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Chapter or Story
Research Subject - by MMB
Chapter 9: Epilogue
There was a decided chill to the air that tells me that the days will soon begin to grow much shorter and colder. Outside my kitchen window, the leaves of the stately trees in the back yard had nearly all fallen now, and I no longer left the arcadia door open with only the screen blocking the bugs in order to enjoy the fresh air. I'd traded shorts and sleeveless shirts for trousers I hadn't worn in almost a year and more protective blouses and shirts. On the days when the wind blew harder and I had to go outside, I'd even taken to pulling Sydney's thick cardigan over my head. Somehow, it had managed to get put away in my drawers and not Sydney's when I moved in - a convenient error that now made us both smile in fond remembrance since I had no intention of ever REALLY returning it now.
Sarah's wardrobe over the past weeks had been changing almost constantly. She was a healthy tike with a healthy appetite and a penchant for growing out of her pretty newborn dresses almost before she got a chance to wear them all. Now I tended to make her cozy and warm in her next-size-up sweat suits and socks when I put her in her swing to rock while I worked on getting the huge roast ready to put in the oven later for our Sunday dinner. For his part, Sydney had called the day before and ordered a cord of wood delivered to help us keep warm this winter and had directed the men in stacking the wood against the side of the garage earlier this morning. We'd had the chimney cleaned the week before, and tonight would build our first fire of the year after supper.
This was going to be a special meal, because the entire family - plus a few extras - was scheduled to start arriving any moment and spend the entire day with us. Sydney had left two hours ago for Dover to pick up both Nicholas and Rene at the airport as their flights landed within an hour of each other. I was excited - I hadn't seen Rene since the baby was two weeks old and she'd finally returned to Rochester. We'd discussed it long and hard, but had finally bowed to her decision to at least finish her pre-med. studies before transferring to Johns Hopkins for her internship. Nicholas had managed one other visit after the baby came - landing on the Friday before Rene's plane left on Sunday - and I'm still not sure exactly whom it was that he'd come to see more that time, his new sister or Rene.
There was definitely something interesting brewing between those two - I knew that Nicholas had admitted to his dad on the phone that he'd made at least one flying trip to Minnesota since last we'd seen him. For her part, Rene was being very closed-mouthed about the whole thing, but both Sydney and I were certain that when she moved to Baltimore, the two of them would probably be seeing a whole lot more of each other - and neither of us minded that one bit.
Romance was definitely in the air with our family with more than just Rene and Nicholas. Much to Miss Parker's amusement, Broots had finally connected with one of the women he'd met online - and she'd turned out to be a treasure. Pamela was a sweet, pretty, funny, gentle soul who was intelligent enough to at least understand Broots and his obsession with computers and wise enough to have made a point of making friends with Debbie from the start. This would be the third time she'd been included in family activities at our home.
Then there was Jarod and Parker - a relationship that I think my husband celebrated with almost as much delight as he did our own. Parker admitted to me over tea one afternoon that Jarod had once more begun to call her at night - only now, rather than to prick her conscience or issue taunts, it was to talk about important things. I think he'd even shown up at her home a few times during the early evening before he'd wander over to ours to spend the night. Anyway, on those occasions when they were here together, the energy between them was obvious to anyone who cared to look. Little Jacob had become quite fond of his secret Uncle too, an emotion that was returned without reservation.
Last but not least, Joe was being included in a family gathering for the first time - and was bringing his newest love interest to dinner to meet us as well. I'd considered having him come over on a Saturday afternoon many times before, but then the unthinkable had happened. Joe had walked in on Jarod at our house two weeks ago completely by accident when he stopped back by the house on a Sunday morning to pick up something he'd forgotten a while back. But rather than force Jarod's return to the Centre, Joe had won his membership in the family when he shrugged and told me, very matter-of-factly that "what goes on over here is a different reality than one controlled by the Centre, as far as I'm concerned." When I had extended the invitation to dinner tonight, he'd asked very shyly if he could bring someone - to which Sydney had answered that he was welcome to bring anybody he liked, provided that it wasn't Mr. Raines.
It would be good to see Joe again. I hadn't realized how much I would miss not having him around during the daytime once Lyle and Willy were convicted of all the charges against them and sent to prison and Jake committed to a state institution for the criminally insane. Joe had been a stable and dependable part of my life for months - he'd been company for me during the long daytime hours when Sydney was at work. I wasn't exactly sure where we would be fitting everybody into the house with the addition of Joe and his companion, but that didn't seem to be very important. What was important was that this was a full family affair and everybody was coming - and that everybody meant Joe and his lady too.
Our lives had changed dramatically since Sarah's arrival. An investigation into alleged criminal activity at the Centre had been launched by the Delaware State Attorney General thanks to evidence of some of Lyle's other proclivities and Centre cover-up efforts inexplicably leaking out to the press. Mr. Raines had responded to the investigation of Centre complicity by stonewalling and implementing a policy of non-cooperation, which in turn had only called more public attention to the Centre and its activities and tendency to intimidate and obfuscate. Lately even the federal government was starting to sit up and pay attention when evidence of tax evasion by Mr. Raines, both corporate and personal, began to come to light in the same, inexplicable manner. Broots quietly reported to me one evening that a subpoena had been served for Mr. Raines' testimony at a hearing - and that the Chairman had since made himself scarce and been a no-show at the hearing. The computer tech said that there was a betting pool going on for just how much longer the Centre could keep its doors open to do business before the Triumvirate and its other many creditors began dismantling it or the government closed it down completely.
Thanks to good salaries for years and some financial planning, Sydney, Broots and Miss Parker were all well prepared for the possibility of losing their jobs - and none of them would go long without employment anyway, if it came to that. But I tended to worry about Joe and Sam. Short of the janitorial staff, sweepers tended to be at the lower end of the Centre pay scale, where even the best financial planning wouldn't accomplish much. I also seriously doubted that the kind of security jobs they'd be looking for would be easily forthcoming.
Still, this was a day of celebration, not a time for stewing. Sarah was three months old, and our freedom from the threat of intimidation from either the Centre or my ex-husband was a whole two weeks old. Even better, the two distant members of our family were headed home to celebrate with us. While not an official holiday, this was going to be the Green Extended Family Thanksgiving Day.
Jarod appeared first, tapping on the arcadia door glass for admittance, like always. "It's open," I called back, my hands momentarily full with the second one of two pies just out of the oven that needed to cool on the stove top for a while before they could be stored away.
"God, but it smells good in here already," he bubbled, bending over my shoulder to give me a peck on the cheek and sniffing at the pie in my hand appreciatively. "And it looks like your supervisor is in a good mood this morning," he said, crouching down in front of the swaying seat in which Sarah now enjoyed spending so much of her time. "Hello there, sweet-pea."
"Yes, well, I'm thinking we'll be needing to buy stock in teething analgesics by the time she's a year old to keep her IN that good a mood." I wiped at my brow with the sleeve of my blouse after I toed the oven door closed and deposited the pie next to its twin. I then headed back to the counter and hefted the pan with the marinating roast to slip it into the fridge where it would await baking.
"Nah," the Pretender quickly undid the plastic straps that held Sarah safely in the little seat. He lifted my daughter up into his arms and carried her over to stand next to me. "She knows that this is a special day - she's catching her mood from you and Sydney."
"Your latest Pretend was as a child psychologist, I take it?" I teased him with a big smile and watched his face curl into his playful smirk in response.
"That's beside the point. You're married to a psychiatrist, aren't you?" he reminded me with a pointed tone. "You mean he hasn't kept you informed about all these things?"
"I have news for you," I smirked back, watching Sarah let loose with another bubble of drool onto Jarod's shoulder, "Sydney's very good at analyzing everyone except his own family. He's too close to us to have any perspective. That's why he was so much better at helping you emotionally AFTER you escaped - before that, he was too close to you, even though wild horses couldn't have dragged an admission out of him at the time."
Jarod shot me a sharp and assessing look. "There are times, Cathy, that I think you would have made a damned fine psychiatrist yourself. Your insights are totally wasted in a chemistry lab."
"Nah. I just don't let my closeness blind me to what's going on with the people around me," I told him and held my arms out for my daughter. "Take you and Sarah, for example. YOU forgot to put a towel over your shoulder, my friend. Now you have been drool-slimed. Go get yourself a towel to soak up the worst of it before it soaks into you."
"Cathy?" Miss Parker called from the front door.
"In here," I called back with a smirk, "with the slimed one." I heard little footsteps running through the house toward me. "Jakie!"
"Aunt Cathy! Me see Sarah, please?" the little boy begged after he hugged my pant leg. "Please?" I bent down and then crouched so that I could hold Sarah where Jacob could see her right at eye level.
"'The slimed one?'" I heard Miss Parker repeat from just outside the kitchen doorway, followed by a chuckle when she caught sight of the tall, dark-haired man wiping at his shoulder with a hand-towel. "Oh, by the way, Jarod, we should probably warn you that Sarah's teething with a vengeance," she told him with a wide grin.
"I hadn't noticed," Jarod said, draping the towel properly over his shoulder by this time. "You need to patent her, Cathy. She's a Weapon of Mass Saturation."
"Hi Sarah," Jacob said, giving the baby his finger to hang onto - something that never failed to make him feel grown-up and protective. Sarah bubbled again at her little friend and then stuck her fist in her mouth and tried to gnaw on it.
"Why don't you go get her chew ring from the floor and wash it off in the sink before you give it back to her," I suggested, straightening up again when the little boy trotted off to do as I asked.
"Here, I'll take her back," Jarod put out his hands again, "I'm wearing body armor now." He watched Jakie at the sink after he had Sarah back up on his shoulder. "Bring it into the living room when you're done, Sport. You and I can keep Sarah company while her mom and your sister slave over a hot stove."
Miss Parker groaned and slugged him lightly on the forearm. "Parkers don't “slave” over anything, Franken-boy."
"Here, Sarah, time to slime Auntie," Jarod bent toward Miss Parker with Sarah.
She just kissed the baby on the head as he brought her close and then backed up, shaking her head. "Don't you give Jakie any ideas," she warned her friend. "You two go on and play nice!" She cast me a frustrated look after Jarod led Jacob from the kitchen. "I honestly don't know which one is the less mature - Jarod or Sarah."
I just chuckled at her and turned away, heading for the refrigerator and the vegetables that still needed preparing. "'Methinks the lady doth protest too much,'" I quoted back at her. "I think you two are very cute together, the way you spar..."
She smiled that very quiet smile at me that told me that I'd pegged her right on and immediately dropped the subject. "So... what's next to do?"
"You have your choice..."
"Cathy? Sydney?" Broots called from the front door as he always did, then: "Oh, hi Jarod, Jakie. I see you two have babysitting duties today."
"Uncle Broots!" squealed an ecstatic child's voice. "Up!"
"Hi there," Debbie greeted us with her hands full of a lidded casserole dish, followed by Pamela with twin foil-wrapped loaves of bread. Obviously the females with Broots had figured out where the majority of the action would be taking place today without needing to call for directions. "Do you still have room in your fridge for all this stuff?" Debbie asked.
"How many of us will be here today?" Parker asked as I opened the fridge door and began shifting things around to make room.
"I did the math in my head this morning - we will be twelve at the table, not counting Sarah." I took the casserole and slid it carefully into the open place I'd made for it and then turned to take the bread from Pam.
"Will twelve people even fit at your table, Cathy?" Pam asked, her tone shocked. The redhead had slipped over to the door to the dining room and was looking at a table that, as it sat now, could maybe handle six people. Chairs for two more sat against the wall.
I shook my head. "That thing has two leaves, and it can stretch to fit eight or nine, but not many more. We may have to draw straws for who gets to sit at the card table - but a more important question may end up being do I have twelve CHAIRS?"
The garage door opened at that moment. "Mom!" Rene's call echoed into the already well populated room. I closed the refrigerator quickly and turned to find myself enveloped in my older daughter's arms.
"Rene! You're a sight for sore eyes."
Nicholas came up behind her and put an arm around my back and hugged us both. "Hi Cathy."
I kissed first one cheek and then another. "Where's Sydney?"
"I think Dad's digging in the garage for something," Nicholas said. "I figure I'll take the luggage upstairs to the office and then head back to help him out." He stepped back and then looked over toward the counter. "Hi Parker, Deb. Who's our new friend?"
"Good to see you, Nicholas," Parker smiled at her old friend's son.
"This is Pam," Deb claimed a fond hug for herself. "My Dad's friend."
Finally Rene let me go so that I could take care of the amenities. "Pam Dalley, this is my husband's son Nicholas, and my other daughter, Rene." Each raised his or her hand as their names were cited.
"Nice to meet you," Pam mumbled shyly, watching Rene then walk over calmly and claim a hug from Parker that bespoke a close relationship between her and the intimidating woman who was Broots' boss.
Rene looked and found the empty swing by the arcadia door. "Where's Sarah?"
"In the living room with the guys. She's teething and sliming everybody lately," I warned her.
"Jarod! What did you do with my sister?" Rene yelled and headed toward the front of the house. Nicholas simply shook his head indulgently and bent to retrieve Rene's suitcase from where she'd left it on the floor.
"Broots, Jakie and I are holding her for ransom - whatcha gonna do about it?" was the saucy retort from the other end of the house.
"Aunt Rene! Is Uncle Nicholas here?"
Pam sidled up to me. "I don't think I've ever seen it get this rowdy around here," she commented nervously.
"Well," I started.
"You've had it easy up until now," Parker appended with a smile. "But today the WHOLE gang will be here, and things will be hopping for sure. You'll get used to it after a while, trust me."
"Parker, don't scare the poor girl," I chided Miss Parker with a grin that took the edge from the words.
"Actually, it isn't Pam I'm worried about," she responded, dumping the better part of the bag of potatoes into the sink. "It's Joe's girl - she's not involved in the Centre at all, and doesn't know any of us."
"I'm not Centre-involved either, remember?" Pam reminded her, digging through my utensil drawer for a second peeler. "Trust me, it takes a while for someone new to start to feel comfortable or like they belong here. You all are SO close..."
"You'll get there," Debbie reassured her father's friend protectively.
I was about to head for the fridge again to haul out the vegetables for salad when strong arms snaked around me from the back - and suddenly I had a very tall, very warm somebody nibbling at my neck. "I found the card table," Sydney whispered in my ear in triumph and then chuckled at first my start of surprise which was followed by a sniff of derision.
"You and your card table. I'm still more worried about chairs," I reminded him, leaning back a bit. "There's salad makings in the crisper drawer," I directed Debbie with a waving finger when it became obviously that my husband had no intention of letting me go yet. She grinned at us and opened the appliance door in my stead. "Having a table is all fine and well, unless we don't have chairs in which to sit AT the table, my love..."
"Oh, ye of little faith," he rumbled into my ear, pulling me tighter against him. "I gave Joe some money when I saw him on Friday and told him to pick up four metal folding chairs for me and bring them with him today." The doorbell chose that moment to echo through the house, with Broots' welcoming Joe resounding only a few moments later. "Chairs which are arriving as we speak, in fact."
I squirmed out of his arms and then grabbed a hand. "We can at least be there to greet his lady friend when she comes through our door the first time," I explained as I began pulling at him. I could see the top of Joe's dark head towering over even Jarod. "Joe!"
"Cathy!" My sweeper pushed through the gathering crowd to get to my husband and me dragging a rather confused looking dark-haired girl behind him. Then finally he was standing in front of me and dropping a kiss onto my cheek. "Cathy, Dr. Sydney, I'd like you to meet Carol."
I put out my hand to the overwhelmed looking girl. "Nice to meet you, Carol," I told her and heard my husband rumble his greetings as well. "Don't let the number of people here get to you."
But Joe was excited, more so than I'd seen in a long time. "Have you been listening to the news?" he interrupted my attempt to put our newcomer at ease.
"No..." I glanced up at Sydney, who merely looked back down at me and shook his head. "I've been busy in the kitchen, and Sydney's been to Dover and back for Rene and Nicholas. Why? What's going on?"
"The government has shut down the Centre!"
Those seven words killed all the extra conversation that had been going on in the house. I heard Miss Parker and Debbie come forward from the kitchen and Broots ceased his bouncing with Jacob on his shoulders. But Jarod's response spoke for us all when he rose from his easy chair, Sarah still bubbling happily into his shoulder, and demanded, "What did you say again?"
"I've got to go!" Sydney squeezed my shoulders from behind and then let go to turn an anguished face to Miss Parker. "I've got to get to the Centre. Dear God... Angelo..."
"Oh shit, Syd..." she hissed and immediately handed her potato peeler to Debbie. "Take over for me, kid. I gotta go with Sydney."
"Wait. I'm coming too." Jarod came toward me and handed me Sarah and the protective towel from his shoulder.
"What the..." I stared after the three of them, holding Sarah tightly. Not a one of them was paying me the slightest attention.
"I'm driving," Miss Parker announced in a tone that obviously wasn't allowing any argument from anybody, leading the trio toward the front door and her Boxster beyond.
"Just get us there in one piece," Jarod said tightly, a hand at Sydney's shoulder letting the older man through the door first.
"Mom?" Rene put her hand on my shoulder. "What's going on here?"
"Angelo's still trapped there," Broots explained in a shocked voice. "He's..." He looked to Joe as if the sweeper could help him explain.
"He's one of Dr. Sydney's special patients," Joe stated quietly. "He's lived at the Centre all his life, I think - mostly hides in the ventilation ducts..."
"He's one of Mr. Raines' former patients - one that Raines never did quite destroy." Broots looked back at me. "For the most part, he's harmless. He's an empath. He and Jarod and Miss Parker kinda grew up together."
"What do you mean, a patient that Mr. Raines never did quite destroy?" Pam frowned at him.
"You don't know the Centre and what it's capable of," he replied, moving next to her and slipping an arm around her shoulders. "I hope you never do now."
Carol looked up into the kind face of her escort. "You work there too?" she asked.
"Not anymore," Joe replied with a tone of almost satisfaction in his voice. "None of us work there anymore, as a matter of fact."
"Cat." Though quiet, Sydney's voice carried straight to me from the front door, through which his head was sticking.
I frowned - I'd thought he'd be half-way to the Centre by now, with Parker's lead foot getting them there all the faster - and pushed past Joe and Carol to get to him. "I thought you were on your way..."
"We didn't need to." Sydney's dark honey eyes were filled with concern. "He found us. He was walking down the sidewalk toward the house as we were pulling out of the driveway."
"He was what??" I tried to look past him to outside. "Where is he then?"
Sydney's hands came up to quiet me. "He's exploring the front yard with Jarod and Parker at the moment. It's just..." He paused. "I'm just not entirely sure how he'll react to such a large group of people he doesn't know."
"Sydney..." It was a soft voice, very hesitant and shy-sounding.
My husband turned to look behind him, and in so doing allowed me to see past him out the door to where a man with slightly unkempt red hair and child-like crystal blue eyes was standing at the edge of the porch. He caught sight of me holding Sarah, and his face crinkled into a wide smile of pure delight. He walked forward slowly past Sydney until he could extend a finger, which Sarah immediately grabbed for with a happy gurgle. The strange man gazed up at my husband in something approaching surprise and awe. "Sydney... Daddy?" His blue eyes settled on me, and I felt as if they could see all the way to the bottom of my soul. "Mommy loves Sydney?"
"This is Angelo," Sydney explained to me simply. "Angelo, this is Cathy, my wife - and my daughter Sarah."
"Sorry, Syd," Miss Parker came up behind Angelo with a chagrined look on her face. "He was perfectly happy checking out the daisies until you headed for the front door."
"It's OK," I told her, my eyes still caught in that piercing yet innocent gaze. "You came just in time, Angelo. We were having a family dinner. Everybody else is inside."
Angelo broke his hypnotic gaze and looked over his shoulder at Sydney again. "Safe?"
"Yes, Angelo. You're safe here." Now it was Jarod moving past Parker to put and companionable hand on Angelo's shoulder. "Everyone inside is family here."
"Everyone free now. Even Angelo free now." Angelo's statements were like those of an autistic child, but they made perfect sense to me. But then those beautiful blue eyes filled with fear, and he gazed at his three friends in alarm. "But where Angelo go now?"
I could see that the question had caught Jarod, Parker and Sydney by surprise, but what surprised me more was that they hadn't thought through the situation further than they already had.
When I thought about it later, I couldn't be sure what made me do it. During the time I'd been under his study, I'd felt a sudden urge to protect this odd little child-man - and I suppose I simply acted on that drive. Sydney hadn't told me about this other child of the Centre. But even as I felt very close to Jarod and Parker, I knew that there was no way that I wouldn't quickly feel as fond of this man who obviously needed reassurance at the moment. And if, as Joe said, the government had closed down the Centre for good, Angelo was now homeless.
"Right here," I replied. I looked up into Sydney's wondering eyes. "Right?"
"You're sure?" he asked me carefully. "You don't have to..."
"I know I don't." I extended my free hand to the odd little man. "I don't know where we're going to put you for the time being," I told him when he carefully and deliberately put his hand in mine, "but Angelo doesn't need to go anywhere. Angelo has come home at last."
~~~~~~~~
It was late when I finally slipped between the covers of our bed and waited patiently for Sydney to do the same. I was tired - more tired than I'd been in a very long time - but it was a good feeling. Our celebration had turned into a real family event with the addition of the latest and final Centre refugee. Angelo's uneasiness around so many people that he didn't know eased the moment that he discovered the corner of the living room where Jakie kept his stash of toy cars and trucks. As a matter of fact, he kept Jakie nicely occupied in occasionally boisterous play with those vehicles for most of the rest of the afternoon, much to Sydney's and Parker's relief.
Angelo's presence had also brought home another reality - with the Centre's closing, little Jacob had also lost his home. Miss Parker found herself faced with the prospect of becoming Jakie's full-time caretaker - and shouldered the responsibility with nothing but a confident tip of the chin and a shrug. I saw Jarod's eyes warm almost immediately, and I had a sneaky hunch that he would be hanging even closer to Miss Parker's as time went on. Jacob could use a positive male role model, and I think Jarod was thinking that he wouldn't mind filling that role, considering that having a closer relationship with Miss Parker would be included. I suddenly found myself speculating on how long it would be before we heard wedding bells coming from that quarter.
Jarod and Joe took a quick trip to a Dover home improvement store to pick up the extra chair we'd need to seat everybody at the tables. A bit of creative seating managed ten around the big table, with Angelo, Deb and Jakie holding forth contentedly at the card table. Dinner conversation eventually centered on what each of the former Centre employees intended to do with their time now that their jobs were apparently finished. But the discussion took a decidedly creative turn when Broots had looked around the table and stated with some confidence, "You know, I bet we could put together a pretty lucrative security business with everybody's know-how and talent."
"You're kidding," Jarod had told him around a mouth still half-full of roast.
"Actually," Broots had washed his roast down with ice water, "I'm serious. Just think of the expertise we have on hand just at this table. You and Miss Parker probably know more about designing and implementing security systems and procedures than most in the business for years. Me, I've designed security for corporate computer systems for a living for - how long now? And Joe - heck, both he and Sam would make good trainers for bodyguards and security personnel. Syd here could do the interviews and work up psychological profiles on potential employees..."
Sydney and I looked at each other in astonishment. "You know," my husband had admitted, putting down his fork, "Broots may be onto something."
By the time that the Broots', Joe and Carol, and Jarod and Parker were ready to head off for home, the foundation for a completely new business venture that involved all of them - and Sam, if he wanted in - had been hammered out. Those of us not directly involved had done our best to point out fallacies and weak points in the suggestions and, as time went on, cleared the table around the principles involved. I divided the leftovers between four houses while Pam and Carol rinsed and packed the dishwasher and washed pots and pans that wouldn't fit. Deb was given the night off, and she found herself drawn into the play town that Jakie and Angelo had dreamed up. Rene and Nicholas, true to form, headed for the back yard and some privacy. And when Miss Parker packed up Jakie to leave, I watched Jarod talk to her out by her car - and then climb into the car beside her. I smiled to myself and pulled the blinds.
"Happy?" Sydney asked me, climbing into bed and pulling me into his arms like usual.
"Mmmmm..." I hummed at him, snuggling down against his chest. "I think we have quite an interesting if unorthodox family. Yours, mine, ours - and theirs."
He kissed the top of my head. "I never, in a million years, ever dreamed that my life would be so full as it is right now. You've brought me an embarrassment of riches, Cat. I love you so much..."
As if he hadn't done the same for me a thousand times over. We'd both started with so little, and just look at us now! "I love you too." I replied. And as his lips found mine and as his hands began to explore and reach for the hem of my nightgown, I realized that was all that really mattered anyway.
FIN.
Chapter 9: Epilogue
There was a decided chill to the air that tells me that the days will soon begin to grow much shorter and colder. Outside my kitchen window, the leaves of the stately trees in the back yard had nearly all fallen now, and I no longer left the arcadia door open with only the screen blocking the bugs in order to enjoy the fresh air. I'd traded shorts and sleeveless shirts for trousers I hadn't worn in almost a year and more protective blouses and shirts. On the days when the wind blew harder and I had to go outside, I'd even taken to pulling Sydney's thick cardigan over my head. Somehow, it had managed to get put away in my drawers and not Sydney's when I moved in - a convenient error that now made us both smile in fond remembrance since I had no intention of ever REALLY returning it now.
Sarah's wardrobe over the past weeks had been changing almost constantly. She was a healthy tike with a healthy appetite and a penchant for growing out of her pretty newborn dresses almost before she got a chance to wear them all. Now I tended to make her cozy and warm in her next-size-up sweat suits and socks when I put her in her swing to rock while I worked on getting the huge roast ready to put in the oven later for our Sunday dinner. For his part, Sydney had called the day before and ordered a cord of wood delivered to help us keep warm this winter and had directed the men in stacking the wood against the side of the garage earlier this morning. We'd had the chimney cleaned the week before, and tonight would build our first fire of the year after supper.
This was going to be a special meal, because the entire family - plus a few extras - was scheduled to start arriving any moment and spend the entire day with us. Sydney had left two hours ago for Dover to pick up both Nicholas and Rene at the airport as their flights landed within an hour of each other. I was excited - I hadn't seen Rene since the baby was two weeks old and she'd finally returned to Rochester. We'd discussed it long and hard, but had finally bowed to her decision to at least finish her pre-med. studies before transferring to Johns Hopkins for her internship. Nicholas had managed one other visit after the baby came - landing on the Friday before Rene's plane left on Sunday - and I'm still not sure exactly whom it was that he'd come to see more that time, his new sister or Rene.
There was definitely something interesting brewing between those two - I knew that Nicholas had admitted to his dad on the phone that he'd made at least one flying trip to Minnesota since last we'd seen him. For her part, Rene was being very closed-mouthed about the whole thing, but both Sydney and I were certain that when she moved to Baltimore, the two of them would probably be seeing a whole lot more of each other - and neither of us minded that one bit.
Romance was definitely in the air with our family with more than just Rene and Nicholas. Much to Miss Parker's amusement, Broots had finally connected with one of the women he'd met online - and she'd turned out to be a treasure. Pamela was a sweet, pretty, funny, gentle soul who was intelligent enough to at least understand Broots and his obsession with computers and wise enough to have made a point of making friends with Debbie from the start. This would be the third time she'd been included in family activities at our home.
Then there was Jarod and Parker - a relationship that I think my husband celebrated with almost as much delight as he did our own. Parker admitted to me over tea one afternoon that Jarod had once more begun to call her at night - only now, rather than to prick her conscience or issue taunts, it was to talk about important things. I think he'd even shown up at her home a few times during the early evening before he'd wander over to ours to spend the night. Anyway, on those occasions when they were here together, the energy between them was obvious to anyone who cared to look. Little Jacob had become quite fond of his secret Uncle too, an emotion that was returned without reservation.
Last but not least, Joe was being included in a family gathering for the first time - and was bringing his newest love interest to dinner to meet us as well. I'd considered having him come over on a Saturday afternoon many times before, but then the unthinkable had happened. Joe had walked in on Jarod at our house two weeks ago completely by accident when he stopped back by the house on a Sunday morning to pick up something he'd forgotten a while back. But rather than force Jarod's return to the Centre, Joe had won his membership in the family when he shrugged and told me, very matter-of-factly that "what goes on over here is a different reality than one controlled by the Centre, as far as I'm concerned." When I had extended the invitation to dinner tonight, he'd asked very shyly if he could bring someone - to which Sydney had answered that he was welcome to bring anybody he liked, provided that it wasn't Mr. Raines.
It would be good to see Joe again. I hadn't realized how much I would miss not having him around during the daytime once Lyle and Willy were convicted of all the charges against them and sent to prison and Jake committed to a state institution for the criminally insane. Joe had been a stable and dependable part of my life for months - he'd been company for me during the long daytime hours when Sydney was at work. I wasn't exactly sure where we would be fitting everybody into the house with the addition of Joe and his companion, but that didn't seem to be very important. What was important was that this was a full family affair and everybody was coming - and that everybody meant Joe and his lady too.
Our lives had changed dramatically since Sarah's arrival. An investigation into alleged criminal activity at the Centre had been launched by the Delaware State Attorney General thanks to evidence of some of Lyle's other proclivities and Centre cover-up efforts inexplicably leaking out to the press. Mr. Raines had responded to the investigation of Centre complicity by stonewalling and implementing a policy of non-cooperation, which in turn had only called more public attention to the Centre and its activities and tendency to intimidate and obfuscate. Lately even the federal government was starting to sit up and pay attention when evidence of tax evasion by Mr. Raines, both corporate and personal, began to come to light in the same, inexplicable manner. Broots quietly reported to me one evening that a subpoena had been served for Mr. Raines' testimony at a hearing - and that the Chairman had since made himself scarce and been a no-show at the hearing. The computer tech said that there was a betting pool going on for just how much longer the Centre could keep its doors open to do business before the Triumvirate and its other many creditors began dismantling it or the government closed it down completely.
Thanks to good salaries for years and some financial planning, Sydney, Broots and Miss Parker were all well prepared for the possibility of losing their jobs - and none of them would go long without employment anyway, if it came to that. But I tended to worry about Joe and Sam. Short of the janitorial staff, sweepers tended to be at the lower end of the Centre pay scale, where even the best financial planning wouldn't accomplish much. I also seriously doubted that the kind of security jobs they'd be looking for would be easily forthcoming.
Still, this was a day of celebration, not a time for stewing. Sarah was three months old, and our freedom from the threat of intimidation from either the Centre or my ex-husband was a whole two weeks old. Even better, the two distant members of our family were headed home to celebrate with us. While not an official holiday, this was going to be the Green Extended Family Thanksgiving Day.
Jarod appeared first, tapping on the arcadia door glass for admittance, like always. "It's open," I called back, my hands momentarily full with the second one of two pies just out of the oven that needed to cool on the stove top for a while before they could be stored away.
"God, but it smells good in here already," he bubbled, bending over my shoulder to give me a peck on the cheek and sniffing at the pie in my hand appreciatively. "And it looks like your supervisor is in a good mood this morning," he said, crouching down in front of the swaying seat in which Sarah now enjoyed spending so much of her time. "Hello there, sweet-pea."
"Yes, well, I'm thinking we'll be needing to buy stock in teething analgesics by the time she's a year old to keep her IN that good a mood." I wiped at my brow with the sleeve of my blouse after I toed the oven door closed and deposited the pie next to its twin. I then headed back to the counter and hefted the pan with the marinating roast to slip it into the fridge where it would await baking.
"Nah," the Pretender quickly undid the plastic straps that held Sarah safely in the little seat. He lifted my daughter up into his arms and carried her over to stand next to me. "She knows that this is a special day - she's catching her mood from you and Sydney."
"Your latest Pretend was as a child psychologist, I take it?" I teased him with a big smile and watched his face curl into his playful smirk in response.
"That's beside the point. You're married to a psychiatrist, aren't you?" he reminded me with a pointed tone. "You mean he hasn't kept you informed about all these things?"
"I have news for you," I smirked back, watching Sarah let loose with another bubble of drool onto Jarod's shoulder, "Sydney's very good at analyzing everyone except his own family. He's too close to us to have any perspective. That's why he was so much better at helping you emotionally AFTER you escaped - before that, he was too close to you, even though wild horses couldn't have dragged an admission out of him at the time."
Jarod shot me a sharp and assessing look. "There are times, Cathy, that I think you would have made a damned fine psychiatrist yourself. Your insights are totally wasted in a chemistry lab."
"Nah. I just don't let my closeness blind me to what's going on with the people around me," I told him and held my arms out for my daughter. "Take you and Sarah, for example. YOU forgot to put a towel over your shoulder, my friend. Now you have been drool-slimed. Go get yourself a towel to soak up the worst of it before it soaks into you."
"Cathy?" Miss Parker called from the front door.
"In here," I called back with a smirk, "with the slimed one." I heard little footsteps running through the house toward me. "Jakie!"
"Aunt Cathy! Me see Sarah, please?" the little boy begged after he hugged my pant leg. "Please?" I bent down and then crouched so that I could hold Sarah where Jacob could see her right at eye level.
"'The slimed one?'" I heard Miss Parker repeat from just outside the kitchen doorway, followed by a chuckle when she caught sight of the tall, dark-haired man wiping at his shoulder with a hand-towel. "Oh, by the way, Jarod, we should probably warn you that Sarah's teething with a vengeance," she told him with a wide grin.
"I hadn't noticed," Jarod said, draping the towel properly over his shoulder by this time. "You need to patent her, Cathy. She's a Weapon of Mass Saturation."
"Hi Sarah," Jacob said, giving the baby his finger to hang onto - something that never failed to make him feel grown-up and protective. Sarah bubbled again at her little friend and then stuck her fist in her mouth and tried to gnaw on it.
"Why don't you go get her chew ring from the floor and wash it off in the sink before you give it back to her," I suggested, straightening up again when the little boy trotted off to do as I asked.
"Here, I'll take her back," Jarod put out his hands again, "I'm wearing body armor now." He watched Jakie at the sink after he had Sarah back up on his shoulder. "Bring it into the living room when you're done, Sport. You and I can keep Sarah company while her mom and your sister slave over a hot stove."
Miss Parker groaned and slugged him lightly on the forearm. "Parkers don't “slave” over anything, Franken-boy."
"Here, Sarah, time to slime Auntie," Jarod bent toward Miss Parker with Sarah.
She just kissed the baby on the head as he brought her close and then backed up, shaking her head. "Don't you give Jakie any ideas," she warned her friend. "You two go on and play nice!" She cast me a frustrated look after Jarod led Jacob from the kitchen. "I honestly don't know which one is the less mature - Jarod or Sarah."
I just chuckled at her and turned away, heading for the refrigerator and the vegetables that still needed preparing. "'Methinks the lady doth protest too much,'" I quoted back at her. "I think you two are very cute together, the way you spar..."
She smiled that very quiet smile at me that told me that I'd pegged her right on and immediately dropped the subject. "So... what's next to do?"
"You have your choice..."
"Cathy? Sydney?" Broots called from the front door as he always did, then: "Oh, hi Jarod, Jakie. I see you two have babysitting duties today."
"Uncle Broots!" squealed an ecstatic child's voice. "Up!"
"Hi there," Debbie greeted us with her hands full of a lidded casserole dish, followed by Pamela with twin foil-wrapped loaves of bread. Obviously the females with Broots had figured out where the majority of the action would be taking place today without needing to call for directions. "Do you still have room in your fridge for all this stuff?" Debbie asked.
"How many of us will be here today?" Parker asked as I opened the fridge door and began shifting things around to make room.
"I did the math in my head this morning - we will be twelve at the table, not counting Sarah." I took the casserole and slid it carefully into the open place I'd made for it and then turned to take the bread from Pam.
"Will twelve people even fit at your table, Cathy?" Pam asked, her tone shocked. The redhead had slipped over to the door to the dining room and was looking at a table that, as it sat now, could maybe handle six people. Chairs for two more sat against the wall.
I shook my head. "That thing has two leaves, and it can stretch to fit eight or nine, but not many more. We may have to draw straws for who gets to sit at the card table - but a more important question may end up being do I have twelve CHAIRS?"
The garage door opened at that moment. "Mom!" Rene's call echoed into the already well populated room. I closed the refrigerator quickly and turned to find myself enveloped in my older daughter's arms.
"Rene! You're a sight for sore eyes."
Nicholas came up behind her and put an arm around my back and hugged us both. "Hi Cathy."
I kissed first one cheek and then another. "Where's Sydney?"
"I think Dad's digging in the garage for something," Nicholas said. "I figure I'll take the luggage upstairs to the office and then head back to help him out." He stepped back and then looked over toward the counter. "Hi Parker, Deb. Who's our new friend?"
"Good to see you, Nicholas," Parker smiled at her old friend's son.
"This is Pam," Deb claimed a fond hug for herself. "My Dad's friend."
Finally Rene let me go so that I could take care of the amenities. "Pam Dalley, this is my husband's son Nicholas, and my other daughter, Rene." Each raised his or her hand as their names were cited.
"Nice to meet you," Pam mumbled shyly, watching Rene then walk over calmly and claim a hug from Parker that bespoke a close relationship between her and the intimidating woman who was Broots' boss.
Rene looked and found the empty swing by the arcadia door. "Where's Sarah?"
"In the living room with the guys. She's teething and sliming everybody lately," I warned her.
"Jarod! What did you do with my sister?" Rene yelled and headed toward the front of the house. Nicholas simply shook his head indulgently and bent to retrieve Rene's suitcase from where she'd left it on the floor.
"Broots, Jakie and I are holding her for ransom - whatcha gonna do about it?" was the saucy retort from the other end of the house.
"Aunt Rene! Is Uncle Nicholas here?"
Pam sidled up to me. "I don't think I've ever seen it get this rowdy around here," she commented nervously.
"Well," I started.
"You've had it easy up until now," Parker appended with a smile. "But today the WHOLE gang will be here, and things will be hopping for sure. You'll get used to it after a while, trust me."
"Parker, don't scare the poor girl," I chided Miss Parker with a grin that took the edge from the words.
"Actually, it isn't Pam I'm worried about," she responded, dumping the better part of the bag of potatoes into the sink. "It's Joe's girl - she's not involved in the Centre at all, and doesn't know any of us."
"I'm not Centre-involved either, remember?" Pam reminded her, digging through my utensil drawer for a second peeler. "Trust me, it takes a while for someone new to start to feel comfortable or like they belong here. You all are SO close..."
"You'll get there," Debbie reassured her father's friend protectively.
I was about to head for the fridge again to haul out the vegetables for salad when strong arms snaked around me from the back - and suddenly I had a very tall, very warm somebody nibbling at my neck. "I found the card table," Sydney whispered in my ear in triumph and then chuckled at first my start of surprise which was followed by a sniff of derision.
"You and your card table. I'm still more worried about chairs," I reminded him, leaning back a bit. "There's salad makings in the crisper drawer," I directed Debbie with a waving finger when it became obviously that my husband had no intention of letting me go yet. She grinned at us and opened the appliance door in my stead. "Having a table is all fine and well, unless we don't have chairs in which to sit AT the table, my love..."
"Oh, ye of little faith," he rumbled into my ear, pulling me tighter against him. "I gave Joe some money when I saw him on Friday and told him to pick up four metal folding chairs for me and bring them with him today." The doorbell chose that moment to echo through the house, with Broots' welcoming Joe resounding only a few moments later. "Chairs which are arriving as we speak, in fact."
I squirmed out of his arms and then grabbed a hand. "We can at least be there to greet his lady friend when she comes through our door the first time," I explained as I began pulling at him. I could see the top of Joe's dark head towering over even Jarod. "Joe!"
"Cathy!" My sweeper pushed through the gathering crowd to get to my husband and me dragging a rather confused looking dark-haired girl behind him. Then finally he was standing in front of me and dropping a kiss onto my cheek. "Cathy, Dr. Sydney, I'd like you to meet Carol."
I put out my hand to the overwhelmed looking girl. "Nice to meet you, Carol," I told her and heard my husband rumble his greetings as well. "Don't let the number of people here get to you."
But Joe was excited, more so than I'd seen in a long time. "Have you been listening to the news?" he interrupted my attempt to put our newcomer at ease.
"No..." I glanced up at Sydney, who merely looked back down at me and shook his head. "I've been busy in the kitchen, and Sydney's been to Dover and back for Rene and Nicholas. Why? What's going on?"
"The government has shut down the Centre!"
Those seven words killed all the extra conversation that had been going on in the house. I heard Miss Parker and Debbie come forward from the kitchen and Broots ceased his bouncing with Jacob on his shoulders. But Jarod's response spoke for us all when he rose from his easy chair, Sarah still bubbling happily into his shoulder, and demanded, "What did you say again?"
"I've got to go!" Sydney squeezed my shoulders from behind and then let go to turn an anguished face to Miss Parker. "I've got to get to the Centre. Dear God... Angelo..."
"Oh shit, Syd..." she hissed and immediately handed her potato peeler to Debbie. "Take over for me, kid. I gotta go with Sydney."
"Wait. I'm coming too." Jarod came toward me and handed me Sarah and the protective towel from his shoulder.
"What the..." I stared after the three of them, holding Sarah tightly. Not a one of them was paying me the slightest attention.
"I'm driving," Miss Parker announced in a tone that obviously wasn't allowing any argument from anybody, leading the trio toward the front door and her Boxster beyond.
"Just get us there in one piece," Jarod said tightly, a hand at Sydney's shoulder letting the older man through the door first.
"Mom?" Rene put her hand on my shoulder. "What's going on here?"
"Angelo's still trapped there," Broots explained in a shocked voice. "He's..." He looked to Joe as if the sweeper could help him explain.
"He's one of Dr. Sydney's special patients," Joe stated quietly. "He's lived at the Centre all his life, I think - mostly hides in the ventilation ducts..."
"He's one of Mr. Raines' former patients - one that Raines never did quite destroy." Broots looked back at me. "For the most part, he's harmless. He's an empath. He and Jarod and Miss Parker kinda grew up together."
"What do you mean, a patient that Mr. Raines never did quite destroy?" Pam frowned at him.
"You don't know the Centre and what it's capable of," he replied, moving next to her and slipping an arm around her shoulders. "I hope you never do now."
Carol looked up into the kind face of her escort. "You work there too?" she asked.
"Not anymore," Joe replied with a tone of almost satisfaction in his voice. "None of us work there anymore, as a matter of fact."
"Cat." Though quiet, Sydney's voice carried straight to me from the front door, through which his head was sticking.
I frowned - I'd thought he'd be half-way to the Centre by now, with Parker's lead foot getting them there all the faster - and pushed past Joe and Carol to get to him. "I thought you were on your way..."
"We didn't need to." Sydney's dark honey eyes were filled with concern. "He found us. He was walking down the sidewalk toward the house as we were pulling out of the driveway."
"He was what??" I tried to look past him to outside. "Where is he then?"
Sydney's hands came up to quiet me. "He's exploring the front yard with Jarod and Parker at the moment. It's just..." He paused. "I'm just not entirely sure how he'll react to such a large group of people he doesn't know."
"Sydney..." It was a soft voice, very hesitant and shy-sounding.
My husband turned to look behind him, and in so doing allowed me to see past him out the door to where a man with slightly unkempt red hair and child-like crystal blue eyes was standing at the edge of the porch. He caught sight of me holding Sarah, and his face crinkled into a wide smile of pure delight. He walked forward slowly past Sydney until he could extend a finger, which Sarah immediately grabbed for with a happy gurgle. The strange man gazed up at my husband in something approaching surprise and awe. "Sydney... Daddy?" His blue eyes settled on me, and I felt as if they could see all the way to the bottom of my soul. "Mommy loves Sydney?"
"This is Angelo," Sydney explained to me simply. "Angelo, this is Cathy, my wife - and my daughter Sarah."
"Sorry, Syd," Miss Parker came up behind Angelo with a chagrined look on her face. "He was perfectly happy checking out the daisies until you headed for the front door."
"It's OK," I told her, my eyes still caught in that piercing yet innocent gaze. "You came just in time, Angelo. We were having a family dinner. Everybody else is inside."
Angelo broke his hypnotic gaze and looked over his shoulder at Sydney again. "Safe?"
"Yes, Angelo. You're safe here." Now it was Jarod moving past Parker to put and companionable hand on Angelo's shoulder. "Everyone inside is family here."
"Everyone free now. Even Angelo free now." Angelo's statements were like those of an autistic child, but they made perfect sense to me. But then those beautiful blue eyes filled with fear, and he gazed at his three friends in alarm. "But where Angelo go now?"
I could see that the question had caught Jarod, Parker and Sydney by surprise, but what surprised me more was that they hadn't thought through the situation further than they already had.
When I thought about it later, I couldn't be sure what made me do it. During the time I'd been under his study, I'd felt a sudden urge to protect this odd little child-man - and I suppose I simply acted on that drive. Sydney hadn't told me about this other child of the Centre. But even as I felt very close to Jarod and Parker, I knew that there was no way that I wouldn't quickly feel as fond of this man who obviously needed reassurance at the moment. And if, as Joe said, the government had closed down the Centre for good, Angelo was now homeless.
"Right here," I replied. I looked up into Sydney's wondering eyes. "Right?"
"You're sure?" he asked me carefully. "You don't have to..."
"I know I don't." I extended my free hand to the odd little man. "I don't know where we're going to put you for the time being," I told him when he carefully and deliberately put his hand in mine, "but Angelo doesn't need to go anywhere. Angelo has come home at last."
~~~~~~~~
It was late when I finally slipped between the covers of our bed and waited patiently for Sydney to do the same. I was tired - more tired than I'd been in a very long time - but it was a good feeling. Our celebration had turned into a real family event with the addition of the latest and final Centre refugee. Angelo's uneasiness around so many people that he didn't know eased the moment that he discovered the corner of the living room where Jakie kept his stash of toy cars and trucks. As a matter of fact, he kept Jakie nicely occupied in occasionally boisterous play with those vehicles for most of the rest of the afternoon, much to Sydney's and Parker's relief.
Angelo's presence had also brought home another reality - with the Centre's closing, little Jacob had also lost his home. Miss Parker found herself faced with the prospect of becoming Jakie's full-time caretaker - and shouldered the responsibility with nothing but a confident tip of the chin and a shrug. I saw Jarod's eyes warm almost immediately, and I had a sneaky hunch that he would be hanging even closer to Miss Parker's as time went on. Jacob could use a positive male role model, and I think Jarod was thinking that he wouldn't mind filling that role, considering that having a closer relationship with Miss Parker would be included. I suddenly found myself speculating on how long it would be before we heard wedding bells coming from that quarter.
Jarod and Joe took a quick trip to a Dover home improvement store to pick up the extra chair we'd need to seat everybody at the tables. A bit of creative seating managed ten around the big table, with Angelo, Deb and Jakie holding forth contentedly at the card table. Dinner conversation eventually centered on what each of the former Centre employees intended to do with their time now that their jobs were apparently finished. But the discussion took a decidedly creative turn when Broots had looked around the table and stated with some confidence, "You know, I bet we could put together a pretty lucrative security business with everybody's know-how and talent."
"You're kidding," Jarod had told him around a mouth still half-full of roast.
"Actually," Broots had washed his roast down with ice water, "I'm serious. Just think of the expertise we have on hand just at this table. You and Miss Parker probably know more about designing and implementing security systems and procedures than most in the business for years. Me, I've designed security for corporate computer systems for a living for - how long now? And Joe - heck, both he and Sam would make good trainers for bodyguards and security personnel. Syd here could do the interviews and work up psychological profiles on potential employees..."
Sydney and I looked at each other in astonishment. "You know," my husband had admitted, putting down his fork, "Broots may be onto something."
By the time that the Broots', Joe and Carol, and Jarod and Parker were ready to head off for home, the foundation for a completely new business venture that involved all of them - and Sam, if he wanted in - had been hammered out. Those of us not directly involved had done our best to point out fallacies and weak points in the suggestions and, as time went on, cleared the table around the principles involved. I divided the leftovers between four houses while Pam and Carol rinsed and packed the dishwasher and washed pots and pans that wouldn't fit. Deb was given the night off, and she found herself drawn into the play town that Jakie and Angelo had dreamed up. Rene and Nicholas, true to form, headed for the back yard and some privacy. And when Miss Parker packed up Jakie to leave, I watched Jarod talk to her out by her car - and then climb into the car beside her. I smiled to myself and pulled the blinds.
"Happy?" Sydney asked me, climbing into bed and pulling me into his arms like usual.
"Mmmmm..." I hummed at him, snuggling down against his chest. "I think we have quite an interesting if unorthodox family. Yours, mine, ours - and theirs."
He kissed the top of my head. "I never, in a million years, ever dreamed that my life would be so full as it is right now. You've brought me an embarrassment of riches, Cat. I love you so much..."
As if he hadn't done the same for me a thousand times over. We'd both started with so little, and just look at us now! "I love you too." I replied. And as his lips found mine and as his hands began to explore and reach for the hem of my nightgown, I realized that was all that really mattered anyway.
FIN.
