A/N: The past chapter and this have been quite slow coming, but they've been needed transitional chapters for our characters, so bear with me. We get to meet some of the other Andersons in this chapter.

CA is still not mine. I wish it was. I really do. Then the rest of the Covert Crew wouldn't be so lonely. But let's make this a happy get together and keep dropping reviews so we can keep Walkerson alive through fanfiction at the very least. Yes? Yes!

Chapter 6

He pulled down his Grados headphones midway through his flight. Not even Mingus could keep Auggie occupied. He'd wanted to forget his worries for a split second, but as he neared his hometown, he only felt more and more anxious.

Auggie hadn't been home since he'd left for DC again. He hadn't left Glencoe in the best light- he had run away from issues he couldn't face back then. He wasn't sure he could face them now either, but he'd be damned if he didn't even bother to settle things before it was too late. The clock was ticking- he hadn't realized that until he'd been informed of his father falling ill. He wasn't getting any younger, and he was sure it was the same if not worse for his parents.

He had grown up to admire his father. Despite the chaos caused by a house of 5 boys, no one ever questioned James Anderson's authority. Auggie, being farther apart from his brothers by age shadowed his father more than any of the Anderson boys ever bothered to. James was a lawyer. During Auggie's younger years, his father had owned a law firm that grew in number in a few years, if only because James chose to mentor the best lawyers that Glencoe had to offer straight out of law school. He raised them like his own sons- with a firm hand but an encouraging demeanor. It was James' leadership and proclivity to drawing out the best out of people that Auggie admired the most, and only could hope to half be while he went up the ranks in the army.

However, Auggie's bullheadedness came from the same man. It had caused a great many problems at home- including the last fallout before Auggie had left to join the CIA after his injury. This time, there wasn't any knowing if there was a way to solve matters because both men refused to speak to each other, even on the telephone. Auggie knew it broke his mom's heart, but there were things that couldn't be mended so easily. She understood that and he loved her more for understanding.

But now, with his father still at the hospital, he had no idea what was in the wind. He hated that. He hated being in situations he couldn't control- control was the only thing that had kept him sane through his blindness, and being thrust into situations like this left him feeling more than just uncomfortable. He wished he had Annie beside him like he had that morning to bring him back- to remind him of where and who he was because there never was any doubt when he was with Annie, but he loved her too much to send her straight to the firing squad. He'd fix things that he could first before she met any of his family, if only to ease some tension that could end up being directed towards her.

It was Jason, Auggie's fourth brother that came to the airport to pick him up. Jace, the closest in age to Auggie had kept his brother very close from the beginning. Auggie was his only younger brother, and he'd be damned if he couldn't protect him from everything. Next to their parents, Auggie's incident in Tikrit probably hurt Jace the most in the family, if only because it was the one time he wasn't around to protect his younger brother. Auggie had given rebuttal to his brothers self- flagellation- that no one would have been able to protect him from that bomb if they tried.

"Auggie!" He could hear Jace's booming voice amidst the hustle and bustle of the airport. Auggie hadn't realized how much he missed his brother until he heard his voice. A smile crept into his face and he hurried towards the direction the voice was coming from. Jace welcomed him with an embrace before taking Auggie's bag from his hands.

"It's been too long, man" Auggie mused as his brother led him to the parking lot.

"Tell mom that. She's excited to see you," Jace said as he put Auggies hand on the handle of the car door, holding to the top to protect his brother's head as he entered the car.

"I'm excited to see her too. And you. And everyone else."

"The kids can't wait to finally actually meet Uncle Auggie, you know." Jason had 2 kids: Hannah and Alisha- 5 and 3 years old respectively. He'd Skyped with them often- obviously more for their advantage rather than his, but he was excited to finally see his nieces as well.

"So what's the game plan?" Auggie checked the time on his watch- 8:30pm. It was too late to head to the hospital at this point. It was about a 45 minute drive to the hospital from the airport and by then, visiting hours would've been over.

"We'll head on over to our place. Anthony and Johnny are both there. We could just catch up. It's been a while since we've all been together."

Auggie didn't buy it. They were all home, but their father was in the hospital. No one had told him yet what the prognosis had been: just that it would be better if they talked in person. Now, Jason wanted to catch up?

"Jace, you know, I'm the one good with keeping secrets. Can we please not skirt the issue?"

"Am I really that bad?"

"Evading, Jason."

Auggie's brother sighed. He was so impossible to fool. He had always been that way, even in his younger years. Well, his brother was here. The thing was, he had come for answers: Answers that he couldn't give alone, for fear of not being able to handle by himself. He pulled left on the stop light and acquiesced.

"Fine. Tonight, when we get home, we'll all talk." He huffed. He only hoped his brothers could handle this way better than he ever would be able to. He touched Auggie's shoulder before he continued.

"But I'm going to tell you this much, Auggie. It really isn't good."

Auggie faced away from his brother, seeming to look out the window he couldn't see through anyway.

"The truth never really is."

He knew it more than anyone in his family ever did. The truth was, he didn't want to know. But much like his blindness, it was inexorable. It was reality.

Life could suck.