Never free of the past
Chapter 10
"How are we supposed to get out of here?" Bradley asked as the boys watched Evie pull a pin out of the heel of her boot. She unzipped her flight suit again, picking up her tools.
"I was brought here in a cargo plane. I'm guessing you were too?" They nodded as she put her tools and Alan's watch into her shorts pocket before zipping the flight suit back up again. "That means we're somewhere remote and inaccessible to cars. I was in the plane for an hour and a half, so that narrows down our location due to the top speed of the plane."
"How do you know all this?" Jake asked as she knelt by the door with the pin in hand.
"Like I said. I'm a federal agent." She replied, picking the lock and opening the door quickly. "Right. Follow me and watch your step. We don't know how many of them there are." They crept up the stairs behind Evie with Fermat bringing up the rear. They slowly walked through the corridors, hugging the walls, before finding the exit and getting outside. They crouched behind a small wall and Evie and Alan poked their heads up to see the plane, along with the guards.
"I count 6 guards, all armed with semi-automatics." Evie said. "Looks like the planes been fuelled and is ready to go. That must mean they're planning on moving to another location."
"What makes you say that?" Alan asked.
"The oil spill on the floor. That and keeping us in one location for a long period of time is just plain stupid." She replied. "Ok. I need everyone to run for the plane on my signal."
"W-what are you g-going to d-d-do?" Fermat asked.
"I'm going to distract the guards." She replied, making Alan freeze.
"What? No!" He hissed. "You'll never make it back."
"Alan, I promised Dad I'd get you back. I can distract the guards while you get everyone out of here." She said, seeing his worry and reluctance. "I'll be fine."
"I won't leave you." He said, feeling tears behind his eyes. "We can't lose you again."
"You won't lose me. I can take care of myself." She grabbed his shoulders and looked into his eyes. "You're a Thunderbird. You have a duty to rescue those in danger. Now, you and Brains Jr need to fly the plane back to LA. Once there, I need you to contact NCIS special agent G Callen and get him and his team to be undercover security for Dad's fundraising event next week. I heard Mullian mention something about the event on the way here and Callen and his team are the only other people I trust right now." Alan nodded, knowing that she wouldn't change her mind. "Wait until the guards have their backs to you. Then run." She ran to the other side of the compound, keeping to the shadows. Alan watched as she made a loud bang, making the guards turn to face her. Alan motioned to the boys and they all ran across the tarmac to the plane. "I really hate when people kidnap me." Evie said as the guards ran towards her.
Alan managed to get everyone inside the plane without being noticed, but he could see his sister fighting the 6 guards, using anything she could get her hands on to help her. He had to rely on Fermat to bring him back into the present so that they could get into the cockpit. They quickly started the engines, only for the guards to realise what was happening and start shooting at them. 'Thank God this thing is bullet proof.' Alan thought as they sped up. Just as they took off, he locked eyes with his sister and felt a tear slide down his cheek.
Evie watched as the plane took off and held her hands up in surrender with a smile. The guards grabbed her arms and held them behind her back as the Hood and Richard ran out, just in time to see the plane disappear over the horizon. The guards pulled Evie in front of Richard and waited, unsure of what to do.
"You were right." She said as Richard looked at her, his anger evident on his face. "I will do anything to protect my family. Now Alan's safe. You can't hurt me."
"We'll see about that." He snapped, his anger rising even more at the smirk on Evie's face. "Get her back to the cell. And this time, don't let her escape!" He yelled as he and the Hood stormed back into the warehouse. Evie let the guards take her back to the cell, happy in the thought that her youngest brother was safe.
Alan tightened his grip on the controls as he heard the boys cheering behind him. How would he face his family now? How could he look at them, knowing that he couldn't save his sister?
"A-Alan. Y-you hear what E-E-E-your sister said. S-she'll be f-f-fine." Fermat said.
"Why did I agree to leave her there? How could I agree?" He asked, his eyes watering.
"You had no ch-ch-ch-option." He replied, looking at his best friend. "You need t-to c-call J-J-J-your brother."
Alan sighed and grabbed the headset. The other boys already knew about International Rescue, so why not contact them. "Calling International Rescue, come in International Rescue." Alan waited for a reply for a few moments. "Space Case. I know you're there!"
"Al-I mean, Speed!" John's voice rang out, making Alan flinch from the volume of his voice. "Where are you?"
"In a plane with Brains Jr and the boys from Wharton's. They know by the way. It was a little obvious when Female Thunder turned up with no helmet." Alan said.
"Is she with you?" He asked.
"No. She stayed so that we could get out." He said, sharing a sad look with Fermat. "We're heading to Los Angeles. Can you call the LAPD and get them to ring the parents? And let Red Arrow know."
"FAB. I'll let them know." John replied. Alan could hear the sadness in his voice and knew why it was there.
"Hey Space Case." He said before John could cut the call. "I'm sorry about Female Thunder. There was nothing I could do."
"It's not your fault Speed. We all know what she's like once she's made up her mind." John replied before Alan took the headphones off with a sigh.
"Let's get to LA." He said, pushing the plane faster.
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"G!" Nell yelled as she ran down the stairs, making the 4 agents look up at her. "We found the plane."
"Where?" G asked as they all stood up.
"Heading to a private airport here in LA! Address is on your phones." She said before they all ran out to the cars, pulling bullet proof vests on as they went. They pulled up at the airport and jumped out of the cars, seeing the plane taxi to a stop on the tarmac. They drew their weapons as the door began to open, only to be faced with the shocked face of Alan Tracy. They sighed, putting their guns away and helping the kids out of plane. G pulled Alan to one side as Sam, Kensi and Deeks made arrangements to get the kids to the nearest hotel.
"Where's your sister? Was she with you?" G asked, making Alan's eyes widen.
"She caused the distraction that let us get away." He said, making G sigh. "Are you special agent G Callen?"
"Yes. Why?" He asked, seeing Alan's calculating gaze.
"Got any ID?" G frowned, but pulled out his ID anyway. "Sorry, I had to check. Evie said that you and your team are the only people outside of our family she can trust. She said that she needs you and your team to be undercover security for our Dad's fundraising event next week." G looked confused at the request.
"Did she say why?" He asked.
"Only that she trusts you. And that's good enough for me." He replied, knowing that if his sister trusted the man in front of him, then he could trust him as well.
"Ok. Come on, let's get to the hotel. Your Dad's probably on his way." They walked over to the bus that had arrived to take the kids to the hotel and jumped in. The drive was quick and soon they were walking into a large ballroom to see some parents already there. Fermat and Alan found some seats at the back of the room, knowing they'd have to wait for a bit. Tracy one, their fastest plane after the 'birds, would take an hour and 15 minutes to get to LA. They were talking quietly about what happened when G walked over, a smile on his face.
"So, all the other boys are saying that it was you who got them out." He said, making Alan drop his head.
"No. Evie got us out. All we did was fly." He said, looking at the ground and ignoring the hand Fermat placed on his arm.
"I've got a question for you two." G said, making Alan's head lift up in confusion. "Can you find where you were on a map? If we get there we may be able to get Evie back."
"There's no point. They're not stupid. They'll change location as soon as they can. Evie will be gone by the time you get there." He replied.
"Mr Tracy." The boys saw the tiny Henrietta Lange walking up to them. "I understand your worries, but we need to check it out."
"You're wasting your time. They won't be there." He said again, looking at the small woman in front of him.
"You are more like your sister than you think." She said, making his brow furrow. "She too would convince us to look somewhere else. And she wouldn't give up on someone. But we need to check it out in case she left us any clues." Alan sighed and wrote down how long it took them to get to LA and what direction they came from. G and Hetty walked away to talk to Sam, Kensi and Deeks. Jake walked over to the two boys and stood nervously in front of them, wringing his hands.
"Umm… I'm sorry for what I said about your sister before. She really is stronger than anyone gives her credit for." He said, giving Alan a small smile. "I'm sorry you had to leave her. But if she's anything like what you say, she'll find her own way out."
"Thanks Jake." Alan replied before Jake walked away, going back over to his family. Alan turned back to his friend, just as the door burst open to reveal two very familiar faces.
"Alan! Fermat!" Jeff and Brains shouted as they ran over to their kids.
"Dad!" Alan yelled, throwing his arms around his Dad's waist and burying his head in his chest. For the first time since he had been taken, he felt safe.
"Did Evie get out?" Jeff asked, holding his youngest child at arm's length. Alan bowed his head, barley aware of Fermat and Brains next to them.
"No. She created a distraction so that we could get out. She wouldn't come with us." He said. "Didn't John tell you?"
"All he said was that you were on your way to LA in a stolen plane." Jeff replied.
"It doesn't count as stealing if it saves your life." Alan muttered, just loud enough for Jeff to hear. "Umm…. Dad, they know about IR."
"Who know?" He asked, his eyes narrowing.
"Our class. It was kind of obvious when Evie turned up with no helmet." He said, repeating the words he said to John earlier. "I'm sorry about Evie. I should have tried harder to get her to come with us."
"Alan, you know your sister almost as well as you know yourself. If she had to choose between saving herself and saving others, she would sacrifice herself in a heartbeat. Especially if it means saving her brother." Jeff said, looking his son in the eyes.
"She didn't have to save me! I can take care of myself! I should have stayed and protected her from Richard!" Alan said, making Jeff stiffen.
"Richard?" He asked, making Alan realise what he said.
"He's working with the Hood." He whispered. "He tortured Evie in front of us."
"S-she wouldn't t-tell him a-anything, M-Mr Tracy." Fermat said. "N-not even w-when the Hood used his p-p-p-gift of us."
"But I think she found a way to block his powers." Alan said. "One minute we were all in pain, then it stopped and the Hood just looked confused and angry."
"Ok. Let's get back to the Island. We can use our own resources to find her." Jeff said, leading the boys out of the room.
G Callen watched as the 4 walked out of the room, his eyes slightly narrowed. "They're hiding something." He said to Sam. "Something that Evie's in on."
"What are you going to do? Stick them in the boat shed and force them to tell you?" Sam asked, a teasing tone to his voice.
"No! But I am going to find out." He said.
"G." Kensi said as she and Deeks walked over. "Plane's ready to go."
"The quicker we get there, the less chance they have to move Evie." Deeks continued. They walked towards the cars to get to the airport. G made himself a promise as they drove that one way or another, he would find out what it was Evie and her family are hiding.
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"Federal agent!" Sam yelled as the 4 agents burst the front door to the warehouse open. They cleared room after room, making sure not to leave any corner unchecked, finding nothing but rats.
"Hey, check this out." Deeks said, moving a wooden board to reveal a stairwell at the end of a large room. The 4 slowly crept down the stairs, being careful not to make a sound. They opened the door at the end of the stairs, Kensi flicking the light switch next to her. The room lit up and all of the agents froze at what they saw.
"What the hell?" Deeks murmured as G walked into the room. A large cell took up nearly all of the room, and there was a small patch of dried blood close to the door. G walked into the cell, bending down to pick up the gold, heart shaped locket that lay on the floor. He turned it over and saw the inscription that read, E.J.T. Our little surprise.
"Evie." He whispered, looking at the flowered pattern he had seen so many time on the front of the locket. "She was here."
"Question is, where is she now?" Kensi asked. G walked over to the stone wall at the back of the cell and saw something carved into the stone.
"Water." He read, recognising Evie's handwriting straight away. "What does it mean?"
"She's trying to tell us something." Sam said, looking at the word and glancing around the room. "But what?"
"Where they took her?" Deeks asked.
"No. They wouldn't let her know before they took her. They'd know that she'd find a way to tell us." Sam replied. "I think I read a theory of hers that involved water." He mused.
"Maybe it's related to whatever her and her family are hiding." G said. He was going to find out what they were hiding, one way or another.
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"Enough." The Hood ordered, making Richard move away from the battered and bruised Evie, dropping the metal pole he found which had brought on a horrible case of Déjà vu. "Tell us the secrets of the Thunderbirds."
"Bite me." She snapped.
"Don't tempt me," Richard hissed, fire in his eyes.
"I told you before. Do whatever the hell you want to me. I won't tell you anything." She snapped, getting to her feet.
"Then I will shoot the Thunderbirds out of the sky." The Hood hissed, making her laugh.
"You can't shoot a Thunderbird out of the sky. After your attack on my brother, thank you so much for that, I updated our security for every one of the 'birds. No bullet, or even a missile, can get close to a 'bird." She said, putting her hands on her hips.
"This is going nowhere." Richard said, starting to walk away.
"You will tell me what I want to know. I'll make sure of it." The Hood said, starting to follow me.
"I repeat. Bite me. I will die before I tell you anything, so you may as well just give up." She said, watching as the door slammed shut and was locked. She looked down at the chain that held her ankle to the wall and sighed. She had 5 feet of room to move before the chain pulled her back. She flicked her fringe out of her face and sat down, trying to calm herself down. She hoped that G had found her message and figured out what it meant before her Dad's fundraiser. She knew that the Hood was planning something, she just didn't know what it was. All that she knew, was that it wouldn't be good.
Sorry it's taking me so long to update! I've just started a new college course and am working overtime at work. I barley have time to do my college work, let alone write! I will try to update more, but I can't promise anything unfortunately.
Thanks for the reviews guys. Hope you enjoyed.
Emma