Disclaimer: see part one

Author's Note: Ok, it's December 31, 2004 and still some more hours to go until we can celebrate the new year (at least in my time zone) so I guess what better way to bridge the time and read some fics. So here I've got something for you… chapter 11

A great New Years Eve to all of you and a good start into the year 2005!!!

Thanks to:

rev2004: Ok, here's more for you. Thanks for your review and now enjoy the next chapter. Mfkngst: Yeah, I was over-enthusiastic as well when I found out about the possible new film. YAY! Anyway, glad that you liked the last chapter. Thanks for telling me so and now enjoy the next.

pretender fan: I don't want to crash your hopes but nothing about the third movie is decided yet… it all depends on the god old money thing. If they find someone to finance it, they will probably make the film but if not… And yet, we are closer to our third movie than we've been before. Anyway, glad that you liked the last chapter, hope you'll like this one as well. Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy.

gemini006007: Yep, Seth is very creepy. You'll find out more about him in this chapter. Hope you had a good Christmas. Now enjoy the next chapter.

mariel4000: I take it you like the story?!? Thanks for your review and now enjoy reading the new chapter!

Leochick: Voices, yes but more in combination of… you'll find out in this chapter. Thanks for the review. Hope you'll enjoy chapter 11 now!

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Shadows Part 11

Identity

Oblivious to their secret observer, Jarod took care of Miss Parker.

She told him that once the electricity went down, Parker had indeed shut her bedroom door but after a while, a wave of anger had swept over her, making her creep downstairs to get rid of her problem alone.

It was the only way she had ever learned to do something.

Alone

She had never learned to rely on someone, and years of training worked well. With her father's voice ringing in her ear, she had gone downstairs, only to be encountered with a man she had never seen before.

Gun or no, he had surprised her and hit her over the head with a lamp.

The next thing she knew was Jarod crouched in front of her while she was lying on the sofa. He caressed her cheek lightly, a worried expression on his face.

"Are you better?" Jarod asked for the thousandth time, pulling her out of her silent musing.

Miss Parker smiled, grateful for his worry and concern, and affirmed his question patiently. She sat up slowly, earning herself another look of concern.

"I'm fine, Jarod," she stated firmly, preventing him from coming over to her and pressing her back into the couch once more.

He kept a close eye on her but remained seated in the armchair he had brought up close to the couch.

"Ok, now I want to know what you found out. You said that you knew who he was and that he was a former Centre project," she said slowly.

"Yes, he is. I had some trouble finding him but in the end I got more than I wanted to know," Jarod started and shuddered.

"Go on," Miss Parker urged.

"Seth is a few years younger than we are--"

"Seth?" she asked.

"Yes, his original name was Ben Caruso. He was brought into the Centre at the age of five, approximately nine years after I got there. He was Raines project," Jarod paused, bracing himself for the tale he was about to tell.

Miss Parker winced when Raines name fell. This revelation alone made her shudder. No child that had fallen into Raines 'care' got out of it with his mind intact. She didn't think this case was different from the others and from Jarod's hesitation she knew there was more to this story than she wanted to know.

"Ben had a latent pretender gene. Raines tried to trigger it. Not with the same method he had used with Angelo some years back, but equally futile and destructive. The boy had been unbalanced before and had a tendency towards schizophrenic behaviour but Raines' meddling with his psyche had devastating results," Jarod sighed. "He's highly schizophrenic and has an extreme unstable behaviour. Ben Caruso was gone after Raines tempered with his mind. He created Seth."

"Just as he created Angelo," Miss Parker shook her head.

"Yes," Jarod confirmed. "I have to give him credit for his choice of names though," Jarod scoffed angrily. At her questioning glance he went on to explain. "Seth is an ancient deity in the Egyptian mythology. He's the God of darkness and chaos. Very fitting, don't you think?" Jarod asked, a huge amount of sarcasm in his voice.

Miss Parker swallowed. Jarod was right. The name was fitting indeed. Raines had driven the boy into a chaos that raged inside of him. "He didn't have that good a hand at finding a new name for Timmy," Miss Parker groused.

Jarod blinked in surprise at her statement. "Angelo comes from a Greek word and means messenger of God."

"That's what I mean," Miss Parker grumbled.

Jarod mulled over her words but kept silent. For him, the name was fitting. Angelo was sort of a messenger. He had kept him out of trouble and informed him about things going on inside of the Centre walls after his escape more often than Jarod could remember.

He shook out of his reverie and concentrated back on the tale when he felt her gaze on him.

"After Seth had been created and Raines found out that he couldn't be used for the pretender project, he discovered Seth very possessive tendency," Jarod paused and looked down on his hands. "He conditioned Seth to you."

Miss Parker stared at Jarod, her mouth agape. "He what?"

"He trained him onto you; made Seth believe that you belonged to him."

"Why did Raines do that?" Miss Parker asked, confused.

"I don't know, Miss Parker. I never found out what goes on in his twisted brain. I only know that we have a problem because of that now," he said.

"A problem?" She snarled, getting angry. "I think that's the understatement of the century, lab-rat. I have a psychotic, schizophrenic maniac on my heels and all you have to say to that is 'we have a problem'?" she bit out.

Jarod drew a deep breath to calm himself down. It wouldn't get them anywhere if he started falling for her quarrel. She was entitled to be angry but it would bring them no further if they started screaming at one another. He didn't need to let his frustration over the situation out on her. "Miss Parker, calm down. We won't get anywhere with solving anything if we scream at each other."

As quickly as her anger had welled up, it ebbed away. She nodded tiredly.

"I know that you are afraid and you have every right to be, but we will have to concentrate on getting him out of your hair. You are not alone in this. I'm here to help you, ok?"

Miss Parker nodded slowly. "How did he get out?"

"He was released," Jarod answered, making her look up at him with a frown. "Don't look at me. I was equally confused but I've checked it. About three months back, the Triumvirate diminished the stream of money sent to the Centre. Unprofitable projects had to be closed down. Seth had been long forgotten; an inmate of the Centre's bowls without further use. So it was decided that he was to be released."

"And once he had set a foot into the outside world, he came after me," Miss Parker grumbled.

"Not at once, but as soon as he had gotten a grip on himself after being thrown into an entirely new world."

"And what do we do now?" she asked.

"We will have to get him out of our hair," Jarod stated firmly.

To be continued…