Chapter 5
Jarod hurried over to Ms. Parker, who strangely enough, wasn't knocked out long. Jarod helped her up. She rubbed the back of her neck and stared at him. Abigail was still crying in the background.
'Jarod?' she asked.
'Yes, everything is going to be fine.'
Ms. Parker blinked hard.
'What are you doing here?' she asked him. She then looked around, her eyes falling on Irina Derevko.
'Irina Derevko.' she said quietly.
Jarod looked from Ms. Parker to Irina, then back at Ms. Parker.
'Talk to me, Ms. Parker...what do you remember?' he asked.
Ms. Parker tore her eyes from the woman standing in front of them, and looked at Jarod again.
'Who's baby is that?' Ms. Parker asked him, looking back towards the room Abigail was in. Jarod glanced at Irina, then took Ms. Parker's arm.
'Let's sit down.' he said gently.
Irina walked over to the laptop.
'She'll be fine, Jarod.'
'You hit a woman with amnesia over the head, Ms. Derevko! There's no telling what has happened now!'
Irina turned back around to face them. She eyed Ms. Parker.
'I didn't hit her with the gun.' she said simply. She then pulled out the gun again. Jarod moved away from a confused Ms. Parker and walked over to Irina. She held out the weapon and he snatched it! He looked it over.
'This isn't a gun.' he said, somewhat confused.
'Jarod! Who's baby is that?!' Ms. Parker snapped.
Jarod backed away from the both of them, handed the 'gun' back to Irina, then went to see to Abigail. Ms. Parker walked up to Irina.
'The last thing I remember hearing about you, Ms. Derevko, was that Sloane was thinking of making you the head of the New Centre.'
Irina smiled thinly.
'And last I heard, Sloane and you were engaged.'
Ms. Parker raised a brow. Jarod returned carrying Abigail out. The baby appeared to be content in Jarod's arms. He walked over to Ms. Parker with her.
'This is our little girl, Abigail. Abigail, meet your mommy, your REAL mommy.' he said, using a babytalk tone.
Ms. Parker stared at the small form that was nestled in Jarod's arms. She then looked at Jarod. The last thing she remembered, was driving away from that barn, just knowing that her encounter with Jarod had produced a child. Now, here that child was, right in front of her.
Abigail, sensing the change in her mother, began to cry, when Jarod began to put her in Ms. Parker's arms. Ms. Parker, a bit taken aback, backed away from the baby, then looked at Jarod.
'Jarod...I don't know...I...'
But Jarod placed the child that he called 'Abigail' in her arms. She stared down at the little face, that to her, looked exactly like Jarod. She looked from her to him. Ms. Parker then found herself wishing that they were alone.
But they weren't. As if reading her thoughts, Jarod eyed Irina.
'We're just going to put Abby down for a nap. I'll be right out, 'aunt' Irina.'
Irina Derevko smiled wanly at him. She then sat down next to the laptop.
'Take your time,' she purred.
Jarod reached out and pulled Ms. Parker by the arm, steering her and Abby into the room with the crib. He then closed the door.
'Aunt Irina? Jarod, what is going on?' Ms. Parker demanded.
Jarod took Abby from her, then walked over to the crib, setting his daughter down into it. He looked down at her.
'Daddy will be right back.' he said in that same babytalk sounding voice. He then turned and walked back over to where Ms. Parker stood. The change in her completely stunned him. For it was apparent, that she had never seen Abigail before in her life!
'We need to talk about what just happened to you. That thing Irina Derevko hit you with, was some kind of tranquilizer gun.'
Before Ms. Parker could say anything, be moved behind her and lifted up her hair. He saw a needlemark on the back of her neck. He then let go of her hair. Ms. Parker turned to face him.
'What?' she asked.
'Just as I suspected. There is a needlemark on the back of your neck. Whatever she gave you just now, completely wiped away your memory of being a happily married suburban mom.'
Ms. Parker's eyes widened! What the hell was Jarod talking about? She felt as if everything she had remembered, had just happened the other day!
'Jarod, I don't remember anything!'
Jarod placed his hands on her shoulders to calm her.
'I know that. But it will be alright.'
'No, it won't! I feel as if I just saw you last night or something! But if we have a baby, then quite a bit of time has passed!'
Jarod peered at her. He thought that was a very strange response. Ms. Parker knew it too.
'I know how it sounds, but that's the way I feel! And what is this about my being married? God! Don't tell me I was married to Sloane...'
'No. No, not Sloane. Sloane thought you were dead. You married a Chicago doctor.'
Ms. Parker looked over at Abigail, then back at Jarod.
'And I was already pregnant when I married him? Who was this man, that would marry a pregnant woman who had amnesia?'
Jarod did not answer that, for then he would have to list all of Dr. Robert Romano's shortcomings.
Jarod reached out and rubbed her shoulders.
'I need to talk to Irina Derevko. I want to know what that drug was she injected you with. When she leaves, we can talk about everything, that I know about, that happened to you...and where we go from here, with Abby.'
Ms. Parker nodded. Jarod slowly let go of her, then turned to walk out of the room. Ms. Parker turned away to look at Abigail.
Jarod suddenly turned back, touched her chin, turning her back to face him. He then kissed her softly. He was pleased when she responded to him. He pulled away.
'I know things seem bleak.' he began.
'Jarod, I don't trust that woman out there! And I don't think she's your aunt, either! Be careful. This is the one thing I was afraid of...that our baby would end up being property of The Centre.'
'What do you mean? You didn't know you were pregnant until after you got amnesia.'
Ms. Parker moved closer to him. She reached up to caress his face. What was she supposed to tell him? That after they made love in that barn, she felt as if she had new life in her? That she could feel the connection between them? There was no time for that now.
Ms. Parker slowly let her hand fall from his cheek.
'Let's just see what that woman wants, then we'll talk, okay?'
Jarod took her hand and kissed it, nodding. While he was anxious for answers from Irina Derevko, Parker and him needed to talk about where their future lay.
Jarod walked out of the room and down the hall into the front room. He then stopped short. Derevko was gone. He hurried over to the laptop. There was another note there. It said: We'll talk again soon, Irina.
Jarod walked over to the door, which was wide open. He looked down both hallways, before closing the door and locking it. Ms. Parker came out.
'Where is she?' she asked.
'Gone.' Jarod replied, turning to look at her. Ms. Parker had picked up the note and was reading it. She then looked at Jarod.
'What does she want from you?' she asked.
Jarod began walking towards her.
'I don't know, yet, though I suspect it has something to do with my mother.'
Ms. Parker threw down the note and stared at him.
'We need to get out of here, now!' she said. 'Go and get the baby and I'll drive.'
'Ms. Parker...'
'Jarod, the last thing I remember about that Derevko beast, is that she was complicit in arranging her own daughter's kidnapping from the CIA! Sydney was assigned to conduct some kind of brainwashing...a woman that could stand by and let something like that happen to her own daughter, doesn't mean us any good!'
Jarod took a deep breath and nodded. Ms. Parker almost felt sorry for him. She knew how much he wanted to know his family. And even with all that he had been through, Jarod had a compulsive trusting streak within him. That Derevko woman tells him she's related to him, and Jarod automatically thinks that that makes her trustworthy. Ms. Parker knew better.
'Don't worry,' she said, 'I know of some pretty handy hiding places myself. We'll be safe at one of them.'
Ms. Parker was looking around the apartment for things to take, when Jarod closed the space between them. Ms. Parker was about to take a step back, but found herself trapped between Jarod, and the table the laptop sat on.
'I agree with you. We'll follow you. But, we are going to have to deal with our feelings for one another. I do want to know why you left me that night in the barn. And you will have to deal with the fact that we do have a daughter.'
Jarod then gave her one last lingering glance, before moving towards Abby's room. Ms. Parker took a shaky breath. Damn him! He could read her so well it was beyond frightening! What the hell did she know about being a mother?! The baby scared her...the way Jarod looked at her, scared her. But most of all, the idea of never seeing either one of them again, terrified her. There was no way they were staying in an apartment arranged by a woman who was probably the head of the New Centre by now. No way, no how.
****
A half an hour later, Arvin Sloane stared out of a window at his office in the New Centre. He usually never stayed in the building long enough, to even sit down, but today was a special occasion.
Sydney was announced, and walked in, eyeing Sloane's back. After a few moments, Sloane turned around and stood up.
'Is Sidney Bristow ready?' he asked curtly.
Sydney cleared his throat.
'Yes, though I'm not sure what it is I'm prepping her for...'
'That is none of your concern. However, I understand that you are one of the few close acquaintances my fiancee has in her life, correct?'
Sydney pursed his lips.
'Are you referring to Ms. Parker?'
'I think you know I am.' Sloane answered, keeping his tone light.
'I have known Ms. Parker all of her life.' Sydney replied, uneasy with Sloane's references to her as his 'fiancee'. He also decided, that there was no use in playing dumb about knowing she was alive.
Sloane smiled tolerantly.
'Good. Then you'll be happy to walk her down the aisle then, would you not? I mean, with her own father dead and gone, our wedding day wouldn't be the same, if she didn't have a father figure to be there for her on our special day.'
Sydney prayed Jarod and Ms. Parker really were somewhere safe! He also prayed that he hadn't made a mistake by letting Irina Derevko into their lives.
'But of course.' Sydney answered. Sloane waved his hand, shooing him away. Sydney turned and let himself out, feeling heavy hearted. The idea of Ms. Parker ending up with a monster like that made him ill! Then again, a lot of things made his stomach queasy these days. With those thoughts in his head, Sydney headed towards the area that CIA agent, Sidney Bristow was being kept in.
Meanwhile, Sloane got on the phone to Mr. Lyle, who was already full of excuses, as to why he had not located his sister. Sloane closed his eyes.
'Mr. Lyle, I don't think I've been fair. I'm sending in backup for you.'
'Back-up? Mr. Sloane, it won't be much longer now...'
'That's right, I know it won't. Pull off on the side of the road.'
Mr. Lyle looked at the Sweeper, who was driving.
'Pull over on the side of the road!' he ordered.
The Sweeper pulled over in a residential area. Mr. Lyle frowned.
'Now what?'
'Kill the Sweeper, then get to the following address I give you.'
Mr. Lyle's eyes swept the area. His silencer was still on his gun from when he shot Dr. Romano. He then brought up his gun quickly and killed the Sweeper, shooting him twice in the side of the head. Mr. Lyle then got out on his side, hurried over to the driver's side, pulled the Sweeper out, jumped back in the car and sped off, before anyone(meaning jogger, child on bike, etc.), could respond.
Mr. Lyle, who still had his phone to his ear, spoke again.
'It's done. Now what?'
'I will give you an address to go to. When you get there, wait for your back up. Her name is Sidney Bristow. She will help you bring in your sister and Jarod, are we clear?'
'Crystal.'
'Good.' Sloane said before hanging up.
Mr. Lyle hung up and flung his phone out of the window! He didn't need back up , and he for damned sure didn't need it from some woman!
Jarod hurried over to Ms. Parker, who strangely enough, wasn't knocked out long. Jarod helped her up. She rubbed the back of her neck and stared at him. Abigail was still crying in the background.
'Jarod?' she asked.
'Yes, everything is going to be fine.'
Ms. Parker blinked hard.
'What are you doing here?' she asked him. She then looked around, her eyes falling on Irina Derevko.
'Irina Derevko.' she said quietly.
Jarod looked from Ms. Parker to Irina, then back at Ms. Parker.
'Talk to me, Ms. Parker...what do you remember?' he asked.
Ms. Parker tore her eyes from the woman standing in front of them, and looked at Jarod again.
'Who's baby is that?' Ms. Parker asked him, looking back towards the room Abigail was in. Jarod glanced at Irina, then took Ms. Parker's arm.
'Let's sit down.' he said gently.
Irina walked over to the laptop.
'She'll be fine, Jarod.'
'You hit a woman with amnesia over the head, Ms. Derevko! There's no telling what has happened now!'
Irina turned back around to face them. She eyed Ms. Parker.
'I didn't hit her with the gun.' she said simply. She then pulled out the gun again. Jarod moved away from a confused Ms. Parker and walked over to Irina. She held out the weapon and he snatched it! He looked it over.
'This isn't a gun.' he said, somewhat confused.
'Jarod! Who's baby is that?!' Ms. Parker snapped.
Jarod backed away from the both of them, handed the 'gun' back to Irina, then went to see to Abigail. Ms. Parker walked up to Irina.
'The last thing I remember hearing about you, Ms. Derevko, was that Sloane was thinking of making you the head of the New Centre.'
Irina smiled thinly.
'And last I heard, Sloane and you were engaged.'
Ms. Parker raised a brow. Jarod returned carrying Abigail out. The baby appeared to be content in Jarod's arms. He walked over to Ms. Parker with her.
'This is our little girl, Abigail. Abigail, meet your mommy, your REAL mommy.' he said, using a babytalk tone.
Ms. Parker stared at the small form that was nestled in Jarod's arms. She then looked at Jarod. The last thing she remembered, was driving away from that barn, just knowing that her encounter with Jarod had produced a child. Now, here that child was, right in front of her.
Abigail, sensing the change in her mother, began to cry, when Jarod began to put her in Ms. Parker's arms. Ms. Parker, a bit taken aback, backed away from the baby, then looked at Jarod.
'Jarod...I don't know...I...'
But Jarod placed the child that he called 'Abigail' in her arms. She stared down at the little face, that to her, looked exactly like Jarod. She looked from her to him. Ms. Parker then found herself wishing that they were alone.
But they weren't. As if reading her thoughts, Jarod eyed Irina.
'We're just going to put Abby down for a nap. I'll be right out, 'aunt' Irina.'
Irina Derevko smiled wanly at him. She then sat down next to the laptop.
'Take your time,' she purred.
Jarod reached out and pulled Ms. Parker by the arm, steering her and Abby into the room with the crib. He then closed the door.
'Aunt Irina? Jarod, what is going on?' Ms. Parker demanded.
Jarod took Abby from her, then walked over to the crib, setting his daughter down into it. He looked down at her.
'Daddy will be right back.' he said in that same babytalk sounding voice. He then turned and walked back over to where Ms. Parker stood. The change in her completely stunned him. For it was apparent, that she had never seen Abigail before in her life!
'We need to talk about what just happened to you. That thing Irina Derevko hit you with, was some kind of tranquilizer gun.'
Before Ms. Parker could say anything, be moved behind her and lifted up her hair. He saw a needlemark on the back of her neck. He then let go of her hair. Ms. Parker turned to face him.
'What?' she asked.
'Just as I suspected. There is a needlemark on the back of your neck. Whatever she gave you just now, completely wiped away your memory of being a happily married suburban mom.'
Ms. Parker's eyes widened! What the hell was Jarod talking about? She felt as if everything she had remembered, had just happened the other day!
'Jarod, I don't remember anything!'
Jarod placed his hands on her shoulders to calm her.
'I know that. But it will be alright.'
'No, it won't! I feel as if I just saw you last night or something! But if we have a baby, then quite a bit of time has passed!'
Jarod peered at her. He thought that was a very strange response. Ms. Parker knew it too.
'I know how it sounds, but that's the way I feel! And what is this about my being married? God! Don't tell me I was married to Sloane...'
'No. No, not Sloane. Sloane thought you were dead. You married a Chicago doctor.'
Ms. Parker looked over at Abigail, then back at Jarod.
'And I was already pregnant when I married him? Who was this man, that would marry a pregnant woman who had amnesia?'
Jarod did not answer that, for then he would have to list all of Dr. Robert Romano's shortcomings.
Jarod reached out and rubbed her shoulders.
'I need to talk to Irina Derevko. I want to know what that drug was she injected you with. When she leaves, we can talk about everything, that I know about, that happened to you...and where we go from here, with Abby.'
Ms. Parker nodded. Jarod slowly let go of her, then turned to walk out of the room. Ms. Parker turned away to look at Abigail.
Jarod suddenly turned back, touched her chin, turning her back to face him. He then kissed her softly. He was pleased when she responded to him. He pulled away.
'I know things seem bleak.' he began.
'Jarod, I don't trust that woman out there! And I don't think she's your aunt, either! Be careful. This is the one thing I was afraid of...that our baby would end up being property of The Centre.'
'What do you mean? You didn't know you were pregnant until after you got amnesia.'
Ms. Parker moved closer to him. She reached up to caress his face. What was she supposed to tell him? That after they made love in that barn, she felt as if she had new life in her? That she could feel the connection between them? There was no time for that now.
Ms. Parker slowly let her hand fall from his cheek.
'Let's just see what that woman wants, then we'll talk, okay?'
Jarod took her hand and kissed it, nodding. While he was anxious for answers from Irina Derevko, Parker and him needed to talk about where their future lay.
Jarod walked out of the room and down the hall into the front room. He then stopped short. Derevko was gone. He hurried over to the laptop. There was another note there. It said: We'll talk again soon, Irina.
Jarod walked over to the door, which was wide open. He looked down both hallways, before closing the door and locking it. Ms. Parker came out.
'Where is she?' she asked.
'Gone.' Jarod replied, turning to look at her. Ms. Parker had picked up the note and was reading it. She then looked at Jarod.
'What does she want from you?' she asked.
Jarod began walking towards her.
'I don't know, yet, though I suspect it has something to do with my mother.'
Ms. Parker threw down the note and stared at him.
'We need to get out of here, now!' she said. 'Go and get the baby and I'll drive.'
'Ms. Parker...'
'Jarod, the last thing I remember about that Derevko beast, is that she was complicit in arranging her own daughter's kidnapping from the CIA! Sydney was assigned to conduct some kind of brainwashing...a woman that could stand by and let something like that happen to her own daughter, doesn't mean us any good!'
Jarod took a deep breath and nodded. Ms. Parker almost felt sorry for him. She knew how much he wanted to know his family. And even with all that he had been through, Jarod had a compulsive trusting streak within him. That Derevko woman tells him she's related to him, and Jarod automatically thinks that that makes her trustworthy. Ms. Parker knew better.
'Don't worry,' she said, 'I know of some pretty handy hiding places myself. We'll be safe at one of them.'
Ms. Parker was looking around the apartment for things to take, when Jarod closed the space between them. Ms. Parker was about to take a step back, but found herself trapped between Jarod, and the table the laptop sat on.
'I agree with you. We'll follow you. But, we are going to have to deal with our feelings for one another. I do want to know why you left me that night in the barn. And you will have to deal with the fact that we do have a daughter.'
Jarod then gave her one last lingering glance, before moving towards Abby's room. Ms. Parker took a shaky breath. Damn him! He could read her so well it was beyond frightening! What the hell did she know about being a mother?! The baby scared her...the way Jarod looked at her, scared her. But most of all, the idea of never seeing either one of them again, terrified her. There was no way they were staying in an apartment arranged by a woman who was probably the head of the New Centre by now. No way, no how.
****
A half an hour later, Arvin Sloane stared out of a window at his office in the New Centre. He usually never stayed in the building long enough, to even sit down, but today was a special occasion.
Sydney was announced, and walked in, eyeing Sloane's back. After a few moments, Sloane turned around and stood up.
'Is Sidney Bristow ready?' he asked curtly.
Sydney cleared his throat.
'Yes, though I'm not sure what it is I'm prepping her for...'
'That is none of your concern. However, I understand that you are one of the few close acquaintances my fiancee has in her life, correct?'
Sydney pursed his lips.
'Are you referring to Ms. Parker?'
'I think you know I am.' Sloane answered, keeping his tone light.
'I have known Ms. Parker all of her life.' Sydney replied, uneasy with Sloane's references to her as his 'fiancee'. He also decided, that there was no use in playing dumb about knowing she was alive.
Sloane smiled tolerantly.
'Good. Then you'll be happy to walk her down the aisle then, would you not? I mean, with her own father dead and gone, our wedding day wouldn't be the same, if she didn't have a father figure to be there for her on our special day.'
Sydney prayed Jarod and Ms. Parker really were somewhere safe! He also prayed that he hadn't made a mistake by letting Irina Derevko into their lives.
'But of course.' Sydney answered. Sloane waved his hand, shooing him away. Sydney turned and let himself out, feeling heavy hearted. The idea of Ms. Parker ending up with a monster like that made him ill! Then again, a lot of things made his stomach queasy these days. With those thoughts in his head, Sydney headed towards the area that CIA agent, Sidney Bristow was being kept in.
Meanwhile, Sloane got on the phone to Mr. Lyle, who was already full of excuses, as to why he had not located his sister. Sloane closed his eyes.
'Mr. Lyle, I don't think I've been fair. I'm sending in backup for you.'
'Back-up? Mr. Sloane, it won't be much longer now...'
'That's right, I know it won't. Pull off on the side of the road.'
Mr. Lyle looked at the Sweeper, who was driving.
'Pull over on the side of the road!' he ordered.
The Sweeper pulled over in a residential area. Mr. Lyle frowned.
'Now what?'
'Kill the Sweeper, then get to the following address I give you.'
Mr. Lyle's eyes swept the area. His silencer was still on his gun from when he shot Dr. Romano. He then brought up his gun quickly and killed the Sweeper, shooting him twice in the side of the head. Mr. Lyle then got out on his side, hurried over to the driver's side, pulled the Sweeper out, jumped back in the car and sped off, before anyone(meaning jogger, child on bike, etc.), could respond.
Mr. Lyle, who still had his phone to his ear, spoke again.
'It's done. Now what?'
'I will give you an address to go to. When you get there, wait for your back up. Her name is Sidney Bristow. She will help you bring in your sister and Jarod, are we clear?'
'Crystal.'
'Good.' Sloane said before hanging up.
Mr. Lyle hung up and flung his phone out of the window! He didn't need back up , and he for damned sure didn't need it from some woman!