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Disclaimer: The characters Miss Parker, Sydney, Jarod, Broots etc. and the fictional Centre, are all property of MTM and NBC Productions and used without permission. I'm not making any money out of this and no infringement is intended.
"Out of the car young man." Miss Parker ordered.
JJ opened the passenger door from the car and hoped out.
"Wow, do you always drive that fast?" The boy asked, exited and with a happy sparkle in his eyes.
"No, only when you or your family is involved." Miss Parker scowled at the boy. JJ’s smile faded until he saw her wink. Then his grin reappeared, a bit broader this time.
"OK, let’s go inside. You can wait here while I drive back to Donoterase and grab your Sister." She lifted her arm a bit in a silent invitation and the boy slipped in to let her squeeze his shoulders while she guided him to the entrance of her home.
JJ snuggled closer, thinking that he had been right, she was kind and nice. He hadn’t expected the police to grab him, and he hadn’t been sure how she would react when the police called her and told her that her son was waiting for him. He had been a bit worried while he waited that his father and Jarod might have been right. But the moment he saw Miss Parker walking in he knew he was right, and they were wrong.
The boy snickered inwardly at their misconception. She was really cool. As far as he could tell, she had broken every speed limit and many other traffic laws on the way here. Driving with Jarod or his father had never been as much fun as his one ride with her.
Miss Parker looked down at the happily grinning boy at her side. Normally she would have be angry, or at least irritated. To her own surprise she only felt happy to see him again. No matter what, she vowed inwardly, she would manage to keep him safe to. For what seemed to be the thousandth time she asked herself just how had she ended up as the rescuer for Jarod’s entire family?
****
Lyle watched them walking up to the house, and it made him sick to see the boy snuggling up to his Sister. !0 minutes, then he would follow.....
*****
"You’re sure this was the boy the police grabbed?" Jarod asked the truck driver.
The man carefully studied the picture over the rim of his sunglasses. "Yeah, sure. He was asking around for a truck heading to Blue Cove."
"Do you know where the police took him?" The Major stepped in.
"Nope, but there’s a police station at the end of this road." The driver pointed to a single building about 600 yards away.
"Thank you very much." The Major answered gratefully.
"I just hope," Jarod said to his father while they hurried back to the car. "That he is still there."
"Don’t worry, son, where would he go? The police won’t let him walk out on his own." The older man assured him.
******
"Sydney, I have a very bad feeling about this." Broots sighed and nervously clutched the steering wheel harder. "Nobody has heard anything from Lyle or Miss Parker for hours. This isn’t good; not good at all."
Sydney sat in the passenger seat with his eyes nearly closed. He was trying to make sense out of all the confusing information they had received in the past two hours. Broots was right; recent events had left a foul taste of fear in his mouth. Something was utterly wrong. He was worried that something might have already happened and they would arrive too late to help her. If that were so, it would all be his fault. Instead of trusting his own instincts he had believed Parker’s icy act. He still wasn’t sure what was really going on, but he knew he had made a big mistake in condemning the woman he’d worked with for the past 4 years If he hadn’t learned anything else in his years at his less than ideal workplace, he should have at least figured out that at the Centre nothing was ever what it seemed to be.
He sighed again. He had worked with Miss Parker very closely for 4 years. They had spend nearly every day and more than a few late work nights together, and he thought he should have known her by now. After she had told him that she knew about his Refuge box he had seen her smile. It was the first really warm and relaxed smile he had seen on her face in far too many years and it made him hope that she cared more for Jarod than she would admit. And the way Jarod sacrificed everything to try and save her after Willie shot her in the back... Sydney shook his head, angry at himself. He was a fool, that’s all, an old romantic fool.
Broots slowed the car down as they neared her house. Sydney hoped that she was at home because they really needed to talk.. He only hoped she would trust them enough to finally be honest about what was troubling her and to let them help her.
****
2 hours earlier
*****
"What do you mean my son isn’t here? You just let him take off? Alone???" Major Charles demanded incredulously.
"No, we let him go with his mother." The officer answered solidly, his manner expressing outrage that his judgment had been questioned.
"His mother?" Jarod asked softly. "Tall woman, auburn hair, bluest eyes God ever made? Name of Parker?"
"Yes." The officer smiled. "Looked like a model, in a lethal sort of way. Gorgeous woman. If I were only a few years younger…" He trailed off with a happy sigh. Jarod fought down a red haze of jealous anger.
"Parker, yes, that’s what she said her name was." He finally pulled his thoughts back to the present, but the reminiscent smile on his lips made Jarod’s blood boil. The officer, seeing the anger, but misunderstanding its source, assumed that Jarod was angry that Parker had custody of the boy at the moment. "Her and the boy were obviously very close. Is that why he ran off? This some kind of a custody battle?" His eyes narrowed with suspicious censure.
"Something like that." The Major admitted, placing a calming hand onto Jarod’s shoulder.
"Well it would be a sin to try and separate those two. I never saw a mother so devoted to her child." The officer scolded.
"Is this Mis---uh, Ms. Parker, we’re talking about?" Jarod demanded with open skepticism.
"I already told you that." The officer growled, he and Jarod sizing each other up like two strange dogs preparing for a battle over territory.
"So, you released JJ into Ms. Parker’s care." The Major confirmed smoothly while Jarod tried to regain control of himself. His father’s vice-like grip on his shoulder warned him to keep his mouth shut from here on out.
"Yes. And if you want my advice," (They didn’t, but that didn’t stop him.) "You’ll all make up. That’s a good kid you guys got. Don’t hurt him with your own problems." He scolded albeit with the best of intentions.
"Officer, you have no idea how much we want to do exactly that." Jarod answered fervently. "C’mon, Dad. Let’s go get my brother and make up with Parker, okay?"
The Major and Jarod both suppressed smiles as they made their farewells and tore out of the station. Jarod knew where Parker lived. Soon now, very soon…..
*****
Back to the present.
*****
Lyle entered the house through the back door. He could her his Sister happily chatting with the boy, and it made him sick. He had never heard her laugh so much. He stopped and listened them. Pizza? They were discussing the best toppings for pizzas? Now the boy was asking for ice-cream for dessert. ENOUGH! He couldn’t bear to stand by and listen to them pretending to be a loving little family any longer.
Silently he stepped towards the kitchen door, glad that it wasn’t completely closed, so he could enter without making any noise that could reveal his presence. He reached for his weapon, and as quietly as he could he flicked the safety off. Carefully he peered through the small door slit.
‘Perfect!’ He thought with malicious satisfaction, ‘The boy is close enough to grab before she can react to my presence.’
With one powerful push he slammed the door open and grabbed JJ in the next instant. He had the gun pressed to the boy’s temple before his Sister could even turn.
Miss Parker heard a loud thud from behind and whirled, instinctively reaching for her gun while she turned. The sight that met her eyes made her freeze, and then lower her weapon a bit.
"That’s right, Sis. One wrong move and your little clone is dead. Drop it. NOW!" The last word Lyle shouted triumphantly at her. He had no real intentions to kill the clone, but if she didn’t obey he would shoot him in a painful, if non-fatal place.
"OK. You win. Just let the boy go." Miss Parker replied as she slowly placed her weapon on the nearby table.
Frantically, she tried to come up with a plan of action, a solution to this unexpected twist, but at the moment there wasn’t anything she could do. Better to play along, and hope that later Lyle would make a mistake she could take advantage of. If there was a later, that is. If she didn’t solve this problem soon, everything would be lost anyway. She didn’t dare to hope that the Triumvirate would take much longer to discover her plans and treachery.
Lyle pushed the kid slightly away from him.
"Don’t move!" He ordered grimly. "If you do, I’ll shoot you, but I’ll make sure you live long enough to watch my traitorous Sister die."
JJ nodded in agreement. He was shocked and not sure how to react. Everything had happened so fast, he thought dazedly, and it was all his fault. He’d never even thought that Miss Parker would need his help. Parker tried vainly to catch his eye, to reassure him everything would be okay, but JJ wasn’t focusing on anything but his self-recrimination.
Lyle kept the weapon trained on the boy’s head while he reached with his other hand into his pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs.
"Here Sis, put this on one wrist." With this he threw her the cuffs.
With a dark glare she obeyed.
"Good girl" Lyle taunted, his good humor restored by the fear and anger radiating from his two captives. "Now take your cuffs and use them to chain the boy to the pipes over there. He pointed with his head to a spot close to the door.
Miss Parker stepped closer to the teenager, noting the fear and guilt in his eyes with deep regret. ‘God, he thinks this is his fault!’ She wished she had time to explain the sick nature of her brother to him, but Lyle’s jaw was clenching ominously.
"It’s all right." She assured JJ softly. "Come over here and take a seat on the chair, so you can sit while you’re chained. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you"
The boy kept his head down.
"Do you hear me?" She stressed insistently. "I won’t let anything happen to you; remember that."
JJ looked up, straight into her eyes, and the utter faith and love in his eyes took her breath away. Once again, she swore inwardly that she’d do anything that was necessary to keep her promise to him.
"That’s enough!" Lyle interrupted their silent conversation impatiently. The concern and protection his Sister was showing for this brat infuriated him. Hell! He was her brother, but she had never even given him a friendly word. Now this clone, not even a *real* boy, but one created in a test tube, was the recipient of her love. Lyle’s hatred of the boy grew. Maybe he should kill him anyway...? No, he was worth too much, but he would show the boy just who had the power here-----later, though, much later! First he had to teach his sister a lesson.
"Move to the door." Lyle ordered, pointing to the door at the other end of the room.
Not wanting to make him even more angry, but unable to resist, Parker ruffled JJ’s hair before she moved to obey, hoping to calm him and reassure him that everything was going to be OK. She ignored the fulminating glare her brother gave her with the mask of cold indifference she’d spent most of her life perfecting. When she reached the door Lyle ordered her to stop. He moved over to check JJ’s cuffs, satisfying himself that he was securely chained to the pipe before he turned his attention back to his sister.
Lyle kept the gun trained on Miss Parker at all times, being careful to stay out of her reach. Her present cooperation didn’t fool him for a second. If she had half a chance she could, and would, take him out in an instant. He had the utmost respect for her physical prowess, he’d seen her work out.
"Go." He ordered tersely.
Miss Parker obeyed, following his instructions as he guided her through the living room and over to the door of her bedroom. Her heart sank as she opened the door and walked in, Lyle directly behind her. Her mind was racing futilely. No matter how hard she tried, she simply couldn’t come up with a solution to this dilemma.
Damn! Why hadn’t she anticipated something like this from Lyle? She tried to buy herself some time by walking slowly through the room. Waiting for help would be a waste of time, she knew. No one who knew her would have any reason to think she needed help, not that they would care even if they did know. She’d pretty much burned her bridges behind her with Sydney and Broots, Jarod was God only knew where, and he’d made it pretty obvious he hated her now, her father was also missing in action, busy guarding Brigitte and the baby he wanted so desperately. Right now the only two people who’d give a damn about her safety were Emily and JJ, and they were as helpless as she was.
Parker heard Lyle follow her into the room. She turned and looked at her brother. If she had doubted at all what he wanted from her, that doubt was erased by what she saw on his face. She ruthlessly suppressed a shiver of dread as the anticipatory gleam in her brother eyes gave him away. That sick bastard wanted to see her fear and disgust, and she’d die before she gave him the satisfaction.
"Could you please close the door?" She asked as coolly as she could manage.
"Trying to spare the little brat, are you?" Lyle jeered with a smug grin. "Practicing to be a mommy, dearest sister?" he mocked viciously.
"No, I am still not sure if you’re carrying the little lab rat or not. To be honest, I don’t care one way or the other. You’re mine; you’ve always belonged to me and no child, real or imaginary, will ever change that." Not waiting for an answer, he slammed the door shut and advance into the room, determination in his every move.
"Now go over to the bed, sit down and cuff yourself to the bedpost." Lyle ordered, the hot light in his eyes and the greed with which he appraised her body making Parker battle with both nausea and rising fear. "If you’re a good girl for me I may just consider not hurting your little boy out there. But you want to be a good girl for me, don’t you?" He asked, an insane note of delusion entering into is voice.
Miss Parker nodded in agreement, concentrating with every fiber of her being on maintaining her mask of calm. Mechanically, she walked over to her bed and did what he had ordered. He was smarter than she expected----he was staying just out of reach until she was safely restrained. If they’d been alone she would have taken a chance and jumped him, regardless of the consequences. But if he shot her now JJ would be left all alone. No matter how smart the boy was, he didn’t stand a chance against this psycho. She suspected her brother knew that the boy was a much stronger chain than the cuffs.
Lyle watched her sitting down on the bed and closing the handcuffs around her wrists. A satisfied grin engulfed his face when he heard them click hut. For a moment he considered finding something to tie her feet with as well, but he dismissed this idea a moment later. Thanks to the boy, further restraints wouldn’t be necessary. Of course, he’d still have to teach the little brat a lesson later, regardless of what he’d promised his sister about not hurting him, but reneging on a promise had never bothered him in the least.
Parker was given a few precious moments reprieve as Lyle became distracted by thoughts of what he could do with the boy when he was done with his sister. Maybe he’d could play a round of Russian roulette with him---the Triumvirate needed his brain, not his body. They surely wouldn’t mind if he just shot the boy’s kneecaps, after all, that would only make it harder for the rat to ever run again.
The original Jarod had never quite satisfied him when he’d gotten to toy with him. The Tower and the Triumvirate had always watched far too closely for him to really enjoy himself, but nobody had the slightest clue that he was here, at his sister’s house, much less that she’d somehow managed to locate the clone. He briefly wondered just how she had managed that anyway, before returning to his pleasurable plans. Yes, the boy would be much more fun to play with. He was younger, malleable, and far more easily frightened. Maybe he would let his dear sister watch him work. That would teach her to give someone else the love and affection she owed him! The thought filled him with sadistic anticipation and refocused his attention on his stoically waiting sister.
She watched, keeping her face impassive by exerting every ounce of her willpower, as Lyle laid is weapon on the nearby night-stand. He slipped out his jacket, his eyes never leaving his sister’s face. Not only was he ready to grab his gun the instant she made a single wrong move, but he wanted to savor every moment of her fear and pain. No matter what she might try, she knew that right now he had the upper hand and he’d win.
‘Face it Parker,’ she told herself grimly. "You’ve been outmaneuvered and now you’re checkmated.’
Lyle stood about four steps away from the bed, avidly watching every nuance of her expression. He knew she was trying to hide her fear, but he was a master at this game and he recognized every flicker of the eye, every twitch of the jaw. He relished the expression on her face, knowing that her mind was racing, trying to come up with any kind of a plan to save herself and the boy.
His smile broadened, she’d been a worthy adversary, and even now she remained a challenge. It didn’t matter that he’d won, that she was completely defenseless, not even now would she give up. He respected her strength, even as he looked forward to breaking it. It was a shame, really. None of this would have been necessary if she had only been able to see that they belonged together. Fate itself had bonded them together in the womb and it was obvious that they were a team----and what a team they would make when he finally finished her training! Together nobody could would even dare to competed with them. Right now he was willing to settle for second best, but Lyle knew that eventually he could dispense with the chains. One day she would stay where she belonged, next to him.
"Don’t worry," he said, his voice oddly gentle. "Everything will be okay now. I’m not angry with you anymore. Even if you are still pregnant, and I will find out soon enough if that’s so, it won’t affect us. You’ll just have the baby and then we’ll give it to the Triumvirate. You’ll never even have to think about it anymore; it will be just you and me. I promise that nobody, except me, will ever touch you again. I’m truly sorry that I let Jarod have you, but eventually you’ll understand it was for the best."
Lyle closed the distance between them and sat down next to his twin. He reached out with his damaged hand and placed it on her cheek. He smiled as he saw her flinch, but his heart warmed with pride as she continued to deny her fear. He was, inwardly at least, blown away by her courage. Every other woman he had "trained" had started to cry and plead long before he had gotten this far. But he had never really doubted her valiant heart, not really. After all, she too was a Parker.
It was almost as though his hand had taken on a life of its own as he caressed her face. She started to jerk her head away, but simply raising his eyebrows made her stop and submit to his attentions. Pleasure coursed like fire through his veins, such sweet submission! She was his, he exulted, only his!
"I don’t want to hurt you." He assured her, his voice full of Lyle’s twisted version of love. He lowered his face towards hers until he was so close to her ear that she could feel his hot breath on the exposed skin of her neck. "But you know that I will have to if you ever do this again. You are mine, never allow yourself to forget that. You belong to me, body and soul. If you try to deny that, I will have no choice but to hurt you. First you, and later the little bastard in the kitchen. Do you understand? The choice is yours, I don’t ever want to have to mar your perfect skin, but if you force me... " his voice trailed off regretfully.
He could not see her at that moment, he was too busy breathing in the warm fragrance of her neck, but he felt her nod her understanding, her soft hair brushing his cheek, and he felt goose bumps of excitement raise the hair at the nape of his neck and on his arms.
God, he loved the hold he had over her! Lyle knew it was mostly because of the non-entity in the kitchen, but that was okay with him for now. He couldn’t understand why she tried to protect that little brat, but he was thankful that she did, it made things so much easier.
Barely touching her he let his hand slide down her face, towards her neck, the sensation of her soft skin under his hand made his mind spin.
"Don’t you like this?" He asked in a soft and low voice, but without the slightest doubt that she soon would. He lifted his head and looked straight into her eyes.
"I *am* sorry that I let Jarod touch you. I see now that it was a mistake, that he could never be worthy of you, but I’ll make it up to you. I’ll make you forget him, I swear."
"Don’t delude yourself." Parker answered through lips so tight that they were white along the edges. "I *loathe* the feel of your hands on me. I wouldn’t even shake your hand if I could avoid it. And I *loved* the way Jarod touched me. If you knew me half as well as you think you do, you would have known that the drugs you fed me that night weren’t necessary. I would have given him freely what you have to take by force."
She never saw the blow coming, although she knew it would. Suddenly the left side of her face was on fire and a trickle of salty blood filled her mouth from a cut that the force of the blow left just inside of her cheek.
"Never, NEVER, speak to me that way again." Lyle yelled, love and tenderness burned out of his mind by white-hot rage.
Her raised his hand to hit her a second time when he saw a small stream of blood running down her arm. He had hit her so hard that her whole body had jerked, and the metal of the cuffs had sliced the skin around one of her wrists.
In an instant his mood changed again, to guilt and remorse.
"Why did you make me do that?" He asked sadly, his eyes glued to the fluid trickling down her arm. "I told you not to make me angry."
He reached out and caught a drop of blood on the tip of one finger. Parker’s face twisted in a grimace of disgust as he carefully he studied the red liquid on his finger, and then slowly brought it to his mouth, his eyes closing as he tasted her for the first time.
The sweet and metallic taste sent a hot jolt of desire through his body. He had wanted to make this special, after all, your first time should be a memory to cherish forever, but he couldn’t withstand the lust to possess her a moment longer. Later he would be able to claim her again, as slowly as he wanted. Now that she was his they would have time enough for him to fulfill his every dream, his every desire. But right now he needed to feel her; to take her with all his power and mark her forever as his own.
With a quick motion he grabbed the collar of her jacket and ripped it open in one swift jerk. Lyle e heard her gasp of surprise, but he didn’t care about her reactions anymore. He couldn’t think coherently anymore, all he could do was obey his twisted desires.
He placed his hand on her breast, slowly sliding down to her stomach and the back up to her breast again. He ignored the way she stiffened in mute rejection. She was still wearing her powder-blue satin top and its smooth texture whispered a promise of even softer skin to his fevered mind. Lyle was so caught up in a haze of sensual pleasure and carnal thoughts that he never noticed when her eyes filled with surprise and concern. In spite of the concern, though, her face expressed her dawning hope.
****
"You are sure the report she assured us was genuine is a fake as well, then?" Raines asked a unseen person on the other end of the phone line.
After a slight pause he answered: "Understood , Sir. I agree with you completely. Time to end the charade once and for all." He put the phone down and turned to a figure who stood at the nearby door.
"Sam," he stated calmly, but with an undertone of savage pleasure, "I need 3 sweeper teams. Have them ready in 5 minutes."
****
"Let her go!" The voice was nearly unrecognizable, so filled was it with outrage.
Lyle froze as he heard the order from behind him. At the same moment he cursed himself for being such an idiot. He had forgotten to take his sisters gun with him when they left the kitchen. Somehow that damn brat had managed to get rid of the cuffs and now he had the audacity to threaten him with the 9 mm!
It took a lot of effort, but he managed to keep a lid on his temper. The last thing he needed was to provoke a panicked reaction from the boy. Lyle turned as slowly as he could manage, his passion extinguished in an instant.
The boy was standing in the doorway, holding Parker’s handgun firmly and pointing the business end of it directly at his head.
"This is not a toy!" Lyle snapped, hoping to trigger reflexive obedience with the tone of authority in his voice. "Give me the weapon." He demanded.
The only response was a short but confident shake of the boy’s head.
Without taking his gaze away from determined young man Lyle grabbed a handful of his sister’s glossy hair and shook her head sharply. She pressed her lips together against a cry of pain, but Lyle continued with his ploy. The threat of violence had been so effective with his sister, after all, that it would be nothing short of a miracle if they didn’t work with the boy as well. He obviously idolized his perfidious sister.
"If you don’t hand the gun over to me right now, Miss Parker here will have to pay the consequences for your defiance. I’m sure you don’t want to be responsible for her being hurt, now do you?"
Uncertainty flickered in the boy’s eyes and it was all Lyle could do to control a savage grin of triumph. JJ looked over to his sister for reassurance, and that was all the opening Lyle needed. Unnoticed by either of the others he had managed to grab the corner of a pillow. With all his strength he threw it at the kid.
As the pillow hit JJ he lost the weapon and almost lost his balance as well. As soon as he saw the pistol hit the floor Lyle released his hold on his temper and sprang to his feet with an inarticulate roar of anger. When he got his hands on the boy he’d-----
"Run!" Parker shouted forcefully, triggering JJ’s instinct for self preservation. He turned on his heels and raced nimbly out of the room with Lyle directly behind him. At the last moment JJ was able to slam the door into his pursuer’s face.
Lyle’s howl of pain and mindless rage was all the promise JJ needed of what would happen to him if Lyle caught up with him. Fear gave his feet wings, and he fairly flew through the house and into the surrounding woods. In moments he had hidden himself in the thick underbrush with all of the cunning and agility that lurked in the heart of every child.
He lay utterly still, trying to control his gasping breaths and pounding hear, and tried to think of what he’d done wrong. He had to understand that before he could go back again to help Miss Parker. As terrified as he was he still didn’t even consider for a second that he should abandon her.
****
"It appears that she’s home." Broots said while he pointed at Miss Parker’s car in the front of the house.
"What do you think Sydney? Should we go closer?" He asked uncertainly.
Neither of them noticed the silver jeep pulling up on the other side of the road, almost hidden in the dark shadows of the nearby trees.
Sydney had just opened his mouth to respond to his companion when all hell broke loose around them.
With his mouth still open, Sydney watched the clone run out of the front door, round Miss Parker’s car, and dive into the shelter of the nearby bushes. In an instant the boy was completely concealed. Then, before he regained his composure, Lyle stormed through the same door, and even as far away as they were, Sydney could see him fuming. Neither Sydney or Broots had the slightest trouble hearing him shouting for the boy to return immediately.
Sydney slowly closed his mouth, thinking with amused detachment that the clone, even with his sheltered upbringing, wasn’t naive enough to respond to an adult ranting at him with a voice so full of rage.
****
With a hiss of pain Parker dislocated her thumb and slipped out of the cuffs, scraping off even more skin in the process and leaving a trail of blood on the bed.
‘Lyle really is an idiot!’ She thought as relief, anger and disgust warred for supremacy in her heart. In his fury he had grabbed his weapon, but forgotten about her gun lying on the floor. She swung her legs over the bed and bent over to pick up the 9 mm that was almost like an old friend to her by now. Then she froze, horror and disbelief swamping her as she stared at the floor by her gun.
Miss Parker couldn’t believe what her eyes were telling her. Next to her weapon there was a snake.... a bright green Mamba.
‘Lyle!’ She groaned inwardly.
Fortunately for her, the snake was curled up and seemed to be asleep. She was glad that her bedroom was always cold. The thought of how close JJ had been standing to the reptile put a knot of second-hand fear in her stomach. For a split second she considered just to taking the chance and to grabbing the pistol, but the next second she realized that would make her even more of an idiot than her crazy brother. The last thing she needed now was a bite from a poisonous snake.
Growing frantic for JJ’s safety as the seconds ticked past, she looked around the room. Her eyes fell on the wicker laundry basket in one corner and a slight smile of relief dawned on her face. With a few quick strides she was there and snatched it up, only to reveal a Black Widow spider. The sick bastard claiming to be her brother was really trying to kill her, she realized. A shudder run down her spine as she tried to imagine what other lethal surprises might be lurking in her house for her to discover. No time for that! She forced her mind to focus on her current task. She had to get her weapon and stop Lyle from hurting JJ.
Miss Parker paid no further attention to the spider who was slowly making her way over the floor towards her wall. The insect crept determinedly on, lifting her long, hairy legs almost in slow motion....
As soon as she was close enough to see it, she thanked God that the snake was still coiled in sleep. She carefully positioned the basket over the deadly creature, and then scooped up her pistol, cursing the time she’d lost solving her venomous problem. Violent and painful methods of retribution raced through her mind as she followed after JJ and Lyle, praying that she wouldn’t encounter any more of Lyle’s unpleasant versions of a practical joke.
"I should have made sure that green jello was radioactive!" She muttered furiously to herself.
****
Jarod and the Major watched with astonishment and more than a little apprehension as JJ and Lyle played their obviously deadly serious game of hide and seek. Wondering what Lyle was doing here, Jarod was about to jump out of the car to help his brother when his father grabbed him by the arm and stopped him. The Major responded to Jarod’s inarticulate cry of protest by pointing to the rearview mirror. Three black Lincoln Towncars were heading their way at high speed. Jarod’s heart skipped a beat, but the cars passed them without seeming to notice either the jeep or its passengers.
With squealing brakes the black cars slid to a halt in front of Miss Parker’s house. At just the same moment Miss Parker came rushing out of the house, her ripped jacket still fluttering around her body, the handcuffs dangling form one wrist, and her gun held ready in the other hand.
"Lyle!" She shouted to her brother, ignoring the Centre vehicles in her anxiety for the boy. Lyle’s head snapped up from the bushes he was searching several yards away from her.
"Where is JJ?" She demanded, gun trained on her brother’s head. "I swear, if you’ve hurt him in any way I will shoot you again, and this time I will make sure you don’t come back from the dead!"
Lyle looked at her with nearly comical disbelief. All he could think about were the words he had said to her about a year ago. He had told her that she was beautiful when she was angry and she had replied that he had never seen her angry. They had both been right, he reflected almost humbly, now she was truly angry and she was the most magnificently beautiful woman he had ever seen.
Her sapphire eyes blazed bright enough to overshadow the growing sunset in the west, her long, dancer’s legs were planted firmly on the ground, and her weapon remained trained on his head. Of course he knew that she would never shoot him, and he marveled at her fire and vibrancy. She looked so powerful, so full of life, so---so---Parker. He had seen DSA’s of their mother when she had been fighting save one of the Centre children, and Parker looked exactly like her, except that she was foolishly fighting against him, rather than with him like she should be.
Nobody could separate them, couldn’t she see that? The time they had spent inside of their mother together had formed a bond nothing could ever destroy. They belonged to each other, surely she could sense that even as he did. Even when he’d been growing up with the Bowmans he had known that she was out there, somewhere. Oh, he hadn’t known that she was his twin sister, but he knew that there was a companion waiting for him. Someone who would never leave him, never hurt him, who would be closer than the air he needed to survive. One day Raines would pay for taking her away from him, for keeping them so far apart for so long. *He* should have grown up with her, not Jarod. Nobody else could ever be good enough for touch her---nobody. Tonight they would be together again, just the two of them. He would take such good care of her...
"Oh, come on, Sis, you won’t shoot me. I’m your brother; I love you." Lyle informed her in tones that were calmly reasonable. Parker felt a shiver run down her spine as she realized that her brother truly was insane.
"Come here," he coaxed sweetly. "Give me your gun, and help me find the boy. You don’t need to ever worry about using a gun again; I’ll always be here to take care of you. I love you, Parker." He added again, madness and sincerity shining from his face.
Parker’s gun never wavered, although she was suddenly assailed with doubt. Could she do it? She wondered uneasily. Could she kill her own brother? A man who was too insane to see the lunacy of his inconsistent words and actions.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of several car doors opening at once. A veritable wave of sweepers poured out of the black cars that had arrived seconds earlier.
Raines left the last car, and as soon as Lyle saw him he yelled over to him: "She has the clone! "
"I want her and the boy alive!" Raines rasped as loudly as he could manage with his damaged lungs.
"You have no choice now, Sis." Lyle changed from cajoling to threatening without a moment’s hesitation. "You and the brat are both going back to the Centre. And I promise you, neither of you will ever see the sun again. Come here, give me your weapon, and I can still save you. We belong together. The Triumvirate will surely allow me to keep you in my team where you can be supervised. I’ll be in charge, but we still can be together, and you’ll still have your freedom. You know that I’m the best chance you have. "
Lyle was elated when he saw a haunted look flicker across her face. He was now close enough to see the emotions on her face, two more steps and he could reach out for the gun, four more and he could touch her again. A triumphant grin blossomed as he saw that she lowered her weapon slightly. Finally! Finally, she had accepted the truth. Nothing could stop them now, and nobody would ever be able to come between them.
Lyle was planing their future together as a thought crossed his mind.
"Sorry about the baby. You’ll have to have it you know. I wish we didn’t have to force you to, but you know the Triumvirate will need some reason not to kill you." Parker wondered if he really knew that she had never had the abortion, or if his demented mind had just decided that she hadn’t because that was the most convenient to him.
"And you have to agree that it will undoubtedly be perfect Pretender material. But don’t worry, you’ll never have to go through that again; as soon as Jarod’s brat is born you’ll never see it again. Raines can have the little bastard and good riddance. I forgive you, you know. I know that you’ll never let Jarod touch you again." Lyle rambled disjointedly, never noticing how utterly senseless his words were.
Miss Parker felt like a animal surrounded by hunters; no escape, no way out, no recourse. There were Sweepers behind her and Lyle in front of her. Raines wanted her alive, and Lyle did too, but she suspected that wouldn’t be the case if she made a break for it. She was confident that he would shoot her rather than let her escape. In his sick fashion he undoubtedly felt that it would be the loving thing to do.
If she let them get her now, she would be lost. Never again would she have a chance to be free. They would bury her alive and nobody would ever find her again, even if she hadn’t already driven off everyone who truly cared about her. As things stood now, there wasn’t anyone left who would bother to search for her. She had no other choice but to get JJ and herself out of this now.
Her weapon came up again and pointed directly at her brother.
"Order the sweepers away," Parker demanded steadily. "Or I’ll shoot you. And believe me, Lyle, I *will* do it!
‘Damn!’ She cursed inwardly at the obvious frailty of her threat. She had to come up with a better plan immediately, but she couldn’t seem to force her sluggish thoughts to cooperate. If ever she needed to have a plan of action, rather than being forced just to react, it was now. But her mind was a fuzzy and she saw no other options.
‘Poor Sydney,’ she thought regretfully. ‘To think that he once believed I might be a Pretender too!’ Well, if any more proof was needed to verify that his faith in her was in vain, this would certainly be it. She might be carrying the gene, but that was all. She wasn’t any different from any other normal person in any other way. She almost burst into a hysterical laughter as she realized how ridiculous her thoughts had become.
‘Maybe Lyle’s insanity is hereditary and I’m losing it as well.’ She thought with amusement.
"Shoot the clone! Fire at the bushes around here, he must be hiding somewhere near us!" Lyle yelled at the sweepers who were simply standing there, unsure of how to go on. Even Rains was standing quietly next to his car.
"NO!" Miss Parker shouted frantically, her finger squeezing the trigger of her weapon the same moment.
How long is a second? This second was an eternity, at least it was for her. She was sure she could see the bullet leaving her gun and make its way towards Lyle in slow motion. She felt like she was trapped in a Hollywood movie, one where time seemed to stand still. From the look of complete surprise on Lyle face, she was sure he too was in that slow motion scene. She was sure that he saw the bullet coming towards his head.
*Mom, I just wanted her to love me like I love her.*
The mental plea was forced into Miss Parker’s mind like the bullet into her brother’s, and she felt all of the loss, and confusion, and loneliness that went along with that thought in her brother’s mind. For a moment she swayed with the sheer agony she felt in that single sentence and she feared she was going to pass out from the pain. And then, for just a split second, she was looking into a dark hole, and the horror of being sucked into it was nearly enough to make her lose her mind. She was out of her body, no longer connected to her world, and drifting away from every rational thought she had ever had.
The thud when Lyle’s dead body hit the ground pushed her back into herself and the pain was, if possible, even greater. Her body and her mind were reeling with shock. She couldn’t believe that she’d done it, that she had actually pulled the trigger.
‘You killed your brother!’ A voice was screaming inside her head. Her body was frozen in the same position it had been in when she had fired her gun; her arm was still outstretched, her finger still pulling against the trigger.
‘Good think I had it set to fire single shots rather than continuous fire.’ She thought incongruously.
She didn’t even noticed that every one of the Sweepers had trained their weapon at her, just waiting for Raines to give the order to fire. Every Sweeper but one, that is.
The frozen tableau was shattered by the sudden sound of a car engine. The Towncar nearest the scene howled as its motor was mercilessly revved up. Before anybody could react, the car had traversed the distance to Miss Parker’s side and was now partially shielding her from the trigger happy Sweepers. The driver’s door flew open and Sam leaped out of the car.
"Miss Parker, get into the car!" Sam bellowed, releasing her from her paralysis. She hesitated for an instant, then she ducked and raced to the side of the car. She opened the front passenger door, but she didn’t get in. Instead she turned, her eyes searching the foliage around her.
"JJ come here!" She called, desperation clear in her voice while she prayed the boy would be close enough to make it.
She saw the small figure crawling out of a nearby bush with a warm rush of relief and she silently thanked God that the boy hadn’t hidden on the other side of the drive. He quickly ran over to her and dove under her arm into the car. Parker followed him closely, almost landing on top of him in her haste, and slammed the door shut even as Sam accelerated out of her drive in a shower of gravel.
At the same time, Sam took out his own weapon and aimed it at the nearest Lincoln as they passed it. His shot blew out the front tire, and bought them a little time.
"Shoot that damn traitor!" Raines howled. "You morons! What are you waiting for?" He bellowed in a surprisingly strong voice at the last sweeper team with a working car.
"Get back you car ready to follow them! Remember, I wand them alive if at all possible." He turned his attention to the other Sweepers, ignoring the bustle his words had triggered in the last group. "Get a Cleaner team down here on the double. Have them take care of this mess and then all of you return to the Centre. We’ll discuss this farce when I get back!" With that final threat Raines took his seat in the waiting Towncar and was rasping out orders and reminders as they sped off in pursuit of the fleeing trio.
****
Major Charles and Jarod each drew in a long breath at the same moment. They had almost forgotten to breathe as they watched the whole scene unfolding in front of Parker’s house. They were still in shock from those final explosive moments of the confrontation between Lyle and Parker.
Before he could voice the question on his mind, Jarod caught a flicker of movement in front of Parker’s house out of the corner of his eye and turned to see the last Towncar speeding after Parker, Sam and the boy.
"No!" Jarod gasped, determined not to fail Miss Parker a second time. Before his father could say anything he had started their car and was speeding after the other two.
****
As the silver Jeep passed Sydney and Broots both men had a clear view into the interior of the vehicle. They recognized the father and son and both men groaned in unison.
"Syd, could you please pinch me? I think, no, I *hope* I’m dreaming!" Broots gasped.
JJ opened the passenger door from the car and hoped out.
"Wow, do you always drive that fast?" The boy asked, exited and with a happy sparkle in his eyes.
"No, only when you or your family is involved." Miss Parker scowled at the boy. JJ’s smile faded until he saw her wink. Then his grin reappeared, a bit broader this time.
"OK, let’s go inside. You can wait here while I drive back to Donoterase and grab your Sister." She lifted her arm a bit in a silent invitation and the boy slipped in to let her squeeze his shoulders while she guided him to the entrance of her home.
JJ snuggled closer, thinking that he had been right, she was kind and nice. He hadn’t expected the police to grab him, and he hadn’t been sure how she would react when the police called her and told her that her son was waiting for him. He had been a bit worried while he waited that his father and Jarod might have been right. But the moment he saw Miss Parker walking in he knew he was right, and they were wrong.
The boy snickered inwardly at their misconception. She was really cool. As far as he could tell, she had broken every speed limit and many other traffic laws on the way here. Driving with Jarod or his father had never been as much fun as his one ride with her.
Miss Parker looked down at the happily grinning boy at her side. Normally she would have be angry, or at least irritated. To her own surprise she only felt happy to see him again. No matter what, she vowed inwardly, she would manage to keep him safe to. For what seemed to be the thousandth time she asked herself just how had she ended up as the rescuer for Jarod’s entire family?
****
Lyle watched them walking up to the house, and it made him sick to see the boy snuggling up to his Sister. !0 minutes, then he would follow.....
*****
"You’re sure this was the boy the police grabbed?" Jarod asked the truck driver.
The man carefully studied the picture over the rim of his sunglasses. "Yeah, sure. He was asking around for a truck heading to Blue Cove."
"Do you know where the police took him?" The Major stepped in.
"Nope, but there’s a police station at the end of this road." The driver pointed to a single building about 600 yards away.
"Thank you very much." The Major answered gratefully.
"I just hope," Jarod said to his father while they hurried back to the car. "That he is still there."
"Don’t worry, son, where would he go? The police won’t let him walk out on his own." The older man assured him.
******
"Sydney, I have a very bad feeling about this." Broots sighed and nervously clutched the steering wheel harder. "Nobody has heard anything from Lyle or Miss Parker for hours. This isn’t good; not good at all."
Sydney sat in the passenger seat with his eyes nearly closed. He was trying to make sense out of all the confusing information they had received in the past two hours. Broots was right; recent events had left a foul taste of fear in his mouth. Something was utterly wrong. He was worried that something might have already happened and they would arrive too late to help her. If that were so, it would all be his fault. Instead of trusting his own instincts he had believed Parker’s icy act. He still wasn’t sure what was really going on, but he knew he had made a big mistake in condemning the woman he’d worked with for the past 4 years If he hadn’t learned anything else in his years at his less than ideal workplace, he should have at least figured out that at the Centre nothing was ever what it seemed to be.
He sighed again. He had worked with Miss Parker very closely for 4 years. They had spend nearly every day and more than a few late work nights together, and he thought he should have known her by now. After she had told him that she knew about his Refuge box he had seen her smile. It was the first really warm and relaxed smile he had seen on her face in far too many years and it made him hope that she cared more for Jarod than she would admit. And the way Jarod sacrificed everything to try and save her after Willie shot her in the back... Sydney shook his head, angry at himself. He was a fool, that’s all, an old romantic fool.
Broots slowed the car down as they neared her house. Sydney hoped that she was at home because they really needed to talk.. He only hoped she would trust them enough to finally be honest about what was troubling her and to let them help her.
****
2 hours earlier
*****
"What do you mean my son isn’t here? You just let him take off? Alone???" Major Charles demanded incredulously.
"No, we let him go with his mother." The officer answered solidly, his manner expressing outrage that his judgment had been questioned.
"His mother?" Jarod asked softly. "Tall woman, auburn hair, bluest eyes God ever made? Name of Parker?"
"Yes." The officer smiled. "Looked like a model, in a lethal sort of way. Gorgeous woman. If I were only a few years younger…" He trailed off with a happy sigh. Jarod fought down a red haze of jealous anger.
"Parker, yes, that’s what she said her name was." He finally pulled his thoughts back to the present, but the reminiscent smile on his lips made Jarod’s blood boil. The officer, seeing the anger, but misunderstanding its source, assumed that Jarod was angry that Parker had custody of the boy at the moment. "Her and the boy were obviously very close. Is that why he ran off? This some kind of a custody battle?" His eyes narrowed with suspicious censure.
"Something like that." The Major admitted, placing a calming hand onto Jarod’s shoulder.
"Well it would be a sin to try and separate those two. I never saw a mother so devoted to her child." The officer scolded.
"Is this Mis---uh, Ms. Parker, we’re talking about?" Jarod demanded with open skepticism.
"I already told you that." The officer growled, he and Jarod sizing each other up like two strange dogs preparing for a battle over territory.
"So, you released JJ into Ms. Parker’s care." The Major confirmed smoothly while Jarod tried to regain control of himself. His father’s vice-like grip on his shoulder warned him to keep his mouth shut from here on out.
"Yes. And if you want my advice," (They didn’t, but that didn’t stop him.) "You’ll all make up. That’s a good kid you guys got. Don’t hurt him with your own problems." He scolded albeit with the best of intentions.
"Officer, you have no idea how much we want to do exactly that." Jarod answered fervently. "C’mon, Dad. Let’s go get my brother and make up with Parker, okay?"
The Major and Jarod both suppressed smiles as they made their farewells and tore out of the station. Jarod knew where Parker lived. Soon now, very soon…..
*****
Back to the present.
*****
Lyle entered the house through the back door. He could her his Sister happily chatting with the boy, and it made him sick. He had never heard her laugh so much. He stopped and listened them. Pizza? They were discussing the best toppings for pizzas? Now the boy was asking for ice-cream for dessert. ENOUGH! He couldn’t bear to stand by and listen to them pretending to be a loving little family any longer.
Silently he stepped towards the kitchen door, glad that it wasn’t completely closed, so he could enter without making any noise that could reveal his presence. He reached for his weapon, and as quietly as he could he flicked the safety off. Carefully he peered through the small door slit.
‘Perfect!’ He thought with malicious satisfaction, ‘The boy is close enough to grab before she can react to my presence.’
With one powerful push he slammed the door open and grabbed JJ in the next instant. He had the gun pressed to the boy’s temple before his Sister could even turn.
Miss Parker heard a loud thud from behind and whirled, instinctively reaching for her gun while she turned. The sight that met her eyes made her freeze, and then lower her weapon a bit.
"That’s right, Sis. One wrong move and your little clone is dead. Drop it. NOW!" The last word Lyle shouted triumphantly at her. He had no real intentions to kill the clone, but if she didn’t obey he would shoot him in a painful, if non-fatal place.
"OK. You win. Just let the boy go." Miss Parker replied as she slowly placed her weapon on the nearby table.
Frantically, she tried to come up with a plan of action, a solution to this unexpected twist, but at the moment there wasn’t anything she could do. Better to play along, and hope that later Lyle would make a mistake she could take advantage of. If there was a later, that is. If she didn’t solve this problem soon, everything would be lost anyway. She didn’t dare to hope that the Triumvirate would take much longer to discover her plans and treachery.
Lyle pushed the kid slightly away from him.
"Don’t move!" He ordered grimly. "If you do, I’ll shoot you, but I’ll make sure you live long enough to watch my traitorous Sister die."
JJ nodded in agreement. He was shocked and not sure how to react. Everything had happened so fast, he thought dazedly, and it was all his fault. He’d never even thought that Miss Parker would need his help. Parker tried vainly to catch his eye, to reassure him everything would be okay, but JJ wasn’t focusing on anything but his self-recrimination.
Lyle kept the weapon trained on the boy’s head while he reached with his other hand into his pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs.
"Here Sis, put this on one wrist." With this he threw her the cuffs.
With a dark glare she obeyed.
"Good girl" Lyle taunted, his good humor restored by the fear and anger radiating from his two captives. "Now take your cuffs and use them to chain the boy to the pipes over there. He pointed with his head to a spot close to the door.
Miss Parker stepped closer to the teenager, noting the fear and guilt in his eyes with deep regret. ‘God, he thinks this is his fault!’ She wished she had time to explain the sick nature of her brother to him, but Lyle’s jaw was clenching ominously.
"It’s all right." She assured JJ softly. "Come over here and take a seat on the chair, so you can sit while you’re chained. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you"
The boy kept his head down.
"Do you hear me?" She stressed insistently. "I won’t let anything happen to you; remember that."
JJ looked up, straight into her eyes, and the utter faith and love in his eyes took her breath away. Once again, she swore inwardly that she’d do anything that was necessary to keep her promise to him.
"That’s enough!" Lyle interrupted their silent conversation impatiently. The concern and protection his Sister was showing for this brat infuriated him. Hell! He was her brother, but she had never even given him a friendly word. Now this clone, not even a *real* boy, but one created in a test tube, was the recipient of her love. Lyle’s hatred of the boy grew. Maybe he should kill him anyway...? No, he was worth too much, but he would show the boy just who had the power here-----later, though, much later! First he had to teach his sister a lesson.
"Move to the door." Lyle ordered, pointing to the door at the other end of the room.
Not wanting to make him even more angry, but unable to resist, Parker ruffled JJ’s hair before she moved to obey, hoping to calm him and reassure him that everything was going to be OK. She ignored the fulminating glare her brother gave her with the mask of cold indifference she’d spent most of her life perfecting. When she reached the door Lyle ordered her to stop. He moved over to check JJ’s cuffs, satisfying himself that he was securely chained to the pipe before he turned his attention back to his sister.
Lyle kept the gun trained on Miss Parker at all times, being careful to stay out of her reach. Her present cooperation didn’t fool him for a second. If she had half a chance she could, and would, take him out in an instant. He had the utmost respect for her physical prowess, he’d seen her work out.
"Go." He ordered tersely.
Miss Parker obeyed, following his instructions as he guided her through the living room and over to the door of her bedroom. Her heart sank as she opened the door and walked in, Lyle directly behind her. Her mind was racing futilely. No matter how hard she tried, she simply couldn’t come up with a solution to this dilemma.
Damn! Why hadn’t she anticipated something like this from Lyle? She tried to buy herself some time by walking slowly through the room. Waiting for help would be a waste of time, she knew. No one who knew her would have any reason to think she needed help, not that they would care even if they did know. She’d pretty much burned her bridges behind her with Sydney and Broots, Jarod was God only knew where, and he’d made it pretty obvious he hated her now, her father was also missing in action, busy guarding Brigitte and the baby he wanted so desperately. Right now the only two people who’d give a damn about her safety were Emily and JJ, and they were as helpless as she was.
Parker heard Lyle follow her into the room. She turned and looked at her brother. If she had doubted at all what he wanted from her, that doubt was erased by what she saw on his face. She ruthlessly suppressed a shiver of dread as the anticipatory gleam in her brother eyes gave him away. That sick bastard wanted to see her fear and disgust, and she’d die before she gave him the satisfaction.
"Could you please close the door?" She asked as coolly as she could manage.
"Trying to spare the little brat, are you?" Lyle jeered with a smug grin. "Practicing to be a mommy, dearest sister?" he mocked viciously.
"No, I am still not sure if you’re carrying the little lab rat or not. To be honest, I don’t care one way or the other. You’re mine; you’ve always belonged to me and no child, real or imaginary, will ever change that." Not waiting for an answer, he slammed the door shut and advance into the room, determination in his every move.
"Now go over to the bed, sit down and cuff yourself to the bedpost." Lyle ordered, the hot light in his eyes and the greed with which he appraised her body making Parker battle with both nausea and rising fear. "If you’re a good girl for me I may just consider not hurting your little boy out there. But you want to be a good girl for me, don’t you?" He asked, an insane note of delusion entering into is voice.
Miss Parker nodded in agreement, concentrating with every fiber of her being on maintaining her mask of calm. Mechanically, she walked over to her bed and did what he had ordered. He was smarter than she expected----he was staying just out of reach until she was safely restrained. If they’d been alone she would have taken a chance and jumped him, regardless of the consequences. But if he shot her now JJ would be left all alone. No matter how smart the boy was, he didn’t stand a chance against this psycho. She suspected her brother knew that the boy was a much stronger chain than the cuffs.
Lyle watched her sitting down on the bed and closing the handcuffs around her wrists. A satisfied grin engulfed his face when he heard them click hut. For a moment he considered finding something to tie her feet with as well, but he dismissed this idea a moment later. Thanks to the boy, further restraints wouldn’t be necessary. Of course, he’d still have to teach the little brat a lesson later, regardless of what he’d promised his sister about not hurting him, but reneging on a promise had never bothered him in the least.
Parker was given a few precious moments reprieve as Lyle became distracted by thoughts of what he could do with the boy when he was done with his sister. Maybe he’d could play a round of Russian roulette with him---the Triumvirate needed his brain, not his body. They surely wouldn’t mind if he just shot the boy’s kneecaps, after all, that would only make it harder for the rat to ever run again.
The original Jarod had never quite satisfied him when he’d gotten to toy with him. The Tower and the Triumvirate had always watched far too closely for him to really enjoy himself, but nobody had the slightest clue that he was here, at his sister’s house, much less that she’d somehow managed to locate the clone. He briefly wondered just how she had managed that anyway, before returning to his pleasurable plans. Yes, the boy would be much more fun to play with. He was younger, malleable, and far more easily frightened. Maybe he would let his dear sister watch him work. That would teach her to give someone else the love and affection she owed him! The thought filled him with sadistic anticipation and refocused his attention on his stoically waiting sister.
She watched, keeping her face impassive by exerting every ounce of her willpower, as Lyle laid is weapon on the nearby night-stand. He slipped out his jacket, his eyes never leaving his sister’s face. Not only was he ready to grab his gun the instant she made a single wrong move, but he wanted to savor every moment of her fear and pain. No matter what she might try, she knew that right now he had the upper hand and he’d win.
‘Face it Parker,’ she told herself grimly. "You’ve been outmaneuvered and now you’re checkmated.’
Lyle stood about four steps away from the bed, avidly watching every nuance of her expression. He knew she was trying to hide her fear, but he was a master at this game and he recognized every flicker of the eye, every twitch of the jaw. He relished the expression on her face, knowing that her mind was racing, trying to come up with any kind of a plan to save herself and the boy.
His smile broadened, she’d been a worthy adversary, and even now she remained a challenge. It didn’t matter that he’d won, that she was completely defenseless, not even now would she give up. He respected her strength, even as he looked forward to breaking it. It was a shame, really. None of this would have been necessary if she had only been able to see that they belonged together. Fate itself had bonded them together in the womb and it was obvious that they were a team----and what a team they would make when he finally finished her training! Together nobody could would even dare to competed with them. Right now he was willing to settle for second best, but Lyle knew that eventually he could dispense with the chains. One day she would stay where she belonged, next to him.
"Don’t worry," he said, his voice oddly gentle. "Everything will be okay now. I’m not angry with you anymore. Even if you are still pregnant, and I will find out soon enough if that’s so, it won’t affect us. You’ll just have the baby and then we’ll give it to the Triumvirate. You’ll never even have to think about it anymore; it will be just you and me. I promise that nobody, except me, will ever touch you again. I’m truly sorry that I let Jarod have you, but eventually you’ll understand it was for the best."
Lyle closed the distance between them and sat down next to his twin. He reached out with his damaged hand and placed it on her cheek. He smiled as he saw her flinch, but his heart warmed with pride as she continued to deny her fear. He was, inwardly at least, blown away by her courage. Every other woman he had "trained" had started to cry and plead long before he had gotten this far. But he had never really doubted her valiant heart, not really. After all, she too was a Parker.
It was almost as though his hand had taken on a life of its own as he caressed her face. She started to jerk her head away, but simply raising his eyebrows made her stop and submit to his attentions. Pleasure coursed like fire through his veins, such sweet submission! She was his, he exulted, only his!
"I don’t want to hurt you." He assured her, his voice full of Lyle’s twisted version of love. He lowered his face towards hers until he was so close to her ear that she could feel his hot breath on the exposed skin of her neck. "But you know that I will have to if you ever do this again. You are mine, never allow yourself to forget that. You belong to me, body and soul. If you try to deny that, I will have no choice but to hurt you. First you, and later the little bastard in the kitchen. Do you understand? The choice is yours, I don’t ever want to have to mar your perfect skin, but if you force me... " his voice trailed off regretfully.
He could not see her at that moment, he was too busy breathing in the warm fragrance of her neck, but he felt her nod her understanding, her soft hair brushing his cheek, and he felt goose bumps of excitement raise the hair at the nape of his neck and on his arms.
God, he loved the hold he had over her! Lyle knew it was mostly because of the non-entity in the kitchen, but that was okay with him for now. He couldn’t understand why she tried to protect that little brat, but he was thankful that she did, it made things so much easier.
Barely touching her he let his hand slide down her face, towards her neck, the sensation of her soft skin under his hand made his mind spin.
"Don’t you like this?" He asked in a soft and low voice, but without the slightest doubt that she soon would. He lifted his head and looked straight into her eyes.
"I *am* sorry that I let Jarod touch you. I see now that it was a mistake, that he could never be worthy of you, but I’ll make it up to you. I’ll make you forget him, I swear."
"Don’t delude yourself." Parker answered through lips so tight that they were white along the edges. "I *loathe* the feel of your hands on me. I wouldn’t even shake your hand if I could avoid it. And I *loved* the way Jarod touched me. If you knew me half as well as you think you do, you would have known that the drugs you fed me that night weren’t necessary. I would have given him freely what you have to take by force."
She never saw the blow coming, although she knew it would. Suddenly the left side of her face was on fire and a trickle of salty blood filled her mouth from a cut that the force of the blow left just inside of her cheek.
"Never, NEVER, speak to me that way again." Lyle yelled, love and tenderness burned out of his mind by white-hot rage.
Her raised his hand to hit her a second time when he saw a small stream of blood running down her arm. He had hit her so hard that her whole body had jerked, and the metal of the cuffs had sliced the skin around one of her wrists.
In an instant his mood changed again, to guilt and remorse.
"Why did you make me do that?" He asked sadly, his eyes glued to the fluid trickling down her arm. "I told you not to make me angry."
He reached out and caught a drop of blood on the tip of one finger. Parker’s face twisted in a grimace of disgust as he carefully he studied the red liquid on his finger, and then slowly brought it to his mouth, his eyes closing as he tasted her for the first time.
The sweet and metallic taste sent a hot jolt of desire through his body. He had wanted to make this special, after all, your first time should be a memory to cherish forever, but he couldn’t withstand the lust to possess her a moment longer. Later he would be able to claim her again, as slowly as he wanted. Now that she was his they would have time enough for him to fulfill his every dream, his every desire. But right now he needed to feel her; to take her with all his power and mark her forever as his own.
With a quick motion he grabbed the collar of her jacket and ripped it open in one swift jerk. Lyle e heard her gasp of surprise, but he didn’t care about her reactions anymore. He couldn’t think coherently anymore, all he could do was obey his twisted desires.
He placed his hand on her breast, slowly sliding down to her stomach and the back up to her breast again. He ignored the way she stiffened in mute rejection. She was still wearing her powder-blue satin top and its smooth texture whispered a promise of even softer skin to his fevered mind. Lyle was so caught up in a haze of sensual pleasure and carnal thoughts that he never noticed when her eyes filled with surprise and concern. In spite of the concern, though, her face expressed her dawning hope.
****
"You are sure the report she assured us was genuine is a fake as well, then?" Raines asked a unseen person on the other end of the phone line.
After a slight pause he answered: "Understood , Sir. I agree with you completely. Time to end the charade once and for all." He put the phone down and turned to a figure who stood at the nearby door.
"Sam," he stated calmly, but with an undertone of savage pleasure, "I need 3 sweeper teams. Have them ready in 5 minutes."
****
"Let her go!" The voice was nearly unrecognizable, so filled was it with outrage.
Lyle froze as he heard the order from behind him. At the same moment he cursed himself for being such an idiot. He had forgotten to take his sisters gun with him when they left the kitchen. Somehow that damn brat had managed to get rid of the cuffs and now he had the audacity to threaten him with the 9 mm!
It took a lot of effort, but he managed to keep a lid on his temper. The last thing he needed was to provoke a panicked reaction from the boy. Lyle turned as slowly as he could manage, his passion extinguished in an instant.
The boy was standing in the doorway, holding Parker’s handgun firmly and pointing the business end of it directly at his head.
"This is not a toy!" Lyle snapped, hoping to trigger reflexive obedience with the tone of authority in his voice. "Give me the weapon." He demanded.
The only response was a short but confident shake of the boy’s head.
Without taking his gaze away from determined young man Lyle grabbed a handful of his sister’s glossy hair and shook her head sharply. She pressed her lips together against a cry of pain, but Lyle continued with his ploy. The threat of violence had been so effective with his sister, after all, that it would be nothing short of a miracle if they didn’t work with the boy as well. He obviously idolized his perfidious sister.
"If you don’t hand the gun over to me right now, Miss Parker here will have to pay the consequences for your defiance. I’m sure you don’t want to be responsible for her being hurt, now do you?"
Uncertainty flickered in the boy’s eyes and it was all Lyle could do to control a savage grin of triumph. JJ looked over to his sister for reassurance, and that was all the opening Lyle needed. Unnoticed by either of the others he had managed to grab the corner of a pillow. With all his strength he threw it at the kid.
As the pillow hit JJ he lost the weapon and almost lost his balance as well. As soon as he saw the pistol hit the floor Lyle released his hold on his temper and sprang to his feet with an inarticulate roar of anger. When he got his hands on the boy he’d-----
"Run!" Parker shouted forcefully, triggering JJ’s instinct for self preservation. He turned on his heels and raced nimbly out of the room with Lyle directly behind him. At the last moment JJ was able to slam the door into his pursuer’s face.
Lyle’s howl of pain and mindless rage was all the promise JJ needed of what would happen to him if Lyle caught up with him. Fear gave his feet wings, and he fairly flew through the house and into the surrounding woods. In moments he had hidden himself in the thick underbrush with all of the cunning and agility that lurked in the heart of every child.
He lay utterly still, trying to control his gasping breaths and pounding hear, and tried to think of what he’d done wrong. He had to understand that before he could go back again to help Miss Parker. As terrified as he was he still didn’t even consider for a second that he should abandon her.
****
"It appears that she’s home." Broots said while he pointed at Miss Parker’s car in the front of the house.
"What do you think Sydney? Should we go closer?" He asked uncertainly.
Neither of them noticed the silver jeep pulling up on the other side of the road, almost hidden in the dark shadows of the nearby trees.
Sydney had just opened his mouth to respond to his companion when all hell broke loose around them.
With his mouth still open, Sydney watched the clone run out of the front door, round Miss Parker’s car, and dive into the shelter of the nearby bushes. In an instant the boy was completely concealed. Then, before he regained his composure, Lyle stormed through the same door, and even as far away as they were, Sydney could see him fuming. Neither Sydney or Broots had the slightest trouble hearing him shouting for the boy to return immediately.
Sydney slowly closed his mouth, thinking with amused detachment that the clone, even with his sheltered upbringing, wasn’t naive enough to respond to an adult ranting at him with a voice so full of rage.
****
With a hiss of pain Parker dislocated her thumb and slipped out of the cuffs, scraping off even more skin in the process and leaving a trail of blood on the bed.
‘Lyle really is an idiot!’ She thought as relief, anger and disgust warred for supremacy in her heart. In his fury he had grabbed his weapon, but forgotten about her gun lying on the floor. She swung her legs over the bed and bent over to pick up the 9 mm that was almost like an old friend to her by now. Then she froze, horror and disbelief swamping her as she stared at the floor by her gun.
Miss Parker couldn’t believe what her eyes were telling her. Next to her weapon there was a snake.... a bright green Mamba.
‘Lyle!’ She groaned inwardly.
Fortunately for her, the snake was curled up and seemed to be asleep. She was glad that her bedroom was always cold. The thought of how close JJ had been standing to the reptile put a knot of second-hand fear in her stomach. For a split second she considered just to taking the chance and to grabbing the pistol, but the next second she realized that would make her even more of an idiot than her crazy brother. The last thing she needed now was a bite from a poisonous snake.
Growing frantic for JJ’s safety as the seconds ticked past, she looked around the room. Her eyes fell on the wicker laundry basket in one corner and a slight smile of relief dawned on her face. With a few quick strides she was there and snatched it up, only to reveal a Black Widow spider. The sick bastard claiming to be her brother was really trying to kill her, she realized. A shudder run down her spine as she tried to imagine what other lethal surprises might be lurking in her house for her to discover. No time for that! She forced her mind to focus on her current task. She had to get her weapon and stop Lyle from hurting JJ.
Miss Parker paid no further attention to the spider who was slowly making her way over the floor towards her wall. The insect crept determinedly on, lifting her long, hairy legs almost in slow motion....
As soon as she was close enough to see it, she thanked God that the snake was still coiled in sleep. She carefully positioned the basket over the deadly creature, and then scooped up her pistol, cursing the time she’d lost solving her venomous problem. Violent and painful methods of retribution raced through her mind as she followed after JJ and Lyle, praying that she wouldn’t encounter any more of Lyle’s unpleasant versions of a practical joke.
"I should have made sure that green jello was radioactive!" She muttered furiously to herself.
****
Jarod and the Major watched with astonishment and more than a little apprehension as JJ and Lyle played their obviously deadly serious game of hide and seek. Wondering what Lyle was doing here, Jarod was about to jump out of the car to help his brother when his father grabbed him by the arm and stopped him. The Major responded to Jarod’s inarticulate cry of protest by pointing to the rearview mirror. Three black Lincoln Towncars were heading their way at high speed. Jarod’s heart skipped a beat, but the cars passed them without seeming to notice either the jeep or its passengers.
With squealing brakes the black cars slid to a halt in front of Miss Parker’s house. At just the same moment Miss Parker came rushing out of the house, her ripped jacket still fluttering around her body, the handcuffs dangling form one wrist, and her gun held ready in the other hand.
"Lyle!" She shouted to her brother, ignoring the Centre vehicles in her anxiety for the boy. Lyle’s head snapped up from the bushes he was searching several yards away from her.
"Where is JJ?" She demanded, gun trained on her brother’s head. "I swear, if you’ve hurt him in any way I will shoot you again, and this time I will make sure you don’t come back from the dead!"
Lyle looked at her with nearly comical disbelief. All he could think about were the words he had said to her about a year ago. He had told her that she was beautiful when she was angry and she had replied that he had never seen her angry. They had both been right, he reflected almost humbly, now she was truly angry and she was the most magnificently beautiful woman he had ever seen.
Her sapphire eyes blazed bright enough to overshadow the growing sunset in the west, her long, dancer’s legs were planted firmly on the ground, and her weapon remained trained on his head. Of course he knew that she would never shoot him, and he marveled at her fire and vibrancy. She looked so powerful, so full of life, so---so---Parker. He had seen DSA’s of their mother when she had been fighting save one of the Centre children, and Parker looked exactly like her, except that she was foolishly fighting against him, rather than with him like she should be.
Nobody could separate them, couldn’t she see that? The time they had spent inside of their mother together had formed a bond nothing could ever destroy. They belonged to each other, surely she could sense that even as he did. Even when he’d been growing up with the Bowmans he had known that she was out there, somewhere. Oh, he hadn’t known that she was his twin sister, but he knew that there was a companion waiting for him. Someone who would never leave him, never hurt him, who would be closer than the air he needed to survive. One day Raines would pay for taking her away from him, for keeping them so far apart for so long. *He* should have grown up with her, not Jarod. Nobody else could ever be good enough for touch her---nobody. Tonight they would be together again, just the two of them. He would take such good care of her...
"Oh, come on, Sis, you won’t shoot me. I’m your brother; I love you." Lyle informed her in tones that were calmly reasonable. Parker felt a shiver run down her spine as she realized that her brother truly was insane.
"Come here," he coaxed sweetly. "Give me your gun, and help me find the boy. You don’t need to ever worry about using a gun again; I’ll always be here to take care of you. I love you, Parker." He added again, madness and sincerity shining from his face.
Parker’s gun never wavered, although she was suddenly assailed with doubt. Could she do it? She wondered uneasily. Could she kill her own brother? A man who was too insane to see the lunacy of his inconsistent words and actions.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of several car doors opening at once. A veritable wave of sweepers poured out of the black cars that had arrived seconds earlier.
Raines left the last car, and as soon as Lyle saw him he yelled over to him: "She has the clone! "
"I want her and the boy alive!" Raines rasped as loudly as he could manage with his damaged lungs.
"You have no choice now, Sis." Lyle changed from cajoling to threatening without a moment’s hesitation. "You and the brat are both going back to the Centre. And I promise you, neither of you will ever see the sun again. Come here, give me your weapon, and I can still save you. We belong together. The Triumvirate will surely allow me to keep you in my team where you can be supervised. I’ll be in charge, but we still can be together, and you’ll still have your freedom. You know that I’m the best chance you have. "
Lyle was elated when he saw a haunted look flicker across her face. He was now close enough to see the emotions on her face, two more steps and he could reach out for the gun, four more and he could touch her again. A triumphant grin blossomed as he saw that she lowered her weapon slightly. Finally! Finally, she had accepted the truth. Nothing could stop them now, and nobody would ever be able to come between them.
Lyle was planing their future together as a thought crossed his mind.
"Sorry about the baby. You’ll have to have it you know. I wish we didn’t have to force you to, but you know the Triumvirate will need some reason not to kill you." Parker wondered if he really knew that she had never had the abortion, or if his demented mind had just decided that she hadn’t because that was the most convenient to him.
"And you have to agree that it will undoubtedly be perfect Pretender material. But don’t worry, you’ll never have to go through that again; as soon as Jarod’s brat is born you’ll never see it again. Raines can have the little bastard and good riddance. I forgive you, you know. I know that you’ll never let Jarod touch you again." Lyle rambled disjointedly, never noticing how utterly senseless his words were.
Miss Parker felt like a animal surrounded by hunters; no escape, no way out, no recourse. There were Sweepers behind her and Lyle in front of her. Raines wanted her alive, and Lyle did too, but she suspected that wouldn’t be the case if she made a break for it. She was confident that he would shoot her rather than let her escape. In his sick fashion he undoubtedly felt that it would be the loving thing to do.
If she let them get her now, she would be lost. Never again would she have a chance to be free. They would bury her alive and nobody would ever find her again, even if she hadn’t already driven off everyone who truly cared about her. As things stood now, there wasn’t anyone left who would bother to search for her. She had no other choice but to get JJ and herself out of this now.
Her weapon came up again and pointed directly at her brother.
"Order the sweepers away," Parker demanded steadily. "Or I’ll shoot you. And believe me, Lyle, I *will* do it!
‘Damn!’ She cursed inwardly at the obvious frailty of her threat. She had to come up with a better plan immediately, but she couldn’t seem to force her sluggish thoughts to cooperate. If ever she needed to have a plan of action, rather than being forced just to react, it was now. But her mind was a fuzzy and she saw no other options.
‘Poor Sydney,’ she thought regretfully. ‘To think that he once believed I might be a Pretender too!’ Well, if any more proof was needed to verify that his faith in her was in vain, this would certainly be it. She might be carrying the gene, but that was all. She wasn’t any different from any other normal person in any other way. She almost burst into a hysterical laughter as she realized how ridiculous her thoughts had become.
‘Maybe Lyle’s insanity is hereditary and I’m losing it as well.’ She thought with amusement.
"Shoot the clone! Fire at the bushes around here, he must be hiding somewhere near us!" Lyle yelled at the sweepers who were simply standing there, unsure of how to go on. Even Rains was standing quietly next to his car.
"NO!" Miss Parker shouted frantically, her finger squeezing the trigger of her weapon the same moment.
How long is a second? This second was an eternity, at least it was for her. She was sure she could see the bullet leaving her gun and make its way towards Lyle in slow motion. She felt like she was trapped in a Hollywood movie, one where time seemed to stand still. From the look of complete surprise on Lyle face, she was sure he too was in that slow motion scene. She was sure that he saw the bullet coming towards his head.
*Mom, I just wanted her to love me like I love her.*
The mental plea was forced into Miss Parker’s mind like the bullet into her brother’s, and she felt all of the loss, and confusion, and loneliness that went along with that thought in her brother’s mind. For a moment she swayed with the sheer agony she felt in that single sentence and she feared she was going to pass out from the pain. And then, for just a split second, she was looking into a dark hole, and the horror of being sucked into it was nearly enough to make her lose her mind. She was out of her body, no longer connected to her world, and drifting away from every rational thought she had ever had.
The thud when Lyle’s dead body hit the ground pushed her back into herself and the pain was, if possible, even greater. Her body and her mind were reeling with shock. She couldn’t believe that she’d done it, that she had actually pulled the trigger.
‘You killed your brother!’ A voice was screaming inside her head. Her body was frozen in the same position it had been in when she had fired her gun; her arm was still outstretched, her finger still pulling against the trigger.
‘Good think I had it set to fire single shots rather than continuous fire.’ She thought incongruously.
She didn’t even noticed that every one of the Sweepers had trained their weapon at her, just waiting for Raines to give the order to fire. Every Sweeper but one, that is.
The frozen tableau was shattered by the sudden sound of a car engine. The Towncar nearest the scene howled as its motor was mercilessly revved up. Before anybody could react, the car had traversed the distance to Miss Parker’s side and was now partially shielding her from the trigger happy Sweepers. The driver’s door flew open and Sam leaped out of the car.
"Miss Parker, get into the car!" Sam bellowed, releasing her from her paralysis. She hesitated for an instant, then she ducked and raced to the side of the car. She opened the front passenger door, but she didn’t get in. Instead she turned, her eyes searching the foliage around her.
"JJ come here!" She called, desperation clear in her voice while she prayed the boy would be close enough to make it.
She saw the small figure crawling out of a nearby bush with a warm rush of relief and she silently thanked God that the boy hadn’t hidden on the other side of the drive. He quickly ran over to her and dove under her arm into the car. Parker followed him closely, almost landing on top of him in her haste, and slammed the door shut even as Sam accelerated out of her drive in a shower of gravel.
At the same time, Sam took out his own weapon and aimed it at the nearest Lincoln as they passed it. His shot blew out the front tire, and bought them a little time.
"Shoot that damn traitor!" Raines howled. "You morons! What are you waiting for?" He bellowed in a surprisingly strong voice at the last sweeper team with a working car.
"Get back you car ready to follow them! Remember, I wand them alive if at all possible." He turned his attention to the other Sweepers, ignoring the bustle his words had triggered in the last group. "Get a Cleaner team down here on the double. Have them take care of this mess and then all of you return to the Centre. We’ll discuss this farce when I get back!" With that final threat Raines took his seat in the waiting Towncar and was rasping out orders and reminders as they sped off in pursuit of the fleeing trio.
****
Major Charles and Jarod each drew in a long breath at the same moment. They had almost forgotten to breathe as they watched the whole scene unfolding in front of Parker’s house. They were still in shock from those final explosive moments of the confrontation between Lyle and Parker.
Before he could voice the question on his mind, Jarod caught a flicker of movement in front of Parker’s house out of the corner of his eye and turned to see the last Towncar speeding after Parker, Sam and the boy.
"No!" Jarod gasped, determined not to fail Miss Parker a second time. Before his father could say anything he had started their car and was speeding after the other two.
****
As the silver Jeep passed Sydney and Broots both men had a clear view into the interior of the vehicle. They recognized the father and son and both men groaned in unison.
"Syd, could you please pinch me? I think, no, I *hope* I’m dreaming!" Broots gasped.
