Distortion of present reality
Disclaimer: If I owned them, the DVDs would be out by now. I don't own the title either as it was taken from Jean Baudrillard.
Rating: Pg-13 for now.
Genre: Drama. And a rather complicated romance in following chapters (JMP)
Feedback: Yes, please… Please?
Spoilers: Post-IotH
A/N: Just two short warnings: First, this fic doesn't really follow a straight timeline, so if you notice an unexplained change in the action, don't worry, it'll be explained shortly thereafter. Second. The DSA played on this chapter is neither a fake nor an accident. It's completely legitimate, Parker was in full possession of her faculties and Lyle is as surprised as the rest of the world. Again, if you give me a couple of chapters' worth of wait, I'll give you the details.
This is for Eva, my long lost twin.
(Prelude)
'And he simply trusted your allegiance?. Just like that?'
As the video played on, two men stared at each other across a darkened cell: one, glaring in barely restrained anger, the other one smirking with something akin to sadistic pleasure.
'No, but I managed to make him believe our relationship was more than just business'.
Leaning against the open door, Mr. Lyle was doing nothing to conceal the sheer satisfaction that invaded him at the moment. It was simply too perfect: After six years of incessant pursue the crown jewel of The Centre's projects was finally back in the cage where it belonged, and he, Lyle, was in charge. And though they had been in a similar situation not so many years ago, and the outcome then had been nothing short of disastrous, things were different now. Not only had the lab-rat's return been carefully planned, but when it'd happened, he had been directly appointed by Mr. Raines to take over the project, while Miss Parker was debriefed and cleared by the T-board.
'So you admit to being intimate with him during your time together'.
The chairman had given him only one order regarding Jarod: don't kill him. Well, he hadn't thought about killing the man. In fact, since his arrival three days ago, this was the first contact the pretender had had with another human being. Deciding it'd be best to know what his sister was up to before he moved in on his prey, Lyle had been quite emphatic about this, putting his charge in solitary confinement until the T-board was done. He had waited, and he had listened and now his patience was paying off.
'I did what I had to in order to gain credibility'.
At first, he hadn't really bought into his sister's feat. Returning the pretender after all those years of goose chases seemed…incongruent somehow. However, several hours of grueling interrogation later, Lyle was still trying to find a tell-tale crack in his twin's scheme. Parker had answered round after round of questions and had reluctantly but efficiently, yielded quite a bit of information, going from the night in Carthis when the lab-rat had confessed his affections, to the time spent in that fishing cabin before the sweeper teams had stormed in. Although he was sure she'd kept some things to herself, Lyle had to admit her story held well.
Still, there'd been something that Lyle had wanted to ask.
'And how do we know your loyalties were not compromised during that time?'
'You mean besides the fact that wonder-boy is back in the cage and under your custody?'
If he was to be honest, he'd only asked that to test her reaction. As soon as she'd countered his demand with her own sardonic question, he'd been convinced the matter would be dropped. No one had been more surprised than him when the newest Triumvirate member had raised his voice, wanting a more elaborate answer.
'Yes'
'You may have reasons to doubt my loyalties, I respect that. But believe me when I say, my having mediocre sex with a lab project gone awry is certainly not one of those reasons. Not by a long shot'.
…Then Raines had piped in…
'Miss Parker will be examined'.
'I don't need anymore examination than this board. Preventive medical measures were taken care of before I engaged in any activities with the pretender'.
'Contraception'
Now he couldn't see it, but Lyle remembered clearly her steely nod.
'You planned all of this'
The Zulu hadn't been the only one surprised. Making up believable evidence of the pretender's family past in order to bait him, sneaking around to meet him without the knowledge of the Centre, walking the proverbial extra mile to gain his trust…Lyle for one, hadn't thought she had it in her.
'Yes'.
Apparently she did.
His captive looked like acid was pouring into his stomach but Lyle was quite clearly having the time of his life. Gathering the DSA player from its spot on the cot where it'd been staring at the pretender, he gave the other man a mocking nod, and left the room closing the door behind him.
He felt thoroughly rejuvenated. For the first time in a long time, it seemed the Parker legacy would have a future after all.
TBC
A/N2: This is my first foray into Pretender fanfic as a writer. Reviews are most welcome and brutal honesty is encouraged. Flames however will be used to roast marshmallows. Thanks for reading.