Thank you for all of the lovely reviews again.


There were times Virgil hated the fact that Scott was always the one to take charge of everything, whether they were on a rescue or at home. But as he stood casually against the main doors, arms folded across his chest and the gun resting by his feet, Virgil wouldn't have had it any other way. He was supposed to be keeping guard in case any of the terrorists decided they were going to take their chances and run for it. But right now, they were all on the stage under Wasper's guard and didn't look like they were going anywhere.

Scott, however, was shouting to make himself heard. The guests had initially fallen silent when Scott had taken control, too shaken up to try and protest. Now, however, they seemed to realise the threat was over and the fact that they were supposed to be important people. They all seemed to be clamouringfor attention, demanding they be the first to leave, insisting that their own security could handle the situation rather than waiting for the cops to arrive. Virgil knew that Scott was aware that the cops were almost upon the building and so was not taking the chance of anyone leaving in case they were caught in any crossfire. A glance out of the window had revealed to Virgil that the guards downstairs were still in place, clearly having no idea that their comrades had been disarmed and the situation neutralised.

"I thought he was supposed to be good at this?"

Virgil grinned, turning to Mrs H. The old lady had finally put down the gun and Virgil knew that the terrorists weren't the only ones to have let out a sigh of relief.

"He hates dealing with rich people," Virgil muttered, inwardly wincing at the irony of his statement. They were only here because their father was hosting the whole event in the building he owned. Unable to stop himself, Virgil found that he was glancing towards the ceiling. He had to smirk; this wasn't the first time he and Scott had managed to ruin a room after being left in it, but he had the excuse of being only ten the first time it had happened. Mrs H made a noise of agreement at the back of her throat and Virgil found himself turning to face her properly.

"Who are you?" he asked bluntly, trying to work the woman out. She obviously had money, the amount she had paid for Scott at the beginning of the night had proved that. But even if her husband was of high authority in the Air Force, it wouldn't have given her a pension that big. That was without even thinking about the connections she had to their father and the fact that she knew precisely who they were. The boys all knew the names of their agents, they had to make sure they knew who they could contact if they needed help on a rescue. But Virgil was sure that Scott would have been aware of Mrs H considering he had past contact with her; there was no way she would have slipped under the radar this successfully.

"You need to ask your father that."

"Oh come on…" The look that Virgil found himself subjected to was so like one his grandmother would give him that he found himself blushing.

"Will you lot please just shut up!"

Virgil winced at Scott's shout, but found that his attention was distracted in the silence. Just as everyone stopped talking, an almighty bang came floating up through the open doors, followed by a flurry of gunfire. Scott whirled on the spot and Virgil just hoped that he was the only one who noticed the way his brother's hand automatically returned to the gun still hanging around his neck. Virgil shook his head the tiniest amount, telling the man without words there was nothing for him to worry about. It didn't surprise him that Scott was so much on edge and he just found himself hoping that none of the terrorists tried anything. He wasn't sure he would actually be able to stop Scott from doing anything rash if it came to that. He had seen the look in Scott's eyes when Virgil had been brought into the room bound and he knew that had been the last straw for his big brother.

"What's happening? Are they back? I knew you wouldn't have been able to keep us secured. We're all going to die!"

Virgil didn't even know who the man was who had started speaking, but he did recognise the tension rippling through the back of Scott's shoulders.

"If he doesn't shut up, it will be Scott who kills him," Virgil muttered in an undertone, making sure that it was only Mrs H who could hear him.

"No one is going to harm you, you have my word…"

"Fancy words for someone who couldn't protect his own brother."

"Uh oh…" Virgil bent down, using his foot to flick his own weapon back into his hand. Of all the things the man could have said, that was the worst. He didn't need to see Scott's face to know his brother would have an expression like thunder, and judging by the way the man seemed to recoil slightly, Virgil knew he was right.

"You listen here…." Scott moved towards the man, but before he could say another word, Mrs H stepped forward.

"And you have very fancy words for someone who screamed like a girl and had to be propped up by his wife as he almost fainted when they first arrived . I would watch what you say to the man with the gun in his hand, Mr Robinson, or it won't be those men on the stage that you have to worry about."

"Why you…"

"Don't show any disrespect to the lady, Sir," Virgil ordered, making sure that this Mr Robinson could see the gun in his hand and understand that Scott wasn't the only one who knew how to use one. The man looked like he was about to open his mouth again, but that was when Scott let the safety catch off his own weapon. Silence fell once more, and following Scott's pointed nod, Virgil moved through the bar. Reaching the top of the stairs he glanced down, wondering if any of the officers needed any help and whether Scott was even going to let him go down there if they did. In a way, considering Scott's temper right now, Virgil was grateful when the first officer appeared at the bottom of the stairs. He simply nodded on seeing Virgil standing there and moved back to report.

With a quick check around that no one was either in earshot or paying him any attention, Virgil lifted his watch.

"John, what do they know?"

"That the situation is under control."

John's voice came floating back instantly and Virgil found himself grinning. It was going to make things so much easier if the cops didn't come charging in guns blazing, especially considering he and Scott were the only ones still holding weapons.

"Thanks." Knowing it was taking too much of a risk talking to John in the open like this, Virgil disconnected and moved back into the room. Catching Scott's eye, he quickly relayed what he knew and watched the tension practically drain from his brother as Scott nodded his understanding. Moving back across to Mrs H, Virgil realised just how tired the old lady was looking and quickly moved to get a chair. He had to practically cross the whole room until he could find one and found himself right next to the stage. Thrandon saw him coming and leant over, leering.

"You think you can just get away with it? I'm still going to tell the world."

"You do that." Virgil picked up the chair and moved back across, but his heart was beating fast even as the cops finally made it into the room and began to take control of the situation.

"What's wrong with you, boy?"

Placing the chair down for Mrs H, Virgil gestured to it and sighed as he helped her sit down.

"He's still threatening to tell," he murmured quietly, making sure to keep his voice low even as he watched the cops begin to handcuff the terrorists. More and more men were spilling into the room until uniforms were everywhere, a scattering of paramedics making their way over to the guests. As Virgil looked, Scott turned around and caught his eye, jerking his head towards one of the paramedics and giving Virgil a meaningful look. Virgil firmly shook his head, moving back around until he could stand behind Mrs H's chair in the hope she would save him from Scott's stare. His brother's eyes narrowed into a glare as he gestured towards the paramedics again, but Virgil adamantly refused. He hurt all over, he wasn't going to deny that, but he also knew that it was nothing more than severe bruising. Considering the guests were now beginning to argue over who was more important and so should be seen first, despite no one other than the Tracys and Wasper being hurt, there was no way Virgil was going over there. Nathan had received attention since he was obviously bloodied and Scott seemed to be heading in the other direction to put distance between him and those who could help. It was such a Scott thing to do that Virgil rolled his eyes, especially considering Scott was still motioning at the same time.

"Now that is more the spoilt rich boy look I was expecting." Mrs H had also been watching Scott, but Virgil chuckled.

"Oh no. That's his big brother look when he wants me to do something and I don't want to." He put the gun back down on the floor and found he was moving around the chair until he was sitting at Mrs H's feet. They sat in silence for a moment as Scott talked to one of the officers and the terrorists began to be taken out. Despite the fact that they had been disarmed, the officers were using extreme caution and clearly didn't want too many of them on the stairs at once when they couldn't use their greater numbers to an advantage. Eventually, Scott came over and without hesitation sank to the floor and sat in the same way as Virgil.

"Is it over?" the younger brother asked softly, realising how tired he was feeling and how much he just wanted to fall into bed and sleep for a week.

Scott nodded softly. "They said they would be in touch. I might have name-dropped a little and made them leave us alone for a couple of days. We need to clear with Dad precisely what the story is going to be about Thrandon."

"About him…" Virgil twisted until he could look at Scott properly. "He's still threatening to talk."

"'Course he is. He thinks that everyone is going to listen to him and he'll still win afterall of this."

"So what do we do?" Virgil hated the way that Scott didn't answer, knowing it was because his brother wasn't quite sure what to say. It was one thing being able to get the police to leave them alone for a few days, but it was another thing entirely if Thrandon started talking now. Virgil was fully aware there would be a media gathering outside by the time they got out there; some of America's richest had been involved after all. They couldn't let Thrandon say anything that could threaten everything they had ever worked for.

"Then you better get down there first and make sure you cut him off."

Both boys jumped at the business-like tone to Mrs H's voice, yet Virgil found that he was getting to his feet anyway. Thrandon had been the last to be taken down; Virgil knew the man would have only just got to the bottom of the stairs by now. Considering Scott was also climbing to his feet, Virgil had a feeling that his brother was thinking the same thing. They took one look at each other and Scott nodded, moving towards the stairs. Virgil fell into step with him, but they didn't get very far. Virgil found himself watching with a grimace as Martin was placed on a stretcher as the paramedics waited for the elevator to get him out. It was only because of the calm expressions on their faces that Virgil knew the man would be alright, just maybe with a heavy concussion. Scott, however, turned back to Mrs H.

"Don't go anywhere." His tone was light, but Virgil could hear the concern in it. It was only their father's confirmation that he knew Mrs H that had stopped Scott from completely freaking out, but they still had the issue of not really knowing who she was yet realising that she seemed to know everything about them. Virgil glanced around in time to see her nod knowingly, the twinkle in her eye revealing Mrs H knew precisely why Scott was attempting to make sure they got answers. Virgil wasn't surprised; she was the one who had said she thought Scott was a bad actor.

"You go and finish saving the day, sweetie, I'll be right here."

Virgil found himself glancing at his brother only to see Scott chewing his lip in uncertainty. Realising they had to get downstairs before Thrandon caught the attention of the press, Virgil grabbed Scott's arm and began dragging him towards the stairs. It seemed far longer than just a few hours ago that he had been dragging him away from said stairs.

As soon as Mrs H was out of sight, Scott seemed to snap out of his daze and the pair ran swiftly down.

"What are we going to say?" Virgil asked as they ran through the lobby and stopped. They couldn't look like they were worried in case it gave anything Thrandon said credibility. That was the last thing they could afford to happen and the two brothers took a moment to make sure they looked like they were stumbling from a hostage situation rather than still on a mission to make sure their secret remained as that: a secret.

"No idea." Scott reached over and tugged at the corner of Virgil's collar, making at least one of the bruises be revealed. His brother just about bit back a yelp as a couple of the buttons sprung of in the process, opening the shirt more than Scott tried to bat him away, but Scott was already moving. It was either risk being left behind while he sorted himself out or move and know that the media could see him looking the worse for wear. Hoping that none of the pictures he was sure were about to be taken ever made it back to his grandmother, Virgil hurried after Scott. He caught up with him just as Scott was walking out of the building, flashing lights immediately greeting them as the media circus Virgil had predicted instantly turned their attention onto the brothers. Virgil didn't realise he was doing it, but for a split second he ducked behind Scott. For his whole life – at least, ever since his father had become a name and that went back almost as far as Virgil could remember clearly - he had let his brother sort out the media. It was one of their unwritten rules whenever they came across someone with a camera: tell Scott. But the pilot seemed to realise what he was doing and neatly stepped to one side, making sure they could see Virgil as well. Virgil contemplated glaring, but realised that a picture of him glaring at the back of Scott's head would be ripe for as much interpretation from the rest of the world as the whole situation here.

"There they are! That's them! International Rescue!"

Virgil cursed in his head as Thrandon's shout came out of nowhere, but he had to give Scott some credit. For all of Mrs H's complaints about him not being able to act, Scott looked every inch as surprised as the media, instantly turning to look around as if he was expecting to see someone else standing there.

"Who? Who is he talking about?"

Virgil found he was hard pushed not to laugh. Scott had deliberately lowered his tone to make it look like he was just addressing Virgil, but at the same time had made sure every recording device in the vicinity picked up his words.

"I'm telling you, it is them!"

"This man is claiming you are a member of International Rescue, Mr Tracy. How do you and your brother respond?"

To Virgil's amazement, Scott laughed.

"I would like to say that I'm flattered he thinks that much of us. But I'm afraid that is as ludicrous as saying… oh I don't know, our watches can talk to people in outer space."

The journalists surrounding them all laughed, many turning to each other to confirm it had just been the ravings of a man condemned. But through the crowd Virgil caught Thrandon's eye and smirked at the outraged expression on his face as he was pushed into the waiting police car. Scott took his arm and began leading him away, claiming – to Virgil's annoyance – that he wanted to make sure his little brother was okay.

"Virg?" As soon as they were out of earshot, Scott's pretence dropped and he looked worried. "You got my watch back, right?"

Virgil gasped, letting the horror show on his face as Scott stared at him. Just as he thought his brother was about to rush back and do something stupid, Virgil laughed, reaching into his pocket and pulling out said watch. He had almost forgotten he had taken it, but when he had locked the man in the room he had made sure that Thrandon had been left with nothing that could incriminate them. Scott snatched it off him with a glare.

"Oh come on, I can do some things you know," Virgil moaned, yawning again. Something in Scott's expression softened and he turned his brother in the direction of the penthouse.

"Come on, let's go home."