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Chapter 2: Depression
"I don't understand. Her car is here, but she's not answering the door."
"Shh. Do you hear that?"
"Running water, but she would have come to the door if she was awake." Scanning the perimeter of the house Broots sees an open window. Jumping up he grabs the window sill and pulls himself up to peak through the window. "I don't see her. Wait, there's water running down the steps. Miss Parker!"
Waiting for a moment Broots waits to see if Miss Parker responds. Not able to hold back any longer Broots pulls himself through the window. In a matter of seconds Broots opens the front door for Sydney. As soon as Sydney is inside both men rush up the water soaked steps.
Reaching the top of the stairs first Broots runs in the direction of the sound of running water. If he wasn't in such a hurry he would have noticed a few stray empty liquor bottles. Almost at the end of the hall Broots can just see inside the bathroom. It isn't until he is right at the doorway that he sees Miss Parker fully dressed lying in the tub as water pelts down on her from the shower head above.
"Sydney! I found her!"
Without any hesitation the computer geek turns off the water and picks Miss Parker's limp form up out of the tub. Before he can get into the hallway with her Sydney is by his side helping him carry her to her room.
"We have to get her out of these wet clothes. She should have some pajamas or something in her chester drawers, go fetch a pair."
"W-what?"
"Broots, this is no time to be shy."
Hesitating for only the briefest of moments Broots finds her a pair of emerald green silk pajamas. Praying that she won't kill him when this is all over Broots helps Sydney undress the woman of his dreams and redresses her in the pajamas. Together they place her in the warmth of her bed and makes sure that she is well covered in blankets.
"Will she be okay? Do we need to get her to the hospital?"
"She's fine physically, just sleeping. It appears she had too much to drink last night. Right now she's just sleeping it off. At the moment I'm more concerned about her mental health. One can only hold in their feelings for so long."
The shrill ringing of a phone interrupts the older man. Not seeing the phone Broots gets down on his hands and knees looking for it under the bed. Finding it under the nightstand he hands it up to Sydney. With a questioning look the older man answers the phone.
"Hello?"
"Sydney? Where's Miss Parker?"
"Jarod! I must admit, I'm surprised to find you calling Miss Parker. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Ethan's worried about Miss Parker. Is she alright?"
"It appears that she's not dealing with things as well as one would expect of her. All in all though, her physical health is fine unless you count the hangover she will have when she wakes." Looking down at the young woman Sydney frowns in worry.
"Maybe For once she is dealing with her problems. Letting herself feel something after years of holding it in. She's only human after all." With a click the phone line goes dead.
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" Well?" No sooner has Jarod hung up the phone before Ethan is bombarding him with questions about his sister.
"She's alright physically, just a little drunk."
"How long till we get there?"
"About another hour. Don't worry, Sydney will take care of her."
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Somewhere In The Atlantic
For twenty-four hours the groups of sweepers from the Centre and the Triumvirate have been looking for the scrolls and Mr. Parker's body. So far they have only found Mr. Parker's parachute. No signs of Mr. Parker or the scrolls have been found. Hope of finding either is in very small proportions among the men hunting. Even if Mr. Parker had managed not to drown, the sharks would surely have killed him.
"Hey, Sam." Turning to face the sweeper who spoke Sam raises and eyebrow questioningly.
"Call it in, we got the body. Looks like he drowned."
"What about the scrolls?"
"No sign of them yet, but we're looking." With a nod Sam steps away from the sweeper to a more secluded part of the boat.