A/N: I'd like to take the time out to thank Criminally Charmed, who mentioned that there were some spelling errors & grammar errors in the last chapter. I will fix those tomorrow when I can see straight. I'd also like to thank Teboi, whose kind words spurred me on my really bad day to write this chapter. Thanks again to all my other reviewers – your feedback really does mean a lot!

## break ##

Alan had been kept in his room for the next six hours before the Hood had come back and had talked to him. He hadn't been given anything to eat, and his stomach grumbled, but he couldn't have eaten dinner even if he'd have wanted to; he felt nauseous and sick to his stomach.

The door cracked open, and Alan realized that it was probably the Hood. He closed his eyes. He hadn't seen Scott yet and was worried sick. He was also still extremely angry that the Hood had broken his arm. Why? Still, he knew why without even asking: the Hood was all about control. When Alan hadn't given him the submission he'd wanted, thus he'd been punished.

Suddenly, it all came back to him, and he didn't even hear the door open wider as he relived the memory.

Flashback

"I'm not going to be your son like in some kind of twisted game!" Alan shouted, glaring at the Hood as if the Hood had personally ruined his life – which he had in many ways. This was certainly not how Alan had planned to spend his break. Alan swallowed hard and tried to stop crying; suddenly wishing that he was fighting with his father again. While arguments with Jeff weren't pleasant, at least there wasn't risk of life or death or any other type of physical punishment.

"Now, now, Alan," the Hood responded. The grin he wore made Alan even more nauseous – how could he be happy at a time like this? "You're going to listen to me, and you're going to listen to me good. You have four older brothers, right?"

Alan didn't respond, but chose to glare at the Hood instead. He closed his eyes after only a minute, wishing that the world would stop spinning.

"Anyway," the Hood responded, reaching out and tracing a finger down Alan's cheek, "I can hurt anyone of them at any time. I can make them wish that you had never been born. I can control their thoughts. Why do you think Gordon's been so ornery lately, Alan? I've been messing with his mind. You should really be quite upset with him – I've been messing with him both physically and mentally for awhile and he didn't tell you anything."

"You're sick," Alan growled, only to be shoved into the wall by the Hood. The Hood had his hands on Alan's arms, pinning him to the wall, not allowing Alan a chance to escape or even to move. "I won't play your twisted—" His thoughts were cut off when the Hood slapped him, his eyes glowing.

"Don't interrupt me, or I'll make sure Scott pays the price," the Hood growled. "And I can hurt any single one of your brothers if you don't do what I say."

Alan closed his eyes, trying to block out the Hood's leering face and evilly glittering eyes. It didn't work. He was roughly dropped to the floor, and the Hood placed his hand on Alan's arm, almost in a fatherly sort of way. "So, are you ready to listen to me, Alan?"

"Go to hell," Alan spat. He didn't care what the Hood said. He would do as Scott said instead: refuse to listen to him.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Alan," the Hood responded, "and here I was so hoping that we could avoid this…" with that, he took Alan's arm, and twisted it hard, making Alan scream in pain even as he heard the snap signaling his left arm was broken.

## end flashback ##

"Aw, Alan, you didn't notice me, I'm so upset," the Hood said as he looked at the teenager. He snorted, trying to control his anger. He knew that Scott had said not to listen to him, and it seemed like Alan was choosing to listen to his older brother. He'd really have to punish Scott for that. There had been a reason he'd revoked Scott's speaking privileges.

Alan wanted to tell him off, but had learned that doing that would only bring more pain. He opted for not choosing to do anything instead except looking at the floor. Maybe the Hood would think he was submissive and not try anything. He sighed, not even hearing the water running in the bathroom until it was stopped.

"So, Alan," the Hood said as he excited the bathroom. He smiled at the teenager's glaring eyes. When Alan finally accepted that he was his son and not Jeff's… Oh, the Hood would be so pleased. He might even tell Alan his actual name. What had his mother been thinking when she'd named him Trangh? It hardly mattered now. "Will you accept that you're my son now? Will you accept your last name as not being Tracy?"

He had not planned on tormenting Alan in this way until he'd been at his house for at least a week, but Scott had accidentally spoken and had made the Hood angry. Why couldn't Scott obey a simple command? He had been nice and had let Scott out of the closet, and he'd gone and pissed the Hood off. What an idiot. He'd also originally planned this for Scott, but what the heck; why not torment Alan? Knowing he had caused Alan pain would give Scott great emotional grief.

"No way," Alan responded. He pushed himself up off of the floor with his good arm. "I won't listen to a lun—"

The Hood slapped him. "I don't like being referred too as that," he said. He grabbed Alan by his underarm and dragged him to the bathroom. "So, are you ready to accept that you're my son?"

"No way in hell-" Alan started to say, but was cut off. The man grabbed him under both of his shoulders and shoved him under the water. Alan hadn't even had a chance to get a deep breath before going under, and struggled against the weight of the Hood that held him under. He felt like he was going to drown. He couldn't scream, he couldn't do anything…

After what seemed like an eternity, he was allowed back out of the water. Alan gasped, spitting the water out of his mouth. He pushed against the Hood and was allowed to fall, coughing, to the floor.

"So," the Hood responded, not even phased by the teen who could have indeed drowned, "Are you going to listen to me now?" He'd talked to one of his companions before he had left prison and asked what he could do to get a stubborn teenager to listen to him. It had been in his plans all along to get revenge on Alan. Waterboarding, the man insisted, was one of the best ways to go. The Hood would see if he was right today.

"How many different ways can I say no?" Alan responded. He wasn't prepared for the strong hands that gripped him and shoved him under the water again, although this time he was able to catch a breath as he was forced under the stream of water. He was held under for longer this time. Alan counted the seconds, trying not to think of the fact that he could be drowning: 30, 31, 32, 33…

The Hood allowed him back out of the water. "Are you happy now?" he asked, stroking Alan's hair as if in an affectionate way. Alan pulled back, resisting the Hood's touch, only to be slapped yet again. "You made me hurt you, Alan," he said in a condescending tone of voice. "I didn't want to do that."

Yeah, right, Alan thought. He swallowed hard. The water torture – whatever it was – would probably continue until he agreed to be the Hood's son, but he couldn't agree. There was just no way that he could mentally and emotionally…

Suddenly, he was back under the water again. This time he didn't bother to count the seconds, but instead closed his eyes and forced himself to think about anything but the situation. John in the number five space ship. Scott, who would be there to protect him. But it was useless. Alan gasped, trying to suck in air that wasn't there, knowing all the meanwhile he would be loosing precious oxygen. What he wouldn't give for swimmers' lungs.

It seemed like an eternity before he was pulled out of the water. This time, he spent longer coughing, and knew he wouldn't be able to hold out much longer against the Hood.

"So," the Hood said, an evil glare on his face, "Are you ready to listen, Alan? Maybe someday, we can arrange for you to go back to Jeff. But not right now, Alan. You see, Jeff has really hurt me, and I want to keep you safe, so that he doesn't hurt you. You understand what I'm saying?"

Yeah, that you're a psychopath and an idiot, Alan managed to think before coughing up water yet again.

"I really don't want to hurt you, Alan. If you would only listen to me, you could be my son. I wouldn't call you a mistake or tease you," the Hood soothed. Or at least attempted too. His voice reminded Alan of fingernails scratching against wood. Suddenly, Alan was grabbed and held under water one more time. This time, Alan fought it, despite knowing that he was going to loose precious oxygen.

It seemed like an eternity before he was allowed back up again. This time, Alan gasped and sucked in all the air that he could. Tears freely flew down Alan's face and he didn't bother to hide them.

"Just say that you're willing to be my child, Alan, and all this can stop," the Hood responded. "You don't have to be happy about it. Just accept that I'm caring for you, and Jeff isn't, and I won't shove you under the water again. If you don't agree, I'll have to keep hurting you."

Somewhere in the back of Alan's mind he realized that the Hood was playing this game on purpose; he knew it, but he just couldn't fight any longer. His brain was desperately screaming for oxygen. And he didn't want the Hood to hurt any of his other brothers. He swallowed hard. Maybe giving in was best for now. "Y-yes," he stuttered, even as he felt the first teardrop fall. "I'll—I'll… b-be…"

"You can say it, Alan," the Hood encouraged.

"Y-y-our son," Alan stuttered. The teardrops dripped down now without hesitation. He hated showing weakness, and here he was, showing weakness and giving in.

"Good boy," the Hood responded, ruffling Alan's hair. He stood up, leaving the teenager in the bathroom as he opened the bedroom door, looking for the one person on the farm that could calm Alan down: Scott.

## break ##

Sixteen hours later…

Virgil paced the hospital anxiously. Gordon was doing better but the doctors hadn't given him the all-clear to be able to let go yet, despite the fact that Virgil had insisted that they could more than adequately care for him on the Tracy island. He exhaled slowly as he looked at the room where Gordon was taking a shower. He was glad that the teen could at least be somewhat active again.

Jeff was using every legal law enforcement office possible to bring Alan and Scott back home. There had only one lead since the video: a postage box, shipped to Jeff's office. Ann-Marie had the misfortune of opening it and finding its contents. One picture was of Alan, who was kneeling down, his knees and his palms both touching the floor. Virgil was sure he didn't want to know the story behind that. The picture was signed, Alan Trangh.

It felt like some kind of sick joke. Virgil and John both suspected the same thing – the Hood was trying to make Alan his child. Jeff had been furious upon receipt of the picture and had locked himself in his office bedroom. Virgil was actually hoping that his father got some sleep – he'd been up for nearly 48 hours.

The second picture was a picture of Scott. Scott was simply standing for the photograph, dressed in an entirely different outfit than the one he'd left the house in. In his hands he held a simple plaque that read "slave boy."

Virgil had decided he really didn't want to know what that meant… but figured he would, eventually. There had been no ransom demands. There had, however, been a letter in the envelope addressed to Jeff and the boys. Virgil fingered his copy of it thoughtfully.

You thought you were so clever, Jeff. First you left me to die at the cave, then you left me to die in the prison system. Now I'm getting my revenge. Alan will soon be my child, and if Scott's obedient enough, I'll let him live. In the meantime:

Gordon: Good luck. Hope you feel better… well, not really, but as long as Alan listens to me, I'll lay off the mind control.

Virgil: I really hate your name. Consider yourself next on my hitlist.

John: How are the stars? Been back up in five yet?

Jeff: Good luck getting your sons back. They're mine to keep.

If I haven't been found in a month, I'll let you speak to Alan again. Scott won't get to speak to you until he learns to control his temper, though…

Virgil sighed as he re-read the letter, wishing desperately that there was some clue in it other than he was next on the Hood's target list and that Scott and Alan had been hurt.

## break ##

John groaned as he awoke from his sleep. Brains and Fermat were back from Five, and had ordered John to go take a nap. He'd been unable to sleep in his bed and so had opted to sleep in Scott's bed instead, even putting up with the Pepsi covers that Alan had given to Scott as a birthday present the previous year. John had, jokingly, given his brother a 'Coke' pillowcase, which he was pleased to see that his brother still used. John sighed, stretching as he got up. How did Scott sleep in his bed? It was way to lumpy for John.

Making his way to the kitchen, John was surprised to see Brains sitting there, tinkering with something. "What do you have?" John asked, grabbing a Pepsi from the fridge. Maybe if he drank it cold he wouldn't want to throw up as much. There had to be some reason Scott liked it, right?

"I th-thought you li-li- preferred Coke," Brains responded, looking at John in surprise.

John just shrugged, opening the can and taking a sip. He set it down. Nope. Even cold, it still tasted awful. Scott, he thought, you'd better get back soon, because I'm sick of drinking your stuff for you, and the Pepsi company won't want to go out of business. "I just miss Scott."

Brains nodded. "I am w-w-w – trying to work out s-s-something that will help. Alan and S-S-S – his brother – had their watches on in the v-v-ideo. They did n-not take them off. I am t-t-rying to track down the watch's l-l-ast known location. M-maybe they can r-e-e - tell us something we don't know."

"That's a great idea," John said. "How can I help?"

He'd give anything for a lead. He'd give anything to get Scott and Alan back. Even if it meant drinking Pepsi for the rest of his life.

## break ##

"Gordon, the hospital said that you shouldn't stress yourself out," Virgil reminded his younger brother. Gordon glared at him before muting the news channel.

"I want to know what's going on with Scott and Alan," he responded, looking directly at his older brother, not flinching. Years of playing pranks and dozens of times of tough rescues had given Gordon nerves of steel.

"Then don't listen to Channel Ten. Listen to Channel Eight. Channel ten distorts everything," Virgil said. "Listening to them, you'd think Dad had kidnapped Alan and Scott and was holding them hostage for ransom, or something."

Gordon rolled his eyes, then paused. "Wait, someone actually had that theory?"

"Oh, yeah," Virgil responded. There had been a reason Channel 8 had been given an exclusive. It had happened right after the Channel 10 news had accused Jeff of kidnapping his boys as one of their theories. Virgil had video taped it, and sometime, when they could look back on the incident and laugh, he'd show the video tape. Or he'd use it to get the newscaster fired from his job. "Or, instead of listening to the news, how about I fill you in?"

Turning off the television, Gordon said, "That sounds like a great idea."

## break ##

Jeff Tracy paced his office. He missed his sons. He knew one of the news media's theories was that he'd kidnapped his sons to hold them for ransom because he didn't want to pay takes on a certain amount of money. The thought made him sick to his stomach. While he hadn't been on good terms with Alan lately, the thought of kidnapping his son because of monetary reasons was ludicrous.

He exhaled slowly as he thought about the letter the Hood had sent. Jeff had expected to hear ransom demands from the Hood, not hear that he was taking Alan away from him forever.

Which, if Jeff had anything to say about it, wouldn't be forever – it would be for as short as time as possible.

Someone rapped on the door and opened it. "Jeff?" Ann Marie asked. She had been working overtime, trying to keep Jeff's company in order until his boys were found. "The police are here. They'd like to speak to you. They believe they have a lead."

## break ##

Scott Tracy was furious with himself and blamed himself for Alan's pain. After all, he'd been the one to speak, making Alan get punished. He couldn't even comfort Alan because the Hood had separated them.

Again.

Not like that was any real surprise, or anything. The Hood had made it clear that he'd favored Alan.

Groaning as he shifted, Scott tried to ignore the fact that both of his arms were chained to the wall and that he was in some kind of barn. The night air was freezing cold and he would have given anything for a sweater, or to be inside.

Hell, he'd drink Coke to be able to be home again. Unfortunately, drinking Coke made him think of John, which made him think of home, which made him homesick all over again. He then thought of Dr. Pepper, which Virgil drank excessively. "Dr. Pepper – so misunderstood" was Virgil's favorite quote. He'd actually painted it onto his bedroom wall.

Scott couldn't help but smile, thinking of the memory. His father had been bemused, but allowed Virgil to keep the decoration there. Gordon avoided caffeine and only drank Gatorade. Alan, trying to keep on the good side of both John and Scott, drank both Coke and Pepsi, swapping out one for the other when he was with either boy. Scott hadn't even known he'd liked Coke until they were with John one time and Alan had ordered his brother's favorite drink.

"Well, well, well," the cold voice of the Hood began, snapping Scott out of his thoughts. "Lookie who we have here… Someone who looks awful cold." He grinned, his evil smile making Scott worry. "Don't worry," the man said, "I have someone who wants to see you. Shocking, I know. But Alan's a little upset because of how I've treated him, and I've decided to let you see him."

"You bastard," Scott said, forgetting that he was unable to speak, angry only at the Hood.

The Hood slapped him. "I told you not to do that, Scott. Don't worry, though. I'll still let you see Alan. When you're done comforting him, we'll discuss what you're going to do for me."

There was an uneasy feeling in Scott's gut as the Hood took off his bindings and walked him into the house. What was going to happen next?

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So there you have it. Long, but full of plenty of whump, and hopefully answers a few questions. Or leaves a few unanswered questions. Probably won't be able to update again until Tuesday; I have internship starting Monday, class all day Tuesday and a project due Tuesday morning that I haven't started yet. Probably should be working on it now, but it's 11:25 at night and I just wasn't motivated to start it.

Let me know what you liked, and what you think is going to happen next!