This is my first venture into the M7 fandom. Dipping my toes in the pool, so to speak. Suffice it to say, none of the characters belong to me and I am making no profit from this little piece. Chris does not make an appearance in this, but he is present in spirit. Besides, I needed his office. And responses to any reviews I (hopefully) receive will be posted on my LJ, it would be pointless and time consuming to add another chapter to this just for comments.
XWingAce did a wonderful job beta-ing this fic and any mistakes still present are entirely my own.
Family of Providence:
"It was you, it was you who threw away my name!
And this is everything I have for me." Boy Breaking Glass – Gwendolyn Brooks.
Vin Tanner, ATF Special Agent, wiped a weary hand down his face. He sighed as he continued to stare blankly at the computer screen. He knew that he was supposed to be working, but he felt uncomfortable being separated from the five men he had shared an office with for almost three years. He had no idea how Chris could stand it. It had been awkward, at first, being surrounded by others when he had spent most of his life alone, but he had grown used to them. He had even grown to appreciate their constant presence.
Regrettably there were some files on Chris' computer that Vin needed to look over for Orrin Travis. While Orrin had requested that they be done by the end of the week Vin knew an order when he heard one. Despite Chris' constant complaints to the contrary. And since Chris was away at a weeklong conference it was left to Vin to go through the files. Chris had had a few choice words to say about being stuck with going to the conference, to which Vin had replied that that was what he got for being the boss. Unfortunately, it was Tuesday and Chris was only expected back on Friday so there was no way he could get out of doing the files.
Vin was unsure how he felt about being given responsibility of the team while the other man was away. Taking command in the field when Chris was out of commission was entirely different to being given command in the office. And he would be more than happy to give Chris his office and position back when he returned.
After spending another few moments staring at the words on the screen, whose letters seemed to be enjoying a game of musical chairs, he gave up. He ran a hand through his thick hair and leaned back in the chair with a wince. Gritting his teeth he pressed a hand to his shoulder and massaged it through the bandage. He glanced darkly at the painkillers that sat innocuously next to the screen.
As per usual, it seemed, he had been shot on their last job a week before. While the bullet had gone straight through his shoulder it still hurt like hell. The sling, which the hospital had told him to wear, lay haphazardly on the corner of the desk. He supposed that at least there was something positive about being stuck in Chris' office. If he had been at his own desk Nathan would not have stopped playing nursemaid. Vin currently was not in the mood to be hounded by someone who insisted they knew what was in his best interests, not that he ever really was.
Without a second thought Vin rested his feet, boots and all, on the corner of the desk. Chris would kill him for doing so, but at the moment he did not care. Not that he would have done any different had he cared, he thought with an insolent grin. He tugged lightly on the faded denim jeans before resting his uninjured arm behind his head and closing his eyes. He sighed deeply and wondered if now would be a good time to go and get a cup of coffee. Of course, the stuff they had here was ghastly. It tasted like a weak, watered down version of something someone would scrape off the side of the road, but it was better than nothing.
There was a light knock at the door and Vin reluctantly dropped his feet to the floor as Ezra Standish, the team's undercover agent, entered. Ezra glanced at where his feet had been and raised an eyebrow. Vin smirked. Ezra shook his head slightly as he sauntered into the office. In his hands Ezra held a large envelope. He wordlessly handed it to the other man. Vin frowned in confusion at the Southerner.
"I have received what you requested of me to locate," Ezra told him, his tone strangely earnest. Vin's frown deepened.
"I ain't asked ya fer anythin'." Ezra gave him a small smile.
"It is not in connection with our most recent assignment," he explained. Vin stared at him briefly before his eyes widened in comprehension. Some time ago he had furtively approached Ezra and asked him to find some documents for him. He then turned his gaze to the envelope in his hands and looked at it for a long moment. He saw all the official stamps without really taking any of them in. Now that he had all the answers at his fingertips he was unsure if he really wanted to know them. Ezra turned silently to leave the office.
"Ez," Vin said, before the other man could leave. The Southerner stopped at the door without turning around. "Thanks." Ezra nodded as he half turned to face Vin.
"Regardless of the outcome, Mr Tanner, our allegiance will not waver." Vin gave him a wan half smile. Ezra closed the door behind him. Vin's gaze unerringly returned to the envelope and only then did he notice that his hands were shaking. He knew that he could put this aside and never look at it. He could continue to live his life as he had before but he knew that he would always feel as though there was a part of himself that was missing.
Closing his eyes Vin slowly opened the envelope. Exerting his considerable will power he forced his hands to stop trembling. After taking several deep breaths he pulled out the piece of paper and forced himself to open his eyes. He stared for long moments at the paper before abruptly standing up. With a snarl he punched the wall, the paper falling from his other hand.
Typed on the page was: "Name: Vincent Robert Tanner. Mother: Emma Marie Tanner. Father: Victor Fitzgerald."
Outside Chris' office five men heard the snarl and dull thud. Nathan and Buck both stood up immediately but Ezra simply shook his head. JD watched the door worriedly and Josiah looked to Ezra for clarification. Ezra sighed.
"It seems that the news which I delivered to Mr Tanner was more distressing than anticipated," he commented.
"What news?" JD asked. Ezra turned his gaze to the office door, his expression for once concerned, instead of his typical poker face.
"I am afraid, Mr Dunne, that not even I know the answer to that."
Inside the office Vin leaned with his forehead against the wall, breathing deeply, trying to control his floundering emotions. Finally, he resorted to taking his painkillers. His knuckles hurt now, as well as his shoulder. He was sure that his hand would be bruised and swollen later. He was sure that nothing was broken, however. He was not stupid enough to ignore it if something was, but he was unwilling to go to Nathan none-the-less. His eyes once again locked on the life-changing piece of paper that still lay on the floor. He hesitated fleetingly before he scooped up the paper, wincing as the movement jarred his shoulder, and crammed it haphazardly back into the envelope.
Victor Fitzgerald was his father. That thought seemed to echo through his mind, getting louder and louder each time, until every other thought was driven out. He slumped into the chair, hanging his head. His uninjured arm came to wrap instinctively around himself. He knew of Victor Fitzgerald. It was hard to be part of the FBI and not know of him. He was an influential man with powerful connections. It was just a pity that everything Vin had heard of him indicated that he was not a good man.
The worst though was that he knew his mother had loved the man. He remembered the caring tone of her voice as she spoke of his father, even until her dying breath. And Fitzgerald had been married all along. His mother had been the man's... mistress. That thought left him feeling as though he had been punched in the gut.
"Bastard," he growled with barely suppressed rage before he sagged, realising that that word applied to him just as much as it did to Fitzgerald, if only in a more literal sense. Of course, he had known that that was likely the case all his life. But somehow there was an enormous difference when it was clearly spelled out on paper.
He had not had much while he was growing up, but he had always had the fact that he was a Tanner. It was something he had been inordinately proud of, something he had clung to when there had been nothing else. Now even that was gone.
He was unsure if not knowing was worse at this point, but he could not forget what he already knew, which meant that he had to deal with it. He found himself wishing for Chris' solid presence. He did not know when he had come to rely on the six men he now called brothers but he did know that his life would never be complete again without them. Chris especially.
There was a tentative knock on the door, and the person at the door waited uncharacteristically for a reply. Vin finally called for them to enter. Buck peeked his head around the door, looking Vin over before he slowly entered. Ezra followed him. Obviously they had been chosen to make sure he was all right. Vin pushed himself to his feet and glared at them.
"Vin," Buck began hesitantly. Vin shook his head, his expression still dark, indicating that he did not want to talk about it. Buck sighed and nodded, knowing that no one could force Vin to talk about something when he did not want to. Not even Chris.
"I'm fine. I don' need ya'll lookin' in on me." Buck gave him an indulgent smile.
"That why your hand's all busted up?" he asked. Vin glanced down in confusion before a sheepish expression briefly crossed his features. Buck rested a hand on Vin's shoulder. "We just wanted to see if you wanted anything."
"I don't need nothin'," Vin said brusquely. Buck gave his shoulder a light squeeze.
"You just tell us if you do." Buck left before Vin could snarl anything in reply. Ezra gazed at him for a moment longer.
"Regardless of the outcome, our allegiance will not waver, Mr Tanner," Ezra repeated, emphasising the name. Vin stiffened at the mention of his name before he sighed, some of the tension leeching out of his wiry frame. Knowing the identity of his father did not change his own. Ezra smiled slightly, allowing the crack in his defences for just a moment. "I believe it is the intention of the others to go to the Saloon. Would you be joining us?"
Vin wavered in indecision for a moment before finally shaking his head. He just needed some time alone. Ezra nodded. He hesitated, before he awkwardly rested a hand on Vin's shoulder as Buck had done.
"Our allegiance will not waver, Vin." Vin nodded, not meeting his eyes.
"I know," he said softly. Ezra paused for a moment, before he, too, finally turned and left the office once more. Vin closed the door behind the other man and sagged against it. Victor Fitzgerald was his father. That thought still felt so alien and wrong. He sighed and pulled himself up. It did not matter who his father was. He was a Tanner. Despite everything that would never change. He trusted the six men he worked with to watch his back – something he had never thought he would be able to do – and they had become his surrogate family. Regardless of anything else they would be there, they would not abandon him. He owed them a drink, at least. Perhaps they could distract him, for a moment.
As he grabbed his coat so that he could join the others a sudden thought stuck him and he stopped short. Victor Fitzgerald had a son, Martin. He had a brother.