A BROTHER'S CRY

By: GrumpyMagrat & Magratconvert

Disclaimer: We don't own the Thunderbirds. Not now, not ever.

Chapter Sixteen – A Brother Feels Guilty

At seven in the morning, Scott was at his father's desk. He had spent most of the night, actually early morning, there. He had dozed a few times but had woken up each time hearing Alan's words in his subconscious: "He had to leave because you hate him." Scott had found a letter from Gordon in Thunderbird 4. Even though it was addressed to his dad, he was tempted to open it anyways, but he decided to wait for his dad.

Scott had checked on Gordon earlier. He was not surprised to find Alan sleeping restlessly in the bed next to Gordon. Scott found Brains working in the back office. "How is Gordon, Brains?" Scott asked.

The shocked look on Brains' face served as further proof of what an ass Scott had been the last few days.

"Well, S-S-Scott," Brains said. "Physically he is d-doing b-b-better but I-I'm afraid that he m-m-might relapse after t-t-tonight."

Scott hung his head. "What has he said?"

"T-That's just it." Brains explained. "W-W-With the exception of a-asking for a s-s-sedative, he r-refuses to speak at all."

"He hasn't talked to Alan?" Scott asked. "What about Virgil?"

"It was V-V-Virgil that told m-me about what had h-h-happened in the pod." Brains answered him. "H-He was also the one who t-told me that G-Gordon hasn't spoken s-since you found them in the p-p-pod. Gordon was asleep b-before Alan came into the s-sickroom.

Scott wanted to talk to Gordon, but he was afraid to make matters worse. He decided to talk to his father before approaching his brother. Maybe once his dad read the note, he could give him an idea on how to heal the rift between himself and Gordon.

"Look, Brains," Scott said. "I know that I have made a real mess of things between Gordon and myself. That's one of the reasons that I came down here. I need to heal this rift between us."

"I'm g-g-glad, Scott." Brains told him. "I was getting c-concerned about you. Your anger w-wasn't h-h-healthy for you either."

"Thanks Brains," Scott said. "Do me a favor, please? Don't tell Gordon that I want to talk to him. After the way that I have treated him these last few days, he will probably try to run again."

"I'm not s-sure that Alan w-will give him that chance. I d-d-doubt that he will leave Gordon's s-s-side." Brains replied.

"I would like to have a chance to talk to Dad before I come back, though." Scott continued. "I'm not sure exactly what time he is going to be back. I would really appreciate it if you could make sure that he stays here until I can talk to him."

"S-Sure Scott." Brains agreed. "There are a f-few tests that I still w-would like to run."

"Thanks, Brains. I will see you later." Scott said as he left the sickroom.

It was nearing 10 am when Scott finally heard his Dad's deep voice coming from the speaker. "Tracy One to Tracy Island. Requesting permission to land."

"Tracy One, you are cleared to land. Welcome home, Dad. I'll meet you in the hanger. I need to talk to you immediately." Scott replied.

"Sure thing, Scott. Have things gotten worse?" Jeff asked.

"I'd rather talk to you face to face, Dad." Scott answered.

"Ok, we'll be down in a few minutes. Meet me in the plane while I run the post-flight checks." Jeff told him.

"I'll be there. See you soon, Dad." Scott said as he disconnected the radio link.

Scott was heading toward the door when Alan walked into the lounge. The anger that Scott had seen during the early morning confrontation still clouded his face.

"I told you to stay away from Gordon." Alan said through gritted teeth.

"What?" Scott asked, confusion showing on his face.

"I told you to stay away from Gordon." Alan repeated. "Brains said that you were in the sickroom earlier. Don't you think that you have done enough? How bad does Gordon have to feel before you leave him alone? I'm telling…"

"Alan," Scott said interrupting Alan's tirade. "I went to the sickroom to apologize to him."

Now it was Alan's turn to be confused "to do what?" He asked.

Scott sighed. "I wanted to apologize to him for the way I was acting. You were right. I was being a complete jerk. I need to talk to him to clear the air between us and I will. I promise. Dad is landing and I want to get his opinion on how to handle this."

"You promise that you will talk to him and make it right?" Alan asked. "I really don't think that I could stand it if he left."

"I promise you, Alan." Scott said. "Gordon is my brother. I don't want him to leave. I love him. I love all you guys. I am going to do whatever it takes to make things right. OK?"

"I'm holding you to that promise, Scott." Alan said as he turned and left the lounge.

Jeff was just finishing the post-flight check when Scott entered Tracy One. When Virgil entered the plane right after him, Scott looked at his dad with a puzzled look on his face.

"Good, your both here." Jeff said when he saw his two sons. Gesturing to the man in the co-pilot's seat, he said. "Boys, I want you to meet Dr. Frank Shipman."

"Nice to meet you." Scott said, shaking the doctor's hand.

"Welcome to Tracy Island." Virgil said also shaking hands with the doctor.

"Scott, Virgil, it's nice to meet you both. Please call me Frank." Dr. Shipman said. "I hope that I can get to know each of you better over the next few days."

"Virgil, I would appreciate it if you would give Frank a tour of the villa and then show him to the guest room." Jeff said.

"Sure, I'd be glad to." Virgil said. Turning to Frank, "Let me grab your bags and we'll be on our way."

"I'll talk to you later, Jeff." Frank said. "Ok young man, lead the way. I can't wait to see this wonderful island that I have heard so much about over the last few years." The rest of the conversation was lost as Virgil and Frank left the plane and headed across the hanger.

Scott sat down in the co-pilot's chair. He wasn't sure how to explain to his Dad what was happening. His brothers had noticed his attitude toward Gordon. Had his Father? How was he going to react when he finds out?

Jeff watched as Scott struggled to find the words to explain what was going on. Maybe if he spoke first, it would be easier for Scott. "I assume from what little you said when I called that things have gotten worse. Can you tell me what is going on?"

Scott stared at his hands. "It's all my fault." He said in a quiet voice. "I really messed up big, this time, Dad."

TBC

Author's note – Well, I'm back. I just got back online. Ten days and I'm going through withdrawal (sob). Since I've posted this chapter, I'm going to catch up on all the stories I've missed.

barb from utah – Tell us about the emotions. These chapters were hard to write because of that.

Angelmouse5 – John seems to fall into that peacemaker role easily. Thank you so much for your encouraging reviews.

numbah 14 – Well, I updated as soon as I got home. Hopefully by the time you get back on the 6th there will be a few chapters waiting for you.

Vorserkeien – Hope you enjoyed the new chapter when you got to read it.

throwra-angel – Scott is finally coming around but now the question is: How is Gordon going to react?

andrewjameswilliams – Welcome. We are glad that you like this story. Reality is getting ready to smack Scott big time.

Rachie Loves Donald Duck – Well, it wasn't the second I got back. I had to let the computer boot up.

merryw – Welcome to our story. Glad you like it. Hopefully the updates will be on a regular basis for a while.