. "Jacob? But I thought... He's dead, isn't he?" Alia's eyes were
darting back and forth from the pictures to Shallsee's face. Shallsee
returned her look.
"Not really. Missy didn't really kill him. She couldn't. And
thank God, if this is true," Shallsee said. She stood up, and put the
pictures back in the box. Alia stood still as Shalls went around the
room, putting everything back in the boxes, and then the boxes back
along the wall.
"What are you doing? It doesn't make any sense. I don't just see
how you can leave all this here when we don't know what happened...."
Alia stopped when Shallsee whirled on her.
"What? You want to stay here? Do you know what happened to
Catherine and Jacob? Catherine was shot in cold blood, in front of
her daughter! Jacob was run off the road and almost died as a result!
He's still in a coma. The only reason he's alive is because Missy
didn't follow orders to kill him. And this," Shallsee gestured wildly
to the damaged boxes lining the dark and dusty room. "This is what? A
record of every meeting Catherine and Jacob ever had. Do you know how
easily they could have been killed? If Mr. Parker ever found out? He
used to think of Catherine as property, you know? The day she married
him, she lost her freedom." Alia stood silent and wide-eyed, listening
to Shallsee rant. When she paused for breath, Alia held up her hand, a
look of near panic on her face.
"Shh! I hear something!" She shut off her light and waved her
hand to get Shallsee to do the same. Complying, they stood in the
darkness, scarcely daring to breath as the footsteps echoed off the
halls. Closer. Closer to the room where two scared individuals, one
15 and afraid she would get in trouble, and one twice that and scared
she would be killed, stood. The footsteps paused outside the half-
closed door. Alia was shaking now. The door was pushed open. A light
shone in. Alia closed her eyes, and ...
"I thought you were supposed to be swimming, Alia," came the mild
voice. Alia's eyes shot open. She breathed an almost sob of relief,
and dropped her flashlight. From behind her, Shallsee started to
laugh.
"Zarah! You scared the living daylights out of us! Why are you
roaming around here?" Shallsee made to continue, but the look in
Zarah's eyes made her stop.
"I feel I must point out, that if I had been anyone else, you two
would not be alive much longer. This level is a secret for a reason,"
Zarah's tone was still mild, like a soft rebuke, but her blue eyes
were flashing ice. "I will not even ask why you are here, but I am
afraid we must all leave. Now." With that, Zarah turned to leave, but
Alia could stand it no longer.
"We can't!" Zarah's head whipped around, causing her long hair
to fan around her shoulders. "This stuff, it has to do with Missy and
her mom. We can't just leave it all here. Some of it may be important!"
Alia moved over to the wall, and pulled the box with the pictures in
it down to the floor. She yanked the lid off and pulled out the top
photos. "See?" She handed them to Zarah. Shallsee stood near the
door, forgotten by the sisters. "Shalls was saying, that this can't
be Missy, so it has to be her mom. And this, it looks like Sydney,
like, a lot younger, but that he wouldn't do this, so it has to be
Jacob. And there is a box of notes, and ..." her voice trailed off
when she noticed how still Zarah had become. "Zarah?" Alia said
quietly, growing scared. Zarah wasn't moving, not even blinking, as
she stared at the photos.
Alia looked down. The top one, the one that had caught her
attention, was of two people close together, one standing and one
half sitting on a high desk. The woman was almost naked, wearing only
her bra and a half unzipped skirt. The man's shirt was off and he
appeared to be in the process of removing his pants. The process had
been stalled by the fact that the woman had wrapped her legs around
his waist and was running her hands through his hair as he kissed her
neck. Alia looked back up at her sister's face. The photo had caught
Alia's attention to, but only because she had no real experience with
sex, and she was curious as to what the two were doing.
But Zarah had a look...
"Umm, Shalls? I think she's gone away again," Shallsee walked
from her place near the door and laid her hand lightly on Zarah's
arm.
"Zarah? Hon, listen to me," Shallsee had done this before, when
Zarah had gone into pretender mode. Sure enough, Zarah blinked and
looked up at Shallsee.
"I... When did you find this?" Zarah's voice was as quite as a
winter chill, and just as deadly.
Shalls hid a shudder, but answered, "Just now. An hour ago. Are
you OK?" Zarah brushed her off and threw the photos back into the box.
"Are these the only pictures?"
"The only box we could find. There is a box of notes, written by
two people, but the rest seem to be logistics reports and Centre
finances," Shallsee replied, gesturing to the rest of the boxes.
Zarah looked in the direction she was pointing.
"I need.... Could you please help me get these two boxes to my
office? I think I'll need them." Alia stared at her sister, not
believing what she was hearing.
"Are you nuts? What if they find us?" Alia was still scared.
Zarah looked at her. Eyes like mine, she thought. So young. Was
I ever so fresh? This is why I want you safe, sister. Just like I
wasn't.
"Alia, dear. I need these. I need all the information I can get.
If this can help Missy, I have to do it. After all, isn't this what
the Centre docs made me for?" Zarah smiled a crooked smile at Alia,
while Shallsee put the lid back on the photo box and moved it, and
the box of notes, to the door. Alia still looked confused.
"Zarah? What are you going to do?" Alia refused to move. She
wanted to know. Zarah sighed.
"A simulation, sis. I have to know. I'm going to become
Catherine Parker"
