A/N: I think someone was wondering why I've been starting every chapter with a song. Well, I guess it's because it's in honor of Sherrilyn Kenyon. Whenever she writes a new DH book, she listens to a lot of different music. Most of it is on her website, listed so that each book has its own soundtrack. In fact, each character in her series has their own set of songs. Nazareth's Hair of the Dog seems to be a favorite of many of the characters; it's even mentioned in the first book, Night's Pleasures. Well, I've taken the liberty of making my own soundtrack for this fic. I thought I'd share it with everyone to set the mood for each chapter. I hope you guys can bear with me and maybe even appreciate some of the music I've picked out to go with this story. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Same as before. Don't own it, not making any money (if I was I'd be updating much quicker than this), don't sue. Can't get blood from a turnip ;-P This song is by Bush ©1999.
Synopsis: This is the first time MP and J have had to face one another. They've both changed, having had to cope with the past. On top of that, J has just kidnapped MP. How will MP handle J finally taking control?
The Chemicals between Us
I want you to remember
A love so full it could send us all ways
I want you to surrender
All my feelings rose today
And I want you to remain
The power of children can amaze
I'll try not to complain
I know that's a pisser baby
The chemicals between us
The walls that lie between us
Lying in this bed the chemicals displaced
There is no lonelier state
Than lying in this bed
I want you to remember everything you said
Every driven word
Like a hammer hell to my head
The chemicals between us
The walls that lie between us
Lying in this bed the chemicals displaced
There is no lonelier face
Than lying in this bed
The chemicals between us
The chemicals between us
Lying in this bed
We're of the hollow men
We are the naked ones
We never meant you harm
Never meant you wrong
I'd like to thank
All of my lovers lovers lovers
The chemicals between us
The army of achievers
Lying in this bed
The chemicals displaced
There is no lonelier state
Than lying in this bed
The chemicals between us
The chemicals between us
The chemicals. . .
*******
Cell phones from that moment on were frantically pulled from pockets, speed dials were punched and irritated mutterings ensued as the phones rang several times before someone answered.
"What?" A wheezy voice rasped over Lyle's phone.
"Something has happened. Jarod kidnapped Miss Parker," Lyle informed his father.
There was silence for several moments-- well as silent as wheezing can be-- before Raines finally answered, "I see. Neither of you could handle this assignment. I will have to send someone else out there to bring Jarod in."
"I can handle it," Lyle insisted.
"Obviously you can't, Lyle. I don't want any more screw ups. I want Jarod."
When Lyle answered, his words were clipped and cold, "Yes, sir."
"Good. Expect her day after tomorrow." Then Raines hung up.
Furious, Lyle balled up his fist and hit the brick wall next to him. Barely feeling the pain, he stalked off into the night.
********
"Hey Nick. Yeah it's me. Look, I did something, well, something I know T-Rex isn't going to like."
"Put me down, Jarod," Miss Parker screeched, which was funny since Parkers never screeched.
"Hold on a sec, J, is that a woman I hear screaming in the background?" Before Jarod could answer, Nick laughed, "Let me guess, you kidnapped her, right?"
As tempting as it was to beat the shit out of Nick to teach him some respect, Jarod knew it just didn't pay in the long run, not when Nick was so good at getting Jarod anything he needed, so Jarod remained silent, his teeth grinding in frustration. Besides, most of his concentration was focused on the infuriated woman slung over his shoulder.
"Hello?" Nick paused, "Wait a second. Tell me you didn't, Jarod?" Laughter followed that last question, gales of hysterical laughter.
"Shut the hell up and give me directions to Talon's place out on the Bayou, you backwoods Cajun hick," Jarod snarled irritably.
"Put me down, Jarod or I swear to god I'll shoot both your kneecaps!" Parker shouted; her struggling was obviously getting her nowhere since Jarod had always been stronger than she was. Without her gun and her sarcasm, she'd lost the upper hand she'd always held over the man who was currently carrying her off in typical caveman fashion.
"Oh man, wait 'til I tell Kyrian this one. He's gonna laugh his ass off–"
Jarod cut him off, his voice deadly serious, "You're not to tell anyone about this, Nick, do you understand? This involves me and the life I had before I became this," he snarled the word out hatefully, "I have things to taker care of, once and for all."
Nick was good at pissing off Dark-Hunters, a skill he'd excelled at since his days as Kyrian's squire. Before Kyrian had met Amanda Devereaux and regained his soul. A skill he'd honed on Talon until he too had met Sunshine, and also regained his soul.
"What do I get in return for keeping your little secret, Jarod?"
Jarod never hesitated, "You get to live another day."
Parker shivered at the seriousness of Jarod's tone. Again she realized that Jarod had changed. A lot. But could he just be pretending? She didn't know, and that was what scared her about this new Jarod. He was unpredictable, and definitely had an aura of danger about him.
"Man, I'm scared," Nick taunted Jarod, but then gave him the directions to Talon's old place on the Bayou.
"Hey, be careful J. Talon's gators still guard his cabin from intruders." Nick's voice sounded just a bit nervous, because, as almost everyone knew, the only thing Nick Gautier was afraid of was alligators.
Jarod chuckled, relaxing somewhat even though Parker still squirmed in his arms, "That definitely won't be a problem, Nick." Jarod hung up his phone and wondered how the hell he was ever going to get Parker on his bike and out to the bayou without her either getting them into an accident, or killing him.
Well, he was a genius, wasn't he? He grinned wickedly as an idea came to him. She was certainly going to kill him, but that wasn't anything new, was it?
*********
"Parker failed?"
"No. She has done what was expected of her. She has always been a distraction to Jarod. He will now be concentrating on her and exacting his revenge against Lyle."
"I see. You planned this, then?"
"Of course."
"Excellent. After I have Jarod in my custody, what shall I do with the Parker twins?"
"Kill them."
*********
Getting to Talon's cabin was much tougher than Jarod would have imagined. It would have been much easier to find a car (Jarod had indulged in buying several "toys" for himself the last two years), but it wouldn't have nearly been as interesting.
Parker was as furious as he expected her to be. She struggled against him every chance she got. When Jarod tied her up, hiked up her short skirt—which earned him a glare promising him he would regret that later—and climbed on behind her, she tried to push him off the bike. He had to laugh at her antics, which only earned him another dirty glare, because she wouldn't have been Parker if she didn't try to cause him some sort of pain in one way or another.
They rode for quite sometime, until they came to a rundown shack that looked as if a good, strong wind might knock it over at any time. Parker eyed the building (if you could even call what she was currently staring at a building) with a certain amount of trepidation. She had heard Jarod ask for direction to a cabin out on the bayou. Being alone with Jarod, in the woods, it was the scariest thought Parker could come up with.
Almost three years ago, she had been alone with him on the Island of Carthis. They had come so close to finding the answers they sought, but as usual, the Centre had found them and made her realize that no matter how hard she tried, she would never be free from them.
Last week had been another confirmation of that realization. They would never let her go.
"I am not staying here," she told Jarod. She didn't care if she had to dislocate every joint on her body.
Jarod chuckled, "No, we're not."
He grabbed Parker about the waist, kicked down the kickstand and stood her on her feet. Somehow, along the way, she'd lost one of her shoes. Jarod suppressed his grin. He went over to the mailbox that Parker had failed to notice before, but once she saw it, how could she not take note of the two large, metal spikes rammed through the mailbox. One horizontally and one diagonally.
Opening the box, Jarod pulled out a small remote control and pushed one of the buttons, causing the door on the front of the shack to begin opening. Parker felt as if she were Dorothy in the land of Oz. All she needed to make her nightmare come true were singing, and dancing midgets and a fairy to tell her that there was, "No place like home."
Jarod pulled her forward; Parker gaped at what she saw in the old, dilapidated shack. There were motorcycles, a black viper, and two very nice catamarans.
"Hurry up, Parker, we've still got a long way to go," Jarod urged.
"Just where the hell are you taking me, Jarod?" she demanded, feeling more and more like a lost child.
"Someplace safe, for now," he answered cryptically. He used the remote to close the door and ushered Parker into one of the catamarans. He started it up and expertly steered it out into the swamp.
"How do you know how to drive this thing?" Parker wondered.
Jarod seemed to have no trouble seeing where he was headed, "A friend showed me how. He used to live out here, but now that he's married, he's made it available to me to use if I needed to."
Feeling the need to hear his voice, since the darkness seemed to press in around her, she tried again, "What have you been doing for the last two years? Why haven't you contacted me?"
Jarod didn't answer right away, "Don't look now, sounds like Parker actually cares."
How typical! Parker thought vehemently. She snorted though, "Sorry Jarod, don't mistake my obsession with capturing you for concern. I don't care what happens to you, so long as I can take you back where you belong, back to the Centre," she answered caustically.
If Parker had been able to see in the dark, she would have seen a flash of pain in Jarod's black eyes and his jaw tightening in anger. For a moment, Jarod was tempted to throttle Parker for being such a callous bitch, but then he remembered that that was what Parker was.
*******
It seemed like an eternity until they reached a cabin deep in the bayou. Spanish moss grew down the front porch, and Parker watched as Jarod steered the catamaran towards a small dock and secured it. He helped her out of the boat and all Parker could do was stare at the faded, silvery wood that made up the structure. Someone had actually lived here?
Jarod led her up to the porch and Parker did something she'd never done before. She screamed.
She grabbed a hold of Jarod's arm, her nails biting into his muscled flesh even through his thick leather jacket, with her other hand she pointed at the two alligators that stood there on the porch hissing at the intruders.
One of Jarod's hands clasped her clammy fingers, soothing her into silence, "Quiet Parker," an unfamiliar voice rumbled out of Jarod's throat, "Beth looks kinda hungry."
In shock, Parker looked over at the man she'd known most of her life and saw a complete stranger. He had blond, wavy hair, with two long, thin braids that hung down to his chest. He was still sinfully handsome, Parker noted along with the fact that she was staring at a completely different person who stood where Jarod had been moments before.
"Who the hell are you?" she whispered, overcome by all the shocks she'd suffered during the night.
The blond man gave her an arrogant grin before stepping away from her and kneeling by the alligators. Parker wanted to warn him not to get too close, but she couldn't get any air into her lungs.
"Hey Beth, how's it going tonight?" the gator swished its tail and hissed again, as if answering Jarod's question. Parker went from terrified horror to incredulity in one breath. What the hell, had she stepped into the twilight zone? "I know," Jarod answered, "I've missed you, too, Beth."
Jarod stepped around the pair, and motioned for Parker to follow him. She snorted, "Are you crazy? What the hell kind of drug did you slip me? I swear to god a minute ago you looked like Jarod. I must have finally lost it, I'm finally certifiably crazy," she muttered to herself.
Jarod laughed, and suddenly it was Jarod again. She wanted to throw herself into his arms, never realizing how relieved she would be to see him again, especially since she was scared out of her mind, but she'd be damned if she'd admit it.
"It's ok, Parker. Trust me."
She hesitated. Those were words she'd never been able to take advantage of coming from anyone, not even Jarod. But since she felt like she was Alice who had just stepped into the rabbit hole, well, what the hell? This had to be a dream. She walked across the porch and was somewhat relieved that the alligators only hissed at her again before walking off the porch and sliding into the swamp.
"God, I need a cigarette," Parker murmured as Jarod pulled her inside of the cabin. The place was definitely not what she had expected. The walls were painted completely black; there was a kitchenette off to her left and a door to her right. Computer equipment filled several tables and there was a black futon near the rear of the room.
She couldn't help the look of distaste that crossed her face, "Nice décor, Jarod. Do it yourself?" she asked, her sarcasm slipping easily back into place now that she wasn't in immediate danger without the comforting press of her gun by her side.
Jarod didn't even bother to answer her. He closed and locked the door behind them and just stood there. Parker walked around the one room, seeing that there was a fine film of dust on everything. She came to the futon and sat down, wondering why she felt so out of place, so out of control. She was a Parker. She was supposed to be in control at all times.
"If you don't mind, I've had a long night and it's almost dawn." Jarod started abruptly, he stared straight at Parker, waiting for her to move from the futon.
She looked around, seeing there was no other furniture, and some perverseness of nature made her want to screw with him for whatever reason, "Alright, goodnight, Jarod," she murmured as she stretched out on the futon and kicked off her last shoe. She couldn't help the moan that escaped from her lips as she freed her foot; she stretched languidly, easing the tensions in her muscles.
Jarod growled, not certain if he wanted to strangle the woman lying on the only bed in the room, or kiss her senseless. It didn't take him very long to decide. He prowled over to the futon and leaned over her, then captured her lips. She stiffened beneath him as he stretched his body over hers.
Her hands came up to his chest to push him away, instead they grabbed his shoulders, holding him closers as her lips softened and she began kissing him back. He knew he shouldn't be kissing her, knew that he should be concentrating on getting the Centre as far away from him and his Dark-Hunter brethren as possible, but how could he? Not when Parker was this near, this accessible. Not when her defenses were down, when for the first time he could sense that she wasn't putting that wall up between them.
"Parker," he murmured, wondering what was different. He deepened the kiss, tasting the sweetness he always knew she would possess, his hands roamed her body, feeling her pulse quicken, her blood rush through her veins.
Her hands traveled up to his back, his neck, and finally tangled in his long hair. Her mind reeled, but she turned off the part of her mind that was still daddy's little girl, that screamed she should turn Jarod's sudden weakness to her advantage. She didn't want to hear it at the moment because she was too busy feeling the desire burn out of control for her childhood playmate.
Jarod needed to feel her. All of her. His fingers clumsily worked the buttons out of the button holes on her silk blouse, baring a beautiful body, a body that would rival any goddess'. He gazed down at her, his black eyes searing her skin, the intensity in them almost scary.
She hesitated, barely managing to push Jarod away, "Wait," she whispered.
Jarod could barely hide his disappointment, hide the fact that after all this time, after the magical kiss they'd just shared, she would still push him away. He began to move away from her, but she surprised him. The fingers that had moments ago been pushing at him, tugged at him and kept him from moving any further from her.
"Where are you going?" she demanded, her voice hoarse and breathy.
"I-I was … You …" he stammered, and then blushed like an adolescent whose voice was changing and had a pair of damp palms whenever he approached a girl he liked. It actually endeared him all the more to Parker. Jarod had never played games with her, not even when he'd sent Thomas to her. His motivation had been purely unselfish; his only wish to make her happy.
But then it was Parker's turn to be shy, she managed a slightly coy, slightly reticent smile. Perhaps Jarod remembered that he was now the hunter and the woman underneath him the hunted, because when he looked down at her, he was anything but the shy, inexperienced youth. There was no more awkwardness to him.
"I want you, Parker," he whispered in her ear, his voice soft and hot against her skin, sending chills down her spine as she imagined what it would be like to be the kind of woman she knew Jarod needed.
What was she thinking? This was all wrong, and Parker knew it, she tried to turn away from him, away from those dark, searching eyes. She was everything that Jarod didn't need. "I can't," she whimpered.
A hand brushed her jaw line, raised her face to look back at him, "Look at me," he commanded her softly, causing her eyes to rise to meet his almost without her willing them. "Don't you know you are all I've ever wanted, Parker? From the very first time I saw you, I knew that I would never care for any other woman the way I care about you. Don't turn away from me now. Let me in, Parker," his voice was soft, raw and filled with a passion she'd never heard from him before, his eyes beseeching her and she just couldn't resist him.
Not this time. Not again.
She nodded. She was helpless against those puppy dog eyes. She'd always been, but he would never know that. She couldn't help but add as his head dipped lower to claim her lips again, "Don't make me regret this, Franken-boy."
