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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
After Sydney said good-bye to Broots and told him that he would call in the morning to fill him in, he headed back towards Miss Parker's office. First though he stopped off at his office and gathered his belongings then wrote an e-mail to Jarod just to say hello and that he missed him. About twenty minutes later he was done and he entered Miss Parker's office. He found Miss Parker showing Catie a picture of her mother and explaining that her mom went to heaven when she was little. Sydney cleared his throat and Miss Parker looked up.
"Well Syd?" She asked, but they both knew that she already knew the answer.
"She's your daughter, Miss Parker." Sydney said handing her the folder with the lab results in it.
She took it and placed it next to her, not even bothering to open it up to check. She glanced at the wall clock and noticed it read five of nine.
"Then I suggest I get my daughter," Miss Parker paused a second and let the word roll around on her tongue before continuing, "umm, my daughter home and in bed."
"It is way past her bedtime." she said directly to Catie and tried to suppress a grin when the girl pouted back. Miss Parker then looked up at Sydney and raised an eyebrow. "Syd, I need to talk to you, so if you don't mind would you follow us to my house?"
"Of course, Miss Parker. I shall give you about an hour and then drop by. That should give you some time to get settled in." He said smiling at the little girl leaning against Miss Parker's side. "Goodnight, Catie. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
Catie smiled shyly and wiggled her fingers good-bye at him. Syd smiled back and he placed his hand on Miss Parker's shoulder. She reached up and covered his hand with hers. He gave her shoulder a light squeeze and then withdrew it. He nodded good-bye again and left her alone with Catie. As Miss Parker looked down at Catie, the girl looked up at Miss Parker with a confused look on her face.
"Is Sydney your dad?" she asked innocently. Miss Parker was caught by surprise by the question and took a moment to think.
"Sometimes it feels like he is, but no he is not my father. You ready to go?" Catie nodded and slid off the sofa. Miss Parker stood and felt Catie's hand slip into hers.
She led Catie out of her office and towards the elevator. She ignored the looks some of the other people in the Centre gave her and hit the down button. Catie's hand tightened in Miss Parker's grip and she tugged on her arm. Miss Parker looked at Catie expectantly.
"Is this where your mama went to heaven?" the child asked in all innocence. Miss Parker nodded and Catie's eyes grew round. Her grip on Miss Parker intensified and she clutched Miss Parker's leg with the other arm.
"Catie, what's wrong?" Miss Parker asked beginning to lose feeling in her leg.
"I don't want you to go to heaven, too." Catie said in all seriousness.
"I won't, Baby. I promise." Miss Parker said lifting Catie into her arms. They stepped inside the elevator and descended to the parking garage. Miss Parker noticed a car seat had been placed into the back of her car and was suspicious until she saw the note attached. Recognizing Jarod's writing she read over the note quickly.
Thought you might need this. Catch you...oops...catch me later!
Miss Parker shook her head, placed the note in her jacket pocket, and buckled Catie up into the seat. During the ride to Miss Parker's house Catie chattered on about all the things she like and disliked, all the while asking questions that Miss Parker never even had a chance to answer because as soon as the child asked one, another would shoot out of her mouth right behind it.
Since the roads were pretty empty that night and Miss Parker hit almost every green light, they reached the house at about nine thirty. Miss Parker could tell that Catie was exhausted and her energy level was diminishing quickly for about halfway there her chatter had slowed considerably and her eyelids were drooping. She unbuckled Catie and led her into the house. She guided her to the bedroom that had used to be hers as a child, but now served as a guest room. Again, it was evident that Jarod had been here as she opened the door. Just as she walked into the room, directly to her left, replacing the queen sized guest bed, was a white, twin-sized canopy bed with guardrails and a set of pink sheets and a matching pink comforter. Resting at the bottom of the bed was small white hope chest overflowing with stuffed animals, as was the fisherman's net slung in opposite corner of the bedroom. A new set of white dresser drawers replaced the old set of oak ones across from the bed, while two white end tables accented each side of the bed's headboard. Just above the headboard was a hand painted sign that said An Angel Sleeps Here. There was a white lamp with an angel resting at the base on each of the night tables and directly across from the bed next to the dresser was a bookshelf filled with children's stories. Even the window seat pillows had been replaced with white and pink ones that were spread across it, just underneath a pair of white lace curtains that now covered the windows. Miss Parker chuckled when she saw the frilly pink nightgown that was lain across the bed.
"Jarod, you really are something else." she said. She helped Catie into the nightgown and then into bed. Miss Parker covered the tiny girl up with the covers and watched as she seemed to disappear in the down mattress. With a surprising amount of swiftness Catie wrapped her arms around Miss Parker's neck and kissed her goodnight. Within minutes her thumb was in her mouth and she was fast asleep. After recovering from the shock of receiving her first goodnight kiss as a mother, Miss Parker decided to see what goodies Jarod had left her. Making sure she was as quiet as possible, Miss Parker wandered over to the dresser drawers and peeked in. She gasped seeing each drawer was full of clothing. The top drawer had little girl's undergarments including panties with the latest Disney characters on them. The second drawer contained only shirts, but there was at least one shirt in every color and even some tie-dyed ones. The third drawer contained shorts, mainly denim, but there were also a couple pairs of khaki and colored ones. Also tucked in the drawer were a few pairs of long jeans and leggings. The fourth drawer had socks and stockings; some socks were frilly and some had crazy designs on them. The final drawer had a couple of blankets, one fleece and one cotton. But what caught Miss Parker's eye was a tiny pink and green knit baby blanket. Miss Parker picked up the baby blanket, confused as to why Jarod would leave it. Then she noticed a monogrammed name on the side. It said Catherine Elaine, in script, and written under it also in script was the date of July 21st, 1994.
She smiled at Jarod's thoughtfulness and replaced the blanket into the drawer. Not only did Catie have something to treasure all her life, Miss Parker now knew that her daughter would be turning 4 in July. Miss Parker wandered over to the closet and again was astonished at its contents. Hanging up was almost every kind of dress ever introduced to the world. A few play dresses, a couple for school, and even some for fancy occasions. Miss Parker noticed three of the fancy ones right off and pulled them out to examine them. The first was none other than a lightweight, pink, organza dress with two layers of skirt with a tank top cut front and roses going around the middle. She could tell it was a birthday dress because of a tiny tiara that was attached to the back of the dress with a pink ribbon. The second was a pale yellow one with white satin trim around the bottom of the skirt and on the cuffs of the short puffy sleeves. A wide white satin sash was around the waist that was meant to be tied in back in a bow. A set of white gloves and a white handbag was attached to it with a white ribbon. The third dress was a exact replica of the one that Miss Parker had worn the Christmas when Jarod had sent her the white rabbit as a gift. The only differences in the two dresses were that instead of Catie's being low cut in front like Miss Parker's, it was a full chest and it looked to be an empire cut waist. The dress would reach around Catie's ankles, but it was short enough that if she ran it would not trip her. Around the hanger's neck was a gold hair ornament with gold lace and small gold beads sewn into it.
She shook her head at Jarod's extravagance and put the delicate dress away. Just as she was about to close the doors she noticed a shoe rack on the bottom and crouched down to examine the pairs of shoes. There were two pairs of patent leather Mary Janes, one black and one white, a pair of sandals and a pair of white sneakers with pink hearts on them. Finally closing the doors of the closet, Miss Parker picked up the discarded clothing that had been forgotten after they had been taken off of Catie. She held the stiff gray material between her hands and bent down to pick up the gray slippers that had been on Catie's feet. Throwing her shoulders and her head back she walked out of Catie's room shutting the door behind her. She strode with a purpose to the front door and onto the porch. Miss Parker drew in a deep breath and walked over to where she usually burned the dead grass and tree branches. She tossed the clothing onto the heap and grabbed the matches that were located in the metal box next to the pile.
Sydney had arrived while she was doing this and he walked over to where she stood lighting the bonfire. He noticed the clothing and shoes and raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Those clothes will never touch my daughter's body again. They should never have been on any child in the first place." With that reply Miss Parker watched the flames engulf the horrid past of an innocent child. She felt an inner peace and sighed. She had a feeling that she had won this battle and that it was over for now, but she knew deep down inside that the war was far from finished
*************************************************************
"I've been thinking about it, Sydney. About how they could do this." Miss Parker said waving a hand at the door behind which her daughter slept.
"How, Parker? You never had surgery, have you?" Syd replied leaning back against the sofa and focusing on the woman in the armchair.
"In February of 1993, I went in to my doctor's office for my annual checkup." Miss Parker began slowly letting details come into play and then voicing them. "He said that he had found something abnormal and wanted to do a biopsy. I never gave it a second thought, he had been my doctor since I can remember. Anyway, I went to the hospital about two weeks later for the surgery and they put me under."
"That's when you were supposedly on vacation in Tahiti, right?" Syd asked quietly.
Miss Parker nodded and continued. "I went home two days later and my doctor called and he said that it had been a false alarm. That everything was fine. I had thought, at the time, that it was weird he had gotten the results so fast because I know they usually take up to a week or so, but I seriously didn't want to think that maybe they were wrong. I dismissed it and went on. I haven't thought about it since." Miss Parker's face grew grave and she sighed heavily. "What it really means is that my doctor is working with the Centre or at least with Raines. What if he does it to someone else? We warn the police?"
"Parker, relax. I have a feeling that once Raines got back to his office he alerted your doctor. The man is probably in Pago Pago by now." Syd said leaning forward.
Miss Parker smiled despite the situation and sighed again. She looked at Catie's bedroom door and looked back at Sydney.
"Syd," Miss Parker began quietly, "I never thought it was possible to love someone so much in such a short period of time. I have known her for what? 6 hours? Not even. And yet I know I would do anything in the world to protect her. It scares me, Sydney, and I don't even know why."
"It's because you have so much love to give and it's been bottled up so long that when you finally let it out it became overwhelming. You would kill and you would die, yourself, to protect her because she is yours. A part of you that you can never replace and wouldn't even know where to start. That feeling won't go away, Miss Parker. Catie is your daughter and now that you found her, those feelings are going to deepen significantly." Sydney said gently and waited for Miss Parker to look at him. "It is how your mother felt about you. She told me once during a session that the love she had for you could make her do anything and stand up to anyone."
Miss Parker's eyes filled with tears as she listened to Sydney talk about her mother and clasped her hands tightly in her lap. "That is exactly how I feel, Syd."
"Trust your heart, Miss Parker. You are a natural mother whether you realize it or not. Just keep doing what you are doing. Besides it seems to be working, from what I've seen Catie is completely taken with you. And if I may be so bold, I think it is mutual."
While Miss Parker let his comments sink into her brain, the clock over the mantle struck 11:30 and Sydney stood to leave. "Will you be coming into work tomorrow, Parker?" he asked.
"No, Syd. But I am sure Catie would love it if you and Broots joined us for dinner. And tell Broots to bring Debbie. I know Catie would enjoy that." Miss Parker said knowing that she didn't have to get up and show him out.
"I would love to and I sure Broots would love it too." Sydney put on his coat and hat and made for the front door.
"Syd," Miss Parker said looking up at him. He turned from his position in the doorway and waited. "Thank you."
Sydney just smiled and nodded, then left closing the door behind him. After a few minutes to herself, Miss Parker stood up and locked the house up.
She wandered back into her bedroom and took a quick shower. After drying off and changing into her satin pajamas, she laid down in her bed and stared at her mother's photo. Tracing the outline of her mother's face with her fingertip, Miss Parker whispered "I miss you, Mom."
Miss Parker was just about to turn out the light when the phone rang. "What?" Miss Parker said into the mouthpiece knowing without a doubt who it was on the other line.
"Did you find the room to your liking?" Jarod's voice floated over the phone.
"You must be close by to have done all that." Miss Parker said.
"Always the huntress." Jarod said his voice tinted with soft sarcasm.
"Just doing my job." Miss Parker retorted.
"Is Catherine settled in her bed?" Jarod asked, serious now.
"Yes, she is. Thank you Jarod for...everything." Miss Parker said settling herself into her own soft mattress.
"You're welcome. She is a beautiful little girl. She reminds me of someone I knew a long time ago." he said remembering the days when all he lived for was to see a smile on a certain young girl's face.
"Hmmm," Miss Parker murmured thinking back also.
"No child should grow up with out its mother. And no mother should have to face the agony of their child growing up without them." Jarod said gently.
"I get it, Jarod, I really do. I am sorry for what the Centre did to you but I had nothing to do with it." Miss Parker replied just as gently.
"Maybe, but your father certainly did and your mother tried to rescue me. Maybe somewhere in your brain is a conversation you overheard or something you read that could lead me to my family." Jarod said passionately.
Miss Parker sighed, "I don't remember anything like that, Jarod."
"It's in there, Miss Parker. And when you do remember I will be waiting." Jarod told her.
Miss Parker sighed deeply and then felt a weariness wash over her. "Jarod," she started to say.
"I know, Miss Parker. It is late and you've had a lot to deal with today. I'll let you go, but you have to understand that this is not over." Jarod said.
Remembering that she said almost those exact words to Raines today, she shivered. "I know, Jarod. Until we can lead our own lives without fear of Centre, it will never be over." Miss Parker said into the phone quietly and then added, "Goodnight, Jarod."
"Goodnight, Miss Parker." Jarod said then hung up.
With that she placed the phone back on it's hook, turned her light off, and laid her head down on her pillow in exhaustion. God, she had a daughter. A perfect, little, precocious baby girl.
A few moments after she had that exact thought she sensed a movement outside her room. The doors slid open and the silhouette of Catie stood in the doorway. The child padded over to stand before Miss Parker. She crouched down so her nose was touching Miss Parker's and Miss Parker smiled.
"Mama, I can't get back to sleep. Can I sleep with you?" Catie asked timidly.
"Sure." Miss Parker scooted over to make room and felt the bed dip slightly as Catie climbed on. The little girl spooned into Miss Parker and Miss Parker felt Catie place her thumb in her mouth.
"Night-night Mama." Catie said tiredly and snuggled closer.
Miss Parker studied her daughter by moonlight as she began to succumb to sleep once more. Thick dark eyelashes lay on pale ivory skin and her mouth was a perfect little cupid's bow. She watched in fascination the girl's mouth move in sucking motion around her thumb and knew in her heart that this was what Catie had looked like as a baby. A tear slid down Miss Parker's cheek and she wiped it away. She laid her cheek down on Catie's head saying quietly, "Go to sleep, Baby. Mama's here." Then, remembering the words she had never gotten to say to her mother, she said as an afterthought, "I love you."
"Luv you, too, Mama." Catie whispered back and both mother and daughter fell asleep peacefully for the first time in a very long time.
"Well Syd?" She asked, but they both knew that she already knew the answer.
"She's your daughter, Miss Parker." Sydney said handing her the folder with the lab results in it.
She took it and placed it next to her, not even bothering to open it up to check. She glanced at the wall clock and noticed it read five of nine.
"Then I suggest I get my daughter," Miss Parker paused a second and let the word roll around on her tongue before continuing, "umm, my daughter home and in bed."
"It is way past her bedtime." she said directly to Catie and tried to suppress a grin when the girl pouted back. Miss Parker then looked up at Sydney and raised an eyebrow. "Syd, I need to talk to you, so if you don't mind would you follow us to my house?"
"Of course, Miss Parker. I shall give you about an hour and then drop by. That should give you some time to get settled in." He said smiling at the little girl leaning against Miss Parker's side. "Goodnight, Catie. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
Catie smiled shyly and wiggled her fingers good-bye at him. Syd smiled back and he placed his hand on Miss Parker's shoulder. She reached up and covered his hand with hers. He gave her shoulder a light squeeze and then withdrew it. He nodded good-bye again and left her alone with Catie. As Miss Parker looked down at Catie, the girl looked up at Miss Parker with a confused look on her face.
"Is Sydney your dad?" she asked innocently. Miss Parker was caught by surprise by the question and took a moment to think.
"Sometimes it feels like he is, but no he is not my father. You ready to go?" Catie nodded and slid off the sofa. Miss Parker stood and felt Catie's hand slip into hers.
She led Catie out of her office and towards the elevator. She ignored the looks some of the other people in the Centre gave her and hit the down button. Catie's hand tightened in Miss Parker's grip and she tugged on her arm. Miss Parker looked at Catie expectantly.
"Is this where your mama went to heaven?" the child asked in all innocence. Miss Parker nodded and Catie's eyes grew round. Her grip on Miss Parker intensified and she clutched Miss Parker's leg with the other arm.
"Catie, what's wrong?" Miss Parker asked beginning to lose feeling in her leg.
"I don't want you to go to heaven, too." Catie said in all seriousness.
"I won't, Baby. I promise." Miss Parker said lifting Catie into her arms. They stepped inside the elevator and descended to the parking garage. Miss Parker noticed a car seat had been placed into the back of her car and was suspicious until she saw the note attached. Recognizing Jarod's writing she read over the note quickly.
Thought you might need this. Catch you...oops...catch me later!
Miss Parker shook her head, placed the note in her jacket pocket, and buckled Catie up into the seat. During the ride to Miss Parker's house Catie chattered on about all the things she like and disliked, all the while asking questions that Miss Parker never even had a chance to answer because as soon as the child asked one, another would shoot out of her mouth right behind it.
Since the roads were pretty empty that night and Miss Parker hit almost every green light, they reached the house at about nine thirty. Miss Parker could tell that Catie was exhausted and her energy level was diminishing quickly for about halfway there her chatter had slowed considerably and her eyelids were drooping. She unbuckled Catie and led her into the house. She guided her to the bedroom that had used to be hers as a child, but now served as a guest room. Again, it was evident that Jarod had been here as she opened the door. Just as she walked into the room, directly to her left, replacing the queen sized guest bed, was a white, twin-sized canopy bed with guardrails and a set of pink sheets and a matching pink comforter. Resting at the bottom of the bed was small white hope chest overflowing with stuffed animals, as was the fisherman's net slung in opposite corner of the bedroom. A new set of white dresser drawers replaced the old set of oak ones across from the bed, while two white end tables accented each side of the bed's headboard. Just above the headboard was a hand painted sign that said An Angel Sleeps Here. There was a white lamp with an angel resting at the base on each of the night tables and directly across from the bed next to the dresser was a bookshelf filled with children's stories. Even the window seat pillows had been replaced with white and pink ones that were spread across it, just underneath a pair of white lace curtains that now covered the windows. Miss Parker chuckled when she saw the frilly pink nightgown that was lain across the bed.
"Jarod, you really are something else." she said. She helped Catie into the nightgown and then into bed. Miss Parker covered the tiny girl up with the covers and watched as she seemed to disappear in the down mattress. With a surprising amount of swiftness Catie wrapped her arms around Miss Parker's neck and kissed her goodnight. Within minutes her thumb was in her mouth and she was fast asleep. After recovering from the shock of receiving her first goodnight kiss as a mother, Miss Parker decided to see what goodies Jarod had left her. Making sure she was as quiet as possible, Miss Parker wandered over to the dresser drawers and peeked in. She gasped seeing each drawer was full of clothing. The top drawer had little girl's undergarments including panties with the latest Disney characters on them. The second drawer contained only shirts, but there was at least one shirt in every color and even some tie-dyed ones. The third drawer contained shorts, mainly denim, but there were also a couple pairs of khaki and colored ones. Also tucked in the drawer were a few pairs of long jeans and leggings. The fourth drawer had socks and stockings; some socks were frilly and some had crazy designs on them. The final drawer had a couple of blankets, one fleece and one cotton. But what caught Miss Parker's eye was a tiny pink and green knit baby blanket. Miss Parker picked up the baby blanket, confused as to why Jarod would leave it. Then she noticed a monogrammed name on the side. It said Catherine Elaine, in script, and written under it also in script was the date of July 21st, 1994.
She smiled at Jarod's thoughtfulness and replaced the blanket into the drawer. Not only did Catie have something to treasure all her life, Miss Parker now knew that her daughter would be turning 4 in July. Miss Parker wandered over to the closet and again was astonished at its contents. Hanging up was almost every kind of dress ever introduced to the world. A few play dresses, a couple for school, and even some for fancy occasions. Miss Parker noticed three of the fancy ones right off and pulled them out to examine them. The first was none other than a lightweight, pink, organza dress with two layers of skirt with a tank top cut front and roses going around the middle. She could tell it was a birthday dress because of a tiny tiara that was attached to the back of the dress with a pink ribbon. The second was a pale yellow one with white satin trim around the bottom of the skirt and on the cuffs of the short puffy sleeves. A wide white satin sash was around the waist that was meant to be tied in back in a bow. A set of white gloves and a white handbag was attached to it with a white ribbon. The third dress was a exact replica of the one that Miss Parker had worn the Christmas when Jarod had sent her the white rabbit as a gift. The only differences in the two dresses were that instead of Catie's being low cut in front like Miss Parker's, it was a full chest and it looked to be an empire cut waist. The dress would reach around Catie's ankles, but it was short enough that if she ran it would not trip her. Around the hanger's neck was a gold hair ornament with gold lace and small gold beads sewn into it.
She shook her head at Jarod's extravagance and put the delicate dress away. Just as she was about to close the doors she noticed a shoe rack on the bottom and crouched down to examine the pairs of shoes. There were two pairs of patent leather Mary Janes, one black and one white, a pair of sandals and a pair of white sneakers with pink hearts on them. Finally closing the doors of the closet, Miss Parker picked up the discarded clothing that had been forgotten after they had been taken off of Catie. She held the stiff gray material between her hands and bent down to pick up the gray slippers that had been on Catie's feet. Throwing her shoulders and her head back she walked out of Catie's room shutting the door behind her. She strode with a purpose to the front door and onto the porch. Miss Parker drew in a deep breath and walked over to where she usually burned the dead grass and tree branches. She tossed the clothing onto the heap and grabbed the matches that were located in the metal box next to the pile.
Sydney had arrived while she was doing this and he walked over to where she stood lighting the bonfire. He noticed the clothing and shoes and raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Those clothes will never touch my daughter's body again. They should never have been on any child in the first place." With that reply Miss Parker watched the flames engulf the horrid past of an innocent child. She felt an inner peace and sighed. She had a feeling that she had won this battle and that it was over for now, but she knew deep down inside that the war was far from finished
*************************************************************
"I've been thinking about it, Sydney. About how they could do this." Miss Parker said waving a hand at the door behind which her daughter slept.
"How, Parker? You never had surgery, have you?" Syd replied leaning back against the sofa and focusing on the woman in the armchair.
"In February of 1993, I went in to my doctor's office for my annual checkup." Miss Parker began slowly letting details come into play and then voicing them. "He said that he had found something abnormal and wanted to do a biopsy. I never gave it a second thought, he had been my doctor since I can remember. Anyway, I went to the hospital about two weeks later for the surgery and they put me under."
"That's when you were supposedly on vacation in Tahiti, right?" Syd asked quietly.
Miss Parker nodded and continued. "I went home two days later and my doctor called and he said that it had been a false alarm. That everything was fine. I had thought, at the time, that it was weird he had gotten the results so fast because I know they usually take up to a week or so, but I seriously didn't want to think that maybe they were wrong. I dismissed it and went on. I haven't thought about it since." Miss Parker's face grew grave and she sighed heavily. "What it really means is that my doctor is working with the Centre or at least with Raines. What if he does it to someone else? We warn the police?"
"Parker, relax. I have a feeling that once Raines got back to his office he alerted your doctor. The man is probably in Pago Pago by now." Syd said leaning forward.
Miss Parker smiled despite the situation and sighed again. She looked at Catie's bedroom door and looked back at Sydney.
"Syd," Miss Parker began quietly, "I never thought it was possible to love someone so much in such a short period of time. I have known her for what? 6 hours? Not even. And yet I know I would do anything in the world to protect her. It scares me, Sydney, and I don't even know why."
"It's because you have so much love to give and it's been bottled up so long that when you finally let it out it became overwhelming. You would kill and you would die, yourself, to protect her because she is yours. A part of you that you can never replace and wouldn't even know where to start. That feeling won't go away, Miss Parker. Catie is your daughter and now that you found her, those feelings are going to deepen significantly." Sydney said gently and waited for Miss Parker to look at him. "It is how your mother felt about you. She told me once during a session that the love she had for you could make her do anything and stand up to anyone."
Miss Parker's eyes filled with tears as she listened to Sydney talk about her mother and clasped her hands tightly in her lap. "That is exactly how I feel, Syd."
"Trust your heart, Miss Parker. You are a natural mother whether you realize it or not. Just keep doing what you are doing. Besides it seems to be working, from what I've seen Catie is completely taken with you. And if I may be so bold, I think it is mutual."
While Miss Parker let his comments sink into her brain, the clock over the mantle struck 11:30 and Sydney stood to leave. "Will you be coming into work tomorrow, Parker?" he asked.
"No, Syd. But I am sure Catie would love it if you and Broots joined us for dinner. And tell Broots to bring Debbie. I know Catie would enjoy that." Miss Parker said knowing that she didn't have to get up and show him out.
"I would love to and I sure Broots would love it too." Sydney put on his coat and hat and made for the front door.
"Syd," Miss Parker said looking up at him. He turned from his position in the doorway and waited. "Thank you."
Sydney just smiled and nodded, then left closing the door behind him. After a few minutes to herself, Miss Parker stood up and locked the house up.
She wandered back into her bedroom and took a quick shower. After drying off and changing into her satin pajamas, she laid down in her bed and stared at her mother's photo. Tracing the outline of her mother's face with her fingertip, Miss Parker whispered "I miss you, Mom."
Miss Parker was just about to turn out the light when the phone rang. "What?" Miss Parker said into the mouthpiece knowing without a doubt who it was on the other line.
"Did you find the room to your liking?" Jarod's voice floated over the phone.
"You must be close by to have done all that." Miss Parker said.
"Always the huntress." Jarod said his voice tinted with soft sarcasm.
"Just doing my job." Miss Parker retorted.
"Is Catherine settled in her bed?" Jarod asked, serious now.
"Yes, she is. Thank you Jarod for...everything." Miss Parker said settling herself into her own soft mattress.
"You're welcome. She is a beautiful little girl. She reminds me of someone I knew a long time ago." he said remembering the days when all he lived for was to see a smile on a certain young girl's face.
"Hmmm," Miss Parker murmured thinking back also.
"No child should grow up with out its mother. And no mother should have to face the agony of their child growing up without them." Jarod said gently.
"I get it, Jarod, I really do. I am sorry for what the Centre did to you but I had nothing to do with it." Miss Parker replied just as gently.
"Maybe, but your father certainly did and your mother tried to rescue me. Maybe somewhere in your brain is a conversation you overheard or something you read that could lead me to my family." Jarod said passionately.
Miss Parker sighed, "I don't remember anything like that, Jarod."
"It's in there, Miss Parker. And when you do remember I will be waiting." Jarod told her.
Miss Parker sighed deeply and then felt a weariness wash over her. "Jarod," she started to say.
"I know, Miss Parker. It is late and you've had a lot to deal with today. I'll let you go, but you have to understand that this is not over." Jarod said.
Remembering that she said almost those exact words to Raines today, she shivered. "I know, Jarod. Until we can lead our own lives without fear of Centre, it will never be over." Miss Parker said into the phone quietly and then added, "Goodnight, Jarod."
"Goodnight, Miss Parker." Jarod said then hung up.
With that she placed the phone back on it's hook, turned her light off, and laid her head down on her pillow in exhaustion. God, she had a daughter. A perfect, little, precocious baby girl.
A few moments after she had that exact thought she sensed a movement outside her room. The doors slid open and the silhouette of Catie stood in the doorway. The child padded over to stand before Miss Parker. She crouched down so her nose was touching Miss Parker's and Miss Parker smiled.
"Mama, I can't get back to sleep. Can I sleep with you?" Catie asked timidly.
"Sure." Miss Parker scooted over to make room and felt the bed dip slightly as Catie climbed on. The little girl spooned into Miss Parker and Miss Parker felt Catie place her thumb in her mouth.
"Night-night Mama." Catie said tiredly and snuggled closer.
Miss Parker studied her daughter by moonlight as she began to succumb to sleep once more. Thick dark eyelashes lay on pale ivory skin and her mouth was a perfect little cupid's bow. She watched in fascination the girl's mouth move in sucking motion around her thumb and knew in her heart that this was what Catie had looked like as a baby. A tear slid down Miss Parker's cheek and she wiped it away. She laid her cheek down on Catie's head saying quietly, "Go to sleep, Baby. Mama's here." Then, remembering the words she had never gotten to say to her mother, she said as an afterthought, "I love you."
"Luv you, too, Mama." Catie whispered back and both mother and daughter fell asleep peacefully for the first time in a very long time.
