IMPOSTER - PART THIRTY NINE

PREVIOUSLY

Slider's eyes darted once more toward the mirror and he saw with some relief that the speaker huddled in the backseat was not moving around anymore -- as if he was about to fall asleep. If I have to deal with you, I need some time to think.
His relief was short-lived, as Nick seemed to choose his words even more carefully this time.
"By the way...we still have a game to play out, don't we? This time I've decided there won't be any rules…and the winner takes all!"

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Slider pushed the gas pedal down even more as the words spoken with such bravado chilled him to the bone. Rules…games…a prize. It's point and counterpoint again, and whatever I do, you always want to do it one better. A jolt of adrenalin pumped through him as he thought of all this could mean. The gauntlet had been thrown down for him to pick up, and from past experience, he knew Nick would create a world fraught with uncertainty and trouble. My life has been fine so far…do I need this?
"Nick," he began with no clear-cut idea of what he would say. Nothing. You're asleep. Thank God.

"Tell me now…" Sam's words echoed in her brain over and over. Tell you…but I can't. I just can't!
Seeing disbelief and confusion transforming Viki's face, Sam took a step back - his mind punishing him for his rash boldness. What the hell is the matter with you Rappaport? Of all the idiotic things to do! You've done it but good this time! Did you expect her to fall in your arms crying out her love for you?
"I…I have to go," he said with eyes expressing abject apology. Something's not right. It's all gone sour.
Viki's mouth opened to speak as she watched Sam turn and walk quickly away toward his car. Part of her wanted to shout out his name and bring him into her world for good…for life, but the other part was stronger. The other part of her had been severely unnerved by what he wanted from her. Her very comfortable, if not terribly exciting, existence was being challenged, and she knew something powerful and new was upsetting her apple cart.
As the engine of his car started up, Viki turned again toward the door and inserted the key, but her shoulders shook involuntarily, and her heart felt crushed and empty. I'm sorry Sam….

Tea looked hastily around her hospital room and began to plan her escape. It wasn't going to be easy, but somehow she would do it. Wouldn't you just love to see me now, Manning! You've always been the great skulker, but I may have learned a few tricks from you. Climbing out of the bed, she spotted a bag with her clothes in it. Now comes the fun part…
Voices in the hallway forced her to dive under the sheets again, and she lay still until they had gone. Okay…let's try this again…

Driving down past magestic-looking homes with tall, imposing trees, Sam's eyes hardened with disgust, and he berated himself again for his utterly outrageous outburst of love to her. It wasn't like him at all to throw caution to the winds like he had - especially when it was about a woman. His track record had been far from successful, and on top of that, she was no ordinary woman. It was true that he hadn't dated her - except for that one invitation to dinner - but none of this had mattered when he had kissed her. Everything had changed. I've changed. Apparently you haven't, and there isn't a thing on God's green earth I can do about it.
Still he felt so empty. The life he had carefully constructed in Llanview seemed like a sham now, and he knew with certainty that he would only be going through the motions of his life. But I don't want to just exist anymore…I found you after all this time - when I really thought that there couldn't ever be a love that would completely erase the painful memory of a past rejection. How can I lose you?

A phone rang next to the bed of John Sykes as he lay stretched out in boxer shorts with a remote control in his hand. Clicking the buttons almost furiously, he let out an exasperated sound as he tried to find something on television to watch. There's no chance that I'll get any real sleep until I know that everything has been tied up in a pretty package with a bow on top for the reigning queen of Llanview. Getting up he looked over at a treadmill in the corner of the room. He could squeeze in some exercise at least and feel a little better.
As he began to lightly jog on the machine, more and more of his inner discontent began to build. I had planned everything so perfectly…all the contacts to be made were made…people are beginning to respect me and possibly trust me. It can't be washed away with the death of a convicted rapist! He had even planned to look around for someone to be his wife - someone suitable to his political ambitions. There were a few he had found interesting, but now it would be much harder to charm anyone if his reputation were sullied by Viki Carpenter. Damn the woman!
The sweat began to pore from his brow and his chest glistened as he ran on the treadmill with more than his usual vigor - his eyes glowing with intensity. It had never entered his mind that he would ever fail to meet his goal and realize the dream he had nurtured since he was a teenager. All doors had been opened for him by Senator Graham, his adoptive father and mentor, and it had always been a crystal clear path to the top. If he had to go to Graham on this one, he would.
Hearing the phone ringing over the noise of the treadmill, he jumped off, dabbing his damp face and neck with a towel.
"Sykes."
"I think you're going to come out smelling like a rose on this one, Chief," Edwards said in his usual, much too personal manner.
"What do you mean?"
"Well…the FBI released the pilot's log, but nothing else. Delgado approved the helicopter run. You don't have a thing to worry about."
"That's where you're wrong," Sykes corrected him curtly. "The FBI can twist this to look like anything they want. I know them. Is the report completed?"
"Yeah, it's done, and looks good."
"Send it over. I'm going over it. I don't like that there's only the log sheet. Where the hell is Delgado anyway?"
"One of the men found out he went to the hospital. His sister was taken there."
Sykes dropped the towel to the floor. "Mrs. Manning? What's wrong?"
"Seems she suffered a collapse of some kind when she heard about him."
"Well...keep me posted on her condition."
"Sure. I'll shoot that report over now."
Tea Manning in the hospital! Could this night get any worse?

Flickering specks of light blinked at Slider from a distance, and he welcomed the sight of them more than usual. There was a sense of security for him about living in a city that was incongruous with the normal view, but he had always liked the swarm of people around. He had never found it to be isolating at all. Being with people was like an elixir to him and kept his mind sharp and active. That was something that had never changed for him, but it must have changed for his friend. Todd had loved the excitement of the city just as he had, but Slider had also realized that Todd saw people quite differently than he did. To you, Z, they were potential enemies.to be watched carefully.
Until tonight he had supposed that Todd Manning had rebuilt his life from the dregs of his ruined reputation. He was a wealthy, prominent publisher with probably strings of investment ventures. Slider remembered how lightning quick Todd's mind had worked and the various ideas and deals he was always putting together. You were born to be powerful one day, but you've had to endure so much to get there.
Checking to see that his sleeping occupant was indeed asleep, he picked up his car phone.
"Sherry? Sorry…sorry to wake you. I'm on my way in, but I need you to come up right away. I've got someone who needs medical attention fast. I know this is a lot to ask…I can explain more when I get there. Do you have an early call? No?…Great! This one I'll really owe you for. I'll call you when I get in. Sherry…thanks!"
Well, Z, at least you'll be taken care of physically. Sherry's topnotch. The rest of you…that won't be easy. He thought wryly that this was certainly the understatement of the year.
As Sherry Liu slid the phone down from her ear and leaned over to put it back on its stand, her face reflected a look of wonder at the mysterious urgency of Slider's call. She smoothed back her jet-black hair and her slanted eyes glittered with sudden interest. Rising up out of the bed, she climbed into her slippers and shuffled over to a large window looking out over a city block - the street lights rosy and muted against the dark coating of the night. Oh, Slider…now what have you gone and gotten yourself into?
Thinking about what he had said, she wondered again who this "someone" was. If it was a woman, she knew that she would want to know everything about her. She would dissect and interrogate until she felt satisfied that this woman was no threat. She had spent some time making sure that there was no danger of that with him. For all his smarts and ability to see into what made others tick, she was well aware that Slider had a blind spot where she was concerned.
It had been four years now since she first met him, and from the moment she had laid eyes on him, she had known that he was hers in some strange, inexplicable way. Certainly he and she had nothing in common - she was Asian, and he was not. Their friendship had begun as neighbors exchanging casual conversation in the hallway, but with each meeting, more was said that confirmed that they had some sort of connection - a bond that was being slowly sealed. She still loved to pick at him and give him grief about things, and he always sent her back as good as she gave with that boyish, good-humored nature of his. They were now so familiar with each other, they may as well have been married, but that was something that Sherry knew was not within her reach now. As Americanized as she was, she was very Oriental in her patience and perseverance. When the time is right…only then…

Tea flattened her body against a wall and prayed as she heard footsteps coming closer. The footsteps passed by, and she breathed again. Somehow she was out of the room, but she was not out of the hospital. She had called a cab and asked that she be picked up on the back side of the hospital. Maybe I'm being ridiculous and should just walk out of here as if I'm a visitor, but I can't take the chance. Spotting a service elevator, she waited to see if anyone was in it. No one was, so she slipped in and pushed the button to go down.

Viki walked into the foyer of Llanfair and waited for the sensation of comfort to pass over her as it always did when she entered. For years she had treasured the feeling of warmth and beauty of Llanfair and all the memories enclosed within its walls. So much had happened here, but Llanfair had maintained its protective aura for her. As she walked slowly through her home, she tried to find that protection again, but with amazement she realized that she was trying to find something that just wasn't there. Her eyes moved from corner to corner and she found herself drawn to the pictures on the mantle. These pictures are my family, but they all have their own lives now. Even Jessie is soon to be gone, but this house and I will still be here.
Like a sleepwalker lost in a dreamworld, she opened the French doors to the garden and walked over to one of the cushioned chairs to sit down. This has always been one of my favorite places…why doesn't it feel the same?

Sam strode into his house and tossed his jacket on a chair and made his way to the bar determined to get rip-roaring drunk if at all possible. He hadn't felt like doing this in ages, and as usual, it had all been about a woman. There must be something in me that makes it impossible to have any kind of real relationship. Now's the time to cut your losses and get the hell out of Llanview. He had stayed longer than he had ever planned to, and Chicago suddenly loomed in his mind as a distinct possibility. They still know me there, and I can get a fresh start.
Swilling down the alcohol he had poured, he poured another and lifted his glass in the air. "Chicago…here I come!"
As he swallowed the liquid with gusto, his blue eyes seemed to crackle with fire and he clutched the glass and threw it with all his might against the wall where it shattered.
"No!!"

A ringing phone sent Sherry bounding from her chair where she had been reading.
"You're here? Okay…I'll be up…"
Sherry knocked lightly on the door, and Slider called out, "Come on in, Sherry!"
Stepping into the living room, she saw a sight not uncommon in her work at all. With a businesslike manner, she moved toward the injured, disfigured stranger outstretched awkwardly on the sofa, and as she came closer, she was instantly startled by the strange, dark quality emanating from his eyes.
"So who the hell are you?" he said and looked at her with a gaze exuding raw power and an obvious challenge.

~ TO BE CONTINUED ~