Disclaimer: Please see Chapter 1 for the usual statements.
Author's note: The phonetics placed in this chapter areillustrative of what a particular thick accent sounds like only. --- The legal issue brought up was an interesting factoid I found while researching something completely unrelated. It was included here for added flavor. I don't claim that the legal loophole still exists or ever did in the State of Delaware. It did exist at one time in other states. -- The Portrait of Dorian Grey was written by Oscar Wilde and is a masterful study of corruption and depravation.
Time to Consider
Chapter 34
By Callisto
Kowaris Cannery—Present
Anchorage, AK
–Family—
By the time they arrived in Alaska, Parker had made peace with her humbled and bruised younger brother. Given the severity of her reaction and his older brother's silenceat being brought back, Ethan thought perhaps Jarod was more sympathetic. Jarod curtly informed Ethan that though he did understand, he couldn't help but feel resentment at being what amounted to as kidnapped—again. This was something Ethan had neglected to consider and felt even more remorseful guilt than he had previously. Once they entered the Cannery, the major led them through a confusing rim of empty offices and onto the main shop floor. The couple slowly came to a stop as they caught their first look at the machine that had shifted them through time and changed their lives forever. The major called out to his two other children to let them know of their safe return.
Emily appeared suddenly by his side and stared at her father, wondering where he had put Jarod. The question in her eyes was greeted by the confused wonder in her father's face. The major unconsciously ran a nervous hand through his short hair as he tried to sort through his thoughts. It was clear that he was at a loss for words. When Daniel appeared with another young man, all the color drained from Emily's face.
"Hi, Em," Jarod started slowly. At least this time no one would confuse him for his clone. Daniel, now practically his twin, was standing next to his sister with a thoroughly confused look on his face.
Ethan stepped forward and began the explanations. "Everyone, this is Jarod and my sister. To make a long story short, the machine worked. The reason they look like this is because they took an age inhibitor formulated from the frog which caused them to return to the places they used to be the first time they were this age."
The room remained silent as Emily inched forward while carefully studying her older brother's face. Jarod gave her a pained look but tried to smile through it. This was another trademark expression that his clone, Daniel never developed. Emily rushed forward and embraced him. She put one hand on the back of his neck as her other arm gathered what it could of him closer while smiling through her tears. It didn't matter what he looked like, she had been afraid that she might never have the chance to hug him again.
The rest of the family greeted the prodigal in relieved celebration. Parker watched them envelop Jarod into a loving embrace that, for her, was left in the variant timeline. The reality of returning to this timeframe slammed home in her mind. Regardless of Sydney's sentimental tripe, she always knew this timeframe had very little to offer her. Ethan was the only bright spot but even in thishe truly belonged to Jarod's family. Instead of jealousy, Parker felt wholly and completely alone—an unwelcome but completely familiar sensation. Quietly, she slipped past the crowd around Jarod and stared at the machine that had bounced them between two different realities. While studying the area where the event horizon manifests, a heavily accented voice said, "I had no idea that it could transport a human being—much less two of them. Talk about your scientific accidents."
Parker turned to find a good-looking Harry Potter-type standing at her elbow. "Eet was bery esziting brrakethrough. Eye could not belif eet." (It was a very interesting breakthrough. I could not believe it.)
"You must be the mad scientist," she stated quietly. At his nod, she stared at him for several seconds and then returning her gaze to his machine added, "Anyone tell you that you look just like Harry Potter?"
"No. Tha es fantasy. Tees es har zience. Eyem no muhjeshun," he huffed dismissively. (That is fantasy. This is hard science. I'm no magician.) Actually, too many people had made that observation ever since the books firstcame out.
Parker gave a half laugh and looked at the scientist with considerable amusement. "Yup, Harry Potter with a thick Spanish accent. Well, Einstein do you have any ideas on how to get us back?"
Before Norwood could answer, Ethan stepped up and replied solemnly, "His name is Norwood. Norwood this is my sister, Parker. You've barely been back and already you want to leave."
A smart retort was on the tip of her tongue when she recalled some of what the voices had told her back at Sydney's. Ethan's goal was her return. As hard as it was for her to wrap her mind around that tough pearl, her little brother's attitude kept proving the voices correct.
"I have so many questions to ask you. About your experiences, what an alternate timeframe looks like, what was the same and what was different. Also how and why did you design an age inhibitor?" Norwood asked in his heavily accented English.
"Not now, Norwood. She needs some rest and something to eat before you start with all your questions," Ethan said protectively shooting the scientist a dark look. "I made up a room upstairs for you with some of your stuff," he said quietly while pointing indistinctly towards some stairs.
"Thank you, Ethan," she responded gratefully. Looking back at the scientist she murmured softly, "We both have a lot of questions for each other. We'll talk later."
Jarod had been careful to watch everything Parker did. Despite his struggling inability to concentrate on one thing at a time; strong emotions seemed to momentarily neutralize the myriad thoughts and ideas that constantly surged through his brain. A bitter dose of jealousy had no trouble overcoming the pretender's heart as he observed the Latin themed Harry Potter slide up and speak quietly to her. Even after Ethan rescued Parker from the man, his obvious admiration of her came through clearly. Jarod's eyes feverishly watched the scientist and Parker—careful to observe her reactions towards the tall, thin stranger.
Daniel, who was in the middle of trying to recap for Jarod what they had gone through in trying to retrieve them, saw that he had lost his audience. Emily and the major saw the uncharacteristic, angrily possessive look in Jarod's eye and followed his line of sight as the pretender obsessively kept his eyes on Parker. The major surreptitiously touched his daughter's arm. He exchanged a worried glance with his daughter as she tried to regain Jarod's attention.
All Angelo's unspoken worries, the frantic warnings the voices kept giving Ethan, and the predictions those same voices gave Parker were finally becoming apparent in both time travelers. Jarod and Parker's sojourn through time and the adjustments it had been forced to make left a definite imprint on both their minds. Two months later, Norwood and Jarod's family would come to understand the label the voices gave Ethan when they termed the couple's reactions as 'rift-madness'.
The Centre – Past
Blue Cove, DE
They entered the monolith structure with an ease that contrasted with its imposing aura. A pair of muscular sweepers led the way with two others bringing up the rear. Trevor Abernathy pled ignorance when it came to the strange terminology the Centre used for its employees. He wasn't sure how much Catherine had told her husband about their escapades in liberating a small, very intelligent boy from this dark place.
Ben was working on a lot of adrenaline, anger and worry. Over two months had passed since they had heard from their children. Because of the two prior kidnapping attempts, Ben was convinced that his brother had stolen his daughter—trying to claim the girl as his own. That was bizarre enough but when Ben told the major that his brother had already stolen his son and refused to return the boy, Trevor felt as though he stepped into a convoluted episode of Jarod's favorite sci-fi show, The Outer Limits. His idea was to bust the boy out of this prison and take him as well as their kids. Ben became strangely quiet at the idea and Trevor decided to let it drop. Whatever else was going on had the power to dictate Ben's behavior against his own desires. The chances that Jarod had been caught up in the same net as the girl were practically certain. All he wanted was Jarod's safe return.
After traversing a maze of identical-looking hallways, they entered a beautifully landscaped interior concourse which then led to a spacious mezzanine area. A tall, black linebacker of a man met the two sweepers and smoothly replaced them in leading them to Ben's demented brother. Two large doors were immediately opened to a heavy-handed art deco-styled office and seated behind a massive, self-important desk was its arrogant owner. A large man with thinning, graying hair, thick mustache and cadaverous air stood slowly and grunted a gruff, unappreciative greeting.
"Benjamin, what a surprise, what brings you back?"
"My daughter. I want to know what you've been up to, Leith. Why are you hounding my family? It should be enough for you to have stolen my son," Ben replied with deceptive heat. Deceptive in that it seemed he was only mildly upset. His brother had no idea of the murderous emotions running rampant in Ben's heart.
"Well, nice to see you too, brother," came Leith's disgruntled reply. "Why don't you have a seat so we can have a calm and civil conversation?"
"Can the bullshit, Leith. Talk to me now before I burn every bridge, every favor I still have to get you tossed out of here on your ear."
"I see trying to have a civil dialog with you isn't going to work," Leith Parker blustered ineffectually, trying to buy himself some time. Raines chose to walk in on the meeting unexpectedly. Instead of turning around to leave, he gently closed the door and stood with his back against it as though barring any escape.
"To answer your question, I haven't done anything to my daughter. I was merely trying to get a message to her to contact me. I miss her and wanted to hear her voice. Unfortunately the sweeper sent to carry the message got over-zealous and tried to force her to return home. He's been reprimanded harshly."
"Your daughter? She's Ben's child, why are you so insistent on claming your brother's children as your own?" Trevor asked curiously. He had meant to remain silent but that question had been burning in his mind since Ben partially explained the situation.
"Who the hell are you? What business is any of this to you?" Parker asked brusquely.
Before Trevor could answer, Ben deflected his brother's interest. "He's with me, that's all you need to know. As you can imagine, there're a few details too distasteful to go into."
"'Too distasteful?' First, my brother seduced my wife. Then of course he had to sleep with her. To add insult to injury, he gets her pregnant and then conspires with her to kidnap my children away from me. You see, mystery man, in the state of Delaware, when a woman has a child in wedlock, regardless of who fathered the whelp, it's still considered a product of the marriage. Any children my slut of a wife produced with another man are legally considered my children." Parker's deep voice was rimmed liberally with corruption, greed and disdain.
"You twisted bastard! You know it was your Dorian Grey habits that drove her away from you long before I came into the picture. I handed this place over to you to control, hone and grow. Instead you've allowed it to control and twist you. For the longest, I wondered at the reports I kept getting from my contacts in the Triumvirate. That is until I met Catherine and she told me a part of what was going on here. The grotesque experiments, kidnappings and backroom deals you've always fantasized about are finally a reality. It took everything I had to turn this place around from the cesspool our great-grandfather envisioned into something worth being proud of, now you've taken it a step further than even our ancestors imagined. My daughter, my child isn't going to be a part of this."
"Is that the reason why you've interrupted my day? To spout nothing but maudlin drivel at me? Ben, please what happened to your pride? Or did the bitch bleed every last shred of self-respect out of you before taking you for every cent?"
Ben's face contorted into a mask of unrelenting anger. Using every ounce of self-control to keep from launching himself at his evil brother, Ben took a half step towards his arrogant sibling. Parker, finally registering the impending physical danger his brother represented, shrank back, losing any advantage of arrogant dignity he imagined he possessed.
"If I hear one more filthy word from your mouth about my wife, you'll be taking your meals out of a straw. Answer my questions before I lose all my inhibitions and pound you into the sorry sack of lying dog shit you really are. Where's my little girl? Where have your goons taken her?"
It took a moment for Parker to get past his brother's credible threat to comprehend his question. Unmasked surprise overtook his features; he truly didn't know what Ben was talking about. His bumbling idiot sweepers were incapable of catching a cold much less his daughter.
The look on Parker's face told Ben that once again, Catherine was correct. That fact irked him more than he was willing to acknowledge even to himself. He loved his wife beyond distraction but was angry to the bone for the seeds of uncertainty that she recently sowed in his heart. For the first time in their long marriage, he questioned her fidelity. It was extremely unsettling to have the urge to pause during his brother's angry diatribe against the woman he loved because of those suspicions.
"So, my Angel has finally seen through you and left. Well, rest assured that no, I didn't have anything to do with Angel's disappearance. I'll have my people put the word out and I'm sure she'll turn up in a day or two. For your information—that young woman is my legacy and she damn well will take her place alongside her brother when the time comes for them to take over. After she's settled here at her true home, I'll make sure she contacts you," Parker stated breezily, once again on solid ground and feeling self-assured.
"If you ever put your hands on that girl, I swear by everything within me, I'll break you in half. Count yourself lucky that I don't throttle you where you stand for trying to kidnap her in the first place!" Ben was quickly losing control again. He knew he would have to leave before the temptation of hurting his so-called brother took completely over.
Once again, Parker shrank from the wall of violence that emanated from his brother. The shock of so much adverse emotion coming from Ben prompted Parker to take an embarrassing step backwards to further distance himself from his brother's reach.
"Perhaps it would be less counterproductive if we worked together to retrieve the girl. That way a reasonable compromise could be reached," stated a low voice coming from the door.
Ben continued to stare down his brother before breaking his gaze and turning slightly to get a glance at an Igor-like man guarding the door. Ben's lip curled derisively as he slowly shook his head. Returning his blistering gaze to his sibling, Ben said with utter disgust, "I can't believe we're brothers. For Heaven's sake, look at yourself, Leith. You've convinced yourself that your best shot at a legacy is through my children. How pathetic can you get?" With that he turned to leave and found Raines still standing blocking the door. Ben's eyes narrowed taking in the other man's measure as it became clearly apparent to Raines the wisdom of removing himself before physical damage ensued.
But before Ben was out the door, Raines murmured softly, "The Triumvirate will be most interested in the context of this little visit."
"Be my guest and while you're on the phone, you had better have the want-ads in the other hand. The second they contact me, I'll find out why they chose such a pathetic excuse of a watchdog for my brother."
Patience having run completely thin, neither man waited for their escorts to reappear. Trevor followed Ben through the confusing maze of hallways. They quickly found themselves in the main mezzanine and within sight of the way out. Ben obviously knew his way around the place very well.
"It looks like we've hit another dead end." When it was apparent that Ben was treating his statement as a rhetorical comment, Trevor tried again.
"You used to run this huge corporation on your own?"
"Yes. It's supposed to be a think tank / research facility whose primary goal is to benefit and enrich mankind. Obviously, my brother has other ideas."
"Why don't you take over again? It's obvious that your brother isn't fit for leadership. Hell, he can't control it or use it for what it was intended," Trevor stated—a bit more forcefully than he meant.
"Because my intent was diametrically opposed to its original mandate. The forces that are corrupting and twisting my brother were there when I was in charge. I left because there's something about this place that's corrosive to anyone exposed to it over a length of time and I never found a way to rid the place of what ever it is," Ben replied in a much more controlled tone of voice. Trevor breathed a sigh of relief as they made their way through another maze of hallways and the exit came into view.
After a lengthy pause, Ben slowed his brisk pace and asked quietly, "My brother's a filthy-minded ass but there's something I need to know. It's been bothering me for sometime. Have you had an affair with my wife?"
Trevor felt his stomach constrict at the question. The nasty innuendos and salacious accusations Leith Parker spewed against Catherine had no relation whatsoever with the brief liaison he had with her. Not wanting to confront Ben's pain in this place, Trevor looked at him solemnly and answered evenly, "No offence but after meeting your brother, I wouldn't put it past that creep to monitor every hallway and room around here. Besides, this is the last place I want to discuss anything other than what we came here to find out. Let's get a drink where we can talk in private and both of us can get a few things off our chests."
Ben led the way while Trevor's mind whirled through a number of possible ways to approach telling Ben the truth about what had occurred between Catherine and himself almost eight years ago. If Sydney had been able to analyze Trevor's mental efforts he would've come to understand where Jarod inherited his abilities.