The restaurant was almost empty, the catering staff closing down all but one of the serving hatches and beginning to make a start on the evening clean. Scott sat in silence and sipped at the surprisingly good coffee, his eyes locked on the huddled figure opposite him.

John had his elbows on the table and his head in his hands, his shoulders sinking with another long sigh. His breath rippled the surface of his drink and fluttered the small paper napkin across the table.

Scott put down his coffee and watched his brother in concern. The phone call had been brief and his brother's tight voice not able to say much more than that Alex was hurt and John needed to see him. He had then been too upset to continue and Scott had been left with nothing but awful uncertainty and hundreds of terrible possibilities racing through his mind. But, in his panic, John had forgotten to scramble the call and they had traced his phone. Just a mere few seconds before his father had called and hurriedly reported what TinTin had found.

They had sped across Europe and sank in over the city, locating the hospital in terrified silence. Scott had scrambled out of his uniform and hurried inside in a panic, using the thankfully still active cell phone to locate his brother. But he had not been prepared for what he then found.

It just wasn't John.

His heart aching, Scott again let his eyes travel over what he could make out of the man before him and even prior warning from the photograph President Mitchell had shown him did not help lessen the shock. Okay, the almost black hair was intense and he had never thought that the unshaven look was good for his usually so neat brother, but it was the gaunt cheeks that had so stunned Scott. Not that he could now see them past the hands that covered John's face.

Had it really been only a month? It seemed so much longer as Scott contemplated the change in his brother. And suddenly he could feel anger rising as he tried to figure how the hell any of this could have been allowed to happen. If Penny had been there, he would have demanded as much of her. But she was guarding the treasured craft that he had landed on the roof and he would have to save his fury for another time.

"I can't believe this has happened …" John husked quietly.

Scott suddenly wanted to laugh. What else had his brother thought might have come from being so damned stupid?

John lifted his head and sat back against his seat with another sigh, avoiding eye contact with his brother. "It's all gone to shit …"

Another sarcastic retort rose and Scott swallowed it back.

"And we were so close."

Scott clenched his jaw and held back his immediate response. "Close to what?" He managed to calmly inquire.

John looked up slowly and met his brother's worried frown. He saw the slight frustration in Scott's body language and suddenly wanted to thank him for holding back all that he obviously was.

"What did you find out?" Scott urged.

"A group called 'Red Dawn'." John began to explain quietly.

Scott's frown deepened. Oh god. President Mitchell's suspicions were right.

"We followed some leads we had about these scientists and …" John shrugged, "Seems they weren't your usual brand of harmless geeks."

Scott gripped his coffee cup in both his hands, hoping the china didn't shatter in his tight grasp. "So … you've been hunting terrorists?"

John seemed confused.

"There was a newsflash." Scott explained quickly, "It didn't say much but …" He closed his eyes and suddenly groaned in dismay. "God, they were the ones behind what happened to us in Washington, John! And they killed Jake! What were you thinking?"

John watched Scott in uncertainty. "Jake …?"

Scott nodded slowly and explained about the sabotaged test flight and all that he had since discovered and – more importantly – what he had been warned against by various agencies. Including the President.

John stared at his brother in horror, sorrow again threatening to draw out further tears.

"I did as I was told and backed the hell off." Scott continued quietly, "I might make mistakes but at least I learn from them."

And John recoiled from the sudden venom that laced his brother's words. He looked down at his hands and his heart was racing as he realised exactly what his brother was referring to, the nightmare that was Kazakhstan playing out in his head.

"Damn it, John!" Scott groaned softly, "How could you be so stupid …?"

John jerked his head back up to face his brother, defiance flushing across his weary face and he shook his head in gentle warning.

Scott paused and took a deep breath. He raised one hand to signal that he was backing off and sighed loudly. "Fine."

John watched his brother warily and could not understand why Scott was not being more sympathetic. Especially if Jake had – god. He could not finish the thought and a lump rose in his throat as he considered what Scott must have been through, guilt building as he realised that he had not been there for him.

"So …" Scott began cautiously, "You found the other Ventura?"

John nodded.

"You know she's Three."

"What?"

Scott shrugged, "I saw the blueprints. Someone stole Brains' design. I mean, she's not identical but … there's enough to see where the idea came from."

John considered this for a moment and then remembered the lab in Kazakhstan and all the equipment that Ustin and his team had built. Anger began to fester as he realised that the scientist could well have been lying to him all this time, the sudden possibility that Ustin was not as reliable as John had let himself believe making him feel nauseous. He closed his eyes and began to contemplate just what he would do to the old guy if he had betrayed them.

"John?"

John opened his eyes and saw his brother's apprehension.

"I was close to something." John began quietly, dragging a hand through his unkempt hair. "So close …"

"Too close." Scott offered.

John contemplated this in silence.

"What happened?" Scott then ventured, "What did you find?"

John leaned forward, resting his arms on the table and letting his head fall with a heavy sigh. "More than I was ready for." He acknowledged, his voice tight.

Scott reached across the table and placed his hand on John's arm. He could feel his brother trembling and then saw the first tears dripping onto the white melamine table. With a groan, he stood quickly and moved round to sit beside John. He slipped his arm around his brother's shoulders and offered a gentle squeeze.

"No." John shrugged him off and again covered his face with his hands, coughing on a small sob. "It's all my fault!"

Scott had to agree but decided he had better keep that little bit of information to himself. He reached out again and placed his hand on the centre of John's back.

"They tried to warn me. They both did."

"They?" Scott echoed.

John nodded, "Henry's here. From MI5."

"Ah." Scott smiled suddenly, no wonder Penny had not been able to get hold of him in London.

"What was I thinking …?" John groaned, his voice all but a whisper.

And Scott could not help the small chuckle that arose. "Fuck knows, bud."

John lifted his head and turned to Scott, a smile brushing across his tired face as he saw the fondness in Scott's amusement.

"And you a genius, as well." Scott continued lightly, "Surely you should have figured that one against the world is pretty shit odds."

"There were three of us." John countered.

Scott laughed.

"Okay …" John conceded, sitting upright and smiling again, "Still crappy odds."

"Oh yeah." Scott enthused and then something suddenly sank in. "Were?" He clarified warily.

John considered this for a moment and then nodded sadly. "It's just not worth it." He confirmed quietly, "Not now."

Scott's heart was racing and his smile grew. "What? Don't tell me you're actually going to listen to reason?"

John glared a mock warning and then shrugged his shoulders. "Shame it took something like this to make me see sense." He agreed, sudden sadness threatening once more.

"Yes!" Scott declared happily and threw his arms around John's shoulders, hugging him tightly. "Thank fuck!"

John leaned into his brother's embrace and nodded slightly.

"When?" Scott leaned back from him, "I mean, how is she? Can she fly?"

John frowned in uncertainty.

"Come on." Scott stood quickly, "Let's go ask."

"Okay, okay." John sighed and got to his feet slowly, his weary body protesting at the movement. "And I need to call Henry."

"Sure." Scott agreed, guiding his brother from the restaurant hurriedly, wanting to seize this chance before his brother had time to reconsider and – god forbid – change his crazy mind.

Tbc …