Leaving Scott was the hardest thing that Virgil had ever done. He wanted nothing more than to stay by his brother's side and never leave him, doing whatever was necessary to help him heal. But he knew that Scott wouldn't let him, he'd already told both John and Virgil to get themselves back to uni, that missing over two weeks so close to the end of the semester was not going to be easy to catch up on.
If it wasn't for what John had discovered Virgil may well have quit Denver altogether to be home, no matter what Scott said.
As it was, Virgil returned to university life exactly three weeks to the day that Jeff had called him away. Being back was much harder than he imagined. Everybody else's lives seemed mundane by comparison to his own, to the issues facing the family.
And in comparison to what he was about to do? Yeah – they were so ordinary.
Fortunately, John had temporarily moved into his apartment, much to the disgruntlement of his flatmates. But since the whole apartment belonged to Virgil's dad, they didn't offer up too much of an argument, which both brothers were relieved at. Because neither had told dad, he had enough on his plate looking after Scott. Besides, if their dad knew what they were planning, he would be straight over to stop them.
For the first week Virgil carried on as normal. He was quieter than normal, sure, but he kept his routines the same. Evenings he called the farmhouse and checked in with Scott. He would spend quite some time doing this, then sign off and disappear so that John could take his turn.
Wednesday he went to the café. His 'friends' were there, and they made a fuss over him, and Virgil put to good use his acting lessons. He introduced them to John, explaining that John was staying just for a couple of weeks while Virgil tried to get himself back up to speed. Appropriate noises were made about what a great big brother John was, and plans were made to meet on Saturday as usual, when Virgil promised to fill them in on why he'd been absent for so long.
The waiting between Wednesday and Saturday seemed like an eternity. But it gave both brothers the opportunity to refine their story and get the equipment together they needed to complete their task. John knew that Virgil needed this, despite this being so completely out of character for him. It was his way of contributing to Scott's recovery and that of his own. Virgil may say he was alright, but there was no way he was coping with knowing this was all his fault. At least this would give Virgil some closure too.
Scott knew something was going on. He had frowned at John on the Thursday nightly call, and, though he may not have said anything, John just knew that Scott knew something was going on. His big brother didn't say anything, and for just a moment John felt like it was the old Scott, the one who knew his secrets and kept them despite frowning at them.
Come Friday, John wasn't taking any chances, and he joined Virgil in the daily chat, making the excuse that he'd popped over to check up on his brother. Scott didn't say anything to that, and for a wild moment John thought he had blown it. He should have known better. The conversation flowed naturally, and when it came to say good night Scott got the last word as usual.
'Whatever it is, be careful.'
It was all he said, but it was the way it was said that had John holding his breath without realising. Virgil just grinned. 'Love you too, Scooter,' was his cheeky reply, and with that they were back to being two younger brothers with a shared secret against their big brother.
They stayed up late into the night, planning and running everything through to make sure it all worked. They lay out all the equipment needed and tested and retested everything. Thank goodness their dad had insisted on making sure every room in the apartment was soundproofed.
Saturday dawned clear and bright. There were small white clouds scudding across the sky, and the birds were singing their hearts out. It made Virgil feel really relaxed, despite what he was due to do later. He got up and entered the kitchen to be pleasantly surprised by John, apron on and a stack of pancakes ready and waiting on the table with two steaming mugs of coffee. God bless his brother.
His flatmates, being a weekend, would stay in bed until the afternoon was well on its' way, and that worked out well to their plans. So they ate and they talked and then they got ready.
Thirty minutes later found Virgil seated at his usual table, large extra sweet latte in hand. John sat on his right, chamomile tea on one side and laptop on the other. He was tapping away as Virgil read some magazine about engineering. There was a picture on the cover of the latest Maglev train to be designed. To the casual observer they looked fully engaged. To the more astute they hoped they looked the same.
It didn't take long for the three others to turn up, grab drinks and sit down. If one of them looked a bit confused, possibly a bit concerned, about John's laptop, John reassured them by showing them his half-finished dissertation. The man must have read about three lines before losing interest, a fact John had gambled on.
They sat and chatted amiably for a while, just general chitchat in the noise of the coffee shop while they worked themselves up to the conversation that needed to occur. John stayed pretty much silent, as he thought he would be expected to do, and allowed Virgil to take the lead in the conversation.
It took almost half an hour for them to come naturally around to where Virgil had disappeared for those two weeks, and John marvelled at how his brother played the crowd. All the while, John was recording.
Virgil started off innocently enough, expressing his thanks that they were so concerned about him and his brother. Then he dropped his voice, looking around suspiciously before explaining what had happened to Scott. The men were suitably horrified, and John was momentarily in awe at all four men. There was no way he would have been able to sustain this act for as long as they needed.
Explaining what had happened to Scott – what little they actually knew – hurt. To say it all out loud, especially to these…these…yeah. It hurt a lot. But Virgil had a plan and a purpose to meet, and he was damned if he was going to blow it. This was his chance, his opportunity to make it right somehow, to at least contribute to the healing in what little way he could. So he sat there and drank coffee and talked.
He played the 'I am righteously furious with my government and my military' card superbly. If John hadn't known better, he would have been taken in himself. Virgil was quietly ranting about how they had been let down, and he carried this on for quite a while. They had planned this conversation to the finest detail that they could, and it was working well. Timing was everything – they had to strike while certain interested parties were still in the country.
Now all Virgil had to do was drop the bait.
Dropping the bait turned out to be easier than either of them had expected. A well-timed quiet rant about the incompetence of the military, a subtle hint that Virgil may actually have more knowledge about bases and jets than anyone knew and the three were hooked. Murmurs were there. Virgil set about sketching a map but left it purposely vague. The three left with assurances to meet on Wednesday as usual.
Virgil went about his life as usual; the only difference was John being around. They were very, very careful to make sure nothing was out of the ordinary, and indeed, settling back into uni life helped Virgil a lot. By the time Wednesday came around he was almost back to his old self.
Evening time, and everything was set. John had made sure to contact the relevant authorities – not difficult when the two military intelligence men were still hanging around intent on talking to Scott. Jeff wasn't letting them anywhere near his son, and he had been very unhappy to let John talk to them, although he knew that John asking was a mere politeness. John would get what he wanted.
The sting went even better than John had anticipated, for not only did the three men turn up, they came with another, and while this had been hoped for, John had honestly thought it would require multiple meetings before that person turned up. They must be desperate, and desperate men make mistakes.
Virgil agreed to give them the sketches he had prepared. Once he had passed the folio over, and the men had taken possession all hell broke loose and in next to no time there were four men under arrest and a very happy pair of military intelligence operatives.
Finally Virgil felt he had come full circle, and he couldn't wait to tell Scott, and not over the phone either. John and Virgil left that night, with promises to be back the next day and talk with the police.
Scott had had an uneasy week. It wasn't just the pain and the embarrassment of needing his Dad to help him out with everything, he knew John and Virgil were scheming and he was worried about them. John could scheme really well, but he often forgot the human element, and Virgil would get carried away thinking he was helping. No, Scott couldn't help but be concerned.
In the meantime, Jeff was worrying about Scott. He had settled in the new bedroom and was letting Jeff do the needed stuff, but he wasn't anywhere near recovered mentally. Jeff had hoped that being home might give him some reprieve from the moments of fear he still had when just waking up, or when someone entered the room unexpectedly, but even here Scott still had his moments. Yesterday he'd been startled by Alan charging in, frightening them both with his reaction.
John and Virgil had called every night, and although Scott had been adamant they return to their respective universities, he missed their company. Gordon and Alan, lovely as they were, were just that little bit overbearing and over cheerful, whereas John and Virgil knew instinctively how to act around him. Jeff admired his son's stoicism, and he talked to his Mom about how to get Scott help. Both knew that he wouldn't talk to an outsider, although he wouldn't be given that choice once he re-joined his unit. So they resolved to just make things as smooth as possible for him.
The phone call on the Friday had left Scott's nerves frayed, and that night was a carosel of nightmares. By Saturday morning everyone was exhausted. When the two had called in high spirits on Saturday night Scott was asleep, and Jeff was loath to wake him. He did though, and they were able to put Scott in a better frame of mind which led to a much calmer night.
But neither brother could hide the excitement or the fact that something was going to happen, and soon, so although Saturday night was peaceful, the following three were not.
Having John and Virgil turn up out of the blue Wednesday night was both a blessing and a curse. They may have thought that they were being helpful – and indeed the fact that the remaining four people involved in this were now under lock and key was great news – but the roasting first their father and then Scott gave them for 'pulling ridiculously dangerous stunts like that' was something neither had been prepared for.
It did mean Scott had another good night, however, and the news did go some way to helping him feel just that little bit more secure. John and Virgil had left early to get back to their universities, but both had promised to come home for the weekend.
Time is a great healer, so they say, and it's true for most things. Weeks went by turning into months, three operations and a ton of physiotherapy, and Scott got stronger and stronger. He stopped being jumpy quite quickly after that weekend and having both John and Virgil home every weekend and for their long break helped immensely, the three brothers strengthening the bonds with each other and their youngest two over camp fires and stargazing and just generally talking.
By the time five months had past Scott was talking about re-joining his squadron. He was still walking with ever such a slight limp, but his hands were fine. And he was itching to get back into the air. It had been one of the longest times he'd been grounded since he'd started flying at twelve years of age.
Six months and two weeks to the day he had come home so suddenly, Scott returned to his squad. He wouldn't be allowed to fly until he'd been and seen the 'shrinks' and been given the all-clear, but Scott was determined and stubborn. Nothing was going to hold him back now.