LadyJadePerendhil- Okay it might be a little wrong to use the kids as blood hounds, but it makes them useful. And yeah it did suck for Key to find out he was a lone the way he did. But it was time for more drama. And yes Lex is going to be a bit upset with the kids for not being discreet with their conversation but he won't be too upset. Oh and there is a little but of 'mush' in this chapter.

As for this story stopping I have no idea when it's going to end. I had everything all planed and mapped out but somewhere along the way I got sidetracked, I think it might of been when I brought Keegan in. So I can easily promise you that there are going to be at the very least thirty more chapters left. I know this because I have up to chapter 70 completed and there is still no end in sight, and knowing me I'll probably add more stuff in if people ask for it, or if my muse gives me a few more ideas.

CHAPTER 42

HIDDEN DANGER

November 27, 2010

1:46pm

Charlottesville, Virginia

Russell Family Home

Jason and Jack led their Uncle Chris out to the stables. Sitting on the fence, watching the horses out in the field, was Keegan. Chris sat down on the fence next to Keegan, as Jason and Jack scrambled up the fence to take a seat on the other side of Keegan. The young clone did not turn to face the three people who had just joined them. Keegan just sat staring at the horses. Chris knew that their was no reason to try and get Keegan to talk. The boy would speak when he was ready. As for Jason and Jack, they knew that they were there for moral support.

"Did you know?" Keegan asked Jason and Jack, braking the silence. The twins shook their heads. "That means Amy doesn't know either."

"No she doesn't," Chris confirmed.

"Excuse me sir, but who are you?" Keegan asked meeting Chris's eye's for the first time.

"Benjamin Christopher Russell," Chris said offering Keegan his hand. "But everyone just calls me Chris."

Keegan studied Chris's hand for a moment, not sure if he should shake it or not. He was uncertain of this new person, and yet he sensed something familiar about Chris, as though they had meet before.

"You can trust me you know," Chris told the little boy, seeing the conflict that was going on behind Keegan's blue eyes.

"Mike and Maddie said that I could trust them as well, yet they lied to me," Keegan said, and Chris heard the despair in Keegan's voice.

"Then don't trust me, trust Jace and Jack instead. They would not have led me to you if I meant you any harm," Chris replied. Keegan looked over at the twins, bitting his lower lip in doubt. Jason took Keegan's hand in his own, a silent gesture for Keegan to trust Chris. Keegan nodded his head and Jason let go of the other boy's hand.

"Why are you here?" Keegan asked Chris.

"I'm a clone too," Chris stated simply. Keegan's jaw dropped as he looked up at Chris in shock. "It's true. I'm a clone of my brother Jarod." Jason and Jack exchanged looks of amazement at the sudden revelation.

"But you look nothing like him," Keegan said.

"Color contact lenses and hair dye," Chris said shrugging his shoulders.

"How did you...When did you," Keegan stuttered.

"Let's see I was eleven, almost twice your age when Jarod and my father discovered me. Those first eleven years I had been lead to believe that I was born in the conventional manner and that my parents had been killed when I was a baby by Jarod. Well one day I was escorted from the sim lab when low and behold I see Jarod. It scared the shit out of me, I thought he was there to kill me."

"We were both frozen at the sight of each other, but out of the two of us Jarod was the only one who knew what had been done. He and my father came for me, rescued me from the Centre. In the process my father was captured. But Jarod took me to a safe place. It was there that he told me what the Centre had done. At first I didn't believe it, I couldn't. In mere hours my whole life had come crashing down around me. Much like it just did for you."

"Why didn't they tell me?" Keegan asked tears falling from his eyes. With the pads of his thumbs Chris wiped Keegan's tears away.

"They didn't tell you because they love you. But know that they had every intention of telling you. That was why they asked me here, so that I could help you," Chris answered.

"Why didn't Uncle Andrew and Markus tell me?"

"I think that your inner sense didn't tell you because it wanted to protect you, much like everyone else. Keegan love can be a very misguiding thing. Your parents, Mike and Maddie only want what is best for you. By waiting to tell you who you are they were doing what they thought was right. They didn't not mean to lie to you, nor betray you. You have gone through some tremendous things in the past week. They just wanted for things to settle down before they told you." Chris told him.

"I understand that. Wh-what I don't understand is... I-I don't know what I am," Keegan managed to say as he furiously brushed away his tears with the back of his hand.

"It took me years to come to terms with being a clone, and even longer to figure out what I am. I don't want for you to have to go through what I did, the self doubt, the belief that you aren't a real person, that you don't belong, that you are just a genetic copy. You are Keegan Matthew Anthony, and a special little boy, who is loved by his whole family. Keegan you and I may be clones, but we're still people. We have needs and desires, hopes and dreams. Just because we share the same DNA with someone does not make us anything less than human," Chris said.

Keegan pondered Chris's words, as he fingered the necklace he had received on his birthday from Will. He realized that nothing had truly changed, he had lived his whole life believing that he and Markus were twins, and in truth they were.

"Okay," Keegan said nodding his head.

"Okay," Chris echoed smiling. "Listen Keegan if you even need to talk my door is always open."

"I don't know where your door is but I will be able to find my way," Keegan replied and Chris resisted the urge to laugh, he had forgotten just how literal Centre subjects could be. Will and the others had been different unlike most they hadn't been as sheltered, unlike Chris, Jarod, and Keegan.

"So kid do you have any more questions you need answered be for we return home?" Chris asked. Keegan glanced over at Jason and Jack who were scowling.

"They want to know why no one told them you were a clone of Uncle Jarod," Keegan said speaking for Jason and Jack.

"You two will get your answer when you start talking," Chris told the twins. Keegan glanced back at Jason and Jack.

"They said that it won't work. You can't get them to talk by tricking them into speaking. They'll speak when they are ready," Keegan replied.

"And how much of that did they actually say?" Chris asked.

"Well none of it, they aren't speaking," Keegan said raising an eyebrow. Chris sighed.

"No, no what I meant was, you know forget it. Why don't the four of us head back to the house everyone should be good and worried now," Chris spoke hopping of the fence. He helped the three boys down. Chris walked back carrying Jason in the crook of his right arm and holding Jack's hand in his left as Keegan walked on Jack's right.

November 27, 2010

2:21pm

Charlottesville, Virginia

Russell Family Home

The family all sat in the living room. Lex was nervously drumming his fingers on his knee. He had wanted so badly to go after Keegan but in his heart Lex knew that Chris was better equipt to deal with the hurt six year old.

And there where other reasons he could not go after Keegan as well. Amy was confused on the issues of Keegan and Chris being clones, and then their was the revelation of Tobias and Terra's new powers.

"Okay let's go over this one more time," Lex said burying his face in his hands.

"We got our powers right before Amy," Tobias said. "We thought our vison was going wonky."

"And then we thought we were going insane," Terra continued.

"And you didn't voice your fears to anyone because?" Jarod asked

"Um missing boys, family across the globe. I think those qualify as good reasons," Greg spoke for the older twins.

"Sounds good to me," Chris spoke entering the living room with the three boys. Lex let out a sigh of relief and Amy hopped off the couch and ran over to Chris and the boys. She then proceeded to punch Keegan in the arm.

"Ow," Keegan gasped, shocked that Amy had hit him.

"That was for being a dope and running away," Amy told the boy.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," Keegan said understanding Amy's unspoken fear.

"It's okay. I guess if they lied to me, I'd run off too," Amy said glaring at the adults, and the Black Files.

"Amy Marina Grey for the thousandth time," Sam sighed.

"It's okay Amy. I understand why they did it. They were only trying to protect me," Keegan said looking at his parents and siblings. Julia mouthed a thank you to Chris who nodded his head.

"Does that mean your okay bein' a clone?" Amy asked.

"I'm still me," Keegan replied looking up at Chris. Chris smiled down at the little boy knowing that Keegan was going to be okay.

Mike and Maddie were also happy to know that their brother was going to be okay. Both may have wanted for Keegan to learn the truth about who he was, but they never wanted for him to learn the way he did. And neither did Lex or Julia, Mike took one glance over at his parents and knew that he, Maddie and the others were more or likely in trouble.

He was right.

"How could you all be so careless?" Lex questioned the Black Files. "You would think that a group of empaths, and psychics would be able to sense that a six year old boy was eavesdropping outside of their door."

"Kinda hard to sense a kid who can block you," Alex muttered under her breath.

"What was that Alexandra?" Lex asked, knowing exactly what Alex had said.

"You-," Alex would have said more but she found her words cut off by two hands covering her mouth.

"Heh heh, Alex and her Tourettes," Marc chuckled. "You should never pay any mind to what she says Uncle Lex. She just can't control the words that come out of her mouth." A snicker went around the room, even Jake had to bit his lip to keep from laughing.

"Look Dad," Mike said growing serious. "We are sorry that Keegan overheard us talking. The best thing we can say to defend ourselves is that we thought he was asleep. We never wanted for Keegan to find out who he was that way."

"But was it too much to ask that you kept your bedroom door closed when you discuss matters like that?" Lex asked.

"Please Uncle Lex look who's talking," Andros spoke up. "It's like the pot calling the kettle black."

"Wow! I didn't know Andy had Tourettes as well," Greg said to Marc, with an air of mock surprise.

"Oh yeah. I think it's a pyrokinetic thing," Marc replied.

"Really? That explains so much," Greg said. The Black Files tried hard to hold the laughter in, but lost the battle as the collapsed in a fit of giggles. Lex glared at them shaking his head. But he knew he couldn't be mad at them. The kids had not meant for Keegan, to learn that he was a clone through eavesdropping. Still shaking his head, Lex left the room to go and check on his youngest son.

November 27, 2010

7:21pm

Charlottesville, Virginia

Russell Family Home

"Pete dinner's ready," Alex said entering Pete and Adam's room. Pete was lying on his bed looking up at the ceiling of the room, his right arm under his pillow.

"Not hungry," Pete mumbled.

"Come and eat anyway. Will and Alley made sweet and sour chicken, just for you," Alex said.

"I said I'm not hungry," Pete hissed. Her instincts at work, Alex involuntarily took a step back. Realizing that it was silly to be afraid of her little brother Alex walked over to Pete's bed and sat down next to the boy.

"Peter you know you can talk to me," Alex said brushing Pete's hair out of his face.

"'M fine," Pete replied turning his face away from Alex.

"It doesn't look like it to me," Alex commented.

"Just leave me alone," Pete sighed.

"No," Alex said firmly. "You're coming with me downstairs and having dinner."

"I don't want to eat," Pete said slowly between clenched teeth. "And I don't want you near me. Now get the hell out of my room."

Alex's eye's went wide and she got off of Pete's bed. "I'll...I'll tell everyone your sleeping," Alex stuttered and slowly backed out of the room.

"Ya do that," Pete said and rolled onto his stomach, closing his eyes.

It was official, there was something defiantly wrong with Pete. Not once in his life had Pete ever snapped at anyone. Alex had no idea what was going on with Pete but she knew that she had to tell her parents and the rest of her family.

As Alex made her way down the stairs she paused on the bottom step. In her mind she went over Pete's last words to her.

"Ya do that."

Since when did Pete have a Scottish accent?

Kaine waited for Alex to leave the room before he unclenched his fist from around the dagger he had hidden under his pillow. Alex was a danger and Kaine knew it. If he didn't get himself under control the girl would expose him and Father's plan would fail. All of the precious planing and work Kaine and Father had done would be a waste if Alex came to realize that Kaine was not Pete.

As it was Kaine was already nervous, the four youngest brats were acting like skittish little mice around him. Jason and Jack had already been avoiding Kaine a few days before they had all been "rescued", after Kaine had snapped at the two of them. He hadn't meant to snap at the twins but he was so fed up with their whining about missing their parents, and that they were so afraid of Erik. It had been a mistake for Kaine to snap and the boys but it wasn't the last one he made.

He was unaware of his second mistake in confusing Aaron and Andros, but Kaine was more than aware of his third mistake of kicking the little clone freak's puzzle the other day. He had done it hoping to keep Keegan away from him. Keegan was the wildcard in the whole situation. Father had not meant for the Russell's to discover the boy. Keegan was the one person who would probably be able to realize that Kaine was not Peter. Kaine figured that the best thing to do when it came to Keegan was to stay as far away from the younger clone as possible.

And now Kaine had made his fourth mistake of yelling at Alex. The one person who was probably the most suspicious of them all save the four youngest brats. But Kaine knew that if push came the shove he would have no qualms killing the girl and making it look like a accident.

Up Next: We learn what happened the moment Kaine left the monastery with his father, how he and Pete switched places, and what Parker has planed for Pete.

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