Decisions

Disclaimer: Please see chapter 1.

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews. Massive thanks to my amazing beta for helping me with this chapter. You're a total star. I'm dedicating this chapter to Florianderl for harassing me about posting.

Chapter 12: Kodak Moments

All was quiet on Tracy Island. There had been no rescues for the last couple of days so everyone was enjoying the peace and quiet. Scott was back from New York now and all the upgrades to Thunderbird Two were done as well so they could all relax. Tintin suddenly gasped, drawing everyone's attention.

"What's the matter?" asked Scott, speaking before anyone else could.

"Uh, you might want to see this," she replied, gesturing at the computer screen before her.

Scott moved to stand beside her and swore at what he saw. Virgil and John were instantly beside him with Gordon barely a second later. In front of them on the computer screen was an image of a couple kissing.

"Is that you?" questioned Gordon.

"Yep," replied Scott, unable to take his eyes off the screen.

The young woman in the picture had bleached blonde hair and they all knew Kate had dark hair leading Gordon to one conclusion. "That's not Kate, is it?"

"Nope," replied Scott.

"Oh, are you in trouble," replied Gordon with a grin.

"Is that who I think it is?" asked Virgil, looking at Scott.

"Yes, it is," replied Scott, his eyes finally leaving the screen.

"Who is it?" asked Gordon.

Scott sighed knowing there was no point in lying to his younger brother. "She's my ex-girlfriend. I ran into her outside the office and she wanted to talk. We went for dinner and then I walked her to her car and well, you can see the rest," he said, gesturing back to the screen.

"Oh, is Kate gonna kill you. I so wish I could be there to see that," replied Gordon, with a grin. John smacked him on the back of the head. Gordon just laughed.

"Speaking of Kate, isn't it about time you spoke to her? Maybe you can reach her before this does," said Virgil. Scott just nodded and slowly made his way to the door.

"Uh, I think this might be another in-person conversation, bro," called John.

"Yeah, guess I better go find Dad then," he said and jogged out of the room.

"Think she will forgive him?" asked John, turning back to Virgil and Tintin.

"He's going to need to do some major grovelling," replied Tintin.

"He sure is, as well as figure out what Emma actually means to him," added Virgil.

Scott pulled his car up outside Kate's house and got out. Thankfully, his father had allowed him to come out here with virtually no notice. It didn't take much to see his dad was not happy about what had happened. Taking a deep breath, Scott knocked on the door. There was a loud bark and then the door swung open. Scott could see shock and anger in Kate's emerald eyes, telling him she had seen the photo.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she asked, her voice filled with anger. A low menacing growl came from behind her and Scott soon spotted the approaching form of her dog. "Tyson, sit!" she called before the dog could reach Scott.

"I wanted to apologise to you and try and explain," he began.

"You really think you can?" she asked in disbelief.

"I want to try. Could I come in, please? We probably shouldn't do this out here," he replied but made no attempt to move, knowing the dog would go for him if he tried.

"Fine, you've got five minutes and then I set Tyson on you," she said, stepping back. Her hand rested on the head of the dog, stopping it from attacking him as he walked past.

Scott stepped in and she pointed him ahead to a room. He walked in to find himself in a large kitchen. Kate followed him in and stood by the sink as far away from him as she could possibly get. Tyson sat on the floor close to Scott, the dog's eyes never leaving him.

"Do you have any idea how it felt to be standing in the queue at Morrisons only to be confronted with that image, plastered all over the papers?"

Scott shook his head slightly. "I'm sorry you found out that way. I only found out myself this morning and came straight here."

"So basically, if that photographer hadn't caught you then you would never have told me," she stated.

"No, of course not, I would have told you," he began but she interrupted him.

"What on our wedding night?" she asked sarcastically. "You know what really gets me? It's not that you kissed her, it's that you didn't even have the decency to call me and admit to it. I had to find it out from a newspaper," she added and then sunk down onto a chair.

"Kate, I really am sorry," he said, moving to sit at the table opposite her. Tyson watched him but made no movement.

"Uh huh, well, go on then and explain to me how this happened. Let me tell you this though if you try and say anything about it being an accident or her falling into you, lips meeting, then I will throw the heaviest thing I can find at you."

Scott could see she meant every word of that and knew he probably deserved it too but he wasn't going to use a lame excuse like that. That was more Gordon's style than his. "No, of course not, I'm going to tell you the truth. She's my ex-girlfriend," he began but was interrupted once more.

"Oh, that makes it better then," retorted Kate, her green eyes flaring with anger again.

"She and I were together when I was in the Air Force before Dad created International Rescue. When he did, he told us it was a secret and only we could know. I ended things with Emma and I admit I could have done it better," he paused.

"That doesn't surprise me," muttered Kate, rolling her eyes at him.

"Well, after that there was nothing until a letter came from her sister, saying Emma still loved me. She told me she was getting married but if I still loved her then to come and stop her making a huge mistake."

"Did you?" asked Kate, finally looking interested in what he had to say.

"Nope, she was already married by the time I got the letter."

"So, I'm a rebound then. Thanks a lot, Scott."

"No, that's not what I meant," he began as she stood up.

"Get out now! I don't want to hear anymore," she said, pointing to the door. The anger and betrayal she felt clearly showed on her face.

"Kate, please," he begged, not wanting to end it with her so mad at him.

"Leave now," she said and Tyson stood up.

Scott could see he was not going to get anywhere with Kate right now and made for the door. "I'm sorry," he said softly. He walked out of the door and straight down to his car. He was so distracted by what had happened that he missed the person hiding in the bushes, watching his every move.

As Scott's car drove off, the man came out. "Well, that should earn me some cash from the American papers, thank you, Scott Tracy," he said and made his way to his own car.

Exhausted from the long flight and the repetitive thoughts of Kate and how badly he had screwed up, Scott arrived back on the Island just before midnight and wandered into the lounge. It wasn't until his father cleared his throat that he noticed that Jeff was still up. His father stood by his desk, two glasses in his hands. As Scott drew nearer, he realized they were Scotch and his Dad had clearly waited up for him.

"Thought you might need this," he said, holding one out.

Scott didn't particularly like Scotch, but right now he didn't care and took the glass. Sitting down on the coach, he took a deep sip and sighed as it warmed his throat.

"That bad, eh?" questioned Jeff as he sat down beside his son. "If you're anything like me, you've been thinking about what you've messed up and if you can make it right. Am I correct?"

"She hates me and who can blame her. Even when I tried to explain to her what happened, I messed that up too," he said, taking another sip of the amber liquid. "I couldn't stop thinking about her and even through her anger, I could see how hurt she was..." He took another sip of his drink as if to fortify himself, his voice soft as he continued, "I could see how much I hurt her."

"That doesn't surprise me. She has every right to be angry but I have doubts that she hates you."

Scott looked over at his father in surprise, "What?"

"Scott, how do you expect to explain to Kate what happened? You don't even know the answer yourself or more to the point, you've not admitted it yet. When you do, you'll be able to explain it properly to Kate and in a way that won't make her angrier," Jeff paused for a moment and took a sip of his drink. "Maybe what happened with Emma was just a moment and you were caught in memories of past times or maybe you still have feelings. Only you can figure that out, Scott. Until you do, you need to leave Kate alone."

"That's not going to be hard, she'll never speak to me again," he muttered, a tinge of sadness filled his voice.

Jeff wrapped his arm around his oldest son fully expecting Scott to shrug him off but for once he didn't. Jeff had a feeling that his son already knew how he felt but perhaps didn't quite realize it. "You are definitely my son." Chuckling, he felt Scott tense a bit. "I said the same thing about your mom after I made her angry once. I spent a whole week thinking that I'd lost the only woman I would ever love."

"But you didn't lose her, Dad."

"No, I didn't but then I had a very wise man sit down and talk to me." Hugging his son close, he took delight in knowing he had a close bond with each of his sons. "I can only hope that I'm passing to you the wisdom and advice that he shared with me. You're tired now, Scotty, but I assure you that once you get some sleep and a bit more perspective, you'll find that things aren't quite as bad as you think. You just need to figure out what it is you really want and how badly you are willing to fight for her."

His father was right, he needed to figure out how he felt which would take some thinking but just for a minute he wanted to feel his father's strength beside him. His dad had known Lucy was the one almost from the minute they met but she had also been the only girl in his life. If only Scott's life was that simple. Was it possible just to meet someone and know they were the one you wanted to be with? Maybe his dad would know. "Hey, uh, how did you know you loved Mom," he asked.

Jeff looked surprised at the question but it quickly became a fond smile as he remembered his beautiful wife. "Because she was the most loving and kind person I had met and yet she could also be stubborn and argumentative. She kept me on my toes and wasn't afraid to stand up for what she wanted. She saw beyond the flight suit to the real me."

Scott smiled at his father's words. It wasn't often that Jeff spoke so openly about her. It made him wonder if Emma had seen beyond the money to the real him. Kate hadn't known he was rich for a while so she hadn't let that impress her but had she seen beyond the Thunderbird uniform? Scott sighed again and knew this wasn't going to be resolved tonight.

"You will figure it out, Son," said Jeff, squeezing his shoulder for a moment and then standing up. "Time for bed though as this quiet isn't going to last too much longer."

Scott just nodded and stood up. He then turned to his father, "Night, Dad, and thanks."

Jeff smiled, "Goodnight, Son." He watched as the young pilot wandered out of the room and then his eyes gazed down at a photo of Lucy on his desk. "Oh Luce, I wish you were here. You would have told him just what he needed."

Scott paused in the entrance to the lounge, listening to his younger brother playing the piano. There was something calming about the way his brother played and right now he wanted that calmness to wash over him.

"Scott, if you want to listen just come in. You don't have to loiter in the hallway," said Virgil, his eyes still trained on the music before him.

Scott grinned and walked into the room. He should have known Virgil would sense him there. It seemed that no matter how involved in the music Virgil was, he would always sense someone come into the room.

"You dumped Emma yet?" asked Virgil as he finished his piece of music.

Scott stared blankly at Virgil. "What?"

"Oh, come on, Scott. You know Kate is way better. When she was here the other day you wouldn't have even remembered Emma's name."

Getting no reply from his brother he continued, "Damn it, Scott, you never really liked Emma. You got caught up in the physical side of being with her. Just like all the other men she screwed around with to get money." Glaring angrily at his oldest brother, he continued, "You're so afraid of possibly losing the woman you really love like Dad did that you're screwing up what would make you happy and whole."

Scott just stared at his brother not knowing what to say to that. Could his brother be right? Could he really be doing his best...or worst to ruin what would make him happy, a chance to have his own family? His own children to raise. Hell, he'd had lots of practice with helping to raise his brothers. What would it be like to have a son following him around and a wife to love more than anything? Was this the perspective that his dad had been talking about?

Smirking, Virgil watched his brother's eyes and knew he'd finally gotten through to him. "You know I'm right, Scott. With Kate you can have it all. She knows our secret, everyone in our family likes her and she knows the real you, not the one you present to the rest of the world. She has seen you at your absolute lowest which is something that very few people have ever seen."

His eyes wide, he glanced at his younger brother. "Virge, I have to find her. I love her and have since...Since she told me off that first time."

Virgil grinned knowingly. He had known from the minute Kate arrived on the Island that Scott had fallen for her. He just wished his brother hadn't been so damn stubborn and scared to see that for himself. It was going to be a battle for him to convince Kate to trust him but given that she clearly felt something for Scott too, then his brother might just have a chance. "Go call her then."

Scott nodded and made to leave the room just as his father entered. He was on his cell phone but gestured at Scott to stay.

"Of course, Mr. Hannant, my son will be with you first thing tomorrow to sort out all of those queries," he said to the caller

Scott froze, recognising the name. Mr. Hannant was the head of a company making advances in technology that could vastly improve rescue services the world over. This subject was of course close to the family's heart so Scott had arranged a merger with them. Clearly the business man had some concerns but Scott would happily meet with him again because the man had some really clever ideas and it was worth the extra time.

Jeff had ended the call now and turned to Scott. "Mr. Hannant just needs clarification on a few points," explained Jeff.

Scott nodded, "I'll be ready in ten, Dad. Did you look over his proposals?"

"Yes, I did and you're right, this is well worth losing you for another couple of days," replied Jeff, proud that his son had handled this so well and was willing to see it through to the end.

Scott grinned and headed to the door. He knew Virgil was itching to say something to him but the seasoned pilot kept going, not wanting to hear any mention of Emma's name. As his luck would have it, avoiding any thought of Emma just wasn't going to happen.

"Scott, I think you should look at this," Tintin said, carrying a laptop.

"Let me guess, I'm in the tabloids again with a rehashed story compliments of an ex, right?" he asked. "I've got something more important to do right now than worry about that."

"No, Scott, you really need to look at thi—" Her sentenced was cut off by the sudden shrill ringing of his cell phone.

"Hello?" Wincing at the piercing voice that even Tintin could hear, he held the phone from his ear.

"Who the hell is that, Scott? You're with me and I will not tolerate you going to some loser's home again."

"Who that is doesn't concern you. I'm not with you nor do I want to be. I don't love you, if I ever did, Emma." The only response he had was the dial tone. "How did she know I'd been at Kate's home?"

Tintin tapped his arm, "If you have the time, I can show you the answer to your question."

"Oh damn, they found her."

"I'd say that they did and that's how Ms. Peroxide found out." Tintin clearly didn't care for Emma any more than the rest of the Tracy family.

"Maybe she'll understand now that it's definitely over." He gave her a quick hug and hurried up to pack some clothes. "See ya, Tintin."

"We'll be at Plaza. I plan to have us leaving at 6 o'clock for dinner. Don't be late." Tapping her long nails on the table, a not-so-pleasant smile slid into place. "Scott, you should have known that I wasn't going to let you go again quite that easily."

"Lindsey, is my car and driver downstairs yet?" Scott asked from his desk at Tracy Enterprises' main office. He had been in meetings all day with Mr. Hannant now and was hoping that one more day would have everything organized.

"He just got here. Security has made sure that the way is clear for you to go right to the car."

Scott quickly placed the documents he still needed to go over in his briefcase. "Would you be so kind as to let them know that I'm on my way down now?" His final words were said as he walked past her desk. "Have a good night, Lindsey." His mind was already focused on his plans for the evening. "Shower, comfortable clothes, and dinner at that little hole-in-the-wall restaurant I always go to when I'm here." Grinning to himself, he couldn't help but roll his eyes at his mental dialogue. He was able to relax in the comfort of the company limo and leave the driving to someone else. He certainly didn't enjoy the frustrations that came with driving in such a populous city.

The drive from the office to the Plaza seemed to go by fairly quickly. "Sir, we're here."

As soon as his door was open, Scott was sliding out of the car and hurrying into the hotel lobby. "Thanks, Andrew, and I'll see you tomorrow morning." With a quick wave he was safely ensconced within his family's favorite hotel whilst in New York City. Just as he had mentally planned, he quickly showered and changed into jeans and t-shirt. "Now it's time to get some good food."

His hand had just touched the doorknob when a sudden knock sounded from the other side. Startled, he glanced into the peephole and groaned. "You've got to be kidding me?" He opened the door and glared at his unexpected and most unwelcomed visitor. "What do you want, Emma?"

"Hello to you, too, Scott," she purred. "I thought we could have dinner."

"Did you now?" he asked, quietly. "Planning on more photo ops? You know how much I enjoy having my face plastered all over the tabloids with bullshit stories." He firmly led her out of his suite and made sure the door locked behind them. "I'm going out for dinner but I most certainly will not be dining with you."

"I'm sorry about that, Scott. How was I to know that you were being followed?" She hurriedly followed him, slipping through the elevator doors before they could shut her out.

"Emma, I'm really not in the mood to deal with you. Whatever we had is not what I want. I don't want you in my life."

She sneered at him, her true self coming through. "I don't really care if you're in the mood to deal with me, Scott. I will not be discarded so you can chase after some lower class loser. We were so good together before you up and left me. You owe me, Scott Tracy."

The elevator pinged and the doors slid open and just as easily the ugly sneer on Emma's face morphed into a gracious smile. Scott stared at her and what Virgil had told him suddenly clicked. "I owe you nothing." Walking away, he shook his head, "I only owe Kate as she's the only one I want. She's ten times the woman you wish you were. " Flashing lights suddenly blinded him as he stepped out on the sidewalk. Emma was right behind him, demanding he admit that he loved her. "Have a good life and leave me the hell alone." His long stride soon took him away from her much to his relief. He missed the look of stunned disbelief that quickly turned to utter embarrassment on Emma's face as she quickly dashed away.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialled. "Kate, this is Scott. I know you're angry with me and you have every right to be but I wanted to tell you that," he paused taking a deep breath, "I love you, Kate. Please call me. Please." He knew the future he wanted and he was going to do his damnedest to make it happen

Virgil picked up the paper and grinned. There in the headlines of a tabloid, "Scott Tracy breaks yet another heart". Virgil's grin widened as he read through the article. "Nobody tries to corner a Tracy where he doesn't want to be."

He failed to notice his next youngest brother until a hand came down on his shoulder. "Who is trying to corner who?"

A less than masculine cry of surprise escaped his mouth much to the amusement of the prankster. "Damn it, Gordon, why aren't you wearing the bell we gave you for your birthday?"

"What and ruin the chance to hear you squeal like a little girl," replied Gordon, grinning at his older brother whilst cleverly moving out of arm's reach.

Virgil glared at Gordon and then lobbed the paper he had been reading at him. Just as Gordon caught the paper, the klaxon sounded and he was forced to put the paper down.

Virgil stood up and made his way to the door. Distracted by thoughts of the coming rescue, Virgil was able to smack Gordon upside the head as he ran past.

"Revenge will be mine, big brother," Gordon called as he raced after him.