Disclaimer: I don't own the basic storyline or characters of the Pretender, it's owned by others and I'm not making any money off this.
Author's note: The lyrics I've included are not mine. They belong to the group Lifehouse, from their CD 'No Name Face'. I hope everyone who does me the honor of reading this very short story truly enjoys it. Thanks!
It's time
By Callisto
The Centre
Blue Cove, DE
Looking dejectedly out of her office window, Parker was lost in a world of her own. Holding a thick cocktail glass in one hand, she sipped the amber liquid savoring the bitter, languid essence as it eased down her throat. The outer grounds were beautiful. The endless, manicured green of lawn stretching far and wide, giving way only to the sand of the beaches and incessant surf. She had come to a decision and it hadn't been an easy one. Still she was resolute and knew that the turning point Jarod had been talking about so many months ago in the back of the limo had come back to haunt her again. Unlike the philosopher who had once said an opportunity once missed could never be repeated, in her case, it seemed as though she were being revisited by the dissatisfied ghosts of her own life.
"It's hotter than hell outside. What are you doing? Dreaming up devious ways to beat me to the prize?" Lyle asked. His voice jarred her unpleasantly from her reverie, while his reference reminded her of the aching band of pain squeezing at her brain. Lyle had a near miss in capturing Jarod. Their competition had gotten heated, resulting in the twins spending more time thwarting each other's efforts rather than capturing the wily Pretender.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Parker responded wearily, slurring her words slightly.
"Hey, you should show down on that stuff. I realize it's after 4 in the afternoon but getting sloshed because I almost caught him won't anesthetize you from Raines' wrath once I bring in Wonderboy," he replied cheerfully. Noticing that she either wasn't in the mood or her thoughts had strayed to the past again, Lyle knew he wouldn't be getting a response from her anytime soon. Shrugging, the sociopath left his twin in peace. With a spring in his step, Lyle quickly turned towards his office. The hunt for Jarod would begin again tomorrow, for now he was determined to enjoy the rest of the evening. He smiled happily as he thought about his latest companion and the plans he had for her.
Parker shivered involuntarily. Lyle was giving her the creeps more each day as her 'gift' continued to develop and intrude on her life. A deep sigh escaped her lips as she turned in her chair and dropped her drunk act. Reaching out she grabbed a slip of paper and wrote a quick note for Sam and a team of sweepers to rescue the young Asian woman Lyle planned on bringing home tonight. This marked the last time she would keep her sick twin from torturing another blameless soul.
Turning from the note she started typing brief e-mails to Broots and Sydney. Once that was done, she quickly got up and headed for the door, leaving her office neat and tidy as she usually did at the end of the day. It would be important for no one to notice anything different.
Instead of driving directly home, she took a circuitous route to a restaurant outside of town which had become a favorite. The chef was an ally who allowed her to stash in his office a duffle full of clothing she had recently brought. She sat at her usual table and ordered her usual meal, allowing the sweepers in charge of following her to be lulled into a false sense of security in knowing how the evening should end. In the middle of the meal, she got up to go to the rest room. Inside she changed into some very casual clothing and eased cautiously across the hall into the back office, careful to avoid being spotted by a curious sweeper. There she stuffed her Centre outfit in her duffle, gathered both duffle and a knapsack, left a couple hundred-dollar bills, grabbed the head chef's car keys and turning off the office lights, slipped unnoticed out of the back window. By the time the sweepers became concerned she was already pulling out of the parking lot wearing a blonde wig and chewing dramatically on some bubble gum.
Department of Motor Vehicles
Phoenix, AZ
He watched with some amusement as the last of the proctors left for the day. As a group, they were a great bunch to work with and he had to commend them for their bravery. The latest teenager who left unhappily after being failed for the second time was clearly a danger to himself and others. The proctor who had been administering the test, got out of the vehicle shakily, his complexion deathly pale, as clammy sweat soaked his shirt.
Jarod had just recorded the latest results and put a serious dent in the large mound of paperwork on his desk when another colleague walked up holding a small package.
"Hey, Ford, this came for you. The lady said to give this to you when you weren't busy, I tried to get her to give it to you earlier but she insisted," the supervisor informed him.
"Really? Did she give her name?" Jarod asked as his curiosity was piqued.
"Actually, she said that you would know once you opened it but I wouldn't take it until she told me who she was. Said her name was Miss Parker and that she was a childhood friend of yours."
Jarod had to struggle for several seconds to control the alarm that clouded his mind. Forcibly relaxing, he took the offered package and stared at it as though it were poisonous. The supervisor saw Jarod's usual friendly demeanor become suddenly fearful and apprehensive.
"Is something wrong? Do you want me to call the cops?" he asked Jarod with heightened unease.
Recalling himself, Jarod forced a smile on his face and dismissed the offer. "No, Gus, that's quite alright. I think I know who it is now but tell me was anyone else with her? Perhaps an older man with a foreign accent or a short balding man?"
"No, buddy, she was all by herself and from what I could tell, she is quite a looker. You know the type, long legs, smooth skin, high maintenance and wanting absolutely nothing to do with me," Gus replied with wry humor. "I kept hoping she would take those sunglasses off but she never did, just gave me a big grin that made my insides feel all hollow."
Smiling at his friend's description of his personal huntress, Jarod chuckled appreciatively. Casually he asked his next question as he slowly undid the plain brown wrapping. "When did she come by?"
"Geez, that was before lunch. I would have given it to you then but I had to go out and fail some pimple-faced smart ass who lied and said she knows how to drive. Kids these days!"
"Thanks Gus", Jarod replied as he extracted a plain CD in an unadorned jewel case.
"What the heck? Hey, there's writing on the back."
Turning the case around, Jarod read Miss Parker's note in her neat handwriting.
'It's time for me to let go. Take care of yourself, Genius
—MP'
Gus, being adept at reading upside down, glanced at the message and sympathy flooded his face. The woman had been downright beautiful and poor guy Jarod apparently had lost her. He looked away from Jarod in his empathy.
"Come on, Jarod. Let's go get a drink, I insist," Gus said quietly.
Jarod got up and absently walked outside with his friend. He waited while Gus locked up the office, using the time to think up a plausible excuse to listen to the CD Parker had left for him. The second he read her message, his heart told him that it wasn't a trick and she wouldn't be outside with a team of sweepers ready to return him to the Centre.
"Gus, I need to listen to this alone. Thanks for the offer of a drink, perhaps later I can take you up on that?"
"Sure, I understand. If you need someone to talk to, I'm here. I've been dumped by plenty of women in my heyday," Gus said with a chuckle. With a keen look at Jarod's face to make sure his co-worker was alright, Gus sauntered over to his beat-up Corolla, shaking his head that a fella as good-looking as Jarod also suffered the same disappointments from the opposite sex.
Jarod, with eager curiosity, quickly got into his worn pickup truck and quickly started it. However, he could only wait until they were leaving the parking lot before opening the jewel case and sliding the disc in the new CD player he had installed the minute he brought the truck. Immediately, an electric guitar started playing and the performer began harmonizing his solemn tune. It was the singer's words which forced him to pull over and listen.
This doubt is screaming in my face,
In this familiar place, sheltered and concealed
And if this night won't let me rest,
Don't let me second guess what I know to be real.
Put away all that I know for tonight and maybe
I just might learn to let it go.
Take my security from me and maybe
finally I won't have to know everything.
I am falling into grace, to the unknown to where you are
And faith makes everybody scared,
It's the unknown, the don't-know
that keeps me hanging on to you.
I got nothing left to defend, I cannot pretend
That everything makes sense but does it really matter now
If I do not know how to figure this thing out
I am against myself again, trying to fit these pieces in
Walking on a cloud of dust to get to you.
The CD contained only this one song, nothing more. Jarod stabbed his index finger on the replay button and the music began again. He listened to the words of the entire song several more times while a few things began to make sense. She knew where he was and how to find him. He reviewed in his mind all the precautions and blind trails he had set up to elude the Centre when it hit him. Her inner sense must have guided her this time. Only instead of capturing him in triumph, she had been saddled with an unknown side effect of her gift. Realization that capturing him wasn't going to answer any questions and her interest in the answers had left a bad taste in her mouth. Jarod sat back in his truck and stared into the night. An important part of his life had finally seen the light and left the scene.
He thought about Sydney and how he was taking Parker's departure. Jarod decided to wait a couple days before contacting his mentor at the Centre and asking his opinion, leaving them with the relief that despite Parker's absence, he would continue to keep in touch. In reality, he would start searching for her. He had some ideas of his own and right now, she was starting to figure quite prominently in them. All the tools he needed were currently at his fingertips. There was Ethan to help him find his mother and now Parker, the girl who had given him his first kiss, acting like a human again.
Jarod reached behind the passenger seat and retrieved his laptop case. He connected the laptop to his cell phone and the cigarette lighter and immediately checked into Parker's bank accounts. They were still robust but the personal trust account from her parents had been drained dry. He began running a trace program he had devised on her off-shore bank accounts and found her fairly easily. He did some double-checking to confirm his findings then erased the subtle electronic footprints she had inadvertently left behind. Her strategy was excellent, but not good enough to keep Broots in the dark—Jarod took care of that.
Smiling, Jarod turned his truck around and headed towards the nearest airport. He was suddenly in the mood for dropping in on an old friend and returning a long overdue kiss.
~Fin~
