Part Two
Jarod's heart beat wildly and he eased his grip on the glass shard.
Miss Parker was alive! He didn't know why he hadn't thought of it
before. The Center had faked her death to make him vulnerable and
more likely to co-operate. That was why they had allowed him to watch
her progress. The Center usually wasn't that considerate. He didn't
bother analyzing how or why Miss Parker was talking to him.
"Bridgette told me you were having trouble coping," Sydney said
quietly, announcing his presence as unobtrusively as possible. Sydney
had an inkling of the connection Jarod and Miss Parker had shared.
Forged in childhood, despite their seeming animosity as adults, it
had strengthened. Her loss would devastate him. "I'm sorry I didn't
come sooner."
Jarod jumped up from his foam pallet and embraced Sydney. "She's not
dead," he whispered hoarsely through his tears of joy, "She told me
she's not dead. It's all a plot, Sydney. They want me to think
she's dead, but she's not."
Sydney listened to Jarod's excited babbling with growing concern.
"No, Jarod, Miss Parker is dead. I was there. I watched her die,"
Sydney told him gently, but firmly. He couldn't allow Jarod to keep
denying Miss Parker's death. As a pretender, he could make his
delusions his reality very easily.
Jarod pulled away from Sydney. "No! She told me she was alive."
"And how did she do that, Jarod? Miss Parker isn't here in this
room with us," Sydney said calmly. Reason was the best way to battle
Jarod's grief-based delusions. Once he realized what he was doing,
they could begin helping him come to terms with Miss Parker's death.
"I was at her side when she died. I was at her funeral today, Jarod.
Do you believe that I would be a part of this plot?"
Jarod shook his head, but still kept himself away from Sydney. How had
Miss Parker spoken to him? He had heard her voice so clearly. And
Sydney's allegiances were in question when it came to him. Jarod
wasn't sure how far Sydney would go to get back his guinea pig and
the greatest research project he would ever hope to conduct. There
was only one way to be sure. "I want to see her."
"That's impossible, Jarod. We buried her today. She's with her mother
and Thomas now. We have to let her go."
Jarod nodded, slowly. Sydney was making sense. Too much sense. What
if this was a simulation to see how Jarod would react to Miss Parker's
death? Sydney would be interested in seeing how living in the "real"
world had changed Jarod's coping skills. It would also be a way of
keeping him from escaping. Jarod was now more sure than ever that he
wouldn't be able to trust Sydney this time. The thought saddened him.
"Take me to her grave. I need to see it," Jarod insisted. He
clenched his fists and barely noticed the pain of the glass shard
biting once again into his palm or the blood that dripped through his
fingers to the pristine floor.
But Sydney did. "Jarod, I'll see what I can do." Sydney stepped
forward cautiously. He laid a hand on Jarod's shoulder. "You have
to promise me that you won't do anything rash. There are still people
who need you." Sydney held out his other hand. "Please give me what
you have in your hand, Jarod. It won't solve anything."
Jarod looked down at his hand. Sydney was wrong. His parents had a
second chance in raising his clone, the Center had provided that, and
Sydney had his newfound son. The only person who had truly needed
him and only him had been Miss Parker.
"I still need you, Jarod," Miss Parker's voice whispered through his
mind. He looked up quickly at Sydney, but could see no indication
that the older man had heard the voice as well. Sydney still had that
patiently concerned look on his face. Jarod opened his palm and
allowed Sydney to take the glass shard. It was the quickest way to
get rid of him.
"Thank you, Jarod." Sydney sighed with relief. "You rest and I will
be back to talk with you later."
Jarod turned and faced the wall once again when Sydney left. He barely
acknowledged the attendant who came in and dressed the wounds on his
hand. Miss Parker needed him.
"Amelia," Jarod whispered the name she had shared with him so long
ago once he was alone, "Are you still here?"
"No, Jarod, I'm in Bermuda working on my tan. Where the hell else
would I be?"
"Where are you? What happened?"
"How the fuck should I know? You're the genius!"
Jarod smiled at the impatience in her voice. Mysteries had never been
Miss Parker's favorite, she had always read the last page first.
"Can you see anything? Hear anything?"
"You. I can see and hear you." Jarod was sure that if she were able,
Miss Parker would be pacing. "Sometimes I can hear another voice,
but it's far away and....and I don't like it."
"Do you recognize the voice? What does it say?" Miss Parker didn't
answer. She didn't say anything for a long time, so long that Jarod
was afraid that he had lost whatever connection there was between
them.
"If I were dead, my mother would come for me, right? She wouldn't
leave me in limbo, alone in the dark. She would understand and forgive
me for being a horrible person." Miss Parker's voice trembled with
fear and uncertainty.
"You are not a horrible person!" Jarod yelled, "Is that what this voice
is telling you?" Jarod jumped up and began pacing his small cell. He
had to find her. She was alone and whoever was with her was tormenting
her with her insecurities. But to find her, he needed his freedom,
from his cell at least, and the only way to get that would be to
pretend that he didn't hear Miss Parker and co-operate with the Center.
*****
Bridgette glanced over at Sydney. "My, my, such mood swings." They
watched Jarod through a one-way mirror as he stopped his wild pacing
and settled to the floor. "What's up. Doc? What is our ratboy
thinking?"
Sydney winced at Bridgette's use of Miss Parker's nickname for Jarod.
He had never liked it, but no matter how harshly Miss Parker had
spoken, he had known that there had been a degree of affection there.
When Bridgette said it, it was just mean. "He's pretending, only this
time he isn't pretending to be a doctor or an astronaut. He's
pretending to live in a world where Miss Parker is still alive."
Bridgette laughed, a cruel chuckle that went perfectly with her snide
smile. "Good luck with that one, Jarod, at least the rest of us don't
have to live there."
"You don't understand. If Jarod continues, he will become increasingly
delusional and eventually go completely insane. No matter how much
he pretends, he won't be able to bring Miss Parker back as a flesh and
blood person."
"Well, then, we'll give him a few days and if he doesn't snap out of
it then he's no longer useful." Bridgette punctuated her threat by
pointing her fingers into a gun and aiming it at Jarod. "There's no
room at the Center for things that are no longer useful."
To be continued.....
Jarod's heart beat wildly and he eased his grip on the glass shard.
Miss Parker was alive! He didn't know why he hadn't thought of it
before. The Center had faked her death to make him vulnerable and
more likely to co-operate. That was why they had allowed him to watch
her progress. The Center usually wasn't that considerate. He didn't
bother analyzing how or why Miss Parker was talking to him.
"Bridgette told me you were having trouble coping," Sydney said
quietly, announcing his presence as unobtrusively as possible. Sydney
had an inkling of the connection Jarod and Miss Parker had shared.
Forged in childhood, despite their seeming animosity as adults, it
had strengthened. Her loss would devastate him. "I'm sorry I didn't
come sooner."
Jarod jumped up from his foam pallet and embraced Sydney. "She's not
dead," he whispered hoarsely through his tears of joy, "She told me
she's not dead. It's all a plot, Sydney. They want me to think
she's dead, but she's not."
Sydney listened to Jarod's excited babbling with growing concern.
"No, Jarod, Miss Parker is dead. I was there. I watched her die,"
Sydney told him gently, but firmly. He couldn't allow Jarod to keep
denying Miss Parker's death. As a pretender, he could make his
delusions his reality very easily.
Jarod pulled away from Sydney. "No! She told me she was alive."
"And how did she do that, Jarod? Miss Parker isn't here in this
room with us," Sydney said calmly. Reason was the best way to battle
Jarod's grief-based delusions. Once he realized what he was doing,
they could begin helping him come to terms with Miss Parker's death.
"I was at her side when she died. I was at her funeral today, Jarod.
Do you believe that I would be a part of this plot?"
Jarod shook his head, but still kept himself away from Sydney. How had
Miss Parker spoken to him? He had heard her voice so clearly. And
Sydney's allegiances were in question when it came to him. Jarod
wasn't sure how far Sydney would go to get back his guinea pig and
the greatest research project he would ever hope to conduct. There
was only one way to be sure. "I want to see her."
"That's impossible, Jarod. We buried her today. She's with her mother
and Thomas now. We have to let her go."
Jarod nodded, slowly. Sydney was making sense. Too much sense. What
if this was a simulation to see how Jarod would react to Miss Parker's
death? Sydney would be interested in seeing how living in the "real"
world had changed Jarod's coping skills. It would also be a way of
keeping him from escaping. Jarod was now more sure than ever that he
wouldn't be able to trust Sydney this time. The thought saddened him.
"Take me to her grave. I need to see it," Jarod insisted. He
clenched his fists and barely noticed the pain of the glass shard
biting once again into his palm or the blood that dripped through his
fingers to the pristine floor.
But Sydney did. "Jarod, I'll see what I can do." Sydney stepped
forward cautiously. He laid a hand on Jarod's shoulder. "You have
to promise me that you won't do anything rash. There are still people
who need you." Sydney held out his other hand. "Please give me what
you have in your hand, Jarod. It won't solve anything."
Jarod looked down at his hand. Sydney was wrong. His parents had a
second chance in raising his clone, the Center had provided that, and
Sydney had his newfound son. The only person who had truly needed
him and only him had been Miss Parker.
"I still need you, Jarod," Miss Parker's voice whispered through his
mind. He looked up quickly at Sydney, but could see no indication
that the older man had heard the voice as well. Sydney still had that
patiently concerned look on his face. Jarod opened his palm and
allowed Sydney to take the glass shard. It was the quickest way to
get rid of him.
"Thank you, Jarod." Sydney sighed with relief. "You rest and I will
be back to talk with you later."
Jarod turned and faced the wall once again when Sydney left. He barely
acknowledged the attendant who came in and dressed the wounds on his
hand. Miss Parker needed him.
"Amelia," Jarod whispered the name she had shared with him so long
ago once he was alone, "Are you still here?"
"No, Jarod, I'm in Bermuda working on my tan. Where the hell else
would I be?"
"Where are you? What happened?"
"How the fuck should I know? You're the genius!"
Jarod smiled at the impatience in her voice. Mysteries had never been
Miss Parker's favorite, she had always read the last page first.
"Can you see anything? Hear anything?"
"You. I can see and hear you." Jarod was sure that if she were able,
Miss Parker would be pacing. "Sometimes I can hear another voice,
but it's far away and....and I don't like it."
"Do you recognize the voice? What does it say?" Miss Parker didn't
answer. She didn't say anything for a long time, so long that Jarod
was afraid that he had lost whatever connection there was between
them.
"If I were dead, my mother would come for me, right? She wouldn't
leave me in limbo, alone in the dark. She would understand and forgive
me for being a horrible person." Miss Parker's voice trembled with
fear and uncertainty.
"You are not a horrible person!" Jarod yelled, "Is that what this voice
is telling you?" Jarod jumped up and began pacing his small cell. He
had to find her. She was alone and whoever was with her was tormenting
her with her insecurities. But to find her, he needed his freedom,
from his cell at least, and the only way to get that would be to
pretend that he didn't hear Miss Parker and co-operate with the Center.
*****
Bridgette glanced over at Sydney. "My, my, such mood swings." They
watched Jarod through a one-way mirror as he stopped his wild pacing
and settled to the floor. "What's up. Doc? What is our ratboy
thinking?"
Sydney winced at Bridgette's use of Miss Parker's nickname for Jarod.
He had never liked it, but no matter how harshly Miss Parker had
spoken, he had known that there had been a degree of affection there.
When Bridgette said it, it was just mean. "He's pretending, only this
time he isn't pretending to be a doctor or an astronaut. He's
pretending to live in a world where Miss Parker is still alive."
Bridgette laughed, a cruel chuckle that went perfectly with her snide
smile. "Good luck with that one, Jarod, at least the rest of us don't
have to live there."
"You don't understand. If Jarod continues, he will become increasingly
delusional and eventually go completely insane. No matter how much
he pretends, he won't be able to bring Miss Parker back as a flesh and
blood person."
"Well, then, we'll give him a few days and if he doesn't snap out of
it then he's no longer useful." Bridgette punctuated her threat by
pointing her fingers into a gun and aiming it at Jarod. "There's no
room at the Center for things that are no longer useful."
To be continued.....