Good Morning!
I was planning to post this last night as a little Valentine's gift to y'all but, once again, I conked out at a pathetically early hour (jeez, what an old fart I'm becoming) and never did get to it.
So... consider this my way of saying Happy Belated Valentine's Day!
It's a holiday weekend here in the U.S. and, even though I must
See disclaimer in part 1... please note rating (again, not for this
part but, you guessed it, for the next)... yadda, yadda, yadda and
hey nonny nonny.
Billie, Part 15
Agony.
The waiting was agony. Since his arrival at the cozy,
secluded house in Dorset, Vermont, Jarod had managed to occupy
himself by doing everything in his power to make it a home for her.
He had kept busy for two solid days but now there was simply nothing
left to do but wait, and it was driving him nuts.
He'd spent hours chopping firewood so they would have an
ample supply, and even inspected and cleaned the chimney. He'd
cleaned the house until there wasn't a speck of dirt to be found
anywhere. He'd stocked the kitchen cupboards and frigerator then
checked and rechecked to see if there might be anything lacking. He'd
placed fresh flowers in vases in every room, as well as a bowl of
fresh gardenia petals in the bathroom, along with a few hand-made,
lightly scented candles from a little shop in town.
Abandoning the pretense that he would be able to get a wink
of sleep, he had climbed out of bed well before dawn, stripped it
down to the mattress and remade it with the expensive flannel sheets
he had purchased the day before on his final shopping excursion into
Manchester. The saleslady had insisted they were the very best he
could find anywhere. After that, he'd spent much of the morning
wandering from room to room, making sure that he hadn't forgotten
anything. As he completed his fifth pass through what was, after all,
a rather small house, he was forced to admit to himself that there
was nothing more to do.
Having passed several excruciating hours pacing the living
room, glancing anxiously out the window and folding, unfolding, and
refolding a blanket he had slung over one arm of the sofa, Jarod
concluded that this was worse than any torture he'd endured at the
Centre. Nothing Lyle or Raines had ever dreamt up could compare with
the misery of waiting... waiting... waiting.
For nearly all of his life, as long as he could remember
anyway, Jarod had been a spectator. Even in the years since his
escape, with everything he'd experienced out there in the wide world,
he'd largely remained an observer rather than a participant. Of
course, one could easily ascribe that to the rather "unorthodox"
circumstances of his existence. It wasn't as though he could have put
down roots anywhere, at least not without disappearing completely, an
option he'd never seriously considered... not even once.
He'd always told himself that he needed to remain in contact
in order to find his family and to keep an eye on the Centre to
prevent it from doing further harm. What he now understood was that
any true sense of belonging he'd felt came from his connection to the
individuals charged with bringing him back. He needed Sydney's
counsel as he navigated a strange and unpredictable world, just as he
needed to share his discoveries and accomplishments with the man
who'd raised him. Broots's skill and intelligence provided a weird
sort of camaraderie; the fact that he was always there to get the
joke made the game more tolerable and, on occasion, fun.
And her... he needed her... period. Parker was as fundamental
to his existence as air and water and, regardless of how disappointed
and angry he'd been with her over the years, the idea of a world
without her in it had always been incomprehensible to him. Now that
she had let him into her life with the promise of everything he'd
ever wanted, what was previously incomprehensible had now become
terrifying. Jarod was no longer a spectator in the game of life; he
was now a player and, for the first time, fully grasped the stakes.
That point had been driven home rather dramatically when,
only days earlier, Jarod held a dying man's hand and listened
intently to his last words. The man confessed to having kept the
woman he loved, and who loved him, at arm's length because of the
dangerous life he led. In facing death, he realized what a mistake
that had been. "Life is to be lived," he advised before shutting his
eyes for the last time.
Jarod had been devastated. Even in its death throes, the
Centre still managed to claim victims. Thankfully, it appeared that
the others who were injured would fully recover. The mission was
ultimately successful, which meant that his colleague had not died in
vain. Nevertheless, he'd been deeply shaken by the ordeal, convincing
himself that something would happen to keep him from the woman he
loved and the life he so wanted to live, the life that was finally
within reach.
He'd managed to work himself into such a state that it must
have come to the attention of those around him because, eventually,
Parker got wind of it. Jarod smiled as he recalled the relief and joy
he felt in receiving an unexpected call from her. From across an
ocean, her voice had warmed him through.
"Just a few mores days," she'd promised. "And then you'll
have me all to yourself for a while. You'll finally have the
opportunity to worship me like the goddess I am."
"I look forward to it," he'd replied with a small chuckle as
he clutched the phone to his ear like a lifeline.
Their conversation had lasted all of three minutes and he'd
been living on those three minutes ever since... working, traveling,
preparing and, finally, waiting. Pressing his forehead to the
windowpane he closed his eyes and whispered,
"Hurry. Please hurry."
* * * *
As Sam made the turn onto Vermont Route 30, bringing them to
the final leg of their journey, his passenger stirred.
"Almost there, Miss P. Just a couple more miles," he advised.
"Really?" she replied with a yawn, stretching. Sitting up
straight and glancing around she added, "Last I knew, we were still
in New York State. Sorry about the grand tour of rest stops along the
Eastern Seaboard; hazard of the condition, I guess."
"Not a problem, although your lab rat is probably climbing
the walls by now." He didn't have to look at her to know that she was
smiling.
"Uh, Sam?"
"Yes, Miss P?"
"After everything you've done, would it be imposing too much
on our friendship to ask... oh, never mind."
"What?" He turned to look at her and smiled, warmed by the
fact that she now considered him a friend.
"How... how do I look?" she asked tentatively as she smoothed
her hair.
What a question, he thought. The lady had always been a
looker; on her worst day she was drop dead gorgeous. Still, nothing
compared to the way she looked now. Miss Parker was in love, carrying
healthy babies, and on her way to begin the new life she had the
courage to create for herself. She was strong and she was beautiful.
"All I can say is that I only ever met one other that even
came close..." He turned to her again and, smiling, continued, "And
that was a long time ago."
"Thank you," she said but her smile was all the thanks he
needed... beautiful.
She turned away to gaze out her window and silence reigned
for the rest of the journey until they turned onto a tree-lined dirt
road with a mailbox on one side of it.
Parker straightened in her seat and anxiously looked around
then asked, "S... so, this is it?"
"I believe so, Miss Parker," he replied with a smirk that he
didn't bother to conceal because he knew she wouldn't notice.
Who would have believed he'd live to see the notorious Ice
Queen behaving like an excited school girl, or that he'd be
delivering her into the loving arms of the man who had once glued
them both to the floor. He'd gone from Centre thug to captain of the
Love Boat in a matter of weeks. It really was too much; sure felt
good, though.
As they proceeded up the drive, Parker muttered
impatiently, "How long is this freakin' road, anyway? Leave it to
monkeyboy to drag me to the middle of the jungle."
Sam placed that question squarely in the rhetorical category
and drove on, emitting a grateful sigh as they rounded a bend and the
house came into view. Man, the guy must have radar, he thought as he
noticed Jarod already heading down the front steps even though the
car's engine was barely within earshot. Meanwhile, Parker had
unhooked her seatbelt and was already clutching the door handle, and
he hoped she would at least wait until the car came to a full stop
before getting out.
As soon as he did come to a stop, and before he even turned
off the engine, the door was wrenched open from the outside and his
passenger was gone. By the time he turned to look through the open
door, Parker was already wrapped tightly in Jarod's arms. Well, he
mused with a wistful smile, Miss Parker has finally caught her
pretender.
Shaking his head, he popped the trunk, opened his door, and
climbed out of the car then quietly proceeded toward the back of the
vehicle. As he dutifully removed her bags from the trunk, he heard
Jarod utter raggedly,
"What took you so long? The waiting was driving me crazy."
"Well, that wouldn't be a very long trip, would it?" Parker
replied softly and Sam could hear the tears in her voice. He couldn't
help but smile. He felt both awkward to be intruding on this tender
reunion and thankful to be witnessing it.
"Like just about everything else, it's YOUR fault," she
continued. "I have to pee every five minutes because YOU knocked me
up. Poor Sam had to stop at every... shit... Sam!"
"Right here, Miss P," he called out before slamming the trunk
shut.
"I'm sorry, let me get that," Parker offered, wiping the
tears from her cheeks as she approached him.
"No, I'LL get that," Jarod stated from his position exactly
one pace behind her. Sam figured that was about as far as he was
likely to be for some time.
"Two bags... that's it?" the pretender asked, looking puzzled.
"That's it, and it's mostly mementos, things of my mother's,
and my medical records from my doctor in Delaware. I left most of my
clothing behind. Nothing fits anymore, thanks to you."
Jarod grinned broadly and reached around her to place his
hands on her belly. Parker turned her head to smile back at him.
Again, Sam was feeling like a fifth wheel and decided it was time to
make a swift exit. Clearing his throat, he announced,
"Since I think the big guy here can handle the bags, I'll be
on my way."
"Are you sure?" Parker asked, "You've been driving for over
eight hours. Can we invite you in for coffee, a bite to eat, or
anything?"
"Not on your life, Miss P.," Sam replied with a knowing
smile. "I'll be back in a few days, when it's time to discuss what
comes next. In the meantime, you two take care of each other but, do
me a favor?"
"Anything, Sam," Jarod responded with a warm smile as he
tightened his arms around Parker.
"Try to get at least a LITTLE sleep. We'll need all the
brainpower we can get our hands on for the next phase of our work,"
the sweeper teased with a wink, and was rewarded with the sight of a
beet red pretender and a look of incensed embarrassment from his
former boss.
"I'll take that as my cue to leave," he added with a smirk
then turned away from them.
He slid into the car and closed the door, and was about to
lean across the passenger seat to pull the other door shut when Jarod
leaned in and said,
"Thank you, Sam. I'll never be able to..."
"Just take care of her, Jarod," he interrupted then added
with a smirk, "That's YOUR job from now on, thank heaven!"
Sam jumped at the sound of knocking on his window and turned
to find Parker standing there with her arms folded and bearing a
stern expression. He rolled down his window. Placing her hands on
either side of the window frame, she leaned in to say,
"I heard that, Sam."
She then placed a gentle kiss on his cheek and added, "Watch
your back."
"Will do, Miss P.," he replied through a crooked smile then
started the engine and raised the window.
Jarod closed the passenger door, Parker moved around the
front of the car to join him, and both waved as Sam drove off.
Glancing into the rearview mirror, he was able to catch of glimpse of
them turning toward each other and melting into an embrace, their
lips meeting in a kiss. They remained as such for as long as he
watched, until he rounded the bend and they were no longer in view.
Maybe when this is all over, he thought as headed out to the
main road, I ought to think about getting myself a life.
# # # #
Author's Note: You'll note that I'm being fairly vague about the
actual execution of the plan to bring down the Centre. I think it
only right to advise that if you're waiting to hear more then you'll
be disappointed. I personally find all the Centre crap to be the
LEAST interesting part of tP and couldn't write it under pain of
death. For me, it's all about the characters and how they interact
with one another. If I've left anyone hanging on this, I'm sorry.
TBC....
By Ginger
