9

As forewarned this story is now rated as M as the boys may be heading for a spot of bother with some references to drink and drugs, the moral of the story is don't do it! especially if you don't want certain older brothers to interfere!

It had been three long days since his father's disappearance and still no word. John had rarely left his room or on the rare occasion he did he would take his tablet with him so he could listen to communications that he hoped would eventually pinpoint them in their father's direction. He had written a complex algorithm to help aid him sift through multiple communications quickly to focus on those that would most likely be a possible lead. John was thankful for the task; it was a small thing but he at least felt he was doing something constructive to help find their father. Initially he had been hopeful they would find him but as the days went on, he became increasingly unsure of this outcome. Brains had been such a good friend to John, he didn't think he could have got through these last few weeks without his support. Brains had also lost both of his parents at the tender age of twelve with a hurricane ripped through their neighbourhood and his parents had died, leaving him as an orphan. Brains understood what John was going through and regularly called to check in on him and to try and keep him distracted. They were currently working on obtaining satellite footage from dad's crash site which was risky as it involved hacking a government satellite but he (and indeed Brains) were confident in John's hacking abilities. He was currently trying to bust through the firewall with Brains' advice but it might still take some time. John knew he couldn't change his mother and grandfathers' fates but until he saw a body he wasn't going to give up on his father.

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It was late evening. Alan and Gordon had snuck off the farm and into town for a bit of much needed relief. Both were underage so the bar was off limits to them but that didn't stop them from raiding their dad's depleted liquor store before they went out. It was Gordon's idea; he was sick of the repressive atmosphere in the house, they needed to escape for a bit. Alan was keen to get away too and forget his troubles. They had walked into town (about three miles from the farm) Necking and swigging from a opened bottle each. Gordon had got drunk plenty of times when he shouldn't before, the bourbon now barely even burning his throat. Alan pretty much coughed and wheezed from the first sip (Gordon royally taking the piss, laughing at his little brother) so Alan had chucked his in the two-litre coke bottle he had found at home and had since found it much more bearable now it was mixed. By the time the two of them made it into town Alan was struggling to walk in a straight line and Gordon was merry in a lightheaded, free spirited way. All his troubles finally muted, there was just bliss. Gordon had called some of his old school mates on the way and arranged to meet up at the local park, Alan was happy to tag along. It was rare for Gordon to invite him out with his friends and he wanted to make a good impression. As they neared the park, they saw a group of six guys sat on the benches near the old grandstand. Their friends cheered when they saw them, the boys waved back in excitement. Gordon sauntered up hands above his head as he entered the fray. "Make way, life and soul of the party coming through." He raised his bottle in the air before taking a theatrical bow. His mates clapped him on the back in welcome. "Hey look its mini Tracy!" the lad's teased pointing at Alan. Alan was slightly anxious when they had initially headed out but the drink had helped to dull his nerves since. He didn't take too kind to being called mini Tracy and frowned in disgust, a deep 'V' shape creasing his forehead between the eyes. "You know I'm taller than him right?" The lads roared with laughter. Alan's anger was gone in the heat of the moment - already forgotten as he smiled and sat on the bench opposite his brother. Alan noticed all the alcohol on the table, this was going to be a fun night!

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Scott had been working late in the office again. Grandma had been due to arrive two days ago but her boiler had broken and therefore she had to wait for the engineers to come to repair it. She would now be arriving tomorrow so he was up to his arms in virtual board meetings and budget deadlines trying to get all the work done by tonight so he could prioritise the day with her tomorrow (She still didn't know about Father). He'd had a meeting this afternoon with his captain to provide an update on his current situation. He told him everything including his father being missing. Thankfully his captain sympathised with Scott's plight, Scott was an excellent first lieutenant and one the air force could ill afford to lose. He granted an additional week's leave and said that he would see if there was the option to post him closer to home for the time being. At present Scott was meant to be posted in Germany as that's where he had been before all of this started. Scott sighed in relief... that sounded promising being closer to home. Now evening had fallen so the time zone difference was perfect for dedicating his time to the mission of finding his father. He was on the phone to the Malaysian embassy. It was proving frustrating to say the least. "Look is there nothing you can do?" Scott asked exasperated.

"I'm sorry Mr. Tracy but we have limited search and rescue teams and we don't have infinite resources. The last known location of your fathers' plane was the ocean around 100 kilometers from here. If we could guarantee he had landed on our coast and if it was on land then yes, we would have more resources and man power to search. The weather has not been favourable the last 48 hours therefore we have not been able to search via boat or air but rest assured as soon as it is clear we will try again. We have already had a foot team out on the coastal area closest to the last know location. I suggest you try the Indonesian embassy too." The man sounded annoyed.

"I am already in consultation with them but thank you for the recommendation, what if we could provide resources? Would you permit a private team to search by air if I could hire them?" Scott questioned.

There was a pause as the man spoke to someone else in the office, his tone rapid and low. "This could be arranged but you would need to seek permission from the military and our air control as well as ensure you had the relevant flight permits."

"Ok thank you, you have been most helpful. In the meantime, if there is any news, I would appreciate an update."

"Rest assured Mr. Tracy we will be in contact in the first instance."

Scott put the phoned down and sighed heavily. Captain Lee had reported in the day before to say that they had not been able to locate a craft at that location but they couldn't go any closer to Malaysia to search as they would be breeching airspace. Hence why Scott was now trying to cajole the local authorities into action but they didn't seem to be searching with the vigor that he would expect. Scott was sick of waiting around and not knowing to the point where he had decided that if his dad hadn't turned up by day five, he had resolved to head out there himself and search.

Scott sighed and looked at his watch, it was ten pm again already! How did that happen? Realising he was thirsty he got up and headed across the hall to the kitchen. He grabbed a glass of water before noticing Virgil was on the phone. He heard the words "I can't promise not to tell him…" which immediately set him on edge. He set his drink down unforgotten on the counter and went to stand beside his brother. Virgil looked up at him concerned. "It's Alan" mouthed Virgil, hand over the receiver. Scott frowned, where was he? Scott listened closely and could just make out his brothers worried tone. "I'm sorry Virgil, we just came to town to get away for a bit and see the guys but its kind of got out of hand." Alan was skirting around the truth, Scott knew that tone.

"What got out of hand Alan?" Virgil asked gently.

"Well we were drinking" – Scott made to snatch the phone and Virgil had to fight him off by stepping on his foot. Hard. "Ouch!"

"Virgil? Are you ok?" Alan asked.

"Yeah... just wasn't looking where I was going, I stubbed my toe. Anyway, you were saying?" Virgil stared daggers at Scott willing him to calm down until they got the full story.

Alan paused, not quite believing his brother. "Yeah well, like I said we were drinking and having a swell time but then a guy came over and started offering these pills, he's still here now. They are just buying some but so is Gordon and I don't think it's the best idea. I didn't want to call Scott because he'll kill us, so I called you." Looking at Scott's face of thunder, Virgil could see his brother had come to a valid conclusion. Scott was livid. He already had his hands on his keys.

"Ok Alan, I'm on my way. Thank you for telling me, you did the right thing."

"Thanks Virgil I owe you one." Virgil had barley cut the connection -

"Too right I'm going to kill them! but not before I get my hands on that fucking drug dealer!" Scott's anger flew in a tirade.

"Scott, if you go in hot headed, they are not going to thank you for it. At least Alan has been sensible and called for help. Just try to calm down." Virgil was trying hard to pacify him, his warm tone radiating peace but concern.

Scott took a deep breath he was right. "Ok where's John; please tell me he is still actually here?" Scott and Virgil had been so tied up with business and farm their brother's whereabouts had escaped them for a time, they both realised they were going to have to be more vigilant in the future. Virgil quickly ran upstairs and checked. He then flew down the stairs "He's fine in his room, working on some coding/satellite project. I explained we were going out to pick Alan and Gordon up and we would be back in a bit."

Scott nodded. "Come on we'll take mine it will be faster."

"What are you implying? That I drive slow?"

"Well you do drive a Chevy pickup, so yeah of course you do! That and your incessant need to stick to the limits, how you get anywhere on time is beyond me."

"It's called forward planning." Virgil replied sarcastically as the door slammed behind both of them. the glass vibrating in the wooden frame.