A/N: Song lyrics are taken from Phil Collins' "You'll be in my heart"

Chapter 9 by Tiger002

"Zack," Jack said resting his shoulder on the young man's arm. He knew what Zack was thinking, the way the wheels turned in his head reminded him a lot of his younger days. Reckless, wanting things made right, and pushing all but one thing aside.

"Hold on," Zack said, the binoculars focused on the shadows within the darkened house. He knew there was something there, something moved, and despite the still darkness, he could see something, a figure still cloaked by darkness, but there all the same.

"You really think he's there?"

"Yeah, I do." Zack wanted to race down the cilffside, break in and save his brother. He felt the gun in his pocket, knowing that with it he could end all of this horrific nightmare. He could only imagine the kind of pain his brother had gone through. Every second of his dreams, when he was lucky enough to sleep, were filled with those imagines, reminding him of his failure to protect Cody.

But now, he'd be the brother Cody deserved, the brother he should have been, the one he was too distracted to be.

A light comes on for a brief second, and though the window Zack sees the disheveled hair of his brother.

"I knew it!" Zack practically shouted. Even though the light faded as soon as it appeared, he got enough of a look of that blond hair that he knew it could only be Cody. Now, with his heart racing, he wanted nothing more than to barge into and break Cody out, once and for all.

Though through all his excitement, he barely noticed the phone vibrating in his pocket. Reaching down , he slid his hand around the gun to get to his phone. He opened up his phone, knowing the good news that he had hoped for wouldn't be there.

Just as he thought, no sign of Cody. Holding it so Jack could see it as well, Zack knew that if they were to make a move, they'd have to act fast. Something he wasn't in objection to.

"Tell him to play along, but that we have Cody in our sights."

"So that means-"

"Are you ready for this Zack?"

Zack nodded. He'd been ready for this the second he first saw Cody taken. He'd been ready when he first learned who Edwin really was. He'd been ready when they first got to the house.

"Then let's go."

They got back in Jack's car and drove it down the Cliffside, Zack not taking his eyes off the house where Cody was being held for a second. Each second in the car, each stop sign, each bump of the road seemed to last an eternity for the elder twin. He kept his eyes open, looking for something, anything he'd need to know in order to save Cody.

After what was only a few moments, Jack pulled the car behind a bush about a quarter mile from the house. He wanted to make sure they didn't arose any suspicion, sure that a car would be noticed. The two of them got out and made their way down the street, scanning for any opposition. They didn't expect it to be openly guarded, that would be too obvious for Edwin's enemies. But the unseen defenses could prove much deadlier.

"There doesn't seem to be anyone here," Zack said

"Don't underestimate him."

Upon making it to the house, they snuck up to the back door, hiding from the sight of any windows. Crouched down, Jack turned the nob, only to find that the door was locked, though that didn't seem to surprise him any. Reaching up slowly, he fiddled with the lock, causing the door gently swinging open.

Zack looked on, ready to run, but waited until he was sure the time was right. The two listened for a moment, for movement, for the guards to discover the open doors. They wouldn't believe Edwin would leave the place completely unguarded; that would just be too easy. So they had to strike fast, use the element of surprise to give them a chance.

A moment passed, no one seeming to be there.

Jack nodded, and the two of them entered the house, finding themselves in a large room that resembled a large garage, a couple small cars and a truck parked in it. Zack and Jack hid behind one of the cars, hearing movement from behind the walls.

"They're coming," Jack whispered but it went right over Zack's head. All he could think about was that Cody was in this building, they were so close to him. He could practically smell his nerdy brother not far from here. He recognized the truck that drove off with him while he could only writhe in pain from the blow to the head sitting right behind him. A small part of him wondered if that would happen again. He worried he wouldn't be strong enough, that he'd let his brother down again.

But he just wouldn't give these guys the chance.

He smiled as the footsteps grew louder; he crouched down, ready to spring up at a moment's notice, to take down whoever was in his way. He looked under the car, seeing the two pairs of feet.

His first victims.

"Why'd you leave the door open like that?"

"I told you, I locked it."

"Oh, just like that time last year when someone's carelessness cost us a sweet ten million, but you had nothing to do with it."

"Whatever."

Zack saw the two walk over to the door, completely oblivious to the them hiding behind the car. And with their backs turned, he knew this was their best opportunity.

He held out three fingers to which Jack nodded. There were times where he knew a plan was needed, where he had to make sure he wasn't running into something far worse, but not now. His fears were driven away by love, courage fueling him, perhaps even pushing away his common sense. He was going to rescue Cody, it didn't matter what happened to him, or anyone else. He was too close to fail his brother now.

Jack started to whisper something, but Zack didn't bother to pay attention to him. Instead he burst out from the car, and before the guard could figure out what had happened, Zack slammed his knee into his enemy's crotch before slamming his body against the wall. He held his arm against the man's neck, cutting off his breathing before brandishing his knife and holding it against his neck.

The guard was shaking, something that caused Zack to smile. "Now," Zack paused, an adrenaline fueled rage slowly coursing his veins as he pressed his arm against him harder, knowing that he was smaller, that surprise could only hold this thug for so long. He turned to see Jack had the other thug on the ground. "Where is my brother?" Zack finally asked, after drawing the faintest line of blood on the guy's neck. "You know, looks like me, you took him about a week back. Probably scared out of his wits."

Through his shakes, the guard managed to point toward the door, causing Zack to back away just an inch. He wasn't here to kill, but he'd take down anyone who would get in his way. "He's held in the basement; go inside, down the hallway, second door in the left, take the stairs. The door at the far side locks from the outside, he's in there."

And with the information Zack needed, he dropped the thug to the ground. He sprinted toward the door, having all the information he needed, knowing it was just a matter of a few steps to finding his best friend. He was so close, he could taste it. His ears picked up on Jack yelling for him, but he mind was too focused to care.

He rounded another corner, went down some stairs, and swung a door open with enough force to knock it off the hinges. Upon hearing a crash behind him, he wondered if he had in fact knocked the door clean off, but he didn't care, he just kept running, his ears tuned to the sound of his brother's voice, hoping for just a whimper, a whisper, anything; he'd recognize it, and know that things would be okay.

"So, you came," a feminine voice said and Zack saw a girl with black hair step out into the hallway, and judging by the empty plate, could only assume that she was just with Cody.

"Step aside," he ordered, reaching down for his gun, he wasn't ready to shoot quite yet, and this girl seemed younger than him, so killing her wasn't something he wanted to do. Though if that's what it took to save his brother, then, he'd just have to get over his conscious.

"You're Zack, aren't you?"

"So what if I am?"

"He said you'd come."

"Of course, what kind of brother would I be if I just left him with you guys? Now, are you going to take me to him," Zack pulled out the gun, pointed it at her, and held it as still as possible, "Or will I have to use this."

"Your grip is wrong, the force of firing it would knock it out of your hands, possibly injuring your fingers in the process," she said calm, unfazed even though Zack looked to be ready to kill at a moment's notice. "Not to mention your hand is shaking so much your aim would be horrible."

He paused for a moment, not sure of what her game was. She wasn't scared; she wasn't trying to fight him. Was this a trick, something to lure him off guard, but what could she do? She was unarmed, and not that muscular either. She probably couldn't put up that much of a fight.

She set the plate down on the floor and turned to slowly walk down the hall.

"Wait, where's Cody?" Zack asked, wanting, needing to be in control.

"I'll taking you to him. Just follow me," she said still as unafraid and unfazed by this as before. This was too easy, could Zack really trust her, could she just be leading him somewhere where he'd be shot? Or maybe she was really scared for her life and didn't want to make him mad, but was just hiding her fear really well or something.

That could be it.

Maybe…

Probably not.

But it was all he had, so he ran to catch up, keeping his gun out, his eyes constantly on the lookout for anything suspicious, his ears honed on any noise that would indicate an enemy.

"You chose the right time to come," she said as they rounded another corner, her path perfectly matching the directions that guard gave him. "Most of Dad's men are gone, so with any luck, you can both survive this."

"Why are you helping me if Edwin is your father?" he asked, something seeming terribly wrong with such a scenario.

"I'd rather not see Cody hurt, that's all."

"I'm not convinced. Just know one wrong move and I shoot."

"Skepticism is a valuable asset Zack," she said, walking further down the hallway. He had to be missing something; they wouldn't just let someone take their asset worth millions of dollars like this. "He's in here." She pulled a key out of her pocket, stuck it in the doorknob and slowly turned it, Zack's heart raced both to see that his brother was alive and well, but also, in case this was a trap, all to set him up. He pulled the gun down, not wanting to scare Cody, but still held his finger on the trigger, ready to fire should he need to.

The door swung open, and she stepped back, so he could see wait lied with in. And as the faint light from the hallways illuminated the room, he saw it, and his heart swelled with joy.

Cody.

Sitting there, starting up at him.

And in an instant, the room grew ten times brighter, Zack knew it was only an illusion of his mind, but all the stress, all the despair, faded into sweet relief at the moment. He put his weapon away, raced across the hallway, into the room, the great divide that separated them days ago no more, and now, he embraced his twin, tears of joy erupting from his eyes. In that moment, all was right with the world. He wasn't in the basement of these evil men's base, he was simply with his brother, and in the wake of all the chaos and sleepless nights, the weight of separation, had finally been lifted.

Come stop your crying. It will be all right. Just take my hand. Hold it tight. /I/

"Zack," Cody said, not knowing what to think, not able to believe that this was actually happened. He felt his brother's warmth, and he felt the pain and the hunger fade. He even started to cry, his impossible dream actually realized.

Cody looked into the hallway, seeing Sam standing back to the side, and if he wasn't mistaken, he saw a tear drop from her eyes.

"If you want to get out of here, I suggest you hurry," Sam said as she began walking away.

"What about you?" Cody asked, feeling slightly bad at leaving her to deal with her father who no doubt would be furious.

"It will be okay," she said vanishing around a corner leaving the twins alone in the room, now knowing that there was only thing left to do now that they were together again.

Get out of here.

Zack and Cody both knew that there would have to be more guards waiting for them, on their way up, but they had made it so far. Cody wiped the tears of joy away, and Zack placed his hand on his twin's shoulder. This was it, they were together, and it mattered not what the world threw their way.

"You ready?" Zack asked, as he helped Cody back to his feet, his determination stronger than ever to get both of them out of here safety. He thought about what London said, how she didn't want to lose anyone else, and how he had promised her that they wouldn't lose anyone. Now it was time to make good on his word.

Cody nodded, and the two of them slowly walked out of the room, Zack taking the lead, wanting to be the first for any enemy to spot. He would be the big brother, the protector he had failed to be those few days ago.

Zack tried retracing his steps, wishing he'd paid more attention when coming down here, but that was too far from his mind at the time. But even in the blur he had passed it before, he still remembered enough to keep going, and luckily the house wasn't that big so he didn't have too many places to get lost in. He could just imagine how bad it could be if he was trapped in a huge mansion trying to work his way out while trying to avoid enemies

As they started climbing the stairs, a gunshot rocked the house. Cody lost his footing and nearly fell backwards, but upon hearing his brother gasp, Zack turned and with lightning fast reflexes, latched onto Cody's wrist.

"I got you."

Zack could see Cody shaking, the sound of a gun obviously terrifying him. Cody was never fond of weapons like that, the way their careless use could end a life so quickly, and to make it worse, he knew the kind of people they were dealing with, the kind who would shoot first and care never.

I will protect you from all around you.
I will be here.
Don't you cry.

"They won't hurt you ever again."

Cody nodded and some of the fear vanished. He was still scared, and almost longed for the safety of his dark, lonely room, but Zack was with him, and that meant he'd be all right.

Slowly, stepping as silently as possible, they continued up the stairs, cursing each creek, afraid that could give away their position. Zack kept his hand on his pocket, hoping that he could end any battle with a single shot, and then they could keep going. For a second, he wondered if Jack was okay, his mind brought back to the detective that had been the whole reason he had been able to find Cody, or even learned who Edwin truly is.

And then, with the gun shot so close, he could only guess Jack was involved, he just hoped the detective was the one firing, and not the victim. If he had been smart, he would have stayed with Jack the whole time; there was strength in numbers after all.

But as he reached the basement door, he placed his hand on it, contemplating his move. If he was to make the first move, he'd have to move fast, fire before his opponent got the chance to, but he had no idea of the situation, he could go in blind and find himself in an even worse situation.

"Stay back," Zack said, and Cody nodded, too scared and excited to do anything but comply. He took a couple steps back down, giving Zack the room he needed to do whatever needed to be done.

With that, Zack turned the handle hoping, praying that the hinge wasn't squeaky and that whatever enemies might lie beyond would be occupied with their own struggles. He took a deep breath and swallowed, getting ready for whatever lied beyond.

He let the light of the room fill his vision as he scanned every location, looking for anyone standing there, but he saw no one.

"Zack," a raspy voice called out, causing Zack to look down. Several feet away, Jack laid on the floor, bleeding, quite badly at that.

"What happened?" Zack asked, running to the detective.

"Look out," the wounded man said right as Zack felt an object shoved against his back.

"So close," he said, and Zack didn't have to turn around to know it was Edwin.

How could he be so careless? How could he let himself fail, especially when he was so close?

"Take that gun out of your pocket and slide it across the room. I'm sure we can get twice as much for two of Miss Tipton's friends."

Zack clenched his teeth; that was his only weapon, his only way to fight back, but there was no way for him to use it in a time like this. If he was dead, he'd be no use to Cody, not to mention he had no plans of dying today. "Fine," he said as defiantly as possible, seeing that there was still some hope. Edwin hadn't gotten Cody yet, he was free, and he could only hope that would give him the chance he needed.

He placed the gun on the ground, slowly, not wanting to provoke Edwin any, and slid the gun across the ground, right to the basement door and he heard it crash down a few steps.

Perfect.

"Now sit against the wall kid."

Any other time, he would have snapped about being called kid, but instead he just mumbled something, not willing to let Edwin know his plan. If he acted like all hope was lost, Edwin might believe him, and that would be just what Zack would use to bring him down.

"Good," Edwin said as he turned to walk away, and Zack stared at the basement the second. He could swear he saw a nod in the darkness, signaling a reply from his silent plea. Now he could only wait, and hope. Strangely, he wasn't as scared as he thought he'd be, Cody was here, and they'd take down this thug together.

Cody wanted to throw up as he grabbed the weapon of death. But he couldn't, he had to use it. Zack was counting on him. Zack wasn't scared at holding a gun, Zack would just rush in and save him, in fact he already did.

Now it was his turn to return the favor.

Laying against the steps, to hide his location he slowly inched close, making sure Edwin was the only threat they had. With the danger they were already in, the last thing they needed were reinforcements to deal with. He saw Edwin walk across the room; pull out some rope from a cabinet with his back turned to Zack. Cody propped his head up just a bit and gave Zack a look of assurance He'd have to bide his time, Zack was right to move slowly this time, so Cody would have to do the same. One shot, that's all he'd need. He cringed at the thought of actually killing someone, but sometimes people couldn't be reasoned with, and violence was necessary. He thought of how he could shoot someone without it being lethal, a wound to the shoulder, or leg would be enough to bring him down.

He just hoped his stigmatism wouldn't make getting a good shot off difficult. He'd just aim for the chest, which gave him the best margin of error to still hit if his aim was off. Even if it was a lethal shot, saving Zack was more important than keeping Edwin alive.

As Edwin walked across the room, ready to tie Zack up, Cody slowly, got to his feet, his body achy from all time spent still. But he pushed those thoughts away, and took aim right as Edwin stood over Zack.

"Now turn around, we'll make sure you don't do anything stupid."

As Zack complied, Cody stood with a prayer for luck, he pulled the trigger, the resounding boom nearly deafening him, the force so great that the gun shot out of his hand, but as he closed his eyes, not wanting to see the sight of a bullet tearing through another human, he heard no scream of pain. He opened his eyes, and saw the bullet embedded into the wall.

But worst of all, he saw Edwin turning toward him, his gun raised as if the world all stood in slow motion. He froze, his only chance, gone.

Though as the world stood still for the younger twin, Zack rose to his feet, and with a mighty roar, his delivered an earth shattering punch to the side of Edwin's face sending him sprawling to the ground, dropping his gun in the process.

For one so small,
You seem so strong
My arms will hold you
Keep you safe and warm.

Free from his fear, Cody kicked the gun away as he saw Edwin was trying to get to it, but his captor wasn't content to be beaten that easily, though they were both unarmed, Edwin got up from the ground, pulling Cody's leg out from under him as he did so.

With a heavy thud, Cody slammed into the ground, but he rolled to the side and got back up, looking to his twin on the other side of Edwin. They might not have had the advantage of a gun or the element of surprise, but they had each other, and they'd find a way to take down this guy together.

Zack ran at Edward, throwing another punch, but the older man caught his wrist, though Zack didn't let that stop him, but instead used the leverage to jump up and kick Edwin in the stomach, freeing his wrist, and sending an unbalanced Edwin reeling back. Cody stepped to the side, and then elbowed Edwin in the gut, feeling strange that he was using as much force as he could on another person, with every intent to hurt. It unsettled him how he could fight like this, but he didn't' worry about that, following up the elbow, with a kick containing as much force as he could muster.

Edwin reeled back further, and with him so off balance, he could do nothing to stop Zack from leaping and tackling him to the ground, the force of the twin on him too much. "Get the rope!" Zack yelled as he tried holding down his foe's wrist while the larger man squirmed trying to get out from under him. Zack knew he didn't have much time, but if he could hold him down just long enough, they could leave him there for the police and bring him down once and for all.

Cody ran back across the room, seeing the rope that Edwin was going to use to tie up his brother, and appreciated the sweet irony that this was going to now be his undoing. Edwin continued to struggle as Cody dashed back to him, Zack doing what he could to bring his wrists together, trying not to flinch as Edwin's limbs swung wildly, hitting Zack whenever they could.

Cody pounced on Edwin's left arm, his whole body weight keeping it in place, and then Zack swung Edwin's right arm over to it and harnessing his knot-tying ability from the brief time he was a wildness scout, Cody bound his wrists together. Then, they went for the legs, these much easier to control, Cody jumping on them before binding them together as well.

The two of them got up, seeing the once untouchable chief of police lying of the floor, completely powerless, broken, humiliated, and finally, beaten.

"We got him," Cody said, but Zack wasn't quite content with just tying him up. The elder twin walked up to the man on the ground, pulled his foot back, and slammed it into Edwin's face, drawing quite a bit of blood and earning a few curse words from Edwin.

"Now we got him."

Cody would normally say Zack went too far, but he stood, his arms crossed, and wished he had done the same.

"Let's get out of here now," Zack said, walking over to Jack, nearly forgetting he was there in the midst of the battle with Edwin, and helped him back to his feet. "Can you make it back to the car?"

"I guess I don't really have much choice," he said, leaning on Zack for support, knowing he have to swallow his pride and let this kid help him. "It's good to finally see you Cody." His voice was weak, but still had a gruff flavor to it, showing strength despite the pain.

"Good to see you too," Cody said, not really sure what to say to this stranger.

"He's the guy that found you Cody," Zack said.

Before more questions could be ask, the sound of police sirens echoed all throughout the distance, and all three of them let out a breath of relief. The police, now free from Edwin's grasp would be able to provide the island with the justice it deserved, Jack could get to the hospital and get the treatment he needed, and with Cody placing his hand on Zack's shoulder, the twins knew that this hellish nightmare was over