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“It’s been almost seven weeks since we found his last lair, Broots,” Miss Parker hissed in the nervous technician’s ear. “Where is he?!”
Broots sank lower in his chair as the sound of the stilettos pacing behind him. His fingertips were getting blisters from all the typing he had been doing lately, but there was no sign of the missing Pretender. He had created a program that scanned all the newspapers, magazines, e-magazine, and databases possible, searching for key words and for Jarod’s name. Nothing had shown up there. He had an ongoing program searching all the hospital and police databases, checking all the Jarods and John Does, in case something serious had happened. Nothing there, either. A smack on his head drew his attention back to the work at hand.
“Parker, please. He is doing the best he can,” Sydney tried to interject on his friend’s behalf. That worked, just not in the way that had Sydney hoped. He was now the target of Miss Parker’s wrath.
“I better not find out that you have been talking to the labrat lately without telling me, Freud.”
Parker glared at Sydney, but found that, as usual, her glare was completely ineffective with the aging shrink. She really despised the fact that he had watched her grow up, more so at times like this. She could make the bravest sweeper cower in a corner with the barest hint of temper, but she got the distinct impression Sydney was privately laughing at her when she tried the glare on him.
‘You just couldn’t intimidate someone who used to discipline you as a child,’ she thought to herself, ruefully.
“I haven’t talked to him since my birthday party, Parker.” A look of concern appeared and just a quickly disappeared from his face. Parker knew that was as much emotion as he dared show about Jarod while inside the building.
Miss Parker started to answer, but then her eyes narrowed as she glared over Sydney’s shoulder. He turned and watched as Lyle stormed into the room and threw himself into an unoccupied chair. Miss Parker took in his appearance and raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow in his direction. Lyle’s tie was askew, his hair was mussed, and dark shadows were starting to form under his eyes. All in all, he looked like hell and Miss Parker couldn’t be happier.
“What’s up, Lyle? Lose your car again?” she asked mischievously, the smirk on her face letting him know that his difficulties were her joys.
“I wish that was all that was wrong,” he responded unhappily, “but this is a little more serious.”
He leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees, and rubbed at his eyes.
“Dad wants us in his office in twenty minutes. No need to bring your pets, this is a Parker matter.”
Miss Parker raised her eyebrow again at that news. The last time she was invited to the Chairman’s office for a Parker matter, her father announced his intention of shipping her off to boarding school. Something told her that this meeting with Raines would not be as pleasant.
“Fine, twenty minutes. I’ll be there.” She waited a second for him to leave, but started to grow almost concerned when he didn’t even move from the chair. “Was there something else you wanted, Lyle?”
“Any clues to the Labrat’s location? This would really be an excellent time for his return. I would even leave him alone, if you could get him working again.”
Parker and Sydney exchanged glances. Something was seriously wrong if Lyle was willing to give up his playtime voluntarily. They both watched as Lyle heaved himself up and out of the chair and wandered out of the room.
“Man, that was weird,” Broots commented in a low whisper and both Miss Parker and Sydney had to agree.
Twenty minutes later, Miss Parker strolled into the Chairman’s office unannounced. Two steps into the room and she was wishing she had waited for the secretary to announce her. Lyle, the creep, had failed to warn her that there would be more than just the three of them for this meeting. All his talk about Parker matters and of not bringing her ‘pets’ was just that, talk. Ramos, The Triumvirate Rep was glaring at Raines, the Chief Financial Officer, a thin, nattily dressed man named Simmonds, was shuffling through various files at the desk, and Raines was drumming his fingers, glaring at Lyle who was staring back. Parker’s entrance broke the stalemate between the two men and drew the attention of the Rep and the CFO.
“You’re late,” Raines snarled to her.
“Bite me. Lyle told me twenty minutes, I’m here in exactly twenty minutes. You don’t like it, blame Lyle. Hell, blame him anyway, I don’t care either way.”
“Enough!” The Zulu’s voice cut through the rising tension like a scalpel. It was such a deep and authoritative voice, that the listener completely overlooked the fact that the body it erupted from was barely five foot tall. Parker shivered; she had never witnessed such unspoken menace in her life.
“Now that Miss Parker has consented to join us, we will begin this meeting. You will all sit and remain silent unless directly asked a question. Am I understood?”
Parker quietly took as seat, but couldn’t help the amused smirk that graced her mouth as she watched Raines get unceremoniously booted from his own chair. Lyle sat at the opposite end of the desk from Parker with Simmonds between them. All the attention was on the black man from Africa.
“It has come to our attention that the Centre is failing their financial obligations to the Triumvirate. Our investigations have shown that the Centre is unable to renegotiate new contracts with long-time clients. Is this correct, Raines?”
“Well, … Lyle is the one … who … had been conducting … the negotiations.”
“That is not the question you were asked. Need I repeat it?”
Raines and Lyle exchanged heated glances before Raines hesitantly answered .
“Yes, there … have been ... some lost contracts ... but nothing ... we … can’t replace.”
“And how are you going to recoup the lost revenue?”
“Lyle is … actively … pursuing new … clients.”
“And how many of these new clients have signed and delivered the deposits?” Ramos drummed his fingers on the desktop, in a move designed to signify his impatience with Raines and Lyle.
Lyle took a deep breath and silently cursed Raines for putting him on the spot.
“I um, I have several possibilities in the works right now.”
Ramos hit the desk in front of his with one tightly clenched fist.
“We are not interested in possibilities, only in the monies deposited from the clients. Why have you been unable to produce new clients?” The look on the Zulu’s face hinted that he knew the truth and dared Lyle to lie anyway.
Lyle’s temper was already short due to his lack of sleep over the last month and being questioned in this way lit the extremely short fuse. He took another deep breath and tried to calm himself before he ended up in the Renewal Wing.
“I have had several contracts fall through at the last minute. No explanations were given as to why they weren’t signing with us. I just don’t understand it.”
The last statement was made almost too softly to be heard and the puzzlement the man was feeling was obvious. Parker looked over at Lyle in amazement. She didn’t think Lyle would ever admit to not understanding something. She was almost starting to enjoy herself in this meeting; she was hearing information that she just knew Raines would rather she never hear. But part of her was wondering when her turn on Ramos’s chopping block was coming. She didn’t have long to wait, unfortunately.
“Humph. Miss Parker, our property, the Pretender and his clone, have been allowed outside of the Centre’s controls for far too long. Why have you not retrieved him as you were ordered?”
The phrasing and the intent behind the question staggered Miss Parker for a moment. This man really did think of Jarod as nothing more than property or even a disobedient puppy and made it seem as if the Centre had walked him outside and let go of his leash, expecting him to come back to heel when called. She knew she was going to have rein in her normal temper or she would be the next to feel the wrath of the Triumvirate.
“There has been no sign of the Pretender in approximately seven weeks. His last lair was designed to mislead us and we have been unable to pick up his trail from there. The last word on Gemini was that he was with Major Charles and they have both been under our radar for years now.” The tone was respectful, but inwardly, Parker was about jumping for joy. She didn’t want the Triumvirate to get their hands on Jarod, not after listening to how Ramos was talking about him, and she got the distinct impression that was the Triumvirate’s goal. If anyone got to torment Jarod after his return to the Centre, it would be her.
Ramos looked over at Miss Parker, as if waiting for her to continue. Instead, she just looked back at him. Not with an attitude, nor a temper; just a flat ‘I’m finished’ looked that dared him to find fault with it. Ramos waited for a comment from anyone else, then gave a nod.
“Very well, we obviously have information that you do not. The Pretender is the reason you are losing contracts. He has been intimidating both current and potential client into not signing their contracts. We have been unable to determine the exact method of intimidation, but he is now endangering Triumvirate contracts. This will not be allowed to continue. The Pretender is to be recovered and returned to the Centre at all costs and quickly. There will be no other excuses allowed. Is this understood?”
Raines and Lyle were quite vocal in their agreement to Ramos’s conditions. They both knew that their very lives could be on the line if they failed to deliver. Parker, on the other hand, gave one short, quick nod and met the African’s eyes directly. She silently watched as he left the room, waited a second to see if Raines had anything to say, and then she left the office. She couldn’t wait to get back down to talk to Sydney and Broots.
Broots sank lower in his chair as the sound of the stilettos pacing behind him. His fingertips were getting blisters from all the typing he had been doing lately, but there was no sign of the missing Pretender. He had created a program that scanned all the newspapers, magazines, e-magazine, and databases possible, searching for key words and for Jarod’s name. Nothing had shown up there. He had an ongoing program searching all the hospital and police databases, checking all the Jarods and John Does, in case something serious had happened. Nothing there, either. A smack on his head drew his attention back to the work at hand.
“Parker, please. He is doing the best he can,” Sydney tried to interject on his friend’s behalf. That worked, just not in the way that had Sydney hoped. He was now the target of Miss Parker’s wrath.
“I better not find out that you have been talking to the labrat lately without telling me, Freud.”
Parker glared at Sydney, but found that, as usual, her glare was completely ineffective with the aging shrink. She really despised the fact that he had watched her grow up, more so at times like this. She could make the bravest sweeper cower in a corner with the barest hint of temper, but she got the distinct impression Sydney was privately laughing at her when she tried the glare on him.
‘You just couldn’t intimidate someone who used to discipline you as a child,’ she thought to herself, ruefully.
“I haven’t talked to him since my birthday party, Parker.” A look of concern appeared and just a quickly disappeared from his face. Parker knew that was as much emotion as he dared show about Jarod while inside the building.
Miss Parker started to answer, but then her eyes narrowed as she glared over Sydney’s shoulder. He turned and watched as Lyle stormed into the room and threw himself into an unoccupied chair. Miss Parker took in his appearance and raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow in his direction. Lyle’s tie was askew, his hair was mussed, and dark shadows were starting to form under his eyes. All in all, he looked like hell and Miss Parker couldn’t be happier.
“What’s up, Lyle? Lose your car again?” she asked mischievously, the smirk on her face letting him know that his difficulties were her joys.
“I wish that was all that was wrong,” he responded unhappily, “but this is a little more serious.”
He leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees, and rubbed at his eyes.
“Dad wants us in his office in twenty minutes. No need to bring your pets, this is a Parker matter.”
Miss Parker raised her eyebrow again at that news. The last time she was invited to the Chairman’s office for a Parker matter, her father announced his intention of shipping her off to boarding school. Something told her that this meeting with Raines would not be as pleasant.
“Fine, twenty minutes. I’ll be there.” She waited a second for him to leave, but started to grow almost concerned when he didn’t even move from the chair. “Was there something else you wanted, Lyle?”
“Any clues to the Labrat’s location? This would really be an excellent time for his return. I would even leave him alone, if you could get him working again.”
Parker and Sydney exchanged glances. Something was seriously wrong if Lyle was willing to give up his playtime voluntarily. They both watched as Lyle heaved himself up and out of the chair and wandered out of the room.
“Man, that was weird,” Broots commented in a low whisper and both Miss Parker and Sydney had to agree.
Twenty minutes later, Miss Parker strolled into the Chairman’s office unannounced. Two steps into the room and she was wishing she had waited for the secretary to announce her. Lyle, the creep, had failed to warn her that there would be more than just the three of them for this meeting. All his talk about Parker matters and of not bringing her ‘pets’ was just that, talk. Ramos, The Triumvirate Rep was glaring at Raines, the Chief Financial Officer, a thin, nattily dressed man named Simmonds, was shuffling through various files at the desk, and Raines was drumming his fingers, glaring at Lyle who was staring back. Parker’s entrance broke the stalemate between the two men and drew the attention of the Rep and the CFO.
“You’re late,” Raines snarled to her.
“Bite me. Lyle told me twenty minutes, I’m here in exactly twenty minutes. You don’t like it, blame Lyle. Hell, blame him anyway, I don’t care either way.”
“Enough!” The Zulu’s voice cut through the rising tension like a scalpel. It was such a deep and authoritative voice, that the listener completely overlooked the fact that the body it erupted from was barely five foot tall. Parker shivered; she had never witnessed such unspoken menace in her life.
“Now that Miss Parker has consented to join us, we will begin this meeting. You will all sit and remain silent unless directly asked a question. Am I understood?”
Parker quietly took as seat, but couldn’t help the amused smirk that graced her mouth as she watched Raines get unceremoniously booted from his own chair. Lyle sat at the opposite end of the desk from Parker with Simmonds between them. All the attention was on the black man from Africa.
“It has come to our attention that the Centre is failing their financial obligations to the Triumvirate. Our investigations have shown that the Centre is unable to renegotiate new contracts with long-time clients. Is this correct, Raines?”
“Well, … Lyle is the one … who … had been conducting … the negotiations.”
“That is not the question you were asked. Need I repeat it?”
Raines and Lyle exchanged heated glances before Raines hesitantly answered .
“Yes, there … have been ... some lost contracts ... but nothing ... we … can’t replace.”
“And how are you going to recoup the lost revenue?”
“Lyle is … actively … pursuing new … clients.”
“And how many of these new clients have signed and delivered the deposits?” Ramos drummed his fingers on the desktop, in a move designed to signify his impatience with Raines and Lyle.
Lyle took a deep breath and silently cursed Raines for putting him on the spot.
“I um, I have several possibilities in the works right now.”
Ramos hit the desk in front of his with one tightly clenched fist.
“We are not interested in possibilities, only in the monies deposited from the clients. Why have you been unable to produce new clients?” The look on the Zulu’s face hinted that he knew the truth and dared Lyle to lie anyway.
Lyle’s temper was already short due to his lack of sleep over the last month and being questioned in this way lit the extremely short fuse. He took another deep breath and tried to calm himself before he ended up in the Renewal Wing.
“I have had several contracts fall through at the last minute. No explanations were given as to why they weren’t signing with us. I just don’t understand it.”
The last statement was made almost too softly to be heard and the puzzlement the man was feeling was obvious. Parker looked over at Lyle in amazement. She didn’t think Lyle would ever admit to not understanding something. She was almost starting to enjoy herself in this meeting; she was hearing information that she just knew Raines would rather she never hear. But part of her was wondering when her turn on Ramos’s chopping block was coming. She didn’t have long to wait, unfortunately.
“Humph. Miss Parker, our property, the Pretender and his clone, have been allowed outside of the Centre’s controls for far too long. Why have you not retrieved him as you were ordered?”
The phrasing and the intent behind the question staggered Miss Parker for a moment. This man really did think of Jarod as nothing more than property or even a disobedient puppy and made it seem as if the Centre had walked him outside and let go of his leash, expecting him to come back to heel when called. She knew she was going to have rein in her normal temper or she would be the next to feel the wrath of the Triumvirate.
“There has been no sign of the Pretender in approximately seven weeks. His last lair was designed to mislead us and we have been unable to pick up his trail from there. The last word on Gemini was that he was with Major Charles and they have both been under our radar for years now.” The tone was respectful, but inwardly, Parker was about jumping for joy. She didn’t want the Triumvirate to get their hands on Jarod, not after listening to how Ramos was talking about him, and she got the distinct impression that was the Triumvirate’s goal. If anyone got to torment Jarod after his return to the Centre, it would be her.
Ramos looked over at Miss Parker, as if waiting for her to continue. Instead, she just looked back at him. Not with an attitude, nor a temper; just a flat ‘I’m finished’ looked that dared him to find fault with it. Ramos waited for a comment from anyone else, then gave a nod.
“Very well, we obviously have information that you do not. The Pretender is the reason you are losing contracts. He has been intimidating both current and potential client into not signing their contracts. We have been unable to determine the exact method of intimidation, but he is now endangering Triumvirate contracts. This will not be allowed to continue. The Pretender is to be recovered and returned to the Centre at all costs and quickly. There will be no other excuses allowed. Is this understood?”
Raines and Lyle were quite vocal in their agreement to Ramos’s conditions. They both knew that their very lives could be on the line if they failed to deliver. Parker, on the other hand, gave one short, quick nod and met the African’s eyes directly. She silently watched as he left the room, waited a second to see if Raines had anything to say, and then she left the office. She couldn’t wait to get back down to talk to Sydney and Broots.
Chapter End Notes:
tbc
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