"Now, Miss Parker. Are you sure you don't want to reconsider your... statement?"

The smugness of his voice made her want to slap Lyle. But that wouldn't have been wise. She needed to stay calm. Poised. They couldn't prove anything.

Miss Parker leaned back in her seat, coolly returning the looks of her interrogators. There were three of them - and Lyle, of course. It was two hours now since she had been 'invited' to the Tower. The small room was sticky, and Miss Parker craved some fresh air. Still she didn't give Lyle the satisfaction to ask for it.

With a casual movement of her head she returned her attention to the single picture that was still lying on the table in front of her; right were Lyle had thrown it when he had entered the room. A picture of her and Jarod.

At first she had been surprised to find out that someone had observed her. Then she had been angry at how the Centre had once again pried into her life. But now she felt nothing but calm and a certain fondness as she thought back to the moment that was captured in this picture.

"Miss Parker? Are you still with us?"

Lyle's voice brought her back into the present. She lifted her head to look at him, giving him one of her icy stares she knew went right to his core.

"Yes, I am", she responded calmly. "And no, I don't want to reconsider anything of what I've told you."

Her twin brother cocked his head, returning her look without any visible reaction.

"If that is so we'll have to make sure that what you have told us is nothing but the truth."

The tiniest bit of fear crept into her mind, sparking a doubt there. She could deceive the lie detector; she had more than enough practice in that. But what if they decided to try out one of their new truth serums? If they asked her the right questions she would probably give away what had really happened.

She realized that Lyle was still looking at her. When he felt that she had returned her attention to him he smiled at her. It wasn't his usual threatening smile, but one that was almost playful. Harmless. As if he was trying to say that this was only a game, that nothing was going to happen to her - as long as he was the one to win.

"Last chance, Sis", he whispered.

"Go to hell, you freak", she hissed back.

Lyle turned his head and nodded to one of the two sweepers who stood on both sides of the door. The sweeper opened the door and left, talking to someone who had apparently been waiting outside. After a few seconds he came back in, followed by another man. Miss Parker felt all blood drain from her face. They couldn't do that. Not Angelo. Oh no.

It took her every ounce of her will-power to conceal her reaction. She forced herself to keep on breathing normally. Lyle was still smiling, an amused expression on his face. He winked at her, then turned to face Angelo.

"You know what we want you to do, don't you?"

Angelo winced and turned his head to the side.

"Angelo?"

The sharp tone of Lyle's voice made the empath look at him.

"Angelo... knows", he then whispered.

"Good." Lyle nodded contentedly. "Then let's begin."

Miss Parker stared at Angelo, fighting against the feeling of panic that lay in wait somewhere deep inside of her. She tried to concentrate on another feeling, one that was equally as strong as her fear. Contempt. Contempt for Lyle. How dare he do this to her? Angelo had been her friend when they had both been children; she still cared about him. At one point she had even been ready to accept him as her brother. And now Lyle made him betray her.

Angelo came over to her, taking slow, almost hesitant steps. Finally he reached her and sat down next to her. She looked at him, trying to read in his eyes.

"I know they're forcing you to do this", she said softly.

"Oh, how touching", Lyle mocked before Angelo had any chance to react to her words.

"I don't know what this is supposed to reveal", Miss Parker said angrily, in a last effort to save herself. "I told you the truth. Jarod knocked me out when I caught him down in the air-duct."

"How could he knock you out while you were pointing your gun at him?"

There was only mild interest in Lyle's voice.

Miss Parker took a deep breath.

"As I told you before - I dropped my gun because of my shoulder wound."

"It's strange, though, that the man who took this picture said something else."

"Too bad that he isn't able to testify anymore", Miss Parker retorted sharply.

Lyle cocked his head.

"It is indeed since he was the only one who could have confirmed your story."

"It's not a story! Besides I wasn't the one who made him disappear."

"That's another point that will have to be clarified. As much as I want to believe you, you know that the Tower will ask for more than just your word to rely on."

The indifference in his voice made her want to scream. She knew that he was enjoying this. Interrogating her, playing with her, using Angelo against her.

"I hope that someone's going to make you pay for this useless waste of time", she grumbled.

"What are you afraid of? If you told us the truth, Angelo will only prove it."

Miss Parker stared furiously at her twin brother but didn't say a word.

"Shall we begin?" Lyle asked, sounding way too cheerful. "Angelo!"

The empath turned his head to look at Miss Parker. She found it hard to tell what he was thinking, but there seemed to be a certain sadness in his gaze. And then there was a strange spark, something that told her that he wouldn't do anything to harm her. Confused, she shook her head.

Angelo took her hand in his and saw...


*******

She was running. God, this was so ridiculous. It wasn't supposed to go this way.

"Miss Parker!"

The dark voice calling out her name made her run even faster. But she knew that he was still closing in on her, that he would reach her in a matter of minutes.

She reached a crossing and stopped, looking around frantically. Which way now? Her heartbeat was thundering in her ears, accompanied by the roaring of her blood. The sound of his steps behind her became louder. Miss Parker took a deep breath and turned left.

"God dammit, wait for me!"

This time he was really mad at her. She could tell from the anger in his voice as well as from the fact that he was chasing her. He was chasing her! At any other time she would have laughed about that. But right now she was struggling for breath - and she was afraid what would happen if he caught her.

Miss Parker reached another crossing and turned right. After a few yards she stumbled and almost lost her balance.

"Shit!" she hissed and slowed down, eventually coming to a stop. She leaned against the cold wall, taking deep breaths. Maybe he wouldn't find her; maybe he would...

"Miss Parker!"

Darn. Of course he had found her. He was a pretender. How could he possibly lose her trace?

"Get away from me, Jarod."

She closed her eyes and listened as he bridged the distance between them.

"No, I won't."

His voice sounded so close that she opened her eyes again and stared in surprise as she spotted him right in front of her. Great. Now she was trapped, literally having her back to the wall. Miss Parker shook her head, trying to regain her composure.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here, Jarod?"

"And what the hell were you thinking you were doing? What is it that you can't leave my family alone? First my father, and now this!"

He was getting angrier by the second. She stared back at him, sinking into his deep brown eyes. His rage made them seem even darker than usual.

"Jarod, you don't understand. Leave now, and I will let you go - this time."

"First I want an explanation", he demanded.

"That's enough", Miss Parker said exasperatedly. She reached for her gun and drew it, pointing it at Jarod.

"I meant what I said. Leave."

Jarod stared back at her. His eyes narrowed for an instant.

"What is going on here?" he asked, confusion evident in his voice.

Miss Parker held her breath as she felt a stabbing pain in her shoulder. Oh no, not again. She had felt it earlier, back in the hotel room, but now it was much stronger. Her hand began to tremble ever so slightly, yet Jarod didn't miss it.

"Are you okay?"

The anger was gone, replaced by concern. Miss Parker felt an unreasonable urge to laugh. Her arm sank to her side and the gun dropped to the ground. Jarod looked down at it for a moment, then raised his head to look into her eyes. She felt dizzy and weakened.

"Please go now", she whispered.

Her legs suddenly seemed to weak to support her weight and she felt her back sliding slowly down the wall.

"Parker!"

Jarod gripped her by the shoulders, his grip strong yet gentle. Still Miss Parker yelped as he touched the wound. He released this side, staring at his hand in shock. She followed his gaze, only slightly surprised to see blood on his fingers.

"Your wound...", he began, but she interrupted him.

"...isn't important right now. They were after your sister; I found out when I overheard a conversation between Raines and Lyle. That's why I was in the hotel room. I know what it's like to lose a member of your family."

"You were there to save Emily", Jarod whispered in amazement. "And I thought..."

"What? That I would kill her? I could never do that."

Miss Parker smiled at her sudden honesty. All the time she hadn't wanted Jarod to know what she had done. That she had rescued his sister from the assassin Raines had sent after her. It had been a matter of seconds, but she had managed to warn Emily off before Raines' killer could get her.

"You saved her", Jarod repeated, still surprised by the news. "Did you talk to her?"

"No, there was no time for that", Miss Parker replied, shaking her head. "I just made sure that she got out, and then I left. You know, you had better followed her than me."

Jarod smiled at her, ever so slightly, but his eyes lit up with warmth.

"Thank you, Parker."

"Oh, you're welcome", Miss Parker answered, only the slightest tinge of sarcasm in her voice. Then a cough shook her body and made her moan with pain at the sudden movement.

"You need to see a doctor", Jarod stated firmly, making clear that he wouldn't accept any rejections.

"I am seeing one right now, aren't I?" she asked with a faint smile, but sobered when another coughing fit overcame her. Miss Parker raised one hand and put it on Jarod's shoulder to steady herself. After taking a few deep breaths she went on. "It's alright, Jarod. It really is. I'll be fine."

He looked at her, concern and something else, something unequally deeper in his eyes. Jarod placed one of his hands on the wall, as if he were trying to keep her from running away again, and leaned in on her. She looked up at him, holding her breath. What was he up to?

Miss Parker let her hand glide down from his shoulder, brushing it gently over his chest before she withdrew it from him.

"Are you sure that you'll be alright?"

All she could do was nod. Maybe she was wrong, but his voice seemed to sound deeper than usual. She had to close her eyes for a moment as another wave of weakness ran through her body.

When she opened her eyes again she found that Jarod had moved even closer to her, only inches separating his face from hers. Miss Parker suppressed a shiver. He was so close; so enticingly close. Close enough to...

"I found some blood! He must be hurt. Let's get him!"

She jerked her head to the side. Sam's voice. Her team had found them. A slow smile spread on her lips as Miss Parker made a decision that would allow her to give in to her weakness.

"You've gotta leave now, Jarod."

He stared at her with those incredible brown eyes. For an instant she could see hesitation in them, but then he returned her smile.

"I'll call you tonight", he whispered tenderly against her lips, then he bent forward and kissed her, hard, wanting and much too short. Before she could say or do anything he turned and ran away, carefully avoiding the direction from which they had heard Sam's voice.

Miss Parker smiled again. She stopped to fight against the darkness that was closing in on her, and only instants later she slumped unconsciously to the floor.


*******


"And?"

Angelo let go of her hand. Miss Parker blinked and looked around. It had only been a few seconds since Angelo had touched her. How could Lyle expect him to have found anything?

She turned her head and looked at Angelo. There was a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead. His face betrayed how strenuous the contact with her had been for him. Miss Parker frowned. It had only been a few seconds, hadn't it?

"Angelo?"

Lyle had stepped closer to them.

"Did she tell us the truth, Angelo? About how Jarod could escape?"

Angelo looked at Lyle for a second, then turned his head to look at Miss Parker.

"Truth", he whispered.

Miss Parker felt a surge of relief wash through her. Angelo was lying for her; he was protecting her. After a few seconds she found the strength to look at Lyle. Surprisingly enough he didn't seem to be angry or disappointed. His expression was even, but in his eyes there was... what? Satisfaction? Contentment?

"Well, that wasn't so hard now, was it?" he asked, sounding almost friendly.

His sister just stared at him. Something was puzzling her. Why had he chosen Angelo as a means to find out if she had told him the truth? Why not a truth serum? 'He must have known that Angelo would protect me', Miss Parker thought. And then the man who had taken the picture of her and Jarod - the only one who could have refuted her story. He had vanished without a trace, very much like earlier 'victims' of her brother. Was it possible that he was trying to help her out of this?

"No, it wasn't", she replied, still looking at him, trying to figure him out. The thought of her brother actually helping her was more than unbelievable. But still...

"Are we through now?" she wanted to know, her voice sounding amazingly calm to her.

Lyle nodded.

"We are. The Tower will acknowledge your statement, now that we have proof for your word", he said, the faintest hint of amusement in his voice.

Miss Parker nodded slowly, returning her gaze to the picture on the table.

"Would you mind me keeping this?"

"It's yours."

She leaned forward and took the picture from the table. When she got up she leaned over to Angelo, briefly touching his shoulder.

"Thank you, my friend", she whispered softly enough to ensure that he was the only one who could understand her. Then she straightened and looked at her brother.

"This was unnecessary."

Lyle shrugged and then gave her his usual smug smile.

"That's what you say, Sis."

Miss Parker slipped the picture into the pocket of her blazer, then she glanced at her watch and back at Lyle.

"Now, if you don't mind - I'm expecting a call."

She left the room and smiled in expectation as she walked down the corridor to get on her way home.


The end

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© 2001 by Miss Bit