Chapter Nine: Tough Calls
~~
'Any news, Scott?' Jeff said an hour later. Base had been informed of the situation, as had those on Thunderbird Five.
'Nothing, Father,' Scott said solemnly. Making the call to his father about Gordon's disappearance had been the toughest thing he had had to do since International Rescue had begun. It was difficult to watch his father's face go from pink to white in five seconds.
'Do the authorities know?'
'Captain Lucia Felleti, of the local police department, has a team of officers searching now. The media doesn't know; they've been told that the police are looking for clues regarding the bomb.'
'Good,' Jeff said, knowing that the last thing he needed was the media finding out that a member of International Rescue was missing. 'Keep trying, Scott, and call me to keep us updated.'
'FAB, Father,' Scott said, ending the transmission.
Jeff sat alone at his desk, looking at the portrait of Gordon hanging in the line with the rest of the five brothers. What if he never got to see that face again, the wicked gleam in those soft grey eyes, or that cheeky smile? He couldn't bear to think about it.
Kyrano shuffled into the room, bringing a tray containing coffee and sweet biscuits. He set the tray down and asked, 'Any news, Mr Tracy?'
Jeff sighed and shook his head, wishing his answer were different. 'None yet, Kyrano,' he said, picking up the spoon in the sugar bowl with a noticeably shaky hand.
'Well, Mr Tracy, it is said that no news is good news,' he said, trying to be positive for the sake of those around him.
Jeff nodded, managing a slight smile as he said, 'Indeed they do, Kyrano, indeed they do. How's mother?'
'Mrs Tracy has retired to her bed, and has taken something to help her sleep,' Kyrano said.
'Good,' Jeff said, thinking that he would probably need to do the same thing, if Gordon was not found by the evening. 'John and Brains are due to be home in two hours, so if you could...'
'I will prepare something for them to eat when they arrive,' Kyrano said, reading his master's mind. He bowed again and then left for the kitchen.
Jeff doubted very much if the family would be able to stomach anything at that moment, but it was a kind thought all the same. The chief of International Rescue decided that he needed a plan if Gordon was not found within the next hour, and so set to work creating one, praying that it would not be required.
~~
Gordon woke up bound and gagged in a dark corner of an even darker room, he tried to move his arms, but found that they were tied to the back of a wooden chair. 'How cliché,' he mumbled under his gag.
He tried to remember how he got there. He recalled talking to John when the ground under the Firefly broke up and he and the vehicle tumbled into the basement. Before he blacked out, he remembered himself and several tools thrown about the Firefly like peppercorns inside a peppershaker, which provided the explanation for the splitting headache. If he ever made it out of wherever he was alive, Gordon resolved to start a campaign for seatbelts to be worn in all vehicles.
This raised an interesting question: How did he get from being unconscious in the Firefly to being tied up in a dark room in God-knows-where?
He looked around the space, looking for something, anything, to help him out of his predicament. He felt about his wrists for his communicator, and was dismayed to find that it was not there, making the task of being found all the more difficult. He next thoughts turned to freeing himself from the ropes securing his wrists.
His eyes detected a brick ledge about four feet away from him, and at about the level of his hands. He looked down at his feet and found that they were tied together, but not tied to the chair. Careful not to overbalance, or make any noise, he lifted himself to his feet and took tiny jumps towards the ledge. Once positioned correctly, he began moving his bound hands back and forth as much as the bindings would allow, and let the rough wall slowly eat at the ropes.
As he did so, he heard two angry voices outside the door, arguing in what he guessed to be Italian. Not understanding one word of the language, he tried to work out what was occurring from the tones of their voices. The more the enraged voices shouted, the more ill at ease Gordon felt.
~~
If it had been up to him, Scott thought to himself as he reluctantly packed away Mobile Control, they would have gone on through the night, and for days and nights after that, until they found Gordon. But, it was not up to him. If his father wanted them home, then home they would go.
'Thank you for your kind help,' Scott said, shaking Lucia's hand earnestly.
'No trouble, sir,' she said in English, with her strong Italian accent, adding 'I am very sorry we did not find your friend.'
'Don't worry; we'll see to that, Scott said, trying to assure himself as well as Lucia.
Tin-Tin and Virgil walked over to him as Lucia left, both looking tired and forlorn. 'Are you sure we can't keep going, Scott?' Virgil said, ready to get down on his knees and beg to persuade him to continue.
Scott shook his head, he too wishing they could. It just didn't seem right to leave the danger zone without spending as long as humanly possible trying to find Gordon, like he was abandoning him. 'Dad's orders,' he said shortly.
'So that's it? We're just supposed to give in and hope that he turns up somewhere?' Virgil asked, disbelieving that any member of his family would throw in the towel so quickly.
'Virgil, we're not giving up,' Scott said decisively. 'We're just not doing anyone any good out here if we're running on empty. We need to go home, eat, sleep, and plan how we're going to get him back.'
'Do you think Mr Tracy has a plan?' Tin-Tin asked.
'If I know my Dad, he'll have at least two,' Scott said with certainty, 'Come on, let's get back to Base.'
~~
John had left Thunderbird Five with the knowledge that Gordon was missing, and from the few messages he had received whilst taking Thunderbird Three home, he could tell that things had not improved. Brains had spent the entire journey scratching notes on pieces of paper, his brow furrowed throughout.
To John's surprise, his father had suggested that Alan remain on Thunderbird Five, despite the fact that Gordon was missing, so that if any news came through Alan would be there to hear it. John had expected the youngest brother to quarrel about this, and insist on returning home, but to John's absolute amazement, Alan agreed to stay. John could only guess that Alan wanted to be by himself during such a troubling time, rather than worry with everyone else.
As soon as John landed Thunderbird Three under the Roundhouse, he went straight to his room, his refuge, as he wasn't ready to face anyone at that moment, least of all his father. John knew that feeling of avoiding his father all too well. He thought back to his childhood days when he would come home after school and go straight to his bedroom, to avoid the questions. How did you get that bruise? How did you cut your lip? Why are your eyes red? John would never answer the questions, but instead made up lame excuses. He felt so alone until one day he came home to find ten- year-old Gordon waiting in his room, refusing to budge from his bed until John talked to him about what was going on. Since that day when John opened up, he and Gordon held an unbreakable brotherly bond, being about to talk to each other about anything.
A photograph of the two brothers caught John's eye, as it sat in its carved pine frame on the shelf next to several thick books on astronomy. The photo was taken three years previous, on holiday in the Canary Islands. The mid-length shot of the top showed the smiles after Gordon had taken John water-skiing. Although somewhat shaken, John had enjoyed every minute of it, shown by the genuine smile on his face, and the slight crinkles at the sides of his eyes. Gordon too had enjoyed driving the boat, giving his brother a taste of the element he loved so much.
John would be lost without Gordon, in fact he was already lost without him, and he had only been missing for a few hours.
John looked up when he heard the roar of Thunderbird One's engines as Scott returned home, and thought for a brief moment that they had found Gordon, only he knew in his heart that it was wishful thinking on his part. John sighed and curled up on his bed, before he closed his eyes and drifted into a restless sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~
'Any news, Scott?' Jeff said an hour later. Base had been informed of the situation, as had those on Thunderbird Five.
'Nothing, Father,' Scott said solemnly. Making the call to his father about Gordon's disappearance had been the toughest thing he had had to do since International Rescue had begun. It was difficult to watch his father's face go from pink to white in five seconds.
'Do the authorities know?'
'Captain Lucia Felleti, of the local police department, has a team of officers searching now. The media doesn't know; they've been told that the police are looking for clues regarding the bomb.'
'Good,' Jeff said, knowing that the last thing he needed was the media finding out that a member of International Rescue was missing. 'Keep trying, Scott, and call me to keep us updated.'
'FAB, Father,' Scott said, ending the transmission.
Jeff sat alone at his desk, looking at the portrait of Gordon hanging in the line with the rest of the five brothers. What if he never got to see that face again, the wicked gleam in those soft grey eyes, or that cheeky smile? He couldn't bear to think about it.
Kyrano shuffled into the room, bringing a tray containing coffee and sweet biscuits. He set the tray down and asked, 'Any news, Mr Tracy?'
Jeff sighed and shook his head, wishing his answer were different. 'None yet, Kyrano,' he said, picking up the spoon in the sugar bowl with a noticeably shaky hand.
'Well, Mr Tracy, it is said that no news is good news,' he said, trying to be positive for the sake of those around him.
Jeff nodded, managing a slight smile as he said, 'Indeed they do, Kyrano, indeed they do. How's mother?'
'Mrs Tracy has retired to her bed, and has taken something to help her sleep,' Kyrano said.
'Good,' Jeff said, thinking that he would probably need to do the same thing, if Gordon was not found by the evening. 'John and Brains are due to be home in two hours, so if you could...'
'I will prepare something for them to eat when they arrive,' Kyrano said, reading his master's mind. He bowed again and then left for the kitchen.
Jeff doubted very much if the family would be able to stomach anything at that moment, but it was a kind thought all the same. The chief of International Rescue decided that he needed a plan if Gordon was not found within the next hour, and so set to work creating one, praying that it would not be required.
~~
Gordon woke up bound and gagged in a dark corner of an even darker room, he tried to move his arms, but found that they were tied to the back of a wooden chair. 'How cliché,' he mumbled under his gag.
He tried to remember how he got there. He recalled talking to John when the ground under the Firefly broke up and he and the vehicle tumbled into the basement. Before he blacked out, he remembered himself and several tools thrown about the Firefly like peppercorns inside a peppershaker, which provided the explanation for the splitting headache. If he ever made it out of wherever he was alive, Gordon resolved to start a campaign for seatbelts to be worn in all vehicles.
This raised an interesting question: How did he get from being unconscious in the Firefly to being tied up in a dark room in God-knows-where?
He looked around the space, looking for something, anything, to help him out of his predicament. He felt about his wrists for his communicator, and was dismayed to find that it was not there, making the task of being found all the more difficult. He next thoughts turned to freeing himself from the ropes securing his wrists.
His eyes detected a brick ledge about four feet away from him, and at about the level of his hands. He looked down at his feet and found that they were tied together, but not tied to the chair. Careful not to overbalance, or make any noise, he lifted himself to his feet and took tiny jumps towards the ledge. Once positioned correctly, he began moving his bound hands back and forth as much as the bindings would allow, and let the rough wall slowly eat at the ropes.
As he did so, he heard two angry voices outside the door, arguing in what he guessed to be Italian. Not understanding one word of the language, he tried to work out what was occurring from the tones of their voices. The more the enraged voices shouted, the more ill at ease Gordon felt.
~~
If it had been up to him, Scott thought to himself as he reluctantly packed away Mobile Control, they would have gone on through the night, and for days and nights after that, until they found Gordon. But, it was not up to him. If his father wanted them home, then home they would go.
'Thank you for your kind help,' Scott said, shaking Lucia's hand earnestly.
'No trouble, sir,' she said in English, with her strong Italian accent, adding 'I am very sorry we did not find your friend.'
'Don't worry; we'll see to that, Scott said, trying to assure himself as well as Lucia.
Tin-Tin and Virgil walked over to him as Lucia left, both looking tired and forlorn. 'Are you sure we can't keep going, Scott?' Virgil said, ready to get down on his knees and beg to persuade him to continue.
Scott shook his head, he too wishing they could. It just didn't seem right to leave the danger zone without spending as long as humanly possible trying to find Gordon, like he was abandoning him. 'Dad's orders,' he said shortly.
'So that's it? We're just supposed to give in and hope that he turns up somewhere?' Virgil asked, disbelieving that any member of his family would throw in the towel so quickly.
'Virgil, we're not giving up,' Scott said decisively. 'We're just not doing anyone any good out here if we're running on empty. We need to go home, eat, sleep, and plan how we're going to get him back.'
'Do you think Mr Tracy has a plan?' Tin-Tin asked.
'If I know my Dad, he'll have at least two,' Scott said with certainty, 'Come on, let's get back to Base.'
~~
John had left Thunderbird Five with the knowledge that Gordon was missing, and from the few messages he had received whilst taking Thunderbird Three home, he could tell that things had not improved. Brains had spent the entire journey scratching notes on pieces of paper, his brow furrowed throughout.
To John's surprise, his father had suggested that Alan remain on Thunderbird Five, despite the fact that Gordon was missing, so that if any news came through Alan would be there to hear it. John had expected the youngest brother to quarrel about this, and insist on returning home, but to John's absolute amazement, Alan agreed to stay. John could only guess that Alan wanted to be by himself during such a troubling time, rather than worry with everyone else.
As soon as John landed Thunderbird Three under the Roundhouse, he went straight to his room, his refuge, as he wasn't ready to face anyone at that moment, least of all his father. John knew that feeling of avoiding his father all too well. He thought back to his childhood days when he would come home after school and go straight to his bedroom, to avoid the questions. How did you get that bruise? How did you cut your lip? Why are your eyes red? John would never answer the questions, but instead made up lame excuses. He felt so alone until one day he came home to find ten- year-old Gordon waiting in his room, refusing to budge from his bed until John talked to him about what was going on. Since that day when John opened up, he and Gordon held an unbreakable brotherly bond, being about to talk to each other about anything.
A photograph of the two brothers caught John's eye, as it sat in its carved pine frame on the shelf next to several thick books on astronomy. The photo was taken three years previous, on holiday in the Canary Islands. The mid-length shot of the top showed the smiles after Gordon had taken John water-skiing. Although somewhat shaken, John had enjoyed every minute of it, shown by the genuine smile on his face, and the slight crinkles at the sides of his eyes. Gordon too had enjoyed driving the boat, giving his brother a taste of the element he loved so much.
John would be lost without Gordon, in fact he was already lost without him, and he had only been missing for a few hours.
John looked up when he heard the roar of Thunderbird One's engines as Scott returned home, and thought for a brief moment that they had found Gordon, only he knew in his heart that it was wishful thinking on his part. John sighed and curled up on his bed, before he closed his eyes and drifted into a restless sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~