(12) The Hoops & Loopholes Of Life
Sylar put the letter aside & looked over Aviv, snoring away in his lap. "Yeah, I'd like to do that too, now." Aviv's answer was an ear twitch. "Alright," He moved the dog to the floor, earning a low grumble as the dog woke up. "Oh shut up," Sylar ordered as he headed upstairs. "Why don't we go to bed?" He paused at the top of the stairs to watch Aviv come up, stopping three times on his way. "Now it's happening to you, is it?" He picked Aviv up. "Starting to get old, aren't you? Well, you still have a few good years left. Best not to tell Noah just yet."
Once they were settled in bed with Aviv curled up on the pillow (despite being put at the foot of the bed twice before Sylar gave up trying), Sylar turned on his phone. He had been holding off but his curiosity finally won out. He looked up the video of the girl jumping from a Ferris wheel & surviving. He watched it twice before putting the phone on the nightstand & turning off the light. "So is that what happened all those years ago, Claire? You betray us all but Peter didn't like that, did he?" He stared at the darkened ceiling for a long moment. "Foolish girl." He tried turning over to sleep but his head landed on Aviv. The dog barked loudly in his ear. "Should have listened to me," Sylar complained, lying on his back once more.
After another hour of not sleeping, he got up once more. Aviv hopped off the bed & followed Sylar down stairs. They ended up in the kitchen. Aviv sat down, one ear up, as he waited expectantly for a treat. Sylar tossed a cookie onto the floor before making some coffee but he didn't drink it as he stared at the dark window.
Fact was, he agreed with Peter & he didn't like that. Claire should not have betrayed people with powers like that, but siding with Peter was also hard for Sylar. He looked down at Aviv. "I have to wait over five thousand years to kill him apparently & now I'm agreeing with him over my own wife." Aviv whined. "Yeah, my sentiments exactly." Sylar went back to the living room, coffee left forgotten on the counter. Aviv jumped up beside him on the couch. Sylar held the dog up. "You know, I killed someone today? I haven't done that since Noah was born. My next kill was supposed to be Peter."
He put Aviv aside, then looked at the folded letter he had left on the table. He picked it up again. Aviv looked up at him. "It's about Noah," Sylar told the dog. "Shlomo was worried Noah might find out about me. So am I. It's my biggest fear right now. He said sometimes it's better to find out from someone he knows instead of being influenced by other sources." He petted Aviv for a moment. "I get what he's saying, but how does he expect me to do that? What a topic to have over a nice Sabbath lunch, hmm? Shabbot Shalom, Noah. By the way, I'm the greatest serial killer in the world. I've killed almost a hundred people, if not more & enjoyed every last murder. Yeah, that will go over real well!" He leaned against the back of the couch with Aviv's head in his lap. "Now Noah's growing up. He wants to go to New York, of all places. I can't let that happen any time soon, even if he does find out about me. Peter is there. So is Claire. Then there's Jason. He sees these videos of people with abilities. If he keeps digging like that, he might find me."
Sylar mulled over that dilemma for a few minutes, coming to a conclusion Noah wouldn't like. "I have to bust them up," he finally spoke again. "It'll be hard. They go to the same school & I can't explain it to Jason's family either. I just have to keep Noah busy so he can't hang out as much with Jason." His Aptitude kicked in & Sylar devised a plan to keep the boys apart. "Jason is gone to America for six weeks. Before he comes back, I will take you & Noah away for the rest of the summer. We can go to the Six Flags park in Mexico. Free Willy was filmed there. Maybe do both Disney Parks. If we keep moving, people won't notice me. I could keep the boys apart all summer without making it look like that. I just have to figure out what to do during school days." Aviv barked twice. "I know. I KNOW! It's a lot of work. But we'll fix it." Aviv climbed up Sylar's chest & shoved his fluffy head under Sylar's chin. The pair of them eventually fell asleep.
After Tirzah dropped Noah off the next afternoon, Sylar sat Noah down in the living room & explained part of his plan for the summer, leaving out the fact he was now silently trying to keep him away from Jason. "We would be back about four days before you go back to school," He finished. "It is a lot of moving around but I thought it best to keep out of sight of certain, uh, company, we don't want to get mixed up with."
"Well Dad," Noah finally spoke. "I know this must be very strange for you since you have been avoiding both countries for a long time."
"I have you to worry about," Sylar said. "But if we do this, I have a lot of conditions. The Kabbalah can't protect us out there. Don't mention your ability to any body. Always keep your passport on you, but don't get caught in a bad situation either. We will be teleporting around. Not flying in. That gives us a lot more time to see a few places in the summer we have left."
"So we're basically illegal in both countries without citizenship or Visas right?"
"Pretty much."
"I don't have any plans to run into police any time soon," Noah said as he stood up. He was pushed back down by the force power.
"I'm not finished."
"What else is there?" Noah asked curiously.
"People hunt others with abilities in America," Sylar began. "If I tell you to do something, you must do it no matter how strange it sounds. I say run, you run. You leave me behind if I tell you to. Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself. I've dodged that sort more than once."
"Do you really think it will come to that?"
"Most likely not, considering the places we are going to," Sylar began. "I'm just thinking worst case scenarios. People like us always have to plan for the worst & hope for the best."
"I suppose so," Noah replied. "So where are all the places we are going?"
Sylar looked Noah over for a long moment. "We are NOT going to New York."
"I kind of figured that out on my own," Noah muttered.
"Good," Sylar sighed before adding, "Alright, let's go to bed."
"WHAT? WHY?" Noah gasped. "It's only two in the afternoon!"
"Not in California it isn't," Sylar pointed out. "We will sleep until about seven in the evening our time, then beam over. I was thinking of jumping between countries as well. Do Disneyland in America, California, then we can go to Mexico, then back again. We keep it unpredictable like that & we should be fine."
"I can't sleep this early," Noah moaned as he got up.
"Time zones are a pain in the ass," Sylar acknowledged. "But there is no point going over right now as it is still very early in the morning there. Let's just try."
While Noah went to his own room & managed to at least doze on & off, Sylar however remained wide awake, waiting for California to wake up. He dreaded going back, partly because of a high risk of Noah finding out something he didn't want Noah to know any time soon, but also because he felt like a run-away returning home after a long absence, apart from trips to Alaska in which all the while he had thought it was Canadian. America was his native country, even if things hadn't worked out well the first time.
He had already taken care of things online, using Noah's name for anything such as tickets for any where they went, to the hotel, which was no where near any place he & Noah would actually go to. He did not use Noah's middle names, only the first & last. Gray was very common, even Bennet but Petrelli was more unusual & associated with his past & put all the names together would be too much of a coincidence. So he went with a simple Noah Gray for such things. They would stay in Sacramento & simply beam over to wherever Noah wanted.
A few minutes before it was time to leave, Sylar shifted to look like Noah & teleported over to the hotel to sign in. He stood silently on the ground before the hotel, looking around to make sure no one he knew was there. He located any cameras & discreetly used his force power to turn them away from their room as an added precaution. At last, he returned to Israel for Noah & brought him to California along with Aviv.
The first thing Noah did when they went outside was put his hand down on the ground. "I can't believe I'm touching 'the black'!" He remarked as he stood up. He looked back at Sylar who seemed to be hiding under the roof of the hotel's entrance. "Are you ok, Dad?"
"For now," Sylar finally moved forward to join his son on the lawn.
From then on, Sylar felt himself constantly looking over his shoulder as he moved Noah & Aviv around. He brought Noah to several places he had wanted to see, including the Grand Canyon & Mount Rushmore. Aviv had plenty of fun on long sandy beaches in California, Mexico & Florida. Some of the places they had visited were areas Sylar had never been but he didn't let his guard down for a moment. He even resorted to wearing a cap with the visor pulled down a bit to hide his face from street cameras.
Noah, on the other hand, was having the time of his life as he finally got to be at some of the places he had only ever read about. He all but overloaded his phone with pictures & videos of every place they visited to show Jason later. He was extra surprised at seeing the same aquarium used for the Free Willy movie. Sylar had been silent about it & just sprung it on him. Noah's greatest desire though, was still New York City but he did not mention it, knowing what the answer would be. He did not know that any time his father touched him, Sylar could feel it anyway with the empathy ability.
Through it all though, Noah noticed that his father seemed to hide even when they were in plain sight. He was often hanging back from Noah, keeping his son in sight but from under a roof or near a place he could just disappear into. Sometimes it seemed he would use Aviv as a cover, holding the dog up close to his face. They had even switched hotels several times throughout their travels, twice being in Mexican hotels.
Noah was beginning to realize he was missing something. As far as he knew, they were avoiding New York mostly because his mother died there & Sylar was still upset at her loss. He knew they had to be careful with abilities in America & Mexico. He had seen it first hand in some videos Jason sent him. But by now, he was starting to feel like something else was going on but he didn't dare ask, assuming it had to do with his mother again. He hoped that someday soon, his father would finally talk about her & he was prepared to wait. Surely after doing this trip through 'the black', it might help to open the topic at last. Noah could not be more wrong if he tried but he had no clue as to the real reason Sylar was dodging these two countries.
Sylar made sure they didn't stay in one spot for more than three days at a time & if they returned to the same area, or a place close to where they had been, it wouldn't be for at least a week before going back. He kept the visits sporadic & unpredictable, even jumping between both countries back & forth a few times. He also preferred early hours (much to Noah's annoyance) or late hours & if they had to be out in the middle of the day, he always somehow managed to blend into the crowd so well, even Noah was unable to find him sometimes (not knowing his father could shape shift as man or beast & two times he held 'Aviv' was actually his father in disguise while the real Aviv was off sniffing at things unseen).
The last 'night' before going home was back in Mexico. They had gone to bed early to help get used to the timezone changes. Sylar waited until it was almost time to leave before teleporting to the café down the road where free internet service was offered. It was closed for the night but that didn't deter him as he was able to get in by simply beaming over. He could easily shut down the security system using their own computer. He then sat silently for a moment, staring at the screen before doing a search on himself. He had wanted to use a local computer to see if it would allow such a thing.
Sure enough, it was all still there. Mass serial killer from New York. By now, the cat was out of the bag about abilities so the entire list of his known kills was readily available to anyone. Not a single one was missed either & Sylar was sure Noah Bennet had a hand in that. It still stated Elle Bishop as another victim of his, location of body still unknown, but that couldn't be helped as most people didn't know what had actually went on between them. Elle's body was the only one he had hid out of his entire killing spree. He had destroyed it completely so it would never be found. But he didn't consider her a murder of his, more of an assisted suicide & he should have been beside her but by then, he was unable to do that.
Sylar looked away from the screen. It was almost hard to believe that this was all him. It was foreign to him yet at the same time, he couldn't deny that he missed it a little. It would come back, his own murderous father had said. But his own father never had the proper training the Kabbalah had offered Sylar. He didn't know of his grandson either. Sylar had hid Noah from everyone. Turning back to the screen to turn it all off, he noticed something else added to his profile.
"Reported to be lost five millennia into the future, banished by Peter Petrelli," Sylar read aloud to himself before laughing out loud for a full minute. "Oh Peter, you clueless boy! I bet you just love reaping the glory for that. But I'm right here & you're next!" He continued reading. "There have been reports of seeing the mass murderer known as Gabriel 'Sylar' Gray all over the world but as of yet, none have been confirmed. Since there is always a possibility of return, efforts have been put in place to contain this threat should the need arise." He turned it off & stood up. "I'd love to test these efforts but I have bigger priorities right now. Just wait for those five millennia, Peter. I will get you."
Sylar returned to the hotel & went to Noah's bedside. As he looked the boy over in the dimness before waking him in a few minutes, he realized something. Noah wouldn't exist if Peter hadn't tossed him into the future. Noah was Peter's doing. "Oh great," Sylar moaned softly. "I'm putting your Great-uncle into a good light again." He rolled his eyes, annoyed with himself, before poking Noah awake.
Once Noah was over his disorientation, they finally returned to Israel & Noah had a few days to get his sleep pattern back to normal in time for school. Sylar now worried about the problem of keeping the boys separate whenever possible without getting caught.
But thoughts of Jason were temporarily driven from his mind upon return to his Kabbalah group, not as just another member any more, but as their new leader. Everything Shlomo had left to him had been waiting in the mail when they had returned. Sylar was now responsible for their group as well as overseeing the school & university Shlomo had owned. Sylar himself didn't gain ownership as the university went to Shlomo's son while Ariel took over the school for young children, but he did now have access to records of who enrolled.
Tirzah was still there which meant continuous close contact with the Gatineau family but on the other hand, he did learn that Jason was now picking up extra studies to become a rabbi which would keep him busy & out of Sylar's hair for the time being. Sylar now took over the large office that was the entirety of the top floor of the school where he had formerly met Shlomo.
It also put him in close quarters with Ariel who now owned the school. Sylar was silently glad for her presence. Though he kept it friendly with anyone in the group, he only really considered Tirzah's family & Ariel to be his real friends which was odd for him who would rarely make friends with anyone. Ariel ended up being his greatest support when he realized what it all meant to take over Shlomo's position.
He was the one now to find others to join. He had to find people with abilities & extend an invitation. It brought up memories of the old days when he hunted people for abilities. But now, he wasn't looking for a kill. Now he was like Noah Bennet, bringing people in. It was not the same way, but the magnitude of Shlomo's work suddenly hit Sylar like a ton of bricks, causing an unusual panic to rise up in him & it was all Ariel could do to calm him down.
"Oh my God, I'm the new Noah Bennet!" Sylar began pacing.
Ariel tried to follow him. "This is nothing like what he did."
"Look for people with abilities," Sylar stated. "Something I did back in the day & they wound up dead. Bring them in. That's what Bennet would do & half of them still wound up dead, some of them I killed myself."
"Gabriel! Calm down!"
Sylar glared at her. "Telling a retired serial killer to calm down is about as bad as telling a woman to calm down." He threw Shlomo's documents at her. "Did he not realize what this would do to me? The position he put me in? I am Sylar! I used to do this all the time & I even worked with Bennet for a short time."
"Why do you think he made you take over?" Ariel tried again. "You've been there. You know what to do but more importantly, what NOT to do. This is nothing like what Bennet did! We don't force people into the Kabbalah, remember? They get one invitation. They don't have to come!"
"Does it make any difference?" Sylar snarled. "I am the one still looking for them. What if I come out of retirement & start killing them again? What if Noah finds out? Either of the Noahs in my life? I don't know which is worse. If Bennet finds out, he will come here & then find my son & destroy him like what he did to me. If my son finds out, he could run away. End up in America & still end up with Noah Bennet!"
"We don't play the what if game here," Ariel grabbed Sylar with both hands & held him steady so he wouldn't pace any more. "We don't bag & tag. We don't force our way into anyone's life. We don't make someone come here & anyone is free to leave AND!" She hung on even though Sylar made a feeble attempt at pulling away. "We don't kill anyone just for the hell of it! So calm the frik down & let me help you or so help me God!"
Sylar actually gulped. "Eesh! What is it with you Jewish women putting fear into men's hearts?"
Ariel puffed herself up. "We know how to handle our men."
"Yikes."
"Now," Ariel finally let him go. "Shut up & let me help you."
"Yes, Ma'am!"
"Don't you Ma'am me, Mr. Gray," Ariel ordered as she walked away. She muttered "Ben zonah!" under breath.
"I heard that!"
"Good." Ariel sat down in his chair & looked up at him expectantly. "Well sit your sorry ass down, already." Sylar did so, albeit rather sheepishly. He was half-afraid Ariel might call Tirzah up to help her yell at him & he already knew how scary Tirzah could be when she got mad & started yelling in Hebrew. "Now," Ariel went on all business-like. "Why don't we start with this young lady right here?" She handed over a paper.
Sylar took it. "Jessica Havok. Telapathic. Brown eyes but pulsing blue when using her ability." He looked at Ariel. "How do you know her?"
"I am her kvaterin," Ariel said. "For all intents & purposes, you Christianized folks would say Godmother. Her whole family was killed during an attack on Jerusalem but they had left me with legal guardianship of her. They were Christians themselves & so they just used the word Godparent. But we Jews do have a similar idea."
"Is this why you keep going to Jerusalem all the time?"
"Yes."
"Why don't you bring her here to Haifa?" Sylar asked. "It's a lot safer here, well in a matter of speaking."
"I'm trying," Ariel replied. "It's her job. She is a game designer. We are trying to get a transfer over to here so she can move. She is quite interested in the Kabbalah already & I'd like to bring her in all the way. We just need a job position open for her. Most are in Tel Aviv but we want to establish a place here & she would manage it."
"So what's the hold up?"
"It takes funding for th—"
"Get me some metal," Sylar interrupted. "Any steel rod will do. I have the Midas touch, remember?"
Ariel thought for a moment. "Oh yes. Bob Bishop's power."
"Yeah," Sylar nodded. "Let's not let him die in vain, shall we?" After a short pause, he said, "What?"
Ariel was just staring at him. "I like how you said that. See? You are turning your life around. Every single day." She got up & moved away from the desk. "You can have your chair back now."
"Thanks," Sylar scoffed but after she left, he caught himself smirking. "Stop that! She's mortal." He reminded himself.
Though it only took a few minutes to 'create' the money needed, it still took time to set up the new gaming center & it would be almost two months before they could show it to Jessica. In the meantime, Sylar was able to relax a bit before trying to locate others with powers. He waited for Jessica's arrival & would do one invite at a time.
Everything was going fine & he was slowly settling down until a few days before he & Ariel would go to Jerusalem to fetch Jessica. He had never set foot in that city due to the constant bombings but wasn't too worried since he couldn't exactly die that way anyway. But then Noah handed him a paper-slip he had gotten from school earlier that week that he had somehow forgotten about until the last minute which turned Sylar's life upside-down.
There was to be a parent-teacher function at the school on Sunday. That was fine. There was at least two a year. But this time, a name of a teacher jumped out at him from the list. "Um, Noah? How long has your science teacher been at the school?"
"She just started & will be here until mid-January," Noah said.
"You're just telling me this now? It's Sabbath in less than an hour & there isn't much I can do on such sort notice."
"I just forgot," Noah shrugged. "Besides, there isn't much to do except show up."
Oh but there was a lot this time! Sylar tried not to glare at Noah. It wasn't exactly his fault. "So why this substitute teacher?"
"Mr. Guzman has gone back to Australia for a bit due to a family emergency. Why?"
"Oh no reason," Sylar shrugged it off. "Just didn't know about Guzman is all."
"Ok," Noah picked up Aviv. "I'm going to take him out to the beach."
Sylar stood in the living room, watching Noah & Aviv head down to the sand. Once he was sure they'd be gone for a while, he threw his glasses aside & all but turned the entire house inside out looking for his phone. He finally found it on the stand next to his bed (like exactly where it should be) & dived for it at the same time as using his power to call it to his hand. It ended up smacking him on the nose. Sylar lay sprawled out over his bed as he rubbed his face with one hand, then called Ariel.
"Hi Gabriel, what's up?"
"Um, I'm really sorry about this," Sylar began. "I know Sabbath is starting soon but it's kind of an emergency."
"What happened? Is Noah alright?"
"Yeah, until Sunday if we don't fix this."
"Fix what?"
"Parent-teacher thing," Sylar began. "There's a substitute for his science class until mid-January." He hesitated before saying, "Maya Herrera."
"Ok," Ariel replied slowly.
"Um," Sylar cast around for words. "I, uh, might have maybe technically uh," he shut up, realizing he was rambling.
"Did you have sex with her during your wild days & she found out you used to kill people?"
Sylar just glared at the wall. "YES!" He finally ground out. "It's worse than that. I might have possibly ... stabbedherbrothertodeath." He finished in a hurried voice.
"Can you repeat that, slowly in a legible language?"
"Uh, I sort of um, you know, her brother," Sylar tried again. "I stabbed him."
"Oh." Ariel heaved a sigh. "Did he die?"
"Ohh yeah," Sylar replied. "I had to use a knife since I lost my powers to that Shanti virus going around. He died of multiple stab wounds. Totally my fault & his sister found out & now she's here & I'm royally screwed come Sun—"
"GABRIEL!"
"WHAT?"
"Breathe."
Sylar barely paused for breath but managed to say in a slower voice, "Please tell me we know someone who can erase memories? Preferably non-Jewish so the Sabbath won't matter to them?"
"I could just call René."
Sylar pushed himself up so that he was kneeling on his bed as he let that sink in. "René. As in the Haitian, René?"
"Yeah."
Sylar remained silent for almost a minute. "Wait ... what?"
"Who do you think was Shlomo's spy on the immortals running about, including you, back then?"
More shocked silence. "So you mean René knows I'm back in the proper timeline? Where I am? About my son?"
"Yes, of course. Why wouldn't he?"
"Damn that cheerleader's power!" Sylar exclaimed. "I really need to pass out, right now." He lay back. "Ohh. Not doing good!"
"You're fine," Ariel replied.
"No wonder Shlomo knew about me all along," Sylar went on. "René! The Haitian. Claire's guardian!"
"The one & only," Ariel had the nerve to laugh at him. "But if you want me to call him before Sabbath starts, you better hang up now."
"Right," Sylar gasped. "I'm just going to ... I'm going to go pass out somewhere. Shabbot Shalom, Ariel."
"Shabbot Shalom."
Sylar tossed the phone aside & stared at the ceiling, still processing that. After almost twenty minutes went by, he called her back. "Hi. Me again."
"Ohh now you're pushing it," Ariel teased. "Sabbath starts in a few seconds. What other murders of yours are coming back to haunt you now?"
"Funny," Sylar half-snapped. "Does this mean, René answers to me now?"
"Yep."
"Why didn't anyone tell me?"
"Someone just did when it became relevant, like me, right now."
"You're having fun with this, aren't you?"
"Mhm," Ariel shamelessly admitted. "Payback for interrupting the starting hour of the Sabbath."
"Uh huh," Sylar groaned. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Gabriel," Ariel sing-songed out before hanging up."Oh that man," She groaned, as she sent a text out. "René, problem at Noah Gray's school. Maya Herrera needs a memory wipe by this Sunday of a certain friend of ours." She put the phone away & went about finishing setting the table, placing the braided bread in the middle. There was no point in waiting for the phone since the Haitian was about as mute in cyber-space as he was in real life. He rarely spoke. Ever.
Sylar could not be more restless on the hallowed day of rest if he tried. His mind was still processing the fact that someone from his past knew about him. He had never interacted with the Haitian personally, but knew enough about him through other people who were now basically his family. He was well aware that he had been the temporary replacement of René during his time working with Noah Bennet. He had seen René through the prison window. That had been about as close as he had ever gotten to the mysterious tall dark man that hovered around Claire.
As there had been no word yet from Ariel, he still fretted over Sunday. If Maya saw him & remembered him, it would all be over. Sylar leaned forward on the railing, watching Noah & Aviv playing on the beach. An idea was slowly coming to him. He waited for sundown before going inside. Watching Noah from the window, he called Ariel once more.
"Three times in one day?" Ariel teased. "Miss me?"
"Not at all," Sylar replied with a short laugh. "Where is René right now?"
"I don't know," said Ariel. "You know how he is, rarely talks or texts back. But he always seems to get the job done so I would think it is safe for you tomorrow."
"How do you contact him?"
"I just send him a text," Ariel said. "Shlomo did the same thing & never had a problem with him."
"Since I took over for Shlomo, you said René now works for me, right?"
"Yes. His number should be in one of those files Shlomo left to you," Ariel suggested. After a long moment of silence, she asked, "Gabriel, is something wrong?"
"No, not really," Sylar replied absent-mindedly. "Just thinking about how Noah Bennet & Angela both used René to look out for Claire."
"You want to do that for Noah."
"Yeah," Sylar admitted. "Does René know who Noah's mother is?"
"I don't know."
After another long moment Sylar said, "I need to meet him. Can you bring him to the office soon?"
"Alright," Ariel said. "Do you want me to go to the school ahead of you & check Maya out?"
"That's a good idea," Sylar agreed. "We can't be too safe where it concerns Noah."
"Have you ever thought of telling him, yourself?" asked Ariel.
"Every damn day of my life," Sylar stated. "But I always come back to the fact that I gave that life up. I'm never going back. Not even to kill Peter. I have to take care of Noah & then this whole planet five millennia from now."
"You really think you can keep that secret from him for five thousand years?"
"I'm hoping it will just fade into history," Sylar said. "Five thousand years from now, as far as I know, no one remembered me, not even Claire."
"Life always finds a loophole," Ariel remarked. "I'll meet you at the school tomorrow."
Sylar hung up just in time as Noah had come in with Aviv now that it was total darkness outside. They shared a look, Sylar feeling rather guilty but trying not to show it. "Is something wrong?" Noah finally asked.
"Hmm? Oh. No. Everything's good."
"You look like the cat that just swallowed the canary."
"It's all good," Sylar repeated more forcefully.
"Is this about tomorrow?" Noah tried. "I've never seen you so jumpy about a parent-teacher meet up before."
"I have a lot on my mind," Sylar said. "Taking over for Shlomo is a lot of work. I'll be fine."
Noah got down to pet Aviv & pulled something out of the dog's tawny fur. He held it out to Sylar. "Have a feather."
"Noah," Sylar grumbled. "Very funny." He pushed past his son, ignoring the proffered feather. Noah just laughed.
That night, Sylar did not sleep. He lay back on the bed in the darkness, waiting for sleep to come but he couldn't stop thinking of Maya, a woman he had slept with, a woman he had conned & whose brother he had murdered.
Then there was René, a man who had infiltrated the Bennet-Petrelli side of the family, being used by one side against the other & all in the supposed best interests of Claire. Now Sylar planned to use him for the Gray part of that family, all for the best for Noah. Why were all these ghosts from his past suddenly popping up & all at the same time?