DISCLAIMER in the first chapter.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank you everyone of those who read, but didn't review, hope you liked it so far. Special thanks to those who bothered to take the time: NG, Crazyrussianangal, Jar-Par Fan, NYT and Maggy (don't worry, the plot is well hiddenand I have some twists and turns before it IS over) Keep R&R!!
Now, soooooooorry it took me awhile to post, but I was down on the beach.
Merry late Christmas!
And Happy New Year ( not so late, we still have over 300 days left)!
On with the show...
Chapter 4 : NOW WHAT?
Not him.
Not Jarod.
Not dead...
Miss Parker wanted to believe the voices so badly. After all... In spite of everything, he was still the only friend, if she could still call him that, who never betrayed her. He may have ruined some of her favorite shoes and dragged her half way through the country for his own amusement, but at the end of each tiring day, he never let her be alone when all those terrifying shadows threatened to close in. His body may not have been there, but his presence and compassion hung around her like a protective cloak, constant and invisible.
She sometimes hated him for exposing her to the cruel realities of the real Center. Still, how could she blame him for wanting to protect her, warn her of what she was really facing every single morning: Raines, Lyle, Mr. Cox, her fath... Mr. Parker...
Parker's reverie was broken when a hand tapped lightly on her shoulder, startling her. Recomposing herself and wiping expertly away the small tears that had escaped her azure eyes, the Ice Queen turned around, ready for whoever it was, who dared sneak up on her.
Lyle
She should have known, that her cannibal brother would come, sooner or later, to gloat.
" Sis, what a pleasant surprise!" his face radiated a damn glow, complemented with a teeth-showing smile. There was a calmness about him that irritated Parker to no end. Jarod was dead. He may not care about that. But how could he be happy, that their prized pretender was gone?
It was then that Miss Parker realized it was all a façade. The Triumvirate should probably be breathing down their necks now, seething and demanding new course of action. Lyle had nothing to smile about. So this satisfaction he showed was for her own benefit. He wanted to see her cry over her prey. See the effect that would have on her. But no... She would never give him such satisfaction.
" You of all people should know that I don't trust a death certificate made by the Center... I had to be sure this was not an elaborate hoax to keep me out of the loop of yet another project of yours." Her short speech was delivered with such calm and detached coolness, that Lyle's smile crumbled. This was not the response he was expecting.
" And... Are you sure now?" Trying to regain the upper hand he commented back. He was disappointed yet again.
" Yes, I'm sure now." She grinned with no emotions in her eyes. " And that means I can move on to more interesting things." She left the specification of interesting things hanging in the air.
Lyle had definitely miscalculated her reaction. This was not what he had so hopefully expected. No crack in the ice, no melting... Well he couldn't have everything, but soon enough he would have the pleasure of seeing her squirm. Again he smiled. Things could only look up from here. Taking a step back, he turned on his heel and calmly left.
Miss Parker, once her brother left, allowed herself to shudder. Being in his presence and under his lustful stare always gave her the shivers. Apparently, during his upbringing, no one deemed necessary to teach him the reprehensions of incest. Shudder.
All without warning the ground beneath her feet shook, like a earthquake. And to make things worse, the voices within her started chanting, not bothering to organize themselves to be understood. Parker put both hand on each side of her head, wishing, in vain, that they would go away. Apparently, they didn't like being ordered around, for the sheer volume grew rapidly.
Concentrating hard on Sydney's words the day he helped her with her inner sense, she separated consciously each voice. It turned out not to be so hard since they all seemed to be saying the exact same thing.
Danger...
They're waiting for you...
Rebirth...
Leave...
Don't think, don't tell...
Just leave...
He's waiting...
He needs you...
Again she trusted the voices without hesitating and partially without understanding. She left. Took the elevator up to ground level, got in on her car, hit the gas pedal hard and saw the Center disappear in a cloud of dust.
Inside her house, before a sanctuary, stood four sweepers. Silent. Hidden. Lurking in the shadows, awaiting a woman who never came home. They waited until the full moon was high in the sky, and still no sign of the woman, whose name they all knew and feared. They were supposed to sedate her and bring her back to the newly reformed SL-27.
Nervous of a failed mission Steve Brejan could not afford, he dialed the number of the man he feared more than anything, Mr. Lyle, to inform him of Miss Parker unexpected absence.
Mr. Lyle was indeed pissed.
She couldn't be missing...
Shit...
Suprise, suprise... I'll post soon, review and I'll post sooner!