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"I can't believe this house only sleeps five," Parker grumbled.

Molly and Broots sat on the couch parallel to her love seat. Propping her feet up on the coffee table, she looked around at the dimly lit room. There were two lamps shining and the flames of the fireplace were casting a dancing shadow on the ceiling. Hypnotized by their enchanting movements, Parker nearly forgot she wasn't alone.

"Well, we weren't exactly planning for Molly to be with us," Broots countered. Miss Parker jolted back to realty. She had actually been in a rather good mood since junk stuffing, as she had called it, or Heaven, as Jarod and Molly called it, or lunch, as Broots and Debbie called it.

"I'm sorry," Molly confessed.

"Molly, this isn't your fault," Parker told her softly, then her voice grew fierce, "Its Broots' fault!"

Broots eyes bulged at the accusing finger in his voice, "But I- I-"

"You have said enough, Broots!"

"But-"

"Akt! You are the one who will be sleeping on the couch tonight mister," Parker quieted his protests with a wagging finger while his mouth hung open, "Molly I'm definitely going to need to teach you a few things."

"What do you mean?" her smooth voice replied to Parker's crisp one.

"For being my sister, you're awful quiet and reserved. That's definitely not going to work."

"Well, what will?" Molly inquired innocently.

"Tomorrow, I'll teach you everything you need to know," Parker grinning, winked at her new friend. New sister. Sister. Family.

Molly smiled, completely pleased with how this was going. She had assumed that Parker would hate her. She had assumed wrong. At that moment, Jarod walked into the room.

"Sydney is doing fine. He's not yet conscious, but he's okay." Jarod watched for their reaction.

"Thank God," Broots said and Molly nodded in agreement.

Miss Parker remained silent, but Jarod knew she was secretly rejoicing inside. She felt it a duty to conceal these emotions.

"Broots, where's Debbie?" Jarod asked, sitting down next to Miss Parker.

"In bed. It's," Broots checked his watch, "9:30."

"Broots," Parker jolted upright in her seat, clutching a hand to her heart with a voice of alarm, "you can tell time?"

"Parker," Jarod warned parentally. Parker rolled her eyes at him like a child, but he just smirked.

"Jarod, where's your cell phone?" she asked calmly.

"Why?" he replied bluntly

"I need it," she returned just as blunt, avoiding his curious eyes. He cocked his head and waited patiently. She would give first. "To call my father," she blurted out. Jarod's eyebrows rose a notch.

"Why do you want to talk to him?" he said in sour disgust as if she'd just said she wanted to go lick a slug clean.

"None of your business, Jarod. Why is it that you always think my business is yours?"

"Because you're going to kill yourself or someone you care about one of these days because of your ignorance to the truth," he answered in typical stubborn fashion. Jarod was irritated with this woman who constantly stood by and watching as the ones she loved died. He wasn't about to let her fall for Centre trickery again.

Miss Parker was obviously shocked at Jarod's outburst. He had never raised his voice to her like that before. She was used to being the angry one, in charge. She scowled at him and leaned forward, their faces inches apart, like a rattle snake preparing to attack its prey, "I do know the truth. You can't keep telling me what to do."

Jarod stood up and ran a hand through his hair quickly, shaking his head he said, "You know the truth that they want you to know. You have lived your life accepting it and its all a lie. You are living a lie, Parker!"

Also jumping out of her seat Parker pointed a finger at his chest and looked up into angry eyes that she had never seen directed at her before, always the Centre, "Unlike you. Right, Jarod?"

"I may have lived a lie as well, but at least I can accept it, and try to move on toward the truth."

"You can't stop me from communicating with my family!"

Broots and Molly sat spellbound, watching the fight. Neither had ever seen the two quarrel like this before. Molly especially had seen each to be caring, respectable people. Broots edged closer to the back of his seat as the two duked it out in front of him. The odds of who would win were undeterminable. Jarod certainly knew what he was talking about and how to deliver it, he was a lawyer on more than one occasion. He's a pretender! Then again, Miss Parker had the sharp frosty edge of a razor, ready to attack. She was a fighter, Jarod was a thinker.

All right, twenty bucks on Parker, he thought.

"Your family? You honestly think that Mr Parker and Lyle are your family? Your father," Jarod emphasized this word with hands quoting each syllable, "orders you dead and your brother attempts to carry out the order. That's not family, Parker. Your family is right here!"

Broots could nearly see the smoke coming out her ears now. She was fuming. All right, the money is on Jarod.

"Don't you dare start me on family matters! I'm not the one who has endangered what little family that I've even met!"

Uh oh, Broots thought, that one definitely hurt. Right, back to betting on Parker.

The anger on Jarod's face dissipated slightly and overwhelming distress replaced it. Swallowing hard he looked into her cold eyes, "I can't believe you just said that."

"Well, believe it, the truth," she crossed her arms challengingly.

The fury flared up in Jarod once again, "I wouldn't have to endanger my family if it weren't for The Centre. And for your information, the only member of my family that I have yet to meet is my mother. And I would have met her too if it weren't for The Centre. You people are heartless!"

"You people," she said raising a brow, "we agreed that I was no longer a part of that."

"Well, maybe I was wrong," he whispered before stalking towards the door.

Parker grabbed him by the shirt and whipped him back around, "You have to let me speak with my father."

"And get us all killed? Sorry, Parker. That wasn't on the agenda."

"Jarod, I have never hurt any of you!"

"Tell that to Sydney. He's now lying in a coma because of you trusting the wrong people. And its not the first time you've done this to him!" he protested.

"This was not my fault. It is Ly-"

"Your family. Right? Well, Parker, I hate to break it to you, but all of the people who love you most are right here. Your family is staring you right in the face. Don't push us away, too." There were tears in her eyes when she watched a fuzzy Jarod leave the room.

Broots sighed, he had never been much of a gambler.

*****

"Oh goody! You got the files!" Briggite clapped her hands together when Lyle entered the room with a grim, accusative look on his face and threw the files in front of her.

"Did you know?" he said.

"Know what, Love?"

"What's in those files. Not about Molly."

"Oh, I know what you're talking about. He made me promise him to not tell you-"

"He?"

"Your father he-"

"My father," Lyle laughed, "how appropriate is that?"

"You'll get over it," she rolled her eyes and spun around in the twisting leather chair.

"I feel as if I'm beginning to understand Jarod's constant whining."

"Don't ever say that again," she chastised.

"Why?"

"It will get you killed. Simple as that," she said while popping a red lolli pop out of her mouth.

"Listen," Lyle demanded ferociously, "I'm sick of you and your innocent little school girl routine. I want the truth and I want it now. How long have you known?"

"Since I had the baby," she muttered.

"Wait a minute. But it can't-"

"It? I'll have you know that that baby has a name," she directed him with an accusing finger.

"I was never informed," Lyle crossed his arms, staring at the abstract paintings littering Mr Parker's office.

"His name is Cade."

"Cade? What kind of a name is Cade?" he laughed.

"A respectable one. Cade McHale."

"Cade McHale Parker. I'm glad to know you got so creative naming your kid."

"Oh, I wasn't the one who named him."

"Then who?"

"Mr Raines and Mr Cox did," she muttered, clearly embarrassed that she hadn't been allowed to name him.

"Why would they name him? Its not their kid."

"Well, they are the overseers of the project."

"What project?" Lyle inquired.

"You know," Briggite stood and paced to the door, "I think you've heard enough. Have a good day, Love."

Lyle was left in the office alone, right when things were starting to get interesting. Cade? Well, it wasn't really a bad name, but making Briggite think it was was more than satisfying. Actually, he thought it was kind of neat. There were plenty of worse names. Earl. Eugene. Edgar. What was it with the 'E' names? Frank. Frank Parker! That one made him laugh out loud.

"Something funny, Mr Lyle?" a wheezing voice echoed.
Lyle grimaced and then turned around to see Raines, in perfect poise, staring at him with absolutely no emotion leaking into his eyes.

"What is this project of yours and Cox's with Cade?"

Raines inhaled, never once blinking or losing eye contact, "I don't have the vaguest idea of what you're talking about. Cade is Mr Parker and Briggite's baby. We simply spend time with him every now and then."

"Yeah, right. Spending quality time with the youngster, keeps your heart warm and bubbly as champagne I bet, eh Raines?"

"Its none of your business."

"My brother is my business," Lyle forced the words out.

"Then ask your father, not me," Raines left the room, oxygen tank caboosing behind.

Once again alone, Lyle took a deep breath, straightened his navy blue tie, and smoothed his suit before departing as well.









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