Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Pretender characters. They belong to MTM, NBC and TNT. No money was involved and no infringements intended. The only characters I have soul rights to are: Catherine (which has nothing to do with Parker's mother), Rebecca Janice O'Malley, Edgar James Alexander and Joyce Ann O'Malley.
THE NEW PRETENDER
Chapter Seven:
Back in a hotel...
The next morning saw Jarod and Major Charles sitting in Jarod's room watching tv and keeping quiet so as not to wake Catherine. Jarod was talking to his dad about Catherine.
"I don't understand what Mr. Raines is accomplishing by beating Catherine?" whispered Jarod.
"Well, he probably looks at beating her will make her more aggressive." Major Charles said.
"Dad, you should've seen us in the cave. I thought she was going to kill me." said Jarod. Major Charles' eyes were wide open.
"What do you mean almost killed you?" asked Major Charles.
"Well, at one point, Catherine held a knife at me but I was able to break her grasp. But she was pretty strong." Jarod said.
"You know, Jarod. If they find her they will take her back and then she will be unstoppable." said Major Charles.
"I understand that. That is why I'm trying my best to keep that from happening. But, I think while she is away from the Centre, she seems to act differently." Jarod said.
"What do you mean, differently?"asked his father.
"Well, she seems a little more relaxed than when we took her out in the first place." said Jarod.
While they are talking they see a figure standing in the doorway in green pajamas looking at them. Her eyes were red and it appeared that she was crying. Jarod motions for her to come and sit by him but she hesitates for a minute and then she starts to walk over to Jarod. She sits down next to him on the couch and looks down. Her long auburn hair falls down covering her face from their views. Jarod turns to Catherine and takes his right index finger and puts it under her chin and lifts her head to meet his eyes. She looks at him and a tear starts to drip down her cheek. He wipes it away with his finger.
Jarod speaks, "Catherine. What is wrong? Why are you crying?" She doesn't answer right away. Then in a soft voice she starts to speak.
"I thought you guys left me. I woke up and I didn't see anyone. Plus I've been thinking of home." Then she puts her head down.
"Catherine, can I ask you something?" Catherine looks up at Jarod.
"Ok." said Catherine.
"Why did Mr. Raines have one of his men hit you?" Catherine had a shocked look on her face.
She looked at Jarod and then at Major Charles. She stood up and precedded to walk behind the couch Major Charles was sitting on and almost reached the door when Jarod intercepted her. He stood in the doorway. She looked at Jarod and then saw Major Charles get up and start to walk toward her. He moved next to his son.
Then Jarod asked her again, "Why did Mr. Raines have one of his men hit you?" She started backing away and looked around for a place to run but there was nothing. The only place to run is blocked by Jarod and his father. She looked and found a fireplace poker. She held it up with the point facing them.
She spoke, "I don't care what you say. You both are spies for Mr. Raines. I'm NOT going back. I will kill you before they catch me. So, GET out of my way Jarod."
"You know I can't do that, Catherine. Now why don't you hand me that poker and we will talk." said Jarod in a calm tone.
"NO! No more talking. I want to leave and go back home and be a normal kid! You will NOT take me anywhere!" Both Jarod and his father were getting a little annoyed that they were trying to help her but they understand that she was going through a lot.
Back at the Centre:
Miss Parker went down to see Broots and Sydney. She opened the door to find them looking at the computer screen. Both Broots and Sydney looked up to see her.
She spoke first, "Broots, can you find where Catherine's parents and grandmother are buried?" Both Sydney and Broots looked at one another and then back at Miss Parker.
"Why do you want that?" asked Broots.
"Oh, probably to pin up the address next to Mr. Lyles' picture of his tombstone. Just do it." said Miss Parker. Then Broots started punching keys and came up with an address. He wrote it down on a piece of paper for her. Gave her the paper and then she walked out of the room.
Then Broots spoke to Sydney, "Geez, I wonder what she wanted that for?"
Back at the hotel:
Catherine was still standing with the poker towards them. Then all of a sudden she lunged at them but Jarod was quicker and pulled the poker from her hands. She stood there with a scared expression on her face. Then she started backing up while Jarod and Major Charles started coming towards her. She started running around the couches but was pulled down by Jarod onto the floor. Jarod rolled her on her belly and took both her hands and tied them behind her back with a phone cord. She was sobbing and pleading for them not to hit her. Jarod pulled her up and walked her over to the couch and pushed her on it. She sat there staring at the carpet and shaking. Jarod and Major Charles walked into the adjoining room. They were talking in low voices and then came back into the room where Catherine was still sitting. She was sitting on the couch shaking with her head down. She was scared at what they might do to her. Jarod pulled a chair in front of her and sat down. He took his left index finger and placed it underneath her chin but she backed into the couch. She was shaking more and not looking at them. Jarod looked at her.
Then he spoke, "Catherine, what is wrong with you? What, you think by killing me and my father that the Centre might just let you go? No. That is NOT how they work.You are theirs forever!" His voice started rising and she could tell he was angry at her.
Then, he huffed and moved behind the couch she was sitting on. Jarod looked at his father and then they heard the almost unmistakable sound coming from Catherine. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Then she started to cry.
Jarod and his dad looked at each other and Jarod sat down in the chair. He looked at Catherine who started to shake and cry harder. He touched her shoulders but she didn't resist and she lunged into his arms and she cried on his shoulder. He tried to comfort her but it wasn't working. Everything that she had kept inside had finally broken free. Major Charles sat down next to Catherine on the couch and started rubbing her back. When she finally stopped crying she looked at Jarod and Major Charles and apologized for crying on him. Jarod said he didn't mind.
Then Jarod spoke, "Catherine...why did Mr. Raines have one of his men hit you?"
Jarod looked at Catherine and then she spoke, "Because I was supposed to poison Miss Parker. But, I couldn't kill her. She means so much to me."
Jarod and his father looked at each other, then Major Charles spoke, "She means a lot to you? She is trying to get you and Jarod back into the Centre."
"I understand that. But me and Miss Parker have started to become friends. And because I didn't kill her I got hit." said a sad Catherine.
At the cemetary...
Miss Parker was driving her car and came into Catherine's town, Shadow Hills, Delaware. She looked at the address and didn't see it right away. Then she saw a sign that showed the way. She drove up to the gates and looked at the address. It read:
O' Reilly Cemetary
14 Prospect Lane
It was the correct address. So, she drove through the open gates and drove up to the church. She saw a priest walk out of the church so she pulled her car on the side of the road and walked up to him. She asked him if he has the names Rebecca and Edgar Alexander. And Joyce O' Malley. He said he believes he did. They both stepped inside and he searched his records and found the names and the burials. She thanked him and drove up to where the 3 were buried. She searched a while and then came up to the tombstones. This is what she found on the tombstones:
Rebecca Janice O' Malley
Loving wife, mother, daughter and friend
You will be missed.
Born: Sept 7, 1972 Died: Apr 4, 2002
Edgar James Alexander
Loving husband, son, and friend
You will be missed.
Born: Aug 14, 1971 Died: Apr 4, 2002
Joyce Ann O' Malley
Loving mother, grandmother, and friend
You will be missed.
Born: Jan 12, 1953 Died: Apr 4, 2002
Miss Parker looked at all of the tombstones and kneeled on the ground. She sat there looking at them. Then she put a single red rose in front of Catherine's mother, father and grandmothers' tombstones. She sat there for a while and felt a tear rolling down her cheeks. She looked at Rebecca's tombstone and whispered, "I'm sorry." Then she got up and walked back to her car.
Back at the hotel:
Jarod and Major Charles have finally succeeded in getting Catherine's trust so Jarod untied her. She sat there while Jarod and his father went into the next room to talk. Catherine was looking around the room and thought she should take off her necklace when she felt her neck, it was gone. She looked around the room and couldn't find it. So, she figured it must have slipped off somewhere outside. She was sad cause that was given to her by her mother when she was 5 yrs old. She has never taken the necklace off. So, she went and sat down again on the couch. Then Jarod and his dad walked into the room and sat down next to her. Then all of a sudden, Jarod pulled something out of his pocket. It was a necklace.
He looked at his dad and spoke, "Dad, do you know anyone who wears this kind of necklace?" Major Charles took the necklace from Jarod's hands and looked at it. It was made of 24K gold. It had dark green emeralds all around it and a single red ruby in the middle.
Catherine looked at it and spoke, "Jarod. That is my necklace." Jarod and his dad looked at each other then at Catherine.
"That is not possible. I found this necklace at my brothers' gravesite." said Jarod.
"What is your brothers' name?" asked Catherine.
"Kyle. Kyle Russell." he said.
"I was there." Then Jarod looked at her, then back at his father.
"What were you doing at my brothers' gravesite?" asked Jarod.
"I wanted to see the gravesite of one of the Pretenders. I am sorry about what happened." Catherine said.
Then his father spoke, "How do you know how Kyle died?"
Catherine turned and looked at him. "Sydney, explained it too me. Cause I accidently watched one of the DSA's and I found Kyle and Jarod. And I also found Miss Parker." Jarod handed Catherine her necklace back and she put it on. "So, now what are we going to do?" Then Jarod and his father looked at each other.
Jarod spoke, "Well, we are going to get you out of here. I'm going to bring you to live with us."
"Live with you? Are you sure about that? After all I have done to you?" asked Catherine.
"Catherine, you may have tried to kill me and my dad but I know you don't have the heart to do it." Jarod said.
"Ok. I will come with you. But, can I see my mom, dad and grandmother one last time?" She looked at Jarod. Her eyes started tearing up. Jarod looked at her, then nodded.
Back at the Centre:
Just as Miss Parker got out of the elevator, Mr. Lyle came up to her. "We just got word where Jarod is hiding. I sent some sweepers out there."
Miss Parker glared at him. "You sent them out there without asking me? I've been trying to catch him for years." Then she started to walk away from him.
She almost got to her father's office when Lyle caught her arm. She turned around and glared at him again. "They are at the Dearborn Hotel. And Jarod's got Catherine and his father." Then she ripped her arm out of his grasp and opened the door, only to find Mr. Raines sitting at the desk.
She walked in followed by Mr. Lyle. She spoke first, "Oh great. Look what the lab rats dragged in. What are you doing in my father's office?"
"Miss Parker I would be very careful what you say. It's not too hard for the Centre to bring someone down." Then he smiled.
"What is that a threat? Besides where is my father?" asked Miss Parker.
"Don't worry about your father. He is fine. He is taking care of your brother." Miss Parker stared blankly at him. Brother? Omg. Brigitte's child. I almost forgot. Then Mr. Raines got up along with his oxygen tank and walked past Miss Parker. He stopped turned and looked at her...then walked out the door with Lyle behind him. She watched as he walked away and then went to sit down in her father's chair. She collapsed in the chair and thought about the baby. What did her father name him? Where is he? Will she ever see him. She doesn't know any of the answers. She just sat there silently.
Back at the hotel:
All three got up and walked into the adjoining room when Jarod heard a car door slam. He walked over to the window and looked down. Sweepers. He walked away from the window and went over to his dad.
"We've got company. We have to leave now." said Jarod.
"Who is it?" asked Major Charles.
"Sweepers." said Jarod. Jarod was moving around the rooms getting everything they need. Then he grabbed Catherine's arm and all 3 went out the door. There was no other way to go except down. He spotted the emergency exit and they all rushed downstairs just as some sweepers were coming up the elevator. They reached the 5th floor and walked into the hallway. Jarod looked both ways and didn't see nor hear any sweepers. They were walking when all of a sudden they spotted a maid leaving a room. She spotted them and almost screamed until Jarod approached her and looked at her.
He said, "Call the police. There are about 7 or 8 people upstairs with guns walking around." Then he turned around and took Catherine's arm again and walked away along with his father. T
he maid went into the room she just cleaned and called the front lobby and told them to call the police. Jarod, his father and Catherine took the elevator down to Floor 2. Then got out and looked around and found the emergency exit and precedded to walk the rest of the way. As they got to the 1st Floor, Jarod peaked out and spotted more sweepers. Then Catherine looked and saw a fire alarm button. She tapped Jarod on his back and pointed. He looked at her and then quietly walked over and pushed the button sounding the alarm. Everyone started leaving the building in a stampede. They mingled in with the rest of the crowd making sure they don't come close to the sweepers. As they got outside, Jarod looked around and seeing no one there to catch them, he found the jeep and they all jumped in. Then they sped away just as the sweepers ran outside.
Back at the Centre:
Miss Parker knocked on a door and waited in the hallway. The next minute Broots opened the door and let her in. She walked in and sat down at the computer table. She noticed that Sydney was there too.
She spoke first, "Syd, do you know anything about Brigitte's baby?" Sydney and Broots looked at each other and then at her.
Sydney spoke next, "Parker, I don't know. After your father took the baby he went into hiding."
"Oh. I take it you then don't know if it is a girl or a boy?" Sydney shakes his head no. Her head drops down. Then she lifts her head and looks at Sydney, "You know, I've always been wondering whatever happened to Ethan."
Broots looked at her, "You don't know?"
"No, Broots. I wouldn't be saying that if I knew. So what are you talking about?" asked Miss Parker.
"Ethan. He is here." said Broots. Miss Parker's eyes grew wide open. She got up and walked over to Broots.
"He is here? Where is he? What is he doing here?" asked Miss Parker.
"Well, yes. He is here. He...um...is working right now. He...um...(clears throat)...works for the Centre now." Broots said.
"He what!" said Miss Parker.
"He's been working for Raines and your father for some time." Sydney says. Miss Parker cannot believe this. All this time she thought that either he left on his own or he was taken. He works for the one place that she tried to leave before. Then she walked back to the seat.
"Does Jarod know?" she asks.
Sydney answers, "No. He doesn't." Then she got up and left the room.
At the cemetary:
Catherine stood at the gravesite of her mom, dad and grandmother. She stared at them and tears were flowing down. She kneeled down and touched each of the headstones. She prayed silently to all three. Then Jarod saw one of the priests come walking up to them.
Catherine had her head down and asked, "Who put the roses in front of the headstones?" The priest looked at them and looked down at Catherine who still had her back turned to him.
"Well, a very pretty brunette came to me asking if I had the records of everyone who is placed in this cemetary. Then she came here." Catherine turned around to face the priest and got up. The priest got the first glimpse of Catherine.
He spoke, "You look exactly like her." All three of them looked at each other.
"Excuse me?" said Catherine.
"You looked exactly like your mother did when she was young. She has the same hair and eyes as you do." She was surprised at what the priest was saying. As the priest was walking away he stopped and turned around. "Oh, by the way. The brunette told me to tell you, sorry. And then she said her name was Miss Parker." said the Priest.
"Did she say why she is sorry?"asked Catherine.
"No, she didn't." said the priest.
"Thank you father." said Catherine.
"Your welcome, my child." said the Priest then he walked away. Jarod turned around and shook his head. His father looked at him.
"Sorry, everytime I hear someone say my child...I remember Mr. Raines." Catherine turned around.
"Ok. I'm ready to leave." Then all three turned around and got in the car and Jarod drove back home to see his mom, Emily and his clone. Just as Jarod's car left the church's premises a black car was sitting on the side of the road and a hand holding a cigarette through the open window. Watching and waiting.
To be continued...
