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Chapter or Story
Disclaimer: Please see Chapter 1 for the usual statements.
Author’s note: My beta-readers rolled their eyes when they read this portion. I am a die-hard romantic. Thanks for the Ivar’s comment!!
Hostile Environment
Chapter 5
By Callisto
Super 8 Motel
Omaha, NB
Night had partially descended on the city, leaving a deep blue resonance in the horizon. Oblivious to the spectacular sunset and the last lingering tendrils that remained, Jarod sat quietly in his motel room completely immersed in his own thoughts. The professional quality tape Kevin had sent him was disturbing to say the least, Jarod had watched it so many times that he was obliged to have a copy made before he ruined the original. It was obvious that Alex had been on his trail for sometime from his conversation with the now deceased Gareth. Jarod held in his hands the only slim proof still existing that he wasn’t the one who killed the wife-beater. He had scanned the Seattle newspapers which were currently filled with the mysterious disappearance of the noted environmentalist around whom fresh scandal abound with criminal allegations now being brought forward by the IRS. He was looking for any leaks which would indicate the direction of the police investigation—to no avail. From his sporadic contact with Remington, the rest of Jarod’s plans didn’t suffer from any of Alex’s interference. The company had been quietly taken over by the committee Jarod had formed to step in when Gareth was forced out. Elena had been admitted to a sanitarium after being tentatively cleared from suspicion by the police. Jarod had set up a trust fund at a private Swiss bank for her and access would be made available the minute she was mentally and emotionally ready to make use of it. Karen assured him that Elena’s treatment was going well and she was slowly coming to terms with both her husband’s inexplicable exit and his abuse of her.
It was four months now since he had been in Seattle. Still he considered his current endeavor risky at best, selfish at most. He had traveled from numerous cities, looking over his shoulder, trying to catch Alex as the other pretender dogged his steps. Unfortunately, Alex lived up to his reputation as a talented pretender and thwarted Jarod’s efforts to catch him. Tiring of the cat and mouse game and finally getting a taste of what the Centre’s pursuit team went through with him, Jarod decided to go forward with his plans. He sat practically motionless in the darkened room, removed from any distractions and simmed all the possible outcomes of his plan. He also spent several hours pondering the reasons for Alex’s behavior. The resulting answer left Jarod confused and solidified his resolve to move forward with his bold plan.
He looked at the plain wrapped box addressed to the Centre waiting to be mailed and breathed a deep, audible sigh. The box contained the UNO Maverick ball cap he wore during his pretend as the team’s cross-country assistant coach. He had fun during his short stint and for once he had no objective in uncovering or righting any wrongs. He wondered idly what Alex thought of his last endeavor, he could only hope that the sociopath hadn’t murdered anyone in his wake.
Five days later two fully loaded black Lincoln town cars pulled into the small parking lot of the motel. Ever cognizant of his bribe, the student motel clerk openly gawked at the group as they filed into the tiny office. The lady was exactly as described to him and the student smiled happily at the clearly distracted and discontented woman.
“Hi, you must be the folks from the Centre. Jarod said to expect you but he didn’t say there would be this many. I only have three rooms for you, the rest of your party will have to register.”
“How long ago was Jarod here,” inquired the elderly distinguished gentleman with the soft foreign accent.
“Oh, Coach checked out two days ago but he left strict instructions to reserve your rooms, especially since he paid for them in advance,” the enthusiastic young man replied as his eyes strayed once again towards the woman.
“Coach? Great another boondoggle with wonder-rat leading us by our collective noses,” the stunning woman replied caustically. Noticing the worshipful stare she was receiving from the clerk, she clinched her jaw and averting her gaze stated in a weary voice, “I’m not a bug and you aren’t a microscope. The keys?”
It took the clerk a second to mentally process her request, then he jumped in surprise, fumbling around he found the three keys and handed them over. The balding man shot the clerk a sympathetic look as he removed the keys from the still fascinated clerk’s fingers, handed two of the keys to his colleagues and began to register rooms for the black suited minions who had accompanied them.
He watched them from the upper floors of the abandoned warehouse two blocks away using high-powered binoculars. He observed their curious habit of conferring in one room before retiring to their own rooms for the night. He took careful note of the rooms they chose.
He waited until night had completely fallen before cautiously approaching the motel. From careful practice and reconnaissance he entered the motel and quickly gained access to the roof. Like a cat-burger, he was dressed in black and blended completely with the backdrop; a small black duffle was slung tightly across his back. He removed the duffle then dropped gracefully through the maintenance hatch opening and squirmed on his belly towards his goal, pushing the duffle in front of him. His soft-soled shoes made little noise as he found the chosen duct opening. Listening attentively, he peered through the grating and heard the noise of water running in the shower. Pausing to make sure the room was indeed empty he popped open the grate and dropped silently into the dark room. He stayed in a squat for another few seconds satisfying himself that he was still undetected. Reaching up he replaced the grate just as the noise of cascading shower water suddenly stopped. He hastily removed his black overalls and mask, revealing his matching dark clothing of black slacks and black silk turtleneck shirt. He walked over to the entrance of the bathroom and waited on one side of the doorway for his quarry to exit.
The hot water of the shower helped to slightly relax her taut muscles. The only other thing that would completely unwind her was alcohol but with her ulcer sending disgruntled messages, she decided to forgo that particular method of relaxation. She opened the bathroom door and reaching behind her to grab a towel to finish drying her hair, a cloud of fragrant steam preceded her out. This situation was better than he could have planned. By the time she turned around to exit, someone shoving her bodily into the door jam with a firm hold on both her wrists surprised her. He was facing her with his body slightly turned away, effectively thwarting any possible effort of kneeing him in the groin.
To Jarod’s surprise, she didn’t scream or call out for help. As her struggling became more aggressive and effective, he leaned forward and stared into her face. Her eyes registered the shock she felt and unconsciously she stopped struggling altogether. Jarod sighed deeply when he realized she would offer no other resistance. Now her eyes held only the expression of incredulous curiosity. Taking her silence as encouragement he whispered softly, “Your response time is getting slower than usual, I’ve been waiting for you to show up for three days now.”
Her furrowed brow and narrowed eyes were his only response. Tired of the games and their measured dance, he allowed his building frustration to show in his eyes and face as he continued to stare at her. “I lured you here because I need to speak with you. I need to resolve our situation in my head because this limbo we’re in is driving me crazy!” he said vehemently, each word puffing her half-dried hair backwards. He paused for a few moments, waiting almost expecting her to call out or begin to struggle again. When she did neither, he plunged on, determined to voice his feelings, more than half-expecting her to resort to the status quo. Instead her expression remained steadily inquisitive and she did nothing more than to lightly suck on her bottom lip as though deep in thought.
“Over the years, you have constantly asked me what I want from you. Well, besides the obvious there is one last thing I want from you. After that, I’ll leave permanently, get out of you life and stay out. All I want is a definitive answer.”
Still she remained mute and merely stared at him. However her proximity and the enticing perfume she was wearing began to seep into his imagination. Her eyes again registered surprise when she detected the intense longing in his. On impulse, Jarod leaned forward as she finished releasing her lower lip and hungrily kissed her, using his tongue to force open her lips. She offered no resistance and allowed him to kiss her without returning the caress. When he slowly pulled away, he was slightly surprised by her reaction and was further surprised when she took advantage of his slacked grip and shoved him away from her into the opposite door jam. She stalked into the room and wandered restlessly passed the bed into the sitting room. Pausing she looked at him with a wary expression.
“Sorry, I didn’t—well, I did mean it. I didn’t intend on doing that,” he said distractedly as he passed his hand over his face. “This is going to be tougher than I imagined. I honestly thought letting go wouldn’t be this difficult,” he continued with a voice heavy with sorrow and regret.
When he looked up again, he was facing the barrel of a 9mm; her usual answer to anything concerning him. Remembering her words on the Island about how she had been programmed to think of him, he nodded and sat down wearily on the bed. “Before you call in the dogs, hear me out, then just pull the trigger, anything that bullet could do would be preferable to what Raines would like to do to me.” He looked up to see the weapon slowly lower towards the floor. This was the most quiet she had ever been when they were together. Usually she had nothing but questions or was hurling accusations at him. Wondering at her change in attitude he took a deep breath and told her the reason for his visit.
“You know, I’m tired of running. I don’t want to keep looking over my shoulder with the threat of returning to a place that is worse than death for me. Someone I met a few months ago advised me to confront you. Give myself one last chance before I walk away forever. While I’ve been free, I have been busy, not just with doing my part to make up for some of the horror my ideas have helped put into the world but I’ve been looking for someone to share my life with. There is someone now but she doesn’t…” he paused, leaning forward he placed his elbows on his thighs and stared into the bathroom thoughtfully. “Touch me, reach me in the same way that you do. A sociopath tried to tell me this but I didn’t understand what he meant. What I want is for you to be with me, give it a try, it might work out. If it doesn’t than you more than free to walk away, no strings attached.” His voice was flat and soft as though he knew what her answer would be. When he still didn’t receive an answer he looked at her curiously. She continued standing there in her bathrobe, with her hair still damp from the shower, in the middle of the room; her 9mm lowered at her side. She looked incredible and an unconscious smile of admiration graced his face. He looked like the adorable 14 year-old her father had forced her to leave behind. She averted her gaze and looked down at the floor skeptically.
Noticing her indecision, Jarod prodded her a bit by saying, “All you have to do is push me away and I won’t come back. If not, then come with me.”
Remaining silent, she walked passed him and placed her weapon on the nightstand. Turning towards him she continued to stare at him warily. The sounds of bored sweepers quietly talking outside her door caught her attention. Taking a step she leaned into the bathroom and turned off the light. The room was immediately immersed in darkness as the two occupants allowed their eyes to adjust to the dark. The indirect glow from the moon filtering through the thin motel curtains was their only source of light.
Jarod flopped back wearily on the bed. He now took her silence as rejection and went over in his mind to shut down his immediate reaction until later when he had the luxury of mourning over this loss alone. It was only recently, after some extensive soul searching, that he realized the depth of his feelings for this unusual, conflicted, beautiful woman.
She gave Jarod her answer when she sat next to him on the bed and laid down beside him. Jarod was surprised, he didn’t move for fear of affecting her mood, thus scaring her away. Instead she scooted further onto the bed and tugged at his arm for him to move also. Once he was in position she shifted to her side and curled up next to him, moving her leg over his and placing a hand on his chest.
He listened to her breathing as it slowly evened out and became steady with the onslaught of unconsciousness. He remained awake for several minutes, considering the ramifications of her behavior while her scent softly engulfed him. With cautious sanguinity, he whispered softly, “Yeah, we both need some sleep. Good night, Parker.” He kissed the top of her half dry hair and pulling at the bed covers he covered both of them and drifted immediately into a dream-filled, nightmare-free slumber.
It was still dark when she woke up. She found herself entangled in the limbs of a pleasantly smelling man. She was momentarily disorientated until she remembered Jarod’s unexpected visit that evening. She rose up on an elbow and yawned mightily; then sitting up in bed she stretched satisfyingly. Wondering at her own good mood she glanced at the clock on the bedside table, it read 3:17am. She had curled up with wonder-boy around 7:00 pm the previous night. A full 8 hours without experiencing one sweat-drenched nightmare or inexplicably waking up with a start 15 times during the night. She remained upright and ruminated over his offer. Raines continued to rub it in that he was now her acknowledged parent. A claim she could only consider seriously for a few seconds since it was harder to believe that her mother would ever have sex with something like that. Her options were few and Raines’ threats were many. Over the last year she had lost much of what she previously believed as rock-solid truths. There were few positive constants in her life and one of them was lying next to her. Jarod started to squirm from the loss of her body heat and while still asleep he reached over for her. Smiling at his discomfort she returned to her previous position and slid a hand under his silk shirt, widening her smile when she encountered nothing but the tightly packed muscles that crossed his chest and back. After a few minutes of staring into his sleeping face and gently caressing his torso, she was satisfied to hear his breathing become heavier as his sleep deepened again. She closed her eyes and joined him in unconsciousness.
Almost an hour later, Jarod woke up and yawned. A heavy weight was over his heart and looking down he saw Parker’s head resting comfortably on his chest. With some amusement he noted that her hand was under his previously tucked- in shirt. Needing to stretch, Jarod extended both his arms and arching his back he relieved the tension from every muscle in his body. When he finally relaxed he felt her move, opening his eyes he found himself staring to her hers as she hovered over him. Unable to restrain himself, he rose up on one elbow, reached over and cupping the back of her head in the palm of his hand, he kissed her again. This time she reciprocated in much the same manner as he had last night. She removed his shirt and smiled happily at his muscle-defined torso which, tantalizingly enough, was unmarred by even an ounce of fat. Their kissing became more inclusive as his hands began to roam and soon found their way under her robe. She surprised herself by enjoying his touch and did nothing to stop him. Instead she began fumbling with the opening to his trousers where his sleep-induced erection was already established.
Reluctantly, he pulled away and gently stilled her hand. “Not here. Not now with these thin walls. I don’t think I could be that quiet,” he said in a desire deepened voice. He leaned in a model-like pose on one elbow and gave her a besotted glance. Dropping her usual protective mask, she returned his gaze with a look that spoke volumes of her own fascination and growing desire.
Smiling rakishly at him, she finally uttered her first words. “I would like to one day finish something with you.”
“Come with me, my offer still stands. I want to be with you, to stop running/chasing and just enjoy being with each other. I want to be selfish for once and forget the Centre, forget our obligations and leave it all behind.”
“What about your family? Your search for your mother?” she whispered in an incredulous voice as she lay back on the bed.
“Let’s make a family of our own, then we can worry about the details,” he whispered back as his head dropped down for another kiss. Just as he was starting to lose control, she broke the kiss and whispered, “I have to tell Sydney and Broots and I can’t leave Master Parker behind at their mercy.”
Moving down to her neck, he began to kiss and nibble at her replying between bites, “Later, we need time to see if this will even work out between us.”
A husky chuckle bubbled out from deep inside, “Yeah, Genius it’s going to work out just fine between us. If I go with you, promise me that we will liberate Master Parker as well.”
“I promise. I also promise to work hard on making a family of our own,” he stopped nibbling on her neck and looked into her eyes warily. “Why the change in attitude?”
“I’ve had too much time to think. There has been too much to think about and whenever that happens lately, the voices start chattering. They forewarned me that something like this would happen but I didn’t fully believe it. With the consequences of my father’s disgraceful suicide, I’ve also had to face my own feelings about a lot of things, including you. I suppose this could be classified as another turning point?”
Nodding solemnly, Jarod watched her carefully. Equal amounts of concern and wariness flitted across his face.
“I’ve already tried the other option—too many times, I know. So, I’m willing to try door number two if you’re willing to put up with me,” she said in such a quiet whisper that Jarod had to strain to understand her.
Grinning, Jarod was outwardly relieved but inwardly he would only believe it once he had her on his own ground and away from the Centre. He had to tell her about Alex but that could wait till later—much later. If his suppositions were correct, this was the scenario Alex had been eagerly anticipating.
“Come on, we need to get you dressed so we can leave undetected.” Rising from the bed reluctantly, he walked over to the duffle bag he stowed unobtrusively behind the small couch. Looking over his shoulder he noticed Parker had risen and was watching him curiously again. When he returned he handed her the bag which she immediately opened, to discover clothing. A black silk turtleneck that matched his and dark slacks along with a black balaclava and dark soft-soled shoes. Underwear in her size had been included in the assortment. Smiling at his caution, she immediately wandered into the bathroom dress, despite the fact that he had already had his hands on just about every inch of her only a few moments ago. Once she had finished, she walked out to find Jarod placing a small item on the dressing bureau, then quickly he reopened the air conditioning grate and meticulously using a wet towel from the bathroom he mopped up the dust fragments then used the dry end to cover up his clean up job, he returned to the bathroom and washed out the towel thoroughly. Walking up to his new companion, he handed her some overalls, brushed her curly hair from her face and asked cautiously, “Ready?”
Taking a deep breath and nodding more enthusiastically than she felt, she pulled on the overalls and tugged the balaclava over her head. Jarod imitated her and carefully closed the duffle while Parker straightened the bed. He lifted her through the aperture and whispered for her to go to her right. Once she disappeared he followed, after briefly looking at the now empty room and noticing for the first time that she had obeyed his instructions by leaving all her personal items behind but her gun was suspiciously missing. Smiling under his mask he knew life with her was going to be interesting to say the least.
Early that same morning Broots knocked on Sydney’s door. When the older man answered he was greeted by the worried look on the younger man’s face. Having encountered this concerned look often, Sydney opened the door wider and returned to packing the few items he bothered taking with him on this trip. Sydney knew from the start that Jarod would be no where he could be caught, the only thing to wait for now was on the inevitable eruption of Parker’s temper and the obscure clue left behind by his former protégé.
“Sydney, Miss Parker isn’t answering her door. I knocked a half hour ago and again just now and still there’s no answer,” Broots said anxiously.
“She’s not known for her gracious morning greetings. Give her some time alone. I suspect after what she’s been through the last few months, she only needs some time alone to sort out her thoughts.”
“Normally I would agree with you, Syd. That is if she didn’t tell me specifically to wake her at eight o’clock, it’s now 8:45 and I’m worried.”
Sydney turned around slowly and stared at his colleague. Sudden worry began to gnaw at him as he nodded silently to Broots and hurried from his room. Spotting one of the sweepers who came with them, Sydney waved to the man to accompany them. Within two minutes the three men were inside Parker’s motel room and looking for any signs of their boss. They instead found all her belongings exactly where she left them including her ID and sparse wardrobe. It was then that Sydney’s eyes lit on the neatly folded origami of Onisius left on top of the dresser. He quickly turned to the sweeper and ordered him to have the others get ready to return to the Centre. The sweepers had been her guards and it was obvious that they had failed in preventing her escape.
Once the sweeper had left, Sydney picked up the small work of art. Turning it over, he noticed writing on the underside. Carefully unfolding the paper, Sydney discovered a note; he read the message written in Jarod’s hand.
Sydney—
I finally know what I want from the Centre. Now that I have her, you won’t be hearing from me again.
Take care,
Jarod.
“Sydney, the only thing I can find missing is Miss Parker’s gun. It’s no where in the room,” Broots whispered nervously. “Is it possible that she was kidnapped at gunpoint? That’s weird cause how did they get around the sweepers?”
Looking up, Sydney smiled sadly. He would miss her almost as much as he missed Jarod. However, analyzing her actions was something he was now going to have to get used to—as with Jarod. Sydney answered with some amusement.
“No, I believe it was probably her idea to take the gun with her. It has been used in the past to frame her for a murder she didn’t commit, I wouldn’t be surprised at her reluctance to leave it behind.” While he was talking he handed the note to Broots who read it and looked up at Sydney with an expression of wry acceptance. Sydney took the note and meticulously began to refold it.
Author’s note: My beta-readers rolled their eyes when they read this portion. I am a die-hard romantic. Thanks for the Ivar’s comment!!
Hostile Environment
Chapter 5
By Callisto
Super 8 Motel
Omaha, NB
Night had partially descended on the city, leaving a deep blue resonance in the horizon. Oblivious to the spectacular sunset and the last lingering tendrils that remained, Jarod sat quietly in his motel room completely immersed in his own thoughts. The professional quality tape Kevin had sent him was disturbing to say the least, Jarod had watched it so many times that he was obliged to have a copy made before he ruined the original. It was obvious that Alex had been on his trail for sometime from his conversation with the now deceased Gareth. Jarod held in his hands the only slim proof still existing that he wasn’t the one who killed the wife-beater. He had scanned the Seattle newspapers which were currently filled with the mysterious disappearance of the noted environmentalist around whom fresh scandal abound with criminal allegations now being brought forward by the IRS. He was looking for any leaks which would indicate the direction of the police investigation—to no avail. From his sporadic contact with Remington, the rest of Jarod’s plans didn’t suffer from any of Alex’s interference. The company had been quietly taken over by the committee Jarod had formed to step in when Gareth was forced out. Elena had been admitted to a sanitarium after being tentatively cleared from suspicion by the police. Jarod had set up a trust fund at a private Swiss bank for her and access would be made available the minute she was mentally and emotionally ready to make use of it. Karen assured him that Elena’s treatment was going well and she was slowly coming to terms with both her husband’s inexplicable exit and his abuse of her.
It was four months now since he had been in Seattle. Still he considered his current endeavor risky at best, selfish at most. He had traveled from numerous cities, looking over his shoulder, trying to catch Alex as the other pretender dogged his steps. Unfortunately, Alex lived up to his reputation as a talented pretender and thwarted Jarod’s efforts to catch him. Tiring of the cat and mouse game and finally getting a taste of what the Centre’s pursuit team went through with him, Jarod decided to go forward with his plans. He sat practically motionless in the darkened room, removed from any distractions and simmed all the possible outcomes of his plan. He also spent several hours pondering the reasons for Alex’s behavior. The resulting answer left Jarod confused and solidified his resolve to move forward with his bold plan.
He looked at the plain wrapped box addressed to the Centre waiting to be mailed and breathed a deep, audible sigh. The box contained the UNO Maverick ball cap he wore during his pretend as the team’s cross-country assistant coach. He had fun during his short stint and for once he had no objective in uncovering or righting any wrongs. He wondered idly what Alex thought of his last endeavor, he could only hope that the sociopath hadn’t murdered anyone in his wake.
Five days later two fully loaded black Lincoln town cars pulled into the small parking lot of the motel. Ever cognizant of his bribe, the student motel clerk openly gawked at the group as they filed into the tiny office. The lady was exactly as described to him and the student smiled happily at the clearly distracted and discontented woman.
“Hi, you must be the folks from the Centre. Jarod said to expect you but he didn’t say there would be this many. I only have three rooms for you, the rest of your party will have to register.”
“How long ago was Jarod here,” inquired the elderly distinguished gentleman with the soft foreign accent.
“Oh, Coach checked out two days ago but he left strict instructions to reserve your rooms, especially since he paid for them in advance,” the enthusiastic young man replied as his eyes strayed once again towards the woman.
“Coach? Great another boondoggle with wonder-rat leading us by our collective noses,” the stunning woman replied caustically. Noticing the worshipful stare she was receiving from the clerk, she clinched her jaw and averting her gaze stated in a weary voice, “I’m not a bug and you aren’t a microscope. The keys?”
It took the clerk a second to mentally process her request, then he jumped in surprise, fumbling around he found the three keys and handed them over. The balding man shot the clerk a sympathetic look as he removed the keys from the still fascinated clerk’s fingers, handed two of the keys to his colleagues and began to register rooms for the black suited minions who had accompanied them.
He watched them from the upper floors of the abandoned warehouse two blocks away using high-powered binoculars. He observed their curious habit of conferring in one room before retiring to their own rooms for the night. He took careful note of the rooms they chose.
He waited until night had completely fallen before cautiously approaching the motel. From careful practice and reconnaissance he entered the motel and quickly gained access to the roof. Like a cat-burger, he was dressed in black and blended completely with the backdrop; a small black duffle was slung tightly across his back. He removed the duffle then dropped gracefully through the maintenance hatch opening and squirmed on his belly towards his goal, pushing the duffle in front of him. His soft-soled shoes made little noise as he found the chosen duct opening. Listening attentively, he peered through the grating and heard the noise of water running in the shower. Pausing to make sure the room was indeed empty he popped open the grate and dropped silently into the dark room. He stayed in a squat for another few seconds satisfying himself that he was still undetected. Reaching up he replaced the grate just as the noise of cascading shower water suddenly stopped. He hastily removed his black overalls and mask, revealing his matching dark clothing of black slacks and black silk turtleneck shirt. He walked over to the entrance of the bathroom and waited on one side of the doorway for his quarry to exit.
The hot water of the shower helped to slightly relax her taut muscles. The only other thing that would completely unwind her was alcohol but with her ulcer sending disgruntled messages, she decided to forgo that particular method of relaxation. She opened the bathroom door and reaching behind her to grab a towel to finish drying her hair, a cloud of fragrant steam preceded her out. This situation was better than he could have planned. By the time she turned around to exit, someone shoving her bodily into the door jam with a firm hold on both her wrists surprised her. He was facing her with his body slightly turned away, effectively thwarting any possible effort of kneeing him in the groin.
To Jarod’s surprise, she didn’t scream or call out for help. As her struggling became more aggressive and effective, he leaned forward and stared into her face. Her eyes registered the shock she felt and unconsciously she stopped struggling altogether. Jarod sighed deeply when he realized she would offer no other resistance. Now her eyes held only the expression of incredulous curiosity. Taking her silence as encouragement he whispered softly, “Your response time is getting slower than usual, I’ve been waiting for you to show up for three days now.”
Her furrowed brow and narrowed eyes were his only response. Tired of the games and their measured dance, he allowed his building frustration to show in his eyes and face as he continued to stare at her. “I lured you here because I need to speak with you. I need to resolve our situation in my head because this limbo we’re in is driving me crazy!” he said vehemently, each word puffing her half-dried hair backwards. He paused for a few moments, waiting almost expecting her to call out or begin to struggle again. When she did neither, he plunged on, determined to voice his feelings, more than half-expecting her to resort to the status quo. Instead her expression remained steadily inquisitive and she did nothing more than to lightly suck on her bottom lip as though deep in thought.
“Over the years, you have constantly asked me what I want from you. Well, besides the obvious there is one last thing I want from you. After that, I’ll leave permanently, get out of you life and stay out. All I want is a definitive answer.”
Still she remained mute and merely stared at him. However her proximity and the enticing perfume she was wearing began to seep into his imagination. Her eyes again registered surprise when she detected the intense longing in his. On impulse, Jarod leaned forward as she finished releasing her lower lip and hungrily kissed her, using his tongue to force open her lips. She offered no resistance and allowed him to kiss her without returning the caress. When he slowly pulled away, he was slightly surprised by her reaction and was further surprised when she took advantage of his slacked grip and shoved him away from her into the opposite door jam. She stalked into the room and wandered restlessly passed the bed into the sitting room. Pausing she looked at him with a wary expression.
“Sorry, I didn’t—well, I did mean it. I didn’t intend on doing that,” he said distractedly as he passed his hand over his face. “This is going to be tougher than I imagined. I honestly thought letting go wouldn’t be this difficult,” he continued with a voice heavy with sorrow and regret.
When he looked up again, he was facing the barrel of a 9mm; her usual answer to anything concerning him. Remembering her words on the Island about how she had been programmed to think of him, he nodded and sat down wearily on the bed. “Before you call in the dogs, hear me out, then just pull the trigger, anything that bullet could do would be preferable to what Raines would like to do to me.” He looked up to see the weapon slowly lower towards the floor. This was the most quiet she had ever been when they were together. Usually she had nothing but questions or was hurling accusations at him. Wondering at her change in attitude he took a deep breath and told her the reason for his visit.
“You know, I’m tired of running. I don’t want to keep looking over my shoulder with the threat of returning to a place that is worse than death for me. Someone I met a few months ago advised me to confront you. Give myself one last chance before I walk away forever. While I’ve been free, I have been busy, not just with doing my part to make up for some of the horror my ideas have helped put into the world but I’ve been looking for someone to share my life with. There is someone now but she doesn’t…” he paused, leaning forward he placed his elbows on his thighs and stared into the bathroom thoughtfully. “Touch me, reach me in the same way that you do. A sociopath tried to tell me this but I didn’t understand what he meant. What I want is for you to be with me, give it a try, it might work out. If it doesn’t than you more than free to walk away, no strings attached.” His voice was flat and soft as though he knew what her answer would be. When he still didn’t receive an answer he looked at her curiously. She continued standing there in her bathrobe, with her hair still damp from the shower, in the middle of the room; her 9mm lowered at her side. She looked incredible and an unconscious smile of admiration graced his face. He looked like the adorable 14 year-old her father had forced her to leave behind. She averted her gaze and looked down at the floor skeptically.
Noticing her indecision, Jarod prodded her a bit by saying, “All you have to do is push me away and I won’t come back. If not, then come with me.”
Remaining silent, she walked passed him and placed her weapon on the nightstand. Turning towards him she continued to stare at him warily. The sounds of bored sweepers quietly talking outside her door caught her attention. Taking a step she leaned into the bathroom and turned off the light. The room was immediately immersed in darkness as the two occupants allowed their eyes to adjust to the dark. The indirect glow from the moon filtering through the thin motel curtains was their only source of light.
Jarod flopped back wearily on the bed. He now took her silence as rejection and went over in his mind to shut down his immediate reaction until later when he had the luxury of mourning over this loss alone. It was only recently, after some extensive soul searching, that he realized the depth of his feelings for this unusual, conflicted, beautiful woman.
She gave Jarod her answer when she sat next to him on the bed and laid down beside him. Jarod was surprised, he didn’t move for fear of affecting her mood, thus scaring her away. Instead she scooted further onto the bed and tugged at his arm for him to move also. Once he was in position she shifted to her side and curled up next to him, moving her leg over his and placing a hand on his chest.
He listened to her breathing as it slowly evened out and became steady with the onslaught of unconsciousness. He remained awake for several minutes, considering the ramifications of her behavior while her scent softly engulfed him. With cautious sanguinity, he whispered softly, “Yeah, we both need some sleep. Good night, Parker.” He kissed the top of her half dry hair and pulling at the bed covers he covered both of them and drifted immediately into a dream-filled, nightmare-free slumber.
It was still dark when she woke up. She found herself entangled in the limbs of a pleasantly smelling man. She was momentarily disorientated until she remembered Jarod’s unexpected visit that evening. She rose up on an elbow and yawned mightily; then sitting up in bed she stretched satisfyingly. Wondering at her own good mood she glanced at the clock on the bedside table, it read 3:17am. She had curled up with wonder-boy around 7:00 pm the previous night. A full 8 hours without experiencing one sweat-drenched nightmare or inexplicably waking up with a start 15 times during the night. She remained upright and ruminated over his offer. Raines continued to rub it in that he was now her acknowledged parent. A claim she could only consider seriously for a few seconds since it was harder to believe that her mother would ever have sex with something like that. Her options were few and Raines’ threats were many. Over the last year she had lost much of what she previously believed as rock-solid truths. There were few positive constants in her life and one of them was lying next to her. Jarod started to squirm from the loss of her body heat and while still asleep he reached over for her. Smiling at his discomfort she returned to her previous position and slid a hand under his silk shirt, widening her smile when she encountered nothing but the tightly packed muscles that crossed his chest and back. After a few minutes of staring into his sleeping face and gently caressing his torso, she was satisfied to hear his breathing become heavier as his sleep deepened again. She closed her eyes and joined him in unconsciousness.
Almost an hour later, Jarod woke up and yawned. A heavy weight was over his heart and looking down he saw Parker’s head resting comfortably on his chest. With some amusement he noted that her hand was under his previously tucked- in shirt. Needing to stretch, Jarod extended both his arms and arching his back he relieved the tension from every muscle in his body. When he finally relaxed he felt her move, opening his eyes he found himself staring to her hers as she hovered over him. Unable to restrain himself, he rose up on one elbow, reached over and cupping the back of her head in the palm of his hand, he kissed her again. This time she reciprocated in much the same manner as he had last night. She removed his shirt and smiled happily at his muscle-defined torso which, tantalizingly enough, was unmarred by even an ounce of fat. Their kissing became more inclusive as his hands began to roam and soon found their way under her robe. She surprised herself by enjoying his touch and did nothing to stop him. Instead she began fumbling with the opening to his trousers where his sleep-induced erection was already established.
Reluctantly, he pulled away and gently stilled her hand. “Not here. Not now with these thin walls. I don’t think I could be that quiet,” he said in a desire deepened voice. He leaned in a model-like pose on one elbow and gave her a besotted glance. Dropping her usual protective mask, she returned his gaze with a look that spoke volumes of her own fascination and growing desire.
Smiling rakishly at him, she finally uttered her first words. “I would like to one day finish something with you.”
“Come with me, my offer still stands. I want to be with you, to stop running/chasing and just enjoy being with each other. I want to be selfish for once and forget the Centre, forget our obligations and leave it all behind.”
“What about your family? Your search for your mother?” she whispered in an incredulous voice as she lay back on the bed.
“Let’s make a family of our own, then we can worry about the details,” he whispered back as his head dropped down for another kiss. Just as he was starting to lose control, she broke the kiss and whispered, “I have to tell Sydney and Broots and I can’t leave Master Parker behind at their mercy.”
Moving down to her neck, he began to kiss and nibble at her replying between bites, “Later, we need time to see if this will even work out between us.”
A husky chuckle bubbled out from deep inside, “Yeah, Genius it’s going to work out just fine between us. If I go with you, promise me that we will liberate Master Parker as well.”
“I promise. I also promise to work hard on making a family of our own,” he stopped nibbling on her neck and looked into her eyes warily. “Why the change in attitude?”
“I’ve had too much time to think. There has been too much to think about and whenever that happens lately, the voices start chattering. They forewarned me that something like this would happen but I didn’t fully believe it. With the consequences of my father’s disgraceful suicide, I’ve also had to face my own feelings about a lot of things, including you. I suppose this could be classified as another turning point?”
Nodding solemnly, Jarod watched her carefully. Equal amounts of concern and wariness flitted across his face.
“I’ve already tried the other option—too many times, I know. So, I’m willing to try door number two if you’re willing to put up with me,” she said in such a quiet whisper that Jarod had to strain to understand her.
Grinning, Jarod was outwardly relieved but inwardly he would only believe it once he had her on his own ground and away from the Centre. He had to tell her about Alex but that could wait till later—much later. If his suppositions were correct, this was the scenario Alex had been eagerly anticipating.
“Come on, we need to get you dressed so we can leave undetected.” Rising from the bed reluctantly, he walked over to the duffle bag he stowed unobtrusively behind the small couch. Looking over his shoulder he noticed Parker had risen and was watching him curiously again. When he returned he handed her the bag which she immediately opened, to discover clothing. A black silk turtleneck that matched his and dark slacks along with a black balaclava and dark soft-soled shoes. Underwear in her size had been included in the assortment. Smiling at his caution, she immediately wandered into the bathroom dress, despite the fact that he had already had his hands on just about every inch of her only a few moments ago. Once she had finished, she walked out to find Jarod placing a small item on the dressing bureau, then quickly he reopened the air conditioning grate and meticulously using a wet towel from the bathroom he mopped up the dust fragments then used the dry end to cover up his clean up job, he returned to the bathroom and washed out the towel thoroughly. Walking up to his new companion, he handed her some overalls, brushed her curly hair from her face and asked cautiously, “Ready?”
Taking a deep breath and nodding more enthusiastically than she felt, she pulled on the overalls and tugged the balaclava over her head. Jarod imitated her and carefully closed the duffle while Parker straightened the bed. He lifted her through the aperture and whispered for her to go to her right. Once she disappeared he followed, after briefly looking at the now empty room and noticing for the first time that she had obeyed his instructions by leaving all her personal items behind but her gun was suspiciously missing. Smiling under his mask he knew life with her was going to be interesting to say the least.
Early that same morning Broots knocked on Sydney’s door. When the older man answered he was greeted by the worried look on the younger man’s face. Having encountered this concerned look often, Sydney opened the door wider and returned to packing the few items he bothered taking with him on this trip. Sydney knew from the start that Jarod would be no where he could be caught, the only thing to wait for now was on the inevitable eruption of Parker’s temper and the obscure clue left behind by his former protégé.
“Sydney, Miss Parker isn’t answering her door. I knocked a half hour ago and again just now and still there’s no answer,” Broots said anxiously.
“She’s not known for her gracious morning greetings. Give her some time alone. I suspect after what she’s been through the last few months, she only needs some time alone to sort out her thoughts.”
“Normally I would agree with you, Syd. That is if she didn’t tell me specifically to wake her at eight o’clock, it’s now 8:45 and I’m worried.”
Sydney turned around slowly and stared at his colleague. Sudden worry began to gnaw at him as he nodded silently to Broots and hurried from his room. Spotting one of the sweepers who came with them, Sydney waved to the man to accompany them. Within two minutes the three men were inside Parker’s motel room and looking for any signs of their boss. They instead found all her belongings exactly where she left them including her ID and sparse wardrobe. It was then that Sydney’s eyes lit on the neatly folded origami of Onisius left on top of the dresser. He quickly turned to the sweeper and ordered him to have the others get ready to return to the Centre. The sweepers had been her guards and it was obvious that they had failed in preventing her escape.
Once the sweeper had left, Sydney picked up the small work of art. Turning it over, he noticed writing on the underside. Carefully unfolding the paper, Sydney discovered a note; he read the message written in Jarod’s hand.
Sydney—
I finally know what I want from the Centre. Now that I have her, you won’t be hearing from me again.
Take care,
Jarod.
“Sydney, the only thing I can find missing is Miss Parker’s gun. It’s no where in the room,” Broots whispered nervously. “Is it possible that she was kidnapped at gunpoint? That’s weird cause how did they get around the sweepers?”
Looking up, Sydney smiled sadly. He would miss her almost as much as he missed Jarod. However, analyzing her actions was something he was now going to have to get used to—as with Jarod. Sydney answered with some amusement.
“No, I believe it was probably her idea to take the gun with her. It has been used in the past to frame her for a murder she didn’t commit, I wouldn’t be surprised at her reluctance to leave it behind.” While he was talking he handed the note to Broots who read it and looked up at Sydney with an expression of wry acceptance. Sydney took the note and meticulously began to refold it.
