DISCLAIMER: I just want to get this straight. Thunderbird DOES NOT belong to me. It belongs to Carlton and Gary Anderson. Me, I'm just here to wreck the whole things up. Oh, and feedback, review, flames whatever you call it, are welcome ☺
SPYGAME: THE DEAD ONE.
By Arayelle Lynn.
"That's me," she said, casting an uncertain glance at Jeff Tracy. She could see the haunted look on their faces, which had mirrored their father's a few minutes ago. So she kept herself from shrinking back under the scrutiny.
"B… but how? You're dead!" said Virgil, his eyes wide. "Your whole family was…"
"Killed, I know," she said, bracing herself for another round of explanations. "As you can see, I'm quite alive." She spread her arms wide dramatically. But still, the doubtful look stayed on their faces. She sighed. "I guess I will have to explain everything, won't I?"
Virgil watched the girl before him. Though she was slightly grown up, he could clearly see the little girl he had once befriended. But this girl was supposed to be dead for over ten years. Why was she still alive? And here?
"Virgie?" she called the nickname she gave him. He looked at her, broken from his reverie. "You might want to sit down for this," she said, nodding at the sofa. She was already leaning on Jeff Tracy's table and his family was already sitting down. Eyes still watching the supposedly dead girl, Virgil sat.
"Let see," she began, as if telling a bedtime story. "You all knew that my dad worked for the US government, right?"
"Uncle Dean, that's right," said Scott, his mind was already processing the information as he always does.
"Well, one of his cases had put him in danger," she continued. "In fact, it was so dangerous that they had to put us in protective custody."
Virgil nodded. He remembered that day vaguely. He was only ten then and Valerie had came over for a visit, as usual. But later that night, Dean Carter had come with two black-dressed men and took Valerie away. None of the boys understood what happened that night until years later. But one thing they knew was that that was the last time they saw Valerie.
Until now.
Valerie continued with her story. "We were sent to a small town in Nevada, where we were given new identities. Everything went great until two years later."
'Yeah,' John thought to himself. 'That was when we got the news.'
"Dad's enemy found us and rigged our house to explode."
"That's what we've heard," said Scott, barely covering the skepticism in his voice.
Valerie looked at him, sorrowfully. "Mom and dad were killed in that explosion," she said. "And a little girl. I wasn't exactly there when it happened."
"So, what happened? How did you survived?" asked Gordon.
"I was saved by an agent, my father's friend. He managed to figure out that the enemy discovered our hideout and tried to warn my father. But he managed to save only me." She spread her arms again. "That's how I came to be quite alive."
"But how can we be sure of that?" asked Scott. He looked at his father.
Jeff cleared his throat. "I've asked Brains to run a DNA test. While we're waiting for the result, she'll be staying here." He turned to her. "I'm sorry. We can't let you roam around free as yet."
"Understood," she said.
"But why now? After all these years?" asked John from Thunderbird 5. "Why do you finally show up now?"
She looked at the screen, seeing her old playmate once again. "I had to come," she said, glancing at Mr. Tracy again. Then, her eyes swept upon all of them. "You're all in danger."
xxxXxxx
"In danger? From what?" asked the ever-concerned Grandma Tracy. When it comes to her family, she was the most protective.
Scott and his brothers exchanged glances and then look at their father. By the expression on his face, he had already been informed of the danger. And so, they returned their attention on her. "Could you elaborate on that, Valerie?" asked Scott as the spokesperson of the boys.
"Not Valerie," she said, shaking her head. "I don't go by that name anymore, Scott. Not for a long time now. Call me Claire. Claire Hudson. That's the name I'm using now."
"Alright, Claire," said Scott. He was a little stunned by the use of his late aunt's name. But letting Valerie used it was just right since she was her mother. Of course, if she was really who she said she was.
Claire pushed herself from the table, regarding them all seriously. "What I'm telling you now must stay in this room," she said, her voice suddenly deep. "Do I make myself clear?" Getting nods of agreement from all of her audience, she continued, "I am a member of a top secret organization called the I.C.C.A."
"I.C.C.A.?" Alan echoed. "I've never…"
"Heard of us?" Valerie-now-Claire finished for him. "You're not supposed to. We take very high priority in keeping our secrecy."
"What is I.C.C.A.?" asked Tin Tin, curiously.
"It stands for International Crime Counteract Agency," she answered, turning to the Malaysian girl. Her dark brown eyes studied her for a split second, as if deciding to trust a non-family member. Then seeing how Gordon and Alan sitting comfortably on either side of her, Claire mentally nod her satisfaction.
"We're who you'd contact if things go badly wrong," she explained. When Alan was about to open his mouth, she raised her hand. "No, this has nothing to do with the Hood."
The Tracys exchanged glances. They were surprised that she knew of their arch nemesis.
"No, this time your enemy is none other than my own agency."
That shocked all of them. Each exchanged surprise glances before turning to the bearer of the news. Claire watched them all carefully, her emotions were well-concealed. She patiently waited for the questions that would be bombarded onto her.
But that didn't happen. Instead, Scott Tracy neatly wrapped them all up in one word. "Explain."
Taking a deep breath, she explained. "Someone in the agency has gotten a little too interested in your operation. Mainly, your 'equipment'," she said. Then she smiled at Jeff. "You've made a hell of great inventions, Uncle Jeff." Then, she continued.
"When I was doing a thorough system analysis a few months ago, I stumbled upon a plot. It seems that they're planning to steal your technology." That should've been no surprise to them but the family members were startled at hearing that an international agency was watching them.
Claire let the information sink in before continuing. "As you probably know, information of your Thunderbird technology is priceless in the black market. But I'm afraid that it's even worse." She looked at all of them carefully. "Based on the information I've gathered, I suspect that they're planning to use your technology to make weaponry."
"And if we don't stop them now, we'll have a world war at hand."
xxxXxxx
"Just wait a freaking minute," said Gordon, startling all of them. He turned to Claire. "You're one of them. Can we really trust you? How can we be sure if you're really on our side?"
She looked at him, apologetically. "You can't. You'll just have to trust me." She looked at them all. "There are still many good men in the agency. They are those who aren't even aware that there are hidden plots within the agency. You have to understand that the agency is big as it is discreet. There are many layers of secrets in which not all of us are aware of, for protection. If I hadn't done that system analysis, I wouldn't have known about this."
"However, it seems that a few agents have gotten rather ambitious and they're the ones we need to put a stop to," she continued. Then she leaned back and sighed. "I've spent months trying to find all I can on the operation and how to get to you until today," she said, looking at Virgil and Scott. "Sorry for pointing the gun at you, Scott."
He nodded her apology away. But his eyebrow furrowed from thinking. He wanted to believe her but he got a nagging feeling that she wasn't telling them the whole story. Before he could ask her anything, Jeff Tracy spoke up.
"We're all pretty tired and shaken. Let's stop here and ready for dinner." He turned to Kyrano, who was just entering. "We have a guest for dinner, Kyrano."
Kyrano regarded the young lady and nodded. "Brains has informed me of the latest addition. And oh, dinner is served, sir."
"Thank you, Kyrano," said Jeff, ushering Claire out. "I know it's been awkward but I hope you'll enjoy dinner, for it has been a long time since you eat with family." Claire smiled appreciatively but didn't miss the look of skepticism the younger Tracys were giving her. "And hopefully, we'll chat about old times," the older Tracy added, giving his sons a small nod.
xxxXxxx
They all watched her like a hawk throughout dinner. They talked and asked questions about their past adventures and even produced some trick questions and remarks just to catch the newcomer off guard. But it was either the girl had done her homework or she was who she claimed she was because she could easily carried out the conversation without missing a beat.
So, when Kyrano finally stand to collect the plates, they were all exhausted but well fed. From Tin Tin's point of view, Claire fit right into the family as if she was really family! She calmly answered their inquiries and even reminded the Tracys some of the memories forgotten by time. And not long after that, the Tracys were beginning to forget that the girl was an intruder and that she was claiming to be someone long dead.
"Dinner was great, Kyrano. I've never had anything like it before," said Claire, smiling appreciatively at Tin Tin's father. "My idea of dinner back home would be pizza and Chinese food."
"Thank you, Miss Claire. May I offer you the recipes for your future delicacy?" he offered her, pleased by the compliment.
She looked at him in mock horror. "God, no. I hate cooking."
"Don't, Kyrano," said Virgil, barely keeping his face straight. "One time, when she tried to cook dinner, she nearly burned the whole place down."
"Yeah, and John ended up in the hospital for food poisoning because of one of her 'special recipes'," Scott quipped, laughing.
Claire blushed, as the table roared with laughter. When it finally subsided, she turned to Kyrano. "Seriously, Kyrano. You do not ever want to give a recipe to a girl who flunked homeroom and chemistry in high school. Kitchen and I just don't mix, uh…uh."
The whole table roared with laughter some more. Laughing along, Tin Tin wished that John was there as well. And seeing Claire glancing at an empty chair at the table told her that the girl was thinking of the same thing too.
"Tin Tin, why don't you and mother take Claire to the living room? We'll help Kyrano clear the table tonight," Jeff Tracy suggested, taking his plate and Claire's with him. Knowing that he wanted to have some time to compare notes with his sons, Tin Tin led the other two women out.
Jeff turned to his sons. "Well, what do you think?"
Scott frowned, seemingly deep in thought. "It's too hard to say, dad," he answered, representing his brothers. "Her knowledge of our past with the real Valerie coincides flawlessly. It's hard to tell whether she's lying about herself and somehow knew about our cousin."
"Or she could be telling the truth," said Virgil. Throughout dinner, he had felt uncomfortably close to the girl as though she was really his old playmate. And he wanted to believe that he had found her again. "Gordon? Alan?" he asked his two younger brothers.
The two looked at them uncomfortably. "We…uh… decided that we have no right to say anything because we hardly know Valerie. We're still young when she was killed, remember?" said Gordon.
"That's right, about the only people who're really close to her was Scott, John and me since we're at about the same age," said Virgil. "What do you think, dad?"
His father sighed. He too, hoped that the girl was his missing niece. Her father, Dean Carter, had been the closest friend he ever had and he and Lucille had treated Valerie Carter like one of their own. "I don't know, Virgil. She seemed convincing enough. I guess, we'll learn the truth once Brains completed the DNA test."
"So, in the meantime, we do not let her out of our sight. All night, if necessary."
The boys nodded. "Got that."
xxxXxxx
When they returned to the living room, Tin Tin and Grandma Tracy were chatting with Claire on the balcony. They were all staring at the glowing moon with the cool wind air sweeping their hairs. They turned when they heard the male Tracys came in. Claire was smiling happily.
"Ladies," said Jeff Tracy, handing his mother a cup of coffee. Gordon gave one to Tin Tin while Scott handed Claire another. She took it with an appreciative smile at him. Then, all of them settled down on the sofas while Virgil made his way to the piano and started playing his sonata like he always does after dinner.
"Oh!" Claire sat up, joining Virgil at the piano. Her fingers trailed along the piano. "I remember this. You'd usually play it after we have dinner." She looked at him in admiration. "You're always a great player, even as a child."
"You think so?" asked Virgil, beaming with pride.
She nodded. "I know so," she said, then sitting down next to him. "And usually, I would sit down with you and watch you play for hours." Then she looked at Scott, or rather the empty spot on the couch beside him. "Then when I get sleepy, I would sit with Scott and sleep on his shoulder."
"What! Are you sure that you didn't ask him to dance?" Virgil teased, but his intention was noted silently by his family. Claire stuck a tongue out at him. "You silly, I hate dancing, remember?"
"I remember," he said, nodding to himself. "In fact, you were a wild tomboy then." He looked at her, his expression was serious. "So, what are you now?" he whispered his question at her. Startled, Claire turned her face away and walked out to the balcony.
Sensing her mood, Scott joined her. "It's going to take a lot to convince you people that I'm really your cousin, isn't it, Scott?" she asked, knowing who he was without turning.
"It's hard to swallow, that I can say," he answered. "We really thought that you're dead."
She smiled bitterly. "And that made it even harder to believe. You do not wish to keep you hopes up. Especially when so many things are at risk. Your identities, your technologies." She paused. "Your friends." There was a faint hint of loneliness in her voice.
Scott opened his mouth to apologize but closed it instead. He found that he could say nothing to reassure the girl since he himself was still unconvinced. So, he leaned against the railing, next to her. "No matter," she said, turning to regard him. "If you don't believe who I am, at least you should believe what I said about the people at the agency because they're really dangerous." There was a genuine concern on her face.
He let her comment passed. For a moment, they stood on the balcony silently, looking out to the sea. "I miss the ranch," said Claire suddenly. She looked at Scott and then at Virgil who had joined them. "And I miss Aunt Lucille. I'm so sorry to have missed her funeral."
Neither boys spoke but both were aware of Alan and Gordon, joining them after Grandma Tracy and Tin Tin retired for the night. Jeff Tracy watched his sons before making his way to the lab. "Do you remember the games we used to play?" Claire suddenly asked. There was a smile on her face.
"Yeah?" said Virgil, frowning. "Which one?"
"You know, Robin Hood," she reminded him. "You used to play King John and Scott was Robin."
"That's right!" said Virgil, brightening as the memories flooded back. "And you played Marion, right?"
Claire rolled her eyes. "Nope, I hate dressing up so you made me Little John." She nodded at Gordon. "We bullied Gordon to be Marion since he was too small to fight all of us…"
"Hey," Gordon protested, blushing.
"And John was the Sheriff," she finished. Seeing the look Alan was giving her, she added. "Sorry, kid but you were much too small to join us back then. Usually, we made you watch the whole thing until you decided that you had had enough and cried."
"I did not cry!" said Alan, indignantly.
Scott put a hand on his shoulder. "I hate to be telling you this, Al, but you did cry."
"In fact, you were a crybaby then," Virgil helpfully put in. All except Alan laughed.
Claire reached over and pinched Alan's cheek. "Don't feel so bad, Alan. You're the only reason why my mom and dad let me hang out at your place ever so often. They always took in my 'babysitting-Alan' reason. Without that, they'd be thinking that I'm being a nuisance to your household."
"Which is what you were, Claire," Virgil added, earning a playful punched on his shoulder. "But I would like to place a complaint." He thumbed at Scott. "Why was Scott always the one playing the hero?"
"Stop complaining, little brother. I can't help it if I got a hero material in me," said Scott, ruffling Virgil hair. "Besides, I did let you play the hero once, remember?"
"Oh, yeah?"
"Knights, remember? I let you be King Arthur."
Virgil smoothed his hair, scowling. "Yeah, but you made Gordon Guinevere. I got my kid brother for a queen!" He turned to Claire. "Why could it not be you?"
She looked at him, smiling sweetly. "Because if you had asked me then, Virgil Tracy, I would've punched your nose." She grinned when Virgil playfully hid his nose behind his palm. Gordon sighed and looked at Alan. "Why must I play the ones that needed rescuing?"
xxxXxxx
"Eureka!" Brains burst into the lounge, startling the sleeping occupants. The boys rubbed their eyes, noticing that the sun was already up. Brains shook his head at the sight before him. Scott was slumping on his father's seat, Virgil and Gordon were yawning on the couch while Alan was stretching on the floor.
"Morning," he finally said in amusement. "I guess neither of you managed to get to your beds last night."
"Naw," said Scott, yawning until his jaw popped. "We were busy talking and…" he suddenly jumped up and looked around. "Where's Claire?" he asked, noticing an empty settee.
"Here," said a voice behind Brains. They looked up to see Claire and Tin Tin. Both were looking fresh and Claire seemed to be wearing one of Tin Tin's outfits. "I got up early and saw Tin Tin came in. I asked for a shower and she led me to the guest room."
"Morning, everybody." Jeff walked in. He saw the state of his sons and raised his eyebrow teasingly. "I take it you had a comfortable sleep?"
Alan groaned as he stood up. "Ohh… my aching back." He glared at Gordon. "The next time we're caught doing this, you're going to be the one sleeping on the floor."
"It's not my fault you lost the coin toss," said Gordon, shrugging.
"We got so caught up with chatting that we didn't realized that we've fallen asleep," said Scott, sheepishly. He and Virgil had been the ones who first lost the fight against sleepiness. Then, while Gordon and Alan were busy arguing about who was Aunt Claire's favorite nephew, Claire herself drifted off. Finally, Alan and Gordon gave up and were too lazy to get to their rooms. So, they all ended up sleeping in the lounge.
Jeff nodded. "I can see that." He turned to Brains. "You have something for us?" he asked. Remembering what Brains was up to, the boys straightened and looked at him expectantly. Ruth Tracy, who came in with her son, made her way towards Claire as Brains handed Jeff the results. The whole room was silent as the head of the Tracy household read through the document.
Then for what seemed like an eternity, Jeff Tracy looked up and turned his face away from all of them. "Well, dad?" asked Alan, unable to keep the suspense going. Tin Tin watched the Tracys carefully, and then at the girl, who was examining something on her fingers. She seemed nervous though she was doing a good job at hiding it.
"Dad?" Scott tried, walking over to his father. It was then Jeff turned back to them. His eyes were puffy as he handed Scott the papers. As his eldest son read them, Jeff turned to Claire, looking hard at her. Then he reached out and swept the girl into his arms.
"Welcome home, honey."
xxxXxxx
"So, what now?" John asked, hearing the news at last. His eyes were glistening as he smiled at his longtime missing cousin.
"The usual thing," Claire answered, looking at Jeff. "You continue on as if nothing happen and I go back to the agency."
"What? That's crazy!" Gordon interrupted. "They might know that you're working against them by now."
She shook her head. "I don't believe so. Besides, I need to find out more about the people that we're dealing here. All I have are just mere speculations when all I need is solid proof." She smiled at them all. "And knowing that you know the danger and would be careful in the future already makes me feel better."
Jeff regarded his niece, seeing her father all over again. "What's your theory, Claire?"
"I rather not say at this moment," she answered, reluctantly. "I still need more information but once I find out something, you'll be the first to know, Uncle Jeff."
"Do that," said Jeff, turning to his two eldest sons. "Scott and Virgil will send you back to mainland. They'll give you a number so that you can contact us once you found something."
Claire nodded, ready to move. "Roger that."
"And Claire?" he stopped her. He looked at her hard. "Take care. We lost you once and we're not willing to lose you again."
"Check."
TO BE CONTINUED…
A/N: This fic is looooong overdue. For that, I apologized. I totally forgot about this fic. Bad, bad Arayelle. I would like to thank Fran Lavery, ms. imagine, sarah, moonlightbear and numbuh 14 for their kind reviews. I don't know if you're still interested in reading the fic but thank you for the support.