ethan, I did forget. My mind was on other things,” she said warmly to her brother, referring to their twice-monthly habit of engaging in a lengthy instant messaging conversation over a heavily encrypted link Ethan established for them specifically. With an affectionate grin, she moved around the couch and held out her arms, tentatively. Ethan stepped into her embrace and wrapped his arms around his sister, squeezed her tightly and swung her around playfully.
“Damn, I missed you. It’s great seeing you again; somehow just talking to you over the computer isn’t enough. I was planning on getting Jarod to help me break into your place in Blue Cove so I could visit,” he said after releasing her. Ethan held on to her hand and stared at her tenderly.
“Tell you what, why don’t we leave your older brother alone with the rest of his family, and all the accompanying explanations I’m sure they are going to demand of him, while we catch up out back,” she said quietly, allowing her sympathy at Jarod’s impending predicament show through in her words.
“Maybe we should stick around and help him out,” Ethan whispered hesitantly. He wanted to speak to his sister alone for a while but didn’t feel it would be right to abandon Jarod.
“As you can tell, I’m about as popular around here as the taxman after a sudden financial windfall. My presence will only exacerbate an already touchy subject. Besides I have a feeling Jarod already has an idea of what he wants to say to his family,” she replied, the brief, non-verbal communication between them confirming her accurate assessment. “Keep me company while they talk,” she asked invitingly.
His sister’s silent communication with his half-brother didn’t escape Ethan. He acquiesced immediately and they walked through the sliding glass doors towards the nearby lake.
The remaining family watched the siblings walk down the path that led to the lake adjacent to the property. Turning to his family, Jarod smiled at them and said, “It’s good to see all of you, I only wish I had some warning. It would have given me a chance to soften this blow. To answer your question, Emily, Zoë and I have already had this discussion; she understands my reasons and motives. She is the last person I would want to hurt, her friendship and regard mean a lot to me.”
“And the Centre? How can you be so sure this woman has left that life behind? She has been trying to drag you back there for over 6 years. Jarod, how can you even trust her?” Emily asked plaintively, unforeseen disillusionment lacing her words.
“She’s been a prisoner of the Centre almost as long as I have, I escaped sooner than she did. There were pressures being brought to bear on her, pressures so unreasonable that I knew I stood at least a slim chance of getting her to leave. I’m tired of all the secrets and lies we’ve been subjected to, by continuing to chase after them, we keep missing out on our own lives. It’s time for us all to start living.”
“There is still someone caught up in those lies,” she said softly.
“I will never stop looking for our mother. Right now, I believe a change in tactics will be more effective. The Centre knows I’m trying to find her, I wouldn’t put it pass them to have a trap already set up for me the second I get too close. There are a few loose ends left to tie up before I completely let go and I already have some ideas on how to wrap up my involvement with the Centre. Parker was a weakness I needed to shore up,” Jarod explained.
“So that was Miss Parker. She’s more beautiful than I remember but then it has been a few years. She gave me the impression of someone stuck in a bad situation and desperately hanging on to what’s decent. I hope it works out between the two of you,” Emil said with quiet but firm sincerity. Without looking at his sister and father, Emil walked back to the entry hall and gathering up his belongings, he bounded upstairs to take claim of the bath before Emily could.
Expelling a deep sigh, Emily looked at Jarod with a mixture of embarrassment and renewed confidence. “I’m sorry, I should have known that you would have thought this out thoroughly before acting. I want you to be happy and if she’s here and you’re happy then there isn’t anything more to be said.” She walked up to her brother, threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. As she released him, Emily kissed her brother’s cheek and smiled at him with genuine affection. Turning, she followed Emil upstairs.
The room was silent for several seconds when Jarod finally looked into his father’s eyes. Expecting to find disappointment and hurt, he found only love and understanding. Jarod gave his father a small smile and waited for his parent to make a comment.
“I’m still in shock. Every time I see her, it’s like looking into a window of the past. She’s an exact replica of her mother. Give me some time to adjust to this development. Right now I’m tired and your little brother just commandeered the bathroom. It’s wonderful seeing you again, Son,” the major said with gentle amusement.
Jarod answered with a relieved laugh and embraced his father. “Use our bathroom. As long as Emil doesn’t take all the hot water, you should be able to enjoy a leisurely bath.”
The Centre
Blue Cove, DE
The news of Klouchi’s’s death reverberated through the halls of the Centre like a shark fin at mother’s beach. Suppositions and assumptions were now confirmed as facts. The powerful Centre was under attack and the more powerful Triumvirate was not immune to the contagion. Mr. Lyle was taking on a more active role in directing Centre security and curtailed any further travel vouchers and use of the private jet until further notice. Sweepers were now required to accompany mid-level and higher managers home and to sweep their residences before allowing the potential targets to enter. An unaccustomed air of siege was prevalent and for once it was being generated from someone outside of the corporation.
Broots watched with wary cynicism as Mr. Raines quietly transferred large sums of Centre cash and commodities to off shore accounts. A small but growing number of elite employees were being relocated to two sister branches of the Centre. One in Australia and the other in a location Broots was still having trouble finding any information about. He released a frustrated sigh as he thought about his former boss. She would probably know where the second alternative site was located or would be able to direct his search.
Fortunately, no more clues had arrived from Alex. When Sydney heard this news a few days ago, he frowned pensively, then returned to his office. Broots continued his surreptitious search through the computer as he continued to monitor Raines’ actions. It had been several days since Broots had last seen Sydney, with that in mind he decided a visit was long over due.
A soft knock on the door, told Sydney it was time to set his thoughts in order and start acting on them immediately. He had postponed acting on his own suppositions long enough. Rising wearily, he opened the door to Broots and returned to his seat. Broots followed Sydney inside and settled on the couch, stretching his body along the cushions, in the attitude of a patient.
“It’s starting. Mr. Raines is already moving vast sums of Centre funds to the Australian branch and bifurcating the science and research divisions between two sites. I haven’t been able to figure out where the second branch is located but I suspect it’s somewhere in Europe.”
“Interesting. Alex has finally made an impression no one else with any power or ability has been able to do for decades. I wish there were a quicker way to contact Jarod and let him know what’s been going on here.”
“What do you think will happen to this place once the transfers are complete?” Broots asked as his curiosity forced him to sit up straight.
“Nothing much, I expect. This has occurred once before when there was a fire on SL-27, one that originally shut down the sublevel, before my humble attempt to keep them from reactivating it. There was so much damage and so many records destroyed that the scientific division was sent over to Australia for several months while repairs were being completed,” Sydney replied.
“What happened with Jarod and the other pretenders during that time?”
“The only permanent changes were imposed on a couple of the pretenders in the project. From what I understood, they were heavily sedated and moved to Centre-Europe in England. By the time they woke up, the transfer was complete and they were none the wiser. All they were told was that their previous quarters were requisitioned for other uses. They had no idea that they had spent several hours traveling and were no longer on the same continent,” Sydney answered quietly.
“Centre-Europe is in England? For some reason, I always thought it was in Germany. How many more secrets does this place have? Don’t answer that, I don’t think I want to know,” Broots said hastily. “Thanks for answering my first question, England must be where the research division is being set up.”
“Broot’s I’m afraid we’re running out of time. I think it’s time to try and contact Jarod and apprise him of the latest development.” At Broots’ astonished expression, Sydney nodded solemnly and continued, “there is a way for me to contact him, I can only hope that he still monitors the account often enough to respond to my email.”
Alex’s Lair
Annapolis, MD
In the close, darkened room the only sound that could be heard was the incessant rattle of the keyboard; the lone light source came from the glow of the computer monitor. He had been at this computer for several hours without respite. The lead he had gotten on Jarod proved to be another frustrating dead end. The other pretender completely changed his tactics and habits to the point of melting into the populace like Alex’s favorite lizard—the chameleon and while doing that Jarod seemed to have gotten a feel for how his competitor worked. Something that was unavoidable the minute Jarod realized who was on his heels. Alex absently wondered how Jarod had found out so quickly but it didn’t make any difference now—there were ways, still available, to get the pretender and his moll to expose themselves willingly.
Like Broots, Alex was monitoring the activity in and around the Centre and its subsidiaries, however he had certain advantages and disadvantages to his particular searches. While easily acknowledged as an extremely talented pretender, his acumen with the computer fell short of Broots’ natural talent, though his own competence kept him from falling into any traps. Alex’s advantage was his thorough understanding of the Centre, how it operated on all levels and the secret underpinnings of its purpose and goals.
The revelation of the Chairman’s attempt to retrench in an effort to recover from his unanticipated reduction in personnel was an interesting development. This wasn’t exactly the reaction Alex had been expecting; it appeared as though they were taking the threats he had been sending quite seriously. His lips formed an unconscious, cynical curl as he read the raw data fed into his hard drive from the Centre’s mainframe and annex network servers—courtesy of Klouchi’s access codes which he immediately reconfigured after finding them in the African’s home safe.
Centre-Australia would be next to impossible to breach. It was located in a remote area of the country where the advantages were all on the side of the home team. The design was ingenious and dreamt up by a pretender Alex would have found great satisfaction in killing on the spot. It’s main drawback was the remoteness of its location which tended to make those not used to living in the middle of nowhere more than a little stir crazy. He would have to keep up the pressure once he arrived in England. Centre-Europe’s defenses were more easily countered and once there Alex would be able to find the codes he needed to gain access to the Triumvirate’s African headquarters and Asian auxiliary branches. Information Klouchi had wisely and inconveniently memorized. The games were set to begin and all Alex had done was administer a light sting. Catherine Parker’s ashes must be rustling in indignation—her more destructive interruptions in Centre research and acquisition had barely registered the hiccup they deserved.
A soft restraining band in his mind recalled him to some loose ends he still had dangling in this country. His trip to Europe would have be postponed for a few weeks, there were a few more people left at the Centre’s main headquarters who needed tending. At least one of which was a certain Mr. Lyle. Alex had a special bone to pick with him and would take great pleasure in reacquainting himself with that sick, Asian woman obsessed, shed sleeping, cannibalistic freak. Alex had done some fairly horrific things in his time, but never did he eat the flesh of his victims. A deranged smile now dominated his face as he thought about giving his former torturer a ‘taste’ of his own medicine—literally. And then there will be only two left: the lovely Miss Parker, who was more than ready to find out another shocking detail about her family and last but not least Jarod, who would find out definitively who was the better, smarter pretender.
