This chapter of Unfaithful is dedicated to Mira (website id: Mira14), who has not only reviewed almost every chapter of my stories, but has also complimented me to death with e-mails of support. Thank you, Mira, for never ceasing to encourage me.

Thank you ALL so much for responding to my questionnaire. It will certainly help me make a few choices! And for those of you who have asked me why Maglor hasn’t showed up yet, he has. I don’t think you’re aware of it, but he has appeared in the story already. Don’t worry; he will play a pretty big role. It was interesting how almost all of you want Glorfindel to invent the time-machine-like device. Another note: I inserted someone by the name of Renée in this chapter. It may seem insignificant right now but there’s a reason why I put her in this story... and it is not for the sake of killing spare time.

By the way (and I’ve had a few people pointing this out to me), I know that Elanor (she’s a character from my other story, Carpe Diem) hasn’t made much of an appearance but she will. Just be patient for a while… after all, I have planned this as a very long story.

Unfaithful

Chapter 8: Agent 19

The volume of the footsteps grew louder.

“Why have you been messing around Mueller Street?” hissed a cold and measured voice as Elrohir came to a sudden halt.

Before you could blink, Elrohir had pulled out a hand gun and was now aiming between the eyes of the stranger.

“Put that thing down!” ordered the stranger, who was clad in black, including the mask that covered his face. The dress-up made him appear as a typical Chicago criminal.

Elrohir ignored him. “Why were you following me?”

The stranger did not even flinch, or in fact show any sign of fear when Elrohir threatened him with the gun. “I wondered what your reaction would be after you read my note,” answered the stranger calmly.

Elrohir lowered his weapon slightly, but frowned.

“You sent me that note?”

The stranger chuckled. “Yes, in fact I did. When I ran headlong into you at the airport, I found the perfect opportunity to slip you a warning.”

Elrohir eyed him suspiciously. “Who are you?” he demanded.

The man flashed an ID card at him. “CIA special agent. My work is classified and top secret. But you can call me Agent 19.”

Elrohir stared. “I see… you’re a CIA agent,” he said slowly, reluctantly putting his gun away. “Who sent you?” persisted Elrohir.

“My boss,” said Agent 19 impatiently. “Who else?”

“Your boss ---Davenport?”

“That’s right,” Agent 19 said coolly. With a mask covering his face, only Agent 19’s two dark brown eyes were visible to Elrohir. “You haven’t answered my first question, AJ, why were you on Mueller Street?”

“The note you wrote told me Aidan was attacked on Mueller Street,” said Elrohir defiantly. “Naturally, I had to come and check it out.”

“That’s really stupid, Parker,” said Agent 19 bluntly, folding his arms. “No one gave you the permission to explore Mueller Street, especially when a dangerous attack had just taken place.”

Elrohir glared at him. “No one forbade me to either,” he shot back evenly.

Agent 19 looked at him seriously. “This is not a joke, AJ.”

“I’m not laughing, Agent 19,” snorted Elrohir.

The dark stranger shot him a strange look. “Davenport told me you would be difficult.”

Elrohir rolled his eyes. He sighed exasperatedly. “What do you want from me?”

“Nothing more than to give you a warning,” said Agent 19 patiently. His deep, intense brown eyes bored into Elrohir. “You want to be careful, AJ. The streets are not safe at night. You saw the markings of that Shadow Demon didn’t you? More will be around soon.”

Forgetting his aloofness to Agent 19, Elrohir couldn’t help but be intrigued. “What are Shadow Demons?”

“They are foul creatures, bred by their master,” replied Agent 19 indifferently. “They are made of evil and hatred, and they can suck life from living things. Shadow Demons only work around at night, they can not withstand daylight.”

There was something very strange about the way Agent 19 spoke. Elrohir was slightly bothered by the fact that the agent spoke about magic and ‘Shadow Demons’ like he wasn’t surprised at all. Even the top secret CIA agents who knew about the elves, immortality, and magic were often surprised and slightly disbelieving at any slight mention of magic.

It’s nothing, Elrohir told himself as he shook off the suspicion.

“Was Aidan all right, then?” he asked worriedly.

Agent 19 hesitated. “Well I’m not sure what you mean by all right. He was exhausted and de-energized, but he was alive and he will recover. I delivered him to Agent Garcia.”

“Agent Diaz,” corrected Elrohir out of habit.

The special agent simply shrugged. “I don’t see much anonymity in calling Luke by his disguise name right now. Aliases aren’t going to fool the enemy for long.” Then he shook his head. “Never mind about that, AJ. What’s important is that there will be no lasting harm done to Aidan. Agent Garcia has probably delivered him to Aiglin Medical Clinic already. Under the care of Dr. Parker, Aidan will recover in no time. However, these days you need to tread carefully, especially after the sun sets.”

“So at night, Shadow Demons are nearly invincible?” asked Elrohir.

“Not invincible,” said Agent 19, shaking his head. “Check the note I wrote, AJ. The light from the star of Eärendil can repel them… I’m not sure why, perhaps it is because of the love and hope the star represents. Shadow Demons cannot understand these things; that may be the reason for their destruction once you shine the light upon them.” He cut himself off when he realized the strange look on Elrohir’s face. “Something the matter, AJ?” he asked smoothly.

The elf had narrowed his eyes. “Yes, in fact something is wrong,” he replied coolly. “Tell me, Agent 19, how is it you know about the star of Eärendil?”

There was a long moment of silence from Agent 19, who was pondering how to respond the question.

“The CIA knows everything,” he replied at last.

Elrohir glared at him. He hated that phrase Reinhardt had always used. Whenever someone replied to him like that, he knew they were not telling the whole truth.

“Well, that’s just it, Agent 19,” said Elrohir coldly. “The CIA doesn’t know.”

Elrohir could almost sense the agent raising an eyebrow beneath the mask.

“Maybe the CIA doesn’t know, but I know,” stated Agent 19 calmly.

“You’re a mortal, you shouldn’t know,” demurred Elrohir, staring warily at the CIA agent. “Who told you?”

But Agent 19 simply shook his head. “You don’t trust me do you, Elrohir, son of the Peredhil?”

Elrohir took an involuntary step back. He shook his head violently. “How is this possible?” he demanded. “How do you know all this? Even Reinhardt did not know and he was the only one we spoke directly to about our secret!”

Agent 19 smiled mysteriously as he began backing away from Elrohir. “I can’t tell you right now, AJ, but just trust me.”

He turned to face the former Imladris elf for a brief moment. “Look after the two mortals, Elrohir.”

Before Elrohir could answer, the agent had camouflaged himself among the shadows and disappeared moments later. Elrohir glanced around but could not track down the agent. For a mortal, Agent 19 definitely had the most amazing stealth Elrohir had ever seen.

“Trust him? He wants me to trust him…” muttered Elrohir annoyed. “How can I trust a mortal, who works for the CIA, calls me Elrohir, knows more than he’s supposed to, warns me about danger, and then flees away?”

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Aiglin Medical Clinic:

“How are you holding out?”

“Okay I guess.”

“How’s the patient?”

The second girl sighed. “Better, I think. You can never be too sure. He was so ghostly pale when they brought him in. It must have been something very serious if Dr. Parker had to personally treat him in the middle of the night.”

The first girl gave her friend a reassuring smile. “If Dr. Parker is treating him, he’ll be better in no time, Renée.” She gestured to a chair. “Sit down, girl! You look completely worn out. Night shifts just don’t agree with you.”

“Tell me about it,” muttered the second girl, Renée. “You look fine yourself.” She looked her friend over. The first girl’s chocolate brown skin was luminous and her cheeks glowed healthily. Her dark brown eyes were full of life and showed no exhaustion for one working so late into the night.

“I’m used to it, girl,” she shrugged. “What can you say? I’m a night owl.” She smiled. “I love staying up at night... it was a nasty habit of mine as a kid that I never got rid of.”

“Well bully for you, Charlene,” grumbled Renée.

The dark-skinned girl, Charlene, patted her shoulder. “Oh ease up, Renée,” she said cheerfully. “You’re new--- you’ll get used to it. Besides, you can always resort to daytime shifts if it starts killing you.”

“Way to go with the optimism,” said Renée sarcastically. Then she smiled. “Actually, I would have changed to daytime shifts long ago but that would mean I could no longer accompany you.”

“You’re a sweet girl at times, Renée,” smiled Charlene. “I used to be an angel when I was your age... but that was a long time ago.”

“Not that long,” Renée pointed out. “You’re only 28, Charlene. That’s not too old.”

Charlene snorted. “And you’re 18, Renée.”

Renée opened her mouth to say something but Charlene cut her off.

“911 alert,” said Charlene quietly, peering over the younger girl’s shoulder.

Renée grinned and whirled around. “Who is it?”

911 alert was a code she and Charlene made up. They would whisper it to each other whenever a hot guy approached. The alert had never been whispered in the middle of the night until now.

“Newcomer I guess,” said Charlene, eying the young man. “I don’t remember him visiting before. Oh man, Renée, are you seeing this? He is damn hot, this one!”

The young man had short raven black hair that crowned his head with a messy kind of elegance. He was very tall and carried himself gracefully. Renée noticed the bandages that were wrapped around the man’s right leg and right hand. But it appeared that the injuries did not bother him too greatly.

“How may I help you, sir?” asked Charlene, at the same time nudging Renée meaningfully.

“I am here for an appointment,” answered the young man in his smooth and low voice.

“At four in the morning?” said Charlene, raising her eyebrows.

“It’s an appointment with my father,” he shrugged. “I can come in anytime really.”

“Is your father a patient?”

“No, he’s a doctor.”

“Okay, I am going to confirm your appointment, sir,” said Charlene. “Please state your name and your doctor.”

“Eric Parker and I’m here to see Dr. Ethan Parker,” he replied.

For a moment, both Charlene and Renée froze.

“Oh... I-I’ll go confirm that for you,” said Charlene at last. She turned to leave but not before giving Renée a prodding look.

Renée quickly went back to studying the clipboard in her hand, though her mind was clearly elsewhere. Eric Parker leaned against the desk and cleared his throat softly. Renée’s head snapped up.

The young man grinned and held out a hand. “Hi, I’m Eric.”

“I know,” said Renée without thinking as she shook his hand. But to her relief, Eric did not take offense.

He laughed lightly. “I guess you do, Renée.”

“How do you know my name?” she asked curiously.

Eric pointed to her badge, ‘Renée Forsythe, DA’.

“Oh right,” muttered Renée, glancing at her badge.

“What’s a DA?” asked Eric.

“Doctor’s Assistant,” replied Renée shortly. She had not meant to sound impatient but the snappy voice always surfaced unintentionally when she didn’t know how to deal with a stranger, especially a good-looking one.

Eric noticed her dismissive tone and he raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

Renée was positively dying and Charlene could not have come back at a better time.

“Well, Dr. Parker is in the intensive care unit, ward 143,” said Charlene. “Wear this, it is your clearance pass,” she explained handing him a silver bracelet. “Renée will escort you.”

If looks could kill, Charlene would be six feet under from the venomous glares Renée shot at her. But Charlene simply rolled her eyes and gave an encouraging smile. Renée would have gladly thumped her head against the wall.

“Follow me, Mr. Parker,” she said stiffly.

“It’s Eric,” he corrected.

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The moment Elrond left Aidan’s room; Legolas approached him immediately. The blonde elf had not slept a wink. His fair golden hair was frazzled but he did not seem to care. His face showed the utmost concern.

“How is he, Lord Elrond?” he asked immediately.

Elrond hesitated for a moment. The silence hung in the air. Legolas dreaded the answer.

“He is stable,” said Elrond slowly. He rubbed his temples slightly.

“But...” prodded Legolas, knowing there was more to it.

“Not in here,” said Elrond, peering down the hallway. He took Legolas’s arm and led him into Aidan’s room. “Sit down,” he said, pointing to a chair beside Aidan.

Elrond leaned against the wall. He sighed. “It was really lucky thing that you found him in time, Legolas. If you had waited a little longer, Aidan’s condition would have been beyond recovery. There was something that drained almost all of his energy...”

Legolas nodded, at last realizing how serious it had been. This did not raise his spirits at all; instead the fear inside him grew.

“He will be okay now?” asked Legolas uncertainly.

Elrond gave a small smile. “Yes, Legolas, be assured. Aidan will recover. For a few days, he may feel a lot more tired than he would like but he will definitely be thankful that he is still alive.”

The younger elf did not reply. The flickering flame of thought in the back of his head would not fade away. Before, Aidan’s condition had been too critical for his musings to bother him too greatly. But now, the thought spread through his brain like wildfire. It was like an unveiled longing that refused to fade away.

“Does something still bother you, Legolas?” asked Elrond gently.

Legolas took a deep breath. “Yes,” he said slowly. He directed his gaze to Aidan... to the young man’s shaggy black hair, familiar face, and his haunting resemblance.

“Who is he?” asked Legolas, his voice was hoarse. “And I don’t mean ‘who’ by his name. Who exactly is he? He- he looks like someone else...” He felt the lump in his throat rise and he could not continue.

“He looks a lot like Estel doesn’t he?” said Elrond quietly. The elf-lord watched as Legolas tried to push his pain from the past behind him. It was when Legolas lifted his head to face him that Elrond saw the wild desperation in the younger elf’s eyes.

“But he isn’t,” said Legolas flatly. He turned his gaze away from Aidan and stared at the floor. “It doesn’t matter, Lord Elrond, he is not- Aragorn.” He said his friend’s name like it was word that was seldom used.

“Elrohir did not tell you?” asked Elrond quickly. Legolas’s head snapped up.

“Tell me what?”

“This will take awhile,” he sighed. “Just sit back and listen Legolas. I didn’t know that Elrohir had not told you yet... But you deserve to hear this.” Elrond paused. “You were right about something, Legolas. Aidan Ellis is not Aragorn, but he is Aragorn’s latest descendant. And as you have already noticed, Aragorn’s genes run quite strongly in Aidan. Almost kind of a miracle if you think about it...”

“How did you find him?” asked Legolas, still staring doubtfully at the unconscious Aidan.

“I didn’t find him,” replied Elrond. “Elrohir ran into him a few days ago completely by chance. Aidan was on a business trip in New York and he happened to meet Elrohir in a bar.”

“And imagine the chances of that...” said Legolas wryly. “Of all the people you could meet in a day, Elrohir just happened to cross paths with the descendant of Aragorn.” Though his voice came across as almost sarcastic, inside, Legolas knew the truth. There was no way to deny it the moment he saw Aidan’s face.

Elrond surveyed the younger elf for a moment. He could almost see the internal struggle Legolas was fighting. He wanted to truly sympathize with Legolas because he knew himself what unfading pain felt like... forever pounding into your very soul.

“Aidan’s middle name is Telcontar,” said Elrond quietly. “Now why would someone living in 2050 have a Quenya middle name that happened also to be the name of King Elessar’s House?”

Legolas stared straight ahead, unresponsive.

“When he wakes up, you can talk to him,” suggested Elrond.

When Legolas opened his mouth to reply, he was interrupted by a sharp knock at the door. A girl poked her head in. She wore no makeup and her wheat blonde hair was fixed hastily into a small ponytail. On her uniform was a Doctor’s Assistant badge.

“I am sorry to interrupt, Doctor, but your son has arrived,” she said, opening the door to let the tall young man behind her enter.

“Eric!” Legolas recognized him immediately.

Elrond smiled also. “Thank you, Renée.”

The girl gave a short nod of acknowledgement before closing the door behind her.

“Hiya, Elladan!” said Legolas, clapping his friend’s shoulder. “Didn’t expect you to arrive at four in the morning.”

“It wasn’t exactly in my itinerary,” replied Elladan wryly. He turned to his father.

“It’s wonderful to be back, Father,” he said smiling. He embraced his father, who returned the warm welcome.

“I’m glad you’re home, Elladan,” said Elrond. He took a good look at his son. “I haven’t seen you in five years... and seven years before that.”

Elladan smiled sheepishly. “Well, I’m a bit of a wanderer... I get carried away with all the missions.” He sat down in a stuffed chair and grimaced as he tried to shift his right leg.

“Let me take a look at that,” ordered Elrond. While he was fixing Elladan’s injured leg and hand, he noticed the stench of evil left on the injuries that was not unlike the shuddering signature of evil that touched Aidan.

“What happened, Elladan?” asked Legolas.

“I had a fight with a couple of demons and it didn’t turn out quite the way I wanted,” responded Elladan. “I was lucky Mother came to help me just in time. Damn demons...”

“Demons?” asked Elrond. He frowned questionably at Elladan.

“After the demons were killed, Mother and I found elvish runes burnt into the floor. They said ‘demon’ and we think it’s their signature. But here’s the strangest thing; when I first scented the demons, I thought they were orcs. Unfortunately, the demons are stronger creatures than orcs.”

Elrond pondered Elladan’s words for a moment. Everything was coming together, confirming his fears.

“Who could be setting these demons loose?” wondered Legolas aloud. “Did demons attack Aidan also?”

“I don’t know,” said Elladan, shaking his head. “What I do know is that I haven’t felt this way since Sauron’s reign of terror in the Third Age and Melkor’s attack on Valinor and middle-earth late in the Fourth Age. But whoever ordered the attack on Aidan must have spies everywhere. No one is supposed to know about Aidan’s heritage.”

Elrond did not speak. He was trying to come to a decision.

“It’s not safe anymore,” he said slowly. Elladan and Legolas looked at him immediately. “Galadriel warned me about this.”

“What did Grandmother say?” asked Elladan, his voice quivering slightly.

Suddenly, a dark look crossed Elrond’s face as his eyes rested on his son.

“Darkness is rising,” said Elrond, choosing his words carefully. “Galadriel saw a prophecy in the mirror. It told her that an old threat would return to haunt us all.” He carefully left the part about the plot to harm him. Thankfully, neither of the two younger elves found anything amiss. “I won’t go through the whole prophecy for you, but the safety of Aidan and Erin is essential.”

“Erin?” questioned Legolas.

Elrond and Elladan exchanged looks.

“We have a lot to explain to you, Legolas,” said Elladan at last.

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Author’s Note: Ugh, horrible chapter! It didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to. Anyways, this chapter was supposed to tie a few things together and arouse a few suspicions at the same time. I really don’t know if I’ve accomplished that. Oh well, wish me better luck on the next chapter!

Thanks to Kelly, my beta-reader.

If you haven’t replied to my questionnaire yet, PLEASE DO SO! It would help me a lot to hear your opinions.

PLEASE REVIEW!

References to the Lord of the Rings (i.e. characters, places, events, etc.) are Copyrighted © Professor J.R.R. Tolkien. Original characters, plots, and events are Copyrighted © 2003 Alexis Delaflote, all rights reserved.