Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

Chapter 18 (Still Human)

Nevel had been trying to contact Kane for some time now to see what the status of Valerie's family was, Jeremy had a headache and had actually gone to sleep. It was one in the morning and Kane still hadn't contacted them, so something was wrong and he knew it. "Come on Kane, give us a call," Nevel said quietly as he looked to the house phone. There were several phones placed throughout living room, they were the only ones anybody was permitted to use. Nevel didn't get to use his cell, neither did Gibby, and Jeremy basically destroyed Valerie's.

Nevel wasn't sure if he liked how wild Jeremy became, but at the same time, it felt pretty good to have the power and control. It had already gone to Jeremy's head, and it was starting to get to him. Gibby seemed more controlled, though, making sure the only person he tortured was Sam. Sam was getting what she deserved, Nevel felt it was right. As for Valerie, Jeremy was just trying to get her to realize that any little thing could ruin the plan. They needed to be careful. That was all.

Nevel had not planned on the beating he and Jeremy received from Hector, nor did he like how much of a 'pet' Valerie was becoming. She need to get her head examined or something and start figuring out what field she was playing on. Gibby wasn't letting Jeremy anywhere near her, especially not after the beating he'd given to her. Nevel frowned and gingerly touched the wounds on his face, wincing as the pain of the slightest touch shot through him. Nobody seemed to care about his wounds.

Of course Jeremy had it worse, Hector really beat the shit out of him. Where Nevel just got beaten with fists, Jeremy got anything Hector could grab. It was like watching one of those fake pro wrestling matches, and they couldn't escape. If they were trying to make Sam afraid of them, Hector really made them fear him. He was cruel, he was cold, and he was the vilest of everyone in that mansion. At least that's what Nevel thought. But when it came to Jeremy, it was hard to discern who really was worse. They were both just equally as bad, it seemed.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Nevel had finally received a phone call. Only, it was not Kane, who was one of their highest henchmen. "Hello?"

"Mr. Papperman, is that you, sir?"

"Yes. Do you have any news on Valerie's family?" He saw Jeremy's point. Why should Valerie have a family to go home to? They didn't, not anymore. No, Hector killed their families. Surely this would probably be forbidden by Hector and Victor, but Valerie deserved this. He glanced to the side to see Valerie peering out into the living room.

"Bad news, we've suffered heavy losses."

"Er…what?" Valerie walked through the living room and passed Nevel. He closed his eyes and sighed as she made her way into the kitchen. "What do you mean you've suffered heavy losses?"

"I mean to say, Kane and Ted both failed their stations." His blood suddenly ran very cold. How could they fail? They were some of the best, and they failed? No that couldn't be right, he had to have heard incorrectly. "They're dead, sir."

"Dead! You expect me to believe they died? What? That family can't be that good!"

"Well it wasn't exactly them, sir…"

"Okay, whatever, just…tell me at least somebody is dead in that goddamn family."

"Well the twelve year old almost died." Nevel frowned and narrowed his gaze. Almost wasn't enough for him. "The four men that grabbed her drove into a lake, they all drowned, but she got out somehow."

"How!"

"We're not entirely sure just yet. We're still trying to regain our own composure." They didn't know what had gone wrong, all they knew was somehow there was a police officer at every station. Someone had to have known what was going on. "At least nobody at the dance studio died, and the woman who attempted to take Vanessa's life is in prison. Ted blew up in a fire…that he set…"

"You're not serious?" Nevel started to pale and his body began to shake. There had to be something wrong. What were they overlooking? He knew there were reports that Freddie was snooping around and had actually taken a few of their agents out, but could he have prevented the Williams family from dying? Did he save them? "What about Kane?"

"Well…I think the cops just got done scraping his brains from the walls of Mr. Williams's office." Nevel gagged and placed his hand on his stomach. Oh god he felt sick. "Somebody sniped him, sir. I regret to say, I think he came the closest to nearly killing one of the family members. I think someone tipped somebody off."

"And you mean to tell me you don't know who is responsible?"

"Well, we heard on Kane's radio…somebody mentioned the name 'Benson' and we did see Officer Benson around. Maybe Freddie and his dad got involved."

"Shit! That much damage?" His voice was raised to high levels, possibly disturbing everyone in the house. Valerie poked her head out from the kitchen and looked at Nevel with concern.

"Well now there was a pretty cryptic looking message that came from the Williams Residence. A note that had been attached to Ted's body after he died…it did mention there to be two forces 'vying' for the girls' safety. So if not Freddie, then, could it be Jonah?"

"What? No! He's dead! What? Could his ghost have saved the family?" Valerie smiled and quickly swirled back into the kitchen, leaning against the wall and cupping her hands over her heart. Jonah had saved her family, it had to be him. Nevel actually thought Jonah died that night, they weren't sure exactly. Gibby didn't act like he thought Jonah was dead, and Jeremy never talked much about him. Whenever his name was mentioned, Jeremy went ballistic and nearly crushed whatever was next to him.

"I don't know, but all I know is the family is alive and they're somewhere else. We don't know where. You know, also on that note were the words 'this family is protected.'" Nevel felt another chill run through his body, he was sure to be freezing at this rate. Those were the same words found in the Brown residence.

"Great, so someone knew our plans."

"Not necessarily. Mr. Williams had a few phone calls during the duration. Kane reported that. It was possible after we delivered the first call, that Vincent told whoever called next what was going on." Nevel was gripping the phone cord tightly in his hand and little beads of sweat were beginning to form at his brow. He was becoming very nervous, and was also deeply saddened. He liked Kane, and actually looked up to the man. Why was it everyone he liked seemed to be dying around him? His entire world was just crashing before him. It wasn't fair. "Mr. Papperman, sir? Are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine…" Nevel hung up the phone and sighed as he glanced over to the basement door. In there was Samantha Puckett, the sidekick of his arch rival. Now he couldn't have any webshow, though. Hell none of them could even get online. Was iCarly still going? He wouldn't know. He slowly removed the picture he had of his mother and sighed, she was dead now, and this was the last memory of her that he had. Nobody had been allowed to return to their homes, so they had to get everything their own way. Thank god they managed to find clothing with the allowance Hector was giving them.

"It sounds like something bad happened there," Valerie said as she walked over to Nevel. He shrugged and looked at her. God he envied her, he hated her so much, almost as much as he hated Sam. Why the hell did Gibby stick up for her? It hurt, damn it! It fucking hurt. "Nevel, you look like you just lost an idol or something."

"A man I looked up to in these last few weeks died…horribly…" Valerie frowned and bowed her head. Good or bad, she didn't care, everybody was still human in one way or another. Some became inhuman, like Jeremy and Hector, but still there was something inside even them that could show they were still human. That could be pain, love, joy, whatever pure emotion that came from the heart. She wanted to be able to help bring this human side out of them, as unlikely as it seemed.

"I'm sorry Nevel, I really am." She knew the man that died was trying to kill her family, but she still was sorry to Nevel that it had to be his idol. Nevel narrowed his eyes and stared at her coldly.

"I don't think you get that he was trying to kill your dad." Valerie closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to forget that her family could have been murdered. She slowly exhaled and looked calmly at Nevel.

"I realize that. It's just the way I am, I see the human in everyone…the heart. I know you're hurting, just like I know even Jeremy is hurting. No matter what you say or do to me, I will always believe that there has to be something good inside. You looked up to that man, Nevel. It's okay to be hurt, it's okay to feel pain, but it's not okay to let it overtake your world. It's also okay to let other people comfort you…" Nevel blinked and closed his eyes, chuckling softly.

"I think I see why Jonah liked you. Just don't go giving us a sweet tooth."

"Well I'm making cupcakes tomorrow for desert." She smiled as Nevel laughed. She was immensely proud to have made him laugh. She knew he would still continue to hurt her, there was nothing she could do about that, but maybe if she could make him feel better, she could get through to him. If not, they may all become robots over time.

"That's fine, maybe I'll eat some and get a sweet tooth."

"Do you think Hector would…" Nevel frowned and slowly shook his eyes, knowing well what Valerie was thinking. He wondered why she really gave a damn, but then almost everyone could see she didn't belong. However, if she made herself useful, they wouldn't have to dispose of her.

"Sam's not allowed to have really good potions of food. Only meager samples…no cupcakes for her." Valerie nodded and looked towards the ground. Nevel sighed and folded his arms over his chest. "Hey, you like to cook, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Well then if you're a good enough cook and can keep the meals coming. You'll make everyone here happy. Got that? You keep making people like Jeremy or Hector happy, then the more use we have for you." Valerie's eyes widened and she quickly nodded, understanding well what this meant. She smiled and hurried to the kitchen, she loved to cook. She would make sure to do her best to stay on good terms with them so maybe they wouldn't hurt her. But that by no means meant she was going to hurt Sam, she just couldn't see the point in hurting the girl. Nevel sighed and slowly shook his head, then turned around to head for his bedroom. "Jeremy's going to be pissed when he learns that Valerie's family is alive. It might also mean he'll take it out on her…but with Gibby around, she's got immunity."

Well so Nevel got the call and Valerie sees a bit into him.