As always, a massive thank you to everyone who's given me feedback on this. Whirlgirl and Rachel, I can't reply personally but I really do value your comments. No lost edits this time, thankfully!

Only one more chapter after this...

Chapter Thirty-Six

Thomas stopped to look at Parker as he left the room.

"No blood... Tranquiliser dart?"

Younger nodded. "Call me paranoid but I don't like mixing bullets and bombs. Plus it's quieter. I didn't want to draw attention to my presence."

"Can we hurry this up?" Sahara asked, unhappy with the delay. She really didn't want to risk another run-in with Lady Penelope. The men could discuss weapons for as long as they liked once they were in the air. They had a five-hour flight ahead of them, after all.

They'd just reached the stairs when, somewhere in the distance, a shot rang out.

Marcus...

Younger had forgotten all about the engineer. Well, whatever trouble he'd got himself into, Younger wasn't going to be the one to get him out. He hurried the others along, wanting to get them well away from the explosive-laden lower levels before he suggested they forget Sir Reuben and make a break for it.

Brains had jumped to his feet without thinking, so shocked was he to find Marcus holding a gun on him. He caught his breath in relief at the realisation that the man hadn't actually pulled the trigger when he'd moved. But he was still holding the gun, smiling the same cruel smile Brains remembered from Cambridge. He looked desperately out across the water but there was no sign of Virgil or Gordon. He debated going for the gun Virgil had left him, but, as much as he doubted Marcus's skill with a weapon, he knew his was little better. By the time he'd got the thing out of his pocket, released the safety catch and taken aim, Marcus could have shot at him ten times over. At least one of the bullets would have found its mark and he couldn't risk a stray one hitting Scott. He shot a quick glance at the pilot but Scott had drifted back into unconsciousness. In some ways Brains hoped he didn't wake up - the last thing Scott needed was to aggravate his injuries with any heroics.

"Come on," Marcus said, reaching out to push Brains in the direction of the elevator. "I've got one last job for you."

Brains looked back towards the water. He saw Gordon swim into view and immediately pick up speed at the sight of Marcus, but he knew that even an Olympic champion was going to struggle to get to him in time.

"Hurry up!" Marcus waved the gun at Brains again and was about to move away when a cold and shaky hand sneaked its way around his ankle. There was no strength in the grip but Marcus was completely taken by surprise. He let out a high-pitched yelp and stumbled, his finger catching on the trigger. A shot rang out, the bullet missing Brains by inches and Marcus hit the ground, dropping the gun as he did so. Before he could recover himself, someone grabbed him by the shoulders, pulled him upright and hit him right on the nose.

Gordon had had a miserable couple of weeks since the theft of his 'bird. Finally faced with one of his adversaries, he let loose. He threw punch after punch at Marcus, each one a payback for Thunderbird Four.

Virgil pulled himself out of the water and joined Brains at Scott's side. The elder brother had a satisfied spark in his eye as he turned his head to watch Gordon pummel Marcus. He even tried to raise himself up to get a better view, but when Virgil was able to push him back down with just one finger, he admitted defeat and lay still.

Marcus didn't put up much of a fight and Gordon knew it would only take one more blow to knock him out completely. He raised his fist, only for someone to tap him on his shoulder.

"E-Excuse me, b-but might I...?"

Gordon looked at Brains in surprise, only the need to keep his friend's connection with International Rescue quiet stopping him from saying his name aloud. Instead he just stared dumbly at him for a moment before stepping aside, watching with interest along with Scott and Virgil as Brains moved up to a wavering Marcus.

Brains had never done this kind of thing before - in fact he'd never wanted to. He was, after all, the brains of the outfit. The Tracys were the brawn and any fighting was left to them. But having seen how much satisfaction first Penny, then Gordon, had gained from taking their frustrations out on those who had caused them, he simply couldn't help himself. If it had been anyone else he wouldn't have bothered, but this man had haunted him for years.

Raising a fist, he delivered a clumsy blow to Marcus's jaw. It might have been feeble by Tracy standards but it was enough to finish off Marcus, who dropped to the floor, an expression of pure astonishment on his face.

"Well?" Gordon asked, grinning from ear to ear as Brains cradled his hand, pain clearly etched on his face.

"A-an interesting ex-experiment, G-Gordon. A-as I-I thought. Physically p-painful, but psycho-l-logically r-rather enjoyable."

Gordon's smile suddenly faltered. "If he's down here... who knows who else is. I'm going to check on the others."

He ran down the corridor before anyone could stop him, returning just moments later with Parker slung over his shoulder.

"How bad?" Virgil asked, running to help.

"Tranquiliser. He'll be fine. But the girl and that guy are gone."

"Great. Now Penny and John are probably in trouble." Virgil cast a baleful glance at his wrist-comm, wishing once again that it was safe to use it.

"We've got to get up there," Gordon said. "Brains, can you set the boats up? Get Scott and Parker settled and be ready to move."

"That countdown's going to start any minute," Virgil said. "Brains, the moment that light changes colour, get out of here."

"B-but..."

"No arguments," Gordon told him. "Right, Virg, how do you want to handle this?"

Sir Reuben had never counted patience amongst his few virtues, so it was no surprise that the wait for his team to return seemed interminable. After five minutes of pacing up and down his office he decided to use the time more productively. After all, he wasn't a fit man or a young one and he knew the long helicopter journey was going to be something of an ordeal. Taking the opportunity for one last visit to the bathroom, he was just reaching to unlock the door when he heard someone in his office.

Cautious to the end, he forced himself to wait, just to be sure. If everything had gone according to plan it would be Sahara and the others, but with the kind of luck he'd had lately, he wouldn't have been surprised to see Lady Penelope or one of the men from International Rescue. Careful not to make any noise, he placed an ear to the door and listened.

He had to bite back a curse as he realised that, once again, things hadn't gone his way. Hoping his enemies would leave to continue the search elsewhere once they realised he wasn't in his office - the door to the bathroom was artfully concealed in the oak panelling which covered the wall - he held his breath and waited. To his irritation, not only did they stay right where they were, but he distinctly heard the voice of his nephew announcing that the bathroom might be a likely place for him to hide.

Damn Freddy, he thought. Couldn't the boy have kept his mouth shut one last time? Not stopping to wonder why his nephew would show him the slightest bit of loyalty after recent events, Sir Reuben took a step back and considered his options.

There weren't many. The door was locked and couldn't be opened from the outside. He was safe - but he couldn't stay there, not when MI5 would be arriving at any moment. He couldn't rely on his people coming to rescue him since there was no way of knowing if they'd got away. They might all be prisoners right now.

Ignoring the fact that even if he managed to escape he'd still have no way off the island without Thomas, Sir Reuben decided he had to make a move. He wasn't going down without a fight and he still had a few surprises up his sleeve.

Penny and John were debating whether to break the door down or wait for MI5 to arrive when Freddy interrupted them with a cry.

"He's coming out!"

Sure enough the door swung open and John and Penny brought their guns to bear upon the man who stood framed in the doorway.

"Lady Penelope," Sir Reuben said with a smile. "Freddy..." The smile turned to a snarl before he turned his attention to John. "I don't know your name but I believe you visited me yesterday," he said, causing Freddy to look at the blond man in surprise. He'd assumed the man was International Rescue, not someone from the American military sent to investigate Scott Tracy's 'death'. He'd certainly seemed on very familiar terms with the others and, dressed identically to them, there was no suggestion that they weren't part of the same organisation. He couldn't help wondering...

Aware of Freddy's eyes upon him and hoping that he hadn't made the connection, John smiled back at Sir Reuben but said nothing. Right now he was more concerned by the gun in Sir Reuben's right hand and the detonator which was clutched in his left.

"I really think you should give yourself up, Sir Reuben," Penny said. "You have nowhere to go."

"I don't give up," Sir Reuben said. "Until I know whether or not my people are captured I still have some hope. But what about you? Are your people safe, I wonder?" He raised the detonator, deliberately moving a finger to cover the switch, smiling as Penny and John tensed.

"Freddy?"

"Oh no, Uncle Reuben," the young man said, his eyes on the detonator rather than the gun. "Leave me out of it. I've had it with you."

"I'm sure you have. But perhaps you can help your new friends. Activate the security cameras for the lower levels. Perhaps once we work out who's where, we can decide who has the upper hand."

Freddy hesitated until John nodded at him after a glance at Penny. He didn't dare risk his brothers or Parker and Brains and he couldn't help wishing he'd followed orders and got out as soon as they'd found Scott. He pictured his father back on Tracy Island, listening to all this via the bug which was still transmitting and found himself flinching as he imagined what the man was thinking right now and what the likely consequences of his disobedience might be.

"Do it."

Freddy scuttled over to the wall, turning on a monitor and pressing a few buttons. A picture flashed onto the screen and Penny let out a cry of horror whilst Sir Reuben laughed at the sight of Parker lying motionless on the floor, the door to the room which had held his people standing wide open.

"Well, I do believe I have the advantage," Sir Reuben said. "As you can see, reinforcements will be arriving at any moment. I'm sure you understand there's nothing to be gained by trying to keep me here any longer. Put your weapons down, please - guns make me a little nervous and you wouldn't want my finger to slip would you? Not when your friend is lying there so helpless - and so close to those explosives."

Feeling utterly sick, Penny did as she was told. Her only hope now was that MI5 would arrive and tip the numbers back in her favour. She couldn't look at John, although out of the corner of her eye she saw him bend to place his gun on the floor.

Sir Reuben moved towards Penny, pointing the gun directly at her head. "Perhaps you'd like to escort me out of here, Lady Penelope?" he suggested. "Just to be on the safe side. I'm sure your friends won't want to put you in any danger by following me." He placed the detonator in his pocket and pulled her close with his free arm.

"Let's go," he said, beginning to back them away towards the door.

Freddy suddenly lunged at his uncle, grabbing the gun and pushing Penny to one side, yelling to John that it was a replica - a remote control in fact - and there was no danger. But as John reached down to pick up his own weapon a shot rang out, echoing around the room. He assumed it was Penny, that she'd managed to reach her gun. But then he realised that she was still face-down on the floor where she'd fallen when Freddy had pushed her away and he turned his attention back to Sir Reuben and his nephew.

Sir Reuben was watching Freddy intently, a satisfied smile breaking out as the man staggered backwards, blood soaking through the left side of his shirt. Clutching the wound, he stared back at his uncle, eyes wide with shock. He seemed to be trying to say something but was having too much trouble catching his breath to get the words out.

"You always were a fool," Sir Reuben told him. "Did you never stop to think that if the remote was a replica then I might still have the original?"

"Freddy!" Penny let out a scream as the man's legs gave way and he crashed to the floor. A second later the door flew open and Sahara rushed in, Younger and Thomas close behind. The two men took aim at John and Penny whilst Sahara stopped dead at the sight of Freddy, her expression a mixture of horror and disbelief.

"Sorry for the delay, Sir," Thomas said. Now wasn't the time, but he'd be telling his employer all about Eric Younger's attempt to bribe him into leaving without the man he'd sworn an oath of loyalty to when he'd joined his service. Sahara had backed him up, insisting on making one last effort to get Freddy McAllister away, something which had just added to Younger's annoyance. "Are you ready to go now?"

"Thank you, Thomas. Lady Penelope, Mr Whoever-you-are, it's been a pleasure."

Sir Reuben waved Younger and Thomas out of the room before turning his attention to the third member of his team. "Sahara?"

She ignored him, finally turning away from Freddy and looking between John and Penny as if seeking an answer, the hand which held her gun trembling.

"Sir Reuben shot him," Penny told her. "He was trying to save me."

Sahara turned back to Sir Reuben. "You shot him?"

"I had no choice. He attacked me. You'd have done the same if it was the only way out. Now then, if you're coming with me you'd better hurry. These people can't do anything for Freddy until you're out of the way. Unless you're planning on staying? You've got about five seconds to decide."

Sahara took a step towards Freddy. His eyes opened and he looked at her for a moment before closing them again. His breathing was shallow now, the blood pooling beneath him. She didn't need to be a doctor to see that he wasn't going to make it.

"Freddy, I tried... I'm so sorry..." The tears began to fall as she turned away. All she could do now was save herself.

"Move it!" Sir Reuben ordered, grabbing her arm and shoving her out of the door. The moment she was out of the room he followed her, Thomas slamming the door shut behind him. Those left inside heard the sound of bolts sliding into place, but that was the least of their worries. John threw himself down beside Freddy, glancing towards Penny as he did so, only to be ordered to focus on the injured man.

Penny picked herself up and joined them, taking Freddy's hand as John did his best to stop the bleeding.

"Freddy?" she called softly.

His eyes flickered open, though his gaze was unfocused.

"Thank you."

He smiled, then let his head loll sideways so he was facing John.

"Inter...national... Rescue?"

John nodded. It didn't matter whether Freddy knew who he was or not now. The astronaut might as well give him his full name and address - Freddy wasn't going to last long enough to do anything with the information.

Freddy reached up with a shaking, bloody hand, grasping John's wrist with as much force as he could manage.

"It was... me," he whispered. "I stole... your... Thunder...bird. Me... No one's ever... ever done... that... No one... else."

He smiled. "Just me."

His hand dropped down and his eyes rolled back into his head.

"Oh no," Penny whispered as John sat back. There was nothing more they could do and Penny finally reached out and gently closed Freddy's eyes.

The sound of the elevator rising up from the lower levels startled them and, Freddy forgotten for the moment, they jumped to their feet, retrieving their weapons ready to face whoever was on their way.

When the elevator door slid open and they saw the crumpled figure of Marcus, they looked at each other in confusion.

"Marcus?" Penny called, as John stepped carefully into the elevator. He got the shock of his life when a cheerful voice from above called his name. Looking up, he saw Gordon and Virgil waving at him from a hole in the ceiling.

"What are you doing up there?" he asked.

"Well, we were mounting a rescue," Virgil told him, dropping down to the floor of the elevator and moving aside so Gordon could follow, "But it looks as though everything's quiet in here."

"You should have been here a couple of minutes ago," John told him. "You missed all the action."

"What happened?" Virgil asked, suddenly realising that his brother's hands were bright with blood.

John stepped aside to give Virgil a look at Freddy.

"He tried to save me," Penny told him. She moved back to the dead man, gazing down at him for a moment before Virgil gently took her arm and pulled her away.

"Come on," he said as he steered her over to the elevator.

Shocked as she was, it took another moment or two for Penny to realise that she'd forgotten something important. "Parker!"

"He's fine," Gordon told her. "He got shot with a tranquilizer dart but Brains is looking after him. Why don't we go and see him?"

Deciding to leave Freddy where he was rather than risk a second trip in the elevator, they squeezed into the small space and began the journey down, fearful that at any moment Sir Reuben would decide to detonate the explosives.

Sir Reuben knew he didn't have much time. He might have escaped International Rescue but MI5 would be arriving at any moment. Ahead of him, Sahara and Younger were running towards the helipad. Faithful as always, Thomas kept pace with him - and it was a slow pace, since even walking was usually an effort for Sir Reuben. He wheezed breathlessly and tried to ignore the pounding of his heart as he focused on putting one foot in front of the other, leaning more heavily on the other man with every step.

Sahara pulled herself into the helicopter barely able to focus on what she was doing. She'd run blindly, following Younger but only able to think of Freddy. She'd tried to protect him and she'd failed. Sir Reuben had killed him. Pushing aside her own guilt - if she hadn't tricked him into coming back to the island he'd be safe and well now - she focused on her hatred for her employer. She looked back towards the house, registering through her tears that Sir Reuben was barely halfway to the helicopter.

"Hurry up!" Younger yelled, hovering at the helicopter's door. The sound of footsteps startled him and he jerked his head round, expecting to see a raiding party, then relaxing just a fraction as he realised it was Ash, stumbling along the path which came up from Freddy's beach house.

"Ash! Get over here!"

Younger's shout startled Sahara. She'd forgotten all about the man. He had been Freddy's friend. If only the drug had worn off a little earlier he might have been able to help Freddy, to do what she couldn't...

"Ash?"

"What's going on?" The man stared at Sahara's tear-stained face in confusion.

"Freddy's dead."

"What?"

"Sir Reuben..."

"Sahara, get strapped in!" Younger told her, jumping in himself. "As soon as Thomas gets here we need to get this thing moving."

"I can fly her," Ash said.

"Go on, then," Younger said. He leaned out of the helicopter. Sir Reuben and Thomas were just a short distance away now. "Come on!"

"Leave them!" Sahara ordered, making them jump with the sharpness of her voice, a total contrast to the low shaky tone with which she'd spoken to Ash just seconds before.

"But..." Ash was lost for words, especially when Sahara pointed her gun at him. He took one look at the weapon and started the engine.

Younger looked at her a little hesitantly, understanding exactly why she was doing this and wondering if she'd leave him behind too. After all, he'd been more than happy to abandon Freddy. But she didn't tell him to get out and he settled in his seat, snapping his safety belt closed.

"Where are we going?"

"No idea. Ash, just get us out of here."

The helicopter slowly lifted off the ground. The last thing they saw was Sir Reuben's furious face as he watched his final hope of freedom disappear.

"That's for Freddy," Sahara whispered as they left the island behind them.

Sir Reuben and Thomas came to a sharp halt as the helicopter disappeared into the night. The security guard swore and spun round, looking for an escape that just wasn't there, whilst Sir Reuben collapsed to the ground, one hand clutching at his heart in a grim mimicry of the way his nephew had fallen to the floor. But there was to be no easy way out for him. He was still sitting there, red-faced and breathless, cursing both Freddy and Sahara, when the first of the MI5 helicopters arrived just a minute or so later.

"It's over," Thomas said, coming to sit beside him. He might wish things had turned out differently, but he had been a soldier and an oath of allegiance wasn't something to be treated lightly. He'd go down with his leader.

Sir Reuben watched as the helicopter approached. How had it all gone so wrong? Now here he was left alone to face the consequences of it all. He'd be the only one - Freddy was probably dead by now,whilst Sahara and Younger had escaped along with the company's research data which had already been stowed in the luggage hold of the helicopter. If they could get away they'd be set for life - there were plenty of regimes who'd pay handsomely for that information. It looked like the only friend he had left was Thomas, and he'd be no use now.

As the spotlight from the helicopter lit up the helipad, Sir Reuben made his decision. There was nothing left for him, only a prison cell and public humiliation.

As armed men began to emerge from the helicopter, he drew his old service weapon one last time.

"Sir?"

He ignored Thomas's voice and the shouts from MI5. Placing the gun at his temple, he hesitated for a moment, contemplating his one remaining option.

Only when the current head of MI5, a man Sir Reuben had always resented, emerged from the helicopter, his look of pleasure at Sir Reuben's downfall obvious, did the man finally make his choice.

As he pulled the trigger of his gun, his finger hit the button on the detonator.