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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer and other information in part one.
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I am now alone in my office, thankfully. I'd also made sure my lovely secretary understood that no one was to enter without my express permission. For once I am actually putting her to use!
I sit quietly, absently swirling the vodka that resides in the tumbler in my good hand.
Raines is back. Somehow, someway, he escaped Mutumbo's clutches and came back relatively unscathed. And by "relatively unscathed" I mean "a Bible-thumping sociopath." Kind of an oxymoron, if you ask me, especially after everything the "good doctor" has done. (Including, of course, the formation of my little personality quirks.)
He's back, and I seriously doubt he's going to take my takeover lying down. After all, this entire situation only came about by his own little attempt at a coup d'etat, which I promptly took from him. In fact, he's probably scheming on how to take over now that dear old Dad has disappeared to who-knows-where. The only person standing in his way is myself, and I doubt he has any issues with taking me out of the game for good.
And all had been going so well. Raines and Dad were gone, dragged off by Mutumbo. My dear sister was--is--safely tucked away at Saint Catherine's (Rather fitting, don't you think?) under suicide watch (She, of course, is about as likely to commit suicide as Broots is to do something that isn't asked of him. Really, he's quite lazy! I always have to intimidate him to get him to do anything, though less so now that his protector is lying drugged up in the hospital.). Family history can be a powerful tool. Jarod was happily imprisoned several floors below me, and we were actually on the trail of his misfit family.
Things were, for once, looking up. Then again, what goes up (or perhaps even looks up), must come down. Karma, or at least physics, can be a real bitch.
I think that, unfortunately, in order to secure my position and make sure everything works out, I'm going to need Parker's help. That means I need to let her out of the hospital so she can be breathing down my neck in a rather displeasing way.
Perfect.
Oh well. I'm sure that I can use her to track down Jarod. Or make him come to us, actually. Because, you know, they don't have any leftover feelings from when they were kids. Not at all. Nooo.
A plan is beginning to form in my mind as to how I might be able to use her (No, no, not in that way, unfortunately!). I can't help but think that maybe, just maybe, things can still work out for me, even after going so horribly awry.
Now I just need to finalize a few plans, then call Saint Catherine's and let Sis out. With any luck, I can put the plan into motion by this evening.
-----
I roll up to my sister's house and kill the engine. Time to see if I can convince my dear sibling to join me tomorrow for what will be her and Jarod's meeting last meeting. At least in this world, that is.
I sneak into the house unnoticed. Lucky for me, she's enraptured by a video that's playing on a camera. I can hear our father's voice talking about family and trusting me (That's a laugh and a half!). The old man is either playing straight into my hands and not realizing it, or there's more going on than what meets the eye. It probably has to do with that bitch Brigette. She always seemed to have it out for me (even when she was sleeping with me).
Dad's voice sounds a little rough around the edges, which means he's probably fallen on hard times. Good. I hope he stays away forever or Mutumbo catches up to him. His time is done. It's my time to shine. His legacy has been taken over (perhaps prematurely, in his view) by his son. I'm the head of this little tyranny he calls a family now.
Parker is still completely oblivious to my presence. No wonder she never catches Jarod! She wouldn't know if he was in the same room with her until he was out of it! Why my father had her work on this project I will never quite understand.
"Don't forget: 'A family is a tyranny-'"
Time to make my presence known and play doting brother!
"'-ruled over by its weakest member," I finish for him, coming up behind dear Miss Parker, no longer hiding my presence. She slams the camera onto the end table in shock, and I'm sure that, if I could see her face, I would be greeted with the sight of her closed eyes and tense face. Oh yes, I love fucking with her head.
"Thank God you're safe! You had me worried!" Did that sound too phony? I'm always concerned about how my acting is. Too bad I can't ask for honest feedback.
"About what? That suicidal sis might play a little game of razor roulette?" she hisses, clearly not believing me. I guess that's all the feedback I'm gonna get. Time to kick it up a notch.
I look down at the floor, acting a bit abashed by her anger. "The suicide watch was for your own protection." Yeah, sure, when "protection" means "kept the hell out of my way for a few days so I can finalize my plans to kill you." That's protection, right?
"Oooh," she nods while grinning. I really don't think she's buying this.
"Not perfect, but it was all I could think of. The more others thought you were a non-factor, the safer you'd be." Yeah. . .that sounds plausible enough. I love my moments of genius inspiration!
"Others?" she questions, sound like she's starting to believe me. Yes! I am awesome! (Already knew this.) I am the greatest actor in Blue Cove! (Okay, that's not saying much, but it's a start.)
"The same ones that got to Raines, that put the scare into our father." You know, it's really hard to be vague but specific at the same time. I'll have to work on that when I have some spare time.
"Which conveniently puts you in charge." Damn, she's not believing me any more and her tone has just become accusing once again. It seems to be the only one she has around me. She really needs to work on that.
"Mutumbo snaps, I jump. Guilty." Even she understands that Mutumbo is one crazy fucker and it's prudent to do what he says rather than try to negotiate with him. Anyone that has ever tried it has ended up in a hole approximately six feet deep.
"You and your team. . . I know all about your covert division. Mr. White. Silence." She's glaring at the back of my head, and I can just about feel my hair starting on fire with her gaze. Ouch. How the hell did she find all that out so quickly? Well, I'll just have to work with it. Already I have a plan beginning to form.
I spin around to face her and say, "Good, because I need your help. Look." She just turned away from me, arrogant bitch. I'm trying to explain something I just made up five seconds ago! The least she can do is give me her full attention! "I'm being straight here. Silence is a Level A contract! The last thing I needed was for Jarod to escape and make this his cause!" Somehow, I think I knew I'd end up having to deal with Jarod trying to ruin my plans. He always does, and for no real good reason either. So what if one insignificant family (to his life, anyway) dies. Thousands of people die every single day! Why doesn't he go and try to fuck up someone else's plans for once!
Parker walks away from me and grabs a bottle. How typical. That woman is going to die of a diseased liver in the next ten years. That is, if I don't get to her first.
"Careful, you're sweating," she hisses. Always hissing at me! I'm her brother! I at least pretend to be nice to her. She could do the same!
"Well, with Jarod hovering I'd be stupid not to." My sister is an alcoholic. I think I have the worst family in the history of families. Well, second worst. The first one was just a bit worse, what with the beatings and such. She pours herself a glass of some random (and probably expensive, knowing her) alcohol, and then points at me with it. She's gotten quite good at gesticulating with a glass in her hand, I'll give her that, I guess.
"You botch a Level A and you'll need my prayers, not my help." She moves to walk away to some other part of the house, but I get in her way. Time to start "pleading!"
"I need my sister. I've always been a survivor, Parker, but in the past year since I found my father and you I've realized it's not just me against the world." I am so damn good at creating bullshit. If I didn't enjoy my job so much, I might have once considered a career change to lawyer. God knows bullshitting is a necessary skill for lawyers!
She walks past me slowly, going to sit down, and says breathlessly, "I hear the world's changing." Good. She's still in pain and not in top form. This helps me even more.
"And one look into Dad's eyes confirms that," I say, grabbing the camera and showing it to her. "And like it or not, you and I are it. Let's fight for it. For us. For him." The undertones in that little speech are amazing. She may be my sister (according to Jarod, at least), but that doesn't mean I don't find her damn attractive. If I had things my way, sister or no, she'd be in that little shed behind my closet, and we'd be having lots of fun right about now. Well, fun for me at least! I've always wondered what it would take to break her.
"We'll see," she replies, glaring at me. Somehow I get the feeling this will all depend on how hungover and how drugged up she is in the morning. Time to pull out the wildcard.
"You know that Jarod will most likely make an appearance, and if you get him, especially with the all the rearranging going on at The Centre. . ." I let that hang in the air, hoping it'll be enough to convince her.
"We'll see," she repeats, but she's obviously thinking about it now. She takes a sip of her alcohol, then says, "Get out of my house." She is not a good hostess. She needs to learn some manners! I guess after tomorrow they'll be moot anyway, but still. It's like she was raised in a shed, and I would know, because I was raised in a shed!
I nod and walk toward the door, stopping briefly to rest my hand on her shoulder. I can feel her immediately tense up and I notice her sharp intake of breath. I probably just made her strain her back a bit. Good.
"Be safe." And with that, I'm gone. I need to rest up before tomorrow. I need to get an early start and double check that everything is going to be in proper working order.
-----
I have just gotten off of the phone with Mr. White, and he assures me that everything is going smoothly thus far. He hasn't seen hide nor hair of Jarod yet, which is good. It, of course, doesn't mean that he isn't going to make an appearance, it just means that for right now, everything is still in order. White says that our contact is still in play, so that means Jarod hasn't gotten to him. Yet.
I can't shake this foreboding feeling. Today just seems off to me. Maybe it's the weather. I never was a fan of cloudy days, especially when I'm on a plane. Somehow I don't like the idea of flying through the air when you can't see anything at all. It's like driving your car through dense fog. Just not fun, in my book.
We start making our final descent and my mind turns to what will happen today. An entire research facility will be leveled, blamed on terrorists or some random extremist group by the government, and the Nash family will be no more. Finally. How they even managed to escape the first time around is beyond me. But, well, the best laid plans. . .
The sweepers are the first off of the plane (which had a bumpy landing, also something I'm not a fan of) and they all manage to pile into a car, while I get into the limo. I love being the boss. Sure, they have a nice sedan to ride in, but I have a minibar. And peanuts! Peanuts are my favorite. I grin as I toss a few into my mouth. Maybe today will work out for the best. After all, down here the sun is shining and everything seems right.
Today is suddenly on again, and it will be a good day.
-----
I'm explaining the plan (For the second time, mind you. Sweepers aren't hired for their brains, you know.) to the sweepers when I notice Miss Parker walking up to us, albeit slowly and carefully. Guess she's not that drugged up after all. I was kind of hoping she'd be a little more out of it so she doesn't notice what's going on until it's too late, but she never was known for figuring things out beforehand. She's not the most observant (or brightest) of the bunch!
"Glad to see you've decided to take up the fight," I say to her as I walk up, the sweepers trailing behind me like good little minions. I wonder, if I poke one with a stick, will he just take it? After all, he is trained to obey me. . . I'll have to try that later.
"I didn't come here to help. I came to catch Jarod," she bites out, turning away and leading us toward the building. I'll let her think she has some semblance of authority. Let her think she's important before she dies. Yeah, I know, I'm just that nice of a guy.
Time to put the plan into motion.
"We'll have a better chance of catching Jarod if we split up. You three take the inside and I'll cover the outside." Let her think I'm giving her the glory. After all, didn't I say I'd do that last night. Oh yes, I'm evil. And I love every moment of it!
"Fine," she says curtly and flings open the door (Must she do that with every single door? No wonder they've had to replace her door twice since I've been at The Centre!), walking inside. I watch them go, then check my watch. Ten minutes.
I head back to the car and grab the paper that's sitting on the seat. My original plan was to read it while waiting for the big bang, but my nerves are preventing me from doing that. This is a Level A. My mind just keeps repeating that, over and over.
I cannot afford to fuck this up. I can only hope that Miss Parker finds Jarod and stops him before he does any real damage, then they all go boom. That would be absolutely perfect. Of course, what are the odds of that happening?
If Jarod doesn't manage to stop Mr. White (Though he assured me he as a way to distract Jarod, but I doubt there's anything that can keep him from saving as many pointless lives as possible, except for maybe information on his family.), I wouldn't be too surprised if he and Parker formed an alliance and managed to get out of there in time. That would be just my luck. And given their history and their obvious feelings for each other, it's entirely possible too.
Sometimes I wonder if Dad even wants Jarod recaptured. Sure, he talks about (like he did last night on the camera), but then he sticks his daughter who has obvious emotional ties to the stupid moron to catch him! Does that make sense? Nooo.
Like I said: second worst family ever. My father is a moron and my sister is an alcoholic. Oh yeah, and my mom was murdered by a jealous (and conniving) friend of my father's. Oh, and they didn't even know I existed until about two years ago.
Alright, maybe Lyle Bowman wasn't quite as bad as the family I'm stuck with now. He's still qualifying as the worst family ever though. Bastard, locking me up in a shed for hours and days on end. . .
My anger is beginning to take control of me, and I can't afford to have that happen right now. I clench a fist and take a deep, steadying breath. The paper is still in my hand and I look at it, the words swimming in front of my eyes.
I check my watch. It's now officially after noon. What. The. Fuck.
I toss the paper down in irritation. I knew something like this would happen! I get out of the car and crash into my dear sister. Oh, fuck.
"Parker." I can't keep the surprise out of my voice. Fuck.
"Our work here is done," she says, handing me the bomb White was supposed to have ensured blew. Jarod's ID tag is clipped to it. I stand up a bit taller and prepare myself for the coming onslaught. All I can do for the moment is use my wonderful acting skills to find out just what happened.
"What? He got away? How?" I demand, looking at the sweepers, who cower under my gaze. Oh, they are going to pay.
"You shouldn't underestimate Jarod. Mm-mm," she says, coldness seeping into her voice. She suddenly steps closer to me, so close our noses are nearly touching. "And you should never underestimate me," she hisses into my ear. I can feel her breath tickling my earlobe, and if it weren't broad daylight in public, something far more entertaining would be happening in about two seconds. "And the next time you send me into a building that's gonna explode. . .it had better blow, because if it doesn't, it'll be your gray matter they'll be mopping up with a toothbrush." Ouch. Not a fun mental image, but she's using a damn sexy voice.
"By the way, Jarod left you something." Bam. Erection gone at the mention of that halfwit's name. Thanks, sis, thanks a lot. I reach for the cardboard box and open the flaps, looking at the contents. That arrogant asshole.
Inside there's jumper cables connected to a sponge. Of course there's a note as well. There's always a note.
See you soon.
-J.
I toss the jumper cables back into the box in disgust and unconsciously wipe my mouth. It's something I do whenever I get annoyed, and I am very annoyed.
"Let's go," I shout at the sweepers, and they instantly pile into the car. I grab the box and toss it in the back of the limo with me and we take off. I look at the note again to make sure I didn't miss anything important (For being such an idiot, he is rather good at hiding clues in his notes.). I flip it over and notice two words printed in his handwriting on the back.
Nothing's forever.
Asshole. I will kill him. It's my new mission in life. Assuming I survive to see another day.
-----
the end.
feedback welcomed at spacedoutwriter@hotmail.com.
I am now alone in my office, thankfully. I'd also made sure my lovely secretary understood that no one was to enter without my express permission. For once I am actually putting her to use!
I sit quietly, absently swirling the vodka that resides in the tumbler in my good hand.
Raines is back. Somehow, someway, he escaped Mutumbo's clutches and came back relatively unscathed. And by "relatively unscathed" I mean "a Bible-thumping sociopath." Kind of an oxymoron, if you ask me, especially after everything the "good doctor" has done. (Including, of course, the formation of my little personality quirks.)
He's back, and I seriously doubt he's going to take my takeover lying down. After all, this entire situation only came about by his own little attempt at a coup d'etat, which I promptly took from him. In fact, he's probably scheming on how to take over now that dear old Dad has disappeared to who-knows-where. The only person standing in his way is myself, and I doubt he has any issues with taking me out of the game for good.
And all had been going so well. Raines and Dad were gone, dragged off by Mutumbo. My dear sister was--is--safely tucked away at Saint Catherine's (Rather fitting, don't you think?) under suicide watch (She, of course, is about as likely to commit suicide as Broots is to do something that isn't asked of him. Really, he's quite lazy! I always have to intimidate him to get him to do anything, though less so now that his protector is lying drugged up in the hospital.). Family history can be a powerful tool. Jarod was happily imprisoned several floors below me, and we were actually on the trail of his misfit family.
Things were, for once, looking up. Then again, what goes up (or perhaps even looks up), must come down. Karma, or at least physics, can be a real bitch.
I think that, unfortunately, in order to secure my position and make sure everything works out, I'm going to need Parker's help. That means I need to let her out of the hospital so she can be breathing down my neck in a rather displeasing way.
Perfect.
Oh well. I'm sure that I can use her to track down Jarod. Or make him come to us, actually. Because, you know, they don't have any leftover feelings from when they were kids. Not at all. Nooo.
A plan is beginning to form in my mind as to how I might be able to use her (No, no, not in that way, unfortunately!). I can't help but think that maybe, just maybe, things can still work out for me, even after going so horribly awry.
Now I just need to finalize a few plans, then call Saint Catherine's and let Sis out. With any luck, I can put the plan into motion by this evening.
I roll up to my sister's house and kill the engine. Time to see if I can convince my dear sibling to join me tomorrow for what will be her and Jarod's meeting last meeting. At least in this world, that is.
I sneak into the house unnoticed. Lucky for me, she's enraptured by a video that's playing on a camera. I can hear our father's voice talking about family and trusting me (That's a laugh and a half!). The old man is either playing straight into my hands and not realizing it, or there's more going on than what meets the eye. It probably has to do with that bitch Brigette. She always seemed to have it out for me (even when she was sleeping with me).
Dad's voice sounds a little rough around the edges, which means he's probably fallen on hard times. Good. I hope he stays away forever or Mutumbo catches up to him. His time is done. It's my time to shine. His legacy has been taken over (perhaps prematurely, in his view) by his son. I'm the head of this little tyranny he calls a family now.
Parker is still completely oblivious to my presence. No wonder she never catches Jarod! She wouldn't know if he was in the same room with her until he was out of it! Why my father had her work on this project I will never quite understand.
"Don't forget: 'A family is a tyranny-'"
Time to make my presence known and play doting brother!
"'-ruled over by its weakest member," I finish for him, coming up behind dear Miss Parker, no longer hiding my presence. She slams the camera onto the end table in shock, and I'm sure that, if I could see her face, I would be greeted with the sight of her closed eyes and tense face. Oh yes, I love fucking with her head.
"Thank God you're safe! You had me worried!" Did that sound too phony? I'm always concerned about how my acting is. Too bad I can't ask for honest feedback.
"About what? That suicidal sis might play a little game of razor roulette?" she hisses, clearly not believing me. I guess that's all the feedback I'm gonna get. Time to kick it up a notch.
I look down at the floor, acting a bit abashed by her anger. "The suicide watch was for your own protection." Yeah, sure, when "protection" means "kept the hell out of my way for a few days so I can finalize my plans to kill you." That's protection, right?
"Oooh," she nods while grinning. I really don't think she's buying this.
"Not perfect, but it was all I could think of. The more others thought you were a non-factor, the safer you'd be." Yeah. . .that sounds plausible enough. I love my moments of genius inspiration!
"Others?" she questions, sound like she's starting to believe me. Yes! I am awesome! (Already knew this.) I am the greatest actor in Blue Cove! (Okay, that's not saying much, but it's a start.)
"The same ones that got to Raines, that put the scare into our father." You know, it's really hard to be vague but specific at the same time. I'll have to work on that when I have some spare time.
"Which conveniently puts you in charge." Damn, she's not believing me any more and her tone has just become accusing once again. It seems to be the only one she has around me. She really needs to work on that.
"Mutumbo snaps, I jump. Guilty." Even she understands that Mutumbo is one crazy fucker and it's prudent to do what he says rather than try to negotiate with him. Anyone that has ever tried it has ended up in a hole approximately six feet deep.
"You and your team. . . I know all about your covert division. Mr. White. Silence." She's glaring at the back of my head, and I can just about feel my hair starting on fire with her gaze. Ouch. How the hell did she find all that out so quickly? Well, I'll just have to work with it. Already I have a plan beginning to form.
I spin around to face her and say, "Good, because I need your help. Look." She just turned away from me, arrogant bitch. I'm trying to explain something I just made up five seconds ago! The least she can do is give me her full attention! "I'm being straight here. Silence is a Level A contract! The last thing I needed was for Jarod to escape and make this his cause!" Somehow, I think I knew I'd end up having to deal with Jarod trying to ruin my plans. He always does, and for no real good reason either. So what if one insignificant family (to his life, anyway) dies. Thousands of people die every single day! Why doesn't he go and try to fuck up someone else's plans for once!
Parker walks away from me and grabs a bottle. How typical. That woman is going to die of a diseased liver in the next ten years. That is, if I don't get to her first.
"Careful, you're sweating," she hisses. Always hissing at me! I'm her brother! I at least pretend to be nice to her. She could do the same!
"Well, with Jarod hovering I'd be stupid not to." My sister is an alcoholic. I think I have the worst family in the history of families. Well, second worst. The first one was just a bit worse, what with the beatings and such. She pours herself a glass of some random (and probably expensive, knowing her) alcohol, and then points at me with it. She's gotten quite good at gesticulating with a glass in her hand, I'll give her that, I guess.
"You botch a Level A and you'll need my prayers, not my help." She moves to walk away to some other part of the house, but I get in her way. Time to start "pleading!"
"I need my sister. I've always been a survivor, Parker, but in the past year since I found my father and you I've realized it's not just me against the world." I am so damn good at creating bullshit. If I didn't enjoy my job so much, I might have once considered a career change to lawyer. God knows bullshitting is a necessary skill for lawyers!
She walks past me slowly, going to sit down, and says breathlessly, "I hear the world's changing." Good. She's still in pain and not in top form. This helps me even more.
"And one look into Dad's eyes confirms that," I say, grabbing the camera and showing it to her. "And like it or not, you and I are it. Let's fight for it. For us. For him." The undertones in that little speech are amazing. She may be my sister (according to Jarod, at least), but that doesn't mean I don't find her damn attractive. If I had things my way, sister or no, she'd be in that little shed behind my closet, and we'd be having lots of fun right about now. Well, fun for me at least! I've always wondered what it would take to break her.
"We'll see," she replies, glaring at me. Somehow I get the feeling this will all depend on how hungover and how drugged up she is in the morning. Time to pull out the wildcard.
"You know that Jarod will most likely make an appearance, and if you get him, especially with the all the rearranging going on at The Centre. . ." I let that hang in the air, hoping it'll be enough to convince her.
"We'll see," she repeats, but she's obviously thinking about it now. She takes a sip of her alcohol, then says, "Get out of my house." She is not a good hostess. She needs to learn some manners! I guess after tomorrow they'll be moot anyway, but still. It's like she was raised in a shed, and I would know, because I was raised in a shed!
I nod and walk toward the door, stopping briefly to rest my hand on her shoulder. I can feel her immediately tense up and I notice her sharp intake of breath. I probably just made her strain her back a bit. Good.
"Be safe." And with that, I'm gone. I need to rest up before tomorrow. I need to get an early start and double check that everything is going to be in proper working order.
I have just gotten off of the phone with Mr. White, and he assures me that everything is going smoothly thus far. He hasn't seen hide nor hair of Jarod yet, which is good. It, of course, doesn't mean that he isn't going to make an appearance, it just means that for right now, everything is still in order. White says that our contact is still in play, so that means Jarod hasn't gotten to him. Yet.
I can't shake this foreboding feeling. Today just seems off to me. Maybe it's the weather. I never was a fan of cloudy days, especially when I'm on a plane. Somehow I don't like the idea of flying through the air when you can't see anything at all. It's like driving your car through dense fog. Just not fun, in my book.
We start making our final descent and my mind turns to what will happen today. An entire research facility will be leveled, blamed on terrorists or some random extremist group by the government, and the Nash family will be no more. Finally. How they even managed to escape the first time around is beyond me. But, well, the best laid plans. . .
The sweepers are the first off of the plane (which had a bumpy landing, also something I'm not a fan of) and they all manage to pile into a car, while I get into the limo. I love being the boss. Sure, they have a nice sedan to ride in, but I have a minibar. And peanuts! Peanuts are my favorite. I grin as I toss a few into my mouth. Maybe today will work out for the best. After all, down here the sun is shining and everything seems right.
Today is suddenly on again, and it will be a good day.
I'm explaining the plan (For the second time, mind you. Sweepers aren't hired for their brains, you know.) to the sweepers when I notice Miss Parker walking up to us, albeit slowly and carefully. Guess she's not that drugged up after all. I was kind of hoping she'd be a little more out of it so she doesn't notice what's going on until it's too late, but she never was known for figuring things out beforehand. She's not the most observant (or brightest) of the bunch!
"Glad to see you've decided to take up the fight," I say to her as I walk up, the sweepers trailing behind me like good little minions. I wonder, if I poke one with a stick, will he just take it? After all, he is trained to obey me. . . I'll have to try that later.
"I didn't come here to help. I came to catch Jarod," she bites out, turning away and leading us toward the building. I'll let her think she has some semblance of authority. Let her think she's important before she dies. Yeah, I know, I'm just that nice of a guy.
Time to put the plan into motion.
"We'll have a better chance of catching Jarod if we split up. You three take the inside and I'll cover the outside." Let her think I'm giving her the glory. After all, didn't I say I'd do that last night. Oh yes, I'm evil. And I love every moment of it!
"Fine," she says curtly and flings open the door (Must she do that with every single door? No wonder they've had to replace her door twice since I've been at The Centre!), walking inside. I watch them go, then check my watch. Ten minutes.
I head back to the car and grab the paper that's sitting on the seat. My original plan was to read it while waiting for the big bang, but my nerves are preventing me from doing that. This is a Level A. My mind just keeps repeating that, over and over.
I cannot afford to fuck this up. I can only hope that Miss Parker finds Jarod and stops him before he does any real damage, then they all go boom. That would be absolutely perfect. Of course, what are the odds of that happening?
If Jarod doesn't manage to stop Mr. White (Though he assured me he as a way to distract Jarod, but I doubt there's anything that can keep him from saving as many pointless lives as possible, except for maybe information on his family.), I wouldn't be too surprised if he and Parker formed an alliance and managed to get out of there in time. That would be just my luck. And given their history and their obvious feelings for each other, it's entirely possible too.
Sometimes I wonder if Dad even wants Jarod recaptured. Sure, he talks about (like he did last night on the camera), but then he sticks his daughter who has obvious emotional ties to the stupid moron to catch him! Does that make sense? Nooo.
Like I said: second worst family ever. My father is a moron and my sister is an alcoholic. Oh yeah, and my mom was murdered by a jealous (and conniving) friend of my father's. Oh, and they didn't even know I existed until about two years ago.
Alright, maybe Lyle Bowman wasn't quite as bad as the family I'm stuck with now. He's still qualifying as the worst family ever though. Bastard, locking me up in a shed for hours and days on end. . .
My anger is beginning to take control of me, and I can't afford to have that happen right now. I clench a fist and take a deep, steadying breath. The paper is still in my hand and I look at it, the words swimming in front of my eyes.
I check my watch. It's now officially after noon. What. The. Fuck.
I toss the paper down in irritation. I knew something like this would happen! I get out of the car and crash into my dear sister. Oh, fuck.
"Parker." I can't keep the surprise out of my voice. Fuck.
"Our work here is done," she says, handing me the bomb White was supposed to have ensured blew. Jarod's ID tag is clipped to it. I stand up a bit taller and prepare myself for the coming onslaught. All I can do for the moment is use my wonderful acting skills to find out just what happened.
"What? He got away? How?" I demand, looking at the sweepers, who cower under my gaze. Oh, they are going to pay.
"You shouldn't underestimate Jarod. Mm-mm," she says, coldness seeping into her voice. She suddenly steps closer to me, so close our noses are nearly touching. "And you should never underestimate me," she hisses into my ear. I can feel her breath tickling my earlobe, and if it weren't broad daylight in public, something far more entertaining would be happening in about two seconds. "And the next time you send me into a building that's gonna explode. . .it had better blow, because if it doesn't, it'll be your gray matter they'll be mopping up with a toothbrush." Ouch. Not a fun mental image, but she's using a damn sexy voice.
"By the way, Jarod left you something." Bam. Erection gone at the mention of that halfwit's name. Thanks, sis, thanks a lot. I reach for the cardboard box and open the flaps, looking at the contents. That arrogant asshole.
Inside there's jumper cables connected to a sponge. Of course there's a note as well. There's always a note.
See you soon.
-J.
I toss the jumper cables back into the box in disgust and unconsciously wipe my mouth. It's something I do whenever I get annoyed, and I am very annoyed.
"Let's go," I shout at the sweepers, and they instantly pile into the car. I grab the box and toss it in the back of the limo with me and we take off. I look at the note again to make sure I didn't miss anything important (For being such an idiot, he is rather good at hiding clues in his notes.). I flip it over and notice two words printed in his handwriting on the back.
Nothing's forever.
Asshole. I will kill him. It's my new mission in life. Assuming I survive to see another day.
the end.
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