Don't Stop by Thunderchild, admin

1. Chapter 1 by Thunderchild

2. Chapter 2 by Thunderchild

3. Chapter 3 by Thunderchild

4. Chapter 4 by Thunderchild

5. Chapter 5 by Thunderchild

6. Chapter 6 by Thunderchild

7. Chapter 7 by Thunderchild

8. Chapter 8 by Thunderchild

9. Chapter 9 by Thunderchild

10. Chapter 10 by Thunderchild

Chapter 1 by Thunderchild
Author's Notes:
Danke to ICD for indulging my madness.
The hunters located the hunted, surprising him. Fortune had rolled the dice and their numbers had come up .Giving chase immediately, using the element of surprise the hunters had the upper hand, rapidly closing in on the hunted. Fortune rolled the dice, again, their number came up. Fortune was smiling on them kindly after so many failures and near misses, today was going to be their day.

The hunters had the hunted cornered, hunters coming from all directions, closing around him like a rapidly tightening noose. They were so close now, they could feel, smell it, taste it. Adrenaline surged in the hunters, fear exploded in the hunted.

Fortune rolled the dice, their numbers didn’t come up. Their luck had run out.


Jarod was surrounded by Sweepers, he had nowhere to go, no way to avoid the swarming suits. Victory was within the hunter’s grasp… Until a gunshot rang out, piercing through coordinated chaos, sending everything into disarray. Hunters and hunted alike reacted to the gunshot, ducking instinctively, not knowing where it came from, where the bullet was aimed at.

A Sweeper with a slippery trigger finger.

A ricochet.

A wet thwap as the stray piece of searing lead slammed into flesh.


Rising from her hunkered position, an automatic reflex to the unexpected gunshot, Parker looked around; the Sweepers shaking off a similar instinct, chasing after Jarod once more, closing the distance rapidly.

Instead of giving chase, something compelled her to turn around and she saw him. And the ever-increasing scarlet on his white dress-shirt, marking the entry point of the bullet.

She stood there, frozen, watching him in disbelief and denial even as he lifted his head, his gaze meeting with hers. The pain and something akin to surprise in his eyes shook her to her core, but she denied the reality of the situation more vehemently.

Not really happening. Not really bleeding. Not really falling. Not really dying.

"Lyle," she breathed, watching as if in super-slow motion as he crumpled to the ground heavily. The dull thud of his body impacting with the ground broke the spell she was under, the sound echoing in her ears, sending her running forward. When a moment ago time seemed to all but grind to a halt, it was now swinging into the extreme opposite; moving in super-fast motion.

The adrenaline from chasing Jarod gave the strangest sensation to the bullet tearing into his flesh, stumbling backwards at the force of the impact. His hand rose to finger the warmth that was soaking into his shirt, seeing his fingertips come away stained crimson. Lifting his head, his gaze met that of his sister’s, the surprise and numbness beginning to give way to the pain in his chest, the inability to stand any longer. Crumpling down to the hard ground, the pain in his back barely registered when the gunshot wound in his chest exploded in white hot pain.

Rushing towards her wounded twin, her focus narrowing down to nothing but him, Parker dropped down to her knees by his head, ignoring the dust and grime she was getting on the legs of her suit. Lifting Lyle into her lap, her left hand planted firmly on his shoulder, holding him steady while her other hand pressed his hand firmer against the wound on his chest.

Lyle smiled up at her gently, only distantly aware of the pain in his chest. "It isn’t bad, just a flesh wound," he murmured softly, seeing the calm veneer in her eyes falter at the sight of the blood. His blood. He had seen enough of his blood spilt on this battleground to be undisturbed by it.

Parker nodded her head slowly at his words, holding his gaze steadily, feeling her wavering calm restore. The bullet had only knocked him off his feet, it wasn’t bad enough to sever his control. A shadow was cast over them when someone came from behind. "Call an ambulance, Lyle needs help," she spoke calmly, her words only mirroring the calm she felt inside. Lyle was alright, he was looking at her, talking to her, holding her hand.

"Calm and quiet, everything is alright," Lyle whispered, closing his eyes, his hand tightening around hers on the wound on his abdomen, grimacing when a flash of white-hot pain shot through him.

"Calm and quiet," she murmured in agreement, stroking her fingers through his hair, feeling the sheen of sweat on his forehead.

"Panic won't get you anywhere, it leads to destruction. Together we’re strong."

"Together we’re indestructible," she responded, feeling calmness and peace at the familiarity of Lyle’s mantra steel her resolve.

"Nothing to fear Parker, I’m not going anywhere," he murmured, his body tensing, his teeth gritting when a renewed wave of burning pain ripped through him. "What’s happening?" he asked around panted breath, giving them both something to focus on, other than the blood seeping through their entwined fingers.

Parker wiped the sweat away from his face, her fingers resuming their petting through his hair as she looked up. She watched as Sweepers closed in on Jarod, tackling him only for the desperate Pretender to fight them off, scrambling onto his feet to escape. Another wave of Sweepers descended on him, hauling him roughly to the ground. This time Jarod didn’t get up. "We have him," Parker said only after the Sweepers had the handcuffs on Jarod, sealing the deal.

"Don’t let him go. We need him. He is our ticket to our ascension." Lyle smiled despite the pain that was forcing its way to the fore of his mind. He had Parker, he had his Pretender, and soon he would have his corporation. His three most valued possessions we’re in his grasp. Four if he included his car.

"I know, don’t worry, he’ll be locked up securely for the duration of the trip," Parker nodded firmly, refocusing her attention on Lyle in her lap.

"I know I can count on you," he whispered, reopening his eyes, looking up at her, longing to kiss her. He couldn’t, not with so many people around. Damn shame that. "I’ll have to cancel our dinner plans."

"You have a valid excuse to cancel. But don’t go getting yourself shot on a regular basis, or I will think you’re doing it just to get out of dinner," she smiled at him, palming his cheek.

"I have a perfect track record for not standing you up. Unforeseen circumstances and all." He leaned into her hand that was pleasantly cool on the side of his face.

"Just make sure it doesn’t happen again," she told him again, stroking her thumb over his cheekbone. She leaned towards him, leaning her head lightly against his, furthering their closeness.

Sydney could only stand back in mute horror as things went from being tragic to horrific. He watched on helplessly as Sweepers subdued Jarod, powerless to call them off, unable to protect his protégé from returning to the Centre, only for his despair to gain a confused tinge. The sight of Parker comforting the wounded Lyle baffled him. They were talking civilly; Parker was cradling her wounded twin, comforting him until help arrived. To an outsider they would appear to be normal twins, and not the infamous Parker twins whose fights could be heard from the Tower all the way down to SL-27. What on earth was going on?

Chapter 2 by Thunderchild
He had been in surgery for a few hours, how many, she couldn’t be sure. All she could do until she heard something was pace the waiting room, trying not to worry, to stay positive. But as she paced, her thoughts ran away with her, her bloody hands proving to her the severity of the situation. Lyle was shot, he was in a hospital, in surgery. A great deal of his blood had covered her hands and her clothing, until Sydney directed her into the bathroom to wash off the blood.

She had stared at the bloody water gurgling down the drain, such as life. She was washing Lyle’s blood from her hands, but in a way she was washing her own blood off. They were twins, they were the same.

After seeing Lyle emerge past the point she wasn’t allowed in, Parker kept a close eye on everything they did to her brother, studying everything with a cruel suspiciousness.

She watched as they wheeled the gurney into the room, moved him from the gurney onto his bed, hung up his IV on the hook above the bed, covering him with the sterile white blankets before fussing with the equipment.

Her brother, her twin – her lover – was unconscious, weakened, wounded, it fell to her to protect him, monitor their surroundings for potential threats. She watched his cataleptic form through the observation window.

She hated doctors, hated hospitals; the sickening cleanliness, people dying all around, the unfeeling detachment, the never ending silence,only broken by the steady beeping of the monitors. The death and sickening cleanliness that offended every sense; the misery that dwelled in hospitals was a living thing, staining everything it touched.

Parker shook off her thoughts when she heard footsteps approaching her, looking up to see Sydney stop beside her. She returned to her previous monitoring of her twin.

"How is he?" Sydney asked, looking in at Lyle’s motionless form before he looked at the woman by his side. She could still surprise him. He had not suspected there was any shift between the twins, they were up to their usual tricks with their constant fighting, except Parker had stopped her pursuit of Jarod and instead went to her brother’s aid, a man she claimed to hate with a passion.

"They’ve repaired the damage done by the bullet, no major organs were hit. He’s lost a lot of blood. Barring any complications he will be fine and out of here within a week," Parker reported, her eyes focused on the even rise and fall of his chest. She then turned to face him, surprised that Sydney was even there. "Jarod?"

Sydney’s shoulders sagged slightly at the mention of his protégé. He had never seen Jarod so subdued as when he had watched as the Sweepers dragged his cuffed form towards the cars, and then onto the jet. He had wanted to go with Jarod, stay with him, try and calm him, but he needed to check on Parker first, baffled by Parker’s confusing actions towards her brother. "Sweepers have taken him to the Centre, the jet will be coming back for you."

Parker shook her head. "You should go back to the Centre, take Broots with you. You have a fight awaiting you to get reinstated as Jarod’s handler. You should do that before Raines beats you to it. I’m staying here with Lyle."

Sydney looked away from where he was watching Lyle through the window, unmasked surprise on his face as he looked at Parker. "What is different between the two of you?" he asked, unable to silence his curiosity, especially when it distracted him momentarily from his worry for Jarod.

"Nothing is different Sydney. If I go back with you to the Centre, you know my father is not going to give me a moment’s peace for leaving Lyle alone in a hospital bed," she replied calmly. "I am doing this for myself, avoiding the verbal berating I would undoubtedly receive, and saving my father the use of his ‘Parkers need to stick together’ speech."

"And when you broke off from the pursuit to return to Lyle? Was that also done to avoid your father’s speeches?" Sydney prompted, searching for any sign on her features that she was holding back on something. He couldn’t, her poker face was firmly in place.

"I did that to make sure the bastard didn’t die. No one is going to cheat me out of the pleasure of sending that snake to hell," Parker lied, convincingly. She then sighed heavily, facing Sydney. "Get Broots, and any Sweepers that are loitering around and go back to the Centre. You need to be concerning yourself with Jarod, not why I stopped my snake of a brother from kicking the bucket."

Sydney nodded slowly, seeing he would get nothing more out of her. He couldn’t shake the feeling she was hiding something from him, the situation between her and Lyle was obviously more than met the eye, and more than their usual bickering. Had they perhaps reached an accord, signed a peace treaty without alerting anyone?

However, she was right. He had Jarod to worry about now, he needed to protect him from the Centre’s wrath. They would not look kindly on the time and resources spent on his recapture. "I will call later, to see how things are," he said before he turned and moved away, but not before casting another glance into the hospital room at Lyle’s form on the bed.

Watching Sydney walk down the hallway, disappearing out of sight, Parker exhaled a heavy breath before moving into Lyle’s room. Standing just inside the doorway, she took in his relaxed features, the even rise and fall of his chest.

Sinking down in the chair by the bed, Parker lightly clasped his hand, her eyes not leaving his face once. It was still difficult to comprehend just how relaxed and peaceful – innocent – he looked while he slept.

Lyle was a person who could carve someone up like a Christmas turkey, innocent was not a common word used about him. It wouldn’t even be listed in the words used to describe Lyle. But just like everyone else, he had his masks, he had his moments, brief glimpses of what remained of his humanity.

Without the roguish gleam that could only be described as wickedness, his features took on calmer, gentler quality of attractiveness. He was handsome when he was awake with his veneer of charm and sophistication; the charming smile of his that was just so confident and the silky tongue that could convince anyone of anything.

But as he slept, an element of innocence rose to the surface of his relaxed features. She could see a fragment of Bobby lurking beneath the surface when the personality of Mr Lyle wasn’t dictating every nuance of his mask.

A fragment. It was small and it was fragile, but it was all of Bobby that had survived, buried deep down beneath the scorn, ruthlessness and the power-hungry veneer that belonged to Lyle. A fragment was all that Raines wasn’t able to taint, and what hadn’t been destroyed by Lyle’s own actions.

Lyle was no angel, and neither was she. They had done things, exhibiting their own ruthlessness to get what they wanted, shattering something into countless pieces only to rebuild in a form that suited their purposes.

They weren’t angels, they were fallen angels. Their wings were burned, broken and bent, failing to unfurl into their full span to give them flight, their twisted wings beating uselessly in vain attempts at becoming airborne one last time.

Her eyes were drawn to the tattoo on his right bicep, his injuries leavinghim shirtless, his torso bound with bandages; a drain protruding from one side, preventing fluid from accumulating in his abdomen. As she stared at the tattoo – Ouroboros – her mind drifted back to a time not too many days ago.


Laying in a tangle of limbs, pearls of sweat from their passion slid over glowing skin, both panting for coherency as the last shockwaves of their pleasure abated.

When she regained control of her limbs, Parker stroked her hand down the middle of his heaving chest, fingertips smearing through droplets of sweat, forming little rivulets on his skin.

Reopening his eyes when he felt her trembling fingers slide over her skin, Lyle angled his head slightly see her face from where her head rested on his shoulder. He brushed the tendrils away from sticking to her sweaty temple, kissing her forehead afterwards.

Parker did nothing to disturb the tranquility that settled between them; she liked the feeling of calm that descended between them after sex. Shifting on top of him, she draped her leg over his waist, making herself more comfortable sprawled over his chest.

Sliding her hand up his chest, her palm flat against his skin, Parker grazed light fingers over his muscle-bound shoulder before her fingertips come to rest on the snake eating its tail. Her eyes followed the motion of her finger as she circled her nail over the tattoo of the snake, tracing around and around. She looked up at his face when she felt him watching him, smiling softly.

Feeling her fingers circling his tattoo, Lyle propped himself up against her, rolling her over onto her back as he slid his forearm beneath her neck, balancing himself over her. When she moved her leg to drape over his, he slid his hand leisurely over her thigh, savoring the feeling of her sweat-slicked skin. Meeting her smile with one of his own, he brought their lips together in a fleeting contact, inhaling their mingling breaths, holding her bottom lip between his.

Parker relaxed beneath his caresses, rubbing her foot up against his calf, the motion mirroring that of his hand on her thigh. Drawing her fingernails over his sides, she deepened the kiss slowly, her tongue sliding over his in languid exploration.

Pressing their lips more firmly together, leaning closer towards her, Lyle’s hand moved from her thigh, fleeting over her side onto the flat muscles of her stomach before following the curve of her hipbone. He smiled into the kiss when he felt her body responding to his light caresses.

Writhing beneath him, Parker slid her leg over his, her knee locking around the back of his thigh, holding him against her. Heated friction sparked between them, arousing them as their bodies ground together. Lifting her head away from the mattress, Parker leaned towards his arm, tracing her tongue over the tattoo, as Lyle shifted atop her, compliant with the caress. She gradually moved higher up his arm, coming to his neck, biting sharply.

Lyle jolted against her at the sudden bite that blurred the line between pleasure and pain, spiking his arousal. Angling his mouth to her neck, he rasped his teeth sensually over her skin, rubbing his hardening erection against her inner thigh.

Her teeth still lingering against his flesh, Parker smiled darkly, then drew back to watch him, shivering when he moved slightly against her, enough to make arousal flare sharply, her breath hitching. The feel of him against her left no doubt about his arousal either.

He felt her shiver, repeated the action, watching as her eyes clouded over and her breathing labored. She was gorgeous; skin glowing with want, sweat lingering, eyes dark. All his. The thought was enough to provoke a dark growl from him.

Parker felt the dark growl vibrate in his chest with how closely together they were, smiling again at the obvious effect she had over him. Drawing her nails along his sides, she traced up his spine as she leaned her head back, her eyes closing when he resumed his attack on her throat.

Sliding his tongue over the front of her throat, catching several pearls of sweat, Lyle gripped her hip, his fingers flexing into her flesh as moved lower down her body. Just as he rasped his teeth over the pulse in her throat, he entered her; mirrored growls resounding in their throats.

Clenching her nails into his back, Parker arched away from the bed, growling darkly, her breath hitching in her throat. Moving her leg higher over his waist, she groaned when she felt him slide in deeper.

‘All his’, the thought repeatedly spun in his head as he panted for breath against her neck. His hand tightened its grip on her hip before he began flexing his hips against hers, setting up a gradually quickening rhythm.

Threading her fingers in his sweaty hair, Parker drew him away from her neck, engaging him in a demanding kiss. She could tell by his rhythm that he had no intention of drawing this out longer than necessary. She wasn’t going to take the control from him, but she wasn’t going to take the passive role either. She didn’t do passive.

Lyle drew back from her lips with a sharp hiss, the sound sliding away in a moan after her nails clenched harshly into his back, sparks of pleasurable pain shooting through him. Biting her shoulder, feeling her jolt beneath him, Lyle soothed the area with a lazy flick of his tongue.

Wrapping her legs around his waist, trapping him against her, Parker met his thrusts with a flex of her hips. Turning her head towards his, she gripped his earlobe between her teeth, tugging and nibbling on his trapped lobe. Dragging her nails heavily down his back, she felt him arch into her hands with a growl.

Lyle growled and arched into her abusive nails as they scratched down his back, his hips bucking into hers sharply, making them both moan. Quickening his pace, it didn’t take long until they both found their release, collapsing into a sweaty tangle of limbs, both panting harshly.

When he collapsed down on top of her, their lithe bodies a mass of quivering nerves as climax ripped through them, Parker sluggishly moved her arms to link around his neck, gradually tightening around him.


Shaking off the memory, Parker sat back in the chair after releasing Lyle’s hand, watching over her twin, waiting for him to regain consciousness. Her memory of what happened days ago was similar to what happened on their other encounters, and would continue to happen after he was well. So what if they found a different way to face what the Centre threw at them?

Chapter 3 by Thunderchild
As he began clawing his way to consciousness, his biorhythms speeding up, his blood rushing faster, Lyle was becoming aware of the muted pain his nerves were screaming at him. He knew where he was long before he opened his eyes for visual verification. Hospitals had a distinct smell to them, and that incessant beeping!

Slowly opening his eyes, expecting to be blinded by intense lights, Lyle relaxed when he saw the room was dark. The lamp above his bed was switched on, but it was turned away so he wasn't blinded.

Looking down at his hand, he saw the drip taped onto the back of his hand, identifying the strangeness he felt in his hand. Glancing around the room, his gaze fell on Parker in the chair by the bed, sleeping.

Questions would be raised about why she was staying with him, and Lyle knew that there would be no arguing with her. He sighed softly as his eyes fell closed once more. There would be no arguing with Parker about this, she would know her place was to stand guard.

After breaking through her defenses, proving to her the earth wouldn't stop spinning if she stopped denying what she wanted, the amount of time they spent together, the calmness between them, he wasn't surprised by her presence now. But he was worried about what was happening with Jarod; if Parker was here, who was ensuring their ticket to power would be waiting for them at the Centre?

Turning his head against the pillow, he reopened his eyes to watch her, studying her relaxed features. There had been a time when they were 3000 miles apart in the same room, now however the distance was significantly less. A small tired smile appeared on his lips, wanting to touch her.

After the first time he touched her without her snapping and snarling, he would never grow tired of the contact, the feel of her skin against his, even if it was just their hands.


Hovering in the shadows in the hallway outside Parker's office, Lyle bided his time until she left. He could be patient, more so than usual since he could see Parker was beginning to come around. His constant pursuit of her, the constant pressure and implication of his words was finally wearing down her defenses.

He wanted to launch a surprise attack this time, and he could only do that when he didn't give her a chance to drag her masks up. If he walked into her office right now, the second she saw him was a second he couldn't afford to have her to put her facades in place. He was getting to her, he was winning her over but he wasn't overconfident. She could still shoot him, and Lyle particularly didn't want another piece of lead in his body.

After an hour of waiting, Lyle's patience was rewarded when he saw Parker leave her office, files in hand. She was probably going to pay that moron Broots a visit. Perfect. It got her out of her office for the moment he needed to get into position.


After going down to Broots' hole to put him to work on some of the breadcrumbs that were coming in about Jarod, Parker returned to the solitude of her office, away from prying eyes. It would be just her luck that Sydney picked up on something being wrong. The last thing she needed now was Sydney sniffing around when Lyle's advances were intensifying. She couldn't go 5 minutes without having her twin sneak up behind her, breathing in her ear. It was disturbing, and the scary thing was that she had felt her resolve waver on more than one occasion. At least he hadn't taken to trying his advances in her office, it was the one refuge she had from him. At least for the time being.

Dropping the files onto her desk, the slap resounding around the office, Parker moved to the window, looking outside, her mind spiraling off into another direction. She was completely unaware of the other presence in her office, the eyes watching her.

Remaining motionless in the shadowy corner, Lyle watched her, watched the tension in her shoulders, waiting for it to abate. When it didn't, he made his move. If she wouldn't relax on her own, he would do the gentlemanly thing and assist.

Stopping behind her, Lyle placed his hands on her shoulders, feeling her attempt to turn to face him. His hands tightened on her shoulders, keeping her facing the window. "Shhh, you're so tense," he whispered alluringly as he began to slowly rub his hands over her shoulders, feeling her wind tighter.

"You expect me to be calm with you hounding my every step?" she asked with a shake of her head, attempting to turn towards him only for his hands to tighten again.

"I expect you to stop denying yourself what it is you want," he responded gently, resuming the slow rubbing of her shoulders.

"I don't want you," she argued definitively, shaking her head firmly. She didn't want him in the way he thought, he was insane to think otherwise.

"We're twins, we want the same things," Lyle murmured softly. He reached up, brushing the hair away from her neck, leaning towards her and ghosting his lips across the skin beneath her earlobe, feeling her tense against him further.

Parker turned her head away from the caress, attempting to break free from his grip but he just held her back, his grip of her tightening. "I don't want this. You're sick," she snapped at him.

"I'm not sick. I have accepted what it is I want," Lyle held her in place, his arms tightly locked around her waist. "Aren't you tired of fighting alone? Don't you want an ally you can trust implicitly?"

"The moment I trust you is the same moment I have my throat ripped out. Not really a tempting offer," Parker shook her head, grabbing his wrists to unwind his arms from around her waist. He was adamant however, keeping his arms firmly in place.

Lyle leaned against her back, pressing the full length of his body against her, his mouth beside her ear. "You have nothing to lose by trusting me, and everything to gain," he whispered, his lips brushing the shell of her ear as he spoke.

Parker's eyes closed under their own volition when he pressed against her back, feeling tiredness and defeat alike escalate in her, knowing he was going to start appealing to her again. "What do you want Lyle?" she whispered, the tiredness showing in her voice.

"For you - to trust me," he breathed against her ear, his eyes closing, listening to her breath. He flexed his hips against hers, rubbing up against her from behind, hearing her breathing hitch in her throat.

Parker's breath hitched in her throat at his move against her back. He hadn't done this before, and she didn't really want him to do it now. "It's wrong," she countered after regaining her composure.

"Don't be afraid of me Parker," Lyle nibbled on her earlobe, feeling the first stirrings of arousal sparking in him as he rubbed up against her. "Look deep down inside yourself, there is something there they have tried to silence, it's fighting to get loose now," his hand rose and rested on her breast, feeling her tense against him.

Parker tensed beneath his hand that rested on her breast, fighting to focus as he attacked her from all sides. His breath and lips against her ear, his words, his hand on her breast, the feel of his hardening erection against her backside were all unbalancing her. "Lyle--" she began.

"Let go," he urged her, his hand moving lower down her abdomen, holding her into him as he pressed firmer against her buttocks. He cupped her breast in his hand, brushing his thumb over her nipple through the layers of fabric. "I can be everything you need. I can give you strength, I can give you independence from him." Trailing his lips over her jaw, he kissed the corner of her mouth. "Trust me," he breathed against her skin, pressing his erection firmer against her, "let go."

It was getting harder and harder to fight him. He was always there. Every move she made, every breath she took, every corner she turned, he was there; waiting, watching, preparing to pounce on her again. Fighting him was an effort, she was getting tired of the endless pursuit, of always looking over her shoulder. She couldn't help but wonder if it wouldn't be all easier if she just gave in?

She sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes closing, feeling him pressing firmly against the back of her thigh; wantonly, insistently. He wasn't going to go away until he got what he wanted. Her.

"Let go," he urged in a husky breath against her ear, rasping his teeth over the shell of her ear. Sliding his hand from her breast, down the front of her chest, he felt her back arch against his chest.

"No." The word was murmured, lacking conviction and strength; she knew she couldn't fight him with the word when there was no pressure behind it. She felt him move against her again, pressing their bodies together as he shifted. His hand moved slightly as well and a moment later, she felt the tips of his fingers against her skin where he had been able to gain access between the buttons of her blouse.

He felt her resolve weakening further, her word lacking conviction. He moved against her again, making sure she knew that he wouldn't just leave, let her be. He wouldn't. "Don't fight this," he whispered, pressing a light kiss against the side of her neck. Lowering his hands to her hips, Lyle turned her to face him as he backed her up against the wall.

Parker sucked in a sharp breath, surprise jolting through her when she felt her back collide against the hard stone wall. Staring at him, seeing the hunger blazing in his pale eyes, she shuddered involuntarily.

Lyle leaned towards her, nibbling on the side of her neck, slowly working his way up her neck towards her lips. "Don't fight me Parker, you know you don't want to fight me, you're tired of fighting," he whispered, finally reaching her lips, inhaling her shallow breaths. "Don't fight me," he breathed, his hands moving from her hips to interlace at the small of her back, bringing her closer to him as he rubbed his erection against her.

"Lyle--" she began but stopped short, a circuit-breaker tripping in her head, blowing her coherency. The first stirrings of arousal warmed her, starting low in her abdomen before spreading out as he rubbed up against her. Now he was facing her, his movements seemed to be more insistent, harder to ignore than they had been when he was standing behind her.

"Shhh," Lyle shushed her, ghosting his lips across her lips. "Don't think, don't fight, just be," he urged her before he kissed her, his tongue sliding over her bottom lip, feeling her jolt against him. His hands tightened at the small of her back, holding her firmer against him as he ground his hips against hers rhythmically.

As he moved against her, her heart rate quickened, her blood reaching boiling point while her breathing grew shallow, her body moving of its own accord to meet his thrusts. How long had he done this, seconds? Minutes? Hours? She felt herself crumbling; wanting to give in, yearning to take what he offered her. It felt wrong - so good, so right - illegal. She couldn't possible want - desire, need - this.

Feeling her beginning to rock against him, slowly at first before the movements gradually became more assured, Lyle smiled to himself. She was slipping, crumbling, caving. He was winning. Soon she would be his!

Just as he worked away at her defenses over the last weeks, he chipped away at what remained of her resistance now, until all that was left was crumbled ruins. Moving quickly, taking him by surprised, Parker kissed him heatedly, her hand gripping the knot of his tie, holding him into the near-brutal kiss.

Lyle reacted to her kiss the instant he recovered from his surprise, not having expected her to practically maul him, even when his actions were intended to get a rise out of her. Growling hungrily into her mouth as their tongues battled for control, his hands moved beneath her, bunching up her mini-skirt, unable to wait any longer.

Parker drew back from his lips, biting at the side of his neck while he worked on moving their clothing, removing any obstacles in their way. The pressure he built up in her with his persistent rocking was maddening. She was pretty sure she would shoot him after this, but right now all she cared about was him finishing what he started.

When the last of their clothing was out of the way, Lyle didn't waste another second before he pushed inside her; mirrored groans tearing free from them when he entered her, pleasure surging through them violently.

Parker clenched her nails into the backs of his shoulders, panting for breath, staring at his eyes just as Lyle stared at hers. This was an .... unexpected feeling. Bringing her mouth towards his, she inhaled their mingled breaths before she kissed him.

Meeting her in the kiss, Lyle began flexing his hips against hers, building up a hard and fast rhythm, meant to get them both off as soon as possible. And given their earlier foreplay/convincing, that wouldn't take too long. They had no idea when someone would decide to pay his sister a visit.

The urgency she felt in his thrusts was mirrored in herself, Parker began rocking her hips into his, intensifying the sharpness between them. Their tongues dueled for control of the kiss while their bodies fought for release. Feeling him tense against her, groaning darkly as he came, the rough bucking of his hips unleashed her own climax. She clenched down hard around him.

Shuddering against her in climax, Lyle locked his knees before he could collapse to the floor, pressing more of his weight against her, panting harshly for breath. Feeling her clench down around him in her own climax, his eyes rolled into the back of his head, a new wave of pleasure ripping through him, scorching him. She was his!!

As coherency slowly began to return, Lyle had one thing to regret, and it was this had been over so soon. After his advances, his patience at wearing down her resistance, his claiming of her had lasted mere moments. Since she wasn't snapping, snarling, hissing or attempting to shoot him, Lyle knew there would be another chance that night to repossess his claim, and he would take his time to explore when there was no risk of them being walked in on.


When the memory faded, returning to its corner, Lyle blinked his eyes tiredly, refocusing on his sleeping sister. Drinking in her beauty, he reveled in the knowledge that she was his, and only his.

It had been consistent pressure that gradually increased that had worn her down. Even as she continued with the caustic barbs, persisting with her resistance against his advances, she was still crumbling.

The first step - "Don't do that again or I'll kill you" - had been difficult to get past, but Lyle was well-known for his persistence; he had never shied away from doing something because it was difficult, or time consuming. He had kept the pressure on her, started following her on pursuits, just so she was aware he was there, and he wasn't going to lose interest.

He knew he had broken her down to the next step when she started with, "Don't do that again." It wasn't as terminal as her previous warning, she still slapped his hands away when he tried touching her, or got too close for comfort. She was bluffing, warning him off because she was conflicted.

"Don't do that" followed quickly after, and the speed in which she started saying it so soon after she was saying "Don't do that again" made Lyle all the more persistent. He was wearing her down, day by day, act by act. He increased his pressure on her afterwards.

By the time she was telling him "Don't" Lyle knew he had her. She was tiring the constant fight, just the same as a wildcat would tire itself out after straining on the end of a chain for hours. She was tiring, wanting to lie down with the fight leaving her.

At the end when she no longer resisted his constant advances - some several weeks after first started - Parker was telling him something entirely different: "Don't stop." He'd won, and the fact there was no longer a challenge of bringing her to heel didn't sour the victory for him. He had her, she was his.

Chapter 4 by Thunderchild
Trailing his hand along the stone wall of the familiar setting, Jarod moved around the darkened confines of his cell, searching for what was there. A cot with a thin miserable excuse of a mattress, a steel toilet bolted into the wall and floor, and a steel basin, also firmly bolted.

Although he suspected he had never been in this particular cell, Jarod knew the feel of the stone. It was the same for every cell in the bowels of the Centre; the stone was the same, the darkness was the same, the smell was the same. The complete and utter despair that was robbed from him by the impenetrable darkness was the same in every cell.

He calculated the size of the cell as he paced around, his hand sliding over the wall for balance and direction. 7.5 feet by 6 feet. By Centre standards, it was a mid-sized cell. He wondered what sublevel they stuck him on, or how long he would be in this cell until he was moved to Lyle's secret hideaway.

He had been stripped of his clothes, and was forced to wear Centre issue clothing; the dull irritating uniform, the sneakers. They had taken his boots, his leather jacket, his watch, his belt, anything that could be used to aid his escape. He was grateful their paranoia hadn't reached the extent of a cavity search, however the days were still young. There was plenty of time for them to come back and give him a more thorough going over.

He thought back onto the chain events that lead him to his present predicament.

The number of Sweepers had been mind-numbing, never on any of the pursuits had there been so many Sweepers, even with there being both Lyle and Parker at his recapture. How had they known the lead was solid enough to warrant such a force?

The coordination of the Sweepers wasn't something that was thrown together at the last minute, when a lead was uncovered. The coordination of the Sweepers coming at him in waves was meticulously planned. The Centre may not have known when or where the next lead would come, but obviously they were getting smarter, preparing something in secret. They should very proud - they succeeded.

Heaving a sigh, sinking down onto the cot, the rusty springs screeching in protest of his weight, Jarod stared into the darkness to where he knew his hands would be in his lap. Reliving the event of his recapture, every blow the Sweepers rained down on him, there was still one thing that wasn't clear to him. Why had Parker gone back to Lyle?

In the confusion, the stray bullet had claimed a causality; Jarod was only upset that he hadn't been the one to pull the trigger. He had stayed too long to watch Lyle fall, wanting to bear witness to his death like Lyle had watched his brother die, except the Sweepers had other ideas that involved ramming him through solid concrete.

Why had Parker gone back to Lyle's side, seeming to comfort him when she spent every waking breath cursing Lyle's existence? Why had she broken off chasing him - not that she ever got close enough in those heels - and went back to the fiend, the monster. Lyle. It just didn't make any sense!

Chapter 5 by Thunderchild
Moving in the chair, Parker groaned painfully when her back protested at sleeping in the uncomfortable chair. Sitting up slowly, planting her hands against the middle of her back she slowly stood from her chair, joints creaking and cracking as they popped back into their original places.

Hearing movement in the room over the steady beeping of the machines, Lyle blinked his eyes open only to see Parker standing at the window, rubbing her back. "You're a fool to sleep in the chair," he whispered, smiling at her tiredly when she turned to face him.

Parker turned when she heard a voice behind her, smiling when she saw Lyle was awake. "I don't think the doctors would appreciate us sharing a bed," she told him, moving over to sit down beside him. She lightly stroked her hand over his forehead.

"I wouldn't have minded," he murmured, leaning into the fleeting caress, his eyes closing.

"You were unconscious Lyle," she told him a soft chuckle. He'd just woken up and he was already bantering.

"Can't protest though can I?" Lyle reopened his eyes, reaching up and clasping her hand, their fingers entwining. "What's the damage?" he asked, able to feel the faint twinges of pain in his side. He wasn't going to move and find out just how much pain he could feel.

"The bullet didn't hit any major organs, they were able to take it out and repair the damage, and you lost a bit of blood. The last I spoke with the doctors, they're confident you'll be released within a week," she murmured, relieved to see the spark of playfulness in his eyes, even amongst the prominent tiredness.

"And Jarod?" Lyle didn't want to hear anything other than his Pretender was locked in the deepest sublevels of the Centre.

"He's at the Centre, locked in a cell, under isolation orders. Sydney is there, appealing to be reinstated as Jarod's handler, until a decision is reached if Jarod goes back to Sydney or goes to Raines, the isolation will be in effect."

"And what about you being here, did Sydney suspect anything?" The meddling shrink was too nosy for his own good, and after what happened at the shooting, he would know there was something going on.

"He is suspicious but I diffused it," Parker assured, threading her fingers back through his hair. "Told him that I stayed to avoid Daddy chewing me out about leaving you, the rest was diffused with my not wanting to be deprived the pleasure of sending you to hell."

"Or just depriving you the pleasure," Lyle countered with a wink, smiling up at her.

"We were talking about diffusing the Sydney situation, not proving his suspicions." Parker shook her head, brushing her thumb over his chin, feeling the faint stubble.

Lyle leaned into her hand, kissing her thumb. "Lay down with me for a bit," he murmured, tugging on her hand lightly. Since he woke up and found her sleeping in the chair by his bed, he wanted to touch her, wanted to feel her close.

Parker shifted further down the bed before tipping over, lying on her side beside him, resting her head on his shoulder, keeping well away from his wound. "No groping Lyle," she warned him, brushing her thumb against his chest, above the bandages in an absent caress.

"Just want you close enough to touch," Lyle whispered into her hair, closing his eyes, inhaling a cautious breath of her scent only to be greeted with minimal protest from his side. God bless morphine!

Chapter 6 by Thunderchild
It had been two weeks since the shooting and Jarod's consequential recapture, a week since Lyle's release from hospital. He was more or less fully healed now, his wound giving him small twinges of discomfort. Parker was keeping him on a tight leash, minimizing the amount of strenuous activity so not to tear anything open. Needless to say, Lyle wasn't taking the restrictions with a smile.

Their father had arranged for a family dinner to commemorate Lyle's recovery - and to celebrate the successful recapture - a full two weeks after the rat was returned to his cage. Of course Jarod wasn't working, that was a source of annoyance to their father, but he was back in his cage, so it was a starting point. She had done her part, so she couldn't be held accountable for Jarod not cooperating.


Standing in her office, her back to the door, Parker flicked through some papers on her desk while she waited for this farce of family civility to get started. She didn't even know why she was still at the Centre, she had a deal with her father - she returns Jarod, she leaves - a deal he didn't live up. He used the same line he used before when she spoke of wanting to leave with Thomas 'what would I do without my Angel?' The only thing that made her imprisonment at the Centre bearable was Lyle.

Pushing open the door of her office, Lyle paused after letting the door close, taking a moment to enjoy the view. The black velvet dress she wore hugged all the right places, skin-tight around her torso before loosening at her hips, ending at mid-thigh. He indulged himself on the sight of her gorgeous legs that seemed impossibly long.

Moving further into the office, Lyle came up behind her, pressed firmly against her back sliding his gloved hand beneath the skirt, brushing against her thigh, above the stocking. He kissed the back of her shoulder as his other arm linked around her waist, holding her to him. He inhaled sharply, smiling lazily. "Mnnn, you smell good," he purred against her neck.

Parker smiled, leaning her head to the side, placing her hand over his that rested on her abdomen. "Be sure smelling me is all you do," she told him, chuckling gently only to suck in a sharp breath when his gloved hand moved between her legs.

"Oh, I don't think it will be," he whispered hotly against the back of her ear, smiling at her reaction, brushing his nose against the side of her neck. He tightened his grip around her waist, molding her body into the curve of his.

"You need to control yourself Lyle. No dessert until later," she murmured, shaking her head. Her hand rose to the back of his neck, caressing her fingers just below his hairline. "And don't pout, this is Daddy's fault for wanting to have a family dinner."

"How'd you know I was pouting?" he asked, the words tantamount to an admission.

"You aren't getting what you want, you always pout," she smiled, turning her head to watch him from the corner of her eye.

"Well, I have a valid reason to pout if I can't have you now," he defended himself, kissing her temple, his arms around her loosening, allowing her to turn and face him.

"Later, not now. I'm sure you can survive dinner without screaming in frustration," she murmured, smiling at the look of hunger in his eyes. "Although, I could be wrong," she added, teasing him.

Lyle narrowed his eyes at her, gripping her ass, pulling her towards him swiftly. "Just remember Sis, when I get you alone, you're going to pay for every nasty little thing you say," he warned her in a growl, his eyes flaming at her.

"Yes, I know," Parker patted his cheek lightly. "C'mon, Daddy's waiting." She shook off his embrace, collecting her purse from her desk before leaving the office with Lyle hot on her heels.


Dinner had been uneventful, amusing as hell, but uneventful. Their father wasn't any the wiser that something was different between her and Lyle, and he wasn't aware of what was going on under the table while they were forced to sit through the formality of the dinner. She and Lyle had enjoyed themselves with their discreet games, although their father hadn't revealed the answer behind his cryptic words 'Jarod is the key'. The key to what.... they still didn't know.

Not long after they were seated at the table, Parker had noticed that Lyle was still sulking about not getting to play earlier. It wasn't visible; she could see it because she knew what to look for. After sliding off her shoe, she had rubbed her foot against his calf, instantly getting a reaction from him.

Their father had shot Lyle an irritated look when he had kicked the table, the glasses and cutlery rattling. In usual Lyle-style he had covered up the sudden movement with a smooth lie of, "cramp."

Parker had to smother her smile of amusement by sipping her wine. The ease and speed in which Lyle could think of a lie in the heat of the moment always amused her. That side of Lyle apparently never switched off, was always working in the event he needed to lie to save his ass.

Throughout dinner, Parker's foot remained in Lyle's lap, his left hand caressing her ankle and foot. It wasn't suspicious that his hand spent most of the evening under the table, he offered obscured his hand. The silent, hidden gesture that transpired right under their father's nose - literally - served to assure them that the get-together was just formality, their father didn't know. Their father was caught up in his own affairs, he wouldn't know what was going on between the twins with how discreet they were being.


When dinner was over, which had been announced when Mr Parker said he had meetings early in the morning, they returned to the limo to be returned to their respective homes. As soon as their father was out of the car, they started fighting, right on cue. A show for the limo driver.

As soon as Parker was out of the car, Lyle was right behind her, hurling the next barb. "If you had done your job sooner, you wouldn't be stuck here. Dad shouldn't let you leave after it taking you four years!" There was no real malice and spite in his words, but the argument looked real enough. It was how they were able to fool everyone.

"Why don't you yell a little louder Lyle, get the driver involved in your rampage," Parker snarled at him, the hidden message obvious to her twin: get rid of the driver so we can stop fighting.

Scowling in anger, obviously pissed off about her distraction to their fight, Lyle stalked down to the waiting limo, growling at the driver through the tinted window, "go." Lyle moved back to where Parker stood, his posture remaining angry until the headlights faded into the distance. They didn't drop the charade of fighting until they were inside, a slight scuffle at the door put on for show.

After Parker threw the front door shut in her anger, Lyle surged forward, slamming her against the hardened wood, kissing her hungrily. His hands roamed over her in a frenzy, feeling her through the figure-hugging dress.

Fighting him in the kiss, Parker shoved his jacket away from his shoulders, nimble fingers working on the knot of his tie. She then clawed at his shirt, buttons not withstanding the onslaught, flying off and clattering on the floor.

Lyle was distantly aware that she had ruined another of his shirts, but didn't much care, focused on the feast that stood before him. He slid his hand up her thigh, beneath the hem of her dress, moving around to grip her buttocks, feeling her through her panties. Pressing more weight against her, holding her firmer against the door, he rubbed his body up against hers, creating heated friction that was made so much hotter by their fight.

Her head fell back, impacting with the door behind her with a dull thud. Planting her hands on his shoulders, Parker hoisted herself up onto his waist, her legs winding around him. She moaned darkly when he started rubbing against her after stabilizing her.

"You've been teasing me all night Parker," he breathed hotly against her ear, his ears ringing as his blood ran hotter at the friction between them.

"It got you to stop pouting didn't it?" she gave back, chuckling breathlessly only for a moan to fall from her lips when he bit into her neck, the line between pleasure and pain blurred.

"We could have been caught," he growled hungrily, his lips and teeth fixating on the side of her neck, playing over skin.

"But we weren't, were we? And the thrill makes it so much hotter," Parker purred darkly, gripping the back of his neck, drawing him away from her skin. Crushing their lips together in a deep kiss, her arms wound around his neck, holding him against her tightly. Their father would have never found out. His finding out about them would require him to pay attention to his surroundings, to them. It was something he never did, there was no risk of him finding out.

Chapter 7 by Thunderchild
Sitting in his office, behind his desk, Mr Parker watched the footage of the DSA play out in front of him. Betrayal and anger alike burned in him. He had known his daughter was becoming 'distracted' again, it was why he had given orders for her house to be bugged, but never had he expected her interest to come in the form of her own brother.

Reaching for the player, Mr Parker flicked the switch, turning the disc off. He'd seen enough. Leaning back in his chair, he rubbed his chin, partly in irritation, partly in thought.

He reached for the intercom, demanding that his secretary call his daughter and have her come up to his office.... immediately. This was something to be dealt with; the sooner, the better.


Leaving her office after the call from her father's secretary, Parker made her way down to the elevator, wondering what reason her father could possibly have to summons her. He no longer needed to summons her to get progress on Jarod's pursuit, not with the rat safely locked in a cell. She barely saw her father now because he didn't want anything from her.

Punching the call button, she stepped back, her arms folding tightly across her chest as she waited. Either way, she would find out what he wanted soon enough. She just hoped it wasn't another job to chase after wayward projects.

When the doors of the elevator rolled open, Parker slammed her façades up ruthlessly when she spotted Lyle. A mask of disgust and repulsion was firmly pasted in place as she stalked into the elevator, ignoring her brother's presence, slamming her fist into the panel, hitting the button for upper level of the Tower.

Lyle watched her board the elevator with his usual amused smirk when he was once again faced with her hostility, changing his mind about stepping off the elevator after spotting her. Work could wait. Only after the doors rolled closed, sealing them from view did his mask slip. Standing behind her, he held himself in check, not touching her for the moment. He inhaled a sharp breath behind her ear, smelling her scent, exhaling with a deep resounding growl. "And what's my Sis doing out of her office?" he purred beside her ear, listening to her breath suddenly laboring.

Parker's eyes closed of their own volition, a hum running through her body at his close proximity. Sexual energy was heavy in the confines of the elevator, heightened by him being close enough to touch but without actually feeling him. She could feel the warmth radiating from his body, she could feel his breath. She could smell his cologne; expensive, desirable, him. She forced herself to focus on his question, and not him, not the desire to touch him. "Daddy's secretary called. He wants to see me," she mumbled, her body tensing in need.

"Odd," Lyle muttered with a small frown, stepping up against her back, bringing their bodies firmly into contact. It wouldn't do for her to go into their father's office flustered and tense.

"Mn," Parker nodded, reaching behind her, resting her hand on the back of his neck, fingertips stroking along his hairline. "He wants something, I just can't think of what."

"It's probably nothing," he sighed as he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, molding her against him, turning his face into the side of her neck. He inhaled another deep breath of her perfume, growling softly at her throaty purr of appreciation. "Want me to tag along?" he mumbled against her skin.

Parker smiled, patting her hand against the back of his neck, leaning her head against his. "Last time I checked I didn't need a bodyguard to visit our father. Like you said, it's probably nothing." She lightly brushed the edge of her jaw against his temple. "See you tonight," she breathed against his skin before disentangling herself from his grip a second before the doors rolled open.

Not resisting when she slipped out of his embrace, Lyle forced his façades up again, not giving anything away about what had just happened. They couldn't afford to let things go far in the elevator, especially when neither of them had stopped the car. Just a little groping to get them through the day.


Pushing open the door of her father's office, Parker strode in calmly. Seeing her father was alone in his office cleared something up at least - there was something he wanted, and she doubted very much it was a father-daughter bonding thing. "You wanted to see me Daddy?" she asked, noting the DSA player on his desk. It was looking more likely he had another hunt in mind for her. Why else the player?

Mr Parker smiled tightly at her, the images he had earlier seen on the DSA replaying in front of his mind's eye. How could she have betrayed him like this? He had thought her outside interest in a common carpenter was bad, but it didn't compare to her own brother, her twin. "Something has come to light," he began, watching her round the desk to stand beside him. Reaching out his hand, he flicked the switch to resume play of the DSA, watching for her reaction to the footage.

Parker looked away from her father's gaze, towards the player. She expected to see a labrat trashing a Centre office; she expected to see a member of Jarod's family. She felt her stomach sink when she was watching footage of her and Lyle fumbling at her front door. She knew this night; it was after they had the 'celebration' dinner.

Monitoring her reaction, Mr Parker switched the DSA off. "How long has this gone on?" he asked, his voice calm and even. Maybe too calm and even.

"A few months," Parker said slowly, keeping her answer simple. She didn't know what her father was going to do, or say. Or why he had called her and not Lyle. "Why isn't Lyle here as well?"

"I want to hear the explanation from you first."

"Explanation?" Parker echoed, a small frown flashing over her face before she forced her masks up again. She couldn't give anything away until she knew what was going on. He seemed to be taking this quite well, and that worried her.

"The explanation of how you let this happen. He's your brother. What ever possessed you?" Mr Parker asked, irritation creeping into his words. By all accounts, the twins never got along. Mr Parker was forever telling her to be nicer to her brother. Was all of that a lie? Had they both played them all for fools? Had they played with him the entire time?

Because we enjoy it. Because we want it. Because we want each other. Because it feels right... those thoughts and countless others like them spun in her head, reasons why they were doing what they did. She didn't bother voicing any of them though. She didn't have to explain to him why she slept with Lyle, why she didn't care if it was wrong. He's stepping on you again, a voice whispered in her head. "You always said you wanted us closer," she said calmly, watching him as he rose from his chair.

His eyes narrowed at her calm - cold - words. His posture tensed and he stood. "Don't be disrespectful. You know perfectly well this," he gestured towards the player before looking back at her, "was not what I meant."

There was a hint of anger in his eyes now, overshadowing the calmness from before. She suddenly felt like a little girl again, being berated by her father when she had done something he didn't like.... had been too loud in the house, disturbing him, had stayed out too long or met the wrong people. Just before her head could sink down, she straightened sharply. She was not a child anymore. "I don't see why this should be your business," she said coldly.

Mr Parker's eyes narrowed again when she was standing up to him, not buckling like she usually did. Lyle had polluted her mind against him, just like the carpenter. It was a pity he couldn't take care of Lyle just as easily. Lyle was the heir to the Centre after all. "It is my business when it brings shame to the Parker name."

"Shame?" Parker barked at him incredulously. "How is it shaming anyone when no one knows? The only reason why you know is because you're spying on me! You're screwed this time, you can't get rid of him like you did with Thomas. You can't kill your own son." Her blood ran cold when she realized what she had said. The realization that she had come out and verbally accused her father of Thomas' death was cut short by the blow that impacted with the side of her face.

Mr Parker backhanded her, anger lighting up in his eyes. "Your disrespect and insolence won't be tolerated. Do you forget who you're talking to?" he asked heatedly, not reacting to the accusation he saw in her eyes. This was Lyle's doing.

"No, I think I'm beginning to see for the first time just what it is I'm talking to," she whispered, holding her stinging face. She could see it happening all over again. He was losing her loyalty, so he spied on her to find out who. Except this time he couldn't kill the problem to make it go away. He wouldn't kill Lyle over something as trivial as pride when Lyle was to take the Chair.

Parker turned and quickly left the office before he had another chance to speak. She had the sudden need to be out of his sight, out of the office, out of the Centre. She felt ill, dirty, everything whirling past her at a dizzying pace.

PARKER MANOR; THAT EVENING.
Sitting in the couch in her darkened house, her hair still damp from her shower, she stared down into her empty glass. She had already downed two glasses of scotch. She wanted a third, but right now she didn't want it bad enough to get up and get it.

The shower and the scotch had reduced the pain in her face down to a dull throb. As long as she didn't move her jaw, she wasn't reminded of just how tender her face was. She had seen the bruise in the mirror, knew it was going to get darker before it began to fade, and knew she was going to have a hell of a time keeping Lyle on a leash. She knew what his reaction would be when he found out their father hit her.

Leaning her head against the back of the couch, she lightly touched her fingers to the bruise, grimacing when the tenderness protested being touched. The area was hot. She hadn't even seen the strike coming, had no way to avoid it.


Opening the door, Lyle moved inside, noting how dark the house was. Parker's car was parked outside, as he expected when he had earlier heard about Parker leaving the Centre. Lyle had his suspicions she had left because of the meeting with their father.

"Parker?" he called out, dropping his keys on the table just inside the door, loosening his tie, his eyes scanning the darkness.

"I'm here," she answered his call only to grimace and hold the side of her face, her jaw protesting painfully.

Lyle turned, walking into the living room, following her voice. There was barely any light in the house to see where he was going, but there was enough to prevent him from crashing into anything. "You okay? I heard you left early," he came up behind the couch, stooping down to kiss the top of her head.

"Wasn't feeling well," Parker mumbled, holding up her glass to him, signally she wanted a refill. Now Lyle was there she didn't need to worry about getting up for the third drink.

"The meeting with Dad?" he asked, stroking his hand over her hair lightly before moved over to the drinks tray. He switched on a lamp en route.

Parker winced, shielding her eyes from the light, but offered no protest against the illumination. He would see the bruise sooner or later; there was no avoiding the inevitable. "Replace 'meeting' with 'confrontation' and you're right." She heard his movements still, knowing he was waiting for her to say more. "He knows," she whispered, waiting for the anger when he saw her face.

Picking up their drinks, he turned back to the couch. Rounding it, he froze when he saw the dark bruise on her face. "Shit," he cursed vehemently. He had been about to ask how their father had reacted to the knowledge, but the bruise marring her features gave him his answer. Setting the glasses down on the coffee table, he reached for her face.

Parker jerked back, turning her head away from him, her hair falling down to cover the bruise. "Don't." It was bad enough she could feel it, she didn't want him to make a fuss.

"Shhh," he stroked her jaw lightly before reaching for her again. Angling her head to the side, he brushed the hair away lightly, revealing the angry mark. "Why didn't you call?"

"To what purpose? If I had called, you would have run off and confronted him, possibly killed him." She wouldn't have called him if their father had done more than hit her. Calling and complaining to Lyle what their father had done would have been weak.

"And he would have deserved it," he stroked his thumb lightly against her cheek before releasing her. He handed her the drink before he sat back, moving his arm away from his side a moment later when she moved towards him.

"It came out of nowhere," she told him, leaning against his side, pillowing her head on his shoulder. "I wasn't aware of what I was saying before it was too late." Parker closed her eyes, listening to the steady heartbeat beneath her ear.

Lyle angled his head, glancing down at her. "You mentioned him," he murmured.

Parker nodded against his shoulder. "He was doing it again. He had the house bugged - I flushed it--" she told him before he could ask. "He was going to kill again to ensure he had my loyalty," she said, bitterness in her words. How could she be blind for so long? She had sold her soul to the devil, and that devil was her own father.

"He can't kill me. He needs me," Lyle assured her, taking a sip of his scotch.

"He didn't need Thomas."

Lyle paused, wincing slightly. "Parker, I didn't mean it like that."

"I know," she brushed her free hand against his side before she took a drink. She had a nice buzz in her head, a distraction to what had happened that day.

Lyle lightly kissed the top of her head. "Well, he is going to be pretty worried now. He'll know I'm not going to take this quietly. The fact he hasn't called me into his office says as much."

"He could be planning something," Parker cautioned.

"Dad's a coward. He won't do anything himself, he doesn't like getting his hands dirty. Striking you wasn't pre-planned; it was spur of the moment, a reaction. If he does plan on doing anything, he will need to find someone stupid enough to come near me."

"You do have a certain reputation of being a madman," she smiled softly, taking another drink.

"One tries," he chuckled darkly. "No, he hasn't got anything planned. He would be waiting for me to react, test the waters so to speak, before he does anything. He's waiting for me to make my move."

"Which will be?" Parker turned her head against his shoulder, looking at his face.

"What's Dad scared of most?"

That was easy. What did he run away from every single time there was an ill-wind blowing? "Mutumbo."

Lyle nodded. "And there's our way out."

"How?" How the hell could they possibly expect Mutumbo to do what they wanted without this unformed plan coming back and biting them in the ass? They wanted to get their father off their backs, stop him before he did anything stupid, not give someone else a clean shot at blowing their brains out.

"Haven't thought it out exactly. I'll have a plan soon," he rested his cheek against her hair, closing his eyes. Both Lyle and their father viewed Parker as a possession, the difference was Lyle didn't treat her like one. That was why the old fool kept losing his control over her. He mistreated her, repeatedly, so Parker naturally went looking for affection elsewhere.

It had to really burn their father up inside that Parker's loyalty was now to a man who she had claimed to hate with a passion, had even been sent to kill at one stage.

THE CENTRE; THE NEXT MORNING.
Pushing open the door of the Chairman's office, Lyle strode in unannounced; his posture and stride were casual, calm. "Hey Dad," he greeted, his tone carefree and light.

Mr Parker's expression hardened at the sight of his traitorous son, whom he hadn't summonsed. "I'm busy Lyle."

"You have time to beat up my sister but no time to beat me up? That just won't do Dad. You need to share you time between your children," Lyle informed him with a slick smile, idly playing with his gloved hand.

"Your sister was being insolent," Mr Parker shook his head, otherwise not reacting to Lyle's words.

"No, she was standing up to you. Difference. Your pet is obeying someone else now. You won't be able to manipulate her like you used to. I won't allow it."

"Is there a point to any of this posturing?"

"Yes, it would be beneficial for everyone involved if you stayed away from my sister."

"Are you threatening me?" Mr Parker asked, his eyes narrowing as he watched his son. He wasn't buying the light tone and charming smile for a minute. Lyle was a known cold-blooded killer.

"Come now Dad, why would I threaten you? Threatening is so impolite between family."

"She's my daughter," Mr Parker said gruffly.

"No, she was your pet. An object you possessed, played with from time to time," Lyle smiled, shaking his head. "You've just pushed her further away, further into my arms. You won't have her again." Lyle turned to the door. He paused, his hand on the door handle. "Oh yes, one more thing," he said conversationally, as if he just remembered something important.

"Yes?" Mr Parker replied, his tone bored and angry with this farce of civility.

"We have a video conference with Mutumbo at 10:30pm tonight. I do hope you'll join us. It will be such an informative conversation with our African friend." Lyle grinned at him charmingly and left the office without looking back.

Mr Parker grimaced after the door closed. Mutumbo? What was Lyle doing bringing Mutumbo into this? The Zulu was going to have their heads on spikes if Lyle was just wasting his time with a little family quarrel!

Chapter 8 by Thunderchild
When it was time for the conference with Mutumbo, unsure what Lyle was playing at by involving the quick-tempered Zulu, Mr Parker made his way from his office to the conference room.

Entering the boardroom, he paused. He expected to be greeted with a blank screen, commotion while the connection was established. He did not expect to walk into the middle of the conference. Damn, why had he not come sooner? Lyle played him!

And Mutumbo was not impressed by the interruption. Another thing to be added to the long list of what did not amuse the African.

Upon hearing the doors open behind him, Lyle glanced over his shoulder, a small smirk playing on his lips as he watched their father enter. Right on time. Lyle had purposefully stalled his father's arrival. He had wanted to speak with Mutumbo before the old coot could open his mouth and contradict anything he said. Mutumbo had graciously listened to what Lyle was telling him, his plan was working well so far. "Oh, did I tell you 10:30? I do apologize, I meant 10pm," he said, his voice soft with charm and civility.

Mr Parker merely grumbled something in response, approached the large screen, standing at his daughter's side. "Mutumbo," he greeted his superior evenly. He knew there would be something said later about his lateness.

Parker gave no outward acknowledgement of the presence at her other side. The bastard could burn for all she cared. She wouldn't simply forget he had struck her.

Mutumbo's gaze slid away from the elder Parker, refocusing on the heir. "You were saying Mr Lyle."

"Yes Sir," Lyle nodded firmly. "The one and only reason why Mr Parker is even aware of anything untoward taking place between Miss Parker and myself is that her house was under surveillance. He had every intention of murdering the source for his daughter's distraction."

Mr Parker suppressed the urge to grimace. Just what did Lyle think he was doing, involving Mutumbo in their business like this? They were all going to be lined up against the wall and shot!

"Then you admit there is a matter that needs dealing with. This behavior is inappropriate for the Centre's heirs."

"All due respect Sir, what goes on behind closed doors is no one's business but our own. If it weren't for Mr Parker's nosiness, and desire to maintain his pathetic hold over his daughter, none of this would have come to light."

Mutumbo looked between the trio silently, his gaze hard and pensive. He said nothing as he observed the situation. The Parker twins overthrowing their father could pose problematic, especially given their track record for failures.

When Mutumbo said nothing, just glowered at them in thought, Lyle continued. "Mutumbo, I know you are concerned for the unity of the Centre's upper echelon--"

"How could you possibly know what I am or am not concerned with?" Mutumbo asked gruffly, annoyed by the man's temerity to speak for him.

"There was once a time when I was highly regarded in the upper levels of the Triumvirate. Your concerns and frustrations with the Centre's leadership then would be still applicable now." Mutumbo had reacted exactly the way Lyle wanted him to. He didn't want the Zulu brooding and staring at them, he wanted a verbal dialogue, only then could they reach an accord.

"And your debauchery will guarantee such a unity? Come now, Mr Lyle, do not think me a fool. I have not forgotten the list of failures you both have against each of your names."

"Results speak for themselves Mutumbo, I'm sure you agree," Lyle countered, unfazed by the man's tone or hard gaze.

Mr Parker merely stood on silently. Why was he even there, other than to be included in the executions when Mutumbo grew tired of having his time wasted? Mr Parker waited however, he wouldn't interrupt until Mutumbo gave indication he was about to have them all shot.

"Go on," Mutumbo nodded his head slowly, watching Lyle carefully. He was in no mood for any of the man's tricks. He wanted something, and he had best get to the point. If he knew what was good for him.

"A joint venture between Miss Parker and myself allowed the perfect execution of the recapture of the Pretender. He is now sitting in a cell, awaiting Re-Education because of teamwork, a unity between Parkers."

Lyle did have a valid point there. Cooperation would be the key to smooth leadership at the Centre. A smooth leadership was something that had not yet been achieved with the constant backbiting and power plays. "What is your propose?"

"Give us some leeway and we will achieve results neither Mr Parker nor Mr Raines can achieve. Miss Parker and myself have already proven mighty deeds can be accomplished by cooperation. If you allow us some room, we shall show you what else we can accomplish. We will have Jarod working."

"Why are you bringing this to me, and not Mr Parker?" Mutumbo asked, although he had his suspicions why the twins were involving him. He didn't much appreciate being called in between a family squabble, but if the result was a working Pretender, he would humor the hotheaded man.

"Mr Parker would overrule our proposal. By bringing this matter to your attention, our plan is sanctioned by you, therefore out of Mr Parker's authorization to renege," Lyle said definitely, not hiding the reason behind why he wanted Mutumbo in on this. If the Zulu knew that Mr Parker was going to be a nuisance, and not complacent in their plans, Mutumbo would frown upon him. More than a unified Centre, Mutumbo wanted a working Pretender.

"And what is your plan. I assume it comes from the both of you," Mutumbo looked between the twins.

"It does," Lyle affirmed. "Allow us alone with the Pretender. No cameras. No guards. Utter privacy. And I assure you, we will have the results you want."

Mutumbo was silent for a long while, thinking it over. There was no risk of the Pretender escaping the facility. And even if Miss Parker was sympathetic towards the captive, there would still be no risk at an escape. "Mr Parker," his voice bellowed out suddenly, shattering the silence of the boardroom.

"Yes Mutumbo," Here it comes, he thought to himself, suspecting the words Mutumbo was about to speak were their death warrants.

"You are in no way to interfere with what Mr Lyle proposes."

Mr Parker masked the grimace, his jaw tightening. "Yes Mutumbo."

Mutumbo looked back to Lyle. "And as for what we discussed before, Mr Lyle, I will convene with the other members of the Triumvirate and discuss it. You will have my answer within two hours." Mutumbo then ended the connection, the screen going black.

Mr Parker exhaled a slow breath when the connection was broken, turning towards his son. "What decision?" he asked suspiciously.

Lyle merely smiled at him. "There's no need to tell you before Mutumbo's decision. He may not agree, and it would cause you unnecessary distress." He would let the old bastard sweat for a time, worry him with what was coming.

This time Mr Parker didn't mask the grimace. Only now looking at his daughter, the first thing he noticed was the dark bruise on the side of her face. "Angel--" he began.

"Come along Parker, you know I don't like you talking to vermin," Lyle said, grasping her elbow and walking her away. It wasn't an act at controlling her, but a further insult towards Mr Parker. And running in the general flow of things, Parker understood his meaning and followed him without a fuss.

They left Mr Parker alone in the Tower boardroom to contemplate his possible fate. Just what had Lyle requested of Mutumbo that could threaten him, upset the fragile balance he was struggling to hold onto with the desperation of a drowning man?

Chapter 9 by Thunderchild
Slowly opening her eyes when the complete blackness of sleep began to wane, Parker remained still, unsure what had woken her. She was then aware of the absence of the warm body she had fallen asleep beside. Opening her eyes, she saw his silhouette at the window, his back to her. Even in the relative darkness, the tattoo of the coiled dragon on his shoulder blade was a comparative shadow to the rest of his back.

Getting out of bed, Parker moved over to him, standing against his back. His skin was cold to the touch. He had stood at the window, watching outside for a while to be so cold. "Couldn't sleep?" she murmured, sliding her arms around his waist, her hands coming to rest against the middle of his chest.

Lyle reached for her hands, interlacing their fingers loosely. He closed his eyes off from their vacant staring outside, feeling her press against his back. Until now he hadn't realized how cold he had gotten until he felt her warmth. "No. I didn't want to wake you," he murmured, drawing her hands up to his lips, kissing her fingers.

Parker smiled lightly, leaning her cheek against the smooth skin of his shoulder. "About Mutumbo's decision earlier?" she asked, easily connecting the dots. Mutumbo had agreed to Lyle's proposal, and there would be repercussions for it. Lyle would be worried about the fallout.

"Mh-hm," Lyle nodded. He turned, sitting against the windowsill before he drew her towards him, trapping her between his knees, linking his arms around her waist, holding her close. "Dad knows about us, and as soon as Mutumbo informs him that he is relieved of his position, there is going to be hell to pay."

Parker loosely linked her arms around his neck, her fingers tangling in his hair. "He won't do anything without bringing Mutumbo down on top of him," she murmured, hoping she was right and that their father remained true to form. Cowering under Mutumbo's will.

"He shouldn't but there is always a chance that something will come. By tomorrow morning, he will know that he is no longer Chairman. He won't take that quietly," he murmured, his fingers lightly circling against her skin in thought.

"We have Jarod, we will have him working, we have Mutumbo's support. He shouldn't come after us," Parker replied, watching his expression carefully. He was trying to predict all the possibilities.

"Before he is told about the loss of the Chairmanship, Dad was only getting pissed because he lost control over you, there is really no moral outrage. Now," he paused, sighing softly. "Now, we've taken away the one thing he valued more than anything. The Centre."

"If you believe he is going to do something, put a Sweeper on his tail. Don't give him the chance to act without you knowing about it," she suggested, palming his cheek before brushing her thumb against his skin.

"I'll give him the benefit of the doubt, for tomorrow. We'll see if we need to waste manpower on giving Dad a babysitter," he murmured, tracing his hands over her thighs meditatively.

"There's something else on your mind, I can tell," she murmured, watching his downcast eyes as he followed the movement of his hands. She could tell when there was something on his mind, he got that pensive look and pursed his lips. Like he was doing now.

Lyle angled his head up, meeting her gaze. "I want you to do something for me Parker. I need your help in breaking our rat." What he had in mind to break Jarod – or at least lay the foundations of breaking him – he wasn't sure if she would agree to his plan or not. If she didn't, he would need to think of a backup plan quickly. Mutumbo was only holding back on the hell he could unleash because Lyle promised him a working Pretender.

Parker offered him a gentle smile. She didn't think he would be suggesting a plan unless he had thought it through meticulously. She caressed the side of his face. "Then fill me in on the plan, Mr Chairman, before we call it a night."

Chapter 10 by Thunderchild
Author's Notes:
Much credit for the completion of this chapter goes to icd. My musing wouldn't have cooperated if not for her constant fatal beatings.
Jarod sat, bound to the chair in the SIM Lab, contemplating the lunacy behind him being there. Did they believe having him in the old SIM Lab, surrounded by memories of what they had done to him make him more compliant to do their bidding again? He would rather be tortured to death than turn into their slave, give them simulations to murder countless innocent people.

What limited movement he had with his wrists chained to the arms of the metal chair jangled the cuffs. Someone was obviously a little paranoid, to chain him up like a common criminal. Did they think he would hurtle headlong to the nearest exit in a futile attempt to be free? He was brought back to his previous query: what lunacy was he faced with this time?

When the doors of the Lab opened, Jarod wasn't surprised when he saw Lyle. He should have known he was behind this. It reeked of his ineptness. After what happened the last time, Jarod wasn't surprised that Lyle was going all out. "So good to see you're still with us Lyle. The last I saw of you, you had a nasty bullet wound." His gaze slid to the side when he saw Parker enter the Lab after Lyle. What was going on?

Lyle touched his side, his hand locating the site of scar without looking away from Jarod. "I'm touched by your concern Jarod. I'm much better now, thank you," he smiled at him, stopping beside the table situated in front of Jarod. He knew he was watching Parker without having to turn. Poor rat was a little confused by the attention.

Parker unplugged the camera in the corner of the room, severing any chance at security catching a glimpse of video or audio from their session with Jarod. There were Sweepers posted outside, guarding the doors, preventing anyone from entering. And the possibility that Jarod would get free from the cuffs and need to be pulled from Lyle's throat was slim.

Jarod's suspiciousness escalated as he watched Parker unplug the camera before approaching them. "Who's the privacy for, you or me?" he asked, making light of the situation while his heart beat faster against his ribs. Parker there as well could only mean trouble.

"Privacy is for us," Parker said calmly with a shrug of one shoulder, moving over to the table. She wasn't surprised by Jarod's thinly masked suspiciousness, had expected it really. Until now, Jarod had been in a cell all by himself, contemplating what was going to happen, how they were going to strike. Sadly, he hadn't reckoned with Lyle's plan.

She felt Lyle's gaze on her, knew he was waiting for her before he set his plan in motion. She was still apprehensive about it. It wasn't like Jarod was going to say nicely, 'please don't do that'. He was going to rip Lyle's throat out the first chance he got, with his teeth if need be.

Still, she had agreed with his plan. He knew what he was doing, he had answers to what she asked him last night. He planned it through carefully, he had all his bases covered. Jarod was cuffed to the chair; there was minimal risk to him getting loose. They were sanctioned by Mutumbo to unplug the cameras, and there were Sweepers in the corridor outside, standing guard and on alert.

And she did agree with him, if no one died - namely Lyle - it would strip Jarod of his naïve impressions of the world around him. She didn't have to like it though. This wasn't the same as being found out by their father, bugging her house. They knew they were being watched, and continued on regardless. It needed be done, even if she didn't like it, they had to break Jarod to appease Mutumbo. Lyle's powerbase was hanging by a thread, until they had a working Pretender.

Lyle watched Parker approach from the corner of his eye. He knew she wouldn't back out, even if she hadn't been too thrilled about his plan - not that he had expected any different - she had still agreed. She knew what was at stake. Some of his tension abated when she bridged the remaining distance between them and sat on the table next to him, facing Jarod.

"So, what's this about then? I have to tell you that this is a real treat, being let out of my humble cell after days without seeing anyone," Jarod quipped, pushing aside his uncertainty and confusion. He wouldn't let see Lyle just how unbalanced being here made him, the man would ruthlessly exploit any scent of blood.

Lyle pursed his lips slightly, tilting his head to the side. "You know, I took the chance you never dared take," he said casually, his hand dropping to Parker's thigh, following the large amount of flesh her skirt exposed. "It's one of the reasons why I'm in charge, why I'll always have the upper hand. I take every opportunity I see." He saw Jarod's eyes following his hand and smiled. "She's just as good as it looks," he purred darkly.

Tearing his eyes away from what Lyle's hand was doing, he met his gaze. What the hell was going on here? Why was Parker letting that snake touch her? Why wasn't she ripping his throat out?

Lyle's expression darkened when he saw a question flash in Jarod's eyes before he smothered it. "All that time in your cell, spent wondering why she broke off from the chase, why she came back for me, reliving every moment. Have you worked it out yet?"

"What have you done to her, you ghoul?" Jarod hissed at him, forcing himself to keep his attention away from Lyle's wandering hand. He was doing it purposefully, to unbalance him, and Jarod didn't want to show him that he was succeeding. Lyle shouldn't be touching her like that. Not only was it wrong because Lyle was, well, Lyle, but because he was her brother. Unfortunately.

Lyle looked at him incredulously before he smiled and shook his head. "Why do you automatically assume I have done something? Is it so hard for you to believe that Parker has chosen this willingly, without some evil scheme coercing her?"

Jarod looked between Lyle and Parker before refocusing on Lyle again. "You're joking, right? You do nothing but scheme Lyler30; your next power play, your next murder."

Lyle shook his head. "You're wrong this time Jarod. Anything Parker does, it's because she wants to. Surely you have come to realize just how stubborn my sister can be. You can't force her to do anything."

"I'm rarely wrong, I would think you worked that one out by now," Jarod shook his head, lowering his gaze to the floor by his chair, avoiding the compulsion to watch these improper attentions. He knew Parker, he knew she would never allow Lyle to do such things unless he had coerced her into it, blackmailed her or even brainwashed her.

"What's going on here isn't coercion," Lyle informed him, looking at Parker, his fingers continuing to slide over her thigh. Regardless of Jarod not watching what he did, the rat knew Lyle was still touching her. And besides, he liked touching her, there was just the added bonus of it pissing Jarod off.

Jarod gritted his teeth when he knew Lyle hadn't let off of Parker yet. "Take your paws off of her," he snarled darkly, rising his head to meet Lyle's gaze, angry at himself when his eyes briefly lingered on the motion of Lyle's hand despite him not wanting to see.

Lyle smiled thinly. "Why?" he asked, leaning towards Parker and brushing his lips over the side of her neck, just below her ear, hearing the soft breath escape, "she likes it," he purred, tilting his head into the general direction of Jarod without removing his lips from Parker's skin. She was still reluctant about agreeing to this, he guessed she suspected she wouldn't enjoy the game they were playing. But there was something else Lyle also knew. He knew her. He knew how she liked to be touched, he knew he could have her relax and enjoy the game. He could have her forget that Jarod was even watching them.

Parker sighed quietly when he kissed her neck, her eyes falling closed a moment later at his purring voice, his warm breath caressing her skin. She wasn't any more thrilled about his plan than before, but he was convincing her. Just as he always seemed able to do. She angled her head, opening more room for him. With her eyes closed, it was very easy to imagine they were alone.

Lyle smiled against her skin upon her response to his touches. He knew she could enjoy this game if she just allowed herself to relax and not worry about Jarod. He gladly used the space she opened to him, drawing his lips down the line of her neck, nibbling on her collarbones. "Do you expect me to believe you never once watched her with anyone?" he asked without letting up from her skin. He was multifaceted. He could do business AND have dessert at the same time. It may be early for dessert, but he was never one to follow convention.

"You sick bastard!" Jarod hissed at him, yanking against the cuffs that bound him firmly to the chair. "Stop touching her!" He didn't understand why Parker wasn't stopping Lyle. She was actually encouraging him! Again, what the hell was going on here?

"That isn't an answer Jarod. If you keep using that tone of voice, we're not going to talk to you. I'm trying to conduct a civilized conversation and you're biting my head off," Lyle said lightly, his tone of voice business-like. When he stroked his gloved hand across her inner thigh, Lyle drew back to meet her gaze when Parker jolted. He smiled darkly, looking across to Jarod, seeing the Pretender was watching, had seen Parker's reaction. The increased look of anger was evidence enough. "She likes the feel of the leather," he explained nonchalantly. "Soft, sensual, intimate, arousing." Each word he spoke, he traced light patterns against her thigh.

He was doing it on purpose. The words, tone of voice and the caresses weren't just designed to break Jarod, but he was working on having her relax as well. She didn't mind. She was finding that she was slowly coming to enjoy this new game. Curling her fingers around the knot of his tie, Parker drew him towards her, brushing her nose against the underside of his jaw, inhaling his cologne with a hungry purr.

Watching the disbelief and horror flash over the Pretender's face when Parker sought further contact with him, Lyle's expression darkened menacingly, the meaning clear: she's mine. "Have you asked yourself when this started?" Lyle asked, his eyebrow arching at the Pretender, challenging him. When she sought out contact with him, as much as she was able to given their awkward positions, Lyle planted his hands firmly on her hips, moving her across the table to be in front of him, and not the rat. It was time for him to play.

Not resisting the change in position, Parker adjusted her grip on the knot of his tie, drawing him towards her. He was still taunting the rat, and for now, she wouldn't hinder him. But she wouldn't remain patient all day.

Jarod growled, yanking against the cuffs, wishing for the metal to break under the onslaught so he could wrap his fingers around Lyle's throat. "You bastard, what have you done to her?" he hissed at him, beyond angry at the display. Parker was just letting him grope her!

"It was all a lie," Lyle breathed darkly, his eyes glowing malevolently. He smiled inwardly at the slight widening of Jarod's eyes. "All the time you were telling her about me, warning her that I was a dangerous killer, we were sleeping together. Playing you and everyone else for fools. We outsmarted you Jarod, you fell for the lies like every other moron."

"You're lying!" Jarod hissed at him, throwing himself against the cuffs that bound him tightly in place. His wrists were becoming bruised and cut where the metal was rubbing, biting, pinching and scratching into his skin. He paid it no mind.

"If I'm lying, then why hasn't anything you've told Parker made any difference? Surely your omens of immanent death would have kept her away from me," Lyle prompted him, confusion briefly flickering across his face. "The fights, the anger, all that tension," he growled the word, smiling darkly when Parker shivered against him, "it was all just a ruse for what was happening behind closed doors." He angled his head, watching his hand as it slid up the length of her thigh, fingertips slipping beneath the hem of her mini-skirt.

His eyes followed Lyle's hand and Jarod growled darkly. What had Lyle done to her? She wouldn't allow him to do this if she was sober, now would she? And yet, Lyle had hinted at previous months - months for God's sake. Yanking on the cuffs again when blind fury surged, Jarod once more tried to get free, knowing logically the cuffs wouldn't give, no matter how much he struggled.

Applying just a little pressure, Lyle smiled when Parker reacted and shifted her leg slightly to the side, opening more room for his hand. He ignored Jarod's struggles, knew that he wouldn't get free and allowed himself to thoroughly enjoy this - having Parker while he was breaking the rat. "You know, it's right just the way it is. She needs a strong man next to her, someone worthy of her and someone who can make decisions," Lyle said darkly, his eyes coming to rest on Jarod, grinning, "someone who hits just the right spots," he added, his grin broadening when Parker reacted to his light touch against her sex. Surprise - and a definite spark of arousal - flashed through him when he felt her directly. She wasn't wearing panties. There was just skin on skin.

When he applied pressure against her thigh, Parker reacted to the silent instruction to shift her leg, reading his intensions. She purred darkly against the side of his neck, feeling the jolt run through him upon his discovery. "Surprise," she whispered against his ear. She hadn't know what he had planned, but had known him well enough that by the time he was finished tormenting the rat, he would want to play with her in earnest. He just discovered her plan earlier than she expected.

"A very nice surprise," he murmured, turning his head towards her, engaging her in a deep kiss. He hadn't reckoned with receiving such a nice surprise, given Parker's tentative agreement to his plan. He slid his fingers slowly against her sex, their tongues playfully fighting for control of the kiss.

She wrapped her arms around his neck as she linked her leg behind his knee, drawing him towards her, trapping him against the edge of the table. Parker slid her hands up the front of his chest, nimble fingers loosening the knot of his tie before unfastening several buttons of his dress shirt, wanting skin to play with.

Sliding his hand around her waist to the small of her back, Lyle pulled her towards him in a swift jerk, drawing back from the kiss. While their lips lingered, he smiled darkly at her reaction when he slid his finger inside her, the tensing of her body against his.

Gritting his teeth, Jarod once more threw himself against the cuffs, struggling despite knowing it was hopeless. "Get your hands off her!" he hissed uselessly at Lyle. He swore; when he got his hands free - and if it was the last thing he did - he would wrap them around Lyle's throat for doing this.

"Ignore him Parker," he murmured, sliding his fingers through her hair, angling her head back to nibble on the front of her throat. Since Jarod wasn't getting out of the cuffs anytime soon, there was no need to pay unnecessary attention to him. He was pissed of course, but the threat he presently posed was minimal. "He thinks he doesn't want to watch, but he does. That dark corner of his mind wants to watch," Lyle breathed against her skin before taking a sensual bite of the side of her neck. He purred huskily against her skin at her dark growl.

"Are you going to talk all day, or are you gonna do something?" Parker growled against his ear, biting at his earlobe. He was talking to taunt Jarod, but he was annoying her. He was taking too long!

"Hungry?" Lyle muttered against her skin, his arm tightening around her waist, pulling her closer to him. Moving his arm from around her waist, he slid his hand up her thigh, pushing her mini-skirt higher. Removing his other hand from her sex, Lyle watched Jarod from the corner of his eye, smiling darkly before he licked his fingers clean. He began to chuckle sinisterly when Jarod was once more resumed his fight against the restraints.

Parker grabbed the knot of his tie, yanking him towards her, kissing him deeply. She chased her taste on his tongue before drawing back, leaving them both winded. "What do you think?" she growled against his lips, nipping at his bottom lip playfully.

"I don't need to think, I can see quite plainly," Lyle gave back in a husky growl, licking her lip. It was incredibly easy to forget there was someone else in the room with them, having Parker so close and wanting filled his awareness, muting all else out.

Jarod turned his head away from the scene, screwing his eyes tightly closed. If they wanted to disgust him, they were succeeding. What had Lyle done to her to make her compliant in such an act of debauchery?

Lyle looked over to Jarod, smirking when his head was turned away and his eyes were closed. Well, if he didn't want to watch, that was ok. He would have to listen though. Kissing Parker again, he opened a few buttons on her blouse, his fingertips moving over skin. Her eyes were closed and Lyle tilted his head down, kissing her chin and then mapping a path down her throat, his eyes flickering over to Jarod every now and then.

Parker craned her head up, allowing Lyle closer, relaxing into his ministrations. He was back to playing and while playing was good, it wasn't enough. "Lyle," she muttered, half in warning, half in frustration.

Lyle grinned, hearing the rattling of the chains from where Jarod when Parker muttered his name. His hand followed her side and further down, once more allowing his fingers to move over her thighs while he stepped closer. His hand under her thigh, tugging upwards slightly while he bent forward, he smiled against her skin when she made a sound of surprise before complying, leaning back until she was half-sprawled on the table. "Hmmm," he purred against her skin, noting Jarod's posture from the corner of his eye - and feeling his gaze. So the pretender was watching after all. Moving his lips over her skin, brushing the blouse out of the way so he could reach more skin - and Jarod would be getting glimpses as well - Lyle lightly moved his hand up her thigh, under her skirt, once more finding her sex.

Parker groaned softly, arching slightly against him when he touched her again, slipping a finger into her with minimal warning, brushing against just the right spots. Maybe now he was going to play in earnest, and she didn't need to be bothered with regrets of agreeing. She didn't think he would be torturing her so much, but she shouldn't really be surprised. He was a kid in a candy store right now, he wanted everything, and he would have his way.

"Any man who isn't a eunuch would want her. Are you naïve, gay or a eunuch Jarod?" Lyle asked conversationally, looking over to Jarod, arching a challenging eyebrow just as he moved his fingers against Parker, smirking when she once more arched up against him.

"I'm the man who will rip your throat out the next time I see you," Jarod growled at him, his eyes boring into Lyle's, concentrating on keeping his eyes trained away from Parker.

"Now, now Jarod, that isn't a very nice thing to say," Lyle scolded in a condescending tone of voice, shaking his head as he clicked his tongue. "You keep making wild threats like those, you will never be allowed out of the cuffs again." He looked down at Parker, a hungry smile darkening over his features, drinking in the sight of her. "If you knew what it would do to her, you wouldn't raise a hand against me," he whispered and leaned towards her, kissing her throat when she once again arched her back.

Since he was tormenting her, torturing her by drawing this out, giving her less than what she desired, and Parker thought it only fitting to up the stakes. Get some of her own back. Reaching for his belt, yanking him closer to her, she unzipped his trousers with her free hand, feeling his erection through his silk boxers. She chuckled throatily at the dark growl she heard tear free from his throat.

Lyle growled when her hand encompassed his erection, arousal surging through him, momentarily making him forget what he was meant to be doing, the desire to take her then and there exploding in him. Leaning over her prone form predatorily, letting his weight bear down on her, forgetting Jarod completely, Lyle licked the front of her throat seductively, moving towards her ear. He gripped her earlobe between his teeth. "You want more, now? Right now?" he teased her, growling again when she shuddered beneath him, feeling the tremor send warm ripples of excitement rushing through him.

Jarod threw his weight against the cuffs, wishing they could break for the millionth time that day. When he got loose, there would be nothing stopping him from killing Lyle the next chance he got. "Stop this right now!" he snarled at them, the feeling of helplessness was maddening.

"And if I don't what are you going to do to stop me, hm? You haven't really thought too far ahead about this threatening me part, have you?" Lyle muttered without diverting his attention from the front of Parker's elegant neck, mewing absently against her skin. Stop this right now or I'll fight the cuffs some more was about as worrying as a white fluffy rabbit.

Releasing his belt, when he wasn't going to move away, Parker threaded her fingers in his hair, holding his mouth against her throat. Angling her head to the side, opening more room for him, she watched Jarod silently, her eyes boring into his.

Jarod expected her eyes to be dull, believed with every cell that Lyle had drugged her into compliance. Her eyes weren't dull though, they were clear, burning bright as ever. Closing his eyes despairingly, he turned his head away from them, trying to balance himself enough to retreat into the safe place Sydney had taught him. It was harder than he would have liked.

Lyle drew away from her neck, glancing across at Jarod to see his eyes were once again closed, his heard turned away. Stroking his fingers against Parker's sex, he smiled darkly when she arched her back beneath him, pressing closer to his hand. He pressed a series of kisses against the side of her neck, his eyes remaining trained on Jarod. He could tell by the tension in his body that he hadn't yet reached his internal refuge. Good. "If you believe you're so unworthy of her - and you are, I might add - why not watch? Living with a fantasy takes the sting out of the rejection, and what's a fantasy without images accompanying, sounds to complete the picture?"

Parker growled when he resumed taunting Jarod. Her patience to his games was all but gone. Grabbing the back of his neck, she brought their mouths firmly together, dominating the kiss. Drawing back, she held his lip trapped between her teeth, tugging sharply. "Pay attention to me before I lose my temper," she warned him, her hand tightening on his erection, ensuring he remained focused on her. He had played for long enough.

Lyle held her gaze, his eyes sparkling darkly with humor and arousal alike. He had known she would make her feelings known when he had pushed her too far, he'd planned on it. Whatever crap Jarod was convincing himself with that Parker wasn't herself would be undermined every time she breathed his name, every time she sought out contact, and finally when she wanted to complete their union. He traced his tongue over her lip, drawing his hand away from her sex, catching her moan in his lips, her body tensing against his.

Once more licking his fingers clean, Lyle let her chase her taste on his tongue, their tongues battling fiercely for control of the kiss, he hiked her skirt up higher then freed his erection from his clothing. Leaning into her, their chest firmly in contact, whispers of skin against skin between breaks of clothing, he slid his hand beneath her back, holding her to him. He then entered her without further ado.

Knocking her head against the desk, Parker arched her back with a dark groan and locked her legs around his waist to hold him against her. She groaned again when she felt him slide in deeper upon the movement.

Jarod growled, once more fighting against the cuffs. He would love to get his hands on Lyle, would promptly drag him off of Parker and then make sure to choke him. He then forced himself to look away from them, didn't want to watch something as disgusting as that.

Lyle groaned against her skin, then moved slowly against her, smirking when she reacted to his movements. He heard the chains rattling at his side, looked over to Jarod. "It will likely be the last chance you get to watch her with anyone, watch her come," his smirk widened when Parker's back arched against him upon a small thrust, "and find her release. If I were you, I would take it so it can keep you company in lonely hours."

"You're a sick man Lyle," Jarod hissed at him, his jaw clenched tightly, his eyes screwed shut. His heart hammered against his ribs, his blood rushing through his veins left his ears ringing. The ringing wasn't loud enough to drown out the sounds they made. Nothing could block out the smells of sex and sweat coming from their overheated bodies. He wished the ground would swallow him whole so he would no longer be witness to this debauchery.

"I'm a persuasive man. That's how I won her over Jarod, no drugs, nothing crude, just persuasion and charm. She's the same as me, the same blood. Twins want the same things," he growled, his eyes fluttering when his skin was tingling at the pleasure between them. He would never tire of this!

"Pay attention to me already," Parker growled at him, hissing in a sharp breath when he once more thrust against her. Tangling her fingers in his hair, she brought their mouths together with a violent crash of teeth, lips bruising under the ferocity of the kiss.

Lyle moaned into the violent kiss, knew Parker was in one of those moods that left deep scratches down his back. If his back was naked, he knew she would be clawing at him. God, he loved it when she did that. No longer taunting Jarod, Lyle focused entirely on Parker. If she got much crankier with him, she would certainly make him pay later.

Reaching her hand beneath his jacket, she dragged her nails up his side, feeling the shirt riding out of his trousers, the fabric bunching beneath her hand. She groaned throatily when his hips pressed closer against hers, furthering their closeness when he arched his back beneath her abusive touch.

Drawing back for breath, Lyle took sensual bites from the side of her neck, breathing raggedly, his blood boiling. "Let him see Parker. Let him see you dance to the beat of my drum by choice," he growled heavily against her skin, still thrusting into her, the pace gradually increasing.

His words combined with his quickening pace, Parker's eyes fell closed, her skin burning as the pressure of the approaching climax continued to build at the base of her spine. She arched her back tensely from the table, her nails clenching into his back as she came with a dark groan, shuddering violently beneath him at the intensity of the climax.

Lyle eyes rolled into the back of his head when he heard her groan, felt her clench down around him. He thrust into her a couple more times before he came as well, his hips bucking sharply against hers, his quivering body slumping down on top of hers, spent, pinning her to the unyielding table.

Jarod clenched his teeth tightly to stop him from screaming out in anger, horror and frustration. When he finally got free, Lyle was a dead man, a very dead man! Now they were done, he just hoped he was taken back to his cell and left alone.

When his equilibrium cleared, Lyle straightened away from the table to free her from his weight, falling out of her. He would be more than happy to remain where he was, even if it was uncomfortable as all hell, but they were running out of time. Straightening his clothing first, he clasped Parker's hands and pulled her onto her feet, holding her firmly against him when she was still shaky.

Parker lowered her head to his shoulder, breathing in his scent, purring throatily, her body humming like a livewire. Sluggishly raising her hands to his hips, her body melted against his, savoring the fading afterglow of sex.

"Told you that you'd enjoy it," he whispered against her ear, freeing one arm around her waist, reaching into his pocket for the handkerchief there. "Hands on my shoulders Parker," he instructed just as he released her waist, kneeling down in front of her.

Belatedly understanding his intensions, Parker rested her hands on his shoulders, holding herself steady, gazing down at him with a far off expression. She flinched, her over stimulated body reacting to the handkerchief she felt him wiping her thighs and sex.

After he wiped away the traces of his semen from her thighs, Lyle rose to his feet, standing against her as he once more wrapped his arm around her waist firmly. He ghosted his lips across her temple, winding his way onto her cheek. "Don't want to let others in on our little secret, now do we?" he whispered against her ear, pocketing the handkerchief. She could clean up better in her office, but she had to get there without attracting attention.

"Would be bad form when we have kept it so well," she whispered, drawing a little away from him, buttoning his dress shirt before straightening his tie. She held still while he fussed and straightened her clothing. Their clothing was still rumpled, no matter how much they adjusted and corrected, and their skin was glowing pleasantly, but it was of no consequence. No one would pay them undue attention, and if they did, they would be out of sight before anyone could get a second look. They had much practice at keeping this secret hidden for so long, even when they indulged with some after-hours fun.

Brushing his fingers through her hair lazily, smiling when she returned her head to his shoulder, Lyle's gaze finally slid across to Jarod. His smile broadened at the sight of the Pretender. His face was bright red with anger or arousal, perhaps both, his arms straining against the cuffs, his neck corded at the effort. "You should feel privileged Jarod. I shared with you something I won't share with anyone."

"You're a sick bastard, Lyle. I should have killed you a long time ago!" Jarod hissed at him, his voice and breath were both ragged at the anger and shame that burned through him. He swore silently, the next chance he got, Lyle would be a dead man.

Lyle grinned and shook his head. "You probably should have, but you and I both know, you don't have the stomach for it," he let go of Parker and slowly sauntered over to where the captured man sat, bending down and invading his personal space, "just as you would have never had the stomach to go for this," Lyle whispered, smirking when Jarod growled darkly and tried to get to him somehow. He calmly drew back far enough so the pretender wouldn't be able to reach him.

Jarod growled darkly and threw his weight against the cuffs once more, more forcefully now that Lyle was so close, the scent of sex as well as Parker's scent and his musk combined, strong in his perception.

Lyle leaned back and watched Jarod, arching an eyebrow when he saw the flared nostrils. He bent back down to the other man. "I know you can smell her. I can, too," he purred, once more drawing back far enough to evade Jarod's feeble attempts at hurting him. "You have memories now, accompanying the scent as well, completed by sounds." He smirked and straightened a little, "if you're a good little pretender, I might be able to have her agree for more shows to fuel your imagination," he said, petting his hand through Jarod's hair.

Parker stood by silently, watching as Lyle taunted Jarod. He was just lucky those cuffs were strong enough to hold him, otherwise Lyle would be soon learning just how pissed off he was making Jarod. Her twin was nothing more than a big kid, playing with his favorite toys.

Jarod snarled and yanked his head away from Lyle's hand. "Piss off, Lyle," he snapped, once more the desire to wrap his hands around Lyle's throat flaring sharply.

"I'll make sure you can smell her on me every time I come to visit you," he whispered into his ear before straightening and smirking down at Jarod. Turning, he then walked over to Parker and steered her over towards the door with his hand resting against the small of her back. Briefly glancing at Jarod once more, they then left the room.

Jarod began thrashing in the chair, ignoring the way the cuffs were cutting into his wrists, blood running freely. If he could at least tip the chair over, he would have felt like he accomplished something, regardless that it wasn't helpful. He could only sit there and struggle to retreat to his inner refuge. Except this time it wasn't as simple as he would have liked it to be.

Tiring from the struggles when he wasn't moving, and no one was in the Lab will him, Jarod screwed his eyes closed against the despair and sadness that consumed him. Distantly aware that the cameras hadn't been plugged back in, he allowed himself to cry silently. He didn't know if he would have been able to hide his emotions had the camera being on. What had Lyle done to her?


Once they were in the elevator after Lyle gave orders for the Sweepers to give Jarod 40 minutes in the chair to contemplate his decision, Parker spoke. "You're a diabolical bastard," she informed him casually, her eyes focused on the steel doors in front of her.

Lyle looked across at her with a sinister smile, his eyebrow arching. "I am, aren't I?" he purred huskily, reaching for the button to stop the car before he backed her up against the wall. "Everything I said was true though," he added, shrugging one shoulder.

"And every one of his threats to kill you is equally true," Parker gave back, linking her arms around his neck loosely, angling her head to the side when he lightly kissed her neck. "You turn your back on him, you drop your guard for a second, he will kill you."

"Good thing that I don't plan on letting him out of the cuffs then," he whispered against her skin before drawing away. He smiled at her, leaning his forehead lightly against hers. "Don't tell me you're worried about what the rat will do to me?" he teased her lightly.

"Don't be an ass. You would do well in not underestimating him. He will kill you," she stated adamantly, her hand sliding up from around his neck to tangle into his hair, her eyes closing.

"He won't get the chance," Lyle assured her, serious now. He tightened his arms around her waist, holding her firmly against him. "We struck a blow today, shattered his naïve illusions of the world. He's angry and dangerous, I know this, I expected it. He doesn't get out of the cuffs unless I say so."

"Don't let him suck you into the false submission that he used on you last time. He will try that to get out of the cuffs, and kill you. You've pushed him too far this time."

"What can I say? I like to live dangerously," Lyle winked at her playfully. "Trust me Parker. I have everything worked out this time; the cuffs are going to be a permanent fixture, security will be tighter." He looked around the elevator, scanning, as if he could see beyond the metal walls. "This old place needs some work to bring it up to speed, make it impossible for him to escape."

"You have big plans, baby brother," she murmured, smiling at him affectionately as she stroked her hand against his cheek lightly, watching the glitter of excitement in his eyes. For too long he had been standing on the sideline, watching what the others did to the Centre, allowing it to become rundown. Security that was once top of the line was now little more than a joke.

"Big plans," he agreed with a boyish grin. Kissing her deeply, Lyle then released her and slammed the button with the side of his fist, setting the car going again. They couldn't spend all day in the elevator - as much fun as it would be - there were things that needed attention now.



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