1. Chapter 1 by Thara
2. Chapter 2 by Thara
3. Chapter 3 by Thara
4. Chapter 4 by Thara
5. Chapter 5 by Thara
6. Chapter 6 by Thara
7. Chapter 7 by Thara
8. Chapter 8 by Thara
9. Chapter 9 by Thara
10. Chapter 10 by Thara
11. Chapter 11 by Thara
12. Chapter 12 by Thara
“Okay. You know where I was used to go when I was young. Ten o’clock?”
“Okay.”
“She’s alive.”
Her mother? Alive?!
No way …
She had died years ago in a Centre lift.
It hadn’t been suicide like she had been told for years, but her mother was still dead.
There was no way she could be alive.
Now she got really angry.
“Jarod, what are you talking about?! My Mum’s dead and you know it! Why do you have to torture me like this?!”
“Miss Parker, I’m not torturing you … It’s true. I know it for sure. And I know that it must be a big shock for you. But it’s really true. Believe me. I would never lie to you. I thought you knew that I’ve always told you the truth. Ever since we’ve met at the Centre ages ago.”
She looked at him as if she wasn’t sure if she could believe him.
“How?” was all she could manage to say.
“I don’t know much either, Miss Parker. But about two weeks ago I found out where my father was staying. And I went to see him. And I found him. And last week, we were able to find my Mum and my sister, Emily. And a few days ago, we’ve met for the first time. They’ve told me a lot of things. Things you should know.
Did you know that our mothers have been friends even before your Mum got to know your father? I couldn’t believe what they’ve told me. There was so much even I had no idea of. Cruel things that have to do with the Centre and wonderful things that have to do with your and my past. And then my Mum started to tell me stories about your Mum and that they together had planned to save us and how their plan had failed and your Mum had to fake her own death.”
Miss Parker interrupted him.
“My Mum’s really alive?”
“Yes.”
“Wow.”
She closed her eyes for a moment and when she opened them again there were tears she could no longer keep back from falling.
It had been too much for her …
She sobbed and Jarod blamed himself for it. He could have told her this fact in a more sensitive way. And so he didn’t waste any thought about what he was going to do next.
He just took her into his arms and tried to sooth her with gentle words.
When she seemed to be calm enough to listen he started again.
“I’m sorry, Parker. I should have know about your reaction.”
She was still embraced and so her face wasn’t far away from his when she looked up and into his eyes.
“You’re sorry, Jarod? For what? You’ve just told me that the one thing I haven’t dared for years to dream of is true. That my Mum whom I’ve missed for so many years is still alive. You don’t have to be sorry. I should thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me. I’m just happy that I could help you and that I’ve finally found my family. It’s just human to want to share the feeling of happiness.”
“I don’t know anyone else as unselfish as you, Jarod …”
“It’s not selfish …”
“Jarod?”
“Would you come with me to my apartment? I guess you could use a powerful coffee or something like that. And I could tell you everything I’ve found out about your Mum.”
“I would love to. - And you’ve been right, Jarod. I won’t be trying to bring you back to the Centre. Never again.”
P.S. You know the game: You review, I write => update! ;-) THX to my personal reviewer.
Still not mine ... *sighs*
I guess the following chapters will become very short ... but, well ... there's no getting around ...
Jarod’s apartment
He opened the door and let her step inside.She looked around and was really surprised to see a normal furnished apartment. Normally, he just had a few things like a bed and a desk. But this flat really looked as if he had been living her for month.
Jarod knew exactly was she was wondering about when he followed her gaze.“Lately, I haven’t been moving around as much as in the last years.”
“No wonder after you’ve found the family you’ve been searching for for so many years. I’m really glad that you’ve finally found them, Jarod.”He looked at her and he could see the honesty in her blue eyes.
“Maybe you should sit down while I make some coffee. I’ll be back in a minute.”So she sat down on his sofa.
It was so crazy to sit in one of Jarod’s accommodations with him in the next room, waiting for news about her mother …When he came back with the coffee she was still so deep in thoughts that she didn’t even take any notice of him when he settled down next to her and put the cup of coffee in front of her.
After a couple of minutes, she noticed him.“Oh, sorry, Jarod … I was just …”
“Thinking?”“Yeah.”
She sipped at her coffee.“Jarod?” – “Parker?”
They both began at the same moment and both smiled.“Okay, you go first, Parker.”
“Don’t you find it crazy that I’m here with you and you’re going to tell me about my Mum?”“Kind of. But that’s not important. I trust you because you trust me. And that’s all. I guess I really should start to tell you the things I know, shouldn’t I?”
She nodded.„Okay. As you know Catherine wanted to safe us. And like we all know, her plan failed. But I now know they my Mum had helped her with this plan. I’m going to meet her and the rest of my family in a couple of days. You could join us and then my Mum can tell you more about how they’ve met. But for now, that’s not the point. Their plan failed and your Mum decided to disappear. She wanted to come back later and fulfil the plan. But things at the Centre got complicated and her ally at the Centre got killed. So she had no other chance than to wait. She still sometimes watched you. But then, after a few years, you were sent to boarding school and she didn’t know where you were. Only by luck, she saw you – years later – in town. And then she knew you were back. But ever since you’ve been working for the Centre you were observed by your father’s Sweepers, so she had no chance to talk to you or anything like that.
It would be too dangerous to be seen by employees of the Centre. And it would have been too dangerous for the two of them to contact you.My parents have met her from time to time. The first time after her faked death was only luck and then they arranged meetings every few month. Always somewhere else. She always tells them that they should tell you about her should they ever meet you. And when we met it was one of the first things they said to me.
I guess you can image how shocked I was when one of the first sentences my Mum said was ‘Catherine’s alive’…”He ended his report and looked at her.
“When will they meet?”“About two months from now.“
She closed her eyes and tried to took deep breaths. Inhaling, exhaling, inhaling, exhaling …“You okay?“
„I guess I will be in about two month from now.“
P.S. PLEASE review ... I'm really the kind of girl that needs motivation ...
“I hope that you will be.”
“Not as much as I do, Jarod.”“That’s true.”
She looked at her watch. I was already Saturday.“Do you want me to drive you home?”
“You think that would be wise?”“No.”
“Then I guess I should better walk alone.”“Okay.”
“When are you’re going to see your parents next?”“Soon.”
“Can I come with you.”“Sure. If you want to. My Mum’s already looking forward to it.“
“Okay. So you’re gonna call me …”It wasn’t a question.
Just a simple statement ‘cause she knew for sure that he would always call her.
She spent the next day searching through her whole house for every kind of thing that belonged to her mother.
But she soon recognized that her father had done a lot to not remind her of Catherine.She only found a few pictures, letters and jewellery.
It was enough to make her cry half the day.And when the night came she was so exhausted that she fell asleep very early and woke up to her alarm clock the next morning.
She took a shower and thought about Jarod and her Mum. Without him, she would never have know that she was still alive, that she hadn’t died years ago …Jarod had been so kind. And he had trusted her. He had risked his own security to tell her what he knew.
She didn’t know anyone else who would have done anything like this for her. Not even her Dad. Especially, not her Dad …So, when she drove to the Centre, she tried to not waste any thoughts on her horrible past, but on the future she could have, all the time she would spend with her Mum …
That’s why she looked happy when she met Broots that Monday morning …
And she really hoped that he would have a reason to get used to her good mood …
The next two weeks past by without any lead or phone call …
Slowly, she got really worried and fell back to her old bad mood.Broots and Sydney already looked at her suspiciously from time to time.
But she tried to ignore them and their looks.Jarod would call her. She had to believe in him. He had always kept his promises.
And on an Saturday evening, when she was already sleeping her mobile phone rang and Jarod told her that it was time and that she should come to the same place they’ve met last time.She quickly got dressed and walked to their meeting point where Jarod was waiting for her.
He greeted her with a quick hug and gave her a bag with leather clothes.“You have to put them on. I’m here with my bike.”
He turned around to give her some privacy and she changed into the bike clothes.She put the things she had been wearing into the bag and stepped in front of Jarod.
“I’m ready.”He handed her a helmet and she followed him to the place where he had hidden his bike.
They didn’t spoke much.She was too exited to learn more about her mother. And he knew it.
They rode for hours and it was already morning when they arrived in a little village.He parked his bike in front of a very cheap looking motel.
“We’re here.”She gave him a questioning look.
“My parents are going to arrive her in a few hours. I guess we should go in and sleep for a few hours. You really could use some sleep, Parker.”She angrily looked at him.
“You’re so nice, Jarod!”“I mean you’re going to need a lot of energy. When my Mum starts talking you can’t easily stop her.”
He smiled at her and she grinned.“I always knew that it was in your genes, Jarod.”
“Thanks, Parker.”He entered the motel lobby and she followed him.
Jarod received the key to their room.“One room, Jarod?!”
“Yeah, I thought it wouldn’t be as suspicious as if we’d take two rooms. Besides, I’ve told the man at the reception that I’d need a room for my wife and me.”“You’re enjoying this quite too much, Jarod!”
She playfully blamed him.„Well, kinda ...“
He opened their room and grinned when he saw the big bed and no couch.“I’m also tired, Parker.”
“You know that I’m going to pay this back to you as soon as I get the chance to.”“I hope so …”
She looked at him, but couldn’t decide how serious he’d been about this statement.
So she just decided to go to the bathroom, change into her old clothes and get some sleep.Fifty minutes later she was ready to welcome Jarod’s parents. She was wearing a dress Jarod had bought her while she had been asleep. It reminded her of one outfit her mother had once worn: Brown and very mundane with sleeves which became wider and wider. It had a little touch of the seventies, but she liked it. Of course she liked it, Jarod had bought it …
“Oh, I hope you don’t mind if I call you Melissa. It’s just that your Mum always talks about her ‘little daughter Melissa’ when we meet. And when you were young your parents used your name.”
“I know.” She sighed. “Of course, you can call me Melissa if you want to. And I’m sorry, but I really do not remember you, Mrs. Russel.”
Maggie grinned.
“It’s no wonder. You were only about four years old, when you saw me the last time. And it’s ‘Maggie’.”
“Thanks ...“
Major Charles and his daughter observed the scene in front of them like they always did.
Melissa really seemed to be like Catherine in a lot of ways: Her initial insecurity which quickly would change into self- confidence which helped her to reach her goals and protect people, her outer appearance, the look on her face when she was worried, the lovingly glance when she looked at Jarod, the way she could communicate without words … But on the other hand, she was very different: She tried to act uninvolved to prevent herself from getting hurt. The way she mistrusted people.
Major Charles decided that all the good things her mother had passed on her hadn’t protect her from being influenced by her father and the Centre.
But he was optimistic that she would change in the future. Yeah, a look to Jarod was enough to be sure that he would help her to discover who she really was.
“Okay, I’m sure there’s a lot you want to know about your Mum, Melissa. So I think it would be wise if we would just sit down and you ask me everything you want to know and I’m going to try to answer your questions. Okay?”
“That’ll be nice …”
So they all sat down and talked for hours. Well, Maggie talked most of the time and Melissa just asked her question after question and sometimes told Maggie what she could remember about her mother.
Maggie explained to her that the two of them had met one summer when they were still teenagers. From that year on, they had tried to meet as often as they could. But then Catherine met Mr. Parker and was very busy with the work at the Centre and then later with her daughter. Plus the fact that Mr. Parker didn’t want her to spend time with other women who didn’t belong to the centre. So they weren’t able to meet very often. But despite this fact, Maggie had got to know Melissa a bit. And Catherine had known Jarod from the day he was born.
Maggie also told her that she and Jarod had met for the first time when she had been a baby.
Melissa was very surprised to hear that she and Jarod had known each other so long without knowing it.
But, like Maggie said, then everything had started getting worse: Jarod had been kidnapped and when Maggie told her this, Catherine immediately knew that it had to do with the Centre. That’s when she had decided to free Jarod.
But it had cost her years to work out a plan. And, like Melissa already knew, it had failed.
Hoping that they would soon see their son again, Maggie and Charles had moved to another town only Catherine knew about. And when they realized that it hadn’t worked out they soon went to another state, still optimistic that Catherine would find them.
“And the rest is history.”
Emily ended her mother’s recitation.
“Yeah, Jarod had already told me the rest.“
“And now you’re going to see your Mum in about six weeks from now.”
Jarod added.
She just nodded.
“Is there anything we could do for you at the moment, Melissa?”
It was the Major who really looked concerned.
“I’m just tired. I guess I should get some sleep. Yeah, that’s what I need.”
“Okay, then I guess we all leave you alone and see you in the morning at breakfast. Okay?”
“Yeah, thanks, Maggie.”
Emily hugged her, followed by her Dad and then her Mum.
Major Charles paused at the door.
“Jarod, are you coming?“
Melissa smirked when she saw Jarod’s cheeks getting red.
“No, Dad. Actually, Melissa and I share this room.“
Charles only hesitated for a moment, but then only tried to not grin and closed the door.
“Are you okay, Melissa?”
“It’s the first time that you use my name talking to me, not your family.”
It was a simple statement.
“Not the first time. Remember when we were young … “
“Okay, not the first time. But the first time in a long time.”
“That’s right … well …”
“Well, what, Jarod?”
“Oh, nothing.”
“Jarod?!”
“I was just thinking.”
“Yeah, that’s one of your many talents. – So, what were you thinking about?”
“About the fact that we know each other nearly our whole lives.”
“You didn’t know it before today?”
“My Mum never mentioned it.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. I always thought that the first time we met was at the Centre, with the sheet of glass dividing us from each other.”
“I thought so, too.”
“It’s just that at that moment I thought that I felt a connection between us.”
Melissa didn’t say a word. They’d never talked about this before.
“And now I know that it wasn’t love in first sight because we had already known each other for years.”
Melissa looked at him in total shock.
And when he saw the expression on her face he realized what he had just admitted.
“I – I’m sorry, Melissa. I haven’t planned to ever tell you this. I –“
She quickly interrupted him.
“Jarod, I don’t know how to tell you this. But perfectly know what you’ve been talking about. I also felt a connection between us.”
“But that’s not what I apologized for.”
“I know. And I guess we should better talk about this. After you’ve said this it would be wiser not to bury it knowing that it had been said.”
“Yeah.”
She sat down on the bed and motioned for Jarod to do the same.
“Jarod, you know why my father had sent me to the boarding school in Europe.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You were the reason.”
“Why?”
“It’s the Centre. They film EVERY place. So they also filmed us. How I kissed you. That was the day when my father decided that I should never see you again. He knew that I had … feeling for you. And so he began to teach me to hate you. And, as you know, he’d succeeded for quite a long time.”
“Oh … I really didn’t know …”
“That you were the reason or that I have feelings for you.”
“Have?”
“Have …”
“Melissa?”
“Jarod, I know what I’ve just told you. So don’t look at me as if I’m insane …”
“I’m not thinking that you’re insane. I just can’t believe that you’ve admitted that you have feelings for me.”
“Why shouldn’t I?”
“Because you’ve chased me for years.”
“It was my job.”
“It is your job.”
“No, I don’t think so.”
“What are you going to tell me?”
“That I’m not planning to ever return to the Centre. I know that your family is not my family and I only know them for a few hours, but I feel more at home than I have for years. And in about six weeks I’m going to see my mother again. So why should I return?”
“What about Broots and Sydney?”
“I thought we could get them out of that hell …”
“But it’s not that easy. I’ve been trying for years to destroy the Centre.”
“But you’re no longer alone.”
She smiled at him.
“Neither are you, Melissa.”
“I’ve hoped so …”
“Melissa?!
“Yeah …”
“Have you also hoped that I would tell you that I’ve never stopped loving you.”
She swallowed hard.
Now the time had come to really start a new life. Without lies.
“Yeah, I hoped that you would because I hoped that I could be able to do the same.”
He knew that she wasn’t ready to say the words. But they both knew that he knew that she loved him.
And for the moment, that was enough.
THE END