Sorry it's been such a long wait guys! I thought I'd have a chance to get a lot of writting done when I went on vacation, but there was just too much to see and do :) It will not happen again, I promise! As always, please review and let me know what you think? Thank you all for being so patient, and special thanks to those who do review, you guys are the best!

Do not own, make no money.

Chapter 24: They're Mercers

Craig watched from the back seat of the car while his brothers finished their talk. The emotions were churning around inside him like a storm about to unleash. He couldn't reason away the feeling of being rejected at that moment. He wanted to feel close to his brothers. Just minutes before he'd practically been sitting in Bobby's lap feeling safe and protected, and that had ended with no warning when Jeremiah stopped the car, looking upset. The security of Bobby's arm around him wasn't something he was willing to give up so easily after facing the possibility of never feeling it again.

His brothers scrambling from the car after Jeremiah's little fit had left him feeling cold and alone. Jeremiah had said that they all needed to talk. He'd been struggling with wanting to feel like he belonged for so long and it just felt right to join them outside of the car. If he hadn't said anything Bobby never would have known he was there, listening and taking in the information being shared. He had a right to know what was going on. He had a right to know what was going on with Jerry and he had a right to know what his brothers were planning. He had a right to know who had been behind his apparent kidnapping and Jack's arrest. It was his business just as much as theirs and he didn't want to be left out. He was tired of not being included. He'd spent most of the day thinking he'd never see his brothers again, and he wanted to fee close to them now.

Being sent back to the car with a threat of his ass being warmed over was almost more than he could take. He felt pissed and hurt and alone. He wanted Bobby to put his arm around him and tell him everything was going to be okay, but at the same time he was pissed at being dismissed as if he was a small child. Another part of him wanted nothing more than to not feel anything at all. He just wanted it all to go away.

If he hadn't been pissed he never would have gotten into the back seat of the car. As he sat and watched his brothers he realized that when they did get back in the car he wouldn't be able to get into the front seat and soak his frayed nerves in the closeness of his brothers. A seat would separate them and Bobby would be so wrapped up in his plans for Winston that he would ignore the sulking teenager in the back seat.

If he spoke up and tried to get his brother's attention he would be yelled at or dismissed, because what they were planning was important and he'd be expected to understand that. He knew it was important, he wanted them to get rid of the threat that seemed to be hanging over them all, and still he resented it. He could hear Bobby telling him to stay in the back seat and keep quiet and leave them alone so they could take care of business. The words hadn't been spoken yet, but it was what he was used to hearing. It hadn't happened, his brothers were still outside the car, finishing their talk, but the whole idea of it seemed to increase the frustration rising in him. Tears stung at him and he felt his throat tighten up to the point that his voice would choke if he tried to speak.

He watched the four of them huddle a little closer together. Their mouths moved and heads bobbed as they agreed to whatever one of them said. Then Bobby was facing Jerry and flashing that smile that he seemed to summon every time he got his way. Before he knew it Bobby was heading for the driver's door and pulling it open. Jerry pushed Bobby away before he'd had a chance to climb in behind the wheel and Bobby nearly cackled when he laughed at Jerry's words. "Hell Jerr', you can't drive worth shit, but if you insist." He moved around the front of the car and looked through the window at Craig as he opened the front door. "Get your ass up here little boy. You ain't getting away from me that fucking easy." He left the front door open and moved to the rear door, pulling it open. He waited for half a second before reaching in, grabbing Craig's arm and pulling him out to the sidewalk.

Within a matter of seconds the back door was slammed closed and Craig was squeezed into his tight quarters, sharing the seat with his brother. Bobby's left arm circled his shoulders and held him close. Craig watched Bobby pull his door closed while Jeremiah put on his seatbelt. He waited for Bobby to yell at him for getting out of the car. He was ready to argue with him, almost hoping for the chance to channel the angry frustration building inside of him in some direction rather than holding it in. He was met with silence as Jeremiah shifted into drive and pulled out onto the street.

Muscles that he didn't know were tensed up started to relax and he turned his head to his right, letting his face press against Bobby's shoulder, welcoming the safe sensation that filled him. Bobby seemed to sense the conflict inside of him and squeezed on him, pulling him harder into him. "You still pissed at me? I know you wanted to be a part of shit. But I don't want you coming down with pneumonia on top of everything else."

Craig didn't bother trying to speak right away. He just closed his eyes and let the brief calm wash over him. It wouldn't last, he knew that. Calm never lasted long with his brothers. He drew in a few deep breaths before daring to ask any questions. "What are you going to do?" He finally mumbled the words.

He listened as Bobby and Jeremiah started rattling off what was obviously only a partial plan. "We find out what room he's in at the hotel." Jeremiah spoke first. "Do we call him or do we knock on his door?"

"I say we knock on his door." Bobby grumbled. "And then we hold him down at gunpoint and reason with him calmly." He added with a little more force to his voice.

"Listen to yourself. You want to reason with him and hold a gun on him at the same time?" Jeremiah asked.

"I said we'd do it calmly." Bobby laughed but there was a nervous texture to it that Craig wasn't used to hearing. Or maybe it had been there before and he just hadn't been familiar enough with his brother to recognize it; he wasn't sure, but he didn't like hearing it now. Bobby continued talking. "We could take a can of gas with us, if you don't like the idea of using guns."

"Now that would look real nice, walking though a hotel with a can full of gasoline." Jeremiah managed a laugh, and though it sounded nervous it didn't have the same effect on the boy.

Craig finally opened his eyes and looked up at Bobby. "What are you going to say to him?" He wanted to know how this was going to play out. He needed to be able to picture it in his mind and will the outcome to be in their favor.

Bobby looked down at him and his eyes lost the glimmer they'd been carrying as he began to give a brief outline of a plan for making contact with Winston. Whether they would try to reason with him or if there would be threats didn't seem quite clear, it seemed it depended on how well Winston received the news that they were onto him and his men were sitting at the police station. The only thing Bobby seemed sure of was that they were going to tell Winston they had what he wanted with hopes of him tipping the scales to their advantage.

Craig had heard enough earlier, when they had all gathered outside the car, to piece together what was going through his brothers' minds, and he knew his own remarks had sparked the idea, but their plan didn't seem too thought out, and the details were just as sketchy. He did like being included, he felt involved at some level, even if he was sure Bobby would keep him out of the way the whole time, he felt as if he was helping, somehow, and that felt good for a change. "No matter what, Winston has to believe that we know what he wants from us, that we have it, and that we are willing to use it to our advantage."

"With any luck it will be enough for Winston to slip up and tell us what it is he's after." Jeremiah added, his nodding head illuminated briefly by the streetlights passing by then. "Otherwise this whole screwed up plan of yours will turn into one hard kick in the balls." He didn't sound too happy.

"Don't worry Jerr', if that's the case, we still got my original plan to fall back on." Bobby rested his head back and sighed.

"What plan is that?" Jeremiah turned on his signal before making a careful left hand turn.

"The one where I put a bullet in his brain, what other plan did any of us have?" Bobby's voice came out strained. "Hell, we won't be any worse off than we are now if it comes to that."

Craig could feel the tension in the car and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat as a heavy silence fell around him. His brothers were both thinking about what was coming, and it was clearly not something either of them was looking forward to. They didn't want the encounter they were getting closer to with every second that passed. They had been backed into a corner, Craig could feel it, and that gave him an odd sense of dread. If his brothers felt as if they were trapped did that make this a do or die mission for them? Would it ever end for them?

"This is going to end it, tonight." Bobby spoke quietly, as if he was able to read Craig's thoughts. "One way or another it ends."

A shiver ran through the boy's body, he wished he could think of something to say but his mind was swirling around the idea of his brothers facing down the one man that nearly ripped them apart. He had to struggle to keep his mind from falling into the old game of 'what if'. He let his head rest against Bobby again and concentrated on counting the streetlights slipping past the window in front of him. His ears honed in on the sound of the warm air pushing through the vents and his brothers seemed to have lost any need to talk anymore. Vibrations of the tires against the street seemed to run through his body and his mind slowly fixed on that feeling, clouding over and turning him light headed and groggy.

His mind drifted slowly and it didn't take long for his eyes to slip closed. The vision of his mother standing under an apple tree in full blossom felt familiar. Her smile was sober and her eyes were bright and alive. No drugs and no Adam to dull the life out of her had meant some happy memories to hold onto, though it had never lasted long. There were scattered crumbs of laughter, true happiness that clutched at him during the brief reprieve of being his father's property. Each time Adam found them was harder than the last. It meant the end of freedom. Each time he was plunged back into the dark. It seemed he never seen the sun or trees or grass when Adam was around. When Adam was gone the entire world turned green, cool, and big. No buildings to block out the sun. The dream was a happy one, not a nightmare, and he allowed himself to fall completely into it. How much of it was true memory and how much was made up didn't matter; a small white house resting beside a narrow country road with cows grazing in the field next to it. Apple trees lining the fence on one side of the road, an old mailbox resting on top of a discarded fence post just at the end of a gravel drive, it felt fresh and clean.

His blue bunny rested in the branches of the tree his mother stood under. The man was on his knees next to her, digging a hole in the ground, laughing and inviting him to play with him. He was thrilled. The feel of damp, dark dirt was new to him and the smell of it, heavy and cold was a pleasant change from hot blacktop and concrete. He liked his mother's friend and wished he'd come and take them away from his father more often. He wanted to help, he wanted to make his mother's friend happy so he could get his bunny back; but he liked helping too. It made him feel good. Maybe if he helped enough, he wouldn't have to go back to Adam again. The man digging in the dirt seemed hidden in shadow and Craig couldn't see his face, but he didn't care, he knew him and he liked him. If this man was here, then it meant Adam wasn't around and he liked that.

The man smiled at him and leaned forward, reaching for him, and Craig didn't pull away, he wasn't afraid. He wanted to see his face and be sure who it was he was trusting, but just as the face emerged from the shadow under the tree the sun shine seemed to intensify on him, glaring his face into hot white just as a horn sounded loudly.

Craig awoke with a slight start, the car horn was fading, but it had obviously been sounded in Jeremiah's direction as he made a last minute turn off of the street. Craig shifted his body slightly and Bobby laughed. "You get your beauty sleep caught up?"

Craig sat up slightly, just enough to remind himself he was sandwiched into the front seat next to Bobby. For some reason he felt as if he'd had a nightmare, despite the fact that he could remember the sensation of contentment hovering over him. Guilt was the best description for what he felt, though he wasn't sure why. The dream had been vivid, though it was fading quickly, and there was an uneasy undercurrent flowing below that contented feeling.

"You stay here, I'm gonna go with Jeremiah." Bobby's voice was quiet and his eyes seemed to be staring though him at the moment.

"We ain't waiting for Angel and Jack?" Jeremiah didn't look away from his task of steering the car into an empty parking space.

"We ain't goin' up yet. We're gonna check around though, get a feel for our surroundings." Bobby spoke quickly as he pushed his door open.

"Can't I come with you?" Craig asked weakly, already knowing that his brother was not about to let him go inside. He didn't understand why it should matter though, it wasn't as if he had to be protected from what they were going to say or do. He'd already been subjected to much worse than any of them wanted to admit.

"You've got the important job here. You gotta keep your eyes open for Angel and Jack and make sure they wait right here for us." Jeremiah turned off the engine and looked at the fourteen year old. "I'm gonna leave the keys here with you, and my cell phone. If you have any kind of trouble you call Angel." He left the keys in the ignition. "If you get too cold you can run the engine." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, holding it out to Craig carefully.

Craig took the phone and let out a long breath. "I don't know why I can't come." He muttered, though honestly he did know, and part of him understood too; that just didn't make it easier for him to be left behind in the car where his mind could start playing games and stir up new worries for him to dwell on.

"Look, I need you to stay here so I don't have to worry about keeping an eye on you, okay?" Bobby was out of the car already, but he leaned back inside, his face directly in Craig's. "You lock up the doors and don't unlock them for anyone else, you got that?" He wasn't asking, not really.

Craig tried to hold in his frustration because he truly did understand why he needed to stay. He didn't have to like it though, or be happy with it. He gave Bobby a quick nod and looked away. He could feel the frown creasing at his forehead and he avoided making eye contact with Bobby.

"Good boy." Bobby gave him a quick pat before pulling back out of the car. "Lock it up." He spoke just loud enough for Craig to hear him through the closed window.

Craig quickly locked the windows and watched as Bobby and Jeremiah walked across the parking lot towards the elaborate building on the other end of the parking lot. It looked more like a mansion nestled in the middle of the plaza, lights glistening off the thinning mist still hanging in the air. Craig let his body slide back into the seat where Bobby had been sitting. He was wide awake now. His short nap apparently had sharpened his senses because several minutes later he heard the grumbling, uneven chugs of the Gremlin long before it came into view.

Bobby stood next to Jeremiah, staring at the clerk behind the check-in desk. "Credit card," He poked at his brother who seemed slightly perturbed at the idea of renting a room.

"Do you have any idea how much a room at this place costs? We ain't gonna rent a room." Jeremiah turned to him, scowling hard. "You want a room, you use your card."

"I don't have a card, and I don't want a room, we need one." Bobby turned and looked at the man staring them down. "You mind if we discuss this in private?" He let his annoyance show, but the only response he got from the older gentleman was an eye roll, which dug at him a little as he grabbed Jeremiah's arm and pulled him back from the tall counter. "What the fuck is wrong with you? We need to rent a room for the night so we have someplace close, to watch the son of a bitch."

"That was not part of the plan Bobby." Jeremiah shook his head, keeping his voice at a whisper and yet managing to yell.

"It just came to me. We can get Craig out of the car and into a warm bed for a few hours, and there ain't no way Winston is going to expect us to be right here, under his nose." Bobby allowed a tingle of pride to wash over him for thinking so quick. It had come to him just as they'd approached the front desk. The attendant had asked if he could assist them, and the idea had just popped into the elder Mercer's head. "We need a room." He repeated the words to Jeremiah that he'd spoken in response to that question.

"The best thing for Craig would be to get his ass home and into his own bed." Jerry argued, but there was a twitch at the corner of his left eye, a sure sign he was about to give in.

"No, that's the last place any of us need to be right now, we need to stay away from the house until this shit is settled." Bobby shook his head. The more he thought about it, the better sense it made. "I'm betting Winston is in one of their more pricey suites and we need to get as close to him as we can." He let the implied message sink in to Jerry's already frazzled brain before going on. "I'll pay you back later; I got a little money left from what I'd been saving before." He was being honest. As much as he hated to admit it, he did still have some of his hockey money left over, sitting in a bank account drawing interest. He'd been hoping to stay out of it for as long as possible, maybe have something to fall back on when he was a little older. But this was important, and he could part with enough of it to get a room at the ritzy hotel Winston was holding up in at the moment. "We can keep an eye on the son of a bitch, spy on him, good shit like that." He tried to keep his voice quiet as he flashed as innocent a smile as was possible for him towards the hotel clerk who was watching them closely, as if he didn't trust their intentions.

"Bobby, Camille is already worried about money, I can't spend dollars we don't have to spare; it just ain't gonna happen." Jeremiah sighed.

"I'll give you the money back first thing in the morning when the bank opens." Bobby pushed, seeing that his brother was about to cave. "Just rent a good room for one night. That's all we're gonna need. I'll even pay you interest if you want me to."

Jeremiah reached into his back pocket for his wallet. "Hell, gonna run me broke before this is over." He grumbled the words under his breath. "I expect interest back with this when you pay me. You'd better not be shittin' me about having money in the bank brother, or I'm going to come after your sorry ass." He was still muttering as he turned and walked back towards the check-in. "I need a room with two double beds." He spoke clearly to the older gentleman who was still eying them both closely.

"Actually, we should have a suite, don't you think?" Bobby quickly stepped up to stand at Jeremiah's side. "I mean, we don't want to be too crowded, do we?" He gave Jeremiah a quick grin then looked at the hotel employee in front of them. "You got some suites open, don't you? A good friend of ours is staying in one, I'm sure. Jesse Nicholas is here, right?"

The older gentleman seemed to go rigid under his starched uniform attire. "I'm sorry sir; we do not give out information such as that." His voice felt as stiff as the collar of the maroon and gold blazer that appeared to be choking him. Maybe that explained the nasally drone with which he spoke, but it didn't provide an excuse for the look of distain that lined his thin lips and pinpointed eyes.

Bobby wanted to lash out at the snobbish air emanating from the ass hole; instead he bit hard on the inside of his mouth. They needed that suite; he couldn't afford the pleasure of busting out the old man's teeth at the moment, but his mind did produce a quick little picture of the damage he could do to the jerk if he had a few minutes and not so much at stake.

Jeremiah turned to Bobby, his voice, even and sincere, broke through Bobby's mental picture of the clerk sobbing like a little girl, his nose and lip bloody. "You know, if Jesse isn't here, then maybe we got the wrong place. He did say he was going to leave instructions with the front desk." His eyes seemed to sparkle with delight. "He did say he would pay for our suite, and Angel's." He shrugged his shoulders. "Let's go give him a call and find out what hotel he's in. I'm sure if he is here he ain't gonna like us being treated like some scum off the streets, and he'll want to move." He scowled. "Hell, we got too much riding on this deal with him to be playing games with a lowly hotel employee." He stuffed his wallet back into his pocket. "I didn't want to add the expense to my credit card anyway, it's too much of a hassle, you know, trying to separate what he's gonna reimburse us for."

Bobby was thrown off track for just a second, and then he understood what Jeremiah was doing. He cringed inside at the idea that Jerry was trying to pull the kind of scam that usually only Angel could manage. He was sure that the clerk was going to see right through the whole lie; hell, it wasn't set up at all. Angel had a way of thinking far enough ahead to pull a con job off spur of the moment.

"I'm sorry gentlemen; you said Mr. Nicholas was expecting you?" Uncertainty clouded the features of the man behind the counter. He checked his watch and sighed. "Let me check with him." He looked back up to meet Bobby's gaze. "What name can I give to him?"

Bobby was certain they were about to lose what little control they had on the whole situation and was about to tell the jerk manning the front desk to forget the whole thing, that they would just call Winston, or Nicholas, themselves, but Jerry spoke too quickly for him.

"You tell him that William and Jim are down here giving you a hard time about a room. He'll know who we are." He seemed proud of his own quick thinking at the moment.

Bobby held his breath while he watched the clerk dial the room suite from the phone on the front desk. His mind grabbed hold of the number, 1017. He figured things were going to go downhill from that point, and he'd better have as much information as possible. He also made a mental note to bust Jeremiah upside the head, as soon as he had the chance, for pulling such a stupid stunt and ruining the one chance they had to get close to Winston.

The clerk mumbled words over the phone, and then after just a few seconds he ended the call and turned to look at the men. "He said to give you each a single room, no suite."

Bobby nearly choked on his surprise. Jeremiah just chuckled and took the two key cards the man was handing over.

"The rooms are close to Mr. Nicholas' suite, and he did say he expects a report from you both as soon as you are settled in." The man looked as puzzled by the developing circumstances as Bobby felt; obviously he had been expecting instructions to toss the two of them out on their asses.

"Oh, don't worry about that, we are definitely going to give him a report." Angel's voice filled the lobby.

Bobby turned to see him walking in with Jack, Craig sandwiched protectively between them. "I was gonna come back out for you all, you were supposed to wait at the car." He snapped the words, more towards Craig than Angel or Jack. He looked at Angel. "We got rooms." He grinned, allowing his nerves to settle, and looked at Jerry. He wanted to tell him that he did good, but now wasn't the time, maybe later, when he trying to figure out a way to get some money into his brother's bank account. He may not have had to spend any money, but it was the least Bobby could do for his little brother. If he needed a hand he'd give it to him. He just had to come up with a way to do it tactfully; he couldn't have any of his brothers thinking he was growing soft in his old age.

Craig seemed to gravitate to Bobby instantly, despite the irritation he'd let slip at the sight of his youngest brother slithering in between Jack and Angel. He knew the kid needed some attention, he really did, but they had deal with Winston and he didn't want to expose the boy to anything more that could add to the emotional problems he was obviously battling. Despite his desire to keep Craig out of harm's way, he couldn't bring himself to take him to Johnny's or leave him with Sofi or Camille; he didn't think Craig could handle either of those options. He was willing to keep him as close as possible, but he needed him to listen to what he told him. So far it hadn't worked out as he'd hoped. His only consolation at that moment was that he was with Angel and Jack, and not running around on his own.

Bobby let his right arm drape across the kid's shoulders and pulled him closer to him. "You gotta watch these two; they'll get you into trouble." He looked at Jack and Angel. Jack looked wore down. Hell, his day had been hell. He probably needed a warm bed and just as much assurance as Craig did at that moment, but there was no way he'd take it. He wasn't a kid any more, no matter how hard it was for Bobby to admit that, it was the truth. Jack wouldn't want to be treated like a kid, he'd want to be a part of everything they did that night, and he'd want to be a big part of it. No gas cans for Jack, not tonight.

He'd have to try to find a few minutes to pull Jack off to the side and get him talk to him about how fucked up the whole jail situation was making him. There was no sense in trying to get him to sleep, he wouldn't give in as easily as Craig would, but he still needed to talk about the shit that had gone down that day. He had more shit to face when morning came around, unless they were able to get some information from Winston. He was a Mercer though, he'd been through hell most of his life and made it through. He was scared in ways most people couldn't see, but he was strong and he'd be just fine in the end.

Bobby sighed and looked from Jack to Angel, and then to Jeremiah. He knew everything he had taught his brothers, especially Jack, was going to play a big role in what went down in the next few hours. He couldn't help but wonder now if he'd been the best big brother for them. He had tried to teach them how to fight, and to be fair. He'd taught them how to lie and cheat too, but to be fair when they chose the people they were going to lie to and cheat against. This was like a final test for them. Everything seemed to hinge on how well the Mercers could carry themselves and how easily they could read each other. Everything was going to be improvised from this moment on, whether Jeremiah wanted to admit it or not. Their plan was basically to play it out as it happened, but hell, that's what they did best.

He couldn't help but wonder what his brothers were all thinking at that moment, but now wasn't the time to ask. Now was the time to act. So why were they standing in the lobby of one of the fanciest hotels in the city just staring at each other? Maybe, on some level, they were trying to delay the inevitable; to have just a few more moments of what was normal for them before turning their lives upside down once again. Did they all have what it would take to dig themselves out of the hole they were in.

"Let's get Craig into a bed before he falls on his face." Angel finally broke the silence that had fallen between them all.

Angel had taken that step into the unknown with those words, now Bobby nodded his head and followed him with his response. "Let's get this shit done, brothers." His brain filled with his mother's voice from years before. "They are your brothers Bobby. They're Mercers."