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Oakfield, Maryland, February 2, 1997

The general location was all he found but after reading the local newspaper he knew exactly where to find Jarod. Michael waited outside of the prison until Jarod was off. It surprised him Jarod didn’t seem to notice his presence but thought the mere fact he was on a motorcycle instead of in a dark sedan proved he wasn’t a sweeper.

Michael watched from outside as Jarod sat and talked with a woman named Jessica Wills. Michael knew enough about her to know she was trying to save her father from the electric chair. He’d read the files and knew why Jarod was there. The man was innocent and Jarod was going to prove it.

As soon as Jessica Wills left Jarod at the diner, Michael saw his chance to make contact with Jarod. Michael entered the diner and took the seat Jessica had occupied.

Jarod peered at him. “This is my booth.”

Michael nodded to him. “Yes, which is why I sat here,” Michael thought twice about saying Jarod’s name but thought it would be best to convey his knowledge of the pretender, “Jarod.”

Jarod’s face quickly changed to surprise as he sucked air in clearly anticipating sweepers to pour into the restaurant. “Who are you?”

“My name is Michael. I’m a friend of Kristina’s. You called.” Michael leaned back in the booth. The waitress approached and he quickly looked up at her. “Just coffee. Black.” She nodded and went after it.

Jarod shook his head. “How did you find me?”

Michael waited for the waitress to set down the coffee and walk away before replying. “I tracked you.”

Jarod actually laughed. Not even The Centre could track him so quickly when he called. He always went above and beyond to hide his location from the people he called. “I routed my call…”

“Through Jamaica, Buenos Aires, Cordoba, Ulaanbaatar…” Michael would have gone on if Jarod hadn’t stopped him.

“I get the point.” Jarod sighed. “Not even Broots could track that so quickly.”

“We’re not The Centre or Broots, though he is quite talented.” Michael smiled slightly. “At The Centre pretenders like you give only the information required of them. With us pretenders create and apply anything they wish, within the boundaries of good and just. Our tracking system was created by a brilliant mind named Ryan Zimmer. He’s not exactly a pretender but he’s extremely smart and technically inclined, much like Mr. Broots.” Michael sipped his coffee.

Jarod couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He looked out into the night and then back at Michael. How could he even begin to think there were groups of people just like him banning together against The Centre? “Why are you so interested in me?”

Michael looked at Jarod with a raised eyebrow. ‘Did he not know he was the most gifted of all pretenders?’ Michael looked at Jarod as though he was a child. “Our fight against The Centre will be on going until their fall but we believe we can make a bigger impact if we help you. Of course, we would appreciate a helping hand in return, but it isn’t necessary. We are out there for people like you. Ryan, the one I mentioned before. The Centre exploited an accident and put Ryan on death row, much like your new pretend. The Centre’s objective was to rescue Ryan and have him feel indebted to them. We prevented that plan.”

“So now he feels indebted to you?” Jarod stared at him blankly. He wasn’t about to jump into something that would in turn cause him to give away the freedoms he’d fought for. He’d spent so much time running from The Centre and he’d only been free for a few months. If he got involved with these people would they betray him? Would he be giving up the freedoms he now cherished?

“Maybe, but he doesn’t have to work for us. He is free to do as he pleases as long as he doesn’t turn against us and start working for The Centre or someone like them.” Michael sighed. “My job is to prevent people like The Centre from harming those like us and others. If you do not wish to be part of that, it is fine, but let me know so I don’t waste my time.” Michael said quietly. It was a bit harsh but he thought conveying they could take him or leave him would indicate they had no interest in pressing the matter if Jarod didn’t want to associate with them.

Jarod rose from his seat at the booth. “I have a job to get to.” Jarod headed to the door of the diner.

Michael sighed. Maybe he’d pushed it too far? Maybe Jarod did feel threatened? He knew he wasn’t always the best person for something diplomatic but he had the skills to find Jarod quickly which matter in this case. Michael saw Jarod pause at the door.

Jarod’s hand rested on the door. He thought twice about asking, “If I want to contact you…” Jarod looked to Michael waiting for the answer he was sure he already knew.

“Call the number.” Michael tilted his head with an approving glance.

Jarod nodded to him and exited the diner. He now stood out in the dark night thinking about his encounter with Kristina and now Michael. If he hadn’t called them he’d think they were as bad as The Centre, but he had. It was obvious they thought highly of him and he wondered why? He knew he was gifted but if there were other pretenders or people like them, he couldn’t possibly be as important as The Centre wanted him to believe. Someone else had to be more important.

Jarod walked to his car and got in. He looked back to the diner. Michael was no where in sight. How exactly had Michael found him besides tracking him? He’d called in from his hotel. Jarod grabbed the red notebook from the seat next to him and opened it. It suddenly dawned on him that if Michael were at all like him, he’d know exactly what he was up to just by looking at the newspaper.

“How important can I really be?” Jarod said aloud. Obviously these other pretenders believed he was extremely important which would explain why The Centre wouldn’t leave him be. Maybe it was in his own best interest to try getting to know these people. He looked up at the diner again before starting the car. He had other things to take care of right now and he didn’t have the time to worry about visitors.


February 18, 1997

Jarod sat staring out the window of his car. His mind lingered on touching Nia. He missed her more than he could imagine missing anyone. His first love… well outside The Centre. Miss Parker had been his first love… long ago, when they were children. He still thought of her frequently, but her constant pursuit of him for the purpose of returning him to The Centre, made him think twice about having feelings for her.

Jarod looked to the dashboard where he’d taped the phone number Kristina had given him. He kept it there as a constant reminder that he was interested to learn more about Kristina, Michael and company. He thought back to what Michael had said. ‘He is free to do as he pleases…’ Jarod had to wonder how free they really were. It was evident they lived in a curtain of secrecy, but together like they were there had to be a certain amount of freedom involved.

Jarod picked his cell phone up from the passenger seat and turned it over several times in his hand. Was he really thinking of turning his freedom over to these people? Could he trust them? He had an idea how to test them. Would they trust him?


February 19, 1997

Jarod stood at the gates of a large mansion. He’d never expected a warm welcome but this seemed rather cold to him. The iron gates locked him out. Sure Michael had passed his little test. He’s simply asked how to find them. He wanted to come to them. Michael hesitated but gave him the exact location, telling him to be careful with the information. Jarod, doing his part, committed the location to memory and then destroyed the paper and pad he’d written on. He wouldn’t risk these people without reason.

Jarod was just about to give up when the iron gates swung opened and he saw Michael walking towards him down a very long driveway. ‘Where had he come from?’ He never did see the man come out of the house, but rather appear in the scenery like a ghost. Of course, San Francisco was often foggy in the morning hours. He chalked it up to the fog though a voice inside of him told him there was more to it. Jarod bent down and grabbed his bag and DSA case. He headed towards Michael who turned back the moment they met.

“We are happy you have decided to visit us.” Michael stated as he walked with Jarod up to the front door.

Jarod said nothing the several minutes it took them to get to the front door, but paused at the large oak door. “Where did you come from? I mean, you didn’t come from the house. You just appeared.” Curiosity finally wore him down.

“Actually, I did. I just used one of the many passageways designed when building of the house was underway.” Michael grabbed the door handle and opened the door giving Jarod access before him.

Jarod stepped into the grand foyer of the house and looked around with amazement evident from his expression.

A slender woman with dark brown hair and disturbingly bright blue eyes came down a hallway across the foyer and to the left. Her mere presence commanded respect and Jarod instinctively straighten his posture. The woman smiled slightly as she entered the foyer. Her professional dress didn’t detract from her beauty but something behind her eyes told him crossing her was as deadly as messing with The Centre. She stopped in front of him and gave a quick gesture of her hand. “Michael will take your things to your room.”

Michael took the bags gently and then climbed the stairs that crawled up the wall to the right of him.

The woman had turned and was gesturing for him to come with her to a room directly to his left. He followed quickly as the woman began to speak. “Jarod, it is a pleasure to have you here. Michael informed me you tested our trust by asking for the exact location of our home. I trust you were careful with such sensitive information.”

Jarod nodded. “Of course.”

“Thank you.” She walked to a chair and took a seat. “I can only imagine the questions you have. I suspect one would be who I am. I go by Nemesis…” She eyed him briefly as he took a seat in the chair across from her. “Though my real name is Natasha Hoffman. I once worked for The Centre. I trained many children to do many things children have no business knowing about. The short story is, I learned just what The Centre really was and left. The Centre’s security has improved since I was there.”

Jarod nodded knowing full well that The Centre’s security was state of the art. “All right. Then moving on to the next question,” Jarod had composed himself just a bit, “Why should I trust you?”

Natasha sighed pensively. “I’d hoped this wouldn’t still be an issue.” She relaxed her body in the chair. She’d just realized she’d been so tense only because she was meeting Jarod. “You don’t have to trust us.”

“Then why am I here?” Jarod was puzzled. Michael and Kristina seemed to want his trust but this Natasha person seemed to care very little whether or not he actually trusted her or not.

“You are here because you are curious. I would appreciate trust but it is unnecessary. We don’t trust many people we work with, though we do trust you. Our primary goal has been and will remain to halt Centre’s dealings. You have an extensive knowledge of what they’re up to…”

Jarod cut her off. “You want information?” He rose from his chair, angrily.

In a mildly firm voice Natasha continued, “As I was saying, you have an extensive knowledge of what they are up to; however, you do not have the benefit of our communication network. We have placed houses similar to this one around the world in an attempt to make ourselves accessible to anyone who needs our help. Operatives of these houses gather great amounts of information about The Centre and their current dealings. We would like to make it so you can access this network and leave information as you see fit.”

Jarod looked sorry as he landed in the chair again. He had gotten upset without letting Natasha finish. She was offering him everything and he had nothing to give her in return. “Why? Why would you give me access to your systems when I have nothing to give you in return?”

Natasha smiled sweetly and leaned forward. “You’re friendship is what we seek. Our goal in contacting you was to let you know we are here and willing to help. We know a lot about you, Jarod. We know what you seek. Many of our operatives seek similar answers.”

Jarod swallowed hard. He’d misjudged these people. All they wanted was all that he wanted. Companionship and answers.


March 1, 1997

Jarod had been at the house for over week now. He had quickly become comfortable around the residents. Kristina was quit a bit less mysterious in these surroundings. He’s learned that like himself, she’d been taken from her parents when she was three. She had been trained differently than he. She ended up being an assassin for The Centre, believing the people she killed were a threat to everything she cared about, until the day she realized the truth.

William was an interesting person. He was a bit standoffish, but enjoyable once brought out of his shell. William’s involvement with The Centre was more in how they influenced the government William was proud to work with. William’s wife Jolene had more energy than anyone Jarod had ever met. The mere fact the two were married made Jarod long to stay with these people. Jolene’s past was traumatic. Her parents had been willing to hand her over to The Centre for what he had no idea, but it couldn’t be good. Jolene hadn’t given up her story but Kristina filled him in on Christoph. She also informed him about William’s father and how Jolene had patched up their relationship. Jarod envied that.

Ryan’s story was horrifying to Jarod. The Centre took an accident and turned it to manipulate Ryan into handing himself over to them because of his genius. He knew how it felt to be manipulated by The Centre. Ryan seemed like a happy person and talked constantly, but Jarod believe that like himself, Ryan was plagued by nightmares. Ryan seemed a bit star struck by Jarod’s presence until about the fourth day when he’d become used to Jarod being around. Jarod was having trouble understanding Ryan’s jokes but he was managing well enough.

Natasha was a mystery. One that felt perfectly content on keeping herself the mystery she was. He didn’t dwell on it. She had his trust and he was sure when she felt the need, she’d tell him more about herself.

Michael on the other hand still baffled him. The man deserved the awe Ryan had paid Jarod. Michael seemed to be like a shadow. One minute there the next gone. He was quiet, soft spoken and after watching Ryan and Michael spar, Jarod realized, deadly. Michael was an expert in whatever he put his mind to. In that they were similar, but Michael was trained. Trained to kill, trained to use weapons, trained to manipulate his body into defending itself and killing if the need arose. When Michael spoke, people stopped to listen. Jarod suspected it had nothing to do with the urgency of what Michael was talking about but rather because he didn’t talk much and it was remarkable when he did. It wasn’t as if he wouldn’t talk but if he had no need to then he remained quiet.

Jarod had asked Ryan what the deal was with Michael and Ryan shook his head. Apparently, Michael knew next to nothing about himself. He’d gone by Michael only because it seemed to be what people called him. His memories were a jumble and his past was a question mark. Jolene had even commented that Michael periodically disappeared for long periods of time. None of them knew why but sometimes he came back a bit happier and other times you should just avoid him. Kristina informed Jarod that Michael’s absence was due to two things, his search for a child he felt a connection to and a woman he’d loved for the duration of his memory. The woman was still in the clutches of The Centre and Michael had hoped to have her freed by now.

Jarod looked around the common room where they’d gathered to converse. Natasha had entered the room and smiled at everyone. Jarod could tell the subject of the child seemed to sting Natasha but she hid it well.

Ryan made a joke which everyone laughed at but Jarod’s mind had drifted to Michael who was approaching at his normal laid back pace though something about his manner seemed urgent. “Michael?” Jarod looked to him and everyone turned towards the entrance to the room.

Michael stopped in the entrance. “Lily and McKenzie have been tracked down. They appear to be having trouble with a Centre operative who goes by the name Bug.”

Natasha stiffened. “Both of them? Together?” She knew all about Bug and had suspected for sometime she was the person tracking McKenzie and Lily. She’d been the one to give her the nickname, mainly because she was a pest. Bug had a need to torture her and the woman would use anyone she cared about to accomplish her goal.

Michael nodded once. “They appear to be traveling together.”

Natasha turned to the room. “We must get to them before The Centre.”


March 2, 1997

Jarod was in awe of everyone in the house. They pulled out the most accurate information and accessed flight records, bus schedules, and all other manners of transportation Lily and McKenzie could be traveling by. Jarod had offered his assistance and they had accepted. He was currently staring at a plan to extract the two women from a terminal. The details were generic to compensate for not knowing where the two would end up but these people had things down to an art form. If anyone of them was unsure about a movement or route they simply asked Michael. The man couldn’t possibly know exactly what the two women were thinking but he guessed correctly each time.

Natasha was looking over the plan scrutinizing everything. According to Ryan she didn’t do it often but when something was really important she and Michael both went over everything. Apparently it was better because Natasha and Michael did a lot of these missions on their own before recruiting anyone else to their teams. That impressed Jarod, but working for the Centre and being some kind of ghost must have worked for them.

Michael sighed as he straightened up from his hunched over position. He started towards Ryan but Jarod stopped him. “When will we be going after them?”

“When they slow down.” Michael state. He looked at Jarod briefly feeling as though an explanation was in order. “We can not help them if we can not pin them down. McKenzie and Lily are skilled; they will be able to protect themselves.” Michael stepped around Jarod and headed for Ryan.

Ryan was tracking McKenzie and Lily’s movements and was supposed to report the moment they stopped. After quiet from the two, Ryan leapt from his chair and nearly smacked into Michael. “According to informants they’ve stopped at a motel. They haven’t gotten any travel documentation.”

Natasha was staring at him from across the room. “This is it people. I want them brought back here in one piece.”


March 3, 1997

Jarod had come along and by the time they’d reached their destination it was morning again. William, Kristina, Natasha, and Michael were standing around him nodding to their respective assignments. Ryan and Jolene were back in San Francisco listening in. The comm. in his ear was irritating but it kept him in contact with the house and the team.

Jarod hadn’t known these people for very long but he now had a vested interest in their survival.

Ryan’s voice interrupted their briefing. “Bug returned to The Centre. They’ve mobilized a team of sweepers to hunt down McKenzie, Lily and an informant using the alias Question.”

Michael handed Jarod a black ski mask. “It is better if the sweepers do not see our faces.”

Jarod nodded and watched William, Kristina and Michael pocket the mask. He did the same. Natasha’s demeanor changed the moment Ryan reported in. “We have a team of sweepers heading our way. Two target extraction. Good luck.”

The others nodded to her and Kristina called Natasha, Nemesis. In such a mission her real name was never used. Michael, William and Kristina were the brute force while Jarod was there to use his expertise. McKenzie and Lily had moved from the motel and the latest report put them at a train station.

The four of them split up the moment they left the utility van. It was a hub of activity outside of a house. Jarod looked around and turned to see the van again. He looked around parking lot watching Michael and William enter the terminal from opposite entrances. Kristina and he entered and locked onto William and Michael’s positions visually. They moved to the upper level giving themselves cover all around the large station. Jarod could already tell something was going on. Something was off. “Does anyone know what they look like?”

Michael’s voice crackled over the comm. “Lily has red hair and brown eyes. 5’8” 130 pounds. Her hair is curly.”

Natasha, or Nemesis, came back as well. “McKenzie is the same height and weight. Wavy brown hair, blue eyes. My bet is they’re together and they’re armed.”

Jarod nodded to himself as he looked down into the sea of people below him. He looked across to Kristina who was taking in everything he couldn’t see. The room being a large rectangle shape Kristina and Jarod had a bird’s eye view of everything. Michael and William were at each end on the bottom level. Jarod’s eyes drifted over the crowd working his way from William to Michael.

Kristina’s voice broke through next. “Michael, 12 o’clock about forty feet out.”

Both Jarod and Kristina could see Michael nodded. “Affirmative.”

Michael started to walk forward when Jarod’s voice broke the silence. “William, sweepers at 10 o’clock. Their moving in on them.” Jarod felt panic and he looked up to see Kristina in a full fledge run. She was headed away from the stairs which baffled him. He watched her reach into her pocket and put her mask on. Jarod’s attention went to William who had backed into the shadow and re-emerged masked as well. Jarod turned to see Michael walk past the two women and around the corner into the men’s room. “What the hell?” Jarod quipped but the comm. remained silent. A masked man emerged from the bathroom only seconds after Michael had entered.

Jarod turned to look at Kristina who had reached the end on the opposite side. She pulled something from her pocket and slapped it on the railing before throwing herself over. Jarod’s was in shock as Kristina seemed to glide down whatever wire she’d placed. She landed softly behind a crowd of people and then there were shots. Jarod whipped his head around to see William with his gun pointed in the air and everyone in the station ducked down. People became frantic as they ran for exists. “What are you doing?” Jarod asked but the only response was silence and then he saw Kristina ushering people out. A distraction. Gates around the building started to fall as security protocols went into effect. Jarod’s feet were moving before it even dawned on him to run and he’d already pulled the mask out of his pocket. He pulled it on and ran for the stairs.

Jarod ran to the security desk which was now unoccupied because the guards had other things on their mind. Jarod worked feverishly and before he knew it the security locks started reverting back to safe mode. Gate rose and doors opened up. Jarod looked up from the desk into the barrel of a gun. He already knew it was McKenzie. “Where here to help you.” He put his hands up at his sides.

Lily joined McKenzie and they both looked at the action going on. “Who are you?”

“Friends.” Jarod commented.

Lily put her hand on McKenzie’s arm and lowered the gun. “Michael’s one of them.” McKenzie’s head jerked towards the masked team. “He walked right past me.” Lily continued. She turned to look Jarod’s direction and quickly leveled her gun and pulled the trigger.

Jarod expected pain but turned to see a sweeper lying dead behind him. “Let’s go.” Jarod was just a little shocked McKenzie didn’t even think twice about shooting the sweeper but was exceedingly glad it wasn’t something he had to do. He gestured for them to head out to the train tracks.

Michael had his hands full with the sweepers inside and Kristina and William were after the one’s following Jarod, McKenzie and Lily. Michael shot off his last round and quickly ducked behind a pillar. “Remove the mask.” A voice behind him ordered. Michael turned to face the person and recognized him as Gar, a high level sweeper. Gar’s face contorted as he was hit from behind.

The sweeper hit the floor to reveal Natasha standing behind him. “I thought you needed help.”

Michael nodded. “Good thinking.” She helped him up and the two went after the others.

TBC...









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