Shaddyr's Eclectic Collection > Pretender Fanfiction > Afterglow

Afterglow
Part 2, by N. R. Levy

WARNING:  R for violence. MAJOR character deaths and serious angst... read at your own risk and you encouraged to have tissue around for the ending.  This is super long, which was not planned, but I hope you won't feel you've wasted the time.  There will be an epilogue to follow. Also two other less harsh warnings:  1) if you really like Rachel from the Profiler and the idea of her and Jarod being together, you might want to skip this, and 2) if you haven't read The Not So Wonderful Life and Special Valentine, this won't make much sense.

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em and don't pretend to, so don't sue me.

---

It didn't take long for Jarod to figure out where they were headed, though the why of it still eluded him. He didn't understand why Parker didn't want to go back to her own home, but he also wasn't willing to say no to her. She had faced too much today for him to deny her whatever indulgence she wanted.

They didn't speak much on the drive. Occasionally Parker would respond to some innocuous question he posed, but for the most part, she seemed to Jarod to be thinking through something she wasn't ready to share with him yet. They stopped at the small general store and bought some supplies, then they took off to finish their journey. The sun was just setting as they pulled up in front of Sydney's fishing cabin. Quietly, they unloaded the things they'd bought, and while Parker put the groceries away, Jarod started a fire to warm up the room before the chill of night set in on the place.

As the flames began to dance in front of him, engulfing the sweet smelling wood, Parker walked to the couch, an open bottle of chardonnay and two glasses dangling from her fingers. He caught her movement from the corner of his eye and turned to watch her as she sat and poured the wine. Everything about her - the way her hands moved, the way the liquid reflected in her eyes, the soft sigh she released as she leaned back against the couch - he found every bit of it mesmerizing and fascinating.

More than anything, he wanted to know where she was. Something was holding her attention, and though he didn't know if it was from curiosity or jealousy, he wanted to know what it was. Standing, he moved to the couch and sat beside her. He reached out and took the other glass of wine and sipped it slowly as he watched her. After several minutes, she finally spoke.

"I'm sorry I haven't had much to say."

"That's all right. You had a lot to think about."

She sipped her wine again, then balanced her glass on her right thigh. Jarod watched a stray drop of wine run down the outside of the crystal stem. Silence fell between them again, and Jarod once again settled back and waited for her to set the pace of whatever was going on.

Parker knew he was waiting, and she wanted to tell him everything, but she was having trouble surrendering to that desire. Here they were, alone, and nothing was stopping her from telling him all the secrets she was carrying, yet it seemed, what, wrong? They had faced death today. Hell, she had almost killed her own brother. So how could she be here now with him and feel like it was the right time? She'd been so certain when she'd told him to drive here, and now she was so afraid.

She felt this way, and yet there was a part of her that was raging in defiance. It was the part that kept her sitting here next to him instead of letting her run and hide in the bedroom. Why the hell was she waiting? They - the long list of theys -- Raines, her father, Lyle -- they had all gotten in the way of her happiness so many times. Was it so wrong for her to want to just take what she could, to take this one moment of quiet with Jarod and make it hers?

Parker was shocked and spilled a bit of her wine when Jarod suddenly stood. He sat his glass down on the table, and looked down at her from where he stood.

"I'm going to go take a quick shower. When I get out, I'll start dinner, okay?"

She managed to nod in response, and when he walked away from her, her eyes remained fixed on the space he had just occupied. Parker heard the water come on in the bathroom, and she leaned forward, sitting her wine glass on the coffee table next to Jarod's. That's when she realized it. She was doing it again. She'd told herself she would learn her lesson, the lesson Thomas had taught her, but here she was wasting time again.

Jarod stood under the hot spray of the shower, his mind whirling with questions that remained unanswered. He knew that Parker would open up in her own time, she always did, but it was frustrating not to know what was going on in her head.

Letting loose an exasperated sigh, Jarod stuck his head under the water and let the force of it pound against his skull. He didn't really expect it to make him feel better, but there was always the hope he'd give himself a headache and then be in too much pain to think anymore.

Then he felt the rush of air that came from behind him as the shower curtain moved. Jarod's mind thought a million things in the moment that followed, and his response to what was happening was to turn into a human statue. He froze and waited.

Parker brought her hand to his shoulder and let it rest there. For the longest time, it was the only place she touched him, and Jarod's body grew tense under the pressure of waiting to see what would happen next. Whatever that was, he knew it had to come from her. As much as he wanted this, her, it had to be Parker's choice.

She kept her hand on his shoulder as she stepped forward, bringing her body closer to his. Then he felt the faint pressure of her lips against his shoulder blade, and the sweetness of that act almost ripped a cry from his throat. 'Please, he thought, please don't let me do anything to scare her away.'

Jarod took a breath and tried to relax as Parker moved closer, her arms coming around him as she pressed her body against his. He could feel the smooth perfection of her skin against him, and Jarod was certain that nothing, not even the best silk in the world could feel as good as her against him. Then he heard her voice, small and quiet, and he felt her breath against his neck as she spoke.

"I didn't want to go home because - because I wanted a moment, Jarod, just one moment when there was nothing but - but you and me. I – I wanted to tell you - Jarod, I want to be with you."

He remained still, and though the water from the shower was running down his face, he could somehow feel tears on his cheeks. Was this real? Was this happening? Had she just said that she wanted him?

"Be sure, Parker," the words were out of his mouth before he even knew he'd thought them, his voice little more than a ragged whisper, "please be sure."

She stepped back from him then, and for one agonizing moment, Jarod thought he had chased her away. Then he felt her hands on his body, directing him to turn to her. He followed her demand, and as he came to face her fully, his eyes took in the sight of her. Not just her body, which was as incredible as he'd known it would be, or her face, which was always beautiful, but the whole of her - the way she was standing, the look in her eyes - and he saw everything he had ever wanted, and then he heard the words he had waited his whole life to hear her say.

"I love you, Jarod."

Four words. Four words and all the doubt and fear and worry that had stood between them vanished, and she was in his arms and their lips found each other's. For a long time, they stood there in the shower, kiss after kiss passing between them as their hands explored muscle and skin and they reveled in the sweetness of just touching the person they loved. It was only when the warm water that bathed them began to turn cold that they moved from that spot. Jarod flicked the water off and stepped from the tub, then he reached back and gave her his hand. Parker took it and followed him into the bedroom, and soon there was nothing but the soft brush of skin against skin and the hushed cries that only lovers can translate and understand.






She was lying on top of him, her head nestled on his chest, his arms wrapped around her, and Parker knew that she had finally discovered the true meaning of home. What was it Thomas had told Jarod? His home was in her eyes. Well, Parker knew now that her home was in Jarod's arms.

They had been lying like this for nearly an hour, just enjoying the closeness of being together, and there was something so wonderful about the quiet of the moment. Still, she smiled when she heard him clear his throat and begin to speak.

"One question."

She laughed. A deep, throaty, happy laugh, and Jarod knew his whole being had lit up at the sound. His Parker, laughing. His - what a fabulous terrific word that was.

"Okay, genius, one question."

"When I came and asked you to help me with the --"

"Don't say that name out loud. Not here, okay?"

"Okay. When I came to your house and asked for your help, what made you do it?"

She turned her face then, burying it in his chest and he thought she was crying. It was only when he felt her body shaking that he understood she was laughing instead.

"What is so funny, Parker?"

"I can't tell you."

"What, what's funny?"

"No, you'll think I'm insane."

"Parker, tell me."

She shook her head no, and Jarod decided there was only one way to get what he wanted. So he grabbed her tiny waist and moved her underneath him, and then he began to tickle her mercilessly. Her laughter and her pleas for him to stop filled the room, but it was only when she could barely breathe that Jarod released Parker from his torment. Still, he kept her pinned beneath him as she fought to regain her composure.

"You are so lucky my gun is in the other room."

"Too bad for you, Parker, so talk."

"Jarod, you're going to think I'm certifiable."

"Like I don't already?"

Her eyes widened at that comment, and Jarod knew that already she was plotting some revenge against him for his teasing, but he had a feeling it would be worth it.

"All right, fine, but remember you asked. It was because of, um, okay, it was because I had this dream."

Jarod raised his eyebrow as he looked at her with interest.

"So, you were dreaming about me, hmm?"

"Jarod, do you want to hear this or not?"

"Okay, okay. So you had this dream..."

"I had this dream that you and I, well, let's just say our lives were a lot different than they turned out to be in real life, and, I don't know, seeing that, even being able to imagine that was possible made me think I should stop fighting you so much."

Jarod moved slightly, raising up and moving so that his lips were even with hers. He lowered slowly, and then kissed her gently and longingly.

"I like you not fighting."

"I like not fighting, Jarod, more than I ever imagined I could."

He kissed her again, quickly, and moved to her side, propping up on his elbow.

"So what else went on in this dream?"

Parker rolled her eyes and pulled her arm up to cover her face.

"Oh, I can't talk about this."

"Come on, Parker. I've seen you drool in your sleep -"

"If I were you I wouldn't remind me about your breaking and entering days, okay? The gun isn't that far away."

"All talk, you are all talk."

"Jarod..."

"Come on, it's just a dream."

"Ohh! Okay, okay. What do you want to know?"

"Well, were we together?"

She smiled, and though her arm was still covering her eyes, Jarod knew the smile went all the way to those sparkling blue orbs.

"Yes, we were together. We - Jarod, this is embarrassing."

"Okay, one more question. Did we live happily ever after?"

He would have never guessed a smile could disappear so quickly. Her whole body seemed to shrink right there in front of him, and Jarod wished he could take back his words, but knowing that was impossible, he pulled her into his arms.

"It's okay, Parker."

"We were so happy. We had everything, and then it was just gone. They even took our children."

He felt his blood run cold when heard her words. Suddenly Parker's dream sounded very familiar to him, and though Jarod knew it was impossible, he had a feeling he knew exactly what had happened to them and to their kids.

"Olivia and Eli."

Parker lifted her head the moment Jarod's words registered in her mind.

"How did you know that? How in the world did you know that, Jarod?"

"I - Parker, I know that there's no way, but I think we had the same dream. That night in the hospital, after you were stabbed, I - "

"Oh, God, that's when I had the dream, too. But, that's - how can that be? We had the same dream?"

And suddenly, there was nothing else to say. Words weren't going to explain what had happened. So Parker did the only thing she felt any impulse to do - she wrapped herself around Jarod, and held on.





Bailey had planned to supervise Lyle's movement from the county lock up in Delaware to the federal prison in New York where he was to be held pending a decision on where he would be tried first. The move was unusual, but Jarod had warned the agent that the Centre would do anything to keep Lyle from standing trial, even kill him, and Bailey wanted this bastard to answer for the crimes he had committed.

Unfortunately, an emergency phone call from his daughter changed his plans. Frances had been hurt in a car accident, and so he was on a plane to Maryland when the van transporting Lyle to the airport suffered mechanical failure. Nearly two hours would pass before Bailey would receive a call on his cell phone, before he learned that the four marshals handling the transfer were lying dead on the side of the road, and that no one knew where Lyle was.

Frantically, he dialed Rachel's number.

"Bailey?"

"Yeah, it's me. You heard?"

"They've searched a 50-mile area around where they found the van. Nothing."

"You know where he's going, Rachel."

"I know. I've been trying to reach Jarod, but no luck. I was thinking I should call Dr. Green."

"Do it. We have to find them, before Lyle does."





Lyle watched as the black sedan pulled to a stop. He picked up the small duffle bag that he'd earlier dropped on the ground and moved toward the vehicle. The calm, stone face of Willie greeted him.

"You're sure about this?" The sound of Lyle's voice made Willie's jaw set even tighter, and he had to fight hard to keep a glare off of his face. Arrogant son of a bitch. Willie was still stunned at the lengths the Centre chairman had gone to to rescue his psychotic son. It defied reason as far as the sweeper was concerned. Killing was one thing. It was a part of virtually ever job description at the Centre, but Lyle -What he'd done was so far beyond the line that even the harshest of the Centre sweepers wanted to see him taken down.

Instead, Willie, Carter and Michaels had been ordered to snatch Lyle away from the Marshals. Sam was curiously absent from the strategy meeting for the mission, and though no one said anything, it raised Willie's suspicious that Miss Parker had in some way been responsible for Lyle's incarceration. That would of course never be part of the official story, but Willie couldn't help but believe it to be true. The task Lyle had set him to immediately after his recovery confirmed it even more.

"Yes, Mr. Lyle, I'm sure. I put the tap on Dr. Green's phone as you asked. Jarod called and told him they were at the doctor's cabin."

"Good, let's go. The sooner I get Jarod where he belongs, the sooner I can get back to the Centre."

"Sir, Miss Parker -"

"I'll worry about my sister, Willie."

"Mr. Parker does not want her harmed. He made that very clear."

"As I said, don't worry. Don't worry about a thing."

Nice words, Willie mused, but the smile that crossed Lyle's lips did nothing but make Willie's unease increased two-fold. So he didn't feel any guilt about withholding the information about the second call Dr. Green had received, the one from a woman named Rachel Burke. If everything went well, the sweeper thought, then the feds can do what they want with Lyle, and I'll be on my way back to the Centre with Jarod in tow.





Rachel, Bailey and John Grant emerged from the FBI jet and hurried down the gangway to the waiting car. Their local man, Dave Harper, did not wait for pleasantries and simply got down to business.

"Dr. Green still hasn't been able to reach them by phone. The Sheriff drove by the cabin, but they weren't there. He's supposed to go do another check."

"Why didn't he wait for them?" Bailey's patience were gone and his voice showed it. Rachel knew he felt responsible for Lyle's escape and nothing but locking the murderous fugitive back up was going to change his thinking.

Harper explained that the Sheriff had been called away on a call about a man who'd broken into the local gun shop and stolen several items. Bailey ranted abut the inadequacies of small-town law enforcement and no one bothered to try and stop him - they were all feeling the frustration, and the nagging fear that the man who'd committed the earlier theft just might be Lyle gearing up for a war with the two people he blamed for everything wrong in his life. These thoughts dropped them all into a long silence, and it was broken only by Rachel's voice asking perhaps the most important question of the day.

"How long?"

Dave Harper cleared his throat and cast a glance into the rear view mirror, readying himself for Bailey's reaction to the answer.

"Two hours."






For two natural born pretenders, the most difficult thing to do was just be themselves, but both Parker and Jarod were finding that the more they did it, the easier it got.

Things had gotten tense last night after they'd discussed the dream and neither of them had been able to sleep. Finally Jarod had gotten up and fixed them dinner, a process greatly slowed by his constant glances at Parker.

She has pulled on his shirt and joined him in the kitchen, and the sight of her had nearly caused him to cut off two of his fingers. She was swimming in the black silk t-shirt, but those legs - God, those legs. Jarod had a feeling he would never get tired of seeing them and touching them and - well, that's why it had taken him so long to finish making his vegetable omelet. His mind just couldn't stay on the subject at hand with someone so much more interesting around.

They did not talk about the dream. They ate and they played and they made love and they slept, but they did not talk about the strange experience they had both shared so many months ago and only discovered here in the safety of the cabin.

In the morning, they had gone for a walk to the lake. Jarod could have walk for miles, but Parker's only shoes were her standard 5-inch heels, so they stuck to the path that was safe to walk barefoot. The lake was beautiful, but cold, and though he'd teased about pushing her in, Jarod instead kept his arms securely around the woman who had so long been the center of his world. That thought had made him smile, and Parker caught it.

"What, smiling boy?"

"Just thinking."

"About what?"

Jarod raised an eyebrow and pulled her tighter against him.

"About what I'd like to do with you in a bubble bath."

She laughed then, that deep, happy laugh that he had already decided was his favorite sound in the universe. Then she'd stepped around him and pulled him by the hand.

"Why don't you show me?"

That had taken up the rest of the afternoon, but soon hunger beckoned, and as Jarod sautéed chicken on the stove, Parker made the terrifying discovery that there was no more coffee in the house.

"How could we be out, we bought enough of those mini ones for a week?" Jarod asked with genuine curiosity.

"Yes, we did, but somebody, and I won't mention any names, had to brew five pots before he finally got it right. Maybe he should have pretended to be a Coffee Bean employee somewhere along his travels."

He rolled his eyes at her then, a small smile on his face as he reached for her, pulling her back into his arms.

"All right, all right, I'll go get some in the morning."

"Jarod, I love you. I truly, truly love you, but if I don't have coffee immediately upon waking up, your life will be in danger."

With that she kissed him quickly and moved to the table where the car keys sat.

"Do we need anything else?"

"You could grab some more ice cream."

Now it was Parker's turn to roll her eyes.

"Babe, you have three gallons in the freezer."

"I know, but I used all my chocolate peanut butter while we were doing..."

Laughing, she put her hand up and shook her head.

"I was there, I remember. I suppose it did go to a good cause. All right, one more gallon of peanut butter chocolate."

She was almost out the door when she heard his voice from across the cabin.

"I knew I loved that woman for a reason."





Lyle watched as Parker climbed into her car and drove down the road. Good, he would begin now and then finish the job when she came back. He reached for his duffle bag as his attention turned to Willie.

"Willie, about my father's instructions..."

"We are to call him as soon as we confirm they're here. I'll do that now." Willie pulled out his cell phone, and wondered how soon the feds would be here. Hopefully he would have enough time to secure Jarod in the car so that they could take off and leave Lyle stranded and waiting to be taken back to prison. Sure, he was disregarding an order by the Chairman, but he'd be bringing Jarod back, so what could happen?

"Actually, Willie, there's been a change in plans."

Willie was just turning his head to look at Lyle when the gun fired. The sweeper's body slammed against the door as two silence bullets penetrated his head, and somewhere in the cosmos, Willie knew what could had had happened. He'd been betrayed before he could betray.

Lyle barely spared his handiwork more than a passing glance. Instead, he picked up the knife he had selected especially for the occasion, picked up the gun he had stolen at the same store, and headed for the cabin.





The access road to Sydney's cabin was several miles long, and bumpy in the extreme, requiring slow driving, something she hated. After nearly 10 minutes she was just pulling onto the interstate when she began to hear a beeping sound from somewhere in the car. She glanced around the car, trying to find the source of the noise. Finally, she realized it was coming from Jarod's black leather jacket, which was sitting in the back seat of the car. Sighing, she reached behind her and pulled the jacket forward and reached inside.

Jarod's cell phone. They hadn't even thought about it in nearly two days. She'd discovered only this morning that her own had been broken in her fight with Lyle. As the device continued to ring, she flipped it open.

"Jarod's phone."

Rachel heard the playful, almost happy tone in Parker's voice, and even now, in this desperate moment, she felt a twinge of jealousy. She pushed it aside, quickly, however, and was simply grateful that they'd finally made contact.

"Parker, it's Rachel. Lyle's out."

Those FBI agent's words sent a chill through Parker's whole body and she nearly let go of the wheel, she was so shocked.

"What? What happened?"

"He escaped. We think your father --- Parker, we're headed to the cabin now. We think he's on his way there."

"Oh, my God. Jarod's there alone."

Parker threw the phone aside and grabbed the wheel fiercely. Barely checking for traffic, she turned the car in a vicious 180, changing direction and racing back with only one thought in her head - 'Please, please not Jarod.'




Happiness made you complacent. Jarod had learned that in his nearly five years out in the world. It was when he was most happy that he'd found himself in the most danger, usually because Parker had gotten too close to catching him. But he didn't have to worry about his long-legged huntress anymore.

In fact, today Jarod realized he had never been happier. He still had to find his family and the Centre was still there to be dealt with, but the most important thing in his life had finally fallen into place. He and Parker - the odds had to have been a billion to one that it would ever work, and yet it seemed that it had always been destined. Lying in bed with her, just lying there holding her in his arms - he knew those were the moments he would cherish always, and when he left the earth the sight of her sleeping on his chest, absolute trust radiating from her body would be the image he took with him.

The problem with being so happy was that, despite his knowledge that it made him a little careless, it was hard to see that through the bright light that was shining all around him, and so when he heard steps on the porch, he assumed Parker had forgotten something and come back.

He turned to pull a tray of garlic potatoes out of the oven when he heard the door open.

"What did you forget?"

He heard another step, and Jarod felt he first sense that something might not be right.

And then the world began to tear apart.

The knife was driven deep into his back, and Jarod had no doubts about who was in the cabin. How Lyle had gotten free or found then was irrelevant, all that mattered to Jarod now was that he had to survive. He had to find some way to stay alive so that he could warn Parker of the danger that was waiting for her. Again, Jarod felt the blade slide into his body, and then yet again, and all he could think was one thought, 'Please, please, don't let him hurt her.'

A car door slammed and Lyle raised the knife, taking the time to plunge it once more into Jarod, this time so near his heart that Jarod felt his chest fill with blood almost immediately. Lyle moved away, taking a hiding place somewhere that Jarod could not see. Then the badly injured man heard Parker's heels pounding against the stairs as she ran to the house.

The door opened, and he saw the tip of her gun enter the room first. Good. She knew something was wrong, and she was on guard. Slowly, made her way inside. Jarod was just about to call to her when her eyes fell on his bloody body.

"Jarod! Oh, God, baby." She moved to him in a flash, dropping to his side. It didn't matter to her that Lyle was still here somewhere – she knew he wouldn't leave until she was dead - but she didn't care about that. All that she could think about was Jarod.

"Jarod, I'm here, baby, I'm here."

"Here - still here." Jarod was surprised by how difficult it was to speak. His chest hurt so much, but still he pushed himself up into a seated position, pressing his back against the nearby wall. Parker was busy trying to find the worst wounds, desperate to stop the bleeding, but she caught he widening of Jarod's eyes and she knew that Lyle was now standing behind her.

"Nice to see you, sis."

Parker whirled around, fury blazing in her eyes.

"You son of a bitch. He saved your life. He saved you!"

"Watch what you call mom, and too bad for him."

Parker lunged at him then, her anger ruling her emotions. She didn't care if Lyle killed her, if she killed him; she just wanted him to stop - to stop hurting people, to stop tormenting her, and mostly to just stop being at all.

Lyle had his gun in his right hand, and he hit her sharply on her shoulder as she neared him. This time, she wasn't pretending when she lost her gun, and it skidded backwards on the floor, but Parker was past caring. She would kill him with her bare hands if she had to.

She got the chance as her twin's arrogance got the better of him. He was too busy enjoying his momentary victory to stop her from kicking his own gun out of his hand. The war was on, and a series of brutal, injurious blows were exchanged between the siblings as four years worth of hate and anger poured out of them. Jarod kept his eyes on Parker as much as he could, trying to watch her, thinking ahead and trying to call out to her if he saw something before her, but Parker was a good fighter, and she was holding her own.

Then he began coughing, and as blood began to pour from his mouth, Parker's attention drifted from the battle with Lyle to the man she had come here to save.

"Jarod!"

Trying to buy herself time, Parker delivered a punishing kick to Lyle's midsection and then moved toward Jarod. She was losing him. She could feel it, and she had to get him help. Rachel had said they were only 15 minutes away, but damn it, where were they? Parker reached Jarod and she tried frantically to pull him up to get him out of the cabin. She had just gotten him to standing when Lyle appeared before them, the knife in now in his right hand.

"Move away from him."

"Lyle, you can do what you want to me, but let me get him out of here."

"Nice offer, Parker, but what I want is for you to watch him die. Now
move away from him."

Parker looked at the situation and considered her options. She could not get to the door with Jarod in tow before Lyle got to one of them with the knife, and Jarod could not handle any more wounds. She looked around, desperate for her gun, but her eyes could not pick it up anywhere.

"Get him to come closer."

The words came in a whisper, and Parker fought not to react to them. Why would Jarod want Lyle closer?

He felt her hesitating, and so he said it again.

"Get him to come closer."

Parker squeezed her arm tightly around Jarod's waist, hoping he knew that she'd understood. She didn't know why, but she would do as he'd asked.

"I won't leave him, Lyle."

"If I have to come get him, Parker, I'll slit his throat right there."

"I won't leave him!"

Lyle's face twisted into a mask of hatred and glee and he moved toward then, anticipating the feel of the knife slipping across Jarod's neck. He was so fixated on the idea that he didn't see Jarod's right arm bend at the elbow, not until the gun, Parker's gun, which Jarod had been hiding behind his leg came up even with Lyle's midsection.

The gun fired.

Lyle stumbled back, and then looked down at the wound that was now spreading blood across his stomach.

"Jarod, Jarod, Jarod, what am I going to do with you?"

Jarod managed to bring his head up, and he looked at Lyle straight in the eyes.

"Do us all a favor, Lyle, and die this time."

Then the gun fired again, and again, and again and Parker's ears rang as Jarod emptied the Smith & Wesson's clip into her twin.

Then the room was silent. For several seconds there was nothing but the smell of gunpowder and Lyle's body twitching on the floor

And then Parker's world began to crumble.

Jarod collapsed against her, his body now exhausted by the super human effort it had taken to hold the gun steady through the multiple shots. As carefully as she could, Parker lowered him to the ground, cradling his head in her lap.

"Guess I should have let you kill him, huh?"

Jarod tried to laugh, but he began to cough instead and Parker moved her hand gently against his face trying to soothe him. She could hear sirens now; they were close, very close.

"Baby, Rachel and Bailey are on the way. You just have to hang on a few minutes, okay, just a few minutes."

He nodded, but his mind already knew he was not going to make it a few more minutes. His body was beginning to shut down. The injustice of what had happened materialized in his mind, and he wanted to scream and yell and damn whatever God had decided that it was fair for Parker to lose him now. How much was she supposed to endure?

And then, though he knew it was absolutely impossible, he heard a voice he hadn't heard in two years - not since Brigitte had ended his life on the front porch of Parker's house.

"She'll be all right, Jarod. I know you can't imagine it now, but she will. They'll be with her."

Thomas. But how could he hear -

Jarod realized Parker had been talking to him the whole time his thoughts had run away. He focused on her voice.

"Jarod, I love you, baby. I love you. You can't leave me, okay? You can't. Please, baby, please hang on."

The sirens were close now. Good, Jarod thought, she won't have to face this alone. With the strength he had left, he reached up and touched the cheek he loved so much to have pressed against his chest as he slept.

"I love you, Parker."

His voice was so weak, and the flow of her tears increased as she began to realize what was happening.

"No, Jarod, no. Please, you - we have a future now. We can everything. We can have - Jarod, Jarod!"

Then he saw them. Thomas and Kyle and Faith and Mrs. Parker - they were all waiting for him.

"I don't want to go."

Parker heard his voice and she held on to him tighter.

"Then don't go baby, please!"

But he had been speaking to Catherine, and she stepped forward now, placing her hand on Jarod's forehead.

"I know you don't, but it's the way it was meant to be."

"I don't want her to be alone."

"She isn't alone, Jarod. They're already with her."

And suddenly Jarod knew who they were, and despite everything, he smiled. Parker saw his expression change, and she leaned closer to him.

"What is it, baby?"

"It's not over. Our dream isn't finished."

She smiled back at him, her mind trying to understand what he was saying. Then Parker felt his hand slipping away from her cheek, and the smile on his face faded as his eyes closed.

"Jarod? Jarod! Oh, God, no, please, please."

Two minutes later, the door to the cabin flew open, and Rachel and Bailey and their entourage of cops and FBI agents watched as Parker sat rocking Jarod in her arms. No one needed to be told that he was gone.

Bailey signaled for the others to leave, and then he and Rachel moved to Parker, each taking a different side of her.

"It was just like the fireworks."

They were both startled to hear her speak, and it was Bailey who moved closer, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"What was, Parker?"

"You watch the fireworks, and they seem like they'll burn forever. But after a second, it's only the glow that's left, and then it's gone."

And with that said, Parker lowered her head, moving even closer to Jarod as her tears washed over his body.