Thanks for the review ThereseM and I love your stories too.

EwaB

In the mean time inside Jake has come to his senses again. And he sees both Helmuth and Josh rolling around on the floor laughing, at him.

Nobody would blame Jake for finally loosing it. He has been on his best behaviour for almost a year now. Not fighting with his brother so he wouldn't upset his dad. Getting his behind chewed out by said dad on a regular basis and not retaliating even once because his dad is sick. Even sitting out and listening to 'the talk' with a grinning Josh on the other side of the room who isn't even bothering to hide his amusement at Jake's discomfort. And now, right after his whole world is put upside down one more time in just three days, Josh is again making fun of him.

So Jake moves in to do some harm.

And that is when the real problem start. Josh would have taken a little roughing up without a problem. But Hilde thinks that Jake is going for her baby brother and she is also still high on adrenaline after fighting the no neck. So she goes for Jake. And Jake is so surprised by it that his just lets her hit him. He doesn't even try to defend himself or block her blows. Not that her fighting is very effective this time. And after a few punches to his chest Hilde breaks down and starts crying. And that is even more confusing to Jake, but he tries his best and puts his arms around her to clumsily pats her back and stroke her hair.

At that point Helmuth decides he has had enough. And he turns to Josh.

"Are we getting out of here or what?"

Josh is happy with the question as it gives him an excuse to not look at Jake and Hilde anymore. Because well, he is about to suggest to them to find a room. Knowing that that would only set Jake of again.

"Yes, lets go."

And he reaches out to grab Jake and get is attention.

"Jake, we have to get moving, lets get these two in a harness and lifted out and than follow our self."

They are almost out of the door when Helmuth turns and looks back.

"What about that one?"

Pointing at the no neck that is still writhing on the ground.

"Nothing, somebody will miss him eventually and find him."

Is Josh his solution.

"No, I heard them say that he had to go and off us and than disappeared. So nobody is going to miss him, they expect him to not show up anymore."

At that Josh just shrugs his shoulders.

"We will let Lindsy decide what to do."

"Lindsy is here?"

And that was the most upbeat and eager that Josh had heard Helmuth.

"Yeah, she is outside messing with the security system."

But by the time Josh is done speaking Helmuth was already in the hallway standing next of Jake and Hilde. Eagerly waiting to get strapped into his harness, only Jake has eyes for Hilde and is strapping her into his harnas. So Josh takes off his own harness and straps Helmuth into it, after that he gives the signal to Phil and Johnathan, and up they went. But not before Josh noticed the fresh looking needle marks on Helmuth's arms. That would explain a big part of his strange behaviour as far as Josh is concerned.

The lines where gone. So Josh gives Jake a hand up into the air co, and Jake climbs in and goes to a corner where he can turn around. After that he crawls to the opening again and puts out an arm while holding himself steady by hooking his feet in place around a corner.

Josh manages to climb up Jake's arm and to get into the air co duct himself and wriggles over Jake so he can go after H&H. It is a bit of a tight squeeze and Jake is far from happy with Josh when Josh finds a nice foothold in his crotch. As far as Jake is concerned Josh takes forever. But finally Josh is gone around the corner and Jake is able to shuffles backwards after Josh.

Josh is the first one to find the lines that came down the vertical part of the air co system and he starts climbing. Jake is a little behind him because he had crawl backwards to the corner so he could turn around and start crawling forwards after Josh.

By the time Johnathan is done laughing he refuses to look at Phil, afraid of starting again.

And Phil his mind is back on the job, because it are his kids down there. And who knows what is going on.

At that moment he feels the line stretch and than the tugs that signal that he should start pulling. And he sees Johnathan spitting in his hands to also start pulling.

The weight on the line's is light and within two, three minutes they are confronted with two pale, skinny kids.

They are both shocked at how Hilde looks. Her eyelids are by now so swollen that it is almost impossible to see her eyes, blood still dripping from her nose. Her T shirt is ripped open and covered in blood as is her pale skin underneath it. She is trembling with cold, shock or probably both. Johnathan takes of his own T-shirt and gives it to Hilde, she tries a shy smile and puts it on. It is so much to big she looks even smaller and fragile than she did before. Johnathan once again forgets to use the editing system in his head and just blurts out.

"I want to kick the fucking guy who did this in the fucking nuts."

That gets him an other shy half smile and a head shake.

"Rather not, it would hurt me to much."

"Hurt you? Why?"

"Well I kind of swallowed his nuts. So they are in my stomach."

Johnathan is suitably impressed and amazed. Hilde cant help but give a real smile at the expression on his face. She likes these guys, even if they are a bit strange and intimidating.

Helmuth on the other hand just dropped where he stood and seems unable to even react to the fact that there is a big half naked man with tattoo's standing next to his sister talking and laughing with her.

Phil isn't paying attention to Johnathan or H&H, he still has his sons to worry about so he throws the two lines down again and almost at once he feels Jake or Josh

climbing up. Josh shows up first, and he gives his dad a big hug and a fast, we're fine, and then takes care of Helmuth, getting him on his feet again and moving to the back of the building where Lindsy is waiting. Josh is worried about the strange reactions of Helmuth and he would feel a lot better if Lindsy is taking care of him.

Jake is up shortly after, but he seems not sure what to do. He gives his dad a half hearted hug and then just stands there, looking rather lost.

Phil in the mean time is focussed on getting the lines out of the air co and putting the cover on again and as a result isn't paying any attention to his youngest son but Johnathan notices that Hilde who had been smiling at him and his silly jokes stops smiling and just stares at Jake, and she slowly is turning red. But she doesn't look upset or scared so it is clear to Johnathan that she isn't angry at Jake. So he throws a quick look at Jake and the kid is just as red and confused looking. And once he realizes what is going on Johnathan quietly whistles to him self, interesting developments are in the air.

But first things first and that is getting all of them safely down and on the way back to the impromptu base and their prisoner of war.

And also getting some answers from Lindsy and JJ, because this kind of thing isn't standard business, not even among fishermen.

Josh has managed to get Helmuth to the ground without to much noise or bumping Helmuth into the wall, which was quite an accomplishment since Helmuth wasn't really helping in any way.

He now is waiting for the others. And he doesn't have to wait long.

His dad is first and he makes it down the line without any problem. Johnathan helps with getting Hilde down using the climbing harness again. She also makes it down in one piece. After that Johnathan and Jake go down the only remaining line. Josh unties the line and throws it down.

So to get down himself he first lets himself hang from the gutter and then let himself drop to the ground, where Johnathan is waiting to catches him by the legs the last part and that way breaks most of his fall. So Josh also made it to the ground in one piece.

And although Lindsy is still working on the laptop, now to get the security system up and running again, she also managed to calm Helmuth down. The wounded no neck would be found by the police and they would make sure he got what he deserved.

Once everybody was down on the ground again and the security system working, and going off, Lindsy could pay some real attention to her two young friends.

Hilde looks like she has the most impressive injuries, so Lindsy first takes care of her. But Hilde seems to be doing fine physically, and most of the blood seems to have come from the No Neck not from Hilde.

Helmuth is also not badly injured but the needle marks are worrying because who knows what he has been forced to use. But that is also something Lindsy cant help at the moment.

Jake has gone to the front of the building to signal JJ and Larry that they are ready to leave.

And the minute JJ rounds the corner and Hilde sees him, she goes of in that typically Swiss mixture of France, German and Italian, and JJ just opens his arms and gives her a big hug, comforting her in a much more effective way than Jake had been doing, also talking in high speed in the same un understandable language.

Helmuth is hanging back and staying close to Lindsy and Josh.

So in a slightly different order and a lot more noisy than on the way to the office building they make their way back to their base camp.

Once there Helmuth and Hilde are taken care of by the three captains, because these guys have the most experience with injuries and addictions.

JJ and Lindsy put their heads together to figure out a way to get mister Teflon and goons in jail and the insurance companies back in line. But that last part is harder than it seems. Because they need government action for that. And neither has any real sway in that department.

When Boris hears them moaning about that he offers the solution in that sexy Russian accent of his.

"This American government wants to get closer to the Russian government again. I can tell them how to. I know things. About politicians, and about the military, things they could use. And in return they deal with this health thingy. Sounds reasonable to me."

And it also sounded reasonable to Lindsy and JJ, only how to arrange such a meeting.

Well they had underestimated Boris, because he had it all worked out. So after three phone calls in Russian it was arranged that Boris would be flying exhibitions in the states during the summer months, in unison with the American air force.

And a bill controlling the insurance companies use of genetic information would be passed in two weeks. And until than those companies where not allowed to change anything.