I have to say that this story is so inspiring, I really feel like there is no boundaries here, like I can take it in so many directions, it's thrilling to say the least. I also want to say thank you for taking the time to review, it makes me happy that you seem to like it :) And Anon I feel the same way about the brothers connection, all of it. And I really want to take the time to explore their relationship through flashbacks while two of them is unresponsive to the world, a little at least. But please tell me if it gets to be to much and you all want me to get on with story so to speak. As usual I don't own four brothers. If I did it would have ended happily. Or not at all. I would have turned it into a tv show. Like one of my favorites with Al Bundy. Except it would be the Mercer's. Yes, I am a lunatic (I assume you're wondering by now).

'Angel please...'

'No'

'But...'

'I said no Jack, Bobby would tear my fucking head of my shoulders if he knew I gave you cigarettes man, you know that. Besides, that shit is bad for you'

'That didn't stop you'

'That's different Jack. Totally different'

'How is it any different?'

'It's different cause you're my little brother Jack, and your only 13!'

Jack huffed and walked off, Angel shaking his head behind him. That was before he caught Jack on the roof of their house, smoking, and before he snatched his remaining packet and threw it into the fireplace, ignoring his protests. Jack was pissed at him he knew. Still, he was to young to be smoking anyway. As it turned out he got the chance to make it up to him when Bobby came home, holding the butt of a cigarette he found on the backside of the house. Jack actually looked scared, as he should be, who knew when Bobby would let him out if he found out it was him. So Angel did the only thing he could as a big brother. He took the blame and the expected head slap with a shrug, only rolling his eyes when Bobby remarked that he had been to cheap to get the good stuff too. The next day he found toothpaste who promised to whiten your teeth to an almost "glow in the dark level" on his bed, the expensive kind. Jack stepped out of the shower while he was brushing his teeth and they grinned at each other. A silent thanks in the blue eyes, and a look of understanding in the brown.

Angel sighed as he remembered their meeting at the house the day of Ma's funeral, and Jack's words Hey did you get your teeth whitened? Man, shut up Jackiepoo... They had both grinned, their own secret. Now that seemed like a lifetime ago.

'Turns out that smoking will probably kill you, if a broken heart dosen't do it for you' Angel whispered.

Looking down at his little brother he wondered if Jack had ever been really put together, or if he was just as broken now as he had been when he first came to them. They had all tried so hard to make it right, to make him trust them, and he did eventually, and it made them feel like kings. They had all loved him from the first time they saw him. There was just something about him that screamed for help, and they were all willing to provide it. What they didn't want to provide was the drugs that he at times had craved to help him forget his past. Angel didn't blame him. He didn't know Jack's whole story, at least not like Bobby did, but he knew enough. And what he knew made him want to scream, cry and vomit at the same time. Not to mention kill the one's who had hurt him so bad, that had broken him so completely. They had had many conversations about it before, he himself, Bobby and Jerry, about tracking down every last one of those who had hurt Jack. An impossible quest as no one besides Jack knew how many they were, and he wasn't talking. But an oppurtunity had presented itself one day, a chance to get Jack at least some comfort, some kind of payback, and they had taken it without hesitation.

Evelyn was quiet at dinner. Jack had noticed too, he was afterall an expert in determining peoples moods. He had gone up to his room after dinner, probably to play on the guitarr they had gotten him for christmas. Bobby teased him about sleeping with the thing next to him. When they heard the racket start upstairs Bobby sat down next to Evelyn.

'What's wrong Ma?'

When she didn't answer straight away they knew it was serious. He stopped arguing with Jerry and turned to listen.

'It's' They were all horrified at the tears in their mothers continued after gathering herself. 'I had a visitor at work today. It seems as if Mr Jensen has been released from prison a few days ago, and he came to see me'

Bobbys hand slamming against the table made everyone but Evelyn jump. She laid her hand on top of his and held it. She turned to Jerry and Angel who didn't know who he was.

'Mr Jensen was one of Jack's foster parents when he was in the system. He's been serving a sentence for theft and was released a few days ago'

They knew what this meant. This man had hurt Jack.

'But, theft?' Jerry asked confused.

'He has not been sentenced for anything else, because Jack ran away, and then he was arrested for theft, and by then Jack was found and placed in another family. He's never been accused of anything else, because Jack never said anything at the time, he was still to scared' Evelyns voice whispering that last part made them all look down and take a deep breath. 'and' they looked up again 'he's not going to now. Jack dosen't talk about it with anyone. You know that'

They knew.

'He came to see me and asked about Jack. Someone has broken protocol, and he knows he lives with me now'

'Ma, did he hurt you or anything?'

'No Bobby. But he asked about Jack, and I know, that that man is evil. I know what he did to Jack, because he himself told people, and that is how I got news of it, this was after Jack had came here, because that wretched bastard' they all flinched at their mothers unexpected language 'bragged about it. And today too. And I can't do anything about it'.

Hearing their mother whisper those last words cemented what Angel already knew. The system couldn't stop this man. He exchanged a long glance with his brothers. But they could.

His mother had gone to bed shortly after that. She must have been really tired and worried, because she didn't even tell them not to do anything stupid.

And so it began. They planned and they followed. Angel charmed a girl working at another foster care group into giving him a look at her computer while she went to grab a coffee and Bobby and Jerry took to the streets to ask around. All their work didn't matter though because he came to them.

Angel, Bobby and Jerry was sitting outside, it was summer and the heat was almost stifling. They were sitting quietly planning their next move, Jack was once again in his room playing until the walls was about to crumble around him, when an unexpected hello came from the road. They stood up immediatley, recognicing him from the file Angel had managed to swipe.

'Is this the residence of Jack Mercer?'

Bobby stepped up, stopping a few feet from the man to avoid killing him right there, Angel and Jerry stood beside him.

'Who wants to know?'

'Oh I'm Mr Rhodes' He held out his hand but dropped it when no one made a move to grab it 'I'm an old friend to Jack from before, is he home?'

'We don't know what you're talking about?' Jerry spat out.

'I'm here to see Jack' his voice was at once no longer so nice.

Bobby took a threataning step forward but was stopped by Angel's hand on his arm. Bobby looked in the direction Angel nodded and saw the mailman making his way to them.

'You better get the fuck out of here before I rip off your dick and beat you to death with it' Bobby's voice was colder than ice.

When the man hesitated Angel spoke up just as Jerry took a step forward.

'You better listen, cause I'm dying to burn off some energy, and nothing burns energy like beating someone to death'

Confronted with the three brothers Mr Jensen shot them an evil look before walking back to his car. As he drove off Bobby nodded to them.

'Follow him'

Angel and Jerry nodded and was about to go when they saw Bobby stare up at the house. A feeling of unease settled in Angels stomach and he was horrified to discover Jack's scared face in the window facing towards them.

Bobby was in the house before they had the time to react, and they glanced down the steet, unsure of what to do.

'Bobby will handle Jack. We need to find out where this fucker lives' Jerry said.

Angel agreed. Bobby could handle Jack. He hoped so at least. They caught up to him fairly soon but kept their distance until he stopped and walked into an old house in one of the shittiest parts of town. Jerry shook his head when he noticed Angel's longing look towards the house, and they drove off.

'Not yet Ang'

When they came back to the house they found Bobby rocking Jack in his arms. The boy still and quiet, having retreated into himself.

'He was about to leave when I got up. I talked him into staying til tomorrow at least, I told him we'd deal with it, but he dosen't believe me. Tell me you have something'

'We do'

Jerry's confirmation made Bobby sigh and mouth to them when he heard his mother come home and up the stairs. "Tonight".

After explaining to Ma that Jack was not well, Evelyn naturally decided to stay with him at all times, giving them the chance they needed, and when it got dark they left.

They returned home several hours later smelling like gaseline and blood. Evelyn eyed them where they stood in the hall.

'Bobby. I adore the fact that you care so much, you know that, but what have you done?'

Her voice was sad and any other time Bobby would have felt ashamed, he didn't now.

'Nothing Ma. Just playing around'

'Don't lie to me'

The sound of Jack crying reached them and Bobby looked at his mother.

'Go' She gestured up the stairs 'but we are not done talking about this'

They knew that. Their mother had morals, even if they hadn't really passed on to her adoptive children.

Opening the door to Jack's room they found him in the bed, under the covers, looking every bit the scared 8 year old they had first met. Angel and Jerry sat down on the bed next to him and Bobby sat on his knees on the ground next to his head. Reaching into his back pocket Bobby produced a slightly burnt photo of Jack and Mr Jensen, taken while he was still in his care. Mr Jensen had his arm around Jack and Jack looked scared, not to mention the bruise decorating his left eye. Bobby didn't know why this picture had been taken, and if there were others they were gone now, destroyed in the fire that was probably still raging. He had taken this one when he found it, and they hadn't questioned it, knowing it was for Jack. So that he would know.

Bobby reached the photo out and Jack took it with trembling fingers. He stared down at the photo, his breath catching in his throat before looking up at Bobby again.

'I told you we'd take care of it' Bobby whispered.

Jack glanced around him at all of them before stydying the photo again. For hours they sat like that before Jack suddenly got up and walked downstairs, his brothers following him down. He stopped in front of the fireplace and lifted another log on the fire, watching it flame up again. Without saying anything he threw the photo in the fire and watched the flames lick at it. They all came to stand beside him, watching the photo slowly vanish into nothing.

If only Jack's problems could vanish like that photo had, Angel mused staring down at his little brother. He stroked some of his hair back, letting his hand linger on his smooth face.

'Man that night was a circus I tell ya. When we got there, and after having done what needed to be done' Angel still believed, even though it had been years since that night, and even though now he knew a lot more about the world than he did back then, that they had done what needed to be done, what no one else could, and they had done it for Jack, for his sanity, and for the boy he had been who had been lost because of other peoples evil, they had done it for him because he deserved to have some kind of payback, even if he wasn't there himself to witness it 'well, no one had a lighter on us. Can you believe that? There we stood, gas all over the place and nothing to light it with? Man was Bobby mad...'

He looked down at Jack with a small smile.

'That was the first time we did the gas thing, and it all was about to go to hell because no one had light. I swear my ears was ringing for a year after that rant Bobby gave us, don't ask why he didn't bring one himself, I did and I got a slap up the head for it' He warned Jack, not caring about the fact that Jack was in no condition to question anything.

'Anyway Jerry found a box of matches and the rest is history as they say, at least until a little brat like Jackie Mercer decided to hand his oldest brother a half smoken cigarette when he was in the middle of his second rant about anyone not taking the time to grab a fucking lighter, do you remember Jackie' Angel laughed 'Man, I don't know if Bobby wanted to hug you or hit you... and of course, he being Bobby Mercer he managed to do both later. But the look on that guys face when Bobby started waving the cigarette around, man I thought he was going to shit his pants! He came up with that money rather quick after that...'

Angel stopped laughing as he looked into his little brothers empty eyes.

'You fit right in Jack. Right from the start you completed us. Not just because you smoked, against everyone's wishes I might add, not just because your cigarettes became the lighter that had been missing, but because you was what had been missing before. I...'

Angel's voice broke. His heart ached so much, he didn't know if he could take it, but he knew he had to. His brothers needed him to be strong. They had been for him, he could be for them. He really hoped he could.

'What's wrong?'

Angel sat down next to Bobby on the steps leading out to the backyard.

'Jack' Bobby sighed.

'What about him? I thought he was doing better now, he dosen't seem to dream as much anymore'

'He's to high to dream about anything else than rainbows and fucking ponies'

Angel was more shocked than he should have been. This was Detroit afterall, and drugs were everywhere. Of course Angel had smoked before, been high a lot of times. He knew that road well, and it was one he didn't want his little brother walking on.

'Found this in his room'

Bobby held out a bag of weed for Angel to see. Angel sighed and shook his head.

'He out then?'

'Yeah. Was supposed to be home three hours ago. Little punk is probably sitting somewhere cursing me and looking at the fucking stars'

Angel studied his brothers face for a few was worried, and if Bobby was worried, then Angel was too.

'I'll wait with you'

'We only wanted to take care of you...' Angel whispered.

Thank you so much again for the reviews, it's been a long time since I've felt this inspired to write. It's an awesome feeling :)