Chapter 4. Secrets and Lies.

   Lighting up another cigarette, Miss Parker stared at the carpet once more. So far she'd had to admire Sydney's patience considering what she was telling him, but even his unnaturally calm demeanour refused to make what she was about to tell him, any easier...

<~>

6:22am Friday Morning:

  Miss Parker sat in her car smiling. For the first time in what felt like forever, she was genuinely happy and willing to be at the Centre, not that it showed in her worn appearance.

 Despite bringing Jarod back three days ago, she'd still had trouble sleeping and it wasn't until she found herself sitting back on the couch with yet another bottle of scotch, that she'd decided she needed to come back and officially terminate her position. Only then would she be afforded the luxury of a complete nights sleep and only then could she convince the incessant voices in her head that she shouldn't be feeling as guilty as they were determined to make her feel.

  Enjoying the sound her heels made on the polished marble as she crossed the lobby, drawing stares from the few employees that were around at this hour; she made her way to her office, where she'd decided she'd await Raines's arrival in peaceful seclusion.

  Unlocking the heavy wooden doors, she scoffed at the piles of paperwork that had built up since Sunday. In the five measly days since she'd last come in, it looked like someone had transformed her office into an archive room.

  Clearing a stack of papers from her desk to the floor, so as to make room for her feet on the polished mahogany timber, Parker caught sight of a yellow envelope, buried deep between the expense reports she'd just pushed onto the floor.

  Glancing around suspiciously, she retrieved the envelope and studied the address on the front. In neat red handwriting someone had addressed the envelope to her, there at the Centre. Turning it over cautiously, her heart skipped a beat when she saw the return address. Jarod had posted it from the address in Seattle where they'd found him on Tuesday morning...

  Parker's heart rate started to climb as she studied the handwriting more closely. She'd have bet a kidney that it was Jarod's...

  Taking a deep breath she tore the top off and fleetingly glanced inside. Once she was satisfied that it wasn't a repeat of the last envelope she'd received from Jarod; the one that was sitting on top of yet another stack of papers on her desk, still in the plastic evidence bag from the forensics department; she reached in and retrieved a handwritten note, folded meticulously around an old restaurant brochure.

  Unfolding the lined notepaper carefully, she read the brief note.

Miss Parker,

               I came across this brochure and thought that you'd like to have it. Everybody deserves a smile.

                                                                                                                                                                  Jarod.

  Nervously, she put the note down and picked up the brochure, examining the cover. It was from some boutique seaside restaurant that had long since closed down and Parker wondered why Jarod had thought of her when he'd found it. Unfolding it with caution, should there be any more gruesome photographs tucked inside it, she gasped at the sight of the feature picture in the middle of the page...

  Tears started to well up in her eyes as she stared down at the photograph of her mother, wearing the most beautiful yellow sundress Parker could imagine. Sitting across from Catherine, dressed in a somewhat matching red dress, was a young Miss Parker herself, at about 7 or 8 years old...

  The photo was supposed to be showing off the panoramic views from the restaurant but all Parker could see was her and her mother; sitting at a window-side table giggling amongst themselves, oblivious to the fact that the photograph had even been taken. Miss Parker stared adoringly at her mother's smiling face, and had to laugh through her tears at the smiley-faced yellow balloon that was tied to the back of her own chair. They were so... happy together...

  Miss Parker briskly brushed the tears from her eyes, unable even if she wanted to, to shake the smile of pure un-attenuated adoration that graced her entire body and ensured that the joy-filled tears would continue to flow. She'd never seen a photo of her and her mother like this one. It was as if the camera had captured them both at their most carefree...

  Ever so gently, Parker brushed her index finger around the photo's edge, trying desperately to remember that day with her mother. She remembered Catherine's dress, the restaurant and even the balloon to a small extent...

  An unexpected wave of guilt instantly overcame her as she glanced back at the balloon. That very same smiley face had graced her computer screen and the entire Centre network a few days ago, after she'd opened one of Jarod's old computer files...

  Covering her mouth with her hand, Miss Parker stared at the balloon in utter disbelief.

  Right up until that moment, she hadn't even considered the possibility that Jarod didn't send her the first envelope. But after opening the second, she was quickly beginning to feel the guilt settle in. He wouldn't do something like that. Surely, he couldn't do anything like that to anyone... And the balloon with the smiley face... She knew Jarod too well to pass it off as a sheer coincidence. Jarod didn't do coincidence.

  Gently tucking her new treasure into the safety of her concealed coat pocket, Parker grabbed the plastic evidence bag from on top of the pile of travel reports and stuffed it into another pocket. Smoothing her coat and skirt as she stood, Miss Parker headed off in search of Jarod, the only person that as far as she knew, was yet to lie to her.

<~>

  Sydney stared back at Parker as she reached inside her pocket and retrieved the brochure. Passing it to him carefully, she explained how she'd found Jarod on SL-27 but how Lyle had then found her and told her of Mr Parker's return, before she had the chance to wake and confront Jarod about the envelopes.

  Sydney opened the brochure and smiled briefly at the photograph, before carefully closing it and handing it back to her.

  Clearly, it was now topping the list of her most prized possessions, but as much as Sydney hated to admit it, seeing Catherine's photograph just made him feel guilty for all the lies he'd told her daughter. The truth be told, he had only smiled for Miss Parker's benefit. Had he come across this photo when he was alone, Sydney would probably have shed a tear, especially knowing what he knew of their future and just how badly Catherine's death had affected that smiling little girl in the photograph...

  Miss Parker delicately accepted the brochure and replaced it into the safety of her pocket, apparently buying Sydney's attempt at a smile, before explaining what she'd been told by Raines and Mr Parker; and how, when she'd actually been to talk to Jarod, that their conversation hadn't really existed beyond a few meaningless barbs.

  Sydney paused for a long time, "...So who do you think sent you the first envelope...?"

  Miss Parker sighed heavily like the weight of the world, her world at least, was bearing down upon her shoulders, "...I'm not sure what I think anymore... All I know is that Jarod's life isn't going to get any better whilst he refuses to give up Gemini and until he does, or until I find Gemini myself, neither is yours or mine..."

  Sydney did a double-take and stared at her in shock for a second, "...So you're actually considering going after the boy...?"

  "Think about it Syd. Whoever wants Gemini back badly enough to frame Jarod like this, isn't going to let us stand in their way... And now that I've given them Jarod, they're expecting to find his clone..." The resolution in her voice was returning, along with the slowly building tension in the room; that was now beginning to feel even more claustrophobic than before.

  Sydney shook his head firmly. He'd stood by and watched Jarod's life crumble around him. He wasn't about to let them do the same to Gemini...

  Miss Parker cut him off before he could respond, "...I don't even have a choice anymore Syd... Up until this morning, I was glad that Jarod was back... An hour ago, I was even prepared to forget that he'd given me that photo, if it meant that I was done with the Centre... Now, I'm stuck in a worse mess than ever... If Jarod doesn't give up Gemini, they'll just torture him until they get something or he winds up dead in Africa... And if I don't find Gemini... I'll bet someone has a better idea than a few photographs in an envelope..."

  Sydney sank into the chair behind his desk in silence. She was right. Whoever had set up Jarod had planned it a lot further forward than he could have predicted. He bit his tongue hard at the fleeting thought of what it would be like to work with Jarod and Gemini together, quite possibly the two greatest minds the world had ever seen... Scientifically, such work would revolutionize the globe... but morally, it could slaughter Jarod and quite possibly Gemini too...

 Sydney knew it was wrong for him to want them back but at the same time, the debate in his head was growing.

 He took a deep and painful breath. This was the critical test of the approach he'd taken to his involvement in the treatment of Jarod his whole life... Did the greatest good lie behind his research and the affects it could have on the scientific community, or behind saving Jarod and Gemini from the hands of the Centre...?

  It was then that Sydney realized that he was stuck with the definitive moral and ethical decision of his life. A decision that could potentially affect everyone that he knew and loved, far more than any of the works that lined the shelves in his office... far more than the collective works of his revered predecessors...

  As a scientist he'd lived his entire life based on a moral system that focused solely on the direct consequences of direct actions that affected the greatest number of people... a utilitarian ethical approach that no longer seemed to be set in stone. Life was no longer that simple... but a deontological approach still felt as far away as the moon...

  Miss Parker watched Sydney pinch the bridge of his nose, lost deep in the despair of his own thought, "Jarod won't talk to me Sydney and there's no way in Hell that Lyle will let him talk to you..."

  Sydney watched the resolution in her face grow and closed his eyes, "And what exactly do you hope to achieve by involving Gemini?"

  Miss Parker scoffed in return, "Gemini's already involved. And like I said, his days are numbered regardless of what I want..."

  Sydney didn't need to hear those words to feel their impact, "Interesting choice of words..." he opened one eye and watched the colour slowly fade from her cheeks.

  "Don't even try to convince me that a part of you wouldn't love to have them both back," she snapped, turning away to face the couch so he couldn't see the pain in her eyes.

   Parker knew all too well that the fondest memories Sydney had, involved Jarod and just like she wished her mother was still with her, he wished his surrogate son was still with him and she couldn't blame him. After all, it was in his nature. Any psychiatrist would jump at the thought of learning from Jarod, and well, to have his clone; the first ever human clone there too... That was practically every scientist's dream. Passing that opportunity up was like a six year old passing up a trip to Disney Land. It wasn't probable, let alone possible... And that was going without saying that Sydney had spent most of his adult life knowing Jarod better than his own son... In many respects, Jarod was Sydney's son...

  Sydney clenched his fists, angry with himself for her being correct, and responded without his usual restraint, "I hope you don't exclude yourself from that boat, Parker..."

 Parker stood up straight, preparing to leave without further insult but evidently thinking the better of it, "I think the Good Ship Lollipop's full enough without me..." She left the office before Sydney could reply. Her heels clicking loudly down the corridor in her wake.

 "You never did answer my question Miss Parker..." Sydney called from the doorway as she stalked away, "...Why did you come to me...?"

<~>

  Deeply resenting the clicking of her heels as she stalked to the elevator, Parker bit her lip. As much as she wanted to go back to Sydney and tell him what she'd been putting off all along, she knew that they both needed time to collect their thoughts.

  Why did she go to him? Because he was the only person who could understand that what she'd done and what she was about to do, was no longer an act of animosity...

<~>

Broots stood nervously by the door; anxious that Miss Parker would appear any second and catch him about to show the security footage he'd stolen from her computer yesterday, to Sydney. He could tell by the way that Sydney was sitting hunched at his desk, that their previous discussion had ended in an argument.

  "If we get caught with this..." Broots was speaking softly, continually looking up and down the corridor outside Sydney's office.

  Sydney turned to face him, his jaw slightly ajar in anticipation, "You found something...?"

  Broots offered him a weak smile, "It's amazing what you can find when you look where you're not supposed to..." He took his hand from his pocket for a second, showing Sydney the DSA he hid securely in his grasp, "If Miss Parker finds out I took this..." His voice had trailed off into a whisper as he revealed his information's supplier.

  Sydney smiled, ushering Broots inside hurriedly and urging him to close the door, "You found out where they're hiding Jarod...?"

  Broots handed him the disk, spotting the still image of Jarod on Sydney's screen, "...But you already know...?"

  Sydney pointed to the screen, "Parker brought this down with her. All she said was that SL-27's had a bit of a make-over..."

  Broots watched him impatiently load the new DSA, "You can say that again. According to Jeff in maintenance accounts, the one with the chin thing..." Broots watched Sydney's shoulders tense up and subconsciously increased the speed of his talking in accordance with his friend's unease, "Anyway, according to Jeff, there's been millions spent on re-furbishing the sub-levels in the last six months... Only, when I spoke to Gary from custodial services, the one with the bald spot that's the shape of Florida, he said that that they haven't even changed light bulbs or trashcan's in the eight months that he's been co-ordinating the sub-level janitorial staff. But he did say that he'd heard of some hefty construction work going on below SL-26... So when I found Doug with the fake leg from construction accounts, he told me that works had been commissioned on SL-27 by none other than Mr Lyle..." Broots whispered his name as if saying it any louder would corrupt his soul and fleetingly glanced at his Belgian friend. Sometime during the course of his ranting, Sydney had stood up and was hovering nervously around his desk, waiting impatiently for Broots to continue, his eyes never leaving the DSA player.

  Broots got the message, "Sorry..." he sat down in the recently vacated chair at Sydney's desk and started typing, "...anyway Doug sent me a run-down..." he pulled up a basic accounts sheet, "...and I have to say that it sound's like they've created a whole separate facility down there..."

  Sydney read down the accounts list and shook his head in frustration. From the looks of it, Jarod was being held in complete isolation from the rest of the Centre, "...And the DSA, is it surveillance?"

  Broots nodded his head and turned around to face him, "...I've got to warn you, that footage is pretty hard to watch..."

  Sydney nodded numbly but reached past Broots to play the DSA anyway, "Thank you," he whispered nervously, watching Jarod being dragged into a concrete cell by Willie and Sam, followed at a distance by Lyle and a sweeper that Sydney didn't recognize.

<~>

6:15pm Tuesday Evening:

  Willie and Sam dumped Jarod face down on the cold polished concrete floor and awaited further instruction from Lyle, who was busy eating an apple disinterestedly by the door.

  "How long will he be out for?"  Lyle asked without looking away from the apple in his leather-clad hand.

  The unknown sweeper glanced at his watch, "The doctor said he's out for 24 hours, so 0900 hours is the best bet..."

  Lyle stared back at the sweeper, mid way through a mouthful of apple, "Best bet?" he raised an eyebrow, challenging the sweeper to repeat his last mistake, "We don't do ‘best bets' around Jarod... Not if we don't want him sneaking back off to Narnia, or Oz, or Wonderland, or wherever the hell Jarod goes when he gets loose... I've waited too long to get him back here, for you to go guessing when he'll return to the land of the living..." Lyle glared at the man with a hateful precision that would even impress Miss Parker. There was no way he was going to tolerate any mistakes around Jarod. Not with his reputation and life on the line.

  The sweeper nodded, placing his hands in his pockets in defeat, "...I can go and ask Mr Cox for a definitive time..."

  "You go do that..." Lyle interrupted, turning back to face Jarod, "Actually... make that their job, you can go back to corporate to keep Raines company... Willie, Sam and Sleeping Beauty here, will be fine for a few minutes, won't you Jarod?" He kicked Jarod square in the hip with his dress shoe and got no response, "See. They'll be fine to go get him cleaned up and checked out." Lyle smiled and left the cell, taking another bite out of his apple as he walked leisurely up the corridor, "Don't forget to brush his teeth, his breath smells like a skunk crawled into his mouth and died." He didn't need to turn around for the sweepers to visualize the smug grin that was sure to be embossed upon his face.

  The nameless sweeper bowed his head slightly and left the eight by eight cell following Lyle's shadow in disgrace. He was accompanied at a distance, by a silent team of Sam and Willie, who were purposely taking their time in dragging Jarod behind them.

 The two parties went their separate ways at the end of the passageway without a word. The new sweeper was glad to be free of Lyle, Sam was just hoping that Cox was in a better mood than the last time they'd crossed paths, and Willie was determined to enjoy his moment of triumph over Jarod.

  As Sam and Willie dragged Jarod's unconscious form down yet another identical corridor, it became readily apparent that both men were lost in thought, no doubt considering the very real possibility that they'd soon be joined by Jarod's clone., in which case, the real games were only just beginning.

<~>

  As usual both sweepers bit their tongues and did as they were told, making sure that Jarod smelt like a hospital and looked like a convict, before they were to present him to Mr Cox.

  Waiting nervously in the brand new exam room that was conveniently located right next door to the bathroom, Sam glanced at his watch, certain that Cox was watching the three of them on the monitors from another room, located somewhere in the midst of the elaborate concrete labyrinth they'd constructed to keep Jarod and eventually Gemini, locked away from the rest of the world. Taking solace in the fact that they'd been waiting for only three minutes, he stared at the bruising that was becoming visible across Jarod's nape, décolletage and wrists, the dark patches of skin accentuated by the charcoal tunic uniform that Jarod had been dressed in after his ‘shower.' 

  Jarod was going to have a hard time accepting his new situation, and the way Sam remembered the last time they'd caught the little anole, he wasn't going down without a fight...

  "I see you had no trouble following protocol..." Cox walked slowly around the stainless steel exam table, admiring Jarod's unconscious form. A short brunette doctor followed him, silently reading Jarod's history from a clipboard.

  Willie smiled, "Wasn't hard."

  Cox smiled in return, "...And the new facilities..."

  "...Should make our job a lot easier." Sam added, silently pleased that Jarod was no longer in he and Willie's sole custody. Despite the gargantuan security overhaul that had taken place, Sam was not convinced that Jarod would be even the slightest bit complacent in his new prison.

  Cox reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and retrieved a small flashlight, waving it across each of Jarod's pupils in turn, "...Out like a light..." he muttered, moving on to examine the inside of Jarod's mouth, "...Were there any contraband items that you came across...?"

  Sam shook his head. "He wasn't expecting us. All he had on him was a wallet full of cash and two small religious medallions... Saint Christopher and Saint Jude."

  "Really?" Cox replaced the flashlight into his pocket and looked at the sweeper, intrigued, "The patron Saints of travel and lost causes..." As he responded, the doctor put the chart down and started listening to Jarod's chest with his stethoscope.

  "...Mr Lyle has his possessions as we speak..." Willie continued.

  Cox smiled oddly, "These medallions... were they gold by any chance...?"

  Sam nodded, slightly confused, "Is there something wrong?"

  Cox laughed, his blue eyes twinkling mysteriously, "Nothing that won't work in our favour..." If he was right, he'd seen the tiny symbols before and knew that they were going to be a valuable asset in ensuring the demise of Jarod's inevitable stubborn-streak.

  Sam watched Cox and the doctor continue to check Jarod over, "Mr Lyle want's to know what time he'll wake up..." he focused on Mr Cox, who now had a strange crooked smile plastered across his face, a small glint in his eye.

  The doctor sighed, "It's hard to say... the barbiturates he was given are usually used in medically-induced comas so I'd say that given Jarod's history of under-performing GABA-A receptors and considering the cocktail of pentobarbital and thiopental that was used... he'll be out for another..." he paused to look at his wristwatch, "...I'd say between four to six hours..."

  "So he's not out til morning?" Willie had no idea what the doctor was on about, but whatever it was he sounded like he knew what he was doing.

  Cox smiled at the two sweepers slyly, "Not with this one. I wouldn't be surprised if he was awake in two to three hours to be honest..." He picked up Jarod's arm and let it fall onto the table beneath him, in what Sam assumed was a demonstration of his point, not that it told either of the sweepers anything beyond what they already knew, that Jarod was unconscious.

  Sam stared at Jarod, "So how long until we can get him back to his cell?"

  "Well, from what I can tell, he's physically healthy. A little underweight compared to his last visit but I'll just take a few samples and he'll be good to go," The doctor forced a smile and took a small handful of syringes and capped needles from his labcoat pocket. Wiping Jarod's left elbow with a sterile ethanol swab with one hand, he opened a plastic wrapped syringe with the other, "It shouldn't take long."

  Sam watched as he attached the needle and expertly begun to draw three vials of blood from Jarod's arm, Willie tapping his shoe impatiently the entire time.

  "Have either of you ever participated in a lumbar puncture?" the doctor placed the precious vials on top of Jarod's file on the side bench and turned to face the two sweepers, still slightly nervous about their presence.

  Willie smiled, "I have..."

  "Good because given the patient's size, I think I'm going to need you both to hold him perpendicular to the table in the horizontal lateral decubitus position.... With his body flexed as much as possible."

  The doctor began preparing a much larger needle while Cox instructed Sam and Willie to hold Jarod's body firmly in the fetal position, doubting seriously that either of the two knew what the lateral decubitus position was.

  Gently palpating the spinous processes until he located the lumbar vertebrae L4 and L5, the doctor inserted the 20-gauge needle between the two and expertly obtained a clear sample of cerebral-spinal fluid to add to his collection of vials. Snapping off his gloves he smiled at Cox nervously and left the room, taking Jarod's file and samples with him.

<~>

  Broots leant forward and skipped ahead to the next bit of footage, Sydney too uncertain to stop him. Why had they taken a sample of Jarod's cerebral-spinal fluid?

  "After that they just take him back to what must be his new cell..." Broots let his shoulders slump and resumed playing the footage, "Here's when he wakes up..."

<~>