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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Category: MP/C, Centre/Drama
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Up to IOTH
Summary: Part eleven of the Labyrinth Series.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters and am just playing around with them.
“Shortest Day and Longest Night, Winter Coldness Penetrates All” - Madame Estrella
Beta Read by Maestra
Special thanks to Maestra, Riven Rebel Poet, and Bec-Bec!
Solstice
by Madame Estrella
Morning
Miss Parker directed the sweepers to search the other rooms of the small cabin. Broots had discovered the rustic home in the woods of nearby Rising Sun, Delaware while he was watching the evening news in the tech room.
The story was about a car fire and the disappearance of a woman and her young son, whose remains or any other trace of their presence had not been found. Police had told the news that the woman’s name was Emily and were seeking members of her family.
Miss Parker had thought to admonish Broots for watching TV on the job, but this habit of his had led to other significant leads in their past pursuits. After all, they had discovered Kyle when Broots was watching cartoons and now they had discovered the whereabouts of the long dead pretender’s sister.
Or, at least where she had been hiding out. The property’s owner said he hadn’t seen the woman since the car fire had happened and that had been nearly a week before. Aisling / Emily was long gone and so was Parker.
“Did she have anyone else with her, besides the boy?” Miss Parker asked Ralph Owens, the middle-aged man with more than a few pizzas’ on his physique.
“Well, first there was that Bobby fellow, but I didn’t see him after she moved in. She had a lady friend with her the last day she was here.” Ralph replied.
“What did this lady friend look like?” Miss Parker asked narrowing her eyes.
“Kinda thin, had red hair, and a great smile.” Ralph replied. Miss Parker nodded.
“Thank you, Ralph. Would you mind stepping out so that my people can finish processing the scene?” She asked politely, but with a look that said she wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“Sure thing, Agent Parker, anything for the FBI.” He said and took a few steps back to the door before turning back. “Funny thing is, she seemed like such a nice girl.” He said.
“They always do.” Miss Parker said and then turned back to the hallway to examine the bedroom.
*~*~*~*~*
At the Davidson Psychiatric Hospital, Dannie Minor glanced up from his seat by the window as the door opened. He pulled his robe close over his pajamas and peered at the approaching figure from the corners of his hazel eyes.
The woman stopped before him and held out a large paper bag. She was a doctor, though from his vantage point he couldn’t make out her ID. She was slender, with long, curly red hair. She smiled at the man who hesitantly took the bag and peered at its contents. He looked back at her and her green eyes flashed with conspiracy.
“I’m here to get you out of here.” She said in a low New England drawl. “I’m having you discharged as we speak.”
“Who are you?” He asked suspiciously. She smiled back.
“That’s not important.” She replied. She glanced back at the door then back at him. “Do you want to make Mr. Raines pay for what he did to you?” She asked.
Dannie narrowed his eyes as images flashed in his head of the evil man and thoughts of his other self.
“Yes.” He said in a near growl. The woman smiled at him.
“Then you’ll need to change.” She replied.
Dannie stood and looked back at his visitor and then grabbed the bag and headed into the room’s small bathroom before closing the door behind him.
*~*~*~*~*
On SL-23 Raines, Varian Sarff and Johansen Amaru watched through the observation window of the sim lab. This sim lab had been constructed following the destruction of the one on SL-27 and was one of the Centre's best kept secrets.
Within the room, Lyle stood over a young girl. She uneasily fitted the pieces of a physiological abstract together. Once she was finished she glanced up at Lyle, a look of infinite sadness on her face. She was no more than four years old and had shoulder length red hair and blue eyes which looked bright against her fair complexion.
“Where are my mom and my dad?” She asked in a faint voice. Lyle smirked, but drew his facade back to a placid one.
“They are no longer with us, Rowena. I am Lyle, and I will be taking care of you for a while.” He replied.
Within the observation room Raines looked at Amaru and Sarff questioningly.
“Are you sure this is wise?” The old man wheezed. Sarff chuckled and clapped Raines on the shoulder.
“He has been reeducated successfully.” Sarff boasted in his thick German accent, his eyes twinkled behind his round spectacles. “Not to worry, Raines, he is one of my boys.”
Raines shrugged off Sarff’s hand and glanced once more at Lyle and the girl and then back at the two men before he dragged his ever-squealing oxygen tank behind him as he left the room.
“He’s spending too much time with this one; there are other subjects to attend to.” Sarff stated. “An orientation should last no longer than a few minutes.”
Amaru nodded. There were many more indeed that needed to be attended to.
*~*~*~*~*
Miss Parker and Broots looked over what they’d found at the cabin in Rising Sun. It didn’t take them very long, they hadn’t found much.
“The car could have been the one that Emily used to drive away from the airstrip.” Broots said. Miss Parker frowned.
“So they walked out of there, right?” Miss Parker said and then grunted a laugh. “The vehicle model and paint color matches the one that was caught on surveillance at Pakor.”
“The owner of the cabin said she had another woman with her.” Broots said. “She probably had a car.”
Miss Parker rose and looked over surveillance photos taken at the Centre, Triumvirate Station, and at Pakor. She thumbed to the pictures of the car outside the secret facility and shook her head.
“A woman. Well, that shoots our theory that it was Alex.” Miss Parker said somberly. She sighed and set the photos back on her desk and looked at Broots wearily. “It couldn’t have been her mother; Owens described her as being young.”
“Someone else from the Centre perhaps?” Broots asked. Miss Parker nodded.
“Yes, I want all the files of young female redhead staff at the Centre and other Centre facilities.” Miss Parker said as she headed toward the door and looked back at Broots. “And Broots, I wanted them yesterday.”
Broots sighed heavily and then began typing commands on his computer.
Afternoon
A deliveryman strode through the front doors and placed a box addressed to Johansen Amaru on the receptionists’ desk.
She politely signed for the box and thanked the man who then strode out the doors whence he came.
The box was delivered to Johansen and he eyed it suspiciously.
‘A package from Jarod?' He wondered and opened the box the plain brown box. Within the box, covered with ice packs, was a smaller one with a Pakor label. Amaru dug this box out and cut through the tape with a letter opener and slowly opened the lid.
A half-hour later all top-level personnel were called to the boardroom. An ashen Amaru entered the boardroom carrying the box. He set it down before him and met eyes with each of those gathered.
"It seems someone chose to return Triumvirate property this afternoon." Amaru said weakly.
He tilted the box so its contents could be seen by the gathered assemblage.
A pair of brown eyes stared back at them.
Amaru picked up a small card and read its inscription.
"I am watching you, always." He read and then his eyes met with Raines. “I can only assume that these belong to Mutumbo.”
“That’s impossible!” Raines protested. “Brigitte killed Mutumbo.”
“Apparently we were mistaken.” Amaru replied. Miss Parker fidgeted in her seat and glared across the table at Cox.
“Not mistaken, just mislead.” Miss Parker hissed. “The gun used to kill Mutumbo was placed on Brigitte’s person after her death.”
“Is that so?” Amaru asked, agitated. “And just why are you revealing this now?” Miss Parker drew a breath.
“I believe Mr. Parker was involved in a conspiracy to kill Mutumbo and frame Brigitte for the murder. I was a suspect, so I thought it wise to not be the one to reveal this, lest someone plant a murder weapon on my own body.” Miss Parker replied.
*~*~*~*~*
After a lengthy shouting match, the occupants of the boardroom spilled out of the room to their designated tasks. Amaru held Miss Parker behind by grabbing her arm.
“What?” She snapped. He glared at her and held her arm more tightly.
“I am reinstating you to head of Centre security.” He replied. She frowned.
“What?” She snapped again in disbelief.
“I want the best person for the job back on the job.” He replied firmly.
“Don’t you need Raines’ approval?” She asked.
“I am the Triumvirate!” He growled. “Your first order of business is to find who sent this package.”
She looked at the grisly remains and sighed before looking back up at Amaru.
“I suppose I have no choice.” She replied.
He released her arm and she carefully picked up the box and closed the lid. He moved behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders and slid them down her arms.
“I know I can count on you, Miss Parker.” He said quietly. She moved away and slid out of his grasp before turning to face him.
“I’m going to find this sick son of a bitch.” She hissed and walked out of the room.
*~*~*~*~*
“Broots!” Miss Parker said as she walked into the Sim Lab.
“Glad to see you made it back in one piece, Miss Parker.” The tech joked before he saw the look on her face. He then averted his eyes from her gaze. She thrust the box into his hands and he nearly dropped it once he saw what was inside.
“Oh my God! Are those real?” He gasped. Miss Parker nodded and Sydney peered into the box as well. She handed Broots the card.
“Mine, Amaru’s and your fingerprints are on that card. I want you to find out who else’s are on it as well.” She said. “I also want DNA tests run on those eyes. I want to make sure they are Mutumbo’s.”
“Mutumbo’s?“ Broots gasped looking at her stunned.
“Is that what the meeting was about?” Sydney asked. Miss Parker nodded.
“As of this afternoon, we are off the search for Jarod. The Centre priority is to find whoever sent this because we believe that they are responsible for Mutumbo’s death. I have been reassigned as head of Centre security.” Miss Parker replied.
“They don’t think Jarod sent this?” Broots asked.
“I don’t think Jarod could have done something like assassinate Mutumbo.” Sydney replied. Miss Parker nodded.
“Me either.” She said. “I also want you to look at the security footage from the lobby. We need to see if we can recall the deliveryman. I also want to interview any witnesses.”
She leveled her gaze with theirs.
“The Centre has a new enemy; it’s our top priority to find out who it is.” She said coldly.
*~*~*~*~*
Alex smelled the perfume before he felt the breath against his cheek.
“Alex.” A woman’s voice whispered. Alex’s eyelids flicked open and he looked at her face.
The red haired woman in the white doctor’s lab coat looked down at him, her green eyes bored into his. She studied him with an expressionless facade and he tried to shift on his bed.
At the tugging he jerked his head up and saw that his wrists and ankles were restrained against the bed rails. He pulled and kicked against them to no avail. He returned his gaze to her and an evil smile spread across her lips. She chuckled at his grunts of frustration as he fought the restraints again.
“What are you doing here?” He yelled as he gave up the fight. She smiled and brushed her hair back over her ears with both hands and breathed like she was holding back a sob.
“You already know why I’m here!” She yelled back at him. Her face twisted in an angry glare and her lips trembled as she squeezed them together.
He shook his head dumbfounded as she lifted her right hand into view. In it was a syringe. With a long practiced pull she filled the syringe with air and then plunged the needle into his arm.
“No!” He cried and tried to pull his arm away. She laughed at him.
“No? It would be a shame if that was your last word.” She replied. She stared at him coldly.
“Why are you doing this?” He cried. “I haven’t done anything to you! We‘re even now!”
“Oh, is that so?” She said and then placed her thumb over the end of the syringe. Alex calmed himself and narrowed his eyes at her.
“You can’t do this. You don’t have it in you. This is murder and you are a doctor. You‘ve never have been one to play God.” He said. A tear rolled down the woman’s expressionless face.
“I once heard that Mother is the word for God on the lips of children.” She said coldly.
*~*~*~*~*
Cox walked into his office and closed the door behind him. He walked over to the old freezer and pulled it open to retrieve a bottle of vodka. He slammed the freezer closed and then slumped into his chair while he unscrewed the cap. He took a long haul from the bottle and set it on the desk before rubbing his forehead.
The long week had taken its toll.
The Centre was still examining evidence from Pakor. He’d heard rumbling that his involvement was suspected. Not that he could blame them after his sudden disappearance after the event.
He’d returned to the Centre the day after he’d parted ways with Emily, Zoe, and Aidan. He’d hoped that he wouldn’t be missed in all the confusion, but Amaru had sought him out.
Amaru had denied him access to Lyle. They were doing God knew what to Lyle, trying to figure out what he was up to and where Aidan had been taken.
He’d done the minimum in dispatching Emily and Aidan. The less he knew, the less they could beat out of him when the time came.
Now someone had Fed-Exed Mutumbo’s eyes back to them with an ominous message. He chuckled to himself. What other player had emerged in their game? Who else hated the Centre as much as they did? More than they did.
Since his ascension to the Triumvirate he’d become keener to those noises in the background. The steps being taken behind him. The breaths being drawn around him.
They had framed Brigitte for the assassination. But only because they were sent the murder weapon. The gun at the least. Not the knife used to cut out the eyes.
They had assumed it had been Alex. However, time and placement had later shown them otherwise and they had only angered the pretender more by having his sister take the posthumous fall.
Alex had reciprocated their actions soon after. Part of him had wished that Alex had died when he fell from that crane into the river. Alex was unpredictable. Alex had always had another agenda. Despite this, they had embraced him in their brotherhood. Him and Kyle, and then they had both turned on them.
He remembered Alex’s rage the night Kyle had died. When he had inexplicably appeared in that hospital in Dry River, Arizona.
“I’m learning to make coffee.” He’d joked. His jocularity had turned quickly as he told him how he’d seen Kyle’s body.
Alex and Kyle had shared the same bond that he and Lyle did. They were brothers borne of the Centre and their training by their respective mentors. When Kyle died, Alex had been enraged, when Brigitte died; he’d gone over the edge.
He wasn’t surprised that Lyle had been trying to hide Aidan away. Alex would surely want to get rid of his last tie to the Centre. Not to mention how important Aidan was to Prodigy. Alex would be completely un-tethered and he could hurt the Centre in the process.
Cox took another drink.
*~*~*~*~*
Amaru walked down the corridor of St. Mercy’s hospital toward Alex’s room. He glanced at a woman walking in his direction. Another doctor, but a lovely one with flaming red hair and eyes of jade. Her eyes met his and they stared at one another until she walked past him.
Amaru reached Alex’s door and hesitated. The woman’s face, her eyes still held him. He turned to look down the corridor, but did not see her. He paused for a moment, his feet telling him to follow her. He grasped the handle to Alex’s room and opened the door.
He found Alex sitting up on the bed. He wrapped his arms around him and was whispering something to himself.
“Alex?” Amaru said and Alex looked up at him and stopped whispering.
“You’re late.” Alex replied and relaxed his arms.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Amaru said. Alex flashed a glare at him and climbed out of the bed and stood beside it.
“Are we leaving? Do you have some clothes?” The agitated pretender demanded as the color returned to his face.
“What happened to you, Alex?” Amaru asked, handing Alex a bag with clothes in it.
“I had a nightmare.” He replied and chuckled darkly as he opened the bag. Amaru looked at him puzzled as Alex pulled the curtain closed between them.
“When are we returning to the Triumvirate?” Alex asked through the thin sheet. Amaru sighed and took a moment to collect his thoughts.
“We have another problem. Someone has returned Mutumbo’s eyes to the Centre.” Amaru said quietly. Alex pulled the curtain open and looked at him, stunned.
“Say that again.” Alex replied in disbelief.
“Mutumbo’s assassin cut out his eyes. They arrived at the Centre via courier this afternoon.” Amaru stated.
“I thought Brigitte killed Mutumbo.” Alex said quietly.
“We all did.” Amaru said nodding. “Apparently we were mistaken.”
*~*~*~*~*
Miss Parker threw open the door to Cox’s office only to catch him hanging from the business end of a bottle of vodka. She stood in stunned fascination as the door clicked shut behind her.
“Drinking on the clock, Cox?” She snapped and walked over to his desk. He set the bottle down and glared at her.
“Your brother is right, you did miss some social graces in charm school.” He replied coldly.
“My brother.” She said closing her eyes and shaking her head. “My brother is a psychopath. So, where have you been lately?” She asked suspiciously.
“Out.” He said curtly. “I suppose you weren’t following me?”
“No, I was trying to find Aisling. You remember her; the sweeper who kidnapped little Parker and who also blew up Pakor last week.” She replied.
“And?” He asked impatiently, brushing the bottle with his fingertips.
“She had an accomplice, a getaway driver.” She said.
“Who do you think it was?” He replied eyeing her suspiciously.
“Well, she was presumably working with Alex.” She replied. Cox burst out laughing and she folded her arms across her chest. “I don’t see the humor in this, Cox.” She hissed.
“If it were Alex, she would have been the one left sitting in the car.” He replied with an amused smile. He then dropped the smile to a cold expression. “Get to the point, Miss Parker. You think it was me, I’m curious to know why.”
She looked momentarily unsettled. She cleared her throat and glared at him.
“Well, you did receive a message from Lyle hours before the bombing and were no where to be found after.” She said icily.
“I was out for a drive.” Cox replied.
“Where did you go?” She hissed.
“Nowhere in particular.” He replied. “I suppose you’re disappointed that you couldn’t watch.”
“What did Lyle say in that message?” She shouted. He glared at her.
“Nothing in particular.” He said.
“You’re lying.” She spat.
“Prove it.” He challenged.
Miss Parker pressed her lips together and shot an icy glare at him. “Okay.” She said quietly.
“First Lyle and Brigitte appeared and then you materialized. Now, there is someone else in the picture. A woman with red hair. Is she one of yours?” Miss Parker asked. Cox frowned back at her.
“I don’t know anyone who matches that description.” Cox replied.
She reached for the bottle and he caught her wrist in a quick motion and squeezed it tightly in his hand. “Are you thirsty, Miss Parker?” He asked.
She tried to pull her hand away and he held her wrist steady. He smirked at her before letting it go and she recoiled and rubbed her wrist with her other hand. He picked the bottle up and held it out to her. She glanced at it and then at him before cautiously accepting it.
“I need this more than you do.” She grumbled before taking a drink.
“Is that a fact?” He asked coldly. She narrowed her eyes at him before taking another drink and nodded.
“You don’t have Amaru breathing down your neck.” She snapped. He looked amused and stood. He walked around the desk and stepped behind her as she took another drink.
Her eyes widened and she started a little as she felt his hands on the back of her neck. The fingers worked into her tensed muscles and she closed her eyes before taking another drink.
“Do you really think I drove that getaway car, Miss Parker?” He said close to her ear. She shook her head.
“I don’t know what to think of anything anymore.” She sighed not quite sure why she‘d said it.
“I assure you I did not.” He said. She nodded a little.
“Works for me.” She said. She stepped out of his grasp and turned around to face him. She sized him up and took another drink before setting the bottle on the desk. “I suppose you’re as good as any.” She said before stepping forward.
She slid her arms around his neck and pulled close to him. He tilted his head back and looked at her.
“Miss Parker?” He asked in amused confusion. She shook her head.
“Shut up James.” She whispered as she closed the gap.
Early Evening
Miss Parker walked into her office and closed the door and leaned against it. She looked down and noticed that her shirt had been buttoned with some of the wrong holes. She pulled the badly tucked shirt out of her skirt and unbuttoned and then re-buttoned it.
She tucked her shirt back in and walked over to her desk and slumped into the seat. She booted her computer and stared blankly at the desktop.
What had she done? She blinked and pulled a pencil out of the cup on her desk and rolled it in her fingers. What had she done, with him? She broke the pencil in half and then each half into halves, one of her nervous habits.
She didn’t know anything about Cox. But yet she’d, been with him in the same room where she’d had her tonsils had taken out as a little girl. That little girl would have been horrified to know what she would do in there as an adult. With that man.
The door to her office opened and she jumped as Broots and Sydney entered. She steeled herself in her seat and glared at the two men.
“Yes?” She hissed.
Broots and Sydney exchanged glances and Broots stepped forward and held a DSA out to Miss Parker. She snatched the disk from his hand and placed it into the DSA player.
“Security footage from the lobby?” Miss Parker asked watching the screen jump to life and the man walk across the lobby.
“Uh, yeah.” Broots replied. “The deliveryman never looks at the camera. He doesn’t even look up.”
“I see that.” Miss Parker seethed. “What about the routing bar codes on the package?”
“Um, there were none.” Broots replied. Miss Parker looked up from the repeating images and stared at him coldly.
“What? Every package delivered by any courier service has a routing bar code and the name of the shipping company.” She said. Broots nodded.
“Yes and this package didn’t have any markings except for the name Johansen Amaru.” Broots replied.
Miss Parker looked back at the screen and the man who would not look at the camera. Delivery people usually fidget about as they’re waiting for their receipts to be signed. This man only stared straight ahead, his face obscured by his uniform hat and turning his head from the camera.
“Because he knew it would be there.” She said as if awakening from a trance. She looked up at Broots and Sydney.
“He didn’t look at the camera because he knew there would be one.” She said, almost astonished. Broots and Sydney’s expressions turned to those of surprise.
“Oh my God!” Broots said in amazement. “This man knows about the Centre surveillance. And since the package didn’t have any markings, Miss Parker!” He said as a look of horror washed over his face.
“I am watching you, always.” Miss Parker spoke the message he‘d given them. “This man assassinated Mutumbo.” Miss Parker stated flatly as she looked at the screen.
*~*~*~*~*
Amaru put the car into gear and began to pull away from St. Mercy’s hospital once his passenger was secured in his seat. Alex looked out the window and watched the hospital disappear from view in the rearview mirror.
“And you have Miss Parker working on our assassin.” Alex said.
“Yes.” Amaru replied.
“Well, I hope she doesn’t fall in love with him like she did Jarod.” Alex said dismissively. No reply came from Amaru, and that was just as well for Alex. He wasn’t in a particularly chatty mood.
He glanced at the bruising on his left arm where the woman had brutally inserted her needle. She had done it to hurt him. He knew that after years of practice she could have killed him in his sleep and no one would have been the wiser.
It had been in her eyes that afternoon. The anger and determination was there and so was the grief. He couldn‘t blame her. Part of him wished that his own mother had shown that effort when he was taken himself.
*~*~*~*~*
Miss Parker walked to the elevator. As the doors began to close a hand caught them and they opened again to allow Cox to walk in. He stood beside Miss Parker and silently pushed the button for SL-5.
Miss Parker glanced at him and then returned her gaze to the doors. She glanced at his unchanging expression several times. Finally she clenched her fists and looked at him.
"Don't tell anyone!" She hissed angrily. Cox turned to her.
"About what?" He asked with a bemused expression. Her eyes widened.
“About what indeed!” She scoffed. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember.” She said stepping closer to him. She stood, her face mere inches from his neutral expression when the doors opened again.
Miss Parker stood back and clenched her hands together defensively as a one armed dwarf walked into the elevator. He looked up at each of them and smiled and winked at Miss Parker. She looked away from him as the elevator began to descend once more.
Miss Parker shot quick glares at Cox who never looked back at her. Then she looked down and saw the dwarf was angling his glance to get a look up her short skirt.
Miss Parker made a disgusted face and stepped back, smoothing her skirt closer to her legs. Cox snickered and she caught the side-glance smirk he gave her.
The elevator stopped and Miss Parker stormed out of the elevator and down the hall. Cox slowly stepped from the elevator and stopped. He turned back to the dwarf and glared at him.
"She's out of your league. Forget it." He said and then walked down the hall. The doors of the elevator closed upon the dwarf’s confused expression.
Miss Parker was halfway to the accounting department when she stopped. She clenched her fists and squeezed her eyes closed. She turned back around and headed back toward Cox.
She grabbed his arm and threw open the door to the nearby supply closet and looked at Cox, who didn’t look up from the file he glanced over as he entered the room. She huffed and walked inside and closed the door behind her.
"What is wrong with you?" She demanded. When he didn’t look at her she began to pace in the small space.
“Any man here would die to have even a glimpse of...” she stopped pacing and yanked the file from his hand. She stepped close to him and narrowed her eyes.
“Are you even listening to me?” She hissed. He looked at the file in her hand and took it back. His gaze met hers.
"Discretion, my dear." He said. He set the file down and placed his hands on her hips. She slid her arms around his neck and lunged into a kiss.
*~*~*~*~*
Broots frowned as the bulb of his desk lamp burned out. He sighed heavily and dug some change out of his desk drawer. If he was going down to the office supply closet, then he was going to pick up another bag of Funyuns on the way.
He walked down the dim corridor to the closet. He grasped the handle and pulled the door open and then absently flipped on the light inside. He froze in mid step when he saw the two people before him.
Cox and Miss Parker broke from a kiss and looked at him, both still in the others arms. Broots gasped and Miss Parker glared at him.
"Broots, I'm in the middle of a very important meeting...wait outside in the hall." Miss Parker snapped.
Cox shrugged and began to kiss Miss Parker again. Broots, hyperventilating, stepped out into the hall and let the door close before him.
He tore open the bag of Funyuns and spilled its contents on the floor. He seated the bag over his nose and mouth and breathed into it until his breathing had nearly returned to normal.
The door opened and Miss Parker stepped out. She leaned in close to Broots and looked at him angrily.
“You saw nothing!” She snapped. Broots moved his mouth like a goldfish before he managed to say anything.
“Bu bu bu bu but Miss Parker!” He stammered. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him close.
“Not one word, not one bu but Broots!” She hissed. She released his shirt and stormed away.
The door opened again and Cox stepped out. He straightened his tie and glanced at Broots with a faint smile as he turned and headed down the hall in the opposite direction of Miss Parker.
Broots gaped after him and a one armed dwarf walking toward him stopped. He looked back toward Cox and then around Broots toward Miss Parker. He then glanced up at Broots.
"She's out of your league buddy. Forget it." The dwarf said. Broots looked down at the man, astonished.
“Huh, why is she out of my league?” Broots asked in disbelief.
The dwarf looked up at Broots shrugged his shoulders and then walked off in the direction he’d been headed. Broots made one more glance in either direction before he cautiously entered the supply closet again.
*~*~*~*~*
Broots walked into Sydney’s office in time to see the older man hang up his phone and sigh heavily. He looked at Broots bleakly and sat in his chair.
“Uh, oh, what’s wrong Syd?” Broots asked, lowering the folder he was carrying to his side.
“It appears that Dannie Minor has escaped from the hospital where he was being treated.” Sydney said.
“Einnad!” Broots exclaimed as the memory of Einnad / Dannie attacking Miss Parker in his lair came back to him.
“Yes. I am going to have to go to the hospital to find more information.” Sydney replied.
“More information about what?” Miss Parker snapped as she walked into the room. “Did Jarod call again to send us off on another boondoggle?” She glanced at Broots who quickly averted his gaze from the woman‘s.
“I have just received word that Einnad has escaped from the hospital I had him taken to following his, episode, Miss Parker.” Sydney replied. Miss Parker stared at him for a moment and then shook her head.
“When did this happen?” Miss Parker asked.
“This morning.” Sydney replied. Miss Parker paced a little and stopped and looked at each man.
“Does anyone else have a feeling that everything that has happened today is related?” She asked. The other two nodded. “Grab your coats, gentlemen, we’re going up to Davidson.”
*~*~*~*~*
“Doctor Danielle Mac Kenzie released Dannie Minor from the hospital at about ten this morning.” Doctor Bullick said reading from Dannie’s chart.
“Is Doctor Mac Kenzie still here?” Miss Parker said as Broots popped in a surveillance tape from that morning into the small office’s TV/VCR combo.
“As a matter of fact, she is.” Doctor Bullick replied.
“Well, we would like to speak with her.” Miss Parker said impatiently.
“Yes, it will be a few minutes.“ The short balding man replied as he stood and left the room to retrieve the other doctor.
“Hey, look at this.“ Broots said as he paused the tape. On the screen was the image of a thin woman in doctor’s garb with long red hair escorting Dannie from his room and down the corridor.
“Our mysterious redhead?” Miss Parker asked as she studied the woman on the screen. The door opened and Doctor Bullick entered with a tall, African American woman in a white lab coat.
“This is Doctor Mac Kenzie.” Doctor Bullick said introducing them and then left the room. Miss Parker was speechless as she looked between the woman in the room and the one on the tape.
“You had a question?” Doctor Mac Kenzie asked in agitated politeness.
“Yes, did you discharge Dannie Minor this morning?” Sydney asked. She frowned back at him.
“Mr. Minor was not one of my patients and no, I did not discharge anyone this morning.” She replied.
The other three looked spellbound, but the ringing of Miss Parker’s cell phone broke the mood. The normally graceful woman clambered gracelessly to retrieve her phone and answered it. She glanced at Broots and Sydney.
“We have to go back now.” She said hanging up without uttering a goodbye. “Thank you for your time, Doctor Mac Kenzie.”
Night
Miss Parker opened the doors to the boardroom and entered with Broots and Sydney close behind. They were late; the Centre had been paging her for hours while they were investigating Einnad’s escape.
Miss Parker glanced at those who were already seated at the table and stopped in her tracks. She looked between Lyle and Alex and drew a breath.
“What the Hell is this?” She cried, mystified as Lyle regarded her blankly and Alex grinned and chuckled under his breath. Broots and Sydney stopped behind her and also looked at the men, similarly in dismay.
Amaru stood and walked around the table to three empty seats. He pulled one away from the table and motioned toward it.
“Please have a seat, Miss Parker; we have been waiting for your team.” Amaru said quietly.
“What are They doing here?” She exclaimed, approaching the chair, looking between Lyle and Alex.
“They work here.” Amaru said dismissively. He looked between Miss Parker, Broots and Sydney for a long quiet moment. “I suppose your tardiness has something to do with this investigation?” He asked moving to his seat and sitting down.
“Yes, it does.” Miss Parker snapped.
“We are all anxiously awaiting your summation.” Amaru said gesturing to the others in the room. Miss Parker glanced at Lyle’s unchanged expression and then at Alex, who’s lips spread into a wide grin when their eye met.
“Broots.” Miss Parker said in a firm voice. The tech balked and nervously shuffled his papers, trying to avoid all eye contact with the others.
“Aisling’s bomb didn’t blow up Pakor.” Broots said, reading from the file. “Her bomb didn’t even go off. It was found intact where the guard said he saw her place it.”
“So what destroyed Pakor then?” Amaru demanded impatiently. Broots shifted in his seat and continued.
“There was another bomb with a remote trigger.” Broots replied. “The device was detonated after Aisling and her partner fled the scene.”
“So she set two bombs.” Raines grumbled. Broots shook his head.
“A call was placed to the night security post a minute before the bomb went off. The guard said it was a man’s voice on the other end and said that there was a bomb in the building. It was traced to a cellular phone in a location about 300 yards west of where Aisling and her accomplice fled the scene.” Broots replied and cringed at the looks he was given.
“We found the phone, but it was wiped clean of any prints and the only stored numbers were those of Pakor and the cellular service company.” He said.
“Who was the phone registered to?” Miss Parker asked. Broots coughed and looked at the folder.
“Jimmy Radloff.” Broots replied.
“What?” Miss Parker and Lyle cried in unison. Lyle glanced at Cox who merely frowned. Lyle shook his head.
“That’s impossible.” He said and looked at Broots. “Are you sure, Broots?”
“It really is registered to Jimmy Radloff.” He replied. “Cellular service was activated two weeks ago for this number in Omaha Nebraska.”
“What else?” Amaru demanded twirling his right index and middle finger as if to say keep it going.
“Dannie Minor escaped from the psychiatric hospital where he was being treated this morning.” Sydney stated. Alex looked at him and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
“Einnad is on the loose?” Alex asked. He chuckled to himself. “Exactly how did he get out?”
“A woman, presumably a doctor, who used a false name to sign him out, released him.” Sydney replied. Amaru cleared his throat.
“What else? Have you found where Aisling took Parker?” Amaru asked.
“Actually, we did.” Miss Parker replied. “We also found the car that she presumably used to take him from the airstrip and at Pakor. It was torched outside a small cabin in Rising Sun Delaware. The cabin was registered to Bobby Bowman.” Miss Parker said shooting an icy glare at her twin.
Lyle nodded. “Yes, I rented the cabin several weeks ago.” He sat up in his seat. “Aisling and I were having an affair. We wanted to keep it quiet. However, I was indisposed when Aisling took off with Parker and was unable to relay the location where we met.” He glared back across the table at Miss Parker, almost daring her to say the worst.
“Why on Earth would Aisling want to take Parker in the first place?” Amaru asked, dismayed.
“Things went sour toward the end.” Lyle replied. “I think she did it to get back at me.” Miss Parker rolled her eyes.
“Anyway, it seems that Aisling had an accomplice. A woman with red hair. Coincidently, the woman who released Dannie from the hospital also had red hair.” Miss Parker said and pulled a picture taken from the surveillance video and passed it across the table to Amaru.
Amaru picked up the photo and glanced at it. He glanced at Alex before he passed the photo on to Raines.
“Also, there were no markings on the package that was received this afternoon. No return address or any sort of tracking. That package was not sent to us, rather it was delivered by the very person we may be looking for.” Miss Parker said.
“But a man, not a woman with red hair, delivered it.” Amaru replied. Miss Parker nodded.
“Also, we have not found any surveillance records that show the man’s face. He deliberately avoided showing his face to any camera. It’s as if he knew their locations. Also, no fingerprints were found on either the package or the note except for Amaru’s Broots’ and mine.” Miss Parker continued.
“Well, ghosts seldom leave fingerprints and their images don’t show up on film.” Alex said and chuckled to himself. Miss Parker shot an icy glare at the man.
“You would know all about that, wouldn’t you, Alex?” She hissed.
“Back to the matter at hand, Miss Parker.” Amaru demanded. She sighed.
“I believe that all these occurrences are linked.” Miss Parker said. “I think whoever these people are, they are all working together, and it seems that they are recruiting. This is only the beginning.”
“But who are they?” Amaru asked.
“Pretenders.” Cox replied.
“What?” Amaru asked looking at Cox.
“When Jarod escaped, Mr. Parker and Raines took it upon themselves to find all the Pretenders who had either been released, escaped, or who Catherine Parker rescued and either retrieve and reeducate them or eliminate them. They were unsuccessful in locating all of them and there are still more Pretenders out there.” Cox replied.
“How many Pretenders did the Centre have?” Miss Parker asked in surprise. “I thought there were only eight red files.”
“There were only eight red files.” Raines grumbled. “But there were many more Pretenders and other subjects the Centre had.”
“Pretenders have a different way of looking at things than other people. Mutumbo was shot in his heart twice and his eyes were cut out. Miss Parker once remarked that it might be because Mutumbo saw something he shouldn’t have.” Cox said.
“So why return Mutumbo’s eyes now?” Amaru asked.
“Because he wants us to see that he sees. Like the note says, ‘I am watching you always.’ Our surveillance is watching us always. This man had already shown us he knows about our surveillance and it’s shortcomings. After all he did walk right in and out of here and no one can describe him. But, he knows what’s going on in here. I’m sure he’s getting a kick out of the trouble he’s stirred up.” Cox replied.
“Why do you just say he?” Amaru asked.
“Because the note was written as one person and a man who we can’t identify delivered it. I think that the woman and Einnad are merely a distraction, a red herring to distract attention from the man behind it.” Cox replied.
“Do you think that Jarod is involved?” Raines wheezed. Sydney shook his head.
“Jarod wouldn’t go to these extremes.” Sydney replied. “I also don’t believe that he would associate himself with those who would.”
“If Jarod were involved, we would know it by now.” Miss Parker said. “He enjoys rubbing these things in our faces.”
“If this man is indeed a pretender, we’re going to need one to help us catch him.” Amaru said. He looked at Miss Parker. “As much as Alex’s presence displeases you, it is necessary. He will be working with you in finding Mutumbo’s assassin.”
Miss Parker went to speak, but closed her mouth and drew a deep breath as she glared at Alex.
“Expedience in this case is the key. The faster we find who is really behind this, then the quicker the Centre can return to it’s ordinary affairs, and Mutumbo’s son can lay his father’s memory to rest for good.” Amaru said.
Those gathered in the boardroom looked somber for a few moments when the doors to the boardroom burst open and Willie rushed in. He hurried over to Raines. Amaru glared at the intruder.
“This had better be good.” Amaru said. Willie said something to Raines quietly and then Raines nodded for the sweeper to address the others.
“Donoterase was just destroyed.” Willie said hesitantly.
To Be Continued …
Feedback is Welcome!
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Up to IOTH
Summary: Part eleven of the Labyrinth Series.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters and am just playing around with them.
“Shortest Day and Longest Night, Winter Coldness Penetrates All” - Madame Estrella
Beta Read by Maestra
Special thanks to Maestra, Riven Rebel Poet, and Bec-Bec!
Solstice
by Madame Estrella
Morning
Miss Parker directed the sweepers to search the other rooms of the small cabin. Broots had discovered the rustic home in the woods of nearby Rising Sun, Delaware while he was watching the evening news in the tech room.
The story was about a car fire and the disappearance of a woman and her young son, whose remains or any other trace of their presence had not been found. Police had told the news that the woman’s name was Emily and were seeking members of her family.
Miss Parker had thought to admonish Broots for watching TV on the job, but this habit of his had led to other significant leads in their past pursuits. After all, they had discovered Kyle when Broots was watching cartoons and now they had discovered the whereabouts of the long dead pretender’s sister.
Or, at least where she had been hiding out. The property’s owner said he hadn’t seen the woman since the car fire had happened and that had been nearly a week before. Aisling / Emily was long gone and so was Parker.
“Did she have anyone else with her, besides the boy?” Miss Parker asked Ralph Owens, the middle-aged man with more than a few pizzas’ on his physique.
“Well, first there was that Bobby fellow, but I didn’t see him after she moved in. She had a lady friend with her the last day she was here.” Ralph replied.
“What did this lady friend look like?” Miss Parker asked narrowing her eyes.
“Kinda thin, had red hair, and a great smile.” Ralph replied. Miss Parker nodded.
“Thank you, Ralph. Would you mind stepping out so that my people can finish processing the scene?” She asked politely, but with a look that said she wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“Sure thing, Agent Parker, anything for the FBI.” He said and took a few steps back to the door before turning back. “Funny thing is, she seemed like such a nice girl.” He said.
“They always do.” Miss Parker said and then turned back to the hallway to examine the bedroom.
*~*~*~*~*
At the Davidson Psychiatric Hospital, Dannie Minor glanced up from his seat by the window as the door opened. He pulled his robe close over his pajamas and peered at the approaching figure from the corners of his hazel eyes.
The woman stopped before him and held out a large paper bag. She was a doctor, though from his vantage point he couldn’t make out her ID. She was slender, with long, curly red hair. She smiled at the man who hesitantly took the bag and peered at its contents. He looked back at her and her green eyes flashed with conspiracy.
“I’m here to get you out of here.” She said in a low New England drawl. “I’m having you discharged as we speak.”
“Who are you?” He asked suspiciously. She smiled back.
“That’s not important.” She replied. She glanced back at the door then back at him. “Do you want to make Mr. Raines pay for what he did to you?” She asked.
Dannie narrowed his eyes as images flashed in his head of the evil man and thoughts of his other self.
“Yes.” He said in a near growl. The woman smiled at him.
“Then you’ll need to change.” She replied.
Dannie stood and looked back at his visitor and then grabbed the bag and headed into the room’s small bathroom before closing the door behind him.
*~*~*~*~*
On SL-23 Raines, Varian Sarff and Johansen Amaru watched through the observation window of the sim lab. This sim lab had been constructed following the destruction of the one on SL-27 and was one of the Centre's best kept secrets.
Within the room, Lyle stood over a young girl. She uneasily fitted the pieces of a physiological abstract together. Once she was finished she glanced up at Lyle, a look of infinite sadness on her face. She was no more than four years old and had shoulder length red hair and blue eyes which looked bright against her fair complexion.
“Where are my mom and my dad?” She asked in a faint voice. Lyle smirked, but drew his facade back to a placid one.
“They are no longer with us, Rowena. I am Lyle, and I will be taking care of you for a while.” He replied.
Within the observation room Raines looked at Amaru and Sarff questioningly.
“Are you sure this is wise?” The old man wheezed. Sarff chuckled and clapped Raines on the shoulder.
“He has been reeducated successfully.” Sarff boasted in his thick German accent, his eyes twinkled behind his round spectacles. “Not to worry, Raines, he is one of my boys.”
Raines shrugged off Sarff’s hand and glanced once more at Lyle and the girl and then back at the two men before he dragged his ever-squealing oxygen tank behind him as he left the room.
“He’s spending too much time with this one; there are other subjects to attend to.” Sarff stated. “An orientation should last no longer than a few minutes.”
Amaru nodded. There were many more indeed that needed to be attended to.
*~*~*~*~*
Miss Parker and Broots looked over what they’d found at the cabin in Rising Sun. It didn’t take them very long, they hadn’t found much.
“The car could have been the one that Emily used to drive away from the airstrip.” Broots said. Miss Parker frowned.
“So they walked out of there, right?” Miss Parker said and then grunted a laugh. “The vehicle model and paint color matches the one that was caught on surveillance at Pakor.”
“The owner of the cabin said she had another woman with her.” Broots said. “She probably had a car.”
Miss Parker rose and looked over surveillance photos taken at the Centre, Triumvirate Station, and at Pakor. She thumbed to the pictures of the car outside the secret facility and shook her head.
“A woman. Well, that shoots our theory that it was Alex.” Miss Parker said somberly. She sighed and set the photos back on her desk and looked at Broots wearily. “It couldn’t have been her mother; Owens described her as being young.”
“Someone else from the Centre perhaps?” Broots asked. Miss Parker nodded.
“Yes, I want all the files of young female redhead staff at the Centre and other Centre facilities.” Miss Parker said as she headed toward the door and looked back at Broots. “And Broots, I wanted them yesterday.”
Broots sighed heavily and then began typing commands on his computer.
Afternoon
A deliveryman strode through the front doors and placed a box addressed to Johansen Amaru on the receptionists’ desk.
She politely signed for the box and thanked the man who then strode out the doors whence he came.
The box was delivered to Johansen and he eyed it suspiciously.
‘A package from Jarod?' He wondered and opened the box the plain brown box. Within the box, covered with ice packs, was a smaller one with a Pakor label. Amaru dug this box out and cut through the tape with a letter opener and slowly opened the lid.
A half-hour later all top-level personnel were called to the boardroom. An ashen Amaru entered the boardroom carrying the box. He set it down before him and met eyes with each of those gathered.
"It seems someone chose to return Triumvirate property this afternoon." Amaru said weakly.
He tilted the box so its contents could be seen by the gathered assemblage.
A pair of brown eyes stared back at them.
Amaru picked up a small card and read its inscription.
"I am watching you, always." He read and then his eyes met with Raines. “I can only assume that these belong to Mutumbo.”
“That’s impossible!” Raines protested. “Brigitte killed Mutumbo.”
“Apparently we were mistaken.” Amaru replied. Miss Parker fidgeted in her seat and glared across the table at Cox.
“Not mistaken, just mislead.” Miss Parker hissed. “The gun used to kill Mutumbo was placed on Brigitte’s person after her death.”
“Is that so?” Amaru asked, agitated. “And just why are you revealing this now?” Miss Parker drew a breath.
“I believe Mr. Parker was involved in a conspiracy to kill Mutumbo and frame Brigitte for the murder. I was a suspect, so I thought it wise to not be the one to reveal this, lest someone plant a murder weapon on my own body.” Miss Parker replied.
*~*~*~*~*
After a lengthy shouting match, the occupants of the boardroom spilled out of the room to their designated tasks. Amaru held Miss Parker behind by grabbing her arm.
“What?” She snapped. He glared at her and held her arm more tightly.
“I am reinstating you to head of Centre security.” He replied. She frowned.
“What?” She snapped again in disbelief.
“I want the best person for the job back on the job.” He replied firmly.
“Don’t you need Raines’ approval?” She asked.
“I am the Triumvirate!” He growled. “Your first order of business is to find who sent this package.”
She looked at the grisly remains and sighed before looking back up at Amaru.
“I suppose I have no choice.” She replied.
He released her arm and she carefully picked up the box and closed the lid. He moved behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders and slid them down her arms.
“I know I can count on you, Miss Parker.” He said quietly. She moved away and slid out of his grasp before turning to face him.
“I’m going to find this sick son of a bitch.” She hissed and walked out of the room.
*~*~*~*~*
“Broots!” Miss Parker said as she walked into the Sim Lab.
“Glad to see you made it back in one piece, Miss Parker.” The tech joked before he saw the look on her face. He then averted his eyes from her gaze. She thrust the box into his hands and he nearly dropped it once he saw what was inside.
“Oh my God! Are those real?” He gasped. Miss Parker nodded and Sydney peered into the box as well. She handed Broots the card.
“Mine, Amaru’s and your fingerprints are on that card. I want you to find out who else’s are on it as well.” She said. “I also want DNA tests run on those eyes. I want to make sure they are Mutumbo’s.”
“Mutumbo’s?“ Broots gasped looking at her stunned.
“Is that what the meeting was about?” Sydney asked. Miss Parker nodded.
“As of this afternoon, we are off the search for Jarod. The Centre priority is to find whoever sent this because we believe that they are responsible for Mutumbo’s death. I have been reassigned as head of Centre security.” Miss Parker replied.
“They don’t think Jarod sent this?” Broots asked.
“I don’t think Jarod could have done something like assassinate Mutumbo.” Sydney replied. Miss Parker nodded.
“Me either.” She said. “I also want you to look at the security footage from the lobby. We need to see if we can recall the deliveryman. I also want to interview any witnesses.”
She leveled her gaze with theirs.
“The Centre has a new enemy; it’s our top priority to find out who it is.” She said coldly.
*~*~*~*~*
Alex smelled the perfume before he felt the breath against his cheek.
“Alex.” A woman’s voice whispered. Alex’s eyelids flicked open and he looked at her face.
The red haired woman in the white doctor’s lab coat looked down at him, her green eyes bored into his. She studied him with an expressionless facade and he tried to shift on his bed.
At the tugging he jerked his head up and saw that his wrists and ankles were restrained against the bed rails. He pulled and kicked against them to no avail. He returned his gaze to her and an evil smile spread across her lips. She chuckled at his grunts of frustration as he fought the restraints again.
“What are you doing here?” He yelled as he gave up the fight. She smiled and brushed her hair back over her ears with both hands and breathed like she was holding back a sob.
“You already know why I’m here!” She yelled back at him. Her face twisted in an angry glare and her lips trembled as she squeezed them together.
He shook his head dumbfounded as she lifted her right hand into view. In it was a syringe. With a long practiced pull she filled the syringe with air and then plunged the needle into his arm.
“No!” He cried and tried to pull his arm away. She laughed at him.
“No? It would be a shame if that was your last word.” She replied. She stared at him coldly.
“Why are you doing this?” He cried. “I haven’t done anything to you! We‘re even now!”
“Oh, is that so?” She said and then placed her thumb over the end of the syringe. Alex calmed himself and narrowed his eyes at her.
“You can’t do this. You don’t have it in you. This is murder and you are a doctor. You‘ve never have been one to play God.” He said. A tear rolled down the woman’s expressionless face.
“I once heard that Mother is the word for God on the lips of children.” She said coldly.
*~*~*~*~*
Cox walked into his office and closed the door behind him. He walked over to the old freezer and pulled it open to retrieve a bottle of vodka. He slammed the freezer closed and then slumped into his chair while he unscrewed the cap. He took a long haul from the bottle and set it on the desk before rubbing his forehead.
The long week had taken its toll.
The Centre was still examining evidence from Pakor. He’d heard rumbling that his involvement was suspected. Not that he could blame them after his sudden disappearance after the event.
He’d returned to the Centre the day after he’d parted ways with Emily, Zoe, and Aidan. He’d hoped that he wouldn’t be missed in all the confusion, but Amaru had sought him out.
Amaru had denied him access to Lyle. They were doing God knew what to Lyle, trying to figure out what he was up to and where Aidan had been taken.
He’d done the minimum in dispatching Emily and Aidan. The less he knew, the less they could beat out of him when the time came.
Now someone had Fed-Exed Mutumbo’s eyes back to them with an ominous message. He chuckled to himself. What other player had emerged in their game? Who else hated the Centre as much as they did? More than they did.
Since his ascension to the Triumvirate he’d become keener to those noises in the background. The steps being taken behind him. The breaths being drawn around him.
They had framed Brigitte for the assassination. But only because they were sent the murder weapon. The gun at the least. Not the knife used to cut out the eyes.
They had assumed it had been Alex. However, time and placement had later shown them otherwise and they had only angered the pretender more by having his sister take the posthumous fall.
Alex had reciprocated their actions soon after. Part of him had wished that Alex had died when he fell from that crane into the river. Alex was unpredictable. Alex had always had another agenda. Despite this, they had embraced him in their brotherhood. Him and Kyle, and then they had both turned on them.
He remembered Alex’s rage the night Kyle had died. When he had inexplicably appeared in that hospital in Dry River, Arizona.
“I’m learning to make coffee.” He’d joked. His jocularity had turned quickly as he told him how he’d seen Kyle’s body.
Alex and Kyle had shared the same bond that he and Lyle did. They were brothers borne of the Centre and their training by their respective mentors. When Kyle died, Alex had been enraged, when Brigitte died; he’d gone over the edge.
He wasn’t surprised that Lyle had been trying to hide Aidan away. Alex would surely want to get rid of his last tie to the Centre. Not to mention how important Aidan was to Prodigy. Alex would be completely un-tethered and he could hurt the Centre in the process.
Cox took another drink.
*~*~*~*~*
Amaru walked down the corridor of St. Mercy’s hospital toward Alex’s room. He glanced at a woman walking in his direction. Another doctor, but a lovely one with flaming red hair and eyes of jade. Her eyes met his and they stared at one another until she walked past him.
Amaru reached Alex’s door and hesitated. The woman’s face, her eyes still held him. He turned to look down the corridor, but did not see her. He paused for a moment, his feet telling him to follow her. He grasped the handle to Alex’s room and opened the door.
He found Alex sitting up on the bed. He wrapped his arms around him and was whispering something to himself.
“Alex?” Amaru said and Alex looked up at him and stopped whispering.
“You’re late.” Alex replied and relaxed his arms.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Amaru said. Alex flashed a glare at him and climbed out of the bed and stood beside it.
“Are we leaving? Do you have some clothes?” The agitated pretender demanded as the color returned to his face.
“What happened to you, Alex?” Amaru asked, handing Alex a bag with clothes in it.
“I had a nightmare.” He replied and chuckled darkly as he opened the bag. Amaru looked at him puzzled as Alex pulled the curtain closed between them.
“When are we returning to the Triumvirate?” Alex asked through the thin sheet. Amaru sighed and took a moment to collect his thoughts.
“We have another problem. Someone has returned Mutumbo’s eyes to the Centre.” Amaru said quietly. Alex pulled the curtain open and looked at him, stunned.
“Say that again.” Alex replied in disbelief.
“Mutumbo’s assassin cut out his eyes. They arrived at the Centre via courier this afternoon.” Amaru stated.
“I thought Brigitte killed Mutumbo.” Alex said quietly.
“We all did.” Amaru said nodding. “Apparently we were mistaken.”
*~*~*~*~*
Miss Parker threw open the door to Cox’s office only to catch him hanging from the business end of a bottle of vodka. She stood in stunned fascination as the door clicked shut behind her.
“Drinking on the clock, Cox?” She snapped and walked over to his desk. He set the bottle down and glared at her.
“Your brother is right, you did miss some social graces in charm school.” He replied coldly.
“My brother.” She said closing her eyes and shaking her head. “My brother is a psychopath. So, where have you been lately?” She asked suspiciously.
“Out.” He said curtly. “I suppose you weren’t following me?”
“No, I was trying to find Aisling. You remember her; the sweeper who kidnapped little Parker and who also blew up Pakor last week.” She replied.
“And?” He asked impatiently, brushing the bottle with his fingertips.
“She had an accomplice, a getaway driver.” She said.
“Who do you think it was?” He replied eyeing her suspiciously.
“Well, she was presumably working with Alex.” She replied. Cox burst out laughing and she folded her arms across her chest. “I don’t see the humor in this, Cox.” She hissed.
“If it were Alex, she would have been the one left sitting in the car.” He replied with an amused smile. He then dropped the smile to a cold expression. “Get to the point, Miss Parker. You think it was me, I’m curious to know why.”
She looked momentarily unsettled. She cleared her throat and glared at him.
“Well, you did receive a message from Lyle hours before the bombing and were no where to be found after.” She said icily.
“I was out for a drive.” Cox replied.
“Where did you go?” She hissed.
“Nowhere in particular.” He replied. “I suppose you’re disappointed that you couldn’t watch.”
“What did Lyle say in that message?” She shouted. He glared at her.
“Nothing in particular.” He said.
“You’re lying.” She spat.
“Prove it.” He challenged.
Miss Parker pressed her lips together and shot an icy glare at him. “Okay.” She said quietly.
“First Lyle and Brigitte appeared and then you materialized. Now, there is someone else in the picture. A woman with red hair. Is she one of yours?” Miss Parker asked. Cox frowned back at her.
“I don’t know anyone who matches that description.” Cox replied.
She reached for the bottle and he caught her wrist in a quick motion and squeezed it tightly in his hand. “Are you thirsty, Miss Parker?” He asked.
She tried to pull her hand away and he held her wrist steady. He smirked at her before letting it go and she recoiled and rubbed her wrist with her other hand. He picked the bottle up and held it out to her. She glanced at it and then at him before cautiously accepting it.
“I need this more than you do.” She grumbled before taking a drink.
“Is that a fact?” He asked coldly. She narrowed her eyes at him before taking another drink and nodded.
“You don’t have Amaru breathing down your neck.” She snapped. He looked amused and stood. He walked around the desk and stepped behind her as she took another drink.
Her eyes widened and she started a little as she felt his hands on the back of her neck. The fingers worked into her tensed muscles and she closed her eyes before taking another drink.
“Do you really think I drove that getaway car, Miss Parker?” He said close to her ear. She shook her head.
“I don’t know what to think of anything anymore.” She sighed not quite sure why she‘d said it.
“I assure you I did not.” He said. She nodded a little.
“Works for me.” She said. She stepped out of his grasp and turned around to face him. She sized him up and took another drink before setting the bottle on the desk. “I suppose you’re as good as any.” She said before stepping forward.
She slid her arms around his neck and pulled close to him. He tilted his head back and looked at her.
“Miss Parker?” He asked in amused confusion. She shook her head.
“Shut up James.” She whispered as she closed the gap.
Early Evening
Miss Parker walked into her office and closed the door and leaned against it. She looked down and noticed that her shirt had been buttoned with some of the wrong holes. She pulled the badly tucked shirt out of her skirt and unbuttoned and then re-buttoned it.
She tucked her shirt back in and walked over to her desk and slumped into the seat. She booted her computer and stared blankly at the desktop.
What had she done? She blinked and pulled a pencil out of the cup on her desk and rolled it in her fingers. What had she done, with him? She broke the pencil in half and then each half into halves, one of her nervous habits.
She didn’t know anything about Cox. But yet she’d, been with him in the same room where she’d had her tonsils had taken out as a little girl. That little girl would have been horrified to know what she would do in there as an adult. With that man.
The door to her office opened and she jumped as Broots and Sydney entered. She steeled herself in her seat and glared at the two men.
“Yes?” She hissed.
Broots and Sydney exchanged glances and Broots stepped forward and held a DSA out to Miss Parker. She snatched the disk from his hand and placed it into the DSA player.
“Security footage from the lobby?” Miss Parker asked watching the screen jump to life and the man walk across the lobby.
“Uh, yeah.” Broots replied. “The deliveryman never looks at the camera. He doesn’t even look up.”
“I see that.” Miss Parker seethed. “What about the routing bar codes on the package?”
“Um, there were none.” Broots replied. Miss Parker looked up from the repeating images and stared at him coldly.
“What? Every package delivered by any courier service has a routing bar code and the name of the shipping company.” She said. Broots nodded.
“Yes and this package didn’t have any markings except for the name Johansen Amaru.” Broots replied.
Miss Parker looked back at the screen and the man who would not look at the camera. Delivery people usually fidget about as they’re waiting for their receipts to be signed. This man only stared straight ahead, his face obscured by his uniform hat and turning his head from the camera.
“Because he knew it would be there.” She said as if awakening from a trance. She looked up at Broots and Sydney.
“He didn’t look at the camera because he knew there would be one.” She said, almost astonished. Broots and Sydney’s expressions turned to those of surprise.
“Oh my God!” Broots said in amazement. “This man knows about the Centre surveillance. And since the package didn’t have any markings, Miss Parker!” He said as a look of horror washed over his face.
“I am watching you, always.” Miss Parker spoke the message he‘d given them. “This man assassinated Mutumbo.” Miss Parker stated flatly as she looked at the screen.
*~*~*~*~*
Amaru put the car into gear and began to pull away from St. Mercy’s hospital once his passenger was secured in his seat. Alex looked out the window and watched the hospital disappear from view in the rearview mirror.
“And you have Miss Parker working on our assassin.” Alex said.
“Yes.” Amaru replied.
“Well, I hope she doesn’t fall in love with him like she did Jarod.” Alex said dismissively. No reply came from Amaru, and that was just as well for Alex. He wasn’t in a particularly chatty mood.
He glanced at the bruising on his left arm where the woman had brutally inserted her needle. She had done it to hurt him. He knew that after years of practice she could have killed him in his sleep and no one would have been the wiser.
It had been in her eyes that afternoon. The anger and determination was there and so was the grief. He couldn‘t blame her. Part of him wished that his own mother had shown that effort when he was taken himself.
*~*~*~*~*
Miss Parker walked to the elevator. As the doors began to close a hand caught them and they opened again to allow Cox to walk in. He stood beside Miss Parker and silently pushed the button for SL-5.
Miss Parker glanced at him and then returned her gaze to the doors. She glanced at his unchanging expression several times. Finally she clenched her fists and looked at him.
"Don't tell anyone!" She hissed angrily. Cox turned to her.
"About what?" He asked with a bemused expression. Her eyes widened.
“About what indeed!” She scoffed. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember.” She said stepping closer to him. She stood, her face mere inches from his neutral expression when the doors opened again.
Miss Parker stood back and clenched her hands together defensively as a one armed dwarf walked into the elevator. He looked up at each of them and smiled and winked at Miss Parker. She looked away from him as the elevator began to descend once more.
Miss Parker shot quick glares at Cox who never looked back at her. Then she looked down and saw the dwarf was angling his glance to get a look up her short skirt.
Miss Parker made a disgusted face and stepped back, smoothing her skirt closer to her legs. Cox snickered and she caught the side-glance smirk he gave her.
The elevator stopped and Miss Parker stormed out of the elevator and down the hall. Cox slowly stepped from the elevator and stopped. He turned back to the dwarf and glared at him.
"She's out of your league. Forget it." He said and then walked down the hall. The doors of the elevator closed upon the dwarf’s confused expression.
Miss Parker was halfway to the accounting department when she stopped. She clenched her fists and squeezed her eyes closed. She turned back around and headed back toward Cox.
She grabbed his arm and threw open the door to the nearby supply closet and looked at Cox, who didn’t look up from the file he glanced over as he entered the room. She huffed and walked inside and closed the door behind her.
"What is wrong with you?" She demanded. When he didn’t look at her she began to pace in the small space.
“Any man here would die to have even a glimpse of...” she stopped pacing and yanked the file from his hand. She stepped close to him and narrowed her eyes.
“Are you even listening to me?” She hissed. He looked at the file in her hand and took it back. His gaze met hers.
"Discretion, my dear." He said. He set the file down and placed his hands on her hips. She slid her arms around his neck and lunged into a kiss.
*~*~*~*~*
Broots frowned as the bulb of his desk lamp burned out. He sighed heavily and dug some change out of his desk drawer. If he was going down to the office supply closet, then he was going to pick up another bag of Funyuns on the way.
He walked down the dim corridor to the closet. He grasped the handle and pulled the door open and then absently flipped on the light inside. He froze in mid step when he saw the two people before him.
Cox and Miss Parker broke from a kiss and looked at him, both still in the others arms. Broots gasped and Miss Parker glared at him.
"Broots, I'm in the middle of a very important meeting...wait outside in the hall." Miss Parker snapped.
Cox shrugged and began to kiss Miss Parker again. Broots, hyperventilating, stepped out into the hall and let the door close before him.
He tore open the bag of Funyuns and spilled its contents on the floor. He seated the bag over his nose and mouth and breathed into it until his breathing had nearly returned to normal.
The door opened and Miss Parker stepped out. She leaned in close to Broots and looked at him angrily.
“You saw nothing!” She snapped. Broots moved his mouth like a goldfish before he managed to say anything.
“Bu bu bu bu but Miss Parker!” He stammered. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him close.
“Not one word, not one bu but Broots!” She hissed. She released his shirt and stormed away.
The door opened again and Cox stepped out. He straightened his tie and glanced at Broots with a faint smile as he turned and headed down the hall in the opposite direction of Miss Parker.
Broots gaped after him and a one armed dwarf walking toward him stopped. He looked back toward Cox and then around Broots toward Miss Parker. He then glanced up at Broots.
"She's out of your league buddy. Forget it." The dwarf said. Broots looked down at the man, astonished.
“Huh, why is she out of my league?” Broots asked in disbelief.
The dwarf looked up at Broots shrugged his shoulders and then walked off in the direction he’d been headed. Broots made one more glance in either direction before he cautiously entered the supply closet again.
*~*~*~*~*
Broots walked into Sydney’s office in time to see the older man hang up his phone and sigh heavily. He looked at Broots bleakly and sat in his chair.
“Uh, oh, what’s wrong Syd?” Broots asked, lowering the folder he was carrying to his side.
“It appears that Dannie Minor has escaped from the hospital where he was being treated.” Sydney said.
“Einnad!” Broots exclaimed as the memory of Einnad / Dannie attacking Miss Parker in his lair came back to him.
“Yes. I am going to have to go to the hospital to find more information.” Sydney replied.
“More information about what?” Miss Parker snapped as she walked into the room. “Did Jarod call again to send us off on another boondoggle?” She glanced at Broots who quickly averted his gaze from the woman‘s.
“I have just received word that Einnad has escaped from the hospital I had him taken to following his, episode, Miss Parker.” Sydney replied. Miss Parker stared at him for a moment and then shook her head.
“When did this happen?” Miss Parker asked.
“This morning.” Sydney replied. Miss Parker paced a little and stopped and looked at each man.
“Does anyone else have a feeling that everything that has happened today is related?” She asked. The other two nodded. “Grab your coats, gentlemen, we’re going up to Davidson.”
*~*~*~*~*
“Doctor Danielle Mac Kenzie released Dannie Minor from the hospital at about ten this morning.” Doctor Bullick said reading from Dannie’s chart.
“Is Doctor Mac Kenzie still here?” Miss Parker said as Broots popped in a surveillance tape from that morning into the small office’s TV/VCR combo.
“As a matter of fact, she is.” Doctor Bullick replied.
“Well, we would like to speak with her.” Miss Parker said impatiently.
“Yes, it will be a few minutes.“ The short balding man replied as he stood and left the room to retrieve the other doctor.
“Hey, look at this.“ Broots said as he paused the tape. On the screen was the image of a thin woman in doctor’s garb with long red hair escorting Dannie from his room and down the corridor.
“Our mysterious redhead?” Miss Parker asked as she studied the woman on the screen. The door opened and Doctor Bullick entered with a tall, African American woman in a white lab coat.
“This is Doctor Mac Kenzie.” Doctor Bullick said introducing them and then left the room. Miss Parker was speechless as she looked between the woman in the room and the one on the tape.
“You had a question?” Doctor Mac Kenzie asked in agitated politeness.
“Yes, did you discharge Dannie Minor this morning?” Sydney asked. She frowned back at him.
“Mr. Minor was not one of my patients and no, I did not discharge anyone this morning.” She replied.
The other three looked spellbound, but the ringing of Miss Parker’s cell phone broke the mood. The normally graceful woman clambered gracelessly to retrieve her phone and answered it. She glanced at Broots and Sydney.
“We have to go back now.” She said hanging up without uttering a goodbye. “Thank you for your time, Doctor Mac Kenzie.”
Night
Miss Parker opened the doors to the boardroom and entered with Broots and Sydney close behind. They were late; the Centre had been paging her for hours while they were investigating Einnad’s escape.
Miss Parker glanced at those who were already seated at the table and stopped in her tracks. She looked between Lyle and Alex and drew a breath.
“What the Hell is this?” She cried, mystified as Lyle regarded her blankly and Alex grinned and chuckled under his breath. Broots and Sydney stopped behind her and also looked at the men, similarly in dismay.
Amaru stood and walked around the table to three empty seats. He pulled one away from the table and motioned toward it.
“Please have a seat, Miss Parker; we have been waiting for your team.” Amaru said quietly.
“What are They doing here?” She exclaimed, approaching the chair, looking between Lyle and Alex.
“They work here.” Amaru said dismissively. He looked between Miss Parker, Broots and Sydney for a long quiet moment. “I suppose your tardiness has something to do with this investigation?” He asked moving to his seat and sitting down.
“Yes, it does.” Miss Parker snapped.
“We are all anxiously awaiting your summation.” Amaru said gesturing to the others in the room. Miss Parker glanced at Lyle’s unchanged expression and then at Alex, who’s lips spread into a wide grin when their eye met.
“Broots.” Miss Parker said in a firm voice. The tech balked and nervously shuffled his papers, trying to avoid all eye contact with the others.
“Aisling’s bomb didn’t blow up Pakor.” Broots said, reading from the file. “Her bomb didn’t even go off. It was found intact where the guard said he saw her place it.”
“So what destroyed Pakor then?” Amaru demanded impatiently. Broots shifted in his seat and continued.
“There was another bomb with a remote trigger.” Broots replied. “The device was detonated after Aisling and her partner fled the scene.”
“So she set two bombs.” Raines grumbled. Broots shook his head.
“A call was placed to the night security post a minute before the bomb went off. The guard said it was a man’s voice on the other end and said that there was a bomb in the building. It was traced to a cellular phone in a location about 300 yards west of where Aisling and her accomplice fled the scene.” Broots replied and cringed at the looks he was given.
“We found the phone, but it was wiped clean of any prints and the only stored numbers were those of Pakor and the cellular service company.” He said.
“Who was the phone registered to?” Miss Parker asked. Broots coughed and looked at the folder.
“Jimmy Radloff.” Broots replied.
“What?” Miss Parker and Lyle cried in unison. Lyle glanced at Cox who merely frowned. Lyle shook his head.
“That’s impossible.” He said and looked at Broots. “Are you sure, Broots?”
“It really is registered to Jimmy Radloff.” He replied. “Cellular service was activated two weeks ago for this number in Omaha Nebraska.”
“What else?” Amaru demanded twirling his right index and middle finger as if to say keep it going.
“Dannie Minor escaped from the psychiatric hospital where he was being treated this morning.” Sydney stated. Alex looked at him and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
“Einnad is on the loose?” Alex asked. He chuckled to himself. “Exactly how did he get out?”
“A woman, presumably a doctor, who used a false name to sign him out, released him.” Sydney replied. Amaru cleared his throat.
“What else? Have you found where Aisling took Parker?” Amaru asked.
“Actually, we did.” Miss Parker replied. “We also found the car that she presumably used to take him from the airstrip and at Pakor. It was torched outside a small cabin in Rising Sun Delaware. The cabin was registered to Bobby Bowman.” Miss Parker said shooting an icy glare at her twin.
Lyle nodded. “Yes, I rented the cabin several weeks ago.” He sat up in his seat. “Aisling and I were having an affair. We wanted to keep it quiet. However, I was indisposed when Aisling took off with Parker and was unable to relay the location where we met.” He glared back across the table at Miss Parker, almost daring her to say the worst.
“Why on Earth would Aisling want to take Parker in the first place?” Amaru asked, dismayed.
“Things went sour toward the end.” Lyle replied. “I think she did it to get back at me.” Miss Parker rolled her eyes.
“Anyway, it seems that Aisling had an accomplice. A woman with red hair. Coincidently, the woman who released Dannie from the hospital also had red hair.” Miss Parker said and pulled a picture taken from the surveillance video and passed it across the table to Amaru.
Amaru picked up the photo and glanced at it. He glanced at Alex before he passed the photo on to Raines.
“Also, there were no markings on the package that was received this afternoon. No return address or any sort of tracking. That package was not sent to us, rather it was delivered by the very person we may be looking for.” Miss Parker said.
“But a man, not a woman with red hair, delivered it.” Amaru replied. Miss Parker nodded.
“Also, we have not found any surveillance records that show the man’s face. He deliberately avoided showing his face to any camera. It’s as if he knew their locations. Also, no fingerprints were found on either the package or the note except for Amaru’s Broots’ and mine.” Miss Parker continued.
“Well, ghosts seldom leave fingerprints and their images don’t show up on film.” Alex said and chuckled to himself. Miss Parker shot an icy glare at the man.
“You would know all about that, wouldn’t you, Alex?” She hissed.
“Back to the matter at hand, Miss Parker.” Amaru demanded. She sighed.
“I believe that all these occurrences are linked.” Miss Parker said. “I think whoever these people are, they are all working together, and it seems that they are recruiting. This is only the beginning.”
“But who are they?” Amaru asked.
“Pretenders.” Cox replied.
“What?” Amaru asked looking at Cox.
“When Jarod escaped, Mr. Parker and Raines took it upon themselves to find all the Pretenders who had either been released, escaped, or who Catherine Parker rescued and either retrieve and reeducate them or eliminate them. They were unsuccessful in locating all of them and there are still more Pretenders out there.” Cox replied.
“How many Pretenders did the Centre have?” Miss Parker asked in surprise. “I thought there were only eight red files.”
“There were only eight red files.” Raines grumbled. “But there were many more Pretenders and other subjects the Centre had.”
“Pretenders have a different way of looking at things than other people. Mutumbo was shot in his heart twice and his eyes were cut out. Miss Parker once remarked that it might be because Mutumbo saw something he shouldn’t have.” Cox said.
“So why return Mutumbo’s eyes now?” Amaru asked.
“Because he wants us to see that he sees. Like the note says, ‘I am watching you always.’ Our surveillance is watching us always. This man had already shown us he knows about our surveillance and it’s shortcomings. After all he did walk right in and out of here and no one can describe him. But, he knows what’s going on in here. I’m sure he’s getting a kick out of the trouble he’s stirred up.” Cox replied.
“Why do you just say he?” Amaru asked.
“Because the note was written as one person and a man who we can’t identify delivered it. I think that the woman and Einnad are merely a distraction, a red herring to distract attention from the man behind it.” Cox replied.
“Do you think that Jarod is involved?” Raines wheezed. Sydney shook his head.
“Jarod wouldn’t go to these extremes.” Sydney replied. “I also don’t believe that he would associate himself with those who would.”
“If Jarod were involved, we would know it by now.” Miss Parker said. “He enjoys rubbing these things in our faces.”
“If this man is indeed a pretender, we’re going to need one to help us catch him.” Amaru said. He looked at Miss Parker. “As much as Alex’s presence displeases you, it is necessary. He will be working with you in finding Mutumbo’s assassin.”
Miss Parker went to speak, but closed her mouth and drew a deep breath as she glared at Alex.
“Expedience in this case is the key. The faster we find who is really behind this, then the quicker the Centre can return to it’s ordinary affairs, and Mutumbo’s son can lay his father’s memory to rest for good.” Amaru said.
Those gathered in the boardroom looked somber for a few moments when the doors to the boardroom burst open and Willie rushed in. He hurried over to Raines. Amaru glared at the intruder.
“This had better be good.” Amaru said. Willie said something to Raines quietly and then Raines nodded for the sweeper to address the others.
“Donoterase was just destroyed.” Willie said hesitantly.
To Be Continued …
Feedback is Welcome!
