The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"Angel, thank god you're back. Where are Lyle and Brigitte?"
Mr. Parker's look of concern almost melted Miss Parker's resolve to keep her trip to Africa from her father. However, the mention of Brigitte was enough to remind her of what was at stake. "Daddy, are you all right?"
"Where are Lyle and Brigitte?" Mr. Parker asked again. "I haven't heard from them since they landed in Africa."
"What are they doing in Africa, Daddy?"
"They went to rescue you, of course."
"Rescue me? Daddy, didn't you know that I was in France? You told me yourself that I needed to rest."
Mr. Parker's eyes narrowed. "Angel, listen to me very carefully. Did you or did you not fly to Africa with Sydney and Broots to rescue that Pretender?!"
"Daddy, I have spent the last three years trying to bring Jarod back to the Centre. Why would I try to rescue him now? Really, Daddy."
Mr. Parker's face paled as he realized the implications of what she was saying. "Do you mean to tell me that we just donated one of Jarod's sims to Ugandan rebels?"
Miss Parker looked shocked. "Ugandan rebels? What on earth were you thinking?"
"I was thinking that it was worth the price to bring my angel home. The Mamdanis contacted the Centre and told us that they had taken you hostage."
"Daddy, you've been set up. It almost sounds like something Jarod would do."
"This is a hell of a mess."
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The Lake
Three Weeks Later
The last of the fog was clearing off the lake as Jarod dove in. Emily stood behind him on the dock, still contemplating the ice cold water. The morning swim had become an almost daily ritual in this most unique summer. By unspoken agreement, the family had spent this time merely getting to know one another, with no thought to the future or the past, in what Emily called a "weird normalcy."
Jarod looked up just in time to see Jay sneaking up behind Emily. He considered warning her but thought better of it, and moments later Emily was in the water. She came up laughing. "You little rodent! Just wait until I get my hands on you..."
"You have to catch me first," Jay taunted as he dove in.
Jarod smirked. "Just don't forget who his role model is."
"I think I liked you better on DSA."
**************************************************************************************************
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"You wanted to see me, Daddy?" Miss Parker said as she entered the office where her father, Lyle, and Brigitte were already waiting for her. She glanced in the direction of her brother and noticed a large welt on his neck. "Nice. Anybody I know?" She couldn't resist a smirk at Brigitte.
Lyle glared at her. "You know full well that this is from the leaches when I was trying to save your hide."
"Only problem was I wasn't there."
"Don't remind me. We've already been through a T-board because of that."
Lyle was about to say more, but Mr. Parker interrupted. "Now, now, this is no way for family to treat each other. Besides, we have more important things to worry about. Word just came down that the Centre is being audited. Our orders are to cooperate as much as is prudent."
"Daddy, how did this happen? Don't we have agents to protect us from this?"
Mr. Parker worded his answer carefully. "We're not sure, but there seems to have been an outside influence. It's almost like Jarod is still out there."
Miss Parker gave her father a startled look. "You think Jarod has escaped?"
"No; the Triumvirate assures me that he is still being retrained. This is just the kind of game he would play. Angel, try and make sure Mr. Broots is up to speed about Jarod's, um, withdrawals."
********************************************************************************************
The dripping, cold trio headed up from the lake, Jay and Emily still pushing each other playfully. Jay grinned wickedly as he ducked over to Jarod. "Emily's not a romantic."
"Hush! You keep this up and I won't answer all your nosy questions like I usually do. As it is, I'm already telling him about Heather."
"Heather?" Jarod asked innocently.
Now it was Emily's turn to grin. "Thirteen, blue eyes, long, blond hair, and a walk no one over twenty-five could match without hurting themselves."
Jarod smiled. "Sounds interesting."
Jay glared at both of them, then turned the conversation back to his favorite topic. "Not as interesting as Emily's 'boyfriend.' His name's Nicholas and he's a lot younger. She was his tutor when she was tracking sims at a university."
Jarod gave his sister a look, but she punched him in the arm before he could speak, and then glared at Jay. "We are not having this conversation."
Before Jay could press the issue, he was distracted by the sound music and laughter from across the yard. "What is that?"
"'Unchained Melody,'" answered Emily, who always knew the names of songs. Suddenly she put up a hand to stop her brothers, and then pointed to the deck.
Jarod watched his parents waltz for a few moments, then noticed the tears in his sisters' eyes. "I thought you weren't a romantic," he whispered.
"So did I. Let's go in the back door and pack for a road trip. It's about time the kid saw some of the real world."
*********************************************************************************************
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"Broots, how are you coming on those fake records?" Miss Parker paced nervously. "Dammit, why did Jarod have to do this?"
"Perhaps it wasn't Jarod," Sydney replied. "And I feel I should ask why you have been placed in charge of the audit situation. Now that the Centre believes Jarod is in custody, you, at least, should be free to go."
Miss Parker froze. "Syd," she said in a tight voice, "Raines murdered my mother. Until he dies, I stay."
Sydney sighed. "Miss Parker, Raines has fallen out of favor with the Centre. His time is coming, whether or not you pull the trigger. Your revenge will mean little to him, and may consume you."
There was a long silence. Finally, Broots spoke. "Um..Miss Parker," he said hesitantly, "I...I think I've got what you need here. These records explain everything from the budget for projects like Gemini and Jarod's capture, to...well, all the money he's taken over the years."
"So we're covered?"
"Well, it's not fool-proof. The original records are still there, of course, and...." Broots trailed off as he finally noticed the look on Miss Parker's face. "Yeah...this should....um, we're covered."
****************************************************************************************************
Northern California
Margaret sat at the kitchen table listening to Jay chatter excitedly about the road trip. "I really want to see an ocean...and snow...whales...and ride a horse...and drive a car..."
Margaret laughed. "Slow down. You only have five days. Besides, you're too young to drive."
"But Emily said she started driving when she was nine."
"That's true, but Africa is quite a bit different than the United States." She sighed. "Don't forget to watch out for sweepers. I did manage to start a project that will keep the Centre busy for a few days, but you can't be too careful."
Jarod had just entered the kitchen. "A project, Mom?"
"It seems that the Centre is being audited. With particular interest in unusual and unexplained withdrawals."
"You mean mine?"
"And a few others. After all, life on the run gets expensive. It seemed to be the least the Centre could do to help out."
Jarod shook his head in amazement. "Is there anything you two can't do?"
Emily looked up from her map. "Needlepoint?"
************************************************************************************************
Two Hours Later
Emily put on her sunglasses and looked at her brothers. "Well, are you gents ready to roll?"
Margaret and Charles looked worried. "I know I don't need to tell you to be careful," Margaret said as she hugged them, "but I'm going to say it anyway."
"Who do I tell to take care of who?" Charles asked.
Emily gave him a wicked grin as she stepped forward to hug him. "Talk to Jay; he's the mature one."
"That's what I'm worried about," Charles replied playfully. He turned to Jarod. "Are you up to this?"
Jarod considered this a moment. "I'm a pretender. I can be anything I want to be."
Margaret laughed. "I don't care how many identities you can assume; if you haven't been on a road trip with your sister, you're not prepared."
Emily raised her eyebrows. "On that note, we're out of here. I don't want you two talking him out of this." She turned and jumped into the car without opening the door. Jay followed suit. Jarod sighed and exchanged a look with his mother as he opened the passenger door and got in. As the car pulled away, Margaret turned to Charles and whispered, "And they're letting her drive."
No sooner had the car door shut than Jay's questions began again. "What are normal people like?"
Jarod frowned. "Normal people?"
"Well, Mr. Raines said I was different. Am I?"
Jarod thought awhile before he answered, hoping Emily would step in. "You are a genius, and you were raised in Donoterase, so your thought processes are somewhat different." He looked at Emily for help.
"Jay, all three of us are considered somewhat...different. We may be pretenders with the ability to assimilate into society, but people tell me I'm odd all the time."
Jarod spoke up. "I get told I'm odd, weird, strange. Once someone told me that I was an 'odd duck,' but I'm still not sure what waterfowl has to do with it."
Emily laughed. "You think that's bad? In the last year alone I've been told that I was 'weird as a wooden watch,' a 'totally whacked out chick,' and 'acting like I came from Mars.' By the way, never answer when someone asks you what planet you're from. But my all time favorite was 'Are you a Trekker?'"
"What's a Trekker?" Jarod and Jay asked.
"It took me three years to figure that out myself. Hey, we can do a convention. Learn to speak Klingon."
*********************************************************************************************
SL-19
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"Well, if it isn't Lenny!"
Broots looked up and gasped. "M-milton! What...what are you doing here?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you the same question? I thought you were still serving that hacking sentence."
Before Broots could answer, Miss Parker came in. "Broots, I'm surprised at you. A hacking sentence?"
"M-miss Parker, this is my cousin, Milton Smith."
"How sweet, a family reunion. What the hell is he doing here?"
"Actually...Miss Parker, was it?" Milton broke in, "I'm your auditor."
"Peachy."
********************************************************************************************************
The Next Day
Moonstone Beach
Westhaven, California
It was a perfect day for the beach; the sky was blue and there was no wind. The trio had spent the morning checking out tidepools at nearby Patrick's Point. They had learned the next beach, College Cove, was clothing optional and stayed away from it. Emily didn't feel up to the questions it would cause. As the beach filled with people, the children fascinated Jay. He seemed particularly interested in the ones who were building sandcastles.
"What are they doing, Emily?" he asked.
"Building sandcastles."
"Why?"
"Just for fun."
"Is it some sort of simulation?"
"No, it's just fun." She laid down in the sand for a nap. "Try it."
Some time later, Emily awoke with a start, aware that there were people all around her. She sat up to see what the attraction was and laughed in amazement. "Is that Kronborg Castle?"
"Yes," Jay replied.
"To scale, I suppose."
Jay frowned slightly. "No; sand is a very poor building material."
Emily turned to Jarod. "You helped with this?"
Jarod shrugged. "You said it was fun."
"Was it?"
"Yes!"
"Just a suggestion," Emily whispered to her older brother, "if we take him to the snow and he wants to build a snow man, think 'Frosty' not Michaelangelo's David."
*********************************************************************************************************************
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"Now according to our records, Miss Parker, there was a withdrawal last year of $60 million." Milton had finished with his pleasantries, and was well into the IRS agent routine. "Interestingly enough, it doesn't show up in the paperwork Lenny provided. Can you explain?"
"What do I look like, an accountant? If your records don't agree with the Centre's, maybe you should be searching a little closer to home for the problem."
Milton nodded and wrote something in his notebook. Broots tried to be more reasonable. "I don't know what it could be, Milton. The finances of the Centre aren't my...usual area of responsibility."
"But you know," Miss Parker said with a smirk,"there was another...sizeable withdrawal made recently to send Lyle and Brigitte on an African adventure. If there were a mistake made on the date..."
Milton looked sharply at her and went out to follow up a new lead. Broots sighed with relief. "Thanks, Miss Parker. Lying to the IRS is bad enough, but Milton...."
"Just don't wet your pants. The Centre has everything in order; all we have to do is be discrete."
************************************************************************************************************
2 a.m.
Hotel in California
Jarod awoke with a start. For a moment he thought he was back in the Centre. From the next room, he could hear Emily's voice, full of panic. He jumped out of bed and rushed into her room. When his eyes adjusted to the dark, all he saw was Emily asleep in bed. The nightmare seemed to have passed.
Jarod returned to his own room, his heart still racing. The more time he spent with Emily, the more it seemed to him that she had something to hide. The nightmare was just one more inconsistency in her otherwise upbeat disposition. Emily was given to unexplained dark moods, especially when attempting to decode Gemini, which she seemed to have a personal interest in. At first he had attributed it to her relationship with Jay, but she had an irrational hatred of Raines all on her own.
The more Jarod learned about Emily, the more obvious it became that there were sizable gaps in her history. On the surface, Emily was fun. She laughed at everything and took nothing seriously. But Jarod realized she was a Pretender, capable of almost anything.
*************************************************************************************
Broots' Office
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"Well, I'll see you tonight, Debbie. Gotta go. Miss Parker's here." Broots hung up the phone. "Debbie says 'hi.'"
"How is she?"
"She's doing really good. She just got home from school and wanted to work on her school science project, but she had to ask me if she could use some of my equipment. Mrs. Waterfield--Debbie's babysitter, a really nice old lady from across the street--is helping..."
"Broots! Do you have any information on Lee?"
"I...well, I've got something. I didn't want to, um, bother you until I was sure I had everything, and then Debbie called..." Miss Parker started snapping her fingers and Broots turned back to his computer, rapidly entering commands as he spoke. It looks like Lee's personnel file, but it's been so heavily encrypted that it took me awhile to recognize it. Here, take a look."
Miss Parker spun Broots' screen around and started reading.
************************************************************************************************
15 Minutes Later
Sydney's Office
Miss Parker tossed a file onto Sydney's desk. "It looks like Boy Wonder's gotten himself out of the frying pan and into the fire with this one, Syd."
"How so, Miss Parker."
"Lee--or should I say 'Emily'--has been working for the Centre for years."
"Jarod's sister is a Centre employee?"
"If she's Jarod's sister."
"But to what purpose?"
"Control, Dr. Dimwit. Everyone knows that all Jarod wants is his family. Posing as his sister, coming to his rescue...it's a perfect set-up."
Sydney picked up the file. "It says here that she became known to the Centre nine years ago when she successfully hacked her way into the main database to post her resume."
"Yes, a resume heavy in red. Blood red."
Sydney frowned. "She was a low-level cleaner for the Triumvirate for six months before moving her way up in the ranks, preceded by a trail of suspicious disappearances."
"Killed her competition. What else has little sister been up to?"
"Broots has been unable to decode most of her recent activities, but we do know that she came to Matumbo's attention shortly after Jarod's capture. Matumbo's former assistant disappeared four days later."
"How convenient."
"Perhaps Jarod should be warned."
"Have you heard from him lately?"
"No."
"If Emily isn't who he thinks she is, and we try to contact him, we'll just be hanging ourselves out to dry. And it's probably too late anyway."
******************************************************************************************************
Marine World
Vallejo, California
Jarod pulled into the parking lot, still feeling nervous from Jay's driving lesson that morning. He had told Emily that it was like watching the world's worst driver trying to create the world's second worst driver. Emily response had been, "You get ten extra points for dying without the Centre's help."
Jay was still chattering excitedly. "And can we get the mouse ears while we're here?"
"Wrong theme park, Jay."
"Oh, right! This is the one with dolphins. That's even better! Is it always this hot? It was never hot in Donoterase."
"Welcome to the real world, Jay. You have to deal with the fog in Humboldt County and the heat at Marine World."
"Was it hot in Africa?"
"Oh, yeah. A lot hotter than here. You get used to it after awhile."
"By the way," Jarod asked, "just what did you do with Matumbo?"
A dark look crossed Emily's face. "We...sent him on vacation."
"Vacation?"
"Shall we say, we put him in harm's way."
Jarod sighed. "Is he dead?"
Emily sighed. "I don't make a habit of killing people."
Jay decided it was time to change the subject. "Can I touch the dolphins?"
"I have a few connections here. We'll probably be able to arrange something."
Jarod smiled. "Where don't you have connections?"
************************************************************************************************
SL-22
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
"Two million dollar fine, Miss Parker?"
"It could've been worse, all things considered. The Centre has a lot of secrets."
"Miss Parker, Sydney...look at this!" Broots ran in, out of breath. "I ran a search on Emily, and I found....well, you just have to see it. I couldn't decode most of it, but what I could...oh, boy!"
Sydney frowned. "What is it, Broots?"
Broots nervously loaded the DSA. It showed an angry young girl with a large black eye sitting in a chair. The caption at the bottom said, "Emily; SL-27; November 8, 1985."
Miss Parker looked up. "That's Emily?"
"It doesn't look a thing like her," Broots said.
"Once again, Syd, how convenient."
Their attention returned to the DSA, where a familiar profile passed in front of the camera.
"That's...that's Mr. Raines. Before the fire."
As they watched, Raines spoke. "I hope you are feeling...more cooperative today."
"I suppose this is what happened to Annie?"
Raines hissed, "What do you know about my daughter?"
"I know she disappeared. Probably into one of your little hell holes."
An enraged Raines turned and hit her so hard he knocked her out of the chair. Miss Parker gasped. "My god, is there nothing he won't do?"
"That could be Debbie," Broots whispered.
"This girl looks too small to be Jarod's sister at..." Sydney paused to calculate, "16."
"That can be easily explained, Syd, if she spent her whole life with Dr. Frankenstein down in SL-27."
The DSA ended in a burst of static and Broots pushed a button to turn it off. "That's all I've been able to decode. But I have found pieces of files that indicate she was being used for...some kind of medical research."
Sydney stood up and paced. "Is there any indication of how long she had been there?"
"No."
"Do you suppose she was killed in the fire?" There was no answer. "Broots, age this image. I want to know if she could be Lee."
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Marine World
Vallejo, California
The photographer looked at his pager. He paused at a pay phone and got off muttering. "This is a lame assignment. Who cares how people are beating the heat at Marine World? If they're here, it means they don't care."
Just then he saw two wilted adults sitting in the shade. A teenage boy was coming up behind them holding a large glass of ice water. The photographer raised his camera just in time to catch their shocked expressions as the water cascaded over them.
**********************************************************************************************
Mr. Parker's Office
The Centre
Blue Cove, Delaware
Mr. Parker looked at the paper that Lyle had thrown on his desk. Although the picture was slightly blurred, both Jarod and Jay's faces were easily recognizable. Mr. Parker looked up at his son in horror.
