Jarod paced the length of Sydney's office once again, impatiently waiting for Angelo. He had read the encoded email, and understood that Angelo not only had acquired two fake DSA's and medical files, but also the originals. He sat down at Sydney's desk and began to fidget with the drawers. He noticed a stash of chocolate in the right upper drawer and frowned; Sydney wasn't supposed to have caffeine anymore, why was this here? Underneath the chocolate, Jarod caught sight of an old key. It was familiar somehow. The pretender picked up the key, turning it around in his hands, and then he remembered: the key went with the old box that Sydney kept in the upper drawer of his filing cabinet. Ever since he had been a small boy, he had wondered what it was that Sydney kept in that box.

He stood and walked over to the filing cabinet, and opened the top drawer. In the back was a small, very old box. He gently removed it, and brought it back to the desk. He turned the key around in his fingers for several minutes. He knew he shouldn't open it. It was private, and Sydney wouldn't appreciate having his privacy violated. But some part of Jarod didn't care if it made Sydney angry - the pretender owed him at least one little payback. But Jarod couldn't bring himself to do it. Whatever was in there would remain for Sydney's eyes only. As he was putting the box and the key back where he found them, Angelo entered. He stared at Jarod wide-eyed for a moment.

"Sydney's box."

"Yes Angelo, I know it belongs to Sydney."

"You looked?"

Jarod shook his head. "I wanted to, but I didn't."

Angelo smiled. "He keeps memories there. Good and bad."

"Memories... do you mean DSA's, Angelo?"

The empath shook his head. "Memories. Good and bad." He fingered Jarod's jacket. "Many things of Jarod there."

"What do you mean?"

Angelo held his hand over his heart. "Jarod is Sydney."

Jarod eyes misted over slightly, but he couldn't spend any more time on it, he'd simply have to ask Sydney about it someday, or come back and look in the damned thing himself. He took Angelo by the arms.

"The DSA's and file folders Angelo, do you have them?"

The empath nodded, and pulled a large envelope from the back of his pants, under his shirt. He handed it to Jarod. "Some real. Some not."

"Any other copies?"

Angelo shook his head. "Father's computer is clean."

Jarod took the copy in the envelope addressed to Miss Parker and put it with the one addressed to the Triumvirate; the final envelope held the originals. Jarod first put one of the fakes in the DSA player on Sydney's desk.

"Sydney, don't..... please don't do that."

Sydney held Catherine tightly to him, despite her requests to be left alone. He bent down and tried to kiss her, and Catherine pushed him away.

"Leave me alone Sydney, I don't feel that way for you."

"But Catherine......I love you."

He leaned in again and tried to kiss her, and she slapped him. After a moment, Sydney hit her. When she began to scream, he grabbed her hard, threw her to the floor, and started to force himself on her.

Sick to his stomach, Jarod punched the stop button. He didn't need to see anymore to understand where Mr. Parker was going with this. Jarod had to admit, the digitized images were very convincing, but anyone who knew Sydney at all would know he wasn't capable of such a thing. He looked at the file folder in his hand, briefly noting that every medical report was signed by Sydney, as were the requests for experimentation. He read through the material quickly, and felt a sweat begin to break out on his forehead. Jarod knew that Sydney's signature had been forged, but he believed the rest of the information to be true. He looked at the originals sitting on Sydney's desk, and knew there was only one way to find out. He reached for the reports and read through them. The information was all real, but it had been Mr. Parker and Dr. Raines who had signed and authorized everything. Sydney had nothing to do with it, except for the fact that at some point, he became aware of it.

Jarod shook his head wondering how Sydney lived with himself. How could he have not told Miss Parker the truth? He looked at the DSA in his hand. Perhaps contained within was the answer.....

"Catherine, you've got to hold still."

"Sydney, don't..... please don't do that."

The doctor held her tightly to him while he tried to clean a wound.

"But Catherine....I have to. These wounds have to be taken care of."

"Leave me alone, Sydney. I don't want you to take care of me."

Hurt colored his timbre. "I know you don't."

The remorse in her voice was clear. "I didn't mean it like that, Sydney. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I deserve such a comment I suppose."

"No you don't. You've never been anything but a gentleman with me; and I mean a gentle-man."

He held her tightly for a moment, and then tended her wounds.

"Why did he do this to you?"

"I don't know."

"Catherine......you're not telling me the truth."

"You don't know that, Sydney."

"Yes I do; you do the exact same thing that Miss Parker does when she fibs."

"Don't be silly, I'm sure it's not the exact same thing...."

"Yes, Catherine, it is! Neither one of you can make eye contact, and then you look at your hands, which you start to turn and twist slightly--" He stopped abruptly when he realized she was crying. He took her hands in his own. "Catherine, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. What is it? You know you can tell me."

The deep grey eyes looked into the chestnut brown ones, and saw unconditional love in them. "You must never tell anyone Sydney. Especially my daughter."

"Tell her what?"

"Promise me."

"I promise you, Catherine."

"You must never tell anyone how much alike my daughter and I are."

"But Catherine, she's your daughter, of course there are going to be similarities...."

"Similarities yes. But you said exact. And that isn't possible is it...."

"Not unless--" He stared at her. "It can't be."

Jarod heard Angelo climbing into the vent, and he stopped the DSA. "Angelo what is it?"

"Trouble. Sydney. Danger...."

Jarod picked up all the DSA's and files, and shoved them into his backpack. Then as quickly as he could, he followed Angelo through the vent system of the Centre.