Chapter 26
Jarod began to turn the doorknob to Brian's room. Mallory placed her hand on his wrist.
'Maybe we should knock?' she suggested.
'He hit a teacher, I really don't care about his privacy.' Jarod responded, opening up the door anyway. Brian was looking around his room for something. Jarod looked at Mallory and mouthed, 'law books'. Mallory looked away.
Brian turned around and saw them.
'Are you both here to gang up on me? Or are you finally going to send me home where I belong?'
Mallory was about to say something, but Jarod rested a hand on her arm.
'We're here to talk about what you did to that teacher.'
Brian rolled his eyes!
'When a student doesn't raise his hand, that means he doesn't want to answer the question. The creep was trying to embarrass me!'
Mallory couldn't keep quiet any longer!
'Did it really bother you so much? Or was this whole thing a ploy to make us look even worse as parents?' she asked.
'Mallory.' Jarod said in a quiet, yet warning tone of voice. But Mallory paid him no mind, as she walked over to her son.
'You know, we found your law books, if that's what you were looking for before we came in here. Your father and I were actually talking about how unhappy you are here, and how maybe it would be best to send you back to those two liars that have been raising you.'
Brian's face grew angry!
'Why can't you see that they're sorry! Especially Cathy...she's my grandmother! She's sorry she was too sick to raise you! You're not being fair! I should've at least been able to spend Thanksgiving with my parents!'
'You are spending Thanksgiving with your parents, Brian.' Jarod reminded him, pulling Mallory back a bit. He really didn't see how much longer they could put up with this! He knew how his wife felt, but this was taking a toll on her as well, even if she didn't see it. He loved Brian, and would be willing to wait for his son to come to him when he was ready. But right now, he didn't want to miss out on a single day of Abigail's upbringing. And God help him, he hated to think this way, but Brian's bad behavior got in the way of that.
'Brian, we have to get you enrolled into another school. When you mess with your education, you're not hurting us, like you think, you're hurting yourself.' Jarod continued.
'Oh, where did you hear that? On a video or something?'
Jarod stared at Brian. His son had not said those words. Brian was staring at something behind them, and he looked terrified!
Mallory had already turned around. She kept cool. Lyle had Abigail in his arms! The baby was calm. Then again, she couldn't have known that her uncle was a psychopath!
'Lyle, if you had wanted to be invited for Thanksgiving, all you had to do was ask.' Mallory said coolly, as she began to move towards him.
Jarod did as well, but for once in his life, he was not good at playing the type of cool role, that Mallory was. Not when her murdering brother had his little girl!
Lyle was holding Abigail in one arm. He produced a gun in the other hand. Mallory's heart almost stopped.
Lyle looked around Jarod and Mallory, and over at Brian.
'Having trouble in school, sport? Yeah, the teen years can be a tough time.'
'I seem to recall you handled yours by killing your best friend.' Jarod said in a tight voice. 'Give me my daughter.'
Brian tried to keep calm himself, but knew he was failing. He remembered the man that was holding his little sister, and training his gun on them. His name was Mr. Lyle and he was bad.
'And don't listen to these two.' Lyle continued in his lecture to Brian. 'Because they don't know what the hell they're talking about. When they were around your age, they were screwing like rabbits in your father's cell at the Centre. I bet you may have even lived in the room you were conceived in...'
'Shut up!' Mallory snapped. 'What do you want?'
Lyle pointed the gun at her.
'I need money and a way out of here.'
'What happened to the money you stole from the IRS? And where is Bobby?' Mallory asked.
'Gone and safe. Now, if you don't want something to happen to my little niece here, Mallory, you'll get the money for me.'
Jarod shook his head.
'What the hell are you talking about? Mallory doesn't have any extra money to give you! We're not millionaires you know! Now give us Abigail!' he said in between clenched teeth. He could see that there was no way to jump Lyle, without Abigail or someone else in the room getting hurt.
Lyle grinned at Jarod and then focused in on his sister again.
'Mallory, Mallory, Mallory! Keeping secrets from the hubby already! He doesn't know, does he?'
Jarod looked at Mallory.
'Know what?' he asked tightly.
Mallory threw her hands up in the air.
'Okay, alright! Daddy left me a small inheritance.'
'Well actually,' Lyle said, 'it wasn't really that small. It was more like 30 million dollars. I got the same amount, but I kind of ran through mine. Daycare can be so expensive. But I know you haven't touched a dime of yours. I need that money and I want it!' he snapped.
Now, Abigail began to cry and wriggle! Brian stepped forward.
'Give her to me!' he ordered Lyle. Lyle looked him up and down.
'What did you say?'
Mallory looked at him.
'Brian get back!'
'I can calm her when she gets like that...please...just give her to me.' he begged.
Lyle shook his head with disgust, but motioned for Brian to come forward. He reached out and took Abigail from Lyle. The baby instantly calmed down.
Jarod looked at Mallory again.
'Is this true?'
Mallory glanced at Jarod.
'Yes, but I was planning on using it towards the kids futures! It's not like I was going to squander it like Lyle did his!'
'I didn't 'squander' anything, sis! I just made some bad investments!'
But Mallory ignored him and focused on Jarod's reaction. It wasn't good.
'That money was Centre, dirty money! Made from murder and greed!' Jarod yelled at her. Lyle smiled.
'I agree, boy genius! And since I have murdered people and am pretty greedy, I'm the perfect person to get his money! Now, I wish I could stay and watch your family disagreement here, but I must get going.'
Jarod turned to look at him.
'You're not leaving this house.' he hissed.
Lyle's eyes widened with surprise.
'That is pretty tough talk coming from someone on the other end of this gun. Now, Mallory, the money?!'
Jarod turned away from Lyle and looked at Mallory.
'Well?'
'Well what?' Mallory snapped. This was not the time to argue over money!
'How could you keep this from me?'
'Because I knew you'd get high and mighty on me, that's why! Jarod, the Centre owes us this money! They stole half of our lives...they stole our child...they stole you from your parents...seperated me from my mother...'
'Our mother, sis, now, can we get downstairs? I have a laptop set up for a lovely little wire transfer.' Lyle said in a bored tone of voice. This whole set up made him want to vomit! His sister was much sexier when she had been smoking and wearing leather! This happy homemaker crap didn't suit her!
But Jarod and Mallory continued to ignore Lyle. Brian backed away with Abigail.
'When this is over, I want you to donate the money to charity!' Jarod insisted.
'Oh hell no! Jarod come on! We can put the money towards Brian and Abigail's education or something! You're being unreasonable!'
Lyle pointed his gun at the ceiling and fired! Abigail began to cry again and Brian tried to calm her, feeling all the more unraveled! His parents needed to stop arguing and give this creep what he wanted!
Jarod and Mallory looked at Lyle. Lyle smiled.
'Hello? I'm standing right in front of you! And the money is going to me, boy genius, not some orphanage somewhere!' Lyle snapped, cocking the gun at Mallory.
'Let's go downstairs and...oh, I almost forgot, clone boy over there, give my sister the baby.'
'Why?' Jarod asked.
'Oh you see, Jarod, while my sister and niece are with me downstairs, you and your look alike son will stay up here. If you try and call the police, or escape, I will not hesitate to put a bullet in both of them.'
Jarod folded his arms.
'Then you won't be able to get away.'
'No, I'll kill myself as well. Then you'll never know where Bobby is, and your wife and daughter will die as well. So, Mallory, can we get a move on?!'
Jarod looked at Brian and nodded. Brian walked forward and handed Jarod, Abigail. Jarod in turn, gently handed her to Mallory. Abigail stared at Lyle. Lyle waved at her. Mallory carried Abigail out of the room and downstairs. Lyle smiled at Jarod and Brian, then followed after her.
Jarod turned and hurried past Brian. He opened his window and looked out. Jarod then turned, and hurried past Brian again, went out into the hallway and opened the door to his and Mallory's bedroom. He rushed over to the window and looked down and around.
Brian followed him into the bedroom.
'What? What are you thinking? Just let him go!'
Jarod didn't turn back to him.
'This room faces the backyard, your room faces the front. Lyle will probably want one of our vehicles to get away in. Brian, I need for you to warn me if Lyle comes back upstairs to check on us, for any reason.'
'Why? Where are you going to be?'
'Up on the roof.' Jarod said grimly, hurrying past his son again, so that he was back in Brian's room. He began to climb out of the window he had opened in there. But Brian grabbed his arm.
'You can't do this! I mean if he comes back upstairs...'
Jarod looked into his son's eyes. He could see the fear in them. He smiled gently at him.
'Then you call out here for me and I'll come back in before Lyle can get up here. Brian, we can't let him leave here. He's killed too many people. And once your mother gives him that money, it will be like we've helped him get away. Do you understand?'
Brian could see the logic, sort of. But he was still scared.
'Yes.' was all he said. Jarod nodded, then climbed out on the ledge. As soon as he did that, Brian hurried out of his room and knelt by the top of the stairs. He could hear everything that was going on from there.
****
Lyle began typing away, as Mallory stood next to him, bored. Abigail was playing with her hair. The transfer was almost complete.
'Life on the run is no place for a child, Lyle. Why don't you leave Bobby with Jarod and I.' Mallory suggested.
Lyle smirked as he continued to type.
'You've got to be kidding?! There is no way I'd punish any child by leaving him in the care of St. Jarod! Hell, your kid there will probably end up being a nun like our mother! And clone boy looks miserable.'
'He's not a clone.' Mallory said calmly.
'No, he's not. I apologize. After all, I could probably guess on which one of those DSA's he was conceived on. By the way, what was that crap about his grandmother?'
Mallory wasn't going to say anything at first. Then she was going to lie. But, now seemed as good a time as any to tell the truth about her mother.
'Brian was talking about Catherine Parker. He's been living with her and Major Charles.'
Lyle stopped typing and looked up at her. He then stood up.
'What the hell are you talking about?!'
Mallory noted that he had set the gun down next to the laptop. Maybe she shouldn't have said anything at all, but Brian's earlier reaction about wanting to be sent home, had wounded her. It was about time everyone knew the truth...even if they were despicable human beings!
'Oh yeah! My mother is alive. The reason I refer to her as just mine and not 'ours', because along with a sob story as to why she hid out all of these years, that is truly not to be believed, she claims that you are not her son.'
Lyle just stared at her.
'She says I'm not a Parker?' he asked, his voice sounding garbled.
'No, Lyle, you're a Parker. We do have the same father...oh by the way, she swears up and down she would've never slept with Raines. Anyway, our father had an affair with some secretary who was your mother. When this woman got a little too demanding, the Centre had her killed.'
'I saw the DSA! There were twins! You and me!'
'Another interesting twist: my mother doesn't deny having twins, she just swears that she had two girls! I have a twin sister out there with blonde hair, if you can believe it! Naturally, after putting up with you, I wasn't interested in meeting another twin.'
There was a beep on the computer. Mallory looked at it.
'Looks like the transfer is complete. Bye bye!' Mallory said, pulling Abigail to her even tighter.
Lyle stared at the screen. Mallory had the feeling that the bad news she had just given him, was more than just a bit disconcerting. She hoped, wherever little Bobby was, that Lyle did not take it out on him!
Lyle suddenly shut off the laptop and closed it. He picked up his gun and the laptop, then walked past Mallory and towards the front door. Mallory was a bit startled and on edge. This was really it? He was just going to leave?
Lyle opened the door, then looked back at her.
'You're right.'
'Right about what?' Mallory asked uneasily.
'Life on the run is no kind of life for Bobby. We never had a chance, did we sis? My poor mother never did either, whoever she really was. I could have family from my mother's side that I have yet to know.'
Lyle then put his gun in his jacket pocket and pulled something else out. A piece of paper. He handed it towards Mallory.
'What is that?' she asked.
'Bobby's location. Once I leave here, Jarod and you can go and get him.'
Mallory didn't trust him! Was this some kind of joke? Lyle had suddenly grown a conscience and now decided that her little brother should live with Jarod and her? After he just got done berating their humdrum lifestyle?
Yet, Lyle did look shocked at the revelation that Catherine Parker had not been his real mother. Maybe something had snapped in him. Something that was making him do the right thing.
Mallory set Abigail down on the floor. She wasn't carrying her daughter anywhere near Lyle! She then walked towards him to get the piece of paper out of his hand.
But then, Lyle smiled. It was a 'gotcha' type of smile. Almost a smirk. And at that moment, Mallory realized that all Lyle had wanted her to do, probably ever since she had cattily told him of his true heritage, was to let go of Abigail.
Lyle pointed his gun down towards the floor, where Abigail sat! Mallory leaped at him to wrestle the gun away. Brian hurried down the stairs and jumped on Lyle's back!
Lyle was startled at being jumped on like that. So startled, that his gun went off, hitting Mallory in the chest!
'MOM!' Brian screamed, as Lyle flung him off of his back and ran out! But Jarod had been waiting for him to come out, and jumped down on him, flattening him on the lawn!
Neighbors began to run over, after the sound of the second gunshot! Jarod punched Lyle three times in the face, knocking him out and taking his gun. He then ran back inside through the front door.
Abigail was squalling! Brian had Mallory's head in his lap, and was sobbing. A neighbor had called 911. Jarod hurried over to them and knelt down.
'It's going to be alright! It's going to be fine! The police will get Lyle and we'll be fine...all of us!' Jarod said loudly, trying to keep his wife conscious. Mallory could not die. She couldn't let the Centre win. She could not die, Jarod thought. Things couldn't end this way. They hadn't begun to live their lives together....
'Jarod...he tried to kill Abigail...' she was laboring for breath.
'Don't talk!' Jarod urged, as he heard the sirens approaching. He looked at Brian. Tears were streaming down his face. Brian sniffed, then looked over by the door. He gently let go of his mother's head and crawled over to the 'piece of paper' that Lyle had tricked his mother into taking from him. He picked it up and looked at it. It was blank.
Jarod began to turn the doorknob to Brian's room. Mallory placed her hand on his wrist.
'Maybe we should knock?' she suggested.
'He hit a teacher, I really don't care about his privacy.' Jarod responded, opening up the door anyway. Brian was looking around his room for something. Jarod looked at Mallory and mouthed, 'law books'. Mallory looked away.
Brian turned around and saw them.
'Are you both here to gang up on me? Or are you finally going to send me home where I belong?'
Mallory was about to say something, but Jarod rested a hand on her arm.
'We're here to talk about what you did to that teacher.'
Brian rolled his eyes!
'When a student doesn't raise his hand, that means he doesn't want to answer the question. The creep was trying to embarrass me!'
Mallory couldn't keep quiet any longer!
'Did it really bother you so much? Or was this whole thing a ploy to make us look even worse as parents?' she asked.
'Mallory.' Jarod said in a quiet, yet warning tone of voice. But Mallory paid him no mind, as she walked over to her son.
'You know, we found your law books, if that's what you were looking for before we came in here. Your father and I were actually talking about how unhappy you are here, and how maybe it would be best to send you back to those two liars that have been raising you.'
Brian's face grew angry!
'Why can't you see that they're sorry! Especially Cathy...she's my grandmother! She's sorry she was too sick to raise you! You're not being fair! I should've at least been able to spend Thanksgiving with my parents!'
'You are spending Thanksgiving with your parents, Brian.' Jarod reminded him, pulling Mallory back a bit. He really didn't see how much longer they could put up with this! He knew how his wife felt, but this was taking a toll on her as well, even if she didn't see it. He loved Brian, and would be willing to wait for his son to come to him when he was ready. But right now, he didn't want to miss out on a single day of Abigail's upbringing. And God help him, he hated to think this way, but Brian's bad behavior got in the way of that.
'Brian, we have to get you enrolled into another school. When you mess with your education, you're not hurting us, like you think, you're hurting yourself.' Jarod continued.
'Oh, where did you hear that? On a video or something?'
Jarod stared at Brian. His son had not said those words. Brian was staring at something behind them, and he looked terrified!
Mallory had already turned around. She kept cool. Lyle had Abigail in his arms! The baby was calm. Then again, she couldn't have known that her uncle was a psychopath!
'Lyle, if you had wanted to be invited for Thanksgiving, all you had to do was ask.' Mallory said coolly, as she began to move towards him.
Jarod did as well, but for once in his life, he was not good at playing the type of cool role, that Mallory was. Not when her murdering brother had his little girl!
Lyle was holding Abigail in one arm. He produced a gun in the other hand. Mallory's heart almost stopped.
Lyle looked around Jarod and Mallory, and over at Brian.
'Having trouble in school, sport? Yeah, the teen years can be a tough time.'
'I seem to recall you handled yours by killing your best friend.' Jarod said in a tight voice. 'Give me my daughter.'
Brian tried to keep calm himself, but knew he was failing. He remembered the man that was holding his little sister, and training his gun on them. His name was Mr. Lyle and he was bad.
'And don't listen to these two.' Lyle continued in his lecture to Brian. 'Because they don't know what the hell they're talking about. When they were around your age, they were screwing like rabbits in your father's cell at the Centre. I bet you may have even lived in the room you were conceived in...'
'Shut up!' Mallory snapped. 'What do you want?'
Lyle pointed the gun at her.
'I need money and a way out of here.'
'What happened to the money you stole from the IRS? And where is Bobby?' Mallory asked.
'Gone and safe. Now, if you don't want something to happen to my little niece here, Mallory, you'll get the money for me.'
Jarod shook his head.
'What the hell are you talking about? Mallory doesn't have any extra money to give you! We're not millionaires you know! Now give us Abigail!' he said in between clenched teeth. He could see that there was no way to jump Lyle, without Abigail or someone else in the room getting hurt.
Lyle grinned at Jarod and then focused in on his sister again.
'Mallory, Mallory, Mallory! Keeping secrets from the hubby already! He doesn't know, does he?'
Jarod looked at Mallory.
'Know what?' he asked tightly.
Mallory threw her hands up in the air.
'Okay, alright! Daddy left me a small inheritance.'
'Well actually,' Lyle said, 'it wasn't really that small. It was more like 30 million dollars. I got the same amount, but I kind of ran through mine. Daycare can be so expensive. But I know you haven't touched a dime of yours. I need that money and I want it!' he snapped.
Now, Abigail began to cry and wriggle! Brian stepped forward.
'Give her to me!' he ordered Lyle. Lyle looked him up and down.
'What did you say?'
Mallory looked at him.
'Brian get back!'
'I can calm her when she gets like that...please...just give her to me.' he begged.
Lyle shook his head with disgust, but motioned for Brian to come forward. He reached out and took Abigail from Lyle. The baby instantly calmed down.
Jarod looked at Mallory again.
'Is this true?'
Mallory glanced at Jarod.
'Yes, but I was planning on using it towards the kids futures! It's not like I was going to squander it like Lyle did his!'
'I didn't 'squander' anything, sis! I just made some bad investments!'
But Mallory ignored him and focused on Jarod's reaction. It wasn't good.
'That money was Centre, dirty money! Made from murder and greed!' Jarod yelled at her. Lyle smiled.
'I agree, boy genius! And since I have murdered people and am pretty greedy, I'm the perfect person to get his money! Now, I wish I could stay and watch your family disagreement here, but I must get going.'
Jarod turned to look at him.
'You're not leaving this house.' he hissed.
Lyle's eyes widened with surprise.
'That is pretty tough talk coming from someone on the other end of this gun. Now, Mallory, the money?!'
Jarod turned away from Lyle and looked at Mallory.
'Well?'
'Well what?' Mallory snapped. This was not the time to argue over money!
'How could you keep this from me?'
'Because I knew you'd get high and mighty on me, that's why! Jarod, the Centre owes us this money! They stole half of our lives...they stole our child...they stole you from your parents...seperated me from my mother...'
'Our mother, sis, now, can we get downstairs? I have a laptop set up for a lovely little wire transfer.' Lyle said in a bored tone of voice. This whole set up made him want to vomit! His sister was much sexier when she had been smoking and wearing leather! This happy homemaker crap didn't suit her!
But Jarod and Mallory continued to ignore Lyle. Brian backed away with Abigail.
'When this is over, I want you to donate the money to charity!' Jarod insisted.
'Oh hell no! Jarod come on! We can put the money towards Brian and Abigail's education or something! You're being unreasonable!'
Lyle pointed his gun at the ceiling and fired! Abigail began to cry again and Brian tried to calm her, feeling all the more unraveled! His parents needed to stop arguing and give this creep what he wanted!
Jarod and Mallory looked at Lyle. Lyle smiled.
'Hello? I'm standing right in front of you! And the money is going to me, boy genius, not some orphanage somewhere!' Lyle snapped, cocking the gun at Mallory.
'Let's go downstairs and...oh, I almost forgot, clone boy over there, give my sister the baby.'
'Why?' Jarod asked.
'Oh you see, Jarod, while my sister and niece are with me downstairs, you and your look alike son will stay up here. If you try and call the police, or escape, I will not hesitate to put a bullet in both of them.'
Jarod folded his arms.
'Then you won't be able to get away.'
'No, I'll kill myself as well. Then you'll never know where Bobby is, and your wife and daughter will die as well. So, Mallory, can we get a move on?!'
Jarod looked at Brian and nodded. Brian walked forward and handed Jarod, Abigail. Jarod in turn, gently handed her to Mallory. Abigail stared at Lyle. Lyle waved at her. Mallory carried Abigail out of the room and downstairs. Lyle smiled at Jarod and Brian, then followed after her.
Jarod turned and hurried past Brian. He opened his window and looked out. Jarod then turned, and hurried past Brian again, went out into the hallway and opened the door to his and Mallory's bedroom. He rushed over to the window and looked down and around.
Brian followed him into the bedroom.
'What? What are you thinking? Just let him go!'
Jarod didn't turn back to him.
'This room faces the backyard, your room faces the front. Lyle will probably want one of our vehicles to get away in. Brian, I need for you to warn me if Lyle comes back upstairs to check on us, for any reason.'
'Why? Where are you going to be?'
'Up on the roof.' Jarod said grimly, hurrying past his son again, so that he was back in Brian's room. He began to climb out of the window he had opened in there. But Brian grabbed his arm.
'You can't do this! I mean if he comes back upstairs...'
Jarod looked into his son's eyes. He could see the fear in them. He smiled gently at him.
'Then you call out here for me and I'll come back in before Lyle can get up here. Brian, we can't let him leave here. He's killed too many people. And once your mother gives him that money, it will be like we've helped him get away. Do you understand?'
Brian could see the logic, sort of. But he was still scared.
'Yes.' was all he said. Jarod nodded, then climbed out on the ledge. As soon as he did that, Brian hurried out of his room and knelt by the top of the stairs. He could hear everything that was going on from there.
****
Lyle began typing away, as Mallory stood next to him, bored. Abigail was playing with her hair. The transfer was almost complete.
'Life on the run is no place for a child, Lyle. Why don't you leave Bobby with Jarod and I.' Mallory suggested.
Lyle smirked as he continued to type.
'You've got to be kidding?! There is no way I'd punish any child by leaving him in the care of St. Jarod! Hell, your kid there will probably end up being a nun like our mother! And clone boy looks miserable.'
'He's not a clone.' Mallory said calmly.
'No, he's not. I apologize. After all, I could probably guess on which one of those DSA's he was conceived on. By the way, what was that crap about his grandmother?'
Mallory wasn't going to say anything at first. Then she was going to lie. But, now seemed as good a time as any to tell the truth about her mother.
'Brian was talking about Catherine Parker. He's been living with her and Major Charles.'
Lyle stopped typing and looked up at her. He then stood up.
'What the hell are you talking about?!'
Mallory noted that he had set the gun down next to the laptop. Maybe she shouldn't have said anything at all, but Brian's earlier reaction about wanting to be sent home, had wounded her. It was about time everyone knew the truth...even if they were despicable human beings!
'Oh yeah! My mother is alive. The reason I refer to her as just mine and not 'ours', because along with a sob story as to why she hid out all of these years, that is truly not to be believed, she claims that you are not her son.'
Lyle just stared at her.
'She says I'm not a Parker?' he asked, his voice sounding garbled.
'No, Lyle, you're a Parker. We do have the same father...oh by the way, she swears up and down she would've never slept with Raines. Anyway, our father had an affair with some secretary who was your mother. When this woman got a little too demanding, the Centre had her killed.'
'I saw the DSA! There were twins! You and me!'
'Another interesting twist: my mother doesn't deny having twins, she just swears that she had two girls! I have a twin sister out there with blonde hair, if you can believe it! Naturally, after putting up with you, I wasn't interested in meeting another twin.'
There was a beep on the computer. Mallory looked at it.
'Looks like the transfer is complete. Bye bye!' Mallory said, pulling Abigail to her even tighter.
Lyle stared at the screen. Mallory had the feeling that the bad news she had just given him, was more than just a bit disconcerting. She hoped, wherever little Bobby was, that Lyle did not take it out on him!
Lyle suddenly shut off the laptop and closed it. He picked up his gun and the laptop, then walked past Mallory and towards the front door. Mallory was a bit startled and on edge. This was really it? He was just going to leave?
Lyle opened the door, then looked back at her.
'You're right.'
'Right about what?' Mallory asked uneasily.
'Life on the run is no kind of life for Bobby. We never had a chance, did we sis? My poor mother never did either, whoever she really was. I could have family from my mother's side that I have yet to know.'
Lyle then put his gun in his jacket pocket and pulled something else out. A piece of paper. He handed it towards Mallory.
'What is that?' she asked.
'Bobby's location. Once I leave here, Jarod and you can go and get him.'
Mallory didn't trust him! Was this some kind of joke? Lyle had suddenly grown a conscience and now decided that her little brother should live with Jarod and her? After he just got done berating their humdrum lifestyle?
Yet, Lyle did look shocked at the revelation that Catherine Parker had not been his real mother. Maybe something had snapped in him. Something that was making him do the right thing.
Mallory set Abigail down on the floor. She wasn't carrying her daughter anywhere near Lyle! She then walked towards him to get the piece of paper out of his hand.
But then, Lyle smiled. It was a 'gotcha' type of smile. Almost a smirk. And at that moment, Mallory realized that all Lyle had wanted her to do, probably ever since she had cattily told him of his true heritage, was to let go of Abigail.
Lyle pointed his gun down towards the floor, where Abigail sat! Mallory leaped at him to wrestle the gun away. Brian hurried down the stairs and jumped on Lyle's back!
Lyle was startled at being jumped on like that. So startled, that his gun went off, hitting Mallory in the chest!
'MOM!' Brian screamed, as Lyle flung him off of his back and ran out! But Jarod had been waiting for him to come out, and jumped down on him, flattening him on the lawn!
Neighbors began to run over, after the sound of the second gunshot! Jarod punched Lyle three times in the face, knocking him out and taking his gun. He then ran back inside through the front door.
Abigail was squalling! Brian had Mallory's head in his lap, and was sobbing. A neighbor had called 911. Jarod hurried over to them and knelt down.
'It's going to be alright! It's going to be fine! The police will get Lyle and we'll be fine...all of us!' Jarod said loudly, trying to keep his wife conscious. Mallory could not die. She couldn't let the Centre win. She could not die, Jarod thought. Things couldn't end this way. They hadn't begun to live their lives together....
'Jarod...he tried to kill Abigail...' she was laboring for breath.
'Don't talk!' Jarod urged, as he heard the sirens approaching. He looked at Brian. Tears were streaming down his face. Brian sniffed, then looked over by the door. He gently let go of his mother's head and crawled over to the 'piece of paper' that Lyle had tricked his mother into taking from him. He picked it up and looked at it. It was blank.