CHAPTER 4 - Stalemate

Parker closed her eyes in exasperation.

She took several deep breaths and tried to calm the rage that was simmering just below the surface. It was now well past noon and no one had appeared.

Parker had bellowed herself hoarse trying to attract attention but she had finally accepted that the house was empty and no one was coming.

‘Maybe I'm meant to starve to death,' she thought.

She sat up with her back to the wall, her knees pulled up and took another look at the handcuff and chain, trying to determine whether or not she could pull the same trick again as she had done a few years ago.

She and Jarod had been temporarily imprisoned together in the Florida Keys - by dislocating her thumb, she had managed to slip out of the handcuffs. She smiled to herself as she thought about Jarod, how they had been trapped together by the hurricane ...

However, that had been nearly five years ago and she doubted that she still had that kind of flexibility in her fingers. This handcuff was tightly secured around her wrist and there was no way it could be moved.

‘Obviously not Centre issue,' she thought idly.

Parker checked around the room again, looking for anything that could be used to unpick the lock but the room appeared to have been swept clean. She scrambled down to the floor on hands and knees to check under the bed, hoping for a forgotten pin or tack but ... ... ... nothing!

"Damn them to hell", she swore out aloud and then sat back on the bed again.

Parker tried to relax, thinking back to the previous afternoon - putting the finishing touches to a Government contract for a new security system; locking the papers into her safe; deciding to leave early for the weekend; running into Sydney at the elevator.

She remembered driving out through security and smiled to herself when she thought how caustic she had been because her bag was in the trunk and her security pass was in her bag.

‘She'd really pissed those jackasses off at the gate' she smiled to herself.

She remembered the drive home; how cold it had felt when she stopped to buy the newspaper; arriving home and driving straight into the garage and ... ... ... nothing.

Nothing, zilch, nada.

Suddenly, she sat up straight against the wall, pushing her hair back. She heard the sound of a car driving in, the tires making a swishing noise as they crunched across the gravel and then came to a stop. The engine was turned off and she heard the slamming of doors, voices and then the banging of doors inside the house.

"At last," she said out aloud, "it's about bloody time"!!

* * * * *

Jarod awoke instantly, seconds before the alarm on his watch started to sound, and moved his fingers to the stop button. Rubbing his eyes gently, he shook his head trying to recover from the mind-numbing effects of only two hours sleep in the last twenty-four. Moving off the bed, he headed to the bathroom, opening the door gently so as not to disturb Sydney, who was still asleep in the other room. Jarod grinned to himself as he heard the gentle snores coming from Sydney's direction.

Jarod rushed through his shower, and dressed quickly in a clean, black T shirt and black jeans which had almost become his uniform. As he pulled the T shirt over his head, he paused and then smiled as he lifted the fabric up to catch the feint waft of whatever it was that his mother had used in the laundry.

Pulling on a black sweater, he moved to the tiny kitchen and filled the coffee pot.

‘Bring on the caffeine' he told himself.

He opened his lap-top and booted up ready to check his mail. As he did so, he paused as he remembered the silent drive back from the diner, after his conversation with Sydney. They had been quiet, Jarod concentrating on driving the SUV and Sydney staring out at the passing scenery, both not knowing how to break through the tension or to get back to where they were before.

Once back at the Motel they had agreed on a couple of hours of much needed sleep, each taking a bedroom, glad to postpone any further talk about Parker and to put space between them.

Sydney smelled the coffee wafting through the cabin and within minutes of Jarod pouring his own, he appeared in the kitchen looking extremely tired and rumpled, having slept in his clothes.

He reached for a cup from the cupboard, filled it with the freshly brewed coffee and slowly turned around to face Jarod, looking care-worn and a little distressed. He ran a hand over his stubble chin and taking a deep breath, he said quietly:

"Jarod, I'm sorry about this morning in the diner ... ... ... it's not really for me to make judgement on your relationship with Parker. I can't seem to stop telling people how or what they should be feeling - call it an occupational hazard!"

Jarod smiled gently at Sydney, got up from the table, walked over to give him a hug.

"It OK Sydney, really it is," he said, stepping back from him. "I guess we both have something to learn about relationships - it's not going to be easy for either of us, outside the Centre. I should have waited to tell you, not sprung it on you out of nowhere. We'll talk more after we find Parker".

"You're sure we WILL find her?" asked Sydney, smoothing back his sleep ruffled hair.

"I'm sure".

He sat back down at the table and clicked on his messaging system now showing ‘you have mail'.

‘At last,' he whispered to himself.

As he did so, a pre-recorded video began to play, striking terror into his heart. Jarod caught his breath, biting his lip as a wave of fear passed through him stopping the blood in his veins. Hardly daring to breathe, he stared hard at the screen and watched the scene unfolding before him.

"My God, Sydney, come and look at this ... ... ... quickly!" shouted Jarod turning the screen of the lap-top so that Sydney could see it.

Parker.

The images showed a dark grainy picture, the video obviously taken in the half light; Parker was asleep on her side, her hair drawn back from her face and the handcuff and chain clearly visible.

It was impossible to tell if Parker was injured but Jarod reasoned that the mere fact that she was handcuffed to the chain, which in turn was fixed to the wall, meant that she was still alive. She lay completely still and he assumed that maybe she had been drugged.

The video lasted less than thirty seconds and there was no dialogue or message - just the pictures - and then it was gone.

The screen went blank.

"Oh my God," exclaimed Sydney, the anguish coming through in his voice; "I can't believe what I've just seen! Where the hell has it come from?"

"I don't know, Sydney, but I'm sure as hell going to find out. Just give me a few minutes and I'll see if I can track it back to its source - not that whoever sent this would have been careless enough to leave a trail".

Sydney moved slowly back to the kitchen and poured more coffee for both of them, taking a cup over and placing it next to Jarod.

Sipping his cup of coffee, Sydney wandered over to the window and looked out at the pine trees that surrounded the cabin.

"Where are you, ma petite?" he whispered sadly.

* * * * *

Parker sat with her back against the wall, her legs pulled up and her hands clasped around her knees, the chain loose on the bed cover. She could hear people moving around downstairs and the low murmur of voices although it was impossible to tell how many.

She felt her anxiety becoming smothered in the rage that was threatening to erupt as soon as the door opened -

She heard the key turn in the lock and the door slowly opened.

Willy!

He stood still in the open doorway and he couldn't quite keep the smile from his face as he looked at the rumpled and dishevelled Ms Parker. As usual, he was impeccably dressed as befitted his position of senior sweeper.

"What the hell is going on?" she hissed at him through gritted teeth, her face drawn in anger.

"I brought you some coffee and donuts," he told her coldly, deliberately ignoring her question. He placed the packages at the end of the bed and moved back to stand in the doorway.

"Mr Lyle asked me to say that he will be here shortly"

"A donkey's ass he will!" she spat at him. "You tell him to get his God dammed butt in here now!"

Willy pulled the door shut and, still grinning like an idiot, he turned the key.

"Did you hear me, you damn jackass, get back here!" Parker hurled through the door.

Parker slumped back down against the wall and raked her hand through her hair in exasperation.

‘I'll kill the son of a bitch!' she thought to herself.

* * * * *

Jarod flipped the lid of the Pez tube and tried to ignore the waves of fear he felt on seeing the video of Parker. He still couldn't believe what he'd seen with his own eyes and he made an effort not to give in to the panic he felt. My God, if anything had happened to Parker ... ... ... if she was injured and needed him ...... ...

‘Why is this happening now?' he questioned to himself. ‘No one knew I was coming back to see Parker, so why now?'

Suddenly, the message icon flashed on the screen ‘you've got mail'.

‘Thank God, it's Angelo,' he muttered to himself.

Jarod quickly read it and frowned to himself in an effort to understand the cryptic message ......... "two are one".

Sydney leaned over his shoulder and stared at the three words in the middle of the screen.

Three little words.

Two are one.

"What the heck does that mean - "two are one"? ... ... ... it might as well be in Swahili as far as I'm concerned," stated Sydney with a marked lack of patience.

"If it was in Swahili, it wouldn't be a problem for me," said Jarod seriously, "but I need a minute or so to think this through. I have to try and fathom his line of reasoning".

Jarod got up from the table and walked slowly over to the window and stared out at the forest of pines, resting his forehead against the cool of the glass. He noticed that it had started to rain. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the three words in his mind blocking out any other thoughts or distractions. Very slowly ... ... ... now, he felt perfectly calm.

Sydney stood still and watched Jarod as he worked his way through the SIM. In his head, he willed Jarod to come up with the answer, suddenly feeling anxiety overwhelming him and an unexpected urgency to find Parker.

‘Come on, Jarod, you can do it, I know you can,' he urged in his mind, as the minutes dragged past.

Suddenly, Jarod opened his eyes and straightened up. Turning around to face Sydney, he said calmly:

"I know what it means".

* * * * *

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," said Parker, scornfully, leaning back against the wall.

"Hello, Sis," greeted Lyle cheerfully, standing at the foot of the bed. "I see we've made you comfortable," nodding at the handcuff and chain.

Lyle had entered the room silently and was flanked by Willie standing just a little behind him in true bodyguard style. Willie still wore the same half smile he had on his face earlier when he had brought the coffee.

Lyle stood staring at her. As always, she totally amazed him and he couldn't take his eyes from her.

"Goddamn it, I want to know ... what ... the ... hell ... is ... going ... on," Parker spat the words out coldly, barely containing her rage at her twin.

"Naughty, naughty," he teased, coming to stand closer to her, taking in her pale complexion, dark shadowed eyes and the rumpled state of her hair and clothes.

"Did I ever tell you how beautiful you look when you're angry?"

He ran his gloved hand down the side of her face, marvelling at its' smoothness and he gently brushed her hair back, something he would never, ever, have had the nerve to do under normal circumstances ... ... ... "magnificent!" he said softly.

His hand lingered on her face and then gently moved to her neck, his eyes taking in the V where her shirt opened, noting the quick rise and fall of her small breasts as she fought back the anger. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the ivory smoothness and he started to feel the heat rising within him.

Parker closed her eyes in revulsion.

Suddenly, she lashed out with her boot and caught Lyle just above the knee with a paralysing kick. He jumped back quickly in stunned surprise, his gloved hand gripping his knee in agony.

"You bitch," he shouted and before he could move again, Willy stepped forward and quickly, once, twice, slapped Parker across the face with as much speed and force as he could muster and then he stepped back again to his original position just inside the doorway.

Parker's head flew back against the wall with the force of the blows and tears of stinging pain sprang to her eyes. She felt stunned and her vision was blurred, the breath completely knocked from her body. She gasped out aloud as her hand went up to her face and she tasted the blood in her mouth and on her lips. She fought to keep herself upright against the wall to see what else was coming, fearful of more blows.

"Willy, my old friend, you must control yourself," said Lyle putting his leg back down on the ground and testing the knee gingerly to see if it would take his weight without buckling under him.

Willy gave a half smile of contempt as he looked at the battered Ms Parker.

"You're a sick bastard, Lyle," snapped Parker defiantly, trying to recover her voice.

"I can't believe we have the same genes; why is the ghost of Raines here? Someone let him out of the pig pen by mistake?" demanded Parker angrily, glaring at Willy.

Lyle backed away from the bed towards the door, still limping slightly from the blow to his knee. Turning around, he smoothed his hair away from his forehead and said innocently:

"I think you've been a bit naughty these last few weeks, Sis. I think you've been making plans for your future that don't include the Centre - and we can't have that, now can we?"

"Besides which, have you heard the one about the tethered goat?"

* * * * *

Jarod's cell phone rang and he picked it up on the second ring.

"Ethan!" he exclaimed happily. "Hey little brother, you couldn't have called at a better time, where are you?"

"I'm out front of Parker's house but I don't see Parker anywhere ... hey Jarod, I'm real worried about her ... I think she's in big trouble and I need to find her ... do you know where she is?" asked Ethan anxiously.

"It's a long story Ethan ... but I'm looking for her too and I'm working on it ... can we meet up later this evening? I think I'm going to need your help."

They agreed to meet back in Dover in roughly four hours, provided the rain didn't turn to snow which would slow them up.

Jarod sat back down at the lap-top and started to check his tracer program. He thought about the phone call from Ethan and suddenly he started to feel more positive, more energised in the search for Parker, now that he had someone to watch his back.

He glanced up at Sydney and thought how tired he looked as he came to sit at the table with Jarod. Sydney looked agitated and tense.

"For God's sake, Jarod, will you stop doing that and tell me what's happening!" complained Sydney in frustration.

"Come on Syd, take it easy! Believe it or not, we are making progress here," replied Jarod, feeling his spirits lifting at being back in control again.

"Just let me finish this program up and then I'll fill you in on developments ... ... wait one minute ... ... I have it!" he exclaimed, closing the program.

Jarod sat back in the chair and smiled at Sydney.

"OK, here we go. First of all, I've been running a tracer program that I constructed some months ago - basically it allows me to trace anonymous E-mails back to the user's real address via the remailing company; what I'm trying to say is that the video we were sent of Parker definitely came from the Centre, no doubt about it, although I have no idea when it was recorded," he paused looking suddenly uneasy. "What we have to do is narrow the possibilities down as to where they are keeping Parker ... ... and I think I know where she is".

Sydney closed his eyes and sighed to himself in relief ... ... "but what does ‘two are one' mean?" ... ... "you haven't told me what it means!"

Jarod looked uncomfortable and lowered his eyes back down to the computer screen, then nodded:

"It's really very simple; I believe that Lyle has Parker stashed away somewhere and she is the bait - with Mr Raines almost at death's door, he intends for there to be only one Parker left to inherit the Centre, just as you predicted. Not only is he setting up a trap for me but he also intends to kill Parker - hence ‘two are one'! No one left to challenge the chair - no one left to betray all those Centre secrets. He wants total power."

"Lyle intends to cold bloodedly kill his sister without a second thought".

* * * * *