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Chapter 6

 

 

            Miss Parker didn't know where Jarod was. He wasn't in the Sim Lab, and Sydney wasn't in his office either. If he was in his room, she wouldn't be able to go see him. She sighed, sitting down in the middle of an empty corridor. She was confident that the sweepers wouldn't find her here. And even if they did, she was alone, and she would be the only one in trouble.

 

            She was used to being alone, but it next to never happened when she was at the Centre. Jarod and Angelo were usually with her. However this time, they were nowhere to be found. She missed them. Her father hadn't allowed her to come to the Centre for a week after sweepers had found the three of them huddled in a corridor on SL-21. Today, though, he had had no choice; it was faculty day at her school, and she couldn't stay at home alone.

 

            She had tried not to show her happiness the evening before when her father had told her that she would have to come to the Centre with him. If she had, he would have probably found another solution for her. She had hoped to quickly be able to find Jarod and Angelo, but she had had no such luck. She didn't know what had happened to them after the sweepers had taken her away, and she could only hope that they hadn't been punished too severely. She had told her father repeatedly that she was the only one who should be punished, but she didn't think he had listened to her even once.

 

            He rarely listened to her these days, and she wondered why this time would have been any different. He pretended to, but more times than not, she realised that he hadn't been paying attention to what she had to say. It was like she didn't matter for him anymore. And yet, she needed him even more than before. He was the only parent she had left and she didn't want to lose him too, even if it was just to his work.

 

            She tried her best to make him proud. She always worked well in class and brought back perfect report cards. And at home, she was doing everything she could to please him. But he barely noticed her trying. It seemed like the only times he noticed her these days was when she did something wrong at the Centre.

 

            In the past, she had tried to explain why she would seek Jarod and Angelo's company when she was here. They were her friends, her only friends, and she only wanted to spend time with them. It was what you were supposed to do with friends. But he refused to listen to her.

 

            She tried so hard with her father, but he didn't want to understand. She would keep trying, though, if only because she wasn't one to give up. And one day, he would finally say that he was proud of her. One day, he would look at her and really see her. One day, all her efforts would pay.

 

            One day.

 

 

###

 

 

            Andrea entered her empty, dark apartment and sighed. It was late and she had only been able to leave work half an hour before, after a long day. It was on days such as this one that she wished someone was waiting for her at home. She just wished for a presence, someone who could take her mind off of what happened at work. But she didn't have anyone, not even a pet, to provide that kind of comfort.

 

            Unclipping the holster that held her weapon from her waist, she opened the small safe box hidden in the closet and placed it inside. Even though there was no one but her in the apartment, she felt safer knowing that her firearm was locked away; she had read too many newspaper articles about accidents happening when a weapon was left lying around.

 

            She had just changed out of her work clothes when she heard someone knocking at her door. She was almost tempted to get her weapon from the safe box before going to open. She might live in a relatively safe neighbourhood, but at this hour of the night, you couldn't be careful enough. But it might be a neighbour and she didn't want to scare them. And after all, she didn't know a lot of criminals who knocked on their victim's door first.

 

            The person on the other side of the door knocked again as she reached it. She finally opened it to find a tall man in a dark suit standing on the other side. He looked up and down at her, and she saw him sneaking a look inside her apartment too. She was about to ask who he was and why has was here when he raised his badge.

 

"Special Agent Bailey Malone, Ma'am," he said. "Can I come in?"

 

            A bit surprised to have an FBI agent at her door, she nodded and stepped aside. She wondered what prompted him to show up at her place instead of at the office.

 

"What can I do for you, Agent Malone?"

 

"I believe we have a friend in common, Agent Zane," he replied, acknowledging her by her title this time.

 

"And who would that be?"

 

"Me," answered a voice from behind her.

 

            Andrea spun around in time to see two people coming out of her bedroom. If she recognized the man at first glance, she had never seen the woman before.

 

"Jarod?" she said. "What are you doing here?"

 

            She hadn't seen the man since she had agreed to let him run after the Chameleon alone. It might not have been her smartest idea, far from it, but she had known that short of having Jarod arrested, she couldn't have stopped him. And even then, she hadn't been sure handcuffs would have done more than slow him down.

 

            But after that day, she had never seen or heard of the two men. Until she found one of them standing in the middle of her apartment.

 

"We need your help," Jarod replied, looking at the two people who had crossed his life in the past.

 

"You need to answer my questions, first," Andrea said, the federal agent in her taking control of the situation.

 

"Fair enough," Jarod conceded, knowing that the NSA agent wouldn't back down.

 

"Alright. Who is she?" she asked, pointing at Jarod's companion.

 

"This is Miss Parker," Jarod answered. "Parker, NSA agent Andrea Zane. And this is Special Agent Bailey Malone of the FBI."

 

            Parker nodded at them both; she still wasn't sure Jarod made the right decision in coming here. Involving strangers in Centre's matter had never been proved to be a good idea. They usually ended up dead or worse.

 

"Where is the Chameleon?" was Andrea's second question.

 

            Jarod and Parker had expected this question. Andrea had worked on this case and she wanted – needed – closure. That was something they could both understand. Alex's fate would have had to come up anyway as it was part of their story. Answering her question now would at least put this matter to rest.

 

"Alex fell into water for a high distance. We think he died."

 

"But his body was never found," Parker added to Jarod's explanation.

 

"How did this happen?" Andrea asked as they knew she would. But before they could answer, she added. "And why do you call him Alex?"

 

"I ran after him at the south shore shipyard," Jarod started answering her first question, ignoring the second for the moment. "We went up on a shipping crane. His feet caught in a chain lying on the floor, and he fell. I managed to catch him, but he chose to let go, saying that, this way, only I would lose."

 

"Why did he say that?"

 

"Because Jarod here always wants to save everyone. Even those who don't want to be saved," Miss Parker answered Andrea, but the venom that Jarod was used to hear in her voice when she talked about his actions was gone.

 

"Why did you disappear so suddenly?" the NSA agent asked again, but before Jarod had time to even open his mouth, Bailey was already answering.

 

"Jarod isn't a NSA agent any more than he is a FBI agent, that's why. And you don't work for an oversight committee either."

 

"When did you understand?" Jarod replied not bothering to deny it.

 

"When Rachel mentioned that you came back and helped with Marks. You seemed more like a do-gooder than a federal agent."

 

"That he is, you got him right," Parker said with one of her smiles.

 

"Why did you confirm my story when Robert Collins called you, then?" Jarod said, ignoring Parker's quip.

 

"I figured that if you sent him my way, it was because he refused to believe you. And although I don't exactly know who you are, you seem to want to help people. Someone like that can't be that bad."

 

"Thank you. I see that I was right to trust you and have you here tonight."

 

"I didn't understand a word of what you've been talking about, gentlemen," Andrea intervened. "Care to explain?"

 

"As Agent Malone said, I'm not a NSA agent, I've never been. I'm a Pretender, a human chameleon if you'd rather. I can become anyone that I want to be."

 

"Like the Chameleon we tracked?"

 

"Yes. Actually, Alex and I were trained in the same facility," he said, before pausing. His next words would surprise her, no doubt. "And Eddy too."

 

"Eddy?" Andrea exclaimed, her throat closing up at the mention of her dead partner. "But… how?"

 

"It's a long story. It all starts in 1963, when I was kidnapped from my parents."

 

            As Jarod told his story, Parker observed the two federal agents standing before them. On their way here, Jarod had told her about them. She had been especially curious to know the woman who had been after Alex. She was petite, something that Parker hadn't expected, given how the Pretender had talked about her. She had no doubt that Andrea was strong; you would have to be in her line of work.

 

            Her eyes then turned towards Bailey. He was tall, taller than her, even though she wore high heels. Jarod had described him as being more observant than talkative, and she could easily believe that. He hadn't talked much since they arrived, choosing to let the NSA agent ask the questions.

 

            You probably couldn't find two people more different than the two federal agents. Parker had another proof before her eyes of the diversity of the people Jarod met while on his pretends. Now, she just needed to wait and see if they agreed to help them. And she really didn't like waiting.

 

            As she let her eyes roam around the room, she noticed that the NSA agent's apartment wasn't that different from her house in Blue Cove. Aside from a couple of family pictures, it looked like Andrea spent as much time here as Parker used to in her house. Their work was their life.

 

            She looked towards Bailey next and caught him looking at her. She resisted the urge to glare at him; Jarod wouldn't appreciate her antagonize people who might help them. Instead, she held his gaze until he nodded imperceptibly at her and returned his eyes on Jarod.

 

            Finally, after what had felt like hours to Parker – but had only really been twenty minutes – Jarod was done telling them his story. Even though he could hide it from anyone else, she could see the raw emotions written on his face. Ever since they were children, he had never really been able to hide things from her, unless he was torturing her. And tonight, she could see that he had relived every single moment in his mind as he was talking.

 

"Where do you fit in?" Andrea asked Miss Parker, breaking the pregnant silence that had fallen on them. "Are you a Pretender too?"

 

"No," she replied; they didn't need to know that, with the proper training, she could have been. "I was the Chairman's daughter, but I was really nothing more than another prisoner. Jarod and I grew up together."

 

            There was much more to be said, but nothing they really needed to know to decide whether or not to help them. They seemed to understand that it wasn't the whole story but neither Andrea nor Bailey said a word. There were some things that would be revealed in due time – and that included Raines murdering Catherine Parker and Lyle's taste for Asian women – but right now, they needed to focus on something else.

 

"What do you need our help with?" Bailey was the one to ask.

 

"We want to bring down the Centre." He paused, letting this settle before continuing. "I have all the evidence you would need against them."

 

"Why come to us, then?" Andrea asked. "Why not ask the police?"

 

"The Centre has ties everywhere," Miss Parker replied. "They would hear all about this before the cops even leave the precinct."

 

"But they don’t have ties in federal agencies," Andrea surmised from what the other woman said.

 

"I said everywhere, and if you think the government is immune…"

 

"The thing is we can't take the information I have to anyone, and we can't act on our own. But I trust the two of you and I know for sure that you're not connected to the Centre in any way."

 

"What would we need to do?" Bailey asked, making his decision known to them.

 

"You will need to choose your best men for this, those you trust the most. Once this is done, I'll run a check on them to make sure they aren't affiliated with the Centre one way or another."

 

            He already knew that this search would turn up empty; he had worked with their teams in the past, and if anyone was working for the Centre, he would have already been back in his cell, locked away from the world once more. But he would still better be safe than sorry. It wasn't just about him anymore: there was Parker too.

 

"You can't tell them what we have just told you. This must stay between the four of us. I don't dare th what the government would do if they knew that people like me existed."

 

"But still, you told us," Andrea said. "You do know that neither of us will be able to keep this under wraps once we moved."

 

"I know, but I'll try protecting the children of the Centre anyway."

 

            Until now, Parker had let Jarod explain his plan to Andrea and Bailey the same way he explained it to her earlier. But now that she listened to it again, she knew it wouldn't work the way he wanted it to. He wouldn't be able to protect them all as if they followed his plan.

 

            But if they were to follow hers...

 

"The thing is, we don't have to take it all down," Parker intervened. "What we really need is to make the board of directors fall, and to sever all ties with the Triumvirat in Africa and have them arrested too. And we have enough evidence to do that without revealing what is really going on inside the Centre."

 

            Jarod looked at Parker in surprise; this wasn't at all what they had agreed upon the previous day. Their plan had been to take down the Centre once and for all, and what Parker had just exposed would just weaken it.

 

            But everything she had just said was proof enough that she had thought this through. He was confused, wondering why she hadn't told him before if that was what she had in mind. He wondered why she had agreed with him the day before if it was to suggest another plan now. But more than that, he was hurt that she didn't want to take down the place that had made both their lives a living hell for so many years.

 

            Parker could read him as clearly as a book, and she knew he needed an explanation. She would give him one, but it shouldn't have been hard for his genius mind to figure everything out.

 

"You don't want Sydney and Broots to end up in prison, do you?" she asked, looking his way. "And I don't think you'd want Angelo and the others to be sent in a mental facility that wouldn't be any better for them than the Centre." When he shook his head no, she continued. "The new Parker legacy starts with me."

 

            With her words, he was immediately brought back to the plane, moments before Mr. Parker had jumped. This was what the man she had thought was her father had told her. From what they knew, this was what he had read in the scrolls. Maybe he had really jumped with them to protect Parker, because god knew what Raines and Lyle would have done to her if they had had this information. Maybe he had really given her the gift she had been waiting for since she was a child.

 

            Seeing that she was waiting for him to say something, anything, he concentrated on the plan she had suggested. It could work; they had enough evidence to have Raines sentenced for life or worse. He also had evidence against the other board members that they could use; the Tower would easily fall.

 

They would only have to deal with the sweepers. Then again, he had evidences against Willie and some others linking them to kidnappings and murders all over the country. As for the others, he had no doubt Parker already knew what to do with them.

 

"Alright, we'll do it your way," he finally said, agreeing to her plan, and she felt relieved. "But we can't get them at the Centre as I first thought if we want to keep it away from attention. You'll have to arrest them all at their homes, at the exact same time so they don't warn each other."

 

"What makes you think that they won't talk about the Centre later, and let the media know exactly what happened there?" Andrea asked.

 

"Because they will have even more to lose if they do, like their lives," Parker replied. "The Centre has ties with mobsters, and I doubt they want to risk someone testifying against them. Not to mention that government officials who know about the Centre's dealings wouldn't like their involvement to be exposed in the media."

 

"And we'll use the same argument with the Triumvirat after we have their leaders arrested," Jarod added and Parker nodded. "I don't think keeping the Centre and getting me back will weight much in the balance against risking their own lives."

 

"Sounds like a plan," Bailey said.

 

"I'll write everything down and you and your teams will have to follow it to the letter. It's imperative if we wanted it to work."

 

"And where will you be?" Andrea asked, already certain that the two people standing before her wouldn't be anywhere close.

 

"There's something we need to do at the exact same time," Jarod replied. "If we don't, we can lose everything. Here's my e-mail address, it's secure," he continued, handing each of them a piece of paper. "I want your list of names by tomorrow evening. We're moving in three days."

 

            Before either of them could say anything else, Jarod and Parker had already retreated to the shadows of Andrea's apartment. She turned towards Bailey, a man she didn't know an hour before, and with whom she now shared a huge burden. He might not look as lost as she felt, but she was sure that the same thoughts were running inside their minds.

 

"We'd better start now," Bailey said, and she could only nod.

 

 

###

 

 

            Sydney was sitting in his chair, reading a book by the light of the lamp beside him when he saw a shadow moving in the corner of his eyes. He turned his head in this direction, and wasn't surprised when he saw the two people who emerged from the shadows.

 

"Jarod! Parker!" he said.

 

            He got up from his chair and walked over the two children of the Centre. He embraced the man he considered a son, before turning towards his former colleague, smiling at her.

 

"I'm glad to see that you are fine, Miss Parker. Angelo told me that you were in danger, and we had no idea where you were. What happened? Did you get to her in time?" he directed his question to Jarod.

 

"Actually, she had escaped them on her own."

 

"I trusted my inner sense," Parker explained with a small smile.

 

"Then, how did you two find each other?"

 

"It was thanks to Ethan, actually. Genius here was about to fall into the trap meant for me when our brother stopped him. The voices told him where to find me after that. And more," she added, looking at Jarod.

 

"More? What do you mean?"

 

"He helped me find my mother."

 

"Oh Jarod," the older man breathed, once more wrapping his arms around the Pretender. "I'm happy for you."

 

"Thank you, Sydney."

 

"I guess that means you're disappearing for good," he said, looking at the two people facing him.

 

"It's more complicated than that," Jarod replied. "We can't say much more for the moment, but you'll know soon."

 

"I trust you. But there's something you both need to know." He paused, unsure on how to break this news to them. "Angelo gave Broots a vial of Baby Parker's cord blood. He said that it contained answers. We had it analysed and..."

 

"We know," Parker said, putting him out of his misery.

 

            It wasn't something they had planned to tell him just yet, but he already knew. The news must have shocked him as much as it had shocked them, and they wished they could have told him and Broots themselves. But Angelo had beaten them to it, which didn't surprise them at all.

 

            Sydney didn't say anything out loud, but his eyes were telling them everything that they needed to know; he was sorry for them, and wished that it hadn't happened. But he was also resigned, because it was what the Centre had always done: manipulate them to the extreme.

 

"What happened after I disappeared?" Miss Parker asked, feeling that it was time for a change of topic.

 

"There was a T-Board," he said, and neither Jarod nor Parker could say that they were surprised. "I, Broots, Cox and Lyle had to face Raines."

 

"It looks like Raines thought my brother really messed up this time."

 

"He did. He knew he didn't have anything on me and Broots, but he probably hoped that we knew your whereabouts anyway. The T-Board hadn't been able to prove any of us guilty."

 

"That would have been surprising if they had," Parker replied.

 

"Yes, but Lyle still seem to think that Cox has warned you in some way."

 

"Like that would be possible with that guy. I thought Lyle knew his minions better than that."

 

"Parker?" Jarod said, after he checked his watch.

 

"It's getting late," she told Sydney. "You should get some sleep. Even though I think you'll have a light day tomorrow."

 

            That was cryptic at best, but before he could ask what she meant, they were already gone.

 

            A couple of minutes later, just as he was about to turn off the light in the living-room, there was a loud knock on his front door.

 

"Open up, Sydney!" Lyle shouted through the door.

 

            He opened it and watched as sweepers entered his house, followed by the thumbless man. While his men were looking through the house, Lyle stopped before him.

 

"Where are they, Sydney?" he asked. "And no need to hide that they were here. They have been seen in the neighbourhood."

 

"They just left."

 

"Why didn't you call the Centre?"

 

"Sir, the phone doesn't work," Sam intervened before Sydney could reply.

 

"It's not a coincidence, I suppose. Search the neighbourhood," he ordered the sweepers. "They can't be far."

 

            Lyle left without saying another word to Sydney. The psychiatrist locked the door behind him, hoping that Jarod and Parker were already out of reach of the sweepers.

 

 

###

 

 

            Jarod stopped their car a couple of miles away from the barn; they would have to cover the rest of the way by foot if they didn't want to be seen on security cameras earlier than planned. He was about to leave the car when Parker stopped him with a hand on his arm. He turned towards her and saw her holding out a gun to him.

 

"Parker," he said, shaking his head no.

 

"This is our son, Jarod. If you don't want to kill them, that's fine by me. I know that's not who you are," she added, and he heard what she wasn't saying out loud; it was who she was. "But wound them, at least. They'll be less likely to run after us if you do."

 

            He reluctantly took the gun, knowing that she was right. He would try not to use it, but he knew the sweepers down there wouldn't hesitate if given the occasion.

 

            They left the car, and it didn't take them long to cover the miles left to the barn. Soon, they were crouched beside the trap door hidden in the floor. Jarod looked at his watch; only a minute to go. He looked at Parker, who answered his silent question with a nod: she was ready. The unfamiliar weight of the gun in his hand reminded him, if need be, that they wouldn't have a second chance; either they got out of here with Joshua or they lost him forever.

 

            His watch emitted a beep and he opened the trap door. Parker was the first one to climb down the ladder; he had wanted to go first, but he knew that she was a better shooter than he was. And he trusted the voices to lead her to their son.

 

            They had agreed to avoid the scientists as much as possible. They weren't the ones who would pose the biggest risk. As they had hoped, there didn't seem to be a lot of sweepers around; their little diversion of the night before seemed to have worked.

 

            Parker couldn't say that she had completely agreed with Jarod's part of the plan that had consisted of breaking into the Centre, taking as little precaution as possible doing so, before going to Sydney's. It had been risky, to say the least. But they had left enough clues to let them know that they would come back and they seemed to have taken the bait. She had to admit that she liked that little twist.

 

            They rounded a corner and were spotted by a sweeper. Parker shot him before he had time to sound the alarm. She had only injured him, and as she stopped next to him, and knocked him out with the butt of her gun. As she rose, she noticed the door at the end of the corridor, and the voices told her that this was it; behind it was Joshua.

 

            She looked at Jarod and pointed towards the door, enjoining him to follow. They only encountered one more sweeper who had the bad idea of coming their way just as they arrived at the door. Jarod punched him in the face and he was out cold.

 

"Go," he told her, as he opened the door for her. "I'll keep an eye out."

 

            She nodded and entered the room. She quickly looked around and saw that there was no one there. She allowed herself to let her hands fall to her side, not quite relaxing, but knowing that for the moment, they were safe; the door she had just come through was the only way in and out the room.

 

            And then, she looked at the middle of the room where a playpen stood and was met by big brown eyes. She let out the breath she didn't know she was holding and stepped closer, careful not to frighten the little boy, her little boy.

 

"Hi," she said, as stopped just outside the playpen, facing him. "You remember me?"

 

"Mama," Joshua said to her surprise, holding his arms out to her, but she quickly recovered; she would have time to think about that later.

 

"Yes, it's Mama," she repeated, picking him up. "What do you say we get out of here," she said, kissing his cheek.

 

            He nodded. She scanned the room one more time to see if there was anything he would need, but there were barely any toys. All she could see where blocks; he wouldn't need those.

 

            She walked outside the room and noticed that Jarod's eyes barely fell on their son before he started leading the way back to the ladder. She quickly understood why he acted this way; right now, with Joshua in her arms, she couldn't protect them, and he had to step up. He would only allow himself to properly meet his son once they were safe.

 

            They nearly ran into a couple of scientists, but they managed to hide just in time. They waited as long as they could before they resumed walking.

 

            Finally, they arrived at the ladder. Knowing that she couldn't climb up and hold Joshua at the same time, she handed him over to Jarod, and if he held him tighter than he would have usually done with another child, she didn't say anything. She took point once more, and soon, they were back in the barn.

 

            It had been easy, almost too easy, which made them worry about what was happening back in Blue Cove. It wouldn't be long until they knew, and until then, they allowed themselves not to think too much about it. They had made the choice to make Raines and Lyle think they would hit the Centre, and whatever happened, neither of them would be able to go back on it.

 

            The walk back to their car took longer with Joshua. He was a quiet kid, though, and he hadn't said a word since Miss Parker had picked him up. That was something they were grateful for, as that had allowed them to move with as little noise as possible. They didn't doubt that he had inherited his mother's gift, and that it was helping him understand that they didn't want to hurt him.

 

            When they arrived at the car, Jarod finally allowed himself to hug his son, and a tear fell down his cheek as Joshua called him Daddy for the first time. Before too long, he sat him in the car seat they had bought just the day before, before going to the passenger side; Parker would drive as they had already established that she had the most experience in this area.

 

            Less than ten minutes later, Jarod's phone rang. He pressed the button and put the cell phone to his ear. He listened for a few seconds before hanging up without saying a word, just as they drove past a couple of FBI cars.

 

"It's over," he just told her.

 

 

###

 

 

            The road trip back was quite uneventful. Joshua seemed to be an easy child, much to his parents' relief. They didn't want to think about how difficult the journey would have gone if he hadn't been. But they wondered whether it would last or it would change when he settled in his new life. Not that it really mattered to them right now.

 

            Jarod had called his father as soon as they had left Delaware to let his family know that everything had gone as planned. He let out the part where they hadn't really taken the Centre down; he thought it would be easier to explain that fact face to face. He hadn't been sure it had been the right choice until Parker had stood in the atrium and let everyone know, without uttering a single word, that she was in charge now. And if that hadn't been clear enough, she had already fired all the sweepers and made no promise to keep the other employees.

 

            She wanted to start anew as soon as she came back.

 

            When the house was finally in sight, they weren't surprised to see that the family was waiting for them outside. It had snowed again since they had left, and Parker could already see her son playing in the snow with his father.

 

            They exited the car, and Jarod took Joshua in his arms to introduce him to the rest of his family. The little boy seemed to enjoy the attention he was getting, and it was easy to see that he had his grandparents and his aunt already wrapped around his little finger. Parker wondered how long it would take his two uncles to get there too. Probably not too long; if he had managed to melt her with just one word – granted that it was a special one – he would easily conquer their resistances.

 

            Margaret ushered them inside after the initial greetings, not wanting them to catch a cold. They took off their thick coats and boots in the hallway, before Margaret led them to a door on the first floor.

 

"We may have gone a little over the top," she said as she opened the door.

 

            What Parker and Jarod saw inside was a little boy's room complete with a crib, other furniture, toys, and – they were almost certain – clothes in the drawers.

 

"'May have'? 'A little'?" Parker repeated, looking towards Margaret.

 

"He's our only grandson at the moment, so please, allow us to spoil him for the moment," Major Charles said.

 

"And we know that you won't stay here forever," Margaret continued. "But he needs a room for when you come visit."

 

            Miss Parker and Jarod looked at each other. They didn't even need to talk for his parents to know that they wouldn't stay here forever. But they still had no idea they were going back to Blue Cove.

 

            Communicating with their eyes, they knew that it was time to tell them everything. Jarod turned towards his parents and thanked them for what they had done. That was the least they could do before dropping yet another bombshell on them.

 

 

###

 

 

            She closed the door of Joshua's room after one last look at the sleeping boy. He was so exhausted that he had fallen asleep the moment Jarod had laid him down in his crib. They had no doubt that it wouldn't be this easy every night, but for their first night here, it was a real blessing.

 

            She turned back towards Jarod and they shared a smile. His family had taken the news about the Centre better than they had thought. Margaret had assured her that Catherine would be proud of her. Parker suspected that she had known what she had wanted to do before she even did.

 

"Do you think he's going to stay asleep all night?" she asked him as they walked toward her room.

 

"Let's hope so."

 

            He paused, looking at her but not knowing exactly what to say. He wanted to ask her about them, now that they had Joshua with them, but he struggled to find the right words.

 

            Seeing this, she decided to take the matter in her own hands, literally. She smiled at him and took his hand, leading him inside her bedroom.

 

 

Fin.





Chapter End Notes:

And we have reached the end of our journey. Many, many thanks to those who reviewed this fic. It means a lot to me. Before you ask, there likely won't be another sequel. I feel like I've reached the end of my own journey with this particular storyline. But there will be other fics, of course. And in the meantime, we have Rebirth to look forward to! Again, thank you so much!






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