Chapter 4

The next day, Jarod woke up early. Looking out the hotel window, he saw the sun was only just starting to rise. He took a look at the clock on his computer and saw that it was around 4:00 am. In the bed at the other end of the room, Emily was sound asleep, her light brown hair draped over her face as she slept on her left side. The only light in the room came from a nightlight by the bathroom illuminating the suitcases left by the television set that sat on top of the large drawer. Jarod sat down at the table the computer sat on and logged on to the internet. Making sure the connection was as secure as could be, he pulled up his email. Clicking his way through, he saw one from Sydney.

Jarod, the snake has found your cornerstone. I don't know where they are, but will let you know if I hear anything.

-Sydney

Jarod felt his heartbeat quicken as he reread the email. "The snake" could only refer to one person: Lyle. Jarod had noticed the snake tattoo the last time he'd seen him. "Your cornerstone" could be any member of his family. But who? Emily was with him, so that wasn't it. His mom? His dad? Gemini? It didn't matter, he needed to find out where that monster Lyle had taken them first before it was too late. He quickly replied his thanks to Sydney and began looking through the rest of his email, looking for any clues. One email in particular stood out to him. The unfamiliar email address and subject line of "thought you'd be interested" caught his attention. The email contained a link to a video. When he clicked on the link, Lyle's face filled his screen.

"Hello, Jarod. Found something you lost and thought you'd want it back."

Lyle stepped aside to reveal Major Charles, tied up to a chair and unconscious.

"Dad!" Jarod whispered.

"As you can see, he's been unharmed...for now. If you want him back, might wanna get here before 10 am tomorrow."

Jarod looked at the timestamp on the video. It read March 8, 2000 at 3 pm. Jarod did some quick calculations and found that that meant there were 6 hours left to get there.

"You might be familiar with this place," Lyle continued. "It's where you and my sister spent some time together during a hurricane. Oh. And come alone. No tricks, Jarod."

The video ended there and Jarod quickly closed his email and packed up his computer. The slight noise woke Emily and she sat up in bed.

"Jarod?" she asked sleepily, her eyes falling on the clock. "It's four am. Why are you up?"

"Couldn't sleep. But we gotta go now. I know where dad is."

That got Emily's attention as her eyes widened and she started to get out of bed.

"Really? Where is he? Is he ok?"

"For now. But we have 6 hours to get to Fort Lauderdale."

"Fort Lauderdale? What's he doing there? I thought he..."

"Em...they got him. I'm so sorry. He's alive, but we have to get there before 10 am. Or at least I do. He warned me to come alone."

Jarod hated this part...knowing that he was putting his sister in such danger. But he knew that she couldn't stay here alone and he had no idea where their mom was. The Centre probably knew they were here in Florida and had sent Sweepers.

"Who's he?"

"The man who took dad. And you're coming with me because I won't leave you here alone."

"You couldn't stop me from coming with you anyway, Jarod."

"I know."

They quickly packed the last of their things and did an early checkout at the front desk. Then they drove to the freeway and made their way towards Fort Lauderdale. As they drove, Jarod and Emily got to know each other better.

"What were mom and dad like when you were a kid?" Jarod asked.

"The best. I think losing you and Kyle made them realize how everything can change in an instant. They never let me out of their sight until I got the job in Pennsylvania. We moved every couple years, but I thought that was due to dad's job. It wasn't until I was older that they finally told me everything."

"I wish I had had that. I always wanted a mom and dad. Sydney was the closest thing to a father I had until now."

"Sydney? The guy in the video, right?"

"Yes. He called himself my handler, but eventually he became more and more like a father to me. I trusted him. I still trust him."

"But he's the one who took you, right?"

"No. The Sweepers did that. Sydney only knew that we were working together. It wasn't until years later that we found out what the Centre was really doing. He's been helping me stay one step ahead of them since I got out."

"So you have a man on the inside in a way."

"Yes. If it hadn't been for him, I'd be back there now. And I never would have found my family."

"Jarod, I'm so glad you found me. I always wanted a brother."

"And I always wanted a family. Sisters, brothers, mom and dad. The whole thing. I always wondered what it would be like."

"It's the best, Jarod. You always have someone you can rely on and know they love you. No matter what."

"I believe it. I just hope we're not too late to save our family."

"Me, too."

Back in Fort Lauderdale, Major Charles was starting to come to. Lyle was sitting in front of him and there were Sweepers on either side of him. He shook his head in an attempt to shake the cobwebs out of his brain from being unconscious for so long. Looking around, he saw he was in some kind of a shack. There were a few windows in the room, but they were covered by wood, almost like it was prepared for a hurricane. The door was on the other side of the room and a big plank of wood blocked it. The only light in the room was from a single light hanging above him.

"Where am I?" he demanded, his voice still a little groggy-sounding.

"That's not important. What is important is that your son is on his way."

"No...Jarod's not that stupid. He knows who has me."

"Yeah, but here's the thing. Family has always been his weakness. He's not about to let anything happen to the family he's worked so hard to find, no matter who has them. In the meantime, here's a little breakfast."

Lyle held out a plate of food and nodded to the Sweepers who uncuffed his hands long enough for him to eat. They left the cuffs around his feet though. As he ate, he thought about what Lyle had said. Deep down, Major Charles knew Lyle was right, but he wasn't about to let him know that. If his military training had taught him anything, it was that you never reveal to your enemy when they might have the upper hand. Keep them guessing. And if he knew Jarod, he had a trick or two up his sleeve. For now, he would have to wait and see what Jarod would do and hope things would turn out in their favor. In the meantime, he'd see what he could do to catch Lyle and the Sweepers off guard.