Beta Bro/Dave: Carry on, my wayward son/There'll be peace when you are done/Lay your weary head to rest/Don't you cry no more. - Kansas, Carry On My Wayward Son
"Bro went on a hunting trip, and hasn't been home in a few days." Dirk says softly, leaning quietly against the doorframe. Hale is a barely illuminated silhouette behind him, but it's clear he's keeping an eye out for…strange things. Dave counts up to forty seconds in his head, trying to rationalize. Derrick "Bro" Strider always disappeared on hunts, especially after Daniel "Big Bro" Strider's unfortunate and fiery demise.
"Bro always disappears." Dave ended up saying bluntly. "It's nothing we should worry about, right?" Besides, he hadn't hunted with his brothers for years, not since he'd met up with the Harleys. Jade's dog Bequerel had a nasty way of ripping vampire's heads off with his jaws, Jade herself was a master marksman, and old man Harley was no slouch with a gun.
"Not for this long." Hale adds, a touch of tension making his words come off robotic. Dave sighs, and ruffles his hair. Motioning for his brothers to "wait there," Dave dives back into his apartment to scrounge up his emergency pack. Checking it over for the appropriate weapons and appropriated military rations, Dave reckons he is as prepared as he can be.
Besides, anything he didn't have, Dirk and Hale probably had in that TARDIS-like car of theirs.
"So," Dave says after tossing his rucksack into the trunk of the dark Chevy, "Do you guys have any idea where Bro is now?" As expected, neither says a word, though they do exchange an unreadable look. Damn, but that twin thing was still creepy, even after all these years. "Great…so what's the game plan."
"We're going to find him, Davey." Dirk says defensively, as if his littlest brother doesn't believe him (he doesn't, but…whatever). "We are. We're just going to have to…pick up clues along the way."
"Along the way?" Dave deadpans, brows furrowing. "What the hell does that mean?"
Hale shifts, and Dirk looks guilty. "Well…we were going to just do odd jobs as we investigated."
"You know, the family business." Hale adds, "Saving people, hunting things?"
Dave grinds his teeth together in frustration. "So you have no idea where he is? Where his last hunt took him?"
"Somewhere in Idaho…we think. Bro is never very verbose about his jobs, surely you can remember that." Dirk says, though there is an unspoken accusation in there. Because maybe Bro disappeared often, maybe Dirk and Hale were too reckless, but Dave left. Dave abandoned the family.
Dave abandoned Bro.
Hiding his flinch at the loaded words, Dave sighed. "Okay. Idaho, huh? Home of the potato?" Hale snorts, and there might be a crack of a smile on Dirk's face. Sliding into the backseat of Dirk's Chevy, Dave resigned himself to a long car ride with his estranged brothers. "Let's find our wayward Bro."