This was supposed to be the last big chapter before the epilogue. But then I had one of those 'hang on a minute...' moments which led to a bit of rewriting! The story still ends the same way but it gets there slightly differently. So rather than rush the ending or have one ridiculously long chapter here, there's going to be another chapter after this to tie everything up, then the very last bit. (At least, that's the plan...)

Thanks for the great response to the last chapter. I wanted to kill Beth, honest, but she wouldn't let me!

Chapter Forty-Nine

Angie Travis might have been pleased that her night's work hadn't been wasted and that the person she'd really needed to take revenge against was the only one seriously hurt in the fire, but she hadn't waited around long enough to witness the consequences of her actions.

After her realisation that she'd targeted the wrong person she'd run blindly into one of the other outbuildings, terrified that Beth and Scott would catch her. Once they'd set off on their rescue mission – and she'd really hoped they'd be in time, though remembering the propane canister she very much doubted it, not caring about Beth but feeling bad about the other people who would die - she'd come out of hiding and slipped cautiously over to the barn, wondering if there would be a vehicle there she could take. If nothing else she'd hoped to find somewhere relatively warm and dry to hide out until she could make her escape.

When she'd got inside and realised that the 'barn' was actually nothing of the sort, she'd been horrified. The store room Scott had left open in his haste to get to his family contained various pieces of equipment, some of which bore a very familiar logo. Angie took a few steps back then spun round to take in the sheer size of the building. It was more like an aircraft hangar than a barn...

Had she stumbled upon the base of International Rescue? Was that Jeff Tracy's secret? She frantically thought back to her conversation with Joel. What exactly had he said? Angie could have sworn that Joel had mentioned a guilty secret but now, trying desperately hard to remember his exact words, she realised that he'd said no such thing. Some information he wouldn't want the world to know about... That was what Joel had said. Then he'd laughed when she'd automatically assumed it was something bad. He'd played games with her again, damn him. Somehow he'd found out that Tracy was linked to International Rescue. The girl had probably told him – clearly she'd found out a lot more than Joel had anticipated when he'd sent her off on her mission to discover some of Tracy's industrial secrets. Had Joel been planning to threaten the whole organisation with exposure if he didn't get his hands on TI or even IR technology? It had to be that way. But he'd gone too far... No wonder the girl had turned against him. Maybe that was why she'd killed him, to save International Rescue. That would explain why Tracy's sons were apparently prepared to cover up her crime.

That was when Angie really began to panic. What had she done? Not only might she have done untold damage to International Rescue, but the Thunderbirds might well be on their way, called in to rescue their own people. Being squashed under a Thunderbird was as unpalatable a fate as being captured and exposed as the woman who had destroyed International Rescue. She had to get away.

She was too scared to stay around the outbuildings. She decided she'd have to take her chances and hide out somewhere, at least until she spotted some means of escape. There were a few trees a hundred yards or so away, maybe they would offer some shelter. Footprints might be a problem, but surely no one would pay them any heed in the initial scramble to save the house and its inhabitants. It was going to snow again soon, anyway. Angie hoped that it would be enough to erase all trace of her flight.

She didn't know there was a frozen river in between her and the trees. One mis-step in the dark was all it took and the next moment she'd tumbled down the bank. The force of her fall wasn't enough to break the ice and she lay there breathless for a moment. Then, slowly getting onto her hands and knees she crawled across the ice, pausing after each movement in case the weight of her body was too great. But the ice seemed to be holding and within a minute she'd got to the other side. Maybe the relief of almost reaching safety made her overconfident, or maybe she'd just hit a weak patch, but as she staggered to her feet to look for a suitable place to climb up the bank, the ice gave way and, like Beth before her, she found herself sinking down into the freezing water. But this time there was no Gordon to come running to the rescue. She managed to fight her way to the surface and grab onto a tree root which was sticking out of the bank. At least she wouldn't drown. But all she'd done was prolong her ordeal. There was no way to climb up and no way of attracting anyone's attention. She'd thrown her phone away and her cries for help would never be heard over the noise of the fire. Then she heard the explosion and she knew she wouldn't be the only person dying that night.


Angie was still alive but fading fast when Jeff, Scott and Virgil were unceremoniously bundled out of the ambulance and into the back of a police car as the paramedics prepared to transport Beth to hospital. Jeff had begged to go with her but the paramedic had refused. Before he could say anything else the ambulance doors had slammed shut and it raced away into the darkness.

"Stay here," Scott told his father and brother, getting out and moving away from the activity in order to speak to John. He hadn't yet been given the news that Beth had survived.

"How bad is it?" John asked.

"The house is gone. Grandma's on her way to hospital - she took in a lot of smoke. Dad and Virgil are okay, just half-frozen. But Johnny, Beth's alive. It's bad – the paramedics couldn't believe she'd survived the blast - but she must have some chance of making it."

"Well I guess that's good," John said slowly. He hadn't rejoiced in her apparent death, but for a few minutes the situation had seemed to come to such a neat conclusion. Beth dead, IR safe, Brains free from the nightmare he'd found himself in. Maybe their father would never have had to know the truth. But now things were going to be even more complicated.

"Yeah." Scott sounded as unconvinced as his brother.

"How's Dad taking it?"

"How do you think?"

Scott looked up sharply as a policeman called out to him. "Got to go, John. The police want to get Virg and Dad to the hospital. Do me a favour, listen in on their transmissions, see what they're saying about all this."

"Will do. What do you want me to do about Gordon and Alan?"

Scott thought as he set off back to the car. "They can't come here – there'll be people around for hours. Tell them to stay at Base for now. At least until we can work out what's happening here."

"What have you told Dad about you and Beth being in Kansas?"

"Nothing yet. I'll stall him but we're going to have to have a long think about what we do next. This changes everything, John."

"I know. Maybe-"

The policeman whistled impatiently and Scott broke into a run, cutting across his brother. "Got to go, Johnny. Speak to you later."

"FAB."


It was a long wait at the hospital. The word on Grandma was good but no one had been able to tell them anything about Beth, just that they were doing all they could. Jeff's offer to provide all the help money could buy was noted but the grave tone of the doctor who came out to speak to them suggested that it wasn't money that was needed but a miracle. Jeff, once he'd been checked over, sat in one of the hard plastic chairs in silence. Scott braced himself for an interrogation as to why he and Beth were in Kansas whilst Gordon was back on Tracy Island, but it never came.

The vibration of his watch alerted Scott to a call from John. Excusing himself, he slipped outside to find somewhere private to talk.

"Scott, we've got a big problem."

"Another one?"

"The fire crew at the house have just radioed in. They think the fire was started deliberately."

"What?"

"I know. They can't be sure until the forensics team gets there in the morning, but apparently the way the back of the house blew out has got them suspicious."

"But who'd do something like that?"

"Well if Beth hadn't been with you all the time I'd have put money on it being her making a last-minute bid for freedom."

"Or trying to gain favour with Dad... But it wasn't her. And if she'd really had something to do with it she have made sure she didn't get herself caught up in it like that. No, someone else is out to hurt us. You don't think-"

"Hold on a minute, Scott." John's voice was tense and Scott waited anxiously for a minute or so, his mind racing.

"Hurry up, Johnny," he muttered, desperate to get back to the rest of his family and reassure himself that they were okay. He just hoped that whoever had done this hadn't come to the hospital to finish the job. He supposed it was too much to hope that this was the work of some random opportunist arsonist. No, at best it was someone with a grudge against the Tracys, at worst, someone out to destroy International Rescue.

"We really are in trouble." John looked as worried as Scott had ever seen him.

"What's wrong?"

"The police just reported in. There was a car parked at the farmhouse gate. No sign of the driver – they're looking through the wreckage of the house now in case they got caught inside. But Scott, it was a rental. The police are still waiting to get the driver's name but I'm hacking into the company's database now. Just give me a few more minutes."

It seemed longer than five minutes to Scott but that was all the time it took.

"Here we are. It was hired by an Angela Travis."

"Nope," Scott told him. "Doesn't ring any bells. Who is she?"

"Checking now... Scott, she's Joel Byron's personal assistant."

"Oh..." John was right, Scott thought. They were in serious trouble. "You think she worked out what happened and came out to get revenge?"

"Looks that way. In which case the press are going to go wild. There's no keeping this one quiet, Scott."

"You're right. Let's face it, it was always going to make the front pages – beautiful long-lost niece of billionaire risks her life to save him and ends up critically injured. But throw in the Byron murder and it's going to get out of hand very quickly."

"And if they manage to make the link with IR... All it's going to take is for someone who was involved in one of the rescues she went on to see her picture and that's it. We're finished."

"You think the story will break in those countries?"

"This is going to be huge. We can't just sit back and hope for the best here, Scott. Dad's going to have to be told."

"Everything?" Scott asked. He'd hoped that maybe his father wouldn't need to hear the more sordid details of Beth's escapades. Not right now anyway.

"It's all going to come out sooner or later once the press get hold of it. The British tabloids are going to love it, especially if any of the girls who worked with Beth decide to get in on the act and sell their stories. Better Dad hears it from us than from some reporter."

"I guess you're right," Scott said reluctantly. "But not right now, John. You haven't seen the state he's in."

"So fill him up with coffee or find him a bed so he can sleep it off. Either way, get him fit enough to hear the truth. I wish we could all be there to help but it's down to you and Virgil."

"Okay. Look, I'll have a word with Virg and see if he can come up with any ideas. In the meantime you get on to Alan and Gordon. Have them pack some things for the guys and Grandma. Beth too, I guess. Alan can fly Gordon over in One - no idea where he's going to land, he'll have to work that one out for himself."

"Okay. Good luck."

"Thanks. Let me know if you hear anything else."

"Will do."

Scott headed back to find his brother and father. They were talking to a doctor and as he approached Virgil looked up and smiled.

"Grandma's okay," he told him, limping over to meet him. "The doctor wants to keep her in for a bit just for observation, but she'll be fine."

"That's good."

"We're going up to see her now. Are you-"

He looked at his brother closely. "What's wrong, Scott?"

Scott glanced across to where his father was still talking to the doctor then looked around. Spotting the door to the men's room he steered his brother inside hoping it was empty. Since it was, he quickly filled a horrified Virgil in on the conversation he'd just had with John, calling up his space-bound brother to fill in the details.

"Seriously? The woman came all the way out here to burn the house down?"

"Looks that way. Somehow or other she knew."

"Where is she now?"

"I don't know, Virg. The police thought she might have been trapped in the house. Her car's still there."

"Or she could be somewhere around here. We'd better keep an eye on Beth."

"And Dad," Scott said quietly. "We don't know which version of the truth she got."

"The police are going to have a lot of questions," John pointed out.

"Guess so," Virgil said. "What do we say?"

Scott shrugged. "No idea. John?"

"As little as possible for now. Stall them for as long as you can. I'm going to call Wentworth Lovell."

"Dad's lawyer?"

"And one of IR's longest -serving agents. If things get nasty we're going to need him."

"Guess so. Okay, come on Virg, let's go."

Their father was waiting for them outside. He was a pale shadow of his usual self, clad as he was in pyjamas and borrowed robe and slippers. Virgil knew that in a short while he was going to look even more broken than he did right now.

"Let's go and see Grandma," he said, glancing over towards the entrance, relieved to see no police officers heading their way.

"Mr Tracy!" The call came from Beth's doctor.

Jeff turned back. "Is it about my niece?"

"Yes. Perhaps you should come into my office."

"Please, Dr Morgan, just tell me. How is she?"

When the doctor didn't reply, once again asking them to step into his office, Scott and Virgil were fully prepared to hear the worst. How she could have survived the terrible injuries she'd received was beyond them, but it seemed their cousin was tougher than they'd given her credit for. Even so, she might still die before the night was out. As the doctor listed the numerous burns and breaks before coming to the worst injury of all – the blow she'd received to her head - Scott found himself wondering if the Tracys' miraculous ability to survive the most desperate injuries had been inherited from his mother's side rather than his father's as he'd always believed. If only his mother had possessed that particular gift they might not be here now.

The doctor was asking about next of kin, needing permission to operate.

Jeff thought for a moment. "Scott, call John; get your Aunt Caroline's number."

As Scott disappeared to contact John, Jeff turned back to the doctor. "Do whatever it takes. Anything you need, you've got it, just ask." He looked awkwardly at the floor for a moment. "Please don't take this the wrong way, but are you sure this is the best place for her?"

The doctor didn't take offence. "Frankly, Mr Tracy, there are specialist units where she'd have a better chance. But she'd be dead by the time we got her there. There really is no time. The odds of survival are slim, but if we don't operate now then I'm afraid there really is no hope."

Virgil put a hand on his father's shoulder as Scott returned with the number for Beth's mother.

"John asked if you wanted him to do it," he told his father.

"No. I should be the one to break the news." Jeff looked across at the doctor. "You'll talk to her, explain what the medical situation is?"

"Of course."

"Can I see her?" he asked.

"Not right now," the doctor said gently.

Jeff pulled himself together and reached for the phone. He couldn't help thinking of one of the last times he'd spoken to Caroline, when he'd called her to tell her Lucy was dead. Why did it always have to be bad news?

It wasn't an easy conversation. Whatever her issues with her daughter, Caroline had still been devastated by the news. Trying and failing to hold back the tears, she gave the doctor the consent he needed and Jeff promised to arrange transport over to Kansas for her. Then, with the call ended, the doctor left to prepare for the operation and the Tracys left the office to find a couple of police officers waiting for them.

"Could we have a word, Mr Tracy?" one asked Jeff.

"Of course. Boys, go on up and see your grandmother. Tell her I'll be there soon."

"That's okay, Dad, we'll wait with you." Scott didn't want to leave his father alone, but Jeff, feeling the need to get a hold on things in order to stop feeling as if the world was crumbling beneath him, found the strength from somewhere to insist that his boys go.

"Grandma needs you more than I do. Go on."

And because they couldn't argue without arousing the suspicions of the policemen, Scott and Virgil had to do as he asked. Looking back, they saw the three men sitting down on the waiting room chairs, which at least gave them some comfort. If they had any serious questions for their father the men would surely want to interview him somewhere more private.

The news that the fire had more than likely been started deliberately hit Jeff as hard as the news of Beth's injuries had done. The thought that it had been an accident had been bad enough, but realising that someone had deliberately tried to kill them all... He demanded answers, insisted that the police department's top people be dragged out of bed and promised every possible assistance in finding the perpetrator.

"We do have a suspect, sir," the older man told him. "Do you know an Angela Travis?"

Jeff thought for a moment then shook his head. "The name's not familiar."

"She was Joel Byron's personal assistant," the other man told him.

Jeff looked at him in surprise. "I didn't know her name but I saw her yesterday at the funeral. She gave me the strangest look. My friend had just made some comment about her being in love with Byron; I thought she'd heard him. She came all the way out here to set fire to my house? Why would she do something like that?"

The older man looked a little uncomfortable. "We've spoken to the detective in charge of the Byron murder. Detective Milne. You know him?"

Jeff nodded.

"He's flying out later today. He told us that Miss Travis accused you of Mr Byron's murder."

"She did what?"

"Apparently since you were one of the last people to see him before his death she got it into her head that you'd done it. Detective Milne assured her that your innocence had been established, but it seems she refused to accept it. "

"But that's insane. What possible reason would I have for killing Joel Byron?"

"Calm down, Mr Tracy. We know you didn't do it. But Miss Travis believes you did and, as she's already proven, she's a dangerous woman. If it's alright with you we'll put a police guard outside your mother's room. I'd advise you and your sons to stay together. Don't go anywhere without a police escort."

"You don't know where she is?"

"No. There's no sign of a body in the house and she hasn't gone back to her car. There are people searching the area now but she could be anywhere."

Jeff stared at him, barely able to take it all in.

"We'll have to talk to your sons and your mother. I understand your niece is in no condition to talk."

"No." Jeff suddenly realised he had no idea why Scott and Beth had been at the farmhouse. The police weren't the only ones with questions that needed answering. "She tried to save my mother. She got caught in the explosion. The doctors are doing their best but... they don't hold out much hope."

"I'm sorry. She's a brave girl."

"Yes, she is. I want this woman caught. I want her punished for what she's done."

"I understand. We're doing all we can. Do you want to go up to your mother's room now?"

"Thank you." Jeff accepted his police escort, all the while looking out for the woman who'd hurt his family. He couldn't get the look Angie had given him out of his mind. Why hadn't he realised it was more than just annoyance over Cyrus's insensitivity?


Scott and Virgil had been relieved to find that Grandma was pale and weak but very much alive. She hugged her grandsons, then demanded to know what had happened.

Virgil broke the news that the house was gone. Grandma took it stoically, but they could see how upset she really was.

"How did I get out?" she whispered.

Scott told her how Virgil had saved her, eliciting another hug. She sat back tiredly, clutching her middle-grandson's hand.

"That's not all, Grandma," Scott said. He told the old woman about Beth. Grandma listened in some surprise. Like Scott and his brothers she immediately assumed that Beth had been trying to score points with Jeff, but then she felt guilty. The girl was clearly paying dearly for what she'd done, whatever her motives had been.

"So now what?" she croaked, pulling the oxygen mask aside despite her grandsons' protests. "Do we still tell Jeff?"

"We have to, Grandma," Virgil said. "I wish we could just leave things as they are, but there's another problem."

Grandma listened to the news about Angie. She too agreed that the story was going to get out. No amount of Tracy lawyers were going to keep this one quiet. However hard it was going to be, especially now, Jeff had to know the truth about Beth.

At that moment the door opened and Jeff walked in. Moving quickly across to his mother he hugged her then stepped back to look at her properly.

"Mom, I'm so sorry about the house."

Grandma waved a hand dismissively. "It's not important. I'm just glad you and the boys are alright. I'm sorry about Bethany, Jeff."

Jeff smiled sadly for a moment, then began to tell them about Angie and the deliberate attempt on their lives, but Scott stopped him.

"We know, Dad."

"How? I only found out just now."

"John was listening in on the police radios."

Jeff managed a genuine smile this time. "I should have known. The police are outside, they'll stand guard until that woman's found."

He frowned suddenly. "Scott, I've been meaning to ask, why were you and Beth there?"

Scott shifted awkwardly. But before he could answer his father did it for him.

"It was a nice idea to bring Beth out to surprise me. It's a pity it worked out the way it did."

The others looked at each other. Scott was about to say something when John called in.

"What is it?"

"The police have found a body."

Ten minutes later the two officers came in to tell them that Angie had been found dead in the river and all four occupants of the room did their best to look surprised.


The hours went by and there was still no word on Beth. The police had taken statements from Jeff, Scott, Virgil and Grandma and then left the family in peace. The brothers had been steeling themselves to break the news about Beth's deception to their father, but before they could do so he'd fallen asleep in a chair beside his mother's bed. They didn't have the heart to wake him and, truth be told, they were glad to put off the unpleasant task for as long as they could.

The town had rallied round as soon as word got out. By mid-morning Scott, Jeff and Virgil had been overwhelmed with offers of a place to stay or donations of clothing or anything else they needed. But by then Gordon had arrived with supplies for all four Tracys plus a bag of things for Beth. Jeff was pleased to see his son, though he did express surprise that Brains hadn't come over to be with the girl he loved. No one quite knew what to say to that.

Beth's doctor finally came to see them. It wasn't good news. The girl was still critical and the head injury had proven to be even more severe than they'd initially anticipated. She would be moved to the best facility in the country as soon as it was safe to do so and Doctor Morgan had already discussed her case with the doctors there. They'd agreed that Beth's chances of a full recovery were slight. Jeff had been devastated by the news.

"You can see her now," the doctor told Jeff. "Just for a little while. I should warn you, though-"

"I've been in ICU rooms before," Jeff told him brusquely. He couldn't believe this was happening.

Scott went with his father, leaving Virgil, Grandma and Gordon to talk things over. As John and Scott had anticipated, the story was headline news and journalists were starting to gather at the hospital. As a result the police were back at Grandma's door and there had been no opportunity for the boys to tell their father about Beth when he'd returned from visiting his niece – not without risking someone overhearing them.

Grandma finally decided enough was enough. Calling for a nurse she insisted on discharging herself despite her family's protests.

"No," she told them. "I'm perfectly fine. Barbara has offered us the use of her house. I think we all need to get away from here."

"I'm not leaving," Jeff told her, but Grandma over-ruled him.

"Gordon, you stay here with your cousin." Ignoring his look of irritation she turned to her son. "Jeff, you need some rest. And I think we all need to talk."

"About what?" Jeff asked sullenly, realising he was outnumbered as his sons backed up his mother. Frankly, he didn't have the energy to fight them.

"The family business," Grandma said pointedly, ordering them out of the room so that she could get changed.

They couldn't say much with the police standing next to them, so Scott simply asked them for a lift to the place where they'd be staying. It was a good choice – Grandma's friend had been burgled several years ago and since then she'd made sure her house and grounds were protected by a high fence and a couple of large dogs. No journalists would be able to come sneaking around there, especially since the police agreed to station a car at the gate just in case.

Nobody spoke until they were safely settled in the house. Barbara bustled around sympathetically, pleased to be able to help. Finally, having provided them with enough coffee and sandwiches to keep them going for a week, she left them in the kitchen, telling them she needed to do some shopping. Once she was gone Scott and Virgil looked at each other awkwardly. There was no putting it off any longer. John had just called in to tell them that the story was the lead item on every news channel and had just broken in Britain. They'd hoped to wait until their father's lawyer was there to advise them, but he'd been delayed by bad weather and wouldn't be there for another couple of hours. It had to be done now.

"Dad..." Virgil began tentatively, then stopped, looking helplessly at Scott who looked equally at a loss.

In the end it was Grandma who took charge.

"I'll tell him. You two go and wait in the lounge."

"Tell me what?" Jeff asked as his sons began to protest. Grandma ignored her son for a moment.

"Boys," she said sharply. "This is my job. Go on, leave us alone."

There was no arguing with that tone of voice – or their grandmother's right to be the one to break the news to her son. Scott and Virgil went into the lounge and took up seats by the window, both staring out at the garden unable to think of anything to say.

A few moments later John called in. "Grandma just asked me to play Beth's confession," he told them.

"Thought you'd be listening in on Dad's reaction," Virgil said.

John looked a little guilty. "I tried to. Grandma told me to get out."

"She knows you too well," Scott said.

There was silence for quite a long time.

"Wonder how he's taking it," Scott finally said, getting up and walking over to listen at the door. "Can't hear anything," he said as he returned to his seat.

"Maybe-" Virgil's words were lost as the door opened and a white-faced Jeff emerged. He said nothing, just staring blankly at the two sons who were in the room before turning away.

"Dad?"

Jeff ignored Virgil, instead moving swiftly out of the room. A moment later they heard the front door closing.

Both Scott and Virgil got up, intent on going after their father. They were called back by Grandma.

"Leave him, boys!"

"But-"

"I mean it, Scott. He needs time to come to terms with it. Just give him some space."

"What did he say?" Virgil asked, coming to sit beside the old lady.

Grandma sighed and shook her head. She looked exhausted and close to tears. "Nothing," she said. "But then he didn't need to. I've never seen him look so hurt."

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Scott asked. "He won't do anything stupid will he?"

A few months ago such a question would have been greeted with derision, but now Virgil and Grandma considered the prospect seriously before voicing slightly uncertain reassurances.

"He's heading for the hospital." John's voice startled them all. "The police just radioed in that they're driving him over. Guess he wants to see her."

Jeff did indeed want to see his niece. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard, and, if it hadn't been Beth herself saying it, he'd have thought it was all a sick joke. But there it was, the whole sorry tale. All the things his family had been keeping from him, waiting for him to be rational enough to deal with it all. He thought perhaps he should have resented them, but he supposed they'd acted for the best. He was angry, humiliated - and deeply sad and weary. Knowing he'd been drugged explained a lot, but even so, he still couldn't believe he'd allowed himself to be taken in like that. The trouble was, he really had cared for Beth, and even now, although he had to accept the truth about the girl, he couldn't forget all the things she'd said about changing, about wanting to do some good to make up for everything. And she had done. She'd gone back to save his mother, a woman who'd never liked her. There had been some good in her after all.

Arriving in her room he looked down at her. The nurse had informed him that there was still no change and he sat beside the bed and buried his head in his hands. She was so much like Lucy. She'd used it against him yet it just made him feel desperately sorry for her. If she hadn't looked like that Byron's plan would never have worked. She'd possibly have found a different way to make a living. He remembered Lucy the last time he'd seen her alive. She'd looked just like this, lying in a hospital bed, pale and still and beautiful. Minutes later she was dead. He sighed. Was every woman who looked like this cursed? He was glad he'd never had a daughter.

"Mr Tracy?"

Jeff jumped. He hadn't heard the doctor come in.

"The latest test results have come back." The doctor's tone of voice and the way he couldn't quite meet Jeff's eye told him everything he needed to know.

"It's as we feared. There's massive brain damage. She may never wake up - and even if she does she'll never be the way she was. I'm so sorry."

"I see. Thank you." Jeff looked at Beth again. So she'd paid for what she'd done after all. He hadn't even begun to think about what to do to put all this mess right, but one thing was certain, she'd never stand trial. What would be the point? She'd condemned herself to a life sentence all by herself. What he had to do now was save International Rescue and the rest of his family.

Rising to his feet, he couldn't help looking back at her once more. She'd turned him into a monster whose own sons had believed him capable of murder. He should have hated her but even now he couldn't help wondering how different things would have been if he'd responded differently to Lucy's death. Beth and her family might have had an easier time of it – Virgil certainly would have. There would be a lot of hard words and recriminations on all sides when he finally spoke to his sons, but he had to take his own share of the blame for all this.