AGAINST ALL ODDS by LEMUR RATED FRT

Two years before International Rescue's first mission, Jeff Tracy begins to realize what lies in store for him.

Chapter One: Desolation

Standing at the observation window of the small airport outside of High Level, Jeff Tracy had never felt more helpless. He was stranded here in this forsaken land. Outside, the wind whipped across the tundra, bowing the vegetation that passed for life in the northern reaches of Alberta, Canada. Never before had he seen such a bleak landscape, where it seemed nothing could survive. A few dedicated aeromechanics moved around the complex in the early morning light, completing final checks on a couple of planes that were due to make supply runs to some of the hunting camps and tourist traps that put money into the pockets of the employees who worked for the small charter plane business. He noticed, with satisfaction, that there was a great deal of activity in hangar four, where his jet was being kept. With the scene he had created earlier, it was no wonder. The repairs to his plane were minor, but the isolation of the area had caused advances in modern aviation to never reach it. Jeff's hi-tech jet was a mystery to the mechanics here, but the head man had been convinced he could fix it. It seemed appropriate, considering he was the man that damaged it.

Running a hand through his graying brown hair, Jeff became fed up with the desolation before him and pushed away from the cold glass. Collapsing into a worn armchair, he scrubbed his face with his palms, feeling the scruff of a 5 o'clock shadow. The fear of the unknown was beginning to get to him. Eventually, the wrist communicators that he and his sons all owned would allow them to communicate with live audio/visual feeds from anywhere in the world. However, that wouldn't be possible until the satellite was in orbit and signal-relay stations could be constructed in strategic areas around the world. In the meantime, Brains, Jeff's most trusted engineer, had rigged a tone system to allow the Tracys to keep some semblance of contact with each other, no matter where they were on the planet. It was crude, but the simple system had worked for the year they had employed it. Different orders in pitches relayed different instructions; the most frequently used being the signal to 'report in'. With what he was planning, he wanted to know where all five of his sons were at all times.

Jeff had been in the middle of scouting a site for the signal relay, high in the Arctic Circle, when his communicator had gone off. A series of three high-pitched beeps, repeated in succession until he had turned it off. His heart had dropped to his stomach. That particular pattern was only used in cases of extreme emergency, life or death situations. He had broken air-speed records getting back to Barrow and then Anchorage. From there, he had attempted to reach his island home in the South Pacific via vidphone, but a system of storms across the Pacific Northwest had caused communication disruptions down the west coast. The frantic re-routing of signals had caused an overcrowding of the airspace. The only person he could reach wasn't even a live person. There was just a recording of a tired-sounding woman who kept asking him to place his call at a later time. It never ceased to amaze him. Powerful communication signals had long ago replaced the common telephone line of his day, but the same old problems still existed. There was no overcoming Mother Nature, he supposed.

He had opted to reduce the amount of space between him and his family and took off for the continental United States. He had landed in High Level to refuel his plane. Unfortunately, the service at the airport had been less then favorable. One of the mechanics had attempted to taxi the aircraft and crashed it into one of the outbuildings in the process, leaving Jeff with a damaged starboard engine. He had long ago given up hope that the mechanics here could fix it and instead arranged to catch a ride south, someplace he could find an international flight. There was nothing to do but wait.

For the hundredth time, he wondered if the call had anything to do with his 'project,' now encompassing most of his time. It had been his life's ambition to find new ways to help people, and he had been successful in doing so through his company, Tracy Corporation, developing technology in all fields to assist others. Though, somehow, it never seemed quite enough. Even though the projects of Tracy Corporation were meant to help the underdog, each of them still managed to pad the wallets of the greedy middle-men that were a necessary cog in the machinery of industry. Such was the nature of business.

Everyday, he heard about people dying in horrible, tragic ways: earthquakes, fires, floods, technological incidents, and dozens of other preventable disasters. The technology to stop at least some of these tragedies was there, and Jeff felt that it was his duty, with the means he had available to him, to develop it. Thus, the first seeds of International Rescue were planted.

He had weighed the consequences carefully before involving his family in his plans. In the end, he could think of no one better to help him realize his goals then his own sons. Each of them had something to offer to the organization, and Jeff knew it was only through them that his idea would ever get off the ground. Together, they had begun to build International Rescue from the ground up. One of the rescue craft Brains had designed for the organization was already built. The sleek rocket plane was to act as the scout craft when International Rescue's assistance was required. It would carry communications to be set up in a danger zone to transmit details about a situation back to their base.

Construction had begun on three of the four remaining machines he planned to build, along with some impressive rescue equipment that his son, Virgil, had designed. The satellite would have to wait until he could obtain a contract to build it. How to do that without revealing his identity or the space station's location was still beyond him.

The danger of his venture did not escape him. Jeff knew that the technology used to create the International Rescue machines was incredible, and in the wrong hands, just like anything else, it could be used to hurt mankind instead of help it. He was placing his family in the line of danger, although they did go of their own free will. For two years, nagging thoughts and second-guesses had plagued him continually. Even so, with the help of Scott, Virgil, and John, the day when International Rescue would be introduced to the world was rapidly approaching . . . and it scared the hell out of him.

Impatiently, Jeff abandoned his musings and looked down at his watch again. It had been barely an hour since he had last tried to contact the house. He wasn't going to be able to sit still any longer. Grabbing his jacket from the chair, he made his way to a small vidphone booth near the reception desk. Stepping inside, he ignored the filthy, confined space, the interior of which was decorated with confessions of lovesick teenagers and rude comments about local women of questionable reputation. He contacted the operator who attempted to put through his call. After a few minutes, he thought he was going to be let down again, but then, the sound of the line connecting was followed by the shrill jingling of the contraption ringing. The sense of dread that had been sitting in his heart began to well up as he realized that ignorance was bliss in its own right. He would know what was wrong, but what could he do about it from 3,000 miles away?

After four rings, the screen flashed in front of him, and a snowy image of Brains greeted him.

"M-Mr. Tracy!" Relief and fear flooded the engineer's voice. "I am, uh, so glad to s-see you!"

"What's wrong, Brains?" The man's stuttering was worse than usual, Jeff noted with dismay.

He stopped and looked back through the screen at Jeff. He could see the young man was searching for the right words. Something was seriously wrong.

"Brains, just tell me. I don't know how long the connection will last."

Behind the thick glasses, he could see the sympathy already in Brains's eyes. "I-It's Gordon, Mr. Tracy." He stuttered. "He's had an accident." Jeff felt the color leave his face. His worst fears had come true.

Instead of waiting for a response, Brains continued, "It was a hydrofoil accident. The details S-Scott gave me were sketchy, but the gist of it was that he was, uh, traveling at high rate of speed when the single man craft o-overturned. The d-doctors told Scott that he was in critical condition."

Jeff listened to all of this, feeling numb as Brains told him all that he knew, probably more than Jeff needed to know. It couldn't be, it just couldn't. There was no way he was going to lose a son. With more strength then he knew he had, he pulled himself together and focused on the image in front of him.

"Where's Scott now?" Jeff's tone was unwavering and commanding as ever, belying the utter devastation he was feeling.

"He and J-John left within 10 minutes of the phone call for the, uh, Naval Medical Center in San Diego. That was just after he c-contacted you."

"Has anyone talked to Virgil? Or Alan?"

"Virgil i-is in route," Brains answered as he pushed his glasses further up on his nose. "He had just finished delivering the p-plans for the pods of Rescue 2 to the contractor in V-Virginia. He picked up Alan at C-Cape Canaveral. His, uh, superiors granted him emergency leave."

At least there was that. "Brains, if Scott contacts you, tell him I will be there as soon as possible. Until then I have to trust his judgment where his brother is concerned." Jeff cut the connection without bidding Brains good-bye and leaned against the side of the booth. The initial shock was wearing off and slowly the reality of the situation hit him. Gordon needed him and he was here, in the middle of nowhere.

He didn't realize that he had made his way back to his armchair until he found himself sitting, holding his head in his hands, trying desperately to keep a grip on his emotions. Unbidden, images of his auburn-haired fourth son came to his mind's eye. Gordon had inherited his mother's calm, laid-back attitude. He was a light-hearted joker, never failing to get a laugh from even the most depressed individual. A confirmed optimist, the young man always found the silver lining, no matter how dark the situation.

Being one of the youngest children in such a large family, many people had thought that Gordon would be a spoiled child, but it was simply not true. He had accepted his older brothers' overprotective tendencies without the malice that Jeff saw so often in his youngest son, Alan. Gordon always entertained the opinions of his father or brothers, but usually ended up doing what he wanted anyway. When he was wrong, he admitted it. When he was right, that was great, but he never gloated.

Distant memories began to resurface, as crystal clear to him as if they had only occurred the day before. His son's first steps, first words, first day of school. He recalled the evenings spent sitting with his wife, Lucille, on the porch of their farmhouse, watching as John and Gordon played in the tree fort Jeff had built for them in the oak tree that grew in the backyard.

Even the experiences with Gordon that had seemed particularly trying at the time he had to deal with them, brought fond memories to Jeff. There was the time when Gordon was ten and decided to create an indoor frog pond in the kitchen sink. The garbage disposal had never worked right after that, and they found toads in the house two months after the episode.

Another infamous incident occurred when Gordon was fourteen. He informed Jeff that he had no intention of becoming a pilot or an astronaut, as was expected of him. Jeff had lost his temper, but in the face of his father's anger, Gordon had calmly explained that he had a love for the sea. He had smiled when he told Jeff that it would be the best example of a fish out of water that he could think of. Despite the jokes, Gordon had stood by his decision, giving Jeff the first impression of the independent individual his son was becoming.

Finally, he flashed on the day Gordon had made him the proudest man in the world. Standing on top of the podium, gold gleaming from his neck as the national anthem played, Gordon had found his father's face among the thousands of onlookers, his light brown eyes bright with emotion, he mouthed the words "I love you, Dad."

Jeff found himself reeling through the stages of grief at a break-neck speed. Disbelief, guilt, and anger took him all at once, causing him to vault from his chair. He wanted to scream, punch, kick move, run, anything, but sit and wait for news that his son was dead. Instead, he began to pace the length of the room, controlling the flight-or-fight response.

How many times? How many times had he told Gordon to be careful? Though usually incredibly easy-going, Gordon did display a love of speed, a characteristic that Jeff handed down to him, no doubt. As a member of the World Aquanaut Submarine Patrol, Gordon was known to be the first on the scene of any nautical incident, and the first one to volunteer for dangerous assignments. Jeff had always disliked the light construction of the hydrofoil, informing his son of the craft's lousy track record every time a chance presented itself. Gordon would always counter that the hydrofoil was the quickest mode of transport available to WASP and responsible for saving more lives than it claimed. Jeff felt sick at being right in this instance. He paced faster.

Across the room, two men in their 40's and a girl around 20 years old entered noisily. At best guess they were employees at the airport, clad in jeans and boots. For distraction, Jeff found himself studying them as he paced. Laughing and talking, they found a group of chairs in front of the fireplace. Both of the men looked as though they had spent most of their lives in the arctic, one even sporting the stereotypical black beard that was badly in need of a trim. They were tall and stocky, hardened by the lives they led. Still, they were strong and healthy, the picture of what men were in the days when hard manual work was the norm.

The young woman captured his attention, probably because she was so out of place among them. She was of medium height, slender, but not overly skinny. Long, wavy, sun-streaked brown hair fell wildly around her shoulders. She pushed it from her face as she spoke, silver rings flashing from a majority of her fingers. A large black and tan German Shepherd collapsed on her feet, snuffling and sighing as he tried to get comfortable. The young woman threw her head back and laughed loudly, a clear ringing sound that would have been pleasant under normal circumstances.

Jeff became increasingly irritated with the boisterous trio. The part of his mind that was still reasonable told him that it was impossible for these people to know of his plight. The other, more irrational side saw no reason why anyone should laugh when he was slowly being ripped apart.

Feeling as though someone were staring, the girl scanned the room searching for the source of her uneasiness. Finally, her gray eyes settled on Jeff as she studied him curiously. His emotions were plain to her. Seeing past the anger he was working hard to display, she saw the anguish beneath the exterior. She smiled softly and reassuringly at him, before one of the men called her attention back to the conversation.

The slight show of compassion nearly broke Jeff and for a moment he thought he would simply collapse into a sorrowful heap in the middle of the airport. Yet, once again, the sorrow turned to anger. He was angry at himself for being so weak. If he wanted to get to Gordon, he had to keep his emotions in check. There would be plenty of time for an emotional breakdown once he got to San Diego. His resentment extended to the girl for her unwanted sympathy. He didn't need her pity, not this young thing that didn't have the first damn clue as to what his problems were. What he needed was to get the hell out of there.

He turned and walked determinedly to the desk, passing by the group. As he went, he sent a hard, unfriendly look in the direction of the girl. She was taken aback by the coldness, but the shock lasted only a fraction of a second. Without lowering her gaze from his, she smiled and nodded at him. He broke the stare first as he turned back to his destination.

An old woman with glasses fastened to her neck with a gold chain sat behind the desk, clacking away on an ancient computer. "Can I help you?" she asked crassly before looking up. When she did, Jeff could see the uneasiness creep over her face. "Mr. Tracy." Her smile was one of forced politeness. "What can I do for you?"

"What's going on with my plane?" Jeff's voice was hard as granite, his normal good manners completely shot.

"Well," she began, toying with the lace neckline that peeked from beneath the pink sweatshirt she wore. "Bill called while you were on the phone." She seemed to be gathering every nerve in her body. "After he gets the parts from Calgary, he can have it fixed the day after tomorrow."

"When will he leave for Calgary?" Jeff asked impatiently. "Perhaps I can ride down with him."

"He won't be leaving until this afternoon."

Jeff's temper flared, but he reined it in. "Ma'am, I need to get to California now. Do you understand?"

"We are doing the best we can, sir," she replied, going back to her typing, hoping that her lack of interest would make him go away.

It wouldn't be that easy. "Can I buy a plane from somebody?"

She stopped typing, unaccustomed to people who apparently had the money to make such an extravagant offer. "We have only five. Three of those are booked to fly hunters up north and one is in the repair shop. The last one. . . "

Jeff's fist met the dark wood of the counter top, sending a jolt of pain up his arm that he barely noticed. The old lady jumped and rolled her orthopedic chair a few feet from the desk. "I don't care what you have to do," He seethed through clenched teeth, "but you better get me out of this frozen hell-hole within the hour, or I will make it a point to buy this goddamn place just to fire you." To Jeff, it seemed that he had stepped from his body and was standing there watching a crazy man threaten a frail, old woman.

"That would be a bad management decision," a feminine voice sounded behind him. He turned to find the girl there, smiling. "Ms. Karen is the only person around here that can run that computer. She'd be very hard to replace."

Ms. Karen stopped quivering in the presence of the girl, finding strength in her bold approach. "Mr. Tracy, this is Kai Taylor, one of our pilots."

Still smiling, the girl extended a hand. Out of habit, Jeff took it, finding her grip strong and self-assured. "I was due to head out in an hour or so for Edmonton to pick up a group of backpackers." She released his hand. "There's an international airport there. I would be willing to move up my flight schedule for you."

"You would do that?"

"For a price, of course," Kai replied. Ms. Karen cowered again, but Kai was unflinching. "We have to eat you know. Regular charter price, one-way with an extra hundred dollars for a late fee, will do just fine."

"You're too kind," Jeff replied, sarcasm coloring his words. "It's a deal. When do we leave?"

"Give me fifteen minutes for a pre-flight check." She turned and began to walk away. "Meet you on the airstrip." She left the office, picking up a fringed leather jacket on the way.

Across the room, the man with the beard watched the exchange at the desk with interest. The other man had left, claiming to have been hungry, had gone in search of food soon after Jeff Tracy had begun his argument with the old witch behind the desk. He suspected the man the girl had referred to as 'Al' simply had no backbone, and did not want to be present for the confrontation Tracy had engaged.

Jeff Tracy was hot-tempered. Of course, the man behind the fake beard had his sources, and they had informed him of the Tracy family's misfortunes. Undoubtedly, that would account for at least part of the man's emotional instability, he supposed. Not that he understood such matters himself. Emotions would get him caught or killed. He had but one remaining family member, a fool and a coward of a brother. Half brother, he corrected himself. His brother had always been weak, taking an interest in cooking and gardening. It disgusted him to think that he was related to such a person.

Accumulation of wealth was all that mattered to him. He had learned early on in life that this was of paramount importance. It did not matter who he had to hurt or kill along the way. It was all part of the process.

His next target stood not thirty feet away from him. He had followed Tracy to Canada after tailing him through a parade of business engagements in Asia. Unfortunately, he had been surrounded by people at every turn, leaving no window of opportunity to execute his plan. Costly delays had caused him to miss Tracy in Alaska, but the man who had caused those delays would never cost him again. He'd seen to that personally.

Rumors had been flying in his underground spy network about the incredible machines being developed. Whoever was building them was very clever about it. They had employed hundreds of different contractors to build the necessary parts needed for the machines. None had the complete plans for any of the crafts and the specifications they did have were known to only a select few. In addition, the plans were delivered under the veil of complete secrecy, hand delivered by a package service located within the cities the contractors themselves were located in. Once the components were finished, they were freighted away by either an unmarked cargo plane or ship.

It had all become very tiring. He had decided to run a different route. The organization of such an endeavor would have to be carried out by an individual or small group with endless monetary funds. He had begun to research all of the top industrialists in the world, coming up with a total of 20 names. Jeff Tracy's was right at the top.

It would be very easy to find out. All he had to do was kidnap the man and convince him to tell him everything he knew about the machines. If he knew nothing, he could simply ransom him for half the Tracy fortune. Not that he'd ever return Mr. Tracy, but his family was composed of mere children that would do anything to get their precious father back, especially if tragedy was already stalking the house.

Outside, a bright red, single-engine plane had arrived on the airstrip and sat, unsupervised at the end of the runway. He recognized it immediately from the girl's vivid description during their earlier conversation. He had found her presence absolutely stifling. Never had he met someone so . . . perky, for want of a better word. It did not matter now. He could reap the rewards of his patience, and killing her ranked as one of those rewards.

Quietly, he stood and left the lounge, watching as Tracy made arrangements for his plane to be kept until he could return for it.

The man grinned, a light glowing in his strange yellow eyes. He needn't have bothered.

He wouldn't be back.

Chapter Two: Fly the Friendly Skies

Kai Taylor began to ponder the wisdom of her impetuous decision of taking on a passenger. Al had tried to talk her out of it, but had she listened? Of course not! Once again, she had ignored him as she had done so many times before. After only an hour in the air, she felt as though she had run a marathon, every muscle in her body aching with tension. One day she would learn to respect his sage advice.

She glanced over at her brown-haired co-pilot. Al Murphy was feeling the anxiety in the cockpit as much as she was. He looked like he hadn't slept in a week. His broad shoulders slumped forward as he pretended to check the gages, just for something to do. Despite her friend's silence, she was glad to have him along. Without his gentle attitude to buffer the hostility, she'd have probably sent the plane into a mountain by now.

Behind her seat, Gus shifted his large frame. The dog felt the uneasiness as much as the rest of them. God, could one person really radiate that much aggression?

Jeff Tracy sat in the passenger area of the 10-seat charter plane that her company used to ferry tourists from the more populated centers of Canada to the wild reaches of the territories. He had chosen to seat himself in the first row where he leaned on the armrest, staring sullenly out the window. Early attempts at small talk had been aborted after it became clear that their passenger did not want to converse. They all slipped into a communal depression, the silence of which was broken only by the low hum of the engine. Kai was reluctant to even talk and joke with Al, lest their racket set him off like it had at the airport. The chilliness of his gaze still sent shivers down her spine every time she thought about it.

Still, Kai couldn't help but wonder about him. Despite his earlier behavior toward Ms. Karen, she couldn't help but feel sorry for Mr. Tracy. Something was eating him alive inside. He just didn't seem the type to go accosting old ladies at random. Al had whispered the words "Arctic Fever" in her ear when Mr. Tracy had pushed impatiently past them to board the plane. However, she felt it was more than just the overpowering need to get away from the dreary scenery of the north. Some people simply could not handle it, and while it was true that Jeff Tracy was likely more at home in business suits than polar fleece, his problems ran a little bit deeper.

Kai quickly reminded herself that she was simply the chauffer and her nosey intrusions into the man's private life would probably be unwelcome. She decided to do what she always did when her passengers began to get to her. She tuned into the plane, her eyes gliding over the instrument panel before her as the machine sent a gentle vibration through the seat and wrapped her body in a reassuring embrace. It felt good to just fly. Even if it was the aircraft she lovingly referred to as 'the bus' she was currently behind the controls of. It was big, but it handled exceptionally well. She wouldn't be performing any acrobatic air displays, but at least the plane ride was smooth.

Below her, the scrubby conifers of the tundra had given way to the majestic trees of the Northern Forest. Cruising at 10,000 feet, she could see every clearing and lake that occasionally broke the field of giants that held kept watch over the land. Evidence of human existence was nowhere to be seen. It was quite easy to imagine that she was the only person in the world.

Her mood began to change. Up here, there were no worries. There were no late paychecks and no landlords who didn't understand about late paychecks. Problems with the opposite sex were nonexistent. The very strain of living and working to survive did not exist. She was free, bound by no earthly constraints.

Only one thing would complete the sense of absolute euphoria she was feeling. Kai reached down to a portable stereo that she always kept near her seat and hit the 'play' button for the CD player. Al gave her a concerned glance, but she ignored him. Classical music filled the cockpit, and she soared to new emotional heights. It was calm, lilting, as if it embodied the very essence of flight.

The entire symphony had joined in, creating a crescendo of sound as the melody moved to the climax, when a deep voice from behind startled Kai from her revelry.

"Don't you think that's a bit distracting?" Mr. Tracy asked, the tone in his voice implying his opinion on the subject.

Had he asked, had he simply asked, she would have turned it off. Instead, they were going to have to travel the 'I am the client and I know more than you' route that she was so familiar with. "No," she replied, trying hard to keep the annoyance out of her voice, "Actually, I find it quite relaxing."

"I don't know how you could fly a plane with that racket," he answered.

Kai decided to play her trump card, the one she reserved for particularly uppity clients. "And how long have you been flying, Mr. Tracy?"

"Over 30 years, first with the Air Force and then the Space Program."

Damn! So much for that idea. She exchanged a quick glance with Al who was looking back at her with confusion in his eyes. Apparently he was under the same impression she was. Both of them had thought the man they had met in the office at home was Mr. Tracy's pilot. He had known an awful lot about the damaged jet and Mr. Tracy.

They didn't have a lot of time to ponder this mystery, however, as Mr. Tracy had decided to loose his venom. "I didn't realize anyone in this part of the world even knew who Mozart was."

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" The man beside her shook his head, grimacing.

"It seems to me that there are a limited number of resources available to people in your neck of the arctic. Your aeromechanic back at that rinky-dink establishment was an indication of that."

Oooh, that was it! He could vent all he liked, but now it was getting personal. Mike may not have been the best pilot around, but that wasn't his job. He was a good mechanic and always made sure she had a safe plane to fly. "Sorry, Mr. Rolling Stone," she spat. "People out our way are usually to busy makin' maple syrup and looking for Dudley Do-Right to appreciate a little bit of culture." Al motioned for her to stop, but she was on a roll. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

"Just turn the damn thing off!" He roared.

Fuming, Kai moved a hand to the stereo, but instead of reaching for the power switch, she slid the volume control to '10'. The electric guitar entrance to one of her favorite heavy metal songs cut through the cockpit, the bass pulsing so hard she could feel it through the floor. Al winced and Gus jumped a mile.

"How's that Mr. Tracy?" she yelled over the noise. "More what you expected?"

"Is this what I'm paying for?" Mr. Tracy shouted.

"You are paying us to fly you to Edmonton," she replied, fury in her own voice, "not to endure your verbal abuse. If you're dissatisfied with the service, I can let you out right here."

"Just fly the plane," he answered. "I'll deal with you later."

"You do that," Kai shot back, slamming the cockpit door. Still hot from the argument, Kai didn't even realize that Al was talking to her. She only noticed him when he leaned over to cut the volume on the stereo by a considerable amount. She shot daggers at him.

"If I didn't turn it down, either Gus or I was going to take a chunk out of you," he stated frankly, a hint of his Canadian accent influencing his speech.

A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, but she said nothing. At least with the door closed they could talk.

"That temper again," Al said shaking his head. "It's going to get you in trouble someday."

"Geez," Kai said, exasperated. "You make it sound like I have an aggression problem. It's not like I jump every passenger that boards the plane."

"No," Al agreed, "just the ones that are in positions to do the most damage to you. You have a knack for pissing off the really important people. What about that corporate executive last year?"

"Oh, you just had to go and bring that up, didn't you?"

"It was pretty memorable." He chuckled.

"And also completely different from this situation," she replied, keeping up the air of dignity. "I had already dropped that guy off. Hell, we were in a bar!"

"Did you have to hit him?"

"He touched me first."

"Just do me a favor, and don't hit Mr. Tracy. That was some shiner you gave that guy."

She snorted. "It might knock some sense in to him."

Al adopted the tone she had heard him use so often when addressing his kids. "I think you're in enough trouble, no?"

"What? You think he's going to get me fired?" Kai asked, amused. "If he gets me fired from this job, I'll go get another one. It wouldn't be any skin off my nose."

He wasn't buying it. "You love this job," he said. "You would be lost without it."

She sighed. He was right, but she wasn't going to admit it. She adored flying and found the diversity in her clientele to add a little spice to the job. Usually, she got along wonderfully with the customers, welcoming them onto the plane as a hostess would welcome someone into her home. Unfortunately, there was that occasional oddball.

"I thought you were fond of Mr. Tracy." Al looked out the window.

"I merely said I thought some of the endeavors of his company were very worthwhile," she corrected him. "After all, it was Tracy Corporation that developed those new oil spill controlling chemicals. You know, the ones that break the stuff up so that it can be reabsorbed into the environment? It saved the Alaskan Wildlife Preserve last year."

"But you don't think too much of Mr. Tracy himself?"

"Not at this particular moment, no," Kai answered.

Al was quiet for a beat. Then, a mischievous glint came into his eye. "And what exactly is wrong with making maple syrup, eh?"

Kai tried unsuccessfully not to laugh. "Did I say there was anything wrong with it?"

Al fell silent with a huge grin on his face. Silly man.

Sighing, Kai went back to enjoying her fly-time. It was probably the last she would get, if Mr. Tracy had his way. She hated losing her temper. It was a flaw that she worked continually to banish. It would be her own fault if he did talk to her boss. She really had no cause to act the way she did. Of course, he could have been a little more polite, too.

Gus interrupted her thoughts. The dog got up from behind Kai's seat, growling and bristling. "What's with him?" Al asked, observing the dog's strange behavior warily.

"I'm not sure," Kai answered as Gus began to claw at the metal door. "Maybe some mice snuck into the plane again and he hears them scratching around."

The dog continued to growl and Kai relented. "Take over a minute," she said as she unfastened her safety belt. "I'm going to see what's bugging him."

Al nodded and took over the controls. Kai opened the door and Gus nearly knocked her down in his haste. Jeff Tracy's angry face greeted her as she left the cabin. For a moment, she wondered just how much of their conversation he had overheard. She breezed past him without some much as an acknowledging glance.

Gus had stopped near the port storage compartment where he stood, hackles up, growling. The cabinet was used to store passenger's belongings when they boarded a flight, and occasionally, a few small creatures would find their way in there as well. Though, for some reason she couldn't explain, warning bells went off in her head. She got the distinct feeling there was something larger then a mouse in there this time. The door was slightly ajar. Standing to one side, Kai reached for the handle.

Before she could grasp it, the wood-paneled door slammed into her with sufficient force to knock her off her feet. Gus lunged for the man that emerged from the compartment. He side-stepped the animal neatly and closed the door on him. Kai had fallen between two rows of seats and wrestled to dislodge her body. Looking up, she found herself at eye level with the barrel of a high-powered handgun. She closed her eyes and waited for the shot that would send a slug ripping through her body.

Instead, she heard the sound of two bodies colliding. Mr. Tracy had tackled the man, and the two fought for control of the weapon in the narrow aisle that ran down the port side of the plane. They disappeared from her line of sight and the sounds of the fight reached her from the back. Getting her feet under her, she pushed out from between the seats, leaning against the wall.

She got up just in time to see Mr. Tracy nail a sturdy bald man with a powerful right cross. The man stumbled but suddenly came back around with a pry bar she remembered leaving back there that morning. Mr. Tracy attempted to duck out of the way, but the iron bar caught him along the side of his head. He fell to the floor. His assailant walked to the center of the plane and bent over to retrieve something.

"Kai!" Al's frantic voice yelled from the cockpit door. The man brought his gun to bear. The shots were deafening. Al cried out as the first bullet tore through his chest and he stumbled from the door as a second pierced his side. A third shot went wildly into the cockpit as Kai, without thinking, jumped the attacker from behind.

"You bastard!" she yelled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. The sound of his low, guttural chuckle made her blood run cold. She knew she didn't stand a chance against his brute strength, but that didn't mean she was going to give up without a fight.

He flipped her over his head, sending her sprawling on the deck. Before he could right himself, she leapt through the seats and wrenched the compartment open. Snarling, Gus flew out and sunk his teeth in the man's arm. He screamed in rage and fury, his yellow eyes burning at her.

The next sound Kai heard made her heart jump into her throat. It was the sound of the engine dying. The plane changed directions violently, throwing the man off balance. Gus lost his grip on the man's arm and Kai feared a fresh attack. But the noise of the engine sputtering came again.

The assailant got to his feet and raced to the rear hatch of the plane. She ducked between the seats as he popped a round at her. A couple more shots fired, probably to keep Gus back as well. After a few seconds, she chanced a peek around the edge of the seat to find that he had strapped himself into a parachute. He lifted the handle on the hatch and disappeared into the clear blue sky. She moved to the door in time to see his red and white chute open. Kai slammed a fist against the door frame in frustration, before realizing that they were losing altitude rapidly.

She rushed back inside, hauling Mr. Tracy into a seat to strap him in. In was inevitable at this point: they were going down. By the time she got everyone suited up to jump, they would be a smoking crater.

Quickly, she ducked back into the cockpit and slid into the pilot's chair. As she did, she looked over at Al, and cried out. Blood had created a slick red mess over his torso. His brown eyes were half closed, showing no signs of life. She rushed behind his seat and put her fingers to the vein that ran down his neck, but she knew no trace of a beating heart would meet her touch. She fell over the seat back, her face brushing his hair as the tears threatened to fall. She was alone.

The engine sputtering snapped her back to reality. Help the living, she could almost hear Al command her. Straightening, she threw herself back in the pilot's seat and checked their heading. In front of her, a small lake filled the windshield. "Thanks, Al," she muttered without looking at him. He had set her up for a perfect ditch-run before he drew his last breath.

The neat bullet hole through the panel in front of her explained their problems. The third pot-shot that son of a bitch had fired had gone straight through to the engine housing, probably damaging the fuel lines as it buzzed around in there like an angry bee. And as if that weren't enough, it had taken out the radio as well.

Kai's eyes narrowed as she concentrated on the procedure for ditching that she knew so well. Once they hit the water, she had about 3 minutes to get herself, an unconscious subject, and a dog out of the plane before it sank. She would attempt to end up as close to shore as possible, but once the plane hit the water, it would be totally out her hands. Mentally, she ran through the checklist of items that they would need, picturing them neat and tidy in their respective storage compartments.

The feeling of adrenaline coursing through her veins made her feel giddy. It was a challenge, and for a moment everything was as simple as life and death. If she couldn't bring this bird down in one piece, she died. It didn't get much simpler.

She watched the airspeed drop. All right, Kai, she thought, just like bringing in the float plane . . . except without the floats. The last part made her laugh and she wondered if she were losing her mind.

Though she was expecting it, the sound of the engine cutting out for the last time startled her. They were 100 feet from the water. Without the engine it was as if she were trying to land a washing machine. The wind whistled in the dead air space, but she took no notice. Kai held her breath as the plane fell from the sky like a fallen angel.

The wheels touched the water first, then the fuselage. Kai realized that she hadn't dropped her speed enough as the plane's two-ton body was tossed back into the air. There was no correcting the mistake now. The craft skipped twice along the surface of the lake like the stones she used to throw on a pond as a kid. She was thrown against the nylon restraints.

Finally, the motion stopped with a loud splash announcing water on the windshield. Her eyes popped open, and she was moving before she even realized she'd unbuckled her harness. Before leaving the cockpit, Kai kissed her friend lovingly on the cheek and murmured a quick promise to come back for him as soon as she could.

Kai raced to the hatch, already feeling the pitch of the deck change as the engine of the plane sank first. The door was still a good four feet out of the water. She collected two life jackets and an inflatable raft, depositing them behind the rear seats to keep them from sliding away.

Aware that the plane was sinking just a little bit faster than she expected, Kai went to Mr. Tracy and unfastened him from the seat. Grabbing him from around the back, she encircled his chest with her arms and hauled him to the hatch. After wrestling with his dead weight, she finally managed to get him into the life jacket. Scooping up the raft, she pulled the cord and threw it out the door, keeping a firm grasp on it as she did so. Noting that she only had about a foot to go to the surface of the water, she willed the raft to inflate faster. It took it 15 seconds to expand fully, during which time, Kai anchored it firmly to the plane and found two large backpacks. She tossed these in first then lugged Mr. Tracy in after. Untying the line, she shoved the raft hard, sending it safely away from the doomed plane.

"Gus!" she yelled as she pulled on her own life jacket and kicked off her boots. The dog galloped to her. He stood like the well-trained dog he was as Kai clipped the final buckle on her flotation device. "All right, boy," she said, leading him to the door, "Time for a swim!" She loved him dearly, but she couldn't chance his nails puncturing the raft.

The animal baulked for a moment at the door, but Kai dealt with him decisively. Taking a stocking foot, she pushed on his rump, dumping him unceremoniously in the drink.

She was just about to follow suit when the plane lurched suddenly. The floor went up at a dizzying angle and Kai fell on her hip, sliding down the aisle. She reached out quickly and caught hold of a seat frame. Water was pouring through the hatch, pushing against her as she tried to get to her feet. There was no fighting the force of the water as it sought to fill the empty space. The only way out now was to wait until the plane filled and try to swim out. Quickly, she slid out of the life jacket, not wanting to fight the device as she cleared the plane.

The water entered rapidly, but to Kai, it felt like an eternity before she found herself floating in the last air space left near the top of the plane. She hyperventilated, clearing her lungs of carbon dioxide, and took a deep breath. Kai dove under the water and pushed off the side of the plane, rocketing through the hatch. As soon as she was clear, she looked up through the water to see the sunlight refracting through the crystal depths, about 20 feet above.

She began to kick furiously. At first, the undertow of the plane held her and she was being drawn down. After just a few seconds, she felt the force stop, as the plane came to rest on the sandy bed of its watery grave. Reaching forward with her hands, she cut the water and ascended, feeling her lungs start to ache at the exertion of holding breath. She ignored it and forced herself on, pulling herself up.

Kai's hands broke the surface first, and her head burst through. Immediately she gasped loudly, sucking in the sweet air. She fell back, nearly going under the water again.

Coming to her senses, she pushed her wet hair from her face and looked around her. Gus was already halfway to the shore, which was about 200 yards away. The raft was 50 feet from her, floating aimlessly, with no one to steer it. With every muscle in her body screaming from her earlier activities, Kai began to stroke her way towards the raft.

She reached up and grabbed the device, hearing the squeak of rubber against her skin. Kai pulled herself up to look over the edge. Mr. Tracy still lay on the bottom, but he was beginning to stir. Relief flooded her. Many times while she was lugging him around, she had wondered if she were saving a corpse.

Carefully, she hauled herself into the raft, leaning against the gunwales to catch her breath before beginning the paddle to shore.

The sky never looked so blue, she thought as the tears began to fall.

Chapter Three: Choices

Hanging in the top of a tall oak tree, he could see the bright red plane as it began its descent. The faint sounds of the engine cutting out could be heard in the stillness of the woods around him. It disappeared from his sight, and he estimated that it would crash about ten miles from him. He could be there in two and a half hours.

Reaching under the back of the brown jacket he wore, he removed a long knife from its sheath and began to cut the harness of the parachute that ensnared him. Holding on with one hand, he cut the final line and found himself dangling precariously above the ground. Replacing the blade, he swung himself back and forth until he was able to reach one of the sturdier limbs.

The climb down was easy for him. He moved quickly from branch to branch, descending to the earth. Using the instep of his boots to slow himself, he slid down the last 30 feet of the tree that was devoid of any limbs.

His plan had not worked quite the way he had wanted it to. He had originally been going to sneak from his hiding spot and overtake his target with no fuss. If it hadn't been for that beast, he would have been able to simply capture Tracy, kill the pilots, and gain control of the aircraft.

Oh well, he thought. Plans changed and one had to learn how to be flexible.

Once on the ground, he removed a small device from his pocket. The red light on the transmitter flashed at him. He grinned. It was working. With one touch of the button, his agents would be able to close in on his position with a hovercraft. If Tracy was still alive, he would be able to throw him in a transport and whisk him away.

And if he was alive, he was a force to be reckoned with. Their brief encounter on the plane had given him a sense of respect for his adversary. Tracy was cunning and quick. He had nearly gotten the better of him on the plane. His opponent would be on the lookout for anything suspicious, and a hovercraft was not a piece of equipment used by any search and rescue organization in Canada.

The man sighed. As tiresome as the idea was, he knew he was going to have to track Tracy on foot. It would set him back, and time was of the essence. Still there was something about the situation that appealed to him. As he set off through the woods, he began to like the idea.

He was going hunting.

Waking up was not pleasant.

Jeff groaned, every noise around him magnified, thundering in his ears. He heard water, birds, and wind. He became aware that he was moving, the bobbing motion he could feel was doing very little for his stomach, which seemed to be doing somersaults in his gut. Suddenly, the motion stopped. A loud splash sounded beside him, and he was moving again. The sound of rubber squeaking was followed by gentle rasping on his back. Mercifully, the rolling stopped, though his stomach continued to flip.

He was reluctant to open his eyes, knowing from experience that the vertigo he would most likely be subjected to would cause him to vomit. Still, he knew he had to do it. He became aware of where his hand lay across his stomach and ordered it to move. Reaching for his forehead, he felt the tinge of blood on his fingers. The wound there wasn't gushing but it was oozing.

"Mr. Tracy?" A vaguely familiar voice questioned from above. "How're you doing?"

He wanted to retort at the inane question, but he didn't have the strength to start another argument. Jeff sighed and opened his eyes. The late-morning sun hit him square in the face, momentarily blinding him. His eyelids snapped shut again.

Kai's warm touch on his forehead was strangely reassuring. "Try again." He did, finding her hand shielding his eyes from the light. "That better?"

"Yeah," Jeff's voice sounded weak, but at least he had found it. He blinked, adjusting his sight. Kai's worried face was the first thing he saw. He took the opportunity to scrutinize her. "Are you all right?" She was sopping wet, but seemed fine otherwise.

"I've had better days, but I can't complain." Kai removed her hand and patted him on the shoulder. "Just hang out in there for a little while and relax."

Jeff turned his head cautiously, trying to determine where 'in there' was. He found himself in a rubber raft that apparently was not on the water. Kai had been pulling it out when he woke up.

He attempted to sit up, but a round of dizziness hit him full force. He quickly gave it up.

"You listen so well," Kai said ironically.

Jeff ignored her as he lay on his back once more. "What happened?"

"We crashed," Kai stated, inspecting the gash on his left temple. "But that bastard you were wrestling with parachuted out before that."

"Do you have any idea where we are?"

"Yeah," she nodded, her delicate fingers brushing back some of his hair that been clotted in the blood, "the middle of nowhere."

Jeff's second attempt at sitting was more successful. He expected the dizziness and pushed his way up despite it. The first thing he did was look at his wrist, lamenting as he saw the cracked glass of the watch face. His communicator was dead. He would really have to talk to Brains about making them more resilient. If one little scrap busted them so easily, he could only imagine what his boys would do to them.

Jeff took in the scene around him. They were in the middle of a wilderness, tall trees surrounding a lake valley. Mountains jutted up from the land in every direction he looked. There was no sign of any civilization. "The plane's out there?" He nodded towards the water.

Kai turned her eyes away from him to stare out across the water. "About 30 feet down," she replied as she steadied him.

"Do you have any more specifics about where we are?"

"We are in about 400 square miles of wilderness that is owned by an outdoor adventure company. The charter service I work for holds a contract to deliver their patrons." Kai looked around her. "They don't use this part though. It's only about 20 miles from the nearest town."

A backpack sat on the sand, open and some of its contents on the ground. Her dog lay near it and appeared to be dozing. Aside from that, there were no signs that another human had ever set foot in the area.

"Where's you co-pilot?" he asked, suddenly noting the absence of the large, quiet man.

Kai didn't answer him, and Jeff saw the tears begin to form in her eyes. She pushed away from the raft and moved to the backpack. He studied her as she picked up a first-aid bag and started back towards him.

Kai had lost some of the self-assurance she had displayed so boldly earlier. Before him was a frightened girl who couldn't quite understand the events that had just transpired around her. To her credit, she seemed to be holding up remarkably well under the circumstances.

"I'm sorry," was all he could think to say.

"He'll pay for it. They'll find him. As soon as the search and rescue guys get here, somebody will get him."

"We aren't going to be able to stay here."

"What are you talking about?" she gave him a curious look as she approached.

"It's only 20 miles you said?"

"To McPhereson?" she asked. He nodded. "As the crow flies it is, but you're forgetting about all those things like mountains and rivers and ravines that need to be negotiated. That would put it closer to thirty."

He began to climb out of the raft, stumbling and nearly falling as he did so. "We need to get moving. We have about six hours of daylight left and we could make at least fifteen miles today. We'd be in McPhereson by late tomorrow."

Kai caught him before he fell face first in the dirt. "You're nuts," she said. "The easiest way to get found is to stay put. Even a five year-old kid knows that."

Jeff didn't have time for this. "Look, this isn't a department store." He said forcefully as she deposited him beside the trunk of a tree and knelt down beside him. "There is a man behind us with a gun, who seems very intent on killing us."

"Correction," Kai said, "killing me. He had plenty of opportunity to shoot you after he clobbered you. Al and I were the ones he was taking shots at." She rooted through the bag, coming up with an antiseptic swab and a latex glove.

"All the more reason for you to get your ass in gear," he replied, wincing as she cleansed the wound and wiped away the blood that ran down his face.

"I say no." She threw the swab away and put a piece of gauze on his temple.

"Let me lay this out for you, Ms. Taylor," Jeff said. "Were you in contact with air traffic control at all?"

"Only right before take off. The weather was perfect."

"Did you get out a mayday call before the plane went down?"

"No." She was taking the hint, but he kept going.

"And when is the earliest that someone is going to take notice of our absence?"

"It would be the two hours to Edmonton and then probably another couple of hours before anyone started to get worried about a missing bush plane." She rubbed her forehead. "We don't keep exact schedules like the commercial flights do."

"That would be more than enough time for that killer to get here and finish what he started." Jeff leaned towards her. "And with no wreck to point us out, it could be a day before search and rescue gets any idea of where we are."

"Well I do apologize." Jeff could see that arguing with him was bolstering her confidence once more. "Next time we crash, I'll be sure to do it in a town square."

She stood up and began to walk away from him. "You're far too sensitive, young lady," he called at her back. "I was merely stating the facts of the situation."

Kai stopped walking and her head drooped a little. "I don't mean to be sensitive, Mr. Tracy," she said, turning around. Her manner became more reasonable and even as she spoke. "I'm just trying to help you understand what you're up against. The only training I have in outdoor survival is what my Dad taught me when we lived in Montana, and it's been years since I've had to 'live off the land' or whatever. What's your background?"

"I've been stranded before. My space plane crashed on an island in the South Pacific when I was with the WSA."

Kai raised an eyebrow, amused. "If I were you, I would seriously consider avoiding airplanes." Sensing that he was no mood for jokes, she continued. "How long?"

"A few weeks. I managed to survive that."

"Okay, but there are no palm trees out here." Kai gestured to the stately forest around them. "What we have plenty of is crazy weather, rugged terrain, and bears."

"That's where you come in," Jeff said, pointing at her. "You said you fly here a lot. Do you know the area?" She nodded. "Then you can point us in the right direction."

"Okay, how about a reality check?" Kai put her hands on hips. "How far do you really think we're going to get with you stumbling around? That guy could overtake us with no problem."

Just to spite her, Jeff got to his feet with a minimal loss of balance. His head reeled. "All we can do is try, and the longer we stand here arguing about it, the better the chance that you're right."

"It's one of those 'damned if you do, damned if you don't' situations, huh?" Kai threw her hands in the air. A smile flashed. "What the hell. I can die here or I can die ten miles from here."

"That's the spirit," Jeff grumbled sarcastically.

For the first time, he noticed she had no shoes on. "Please tell me you have boots."

"Thank you for your concern." She gestured over to where the packs sat. "I've got some extra clothes I always keep with me, just in case. I'll go change and then we'll get the compass out of the survival pack."

"Don't leave anything behind," he said, testing his legs. "I want to make this as hard on our murderous friend as possible."

Chapter Four: Revelations

"I think fifteen miles today was optimistic," Kai said from behind him as they trudged along.

Jeff didn't answer. He was sick and tired of fighting with her. The first hour of their journey had been filled with useless bickering and petty sniping. After that, they had both fallen silent, and Jeff had found his mind thousands of miles away. Only the thoughts of Gordon kept him vertical and moving at all. His head felt as though it were twice its normal size, threatening to burst. But the unbearable notion that he would never see his son again gave him the strength to keep going.

Jeff's foot slid off a wet rock and for a split second, he thought he was going to end up in the river they were walking along. Kai shot out a hand and grabbed his sleeve, pulling him roughly back to the land. He jerked away.

"Fine," she said, backing off. "Next time, I'll just let you fall in."

She brushed past him and walked up the bank. Jeff started to get angry but sighed and shook his head. The routine of argue, get mad, and then invoke the silent treatment until the next argument was getting old.

Kai looked back at him then set down the green survival pack she was carrying. They had hidden the other pack and the raft back at the crash site, leaving only one to carry that contained provisions for a night out. She vaulted up on to a rock that jutted out from the bank. Standing, she walked out over the water.

"I'm not fishing you out of there," he yelled as Kai sat down on the stone, near the edge.

"I think I would rather drown, anyway!" She drew her knees up to her chest and sat, staring sullenly over the water.

Did his head hurt so badly because of the probable concussion or the company he was keeping? Jeff tilted his head back in an attempt to relieve the throbbing. Blue sky and trees met his view. The river roared in his ears. They had started out by hiking along a small stream that ran from the lake and had eventually joined a much larger water way. The noise of the water moving swiftly along its path was having a soothing effect on his weary body.

Jeff looked back to Kai. She had not moved from her spot. A sudden wave of empathy washed over him. He was having a bad day by anyone's standards, but he wasn't experiencing it alone. The girl had been attacked, hijacked, and forced into the wilderness. Someone she cared deeply for was dead, and their own chances of survival weren't all that great. He really couldn't blame her for being short or unpleasant with him.

However, the fact remained that if they were going to get out of this alive, they needed each other. Every time he made a decision, he basically had to drag her kicking and screaming along with it. There was very little satisfaction to be found in the fact that she did concede to him on most occasions. After all, she was knowledgeable about how to survive their predicament. They should have been able to reach a compromise.

He decided to try a hand at some sort of a truce.

"How long are we going to keep doing this?"

"Doing what?" she asked watching Gus as he ran down to the water for a quick drink.

"We can't keep jumping down each other's throats," Jeff replied as he moved to sit down on the end of her warm stone. "We got off to a bad start and that's partly my fault. I have things on my mind and I lashed out at you." He couldn't help but half-smile. "Of course, you seemed stubborn enough to give me a run for my money."

Kai did not take this as a compliment. "Well, if you hadn't been such a pig-headed jackass. . ." She stood up on the rock and moved back towards Jeff, towering over him from her perch.

"Would you power down?" he interrupted her before she could explode into a full-out rant. "I'm trying to apologize."

Kai stared down at him, almost unbelieving. She sat back down slowly and quietly for a few seconds, turning her attention to the torrents of the water as it flowed past them.

"Then I apologize as well," she finally said in a civil manner. "I kinda figured something was wrong with you and I still tore into you on the plane. There was no call for that."

"Apology accepted." He stood up, wobbling a bit. Again, Kai put out an arm to steady him. This time, he smiled at her instead of pulling away. "Thanks. Now, I think we need to come to some sort of an understanding."

"What?" Kai looked at him with a bit of distrust still evident in her features.

"We need to stop picking at each other." Kai started to say something, but he held up a hand to stop her. "I am as guilty of it as you are. Now, we're both adults here, and I assume we can both act that way. We don't have to be friends, but the least we can do is treat each other with some respect."

"Agreed," she said. She held up her right hand. "I swear no more name-calling."

Jeff nodded. "All right, I swear no more nagging."

"Let's not get crazy." Kai smirked as she stood up.

"Shall we get moving?"

Kai shouldered the large pack and gave a sharp whistle to Gus. She began to follow Jeff once more.

The effect of the conversation was instantaneous. Jeff felt better, as if one of many cares had been lifted from his shoulders. At least now they could walk in relative peace and avoid the quarrelling. As he moved on, Jeff felt a little bit of hope returning. This was just a setback, and by tomorrow night, he would be where he belonged.

For a while, Kai was silent but then she asked. "So why is this guy after you?"

Jeff stiffened slightly at the question. He had an idea about the answer but was unwilling to disclose it to her. "Why are you assuming that he's after me?"

She gave a short laugh. "Mr. Tracy, I'm just a little backwater bush-pilot, but I'm not stupid. You're a billionaire in control of one of the most powerful corporations in the world. Why else would that guy risk so much trying to overtake a charter plane?"

"Maybe he's just some kind of madman." Jeff tried to put her off.

"Then we'd be dead right now instead of having this conversation," Kai replied. "He wasn't insane or out of control. That man knew exactly what he was doing up there."

The girl was smart; he had to give her that.

She put a hand on his shoulder causing him to stop and turn around. "I have a right to know why I'm here and why Al had to die. Do you know why this man is chasing you or not?"

It would have been easy to feign ignorance, but the look in her eyes kept him from doing that. She needed to know what she was up against, just to regain some sort of comprehension.

Jeff turned around and began to walk again. "My best guess is that he is a mercenary who specializes in industrial espionage. The world police have been after him for years now. I believe he was active in Asia last week." He ducked a limb, feeling lightheaded as the blood in his head shifted.

"Who is he?"

"Nobody knows his right name or where he comes from. We're probably one of the few people who have ever seen his real face; he's a master of disguise. The authorities usually just refer to him as the Hood."

Jeff looked back over his shoulder as he went, trying to gauge her reaction. Kai had gone a little pale, but she seemed more thoughtful then anything else as she watched the ground, carefully placing her feet. "What would he want with you? Has your company developed some sort of new technology that he would be after?"

His expression remained neutral. "Tracy Corporation is making technological advances everyday. He could be after any number of them." He changed the subject. "How far do you think we've come?"

"Oh, I don't know," Kai said sighing. "We've been going about three hours. Eight or nine miles, maybe?"

"Well, it's not as far as I would like, but I guess we're doing all right."

"Of course we're doing all right," Kai replied, suddenly up-beat. "We aren't walking down the street here, this is rough going." She paused to look out over the river again. "It's a pretty hike, though."

Jeff couldn't help but chuckle at her. He stopped to look at the whitewater as well. "A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees an opportunity in every difficulty."

Kai laughed herself. "Winston Churchill."

"Well, Ms. Taylor, are there any opportunities to be found in our difficulty?"

"Who knows?" she shrugged, "Maybe we'll find some along the way."

Frustration gripped him again as he looked over the meadow before him. Nothing. No wreck, no sign of the bright red plane. He had been at this for hours, moving steadily in the direction he had seen the plane fall and still found nothing to indicate that it had ever existed.

Perhaps he should give this up. There were thousands of square miles to cover, and the chances of him finding Tracy among it were slim, if not nonexistent. In the distance, he could hear the low rumble of thunder. Shadows were beginning to cover the forest. Falling back was not a coward's option, simply one of strategy.

His persistence won out and he walked on a little farther. This was the perfect situation to capture Tracy. He had wounded him at least, and the element of surprise was with him. If he waited, he would have to start all over again by trailing him and lying in wait for another chance. He didn't have that kind of time. Time was money.

He pushed through some underbrush, cursing as a wild rose caught the flesh of his exposed hand. He could go on like this for days and not find a thing. He was without provisions, but that was of little concern. He could do without, functioning on the sheer desire to achieve his goal.

The soil beneath his feet became softer, and he found himself looking over the calm waters of a lake. He stared across it, growling.

Then a thought struck him. Slowly, an evil grin of realization came over his face. Walking swiftly, he circumnavigated the water, leaping a small brook as he did so. He was bent low over the ground, searching for any sign that someone had been here before.

A speck of white in the brown dirt caught his eyes. Squatting to see better in the dying light, he poked the piece of gauze with a stick. The rusty stains of dried blood spoke volumes to him. Someone was alive. Injured, but alive.

He'd bet his life it was Tracy. He must have guessed his assailant's mind. Tracy was nowhere to be seen along the shores of the lake, but he had been there. He couldn't have gotten far.

The man tried to think like his adversary, to climb inside his skin and see what he thought. Where would he go if he were being tracked?

With determined strides he moved back to the stream and looked along the banks. No footprints could be found along the rocky pass. Living most of his life in the Malaysian jungle had given him some sense when it came to tracking animals. A broken twig dangling from a branch showed him the direction his prey had gone.

Chapter Five: Breaking Point

"Scott?" Virgil Tracy's voice startled John as his older brother entered the room. "Your turn."

Their eldest brother had stationed himself at the window for the better part of an hour, looking blankly out at the parking lot. He pushed off of the frame and crossed the room quickly, stopping in the doorway to give Virgil a reassuring slap on the back as he went.

Virgil entered the lounge and flopped down beside John. "How are you holding up, Johnny?"

His brothers had been asking him that question all day. He gave Virgil the same answer he had given Alan when the youngest Tracy had come back from his bedside vigil. "I'm fine."

It was a lie and Virgil knew it. He studied John, taking in the dark circles under his eyes. "You don't look fine."

"What do you want me to say, Virgil?" John snapped. "My brother is lying in there, unconscious, with a machine to make him breathe. How am I supposed to feel? Would you all please just stop with the stupid questions?"

"Easy," Virgil said in a soothing tone. "We're just worried about you."

Alan's bright blue eyes stared at them from across the room, but he was quiet. He had been dozing before Virgil returned.

John envied Alan. The kid always found peace in the blissful unawareness of sleep and he didn't know how Alan did it. He couldn't remember the last time he had attempted sleep himself. It was far beyond his capabilities to sit still long enough.

His gaze turned worried as he looked to the lovely older lady seated beside Alan. John had picked their grandmother up from the private airport in San Francisco after dropping Scott off in San Diego. When he had arrived to fetch her, Grandma had been the same strong, confident woman that he always looked to when something horrible happened, reassuring him as they flew the short distance south.

That had changed when she saw Gordon. John had gone along with her to Gordon's room to shield her from the shock of seeing her grandson for the first time. After only a couple of minutes, he had escorted her from the room, soothing her, as she cried against him. Now she sat staring at the tacky painting above Virgil's head with absolutely no expression on her face. It was frightening to see her like that.

He felt better when Alan reached over and took her hand. Grandma was drawn from her distant thoughts and focused on him. The needs of her grandson outweighed her own and gave her something to do besides feel sorry for herself. Her face broke out in a sad smile as she reached for Alan and rested his head on her shoulder. Grandma stroked his blonde hair as Alan's eyes closed.

At least his youngest brother was calming down. John had never seen him so upset as when the doctor talked to them after Gordon came out of surgery. It had taken hours to stop the internal bleeding and restore some blood circulation to Gordon's damaged spinal cord. After he was stabilized, his doctors would consider completing the first of many surgeries to repair the vertebrae and the delicate nerves. The doctor seemed to think it was a moot point anyway, given the trauma to the head Gordon had sustained.

It was that attitude that had put Alan on the verge of hysterics. Dr. Ames had been one of those guys that just laid out all the facts. No compassion had registered on his face as he gave them every detail about their brother's condition. Scott had taken all the news with his usual calm seriousness, making decisions in Dad's absence.

John knew Scott was strained. He was feeling their father's absence more than the rest of them. It wasn't fair; Dad should have been there. Instead he was off somewhere on the tundra, chasing his dreams.

He squashed the feeling of anger he felt, labeling it as childish overreaction. His father was doing his best to get to them. He would be here soon.

Virgil broke the silence. "What is with all the blue in here?" he asked suddenly, apparently searching for a safe topic of conversation. "I think I'm going to hate the color blue when we leave."

John looked around at the lounge they occupied. The walls were a dark blue, an antithesis to the stark white of the rest of the hospital. He shrugged. "It's supposed to be a very soothing color."

"I wonder if they have a survey I could fill out. It's not doing much for me."

"Me either." John smiled, despite himself. Virgil had a knack for making his brother's smile in the worst situations. It was a trait John was thankful for.

Virgil was silent for a minute before he turned serious. "There was nothing you could do to stop this, you know."

John looked over at him. "What are you talking about?"

"C'mon, Johnny," Virgil said, gently. "You know what I'm talking about. You've had Overprotective Brother Syndrome since you were six years old, especially when it comes to Gordon."

"Maybe that's because Gordon is in constant need of an overprotective older brother." His next youngest sibling had a habit of getting in to the most unusual situations.

"That's my point." Virgil grinned. "You've been looking out for him ever since the day Grandpa's geese trapped him under the station wagon." John laughed a little at the memory of a two-year old Gordon, on his belly, screaming at the top of his lungs from beneath the family car.

"It's always been John to the rescue," Virgil continued. He sighed. "And this time, there was nothing you could do to help him. Am I right?"

John leaned back on the cushions. "Yeah, I guess so."

"There's no 'I guess so' about it." Virgil corrected him. "I'm speaking from experience here."

John knew what he meant. Though he was the most thoughtful of the five brothers, John had done things in his lifetime that he was sure made Virgil crazy. Falling off the roof of the farmhouse in the middle of the night sprang to mind as an example. His zeal to observe a meteor shower had resulted in a broken ankle and a major chewing-out by his teenage brother. Of course, John had just used the safety harness from the rock-climbing equipment the next time.

Virgil pushed his hair back from his face. "It's not an easy job, playing big brother." He looked across the room where their brother was now asleep again. "I can't even imagine what it's like for Alan. He must be going through hell."

The sound of a doctor being paged to the ICU caused John to nearly jump out of his seat. Virgil put a restraining hand on his shoulder. "If it was for Gordon, Scott would have been back out here by now."

John flopped back down on the burgundy couch cushion. "How long has Scott been in there?"

Virgil consulted his watch. "About five minutes. Relax," Virgil backpedaled when he saw the look on John's face, "as much as possible."

John let out a frustrated breath. He hated Navy regulated hospitals. The rules of the Intensive Care Unit allowed for only one family member to sit with a patient at a time. This meant they had to take turns sitting with Gordon alone.

It left John dreading when he would have to go back to that room again. The only sounds to be heard were that of the respirator and the monitor as it tracked every beat of Gordon's heart. He would have given anything to have Virgil or Scott with him. Their strong presence would help fill the empty space.

As daunting as the thought was, John still found himself waiting impatiently for that time as well. He knew Gordon was still alive in his little white cubicle, but there was one part of him that wasn't satisfied unless he could verify it personally. Even if all he could do was sit there, hold Gordon's hand, and talk to him. His love for his brother outdistanced his apprehension by miles.

John stared out of the door and into the hallway. He recognized a few people standing against the wall, dressed in WASP fatigues. They were talking quietly among themselves, and every once in a while, Gordon's name was mentioned.

A steady flow of people from Gordon's WASP squadron had been running through the hospital since the accident, a few of his closer friends even asking to sneak back for a chance to visit with him. The Tracy's obliged them as much as possible, pushing the nerves of the nursing staff to the breaking point. One intern even commented that they should install a revolving door at the entrance of the ICU.

Virgil tugged on the sleeve of his sweatshirt to get his attention. "Grandma is going to want to go back again," he said in a low voice.

"She can't go alone." John matched his brother's volume. "Maybe one of us should try to talk her out of it."

"I wish you the best of luck, Johnny."

Virgil was right. They couldn't talk Grandma out of anything. "Then one of us will have to go with her again."

Virgil frowned. "I don't think the management is going to like that."

"They'll have to live with it," John hissed. "Grandma has a right to see Gordon, and I for one, am not going to deny her that."

"We'll talk about it when Scott comes back out. He or I can go back again for a little while."

John didn't argue, as much as he wanted to. He didn't know if he could stand to see his grandmother crying like that again.

The mobile phone rang on the table next to them. Usually, Scott kept it to stay in contact with the company when his father was gone. It was the only way anyone outside the family could get in touch with him.

For now, it was their link to Brains back on the island. The young scientist had been very distressed when he heard about the accident. They had only met a couple of times, but Brains had taken an instant liking to Gordon. His brother had a tendency to make a lasting impression on all the people he met.

John answered the phone after three rings. "Yeah?"

"Mr. Tracy?" The strong male voice on the other end of the line was not Brains, or their father.

"You're going to have to be a little more specific than that," John said. "This is Scott Tracy's phone, John Tracy speaking."

"Are you any relation to Jeff Tracy?" Conversations that started like this were never good.

John got up quickly and went into the hall. "He's my father."

"This is Ted Malloy with the American Consulate in Toronto," the man went on. "I got this phone number from the Tracy Corporation offices in Chicago. We were asked to contact you by the law enforcement officials of High Level, Alberta."

"What's the problem, sir?" John's cool head took over, realizing that this man was simply a messenger. A request for him to get to the point would probably earn him a longer delay.

"I am sorry to have to tell you this, but I'm afraid the plane that your father chartered to reach Edmonton is hours overdue and believed to have gone down. The local police department began to mount an aerial search effort, but a line of strong thunderstorms is moving over the area and they are expected to continue through this evening. The planes can't take off, and until they canvas the area, a ground search is impossible."

"Nobody has any idea where the plane went down?" John felt sick. Virgil had joined him in the hall and was now looking at him with a mixture concern and confusion.

"I'm afraid not, son." The man was at least sympathetic. "There is still quite a bit of wilderness along that part of the province."

"When will they begin the air search?" John asked, trying to keep his voice down. He motioned for Virgil to look back into the room. His brother shook his head at him. Neither Grandma nor Alan had heard the conversation.

"They will start first thing in the morning."

A strange, unexplainable calm had fallen over John. "Thank you for notifying us." He said quietly.

"You're welcome, Mr. Tracy." He cut the connection.

"What's up with Dad?" Virgil asked anxiously. "John?"

Still, John did not answer. Instead, he stood, feeling the weight of the phone in his hand. There was no way he could have had that conversation.

No way.

It wasn't possible.

His father was on his way here, to see his son. He hadn't crashed.

Something snapped. With no warning, John screamed and flung the phone down the hallway. It hit the wall and shattered into pieces on the floor.

Chapter Six: Before the Storm

The thunder sounded from the northwest again, making Jeff look up at the clouds gathering there. Quickly, he capped the canteen he was filling at the stream and stood up. If he wanted a dry place to wait out the weather, he had to get moving.

He ducked instinctively as a large piece of wood flew over his head. It was followed a few seconds later by Gus, in a mad dash to capture his prize. The dog ran into Jeff's knees as he turned sharply.

Jeff swore loudly and dropped the canteen, trying desperately to keep his balance as a wave of dizziness caught him off guard. Grabbing a nearby tree branch, he steadied himself. Stupid dog, he thought as Gus snatched the stick from the ground.

It was then that Jeff realized he was smiling despite himself. Kai was apparently keeping herself entertained as she worked. He suspected it was a distraction from the situation.

It was a short hike to the lean-to he and Kai had constructed against the south side of a cliff face. Gus came back through the woods more than once, whining for Jeff to toss the stick for him. He obliged the dog, flinging the wood back towards the stream. Each time, the animal sent up dirt as he flew back down the path.

Jeff put on his most stern face as he came back to the campsite. Kai had begun to pile leaves on the shelter to camouflage it from prying eyes. She had expressed to him that she would have preferred to walk all the way without stopping, not wanting to be caught unawares by the madman she was now sure was stalking them. Unfortunately, Mother Nature had a different agenda.

Gus ran ahead of him and dropped the teeth-marked stick at Kai's feet. She looked down at him. "Can't you see I'm busy?" She piled more leaves on the three-foot tall structure that would shelter them from the elements.

The dog cocked his head and growled at her playfully. Kai giggled. "All right, one more time." She grabbed the stick and flung it in to the brush that grew all around. Gus tore after it, leaping in to the bushes and making a tremendous racket.

"You really shouldn't be making all that noise, you know." Jeff dropped the canteen and stowed the water purifier back in the pack.

He turned to find Kai giving him a wry look. "How many times did you throw it for him?"

"Once, to get him to leave me alone," he lied. She raised an eyebrow. "All right three times, but I didn't throw it into the bushes."

Jeff took the stick from the dog when he returned, feeling the need to act out his aggravation on an inanimate object. The stick flew deep into the woods. "I guess the old saying about a dog's life is true. I would love to be as oblivious as he is right now."

Kai stopped working. "How close do you think he is?" There was no fear in her voice, merely concern.

"It's hard to say." Jeff began to help her. "Leaving the river was a good move. It may have been the easier route, but it also made us easier to follow."

Kai shrugged. "I didn't really think about that. I just didn't feel like getting wet again today."

"Don't worry." Jeff felt the need to console her a little, though she seemed calm. "He couldn't have caught up with us that fast, if he's behind us at all. Besides, if the river is rising, that will slow him down."

Kai had noticed that the level of the river steadily rose over the course of an hour and concluded that it was raining to the north. She had said something to him and they had agreed to take the more direct route to McPhereson. That meant leaving the relatively easy path along the river for the hills and cliffs of the woods. It was harder terrain that would probably take them a little longer to negotiate, but at least they were harder to find amongst the flora of the forest.

Between the two of them, they managed to finish the shelter in a matter of minutes. Kai sat down on a fallen log and retrieved two energy bars from the pack. She held them up and Jeff took her up on the invitation. He grabbed the canteen and exchanged it for the food as he sat down next to her. He shook his head when Kai broke her bar in half and handed a piece to Gus.

Kai fished a compass from her pocket. "We should probably head east tomorrow. We've come as far south as we should."

Jeff nodded. "It sounds like a plan."

The last bit of blue sky above them was quickly being overtaken by the clouds as they ate. Jeff felt the temperature drop as the front moved in. Kai pulled her coat more tightly around her, as she formed herself into a ball, trying to conserve body heat. It had been a silent agreement that a fire was out of the question with the approach of the massive storm.

A shadow passing overhead caused them both to look up. A large hawk was riding the air currents the storm was generating, soaring through the last rays of the sun before they were completely blocked. The bird gave a piercing cry and banked left, keeping watch over them from above.

Jeff was struck by the boldness of the animal. The hawk soared through the sky, unyielding to the bank of dark clouds that approached. He flapped his long wings with confident strokes, climbing higher in the darkening sky as if daring the wind to knock him down.

Kai murmured beside him. He looked over to see her watching the hawk as well, lost deep in thought.

"What did you say?"

Kai shook her head to send the last bits of the memory away. She was back in the clearing, cold and surrounded by an unfamiliar forest.

Jeff looked at her curiously. "You were a million miles away just now, weren't you?"

She gave a small laugh. "Only about 1500, actually."

"Someplace nicer than this?"

"No, it was quite similar to this," Kai said, looking around. "I was thinking about a camping trip I took with my dad. We would go out for days on end to fish and swim, he would tell stories . . ."

"About Thunderbird?" he asked. He had heard her the first time, but the thoughtfulness of her expression made him want more of an explanation.

Kai blushed. She hadn't meant for her thoughts to be voiced, it just happened without her being conscious of it. "Yeah, about Thunderbird."

"What exactly is a Thunderbird, Ms. Taylor?"

Kai tried desperately to avoid the conversation. "Nothing, just a story. You'd think it was silly."

"Well, we've got nothing better to do until that gets here." Jeff pointed to the sky. "Try me."

Kai drew intricate patterns in the dirt with the toe of her boot. Eventually, she looked up to see Jeff staring at her expectantly. She sighed. "I'm not going to get out of this, am I?"

Jeff shook his head and she relented. "My dad used to tell this story about a being that could control the storms. When he flapped his great wings, the winds would howl. When he was still, the wind was calm."

"You're going to have to work on your delivery." Jeff said. "It's not much of a story when you talk to the ground."

"There was more to it." Kai looked up, staring into the approaching darkness. "When Thunderbird was absent from the world, it fell into ruin and disease. He was a protector, watching over his people and keeping them safe."

The only sound to be heard was the rumble of the thunder as it came closer.

Realizing that she had said more than she meant to, she gave Jeff an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I just loved that story, too, I guess."

"It sounds like it means a lot to you."

"It used to," she sighed heavily. "Before I grew up and realized that such things don't really exist."

Jeff was silent, fully intending to let her talk through whatever she needed to. "You can't believe in things like Thunderbirds and watch good people get hurt or killed. Like my Dad or Al . . ."she paused. "Or you."

He didn't move, not wanting to show how much her blunt assessment had touched him. "Why do you say that?"

If Kai had any reservations about confronting him, she didn't display them. "You don't wear the angry guy act well, Mr. Tracy. Something has been bothering you since High Level."

"Do you always make such quick assumptions about people?" Jeff asked. Kai shrugged

"You're right," he replied after a few seconds. "One of my sons is seriously injured, and I was trying to get to him."

Kai's face was full of compassion. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I wish there was more I could do to help you out."

"I don't see what more you could do," Jeff answered. "You are helping me get through this." He finished his dinner. "I assume you father taught you how to survive in the wild."

"Yup, Dad was a real outdoorsman. He thought wilderness survival was something every girl should know." She gave a short laugh. "He was right, as usual."

"You learned very well. I'm sure he would be proud of you."

"I'm not," Kai said. "He didn't want me to become a pilot. He always told me it was too dangerous."

"What did he want you to do?" Jeff asked, curiously.

Kai narrowed her eyes at him. "Promise you won't laugh?"

"Yes." He answered slowly.

"He wanted me to be a lawyer."

Jeff bit his lip and slowly turned away from her, studying the tree next to him. Beside him, he heard quiet laughter as Kai tried without success to keep from giggling herself.

He couldn't help it. "From what I have seen today, you probably could have made a fortune from it, kid." He said, laughing.

Kai gave him a mock-infuriated look that quickly slipped into a large grin. "Gee, thanks."

Jeff calmed himself down, sobering as a thought occurred to him. "I guess parents have to learn when to let their kids make their own choices." He leaned forward on his knees. "Something I have yet to learn myself."

Kai seemed to reciprocate his earlier gesture of letting him talk through his troubles. "I have barely talked to my own son in over a year." Jeff's voice got lower as he spoke.

"Does he live far from you or something?"

"Gordon is in the submarine service, and they stay pretty busy," Jeff smirked, "but he manages to call home every week to talk to his brothers."

"Why don't you talk to him then?"

He thought before he answered, wondering why he was admitting all of this to a person, who up until a few hours ago, he couldn't stand the sight of.

"Because I thought I was still angry with him about not doing what I wanted him to do with his life." Jeff looked over at Kai, who sat smiling sadly at him. "I just hope I get the chance that your father didn't."

Lightning flashed above them, reminding Jeff that the storm was approaching. He got to his feet and waited for Kai to rise as well. They hunched themselves over against the wind that had begun to blow furiously, and trudged to the shelter.

Jeff climbed in first, thankful that Kai had spread a large water-proof blanket on the ground before the construction had begun. He sat down with his back to the rock face.

"Who invited you?" he growled as Gus trotted through the opening and plopped himself on Jeff's feet.

"More bodies: more body heat," Kai said as she sat down beside him. The shelter was cramped in the interest of keeping it warm. They were forced to sit close to each other, but Jeff found it wasn't as unpleasant as he anticipated.

Kai seemed comfortable as well, going so far as to lean against him after wrapping the edges of the blanket around her to keep out the chill.

"You're not very helpful in the body heat department," he kidded her. "There's not enough of you for that."

"All the more reason to let the dog stay." The wind whipped around outside, whistling as it blew over the cliff. "Gordon Tracy. That name sounds familiar." Kai thought for a minute. "He was a swimmer at the last Olympics," she said triumphantly, "the youngest person ever to break a World Record in swimming at an Olympic games."

"I didn't know that anybody paid that close attention." Mr. Tracy said. "How can you remember so much about him?"

Kai didn't answer. He couldn't see her in the darkness but knew she was grinning.

There was amusement in his voice as he prodded her. "Why do I get this feeling it has nothing to do with his performance at the games?"

Kai began to laugh. "When you see him, just tell him that his White Oak High All-Girl Fan Club sends its regards."

Jeff chuckled. "I'll be sure to do that. He'll be thrilled."

"As soon as he gets well, he's more than welcome to visit, if he brings an armed escort."

Gordon would probably love that, Jeff thought as the rain began to fall outside.
 

Accursed weather.

He stood on the rise, looking across at the river that had overflowed its banks, making it impossible to follow his quarry. He clenched his fists as the rain water flowed down his face. He was so close, so close. He knew Tracy was nearby.

He walked along the bank, sliding and nearly falling. Tracy would pay for the trouble he was putting him through. He would pay dearly and so would his little companion that he was sure Tracy had in tow.

Lightning struck a tree above him and he leapt out of the way of the falling, flaming branch. He fell to the ground, sputtering and cursing. The rain beat hard on his back as he gained footing. His boot hit a patch of mud as he tried to stand, sending him down again.

Wiping the mud from his eyes, he got to his knees again. They must have realized the storms were coming as well. Tracy wouldn't have been stupid enough to stay along the river.

He ran through what he knew about the land. Civilization was to the southeast. They would go that way, though the land was considerably harsher than that of the river. It was more direct and Tracy was a direct man.

The thunder sounded again, drowning out his voice as he growled. It would be too easy to get disoriented in the rain, clues would be missed. He toyed with the idea of using the transmitter, calling his hovercraft to spend the night in comfort.

He dismissed it. The hovercraft was still on the west coast, hidden from obtrusive eyes. He planned to call it when he knew he was closing in on his target. By the time it arrived, the storm would probably have passed. If he summoned it, he would risk someone seeing it, and all of his sweat would have been wasted.

He slid under the overhang of a cliff and sat, planning his revenge to the most intricate detail, the cold simply fueling his wrath.

Chapter Seven: Moving Out

He shifted against the rock. The storms had stopped, leaving behind the smell of damp earth. He turned up his nose. He despised these surroundings. Nothing could be reaped from them. What a waste to protect and enhance the wilderness.

Again he considered his position. Tracy could have been miles away by now. The man was deep within the wilderness.

He was wasting his energy.

Slithering from his hiding spot, he stood and stretched his body, surveying the valley. He stopped and looked. The temperature had risen over the night as the storms moved out. Wisps rose from the river and the ground. The fog was thickening, blanketing the entire area in a high wispy bank.

He couldn't believe his luck. The cover of the fog gave him an advantage. Cover. The hovercraft was small and agile, equipped with devices to navigate the craft in little or no visibility.

Tracy was within his grasp again. He knew where his opponent was headed. The men manning his craft could easily help him find his quarry.

He removed the device from his hip and depressed the button.

*****

The feeling that something was wrong made Jeff open his eyes. He was sitting with his back to the wall, arms across his chest, facing the pile of leaves that represented shelter. Just outside, he could see moonlight streaming down bouncing of the rock that protected the entrance.

It hit him that he was alone. Kai had been sitting right next to him, keeping watch with Gus. They were both gone. He had told her to wake him up after a few hours, but, as usual, the girl had done what she wanted and let him sleep much longer than she should have. At least there was a positive outcome; his head felt much better.

He carefully moved from the confines of the shelter and stood up. A light fog blanketed the area. The cold glow filtered through and was reflected off of the trees, giving the entire forest a surreal air. Lightning flashed from the clouds as the last of the storms moved off.

An owl called nearby, causing Jeff to scan the area around him. Kai's jacket hung from a nearby branch, but the girl was nowhere in sight.

"Ms. Taylor?" he croaked in a hoarse whisper. "Kai!" Only the crickets responded to him.

Jeff growled a little in annoyance. The girl had no sense in her head at all. She should have known better then to go off by herself. Anything could have happened to her. Where had she gotten to?

Jeff moved back toward the rocks, hoping that there was some sign of her. Finding none, he crawled back into the shelter and pulled the survival pack out. Muttering to himself, Jeff pawed through the bag, finally coming up with a flashlight. He hated risking the light, but if Kai was lying in a ditch somewhere, he had to find her.

He was just about to straighten up, when a low growl came from behind him. It didn't sound like Gus.

Jeff turned slowly and found himself looking in to a pair of glowing eyes. The animal they were attached to lumbered around growling and snarling, not 50 feet from him. The light bounced off of the dark coat, reflecting the outline of a large bear.

The animal rose on its hind legs, revealing his tremendous height. Its breath was visible in the coldness of the early spring morning, giving Jeff an image of a fire breathing beast.

Coming down on its forelegs, he approached. Jeff took a step back, colliding with the rocks. He looked around, finding no route of escape.

"Mr. Tracy, don't move." Kai's voice came from above him.

"Where have you been?"

"Do you really want to have this conversation right now? Just stand still and be quiet."

The bear ambled up to him, sniffing curiously.

"Kai?"

"Shhh," she hissed. "Maybe he'll just go away."

Jeff obeyed. The animal was so close that he could feel the hot breath on his face. Teeth glinted as the bear moved away from him and began pawing at the pack beside him.

The shrill whistle from over his head scared the hell out of him. "Get out, nothing for you!" Kai called, throwing something from her perch.

She had been hoping the loud noise would frighten the bear back. Instead, the animal looked up at her and growled. Jeff took the chance to slide from his path, nabbing the pack as he went. Quickly, he reached inside, his hand finding the smooth stock of the flare gun. He withdrew it, fishing out the cartridges as well.

The bear was on his hind legs again, pawing at Kai's feet as she stood on the ledge above him. Slapping a cartridge in to the gun, he held it up and aimed it the best he could. The entire gully was bathed in the orange glow as the cartridge flamed through the air. It hit the bear in the muzzle, sending sparks into its eyes.

Coming down to earth again, the bear began to flee, deciding that the intruders into his territory were simply too much trouble. He galloped towards the stream, splashing through the water.

"You put the fear of people back in that one!" Kai began to climb down.

"Where is that damn dog when you need him?" Jeff asked.

"Right over there." Kai looked towards the bushes. "Okay, Gus." The dog trotted from the shadows. "He was waiting for a command from me. I'd have called him if I needed him."

"You don't think standing on a cliff above a bear is enough reason to call the dog?"

"I'm not going to sic a bear on him needlessly."

Jeff was infuriated. "Where in the hell were you anyway?"

Kai picked up the item she had hurled at the bear, the canteen. "The stream."

"Why didn't you wake me up?" he roared. "What if you had found that bear? Or fallen?"

Kai looked at him, amused. "You were that worried about me?"

Jeff stopped. "Well. . . I, um. . ."

"You were!" Kai laughed. "You were actually that concerned."

"Don't you think it's about time we got moving?"

"Sure." She was letting him off the hook, but the smile still played on her lips.

"Stop that," he growled as he pulled the blanket from the shelter and knocked it down.

"Stop what?"

"Stop laughing."

"I'm not!" she exclaimed through a fit of giggles. He turned to glare at her, but the effect was not what he intended. Kai was in full hysterics by the time they were ready to start out.

"What are you laughing at?" Jeff finally asked.

"Nothing," she chuckled. "If I didn't laugh right now, I think I would probably break down and cry."

Jeff stopped ahead of her and turned. "We're almost out of this, kid."

"I know."

Chapter Eight: Control

John awoke with a start as he hit the floor. He found himself on his back, staring up at the portraits of himself and his brothers that hung along the wall. All five of them were painted in the garden, the leafy green foliage of which was present in the background.

They were dressed in their normal, everyday attire. Portraits of them in uniform would eventually be placed under these to hide the communication system John was installing. That was if they could ever decide on which uniform to use. The discussion had sparked a major argument and a minor food-fight the week before.

When John had asked Gordon about his ideas on the subject over a secure vidphone link, his brother had said he would wear anything that involved a mask and a cape.

That had been the last time they had spoken.

John got to his feet and looked around the lounge. The stillness of the house drove away any notion that the past few days had been a nightmare. Someone was usually up, even this late. Scott was a light sleeper and was up at all hours of the morning. Virgil had been tinkering with a new piece of music for weeks. His pen and sheet music lay on the table where he had left them. Occasionally, his father could be found sitting in the lounge watching late night television, something John had caught him indulging in more than once.

The vast amounts of Asian artwork around the room made John smile as he sat back down on the couch. Dad had adopted a fondness for it on a business trip to Malaysia, bringing back paintings and statuary from all over the Orient. John and Virgil had spent an entire afternoon helping him hang and display every last piece. It had been fun, but John had made it a point to harass his father as much as possible during the entire process. He had told Dad it felt like they were living in a Shinto shrine. His father had replied that John would develop a taste for fine art when he grew up, much to John's chagrin and Virgil's considered amusement.

John ran a hand through his light blonde hair. It was still wet from the shower he had taken after Scott had returned him to the island. He still felt aggravated at his brothers. They had all ganged up on him after the phone call. Scott and Virgil had threatened to remove him bodily from the hospital, and John had invited them to try. In retrospect, that was probably a testament to how strung out he was. Rational people did not challenge guys that played football on a regular basis, especially if they were tall and thin, like John was.

A conflict had only been narrowly avoided through Grandma's intervention. She had begged John to go home with Scott, if only for a few hours. The look on her face broke his heart, and he could not cause the poor woman anymore pain. Alan and Virgil were staying with her after the hospital kicked them out for the night. They would keep her company and be on hand if anything happened with Gordon.

Scott had ordered him to go to his room as soon their feet touched the hangar floor. John had obeyed long enough to clean up and pull on fresh clothes. He had returned to the lounge and stretched out on the couch, ignoring Scott's slight protests. He hadn't bugged John too much about it, sharing his need to keep watch over his brother.

Where was Scott anyway? John looked around him, noticing his brother's absence as the last vestiges of sleep left his brain.

John remembered seeing him at his father's desk before he nodded off. He had been talking to officials in Canada about the details of their father's trip. That had been hours ago. He looked around the room and poked his head in to the kitchen. Scott was nowhere to be found. He had serious doubts that Scott would have simply gone off to bed and left him on the sofa. There was only one place John thought that he could be.

Quickly, John put on the tennis shoes that sat by the couch and left the lounge. He trotted down the stairs and passed through a series of hallways until he found himself in the laboratory area of the ground floor, tucked away safely, well beneath the structure of the house.

He darted past the entrance of the lab, noticing that the lights were off. That was a good thing. Brains was known for his all-night work binges, especially when he was nervous or worried. He had probably frazzled himself out at his drafting table, tweaking the specs on the satellite.

John moved through the hangar where Rescue 2 was temporarily being kept. Thanks to Virgil's persistence, the large green freighter was nearly completed. All that remained was to get the pods and arm them with the array of rescue equipment that had already been built.

The first parts of the one-man submarine had arrived on the island. Gordon had been so excited to hear that they had begun to work on the fourth rescue vehicle. The 30-foot mini-sub was a project of his ever since their father had revealed his plans for International Rescue. Gordon had even picked out the color for it. Yellow, of all things.

John moved to the launch pad and couldn't suppress the feeling of awe he experienced whenever he laid eyes on Rescue 1. The tall silver rocket plane sat quietly on its huge thrusters, waiting patiently for the day when Scott would light her up. Plans were in the works for the rescue craft's hangar so that Scott would be able to access the vehicle from the house as soon as the launch procedure was established. For now, Rescue 1 was fine where she was.

From where John stood, he could see the hatch was open. He climbed the scaffolding to the cockpit. Quietly, he stuck his head in the hatch. There was no light, except for what little filtered in from the hangar.

Scott's dark head was just visible over the back of the pilot's chair, his hand tapping lightly on the end of the left control handle as he sat deep in thought.

"Hey," John called softly.

Scott turned around in his seat. "What are you doing down here?"

"I fell off the couch," he explained, smiling.

Scott turned back around, a ghost of laughter in his voice. "We do have beds around here."

"How would you know?" John climbed in to the passenger's bench behind Scott.

He looked around the interior of Rescue 1. They had just been in here, running a system's check in preparation for the first test flights scheduled for next week. Somehow, it felt different. There was a feeling of power and safety in the large craft, as if nothing could touch him while he was within its limits. The sense of security was probably what had drawn Scott to the hangar bay.

After long minutes, John finally spoke again. "It's been a long time since we sat in something like this."

"John, nobody has ever sat in something like this." Scott's hand stopped tapping and ran gently over the controls.

"You know what I mean," John replied. "The most we've piloted lately is the jet. I'm talking about fighter jets and space shuttles." John's personal favorites were the quiet space stations from which he could observe the cosmos.

"It has been quite awhile," Scott agreed. "I have to admit, I do miss those things."

"Well, this one is done," John stretched in the seat, "and as soon as Rescue 3 is finished, we can head back to space."

"If Rescue 3 is ever finished."

"What are you saying?" John was confused by the statement.

Scott sighed. "I don't know. After what's happened over the past few days, getting this operation off the ground just isn't important."

John heard a tone in Scott's voice that hadn't been there before. It was the slight ring of defeat, something he found very disturbing coming from his older brother.

"Aren't you giving up a little early?"

"How many family members do we have to lose before we realize that this is simply not meant to happen?"

"Meant to happen?" John kept his tone even, not wanting to start a fight with Scott. "You're talking like there is some sort of destiny-thing going on here."

"Maybe there is."

The cockpit was silent. John was taken aback by his brother's statement. Destiny was something one made. It was not to be waited for. Scott had been the one who taught him that, more through his actions than anything else. Time after time, Scott had taken matters into his own hands, rarely failing to turn the bleakest situations into happy endings. The medals stowed away in an old leather trunk were evidence of that talent.

The days of unavoidable circumstances were sapping his brother of his strength. The control had been forcibly ripped from him, leaving him a state of helplessness that none of the Tracy's thrived in.

"What makes you so sure that everything won't be fine?"

"I just have this feeling that those rescuers aren't going to find Dad." Scott turned around in his seat to face him. "I talked to the charter service that he was flying with. The weather was perfect, the pilot knew the route, and the plane was almost new."

"You and I both know, Scott, that planes crash for all sorts of reasons. Even the best pilots go down under the best of conditions. You've done it, I've done it."

"Do you seriously think Dad would let a plane go down on pilot error?" Scott asked, incredulously. "He'd just march up there and take over."

"What about a malfunction with the plane?" John asked. "Engine trouble can happen on new crafts. Just one defective part. . ."

"I'm telling you, something is up."

The fierceness of the statement surprised John. Scott had the best instincts of any person he knew. In all his life, he couldn't remember one occasion in which his older brother's gut feeling had ever been wrong. When he spoke like that, he was not to be ignored.

John looked at his older brother, feeling his eyes on him, begging unconsciously for the nudge he so desperately wanted from John.

"So why are we still sitting here talking about this?" he asked.

Scott stared at him. "What are you getting at?"

"Let's regain a little bit of control," John said slowly, a wicked grin appearing on his face.

Scott smiled as well. "Feel like taking a ride, Johnny?"

"Absolutely."

Without another word, Scott turned to face forward again and hit a series of switches along the left side of his seat. The cockpit lights snapped on. John heard the hum of the atomic fusion reactor that powered the ship as it warmed the thrusters beneath them. The navigation computer, radar, and safety systems began to come to life as the ship's mainframe ran through each of them and brought them on-line.

"You know," Scott said as he fastened his harness, "Dad is going to kill us for this."

"The idea is to have him here so that threat will be plausible," John said as he strapped himself in. "You think we ought to tell Brains what we're up to?"

"Nah. He'll only try to talk us out of it. Besides, he'll know." Scott pointed to the left. "His rooms are right through that wall."

The last indicator light flashed on, signifying the pool above them had cleared the opening for them to launch. They were ready to go.

"Last chance, John," Scott said. "Feel free to back out."

"Yeah right, so you can harass me later?" John snorted. "No way."

Scott pushed the controls forward and the thrusters roared to life beneath the craft. John felt the familiar pressure on his back as the rocket plane pushed away from the launch pad, breaking the earthly bond of gravity. He became aware of the fact that he was sitting on 140 tons of pure, unadulterated power.

Scott whooped as the craft shot through the gaping hole in the ceiling and John caught his brother's excitement. They had done it. There was no other sensation than the sheer thrill of careening through the air at an incredible speed. And it was unbelievable.

Having devoted many years to the design and construction of the sleek ship, both of them knew exactly what she was capable of. However, knowing and experiencing were two different things altogether. She was surpassing their wildest dreams, and they had only just taken off.

The rocket plane climbed to about 100,000 feet before Scott leveled her off. The seats rotated forward as Scott switched to horizontal flight. "Whoo!" he grinned. "That was something else."

John fought for control of his hammering heart and looked at his brother. There was no question about whose vehicle this was. It was as if Scott had been flying Rescue 1 all his life. He sat coolly in the pilot's chair, guiding the craft with ease.

John felt like a kid with a new toy. "Did Brains ever calculate how fast this thing can go?"

"15,000 miles an hour is the estimate," Scott replied. "What's say we keep it to 5,000, this being our first trip and all?"

"Only 5,000?" John said, mockingly. "Gee Scott, live a little."

The communication link crackled into life. "What is going on?"

"A voice from above," Scott quipped, looking around.

"Uh-oh," John teased. "Now you've done it. No stutter."

"Don't you pull that innocent act on me, John Tracy; you're just as guilty as I am."

John unfastened his restraints and stood next to Scott. His brother hit the call button and Brains' angry face appeared in the small screen on Scott's left. "Guess what, Brains, the on-board comlink works."

John groaned. Scott simply could not resist inflaming the situation, as if there wouldn't be enough hell to pay when they got back.

"Scott, what do you think you're doing?"

"John and I are going to find Dad."

"In Rescue 1?" Brains was exasperated. "Have you both taken leave of your senses? We have to test it first."

"I can't think of a better time to do that, Brains. Can you?" The other man was silent. "I've flown the search and rescue drill in the simulator a hundred times. You've got nothing to worry about."

"Simulators are not the same as reality."

"Yeah, we're very well aware of that." Scott smiled at John. "Look, Brains, I know you're right. . ."

"Then bring the craft back." It wasn't like Brains to be so forceful. That was only further proof of how livid he really was.

"Uhh, no," Scott replied.

Brains's ears began to get red. John wasn't sure if he was more concerned for them or the craft. The engineer had an attachment to everything he built that bordered on obscene.

"I must insist that you bring that craft back at once!" John heard a loud thump from the opposite end of the comlink and realized the engineer was stomping his feet.

"We have to do this," Scott said, trying to make Brains understand. "We can't just sit around anymore. You can help us out."

"I-I want no part of this, uh, suicide attempt." Despite the rude comment, the two brothers could tell he was calming down. If Brains were really upset, he would have simply cut the connection and let the two brothers hang themselves.

"I need your help up here, Brains." Scott kept an eye on the instrumentation in front of him. "You know the systems on this bird better than anyone else."

John could hear him muttering to himself.

"C'mon, Brains," Scott rolled his eyes. "Don't make me beg."

He sighed. "W-what is your ETA?"

"2 hours and 17 minutes." Scott replied.

"W-well, that should, uh, give us enough time to go over the root systems that you will n-need."

"Will we be able to keep contact?"

"The line of s-sight is pretty direct, Scott. The transmitters on the, uh, craft are more powerful than our wrist communicators. There should b-be no reason why not."

"Good," Scott looked ahead. "If Virgil calls you about Gordon, relay any messages to us immediately. Understood?"

Brains looked uncomfortable. "What should I, uh, tell Virgil when he calls?"

Scott thought for a minute and laughed. "Tell him I went for a drive."

Chapter Nine: Complications

"We have to be almost there." Jeff could barely make out Kai's form. A thick bank of fog had settled over the area just after the sun rose to warm the saturated forest. He looked up. He couldn't even see the lower branches of the trees they walked under and strained his ears for some sound of a plane. He still carried the flare gun, fresh cartridge loaded, just in case.

Kai stopped in front of him. "Going down that slope ahead ought to be oodles of fun in this." She pushed some of her thick damp hair back from her face. The fog encircled her as she moved, wisps flying as she waved her hands.

Jeff ran a hand through his own mop. The dampness of the air combined with the droplets of rain that fell from the trees to wet his clothes. A slight chill ran through his body in spite of his jacket. He began to move again for warmth.

Jeff swooped down and grabbed the pack Kai had set on the ground. "I'll carry this for awhile."

"I can carry it," she protested.

"So can I," Jeff settled the pack on his back. "It's time I pulled my own weight around here."

"Okay, whatever." Kai smiled as she studied the land around her. She stretched her back and shivered a little.

"You all right, kid?" he asked as they began to move on.

"I'm okay," Kai replied. "I'm taking a vacation after this, though. Aruba, maybe."

They moved on walking in companionable silence. The woods were quiet, depressed by the dreariness of the morning. It was eerie, and Jeff couldn't help but feel as though he were being watched. He spun his head around, and then turned to walk backwards to see behind him.

"Gus!" Kai made a grab for the dog as he burst past her in a blur of black and tan. He snarled and began to bark.

She gathered her muscles to go after him, but Jeff tackled her to the ground. "Hold on."

"Get off!" she yelled, her temper flaring. "I have to go get him."

Jeff slapped a hand over her mouth and used his body weight to hold her still. She squirmed and fought with him, making it hard for Jeff to listen and keep her subdued at the same time.

He didn't have to listen too hard. A short spattering of gunfire shattered the stillness of the morning, causing a flock of birds to leave their roosts noisily above them. His suspicions were correct. Someone was looking for them.

Jeff felt something warm and wet running down the back of his hand. He looked down to see Kai's eyes clenched shut, tears falling freely. He removed his hand and pulled her up from the ground. She stood beside him, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry, kid," Jeff apologized softly, knowing how much Gus had meant to her, "but we have to get out of here."

Kai nodded and began to move again, going as quietly as possible. The only signs of grief he was aware of were for the sniffles he heard as they went.

They were both knew that they were being hunted. Together they crept over the hill and started to move away from the general location of the shots. Kai was focused, determined not to be caught. She slid down the embankment and Jeff followed, thinking how glad he was for the fog now.

He hauled Kai behind a large boulder, when he heard a twig snap behind them. She knelt silently in front of him and watched as lanky, dark-haired man appeared over the hill they had just come down. He wore black coveralls, with a strange gold seal emblazoned on the left breast. His beady eyes scanned the area as he shifted an automatic rifle in his hands and walked off in the opposite direction.

"Where did he come from?" Kai asked, whispering.

Jeff pulled on her jacket, backing her away from the protection of the rock. "Looks like the Hood called in some friends."

"How did they get here so fast?"

"He's apparently slyer than I gave him credit for." Jeff felt like an idiot. "I should have guessed he would have some kind of transport waiting."

"Like a Land Skipper or a Hovercraft?"

Jeff nodded. "Something equipped to deal with the terrain and the weather."

He turned around and looked at the girl that tagged along behind him. His main concern was for Kai. She had been right earlier when she said Jeff probably wouldn't have been killed. She would be shot on sight just to get him to stop. He wasn't going to let that happen.

That thought was running through his head when he heard a splash of water in front of him and a loud oath. Someone had placed a foot wrong.

Jeff grabbed Kai's waist and all but threw her to the ground, kneeling down beside her. She was about to ask him what the hell he was doing when he covered her lips with his hand and mouthed 'opossum'.

She got the idea and closed her eyes, lying quite still.

The sound of a plane caused Jeff to look up for a brief second. He swore inwardly. That had been search and rescue, canvassing the area. There was nothing he could do about it. If he signaled them they would never get here in time. He went back to the situation at hand and slid the pack off.

"Do not move." A voice, thick with an accent said. Jeff looked up to see a second man with dirty blonde hair advancing on him, an assault weapon pointed straight at his chest.

"I give up," Jeff said, raising his hands from Kai.

The man raised a walkie-talkie to his mouth, his eyes not leaving Jeff for a second. "Master, we have them."

"Both of them?" A voice rasped slowly in response. "I want both of them alive!"

The man looked at Jeff. "Is she alive?"

"No."

Kai moaned softly and Jeff suppressed a scowl at her. His plan had been to leave her behind and hope she would find her way out of this on her own. Apparently, the girl had different ideas.

"You said she was dead!" the man yelled, though he seemed considerably relieved that Jeff had been wrong.

Jeff shrugged. "I thought she was."

"The girl is alive, but injured." The man spoke to his 'master' again.

"Excellent," the voice said cruelly. "Bring them both."

The dark-haired man ran up. "Mr. Tracy, I presume?" he gloated.

"Shut up," the other man said. "Get the girl."

The man approached, but Jeff reached down and picked up Kai first, hefting her against him. Her head rolled around and for a minute, he actually believed she was unconscious. The kid deserved an Oscar.

"You know the problem with this girl?" Jeff asked as he approached the dark haired man. "She's just too damned heavy!" He tossed Kai at the man who instinctively put out his arms to catch her, but the velocity with which she hit him knocked them both to the ground.

Jeff turned his attention to the man behind him, grabbing the barrel of the gun before he even knew what was happening. The stock of the weapon was jabbed into his rib cage with all the strength Jeff had. The man doubled over in pain. Jeff slammed him in the face with his knee. The blonde man fell down, out cold.

A cry of excruciating pain sounded behind him. Kai scrambled backwards as the dark-haired man clutched his crotch. Her hand found a rock as she stood. Yelling, she fell forward and cracked the man over the head with it. He fell over, temporarily out of his misery.

"Too damned heavy?" Kai asked breathlessly, throwing the rock to the ground hard to emphasize her words "Last night there wasn't enough of me to keep you warm and now I'm fat?"

"Sorry," Jeff replied, preoccupied with checking the magazine of the gun he now held in his hand. It was full. "Are you all right?"

"Dandy," she snorted, as she began to laugh. "Would you please just let me know before you toss me at a bad guy?"

"I thought you handled yourself well enough." Jeff reached down and grabbed the second gun. He stood to find Kai staring at him, hands on her hips. "What?"

Kai shook her head, switching the train of conversation. "So what next?"

"The Hood knows where we're going." Jeff said decisively. He pulled the clip off of the second gun and put the weapon back down. "I'm not about to simply walk into him. We have to find another way off this plateau." He looked at her, feeling the implicit trust that he placed in her abilities. "Can you do that?"

"I think so," Kai replied, "but I don't think its going to be easy."

"Well if things got easier we wouldn't know what to do with ourselves, would we?"

"I guess not."

Kai grabbed the canteen and first-aid kit from the pack and slung them diagonally across her shoulder. "We'll have to shift our course a bit, but we should still be in McPhereson by tonight."

Leaving the rest of the pack, she trotted off into the fog. Jeff followed quickly, carrying his arsenal. What he wouldn't have given for some rope to tie up those bastards. It didn't matter, he supposed. They would be dead when the Hood learned of their failure, if the reports about the criminal were true.

They picked up their pace, running silently through the forest. Jeff felt the thrill of adrenaline. It reminded him of days long gone, where he had been in similar situations. Though he had been an Air Force pilot, he still underwent the basics of ground warfare and land reconnaissance missions. It was training he had been glad of more than once.

Kai moved ahead of him with confidence, plotting a fairly straight course through the trees. Suddenly, she stopped short. "Slight miscalculation."

Jeff halted beside her and looked down the sheer wall of rock that disappeared in the mist below them. "Is there another way down?"

"I honestly don't know," Kai answered. "But if we go looking around, aren't we more likely to be found?"

"True." Jeff wanted to avoid a confrontation with this man at all costs. Hovercrafts could carry five people, pilot included. Those were not good odds. "How far down do you think it is?"

"Can't be more than 200 feet."

"Is that all?" Jeff asked sarcastically. He sat down on the edge, adjusting the gun so it sat on his back and out of his way.

Jeff was thankful for his five lively and active sons. Even in his fifties, he could still keep up with them admirably. Rock climbing was something he had taken up with John after Scott and Virgil had left for college. Losing his two oldest boys to adulthood had made him appreciate his younger children all the more. They had even rigged a climbing wall on one of the slopes of Tracy Island when John had moved in. Jeff spent many a-morning racing John up the steep northern face of the inactive volcano.

He looked down again in doubt. At home, he knew how far he was going and what lay below. There was also the added comfort of harnesses and safety lines. Fortunately, the slope below him wasn't as sheer as the one at home, but the drop would most certainly kill a person.

Sighing, he uttered the phrase that had become his motto for this trip.

"What the hell."

Kai sat a few feet from him, grinning. "Ready to go then?"

"Have you ever done anything like this before?"

"There's a first time for everything." Kai slid off the edge, turning quickly and landing on a ledge beneath her. Flattening herself to the rock, she began to look for holds down the cliff.

Jeff watched. She knew exactly what she was doing. He sighed again, and started down himself. Carefully, he tested rocks for use as handholds as he began to descend. Kai did the same across from him and they kept even as they went, each concentrating on what they were doing.

"Damn!" Jeff looked over to see a large rock bounce off the knuckles of Kai's hand. She lost her grip and the other hand hold she had just acquired crumbled in her grasp. She fought to hold on, but her feet went out from under her. She slid down the rock wall as more rocks came loose from above. The girl disappeared into the fog.

Jeff didn't yell for fear he would trigger a larger slide, but his heart leapt to his throat. He held tightly to the wall, pressing his body to the rock to avoid being knocked down as well. Quickly, but carefully he avoided the slide area and descended. After thirty more feet, he could see the sandy soil of a dry creek bed. He jumped down the last few feet, the incline of the bank giving way beneath him.

He looked around, damning the fog now. He couldn't see anything except the outlines of a few of the larger rocks that had fallen down with Kai.

Suddenly, nothing mattered but finding her. They had been through too much together to let it end like this.

"Oh, that was stupid," he heard a weak voice from across the way. Jeff jumped into the creek bed, the gravel crunching beneath his feet as he ran. Kai was getting shakily to her knees against the opposite bank.

"Hold still."

Jeff fell and slid to a stop beside her. He looked her over. A nasty scrape ran across her forehead. A few more cuts and bruises covered her hand and her jeans were torn above a superficial gash in her leg. His eyes lit on her left arm as she held it against her chest. Jeff could see from the angle that it was most definitely broken

Kai followed his gaze. "It doesn't hurt."

"Uh-huh." Jeff gently pried the limb away from her body. "It will as soon as your body figures out that it's broken." As he moved it, blood flowed from beneath her jacket sleeve. "Anything else busted?"

Kai shook her head and sat down on her butt. She slid the first-aid kit from around her body. Jeff snatched it and removed the scissors. He positioned himself so that his back was to Kai. Her arm ran under his so he could work without her seeing the extent of the injury.

He could hear her fighting to control her breathing as he gently began to cut the sleeve. Jeff revealed nothing in his manner when a glistening white shard of bone appeared, peeking out from beneath her skin

"How bad is it?" Her voice cracked a bit. The injury was beginning to hurt her, and Jeff jostling it was not helping.

"Not too bad." In truth, it looked horrible.

"You're a rotten liar," Kai whimpered as Jeff irrigated the wound with water from the canteen and quickly staunched the flow of blood as it poured from her body. He knew antibiotics would cause more harm than good. The damage was too extensive. Besides, if he wasted time, Kai would bleed to death before infection was a possibility. He covered the open wound with gauze and bound it tightly.

Jeff stabilized the injury, using two straight limbs from a nearby Oak sapling. "How are you doing, kid?"

"Great, let's arm wrestle."

He smiled. The mockery was a good sign.

Jeff used his sweatshirt to secure Kai's arm to her body.

"I don't feel so good." She had gone pale.

"I can't imagine why. You just fell down a cliff." He shook his head with indecision. "God, I don't want to risk moving you."

Her eyes reflected pain and determination. "Then leave me here."

"What?" Jeff exclaimed.

"Mr. Tracy, I am only going to slow you down." She sounded worn out. "Go without me and bring back help."

"That," he said sternly, "is not going to happen, young lady."

"It's not that far to McPhereson," she tried to reason with him, "If you go without me, you can make it there and back by tonight."

"Do you know what can happen in that amount of time?" he shook his head. "Sorry, kid. Either we stay or we go, but whatever we do, we do it together."

Kai sighed tiredly. "Stubborn man." She reached up with her right arm and pushed off his shoulder. Jeff stood up beside her, providing support. Her knees buckled, but he caught her.

"This isn't going to work," Jeff said. "You'll kill yourself."

"Give me a chance here," Kai said, looking up at him with a pain-drawn face. "I'll go as far as I can with you, and we'll regroup from there."

That translated to 'we'll discuss the leaving option when I can't keep up with you anymore.' It wouldn't happen, but he humored her. "All right."

Kai exhaled, and ordered her battered body to move. Jeff picked their supplies back up and followed her, silently willing her the strength to keep going.

Chapter Ten: A Chilling Discovery

"This 1-4-0-niner. The fog is still too thick, grid reference G-23. No sign of crash site."

"Roger, 1-4-0-9. Return to McPhereson airport."

"Roger, over and out."

The man in the co-pilot's seat looked out his window and did a double take. "What the hell is that?" An orange glow sped beneath them, swirling the fog as it moved at an incredible speed. It disappeared as quickly as it had come.

"What the hell was what?" The cranky pilot asked unenthusiastically.

"I saw something down there, next to the trees."

"You can't even see the trees," the pilot snorted. "That fog bank is over 300 feet high."

"There was this orange. . . "

"There is nothing down there, Charlie." The pilot cut him off and banked the plane back over the area. "We've been up all night. You're eyes are playing tricks on you."

"I'm telling you I saw something."

"Whatever, Charlie."

The small Cessna banked left and headed east, unaware that below them two men sat holding their breath.

"They're moving off," John said watching the radar scope.

"That was close." Scott raised Rescue 1 from the clearing he had set her down in. There was barely enough clearance for her stabilizing wings. "I thought for sure they spotted us."

"The fog isn't as thick as it was earlier," John replied from the passenger bench. "We have to hurry this up." Without the earth-bound cloud, the rescue operation would have been a constant cat-and-mouse game with Canadian SAR groups. As it was, they had already had to land twice now to avoid being spotted.

"Well, they've canvassed this area pretty thoroughly, so they probably won't be back for awhile." Scott's eyes were glued to the screen in front of him. The zero-visibility navigation computer was working wonderfully, but it had taken Scott a little while to become accustomed to trusting a machine to plot his course through the uneven terrain. There had been a couple events involving near-misses and a good deal of swearing. Hopefully, John and Scott could get the dents banged out of Rescue 1 before Brains was any the wiser.

"We're coming up on a lake, John," Scott called over his shoulder. "Hit the ultrasound."

John obeyed, reaching up next to Scott to turn on the sensitive equipment. They had considered all of the possibilities, unpleasant as they were. He felt like a ghoul, waiting impatiently for the echoes to return.

There was a loud ping! and John felt sick. Before his eyes, the computer screen flashed up the dimensions of a large metallic object resting on the lake floor.

"That's about right." Scott's voice was deadpan. He began to unfasten the safety restraints. "Take the controls, John."

John didn't move. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going down there."

"Scott, we don't have the equipment for that." The craft was air-worthy, but there was still a great deal of rescue gear they had yet to place aboard, including underwater breathing apparatus and wetsuits. "That water is 40 degrees."

"I'm only going to be in it for two minutes, tops," Scott told him. "You can lower me down with the winch."

"I don't like it."

"Johnny," Scott addressed him as he did whenever he was trying to reason with any of his little brothers. "We need to know if our search for Dad ends here."

Part of John didn't want to know. He just wanted to keep going, believing that their father was alive somewhere. The other part of him was reluctant to simply sit in Rescue 1 while his brother went to find out.

"I'll go," he said.

"You're staying here." Scott set the craft to hover so they could switch places.

"I'm the better swimmer," John protested. "I should be going."

Scott wasn't going to argue with him. "Chair, that's an order." He left the cockpit, shedding his sweatshirt and T-shirt as he went.

John was about to follow and continue the discussion when he felt Rescue 1 shift slightly. He launched himself at the controls before the wind off the water could push the craft anymore. Scott had outsmarted him.

John grumbled and looked at the ultrasound. He brought the craft to hover over the exact spot where the plane rested. He knew Scott was only trying to protect him the ugly possibility that lay below them. It was one of those irritating big brother things.

Rescue 1 handled beautifully as he brought her a scant 30 feet from the water's surface. He hit the ship's intercom. "How's it going, Scott?"

"Almost ready to go," Scott called back from the equipment bay of Rescue 1. "Just hold her steady."

He looked out the starboard viewport. The lake beneath them was deceptively calm, hiding the evidence of a tragedy within its depths.

"All right, John," Scott sounded grim. "Let's go."

Almost reluctantly, John reached for the switch marked "aft winch." A light flashed on the panel before him, telling him the rear hatch was open. There was a slight whir as the hydraulics of the massive winch kicked in. Steadily, it paid out the line.

"Hold it, John." John cut the power to the winch. "I'm down." Scott was now 30 feet below the ship, about to plunge into the frigid water. "It's time to test these communicators and determine if they're waterproof."

"Be careful, Scott," he said.

"I'll be back in two minutes." There was a slight exclamation of shock as Scott hit the water, then nothing.

The silence was overwhelming. John's knuckles went white as he gripped the controls of Rescue 1. The waiting was unbearable.

"You better get used to it, pal," he said into the emptiness of the cockpit. Deep down, he knew this was just a preview of coming attractions. John's official duty as an International Rescue agent was as space monitor aboard the satellite. It was to be a duty he would share with Alan, but knowing Alan as he did, John suspected he would be spending more time aboard Rescue 5 than his little brother. That was fine with him, giving him an opportunity that most astronomers would kill for. But it also meant that John would be little more than an onlooker as his brothers risked their lives on rescues. He had already been working for months to come to terms with that concept.

"R-Rescue 1 from base."

John turned to the comlink, glad of the momentary distraction. "Go ahead, Brains."

A snowy image of Brains appeared in the console. "H-how is it going, John?" The engineer looked exhausted, and John couldn't help but wonder if Brains would get fed up with them and quit after this.

John told him about their discovery.

"Scott just went down," he finished. "He should be back up in another minute."

Brains couldn't help but ask the question that had undoubtedly been burning in his mind ever since they took off. "H-how is, uh, Rescue 1 performing?"

John smiled and obliged him. "Great. The radar and the zero-visibility computer are working well. Believe me; Scott has been pushing them to their limits out here."

"Hold on, John." Brains disappeared and John heard the distinct beeping of the vidphone line.

Scott's voice came over the radio, his teeth chattering. "John, bring me in."

Sighing with relief, John hit the switch to haul Scott back up. He listened as the motor worked, pulling in the bight of heavy-gage cable. It stopped automatically when the cable was completely drawn in. "I'm onboard."

John set Rescue 1 into a circular flight pattern, tired of holding the ship steady. He concentrated on navigating the perimeter, waiting for his brother to get dressed and make an appearance in the cockpit.

After what seemed like hours, Scott finally came through the door. His hair was wet and he was flushed with the cold of the water.

"Well?" John asked anxiously, relinquishing the pilot's chair.

"He wasn't down there." Scott replied, breathlessly. He shivered as he grabbed the controls.

John reached behind the seat and fetched the emergency blanket. He threw it over Scott's shoulders. "Thanks," Scott wrapped himself tightly in the cover.

"So what's up?"

Scott stared at him. "There was a man down there," he looked forward again at the controls. "He was shot, John."

After momentary shock, John's mind raced through all the implications of Scott's news. "Someone tried to overtake the plane?"

"Looks that way."

"To kill Dad? Or kidnap him?"

"That's the million dollar question."

"He could still be alive."

"Yeah, or whoever shot the pilot could have stuffed Dad out the hatch." Scott shook his head. "He could be anywhere out here."

"What do you want to do?"

"Keep looking," Scott said. "The second most likely alternative is that Dad got away and is out here in the woods, somewhere."

They didn't discuss the first most likely alternative. "So we keep going?"

Scott nodded. "Until we know for sure what happened, I intend to operate under the assumption that Dad is still alive. He either survived the crash or he parachuted out."

John nodded. "I agree."

"John?" They looked at the comlink. "Oh, uh, hi Scott."

"Hi, Brains." Scott took a minute to fill their friend in on the situation. He ended up with, ". . . and you can bet that the next thing we equip all of these machines with is wetsuits."

Brains took the news gravely, listening to every detail. "D-did you scan the shoreline with the, uh, infrared scanner yet?"

"I'm doing that now." John spoke up. He had relocated himself to a small computer that controlled the hi-tech scanner. Infrared imaging was an old concept that had been used in the past by the military to track their enemies. Brains, being the evil genius that he was, had been able to come up with a scanner based on the same principles to detect the body heat of a missing or trapped person. He had also rigged it so that the scanner could be operated from Rescue 1. They could search ten square miles in a matter of seconds.

The screen came on, and immediately, John got hits on about 100 different targets. He recalibrated the instruments to exclude squirrels and moose, concentrating on readings that could possibly come from human beings. The screen went blank.

Scott began a slow circuit of the lake so John could have a chance to scan every inch of the sandy soil.

Brains continued as John kept his eyes affixed to the screen before him. "I just got a call from Virgil." He said. "I-I have, uh, some good news."

"Give it to us Brains," Scott prodded him. "We could use some good news."

"Gordon showed signs of awakening this morning," the engineer revealed. "H-he squeezed Alan's hand."

"Are you sure, Brains?" Alan had a habit of imagining things, especially if he were overly focused on the situation.

"G-Gordon seemed to respond to, uh, Virgil's voice."

John nearly leapt for joy. He contained it with effort and instead, he kept scanning."Already?" he asked as calmly as possible. "I thought they said he was comatose."

"It seems that the, uh, h-head injury was not as severe as previously thought." The happy tone in Brains' voice was unmistakable. "E-even still, the physicians are having trouble, uh, explaining it."

"You know Gordon," Scott laughed. "He probably heard those doctors talking and decided to prove them wrong."

"The quickest way to get him to do anything is tell him it's impossible," John quipped.

"They've, uh, scheduled a-another series of tests to determine the extent of the trauma."

John took a breath. "What about his back, Brains? If he's stabilized, can they start to repair his spinal chord?"

"I'm sorry, John," came the quiet answer. "V-virgil didn't mention it."

"One thing at a time, bro," Scott said reassuringly. "He's alive and apparently getting better. We'll cross the next bridge when we get to it."

Scott switched gears as he continued to pilot the ship. "So Brains, how's Virgil?"

"V-very upset," Brains replied. "He says he wants a-a word with you as soon as you get back."

"Is that all?"

"Virgil's version was, uh, a bit more colorful."

"I'll bet."

Brains cleared his throat. "H-he also wanted me to, uh, tell you that he would make it a point to d-discuss this with your father when you bring him home."

John smiled. Good old Virgil. He always knew exactly what to say.

Scott chuckled behind him. "If he calls back, tell him I'm looking forward to it." He signed off.

They finished searching the lake and Scott brought Rescue 1 to a halt again.

"Nothing," John said, his disappointment evident. "Where do we look next?"

"It's a crap shoot, Johnny. He could be anywhere out there." Scott looked over at him. "Pick a direction."

John raised an eyebrow. "We have to be able to do better than that. We can't just fly around out here, hoping to get lucky."

"We're already one step ahead of the search and rescue guys," Scott replied as he raised the ship. "We know where he crashed. Now the only question is, where the hell did he go?"

Chapter Eleven: Out in the Open

Jeff grabbed Kai's belt before the girl fell. She groaned and doubled over. Carefully, he settled her on the ground, propping her up against a tree. He looked at her arm. Crimson patches were appearing on the bandage. She was deathly pale, and sweat was pouring out of her body, despite the chilliness of the morning.

He reached up to her forehead. Heat rose to meet his touch. "You're burning up."

"Ah, that's exertion," she replied, leaning her head against the bark. "Just give me a minute." She fought to find her breath. The loss of blood was catching up to her.

"I think we've come as far as we can go." Jeff unscrewed the top off the canteen and handed it to her.

"I agree," she said, taking a swallow. "McPhereson is just over that ridge." She pointed. "Go get help."

"I've already told you what I thought of that idea."

"And I'm telling you to go." The vehemence was surprising from her. "I am slowing you down."

Jeff knelt down in front of her, looking straight in to the gray eyes. "Kid, for whatever reason, you're stuck with me. I'm not going anywhere."

The steeliness of her gaze melted and Jeff saw tears forming. "It's funny the way things work out. Yesterday, I couldn't stand you, and now. . ." she trailed off, regrouping and smiled. "I think I found it."

"What's that?"

Kai reached out with her good arm and wrapped it around his neck. "An opportunity in the difficulty." She whispered against him. "I've made a wonderful friend, no matter what else happens."

Jeff returned her embrace, pulling her body close to him. In only two days, this little snip of a girl, with her strange mix of stubbornness and compassion, fire and understanding, had come to mean so much to him. He owed her his life.

Somewhere, Kai found the strength to stand back up. "Let's get going, Mr. Tracy."

"Kai. . . "

"I can go a little further," she protested. "Now let's just go before I change my mind."

She sighed and moved forward again. Jeff followed, watching her carefully. She stumbled hard and Jeff reached out to steady her, again at the belt.

"It's a good thing I put that on," she kidded.

Jeff kept his hand on her, keeping her from falling as they went. She faltered more with every stride, but she kept her head high, visualizing her goal.

The trees opened up around them and they found themselves standing in a small glade. As the sun peaked through the lifting fog, Jeff caught the glint of metal in the light. The smell of spent jet fuel caught his nose, and suddenly he knew what he was looking at. They had stumbled across the hovercraft.

Before Jeff could move, Kai was ripped from his grasp. The girl's shriek was cut short as Jeff turned toward her.

The Hood was standing at the edge of the forest, with a large knife to Kai's throat.

"We meet again, Tracy." He smiled cruelly.

"Where the hell did you come from?" Jeff asked.

"I had been watching you for a while now, since the unfortunate mishap at the slope."

Jeff's eyes narrowed. "You sent that boulder down the cliff."

The smile widened. "It is a shame, isn't it, Tracy? Such a pretty young thing in so much agony."

He had her injured arm wrapped around behind her. Jeff could see she was in intense pain caused by the strong fingers on her arm. But there was something else in her face that the Hood couldn't see. Jeff knew it all too well; the look of absolute fury-driven determination.

The Hood took great pleasure in the pain he was inflicting on Kai. His eyes danced with sick amusement when the girl inhaled sharply.

It was too much for him. Unflinching, Jeff brought his weapon to bear. The voice was deep and evil, in every sense of the word. "You will have to kill her in order to kill me."

"I don't think so," Jeff replied.

He chuckled. "Those are not sharpshooter rifles: quite inaccurate and messy contraptions they are. You wouldn't want anyone to get caught in the crossfire"

He wasn't telling Jeff anything he didn't already know. "Let her go."

"Now, Tracy, why would I do that?" The Hood tightened his grasp, causing Kai to cry out slightly. "This little one has cost me too much to simply let her walk away."

"I'll kill you."

The knife pressed to the flesh of Kai's neck. "Not before I kill her."

"Then we're at a stalemate." The Hood never left his sights.

"Not necessarily," the malicious man drawled. "I would consider the possibility of releasing her, if a bigger prize were offered."

"Me, right?"

The Hood nodded. "We have much to discuss."

"We have nothing to discuss," Jeff spat back.

"Oh, but we do," the Hood was getting agitated at the resistance. "I want all the details of those fantastic machines you are building."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

The Hood didn't answer but twisted Kai's arm. She yelled, more out of anger than anything else, and began to struggle against him.

Jeff's mind reeled. He knew the man in front of him was a cold-blooded killer. He would think nothing of murdering Kai to get to Jeff. If he lowered his weapon and complied, there would be no more use for the girl.

The Hood began to move and dragged Kai towards the hatch of the hovercraft. Jeff followed him to get a clear shot, but the Hood stopped at the base of the ramp and put the girl between him and the rifle. "We are going on board now," he said. "You have one minute to join us, or the next time you see this little one, it will be in pieces."

He began to haul Kai up the ramp, but the girl was fighting hard against him, ignoring him as he twisted hard on her arm. All she felt now was the anger and survival instinct. With everything she had left, she slammed her body against the Hood.

Kai caught him off guard. She felt the hold on her neck slacken as he lost his balance on the steep ramp. She threw herself to the right. A shot rang out, whizzing past her ear. The Hood roared as the bullet tore through his shoulder. Kai fell off the ramp.

By the time Kai had cleared the hovercraft, the Hood had disappeared into the ship. Jeff heard the distinct click of a magazine being loaded into an automatic. He ran across the ground and grabbed Kai, dragging her in to the cover of the forest. A volley of bullets rang out behind them, tearing into the bark of the trees. The Hood was sparing none of his ammunition.

Jeff turned and answered with gunfire of his own. The Hood threw himself on to the ground.

"Oh no," Kai's words caused him to turn back around. "We've found the river again."

Jeff took cover behind a large tree, surveying the landscape. To the left was nothing but an open flood plain, washed flat by the previous night's torrent. The river wound behind them to the right, still raging with the rain from the storm. There was no escape and they were trapped.

"Tracy," the Hood's voice called a smug tone in his cruel voice. "It is very simple. I have you cornered. . ."

"He's right so far," Jeff said to Kai, who knelt beside him.

". . . if you come out now, I will make your execution quick."

Movement on the rocky hill behind the Hood caught Jeff's eyes. Just movement, the source of which was still lost in the fog. It vanished quickly among the forest. He blinked and then squinted. His eyes were playing tricks on him.

"I thought you wanted to talk."

There it was again, closer this time, taking on a human shape. Someone was stealthily making their way towards the Hood. The movements were very familiar. The catlike quietness was unmistakable as the person hunkered down in a rock outcropping. He knew that shadowy figure.

It was John and he was armed. Jeff chuckled slightly and Kai looked at him like he had lost his mind. "Stick with me, kid," he said. "The cavalry is here."

"I am done with you, Tracy," the Hood was yelling again. "Any information I want, I am sure I can find other sources for."

Jeff knew what that meant. The Hood would go after his family.

"I'll tell you something," Jeff countered. "You're welcome to try, but what you're going to learn in about three seconds is that nobody messes with the Tracy's."

A well-aimed warning shot sent wet dirt into the Hood's face. "Give it up!" John yelled strongly.

Through the scope John saw the man turn and slap another magazine into the automatic.

"Shit!" He ducked out of the way as the bullets ricocheted off the stone around him.

"You will pay for that!" The man yelled up at him angrily. "I can outlast you. I have more firepower."

John popped over the rocks again and sent off another round. The bald man was under cover. Neither John nor Jeff could get a clear shot at him.

John slid back down as a slight spattering of gunfire was sent first in his direction than his father's. He peered over the stones, watching his adversary closely. This could go on for hours, and John had no clue if his father was injured or not. Just because Jeff Tracy was fighting back didn't mean he wasn't bleeding to death.

John keyed up on the wrist communicator. Scott's voice sounded. "What's going on down there?"

"You were right, as usual," John replied, still watching the Hood as he spoke. "One of those other two targets from the scanner is trying to kill Dad."

"Can you neutralize him?"

"This guy is certifiable," John said. "I made the mistake of asking him to come quietly."

John dropped his hand to his rifle again and fired. The man had vied for a better site below him, moving towards his father's position. He leapt back quickly, reciprocating John's action.

"John!" Scott called, hearing the exchange.

"I'm right here, Scott," John stated calmly. Now Scott knew how John had felt earlier. "I've got him pinned, but he has Dad and me, likewise."

"What's he packing?"

"One of those new JE-50's the Army is so proud of. This could go on forever."

The man had changed tactics. He darted from the rocks to a large tree, moving up the hill towards John, labeling him as the most immediate threat.

"Oh, no you don't," John muttered. John targeted the man through the scope again, waiting for him to show his face. But he didn't.

"Who are you?" The low voice bounced off the rocks. "Not Search and Rescue, you are much too good for that."

"I'm a hunter," John shouted back. "Heard all the noise over here and found you shooting at someone."

"You lie," the Hood came back. "What would you be hunting with a high powered precision assault rifle?"

"Grouse," John replied. The thought of hunting those little ground game birds with the weapon in his hands was laughable. There wouldn't be anything left but a hole in the earth where the grouse had been standing.

"Indeed," the man sneered. "I find it more likely that you are perhaps one of the men involved in Mr. Tracy's project. Maybe even one of his own children."

John didn't let any surprise enter his voice as he shouted back. "I don't know what you're talking about, but if you put that thing down, maybe we can discuss it."

"There will be no more discussion. I want the secrets of your organization, now!" The man leapt from behind the tree, rolling for cover behind another closer to John, shooting as he went. The quick reflexes surprised John and his shot came too late.

"You want International Rescue's secrets, mister?" John muttered to himself, calling Scott again. "We'll give them to you."

The Hood began to cackle madly. Jeff gripped his rifle tightly. The only sound to be heard was that of the Hood. John had gone quiet and Jeff had no idea if his son had been hit.

A warm wind blew up sharply, bending the trees with its force and carrying away the wicked sound. Jeff's eyes never left the Hood as the wind became a gale, blowing hard against his back. The sound of a powerful engine came from behind him, but still he did not turn.

Jeff recognized the sound of a Gattling gun as the ground exploded in front of the Hood in a perfectly straight line. The man fell back, staring into the sky above him in awe.

He chanced a look behind him. The mists swirled and cleared as the dark shadow descended upon them like a massive bird of prey. Flames spewed forth, filling the air with the smell of fire and the feeling of raw power. Finally, the familiar hull of the rescue craft became visible, her silver skin gleaming in the intense daylight that had broken through the fog.

He looked back towards the Hood. The man had disappeared through the woods, driven back by the powerful Rescue 1. The sound of John's rifle cracked as he tried to bring the Hood down before he escaped. Jeff pushed away from the tree. Nobody shot at him or one of his sons and got away with it. This ended now. He had to get to the Hood before he made it to the hovercraft.

Jeff lit out through the forest at full speed, leaping fallen trees and rocks. He could not see the evil man before him. Determined, he moved faster, muscles in his legs pumping. The fever to achieve his goal pushed him to go faster.

By the time he made it back to the clearing, the boosters on the hovercraft were already lifting it into the air. Jeff raised the rifle and emptied the magazine, but to no avail. The craft turned, and Jeff could see the Hood at the controls. The look on the man's face was pure hatred as the thrusters fired and propelled the hovercraft away from him.

Jeff stood and put his hands in his pockets, watching as the orange glow of the thrusters faded. The bastard was gone and, for right now, there was nothing he could do about it.

"Dad!" He turned, only to be nearly knocked down by the force of his eldest son running into him. He folded his arm around Scott. "God, Dad, you scared the hell out of us."

Hugging was not something the Tracy's did on a regular basis, but there were times when nothing could substitute for one of his son's embraces. This was one of those times.

Jeff clapped his son on the back and he let go. "It sure is good to see you, son." One of Scott's famous half smiles lit up his face. "How in the hell did you find us?"

"Dumb luck," Scott replied. "John came up with the idea that you might follow the creek out of the crash site if you were in a hurry."

Jeff shook his head. "That damn river. It got us in to more trouble than anything else."

"It got you found, Dad." They began to walk back towards the river. "Who was that guy?"

Jeff waved off the question. "We need to have a long talk about that, but for right now, we have more important issues to concern ourselves with."

When they arrived back at the river bank, John was kneeling down beside Kai, inspecting her arm critically. "We need to get you to a doctor."

John reached down and scooped Kai up. "You aren't going to throw me at anybody, right?" she asked as she put her good arm around John's neck and settled against his chest.

John smiled down at her quizzically. "What?"

"Never mind," she told him tiredly.

As he turned, John noticed his father standing before him. "Dad! I came down here looking for you. Did you get him?"

Jeff shook his head. "We'll worry about him later." He folded his arms across his chest and eyed his two sons. "All right, boys," he said harshly, "whose idea was this?"

"John's," Scott answered quickly as he picked up John's rifle. Jeff was glad he had insisted on arming the ship as soon as it was operational.

John's eyes went wide as he carried Kai towards Rescue 1. "Mine?"

"Yours," Scott replied. "Who snuck out of the cockpit before I got a chance to move?"

"Paybacks suck, huh, Scott?"

"See, Dad, I told you it was his idea."

Kai's weak laughter brought the argument to a halt. "I think it was a wonderful idea, personally."

"Then it was mine," John announced before Scott could say a word.

Jeff walked beside John and looked at Kai. She was pale and exhausted, as the last effects of adrenaline ebbed from her body. "We're going to get you to McPhereson, kid. You'll be there in five minutes."

Kai looked towards the silver craft that sat on the flood plain and then back at Jeff. "That does answer a few questions," she said. "So what exactly is this, Mr. Tracy?"

Jeff patted her knee as they began to move up the ramp. "This, my dear, is a Thunderbird."

Jeff burst through the doors of the San Diego Naval Hospital with Scott and John in tow. He had done it, he had finally made it. The sea of people parted before him, clearing a path for the powerful, determined man. He had only one goal in mind. Nothing else mattered.

Distantly, he heard the desk nurse begin to complain about such a dirty disheveled man entering her sterile environment. To Jeff, her voice was little more than a fly buzzing around his head.

Scott pointed him in the direction of Gordon's room. As he entered the dimly lit cubicle, Virgil leapt from the chair beside the bed. Jeff went to him first, giving Virgil a quick squeeze to the shoulder.

Virgil moved to the side and offered Jeff the chair that he had previously occupied. Jeff sat down, taking in the tubes and the heart monitor, looking up at the IV that dripped fluid into his son's body.

Carefully, he picked up Gordon's hand, holding it gently between his own. "Gordon? Can you hear me son?"

To his amazement, Gordon's eyes cracked, revealing the unique amber color of his eyes. Jeff leaned in close. "I'm right here, boy."

The corners of Gordon's mouth twitched, despite the respirator tube taped in place over his mouth. Jeff felt his long fingers curl over and squeeze his hand ever so slightly.

Gordon's eyes closed again slowly and he drifted off into a drug-induced sleep. Jeff looked around at the rest of his sons. Alan, who had joined them as they stormed the ICU, now stood between his two oldest brothers, with Scott's arm wrapped protectively around his shoulders.

John stood across from Jeff, watching his brother sleep quietly. He looked over at his father and smiled. They were going to be all right.

All of them.

Epilogue

"Gordon, don't you dare!" Virgil yelled, but it was too late. His younger brother took a flying leap off the end of the diving board, pulling his knees up as far as his still-healing body would allow. He hit the water not far from Virgil, who ducked beneath the waves to avoid the splash.

The two surfaced almost simultaneously. "Damn it, Gordon! You could have hurt yourself."

"Ahhh," Gordon held up a philosophical finger. "Could have, but didn't."

"Don't do that again."

"You gonna stop me?" He asked as he made for the ladder leading from the water.

"Absolutely." Virgil grabbed him only as roughly as he dared and hauled him back into the pool.

The two brothers screamed and fought for a full five minutes before Jeff felt he had to step in.

"Gordon!" Jeff yelled from the deck of the villa.

"Yes, sir?" Both of them stopped and looked up.

"Quit horsing around in there," he called back angrily.

"Yes, Dad," Gordon yelled cheerily.

He watched as the two brothers each grabbed an end of an inflatable raft, lying on it and began talking quietly to each other. It had been five months and, finally, things seemed to be getting back to normal. Well, normal for Tracy Island anyway.

Gordon had come home only a few weeks before, armed with sufficient candy to keep them all going for a month. He had received hoards of chocolate and enough cards from the female staff of the hospital to fill an accordion folder. Jeff had the strange feeling that a vast majority of them really hated to see Gordon leave.

He had been making a conscious effort to stop hovering over his son, though Gordon accepted it well enough. He was getting stronger everyday, making it a point to take short walks on the beach with either his father or John, depending on who was free. They would move slowly, Gordon setting the pace. Each day they would go a little further before turning around to head back to the villa.

Gordon's WASP career was over, and Jeff knew that his son felt that deeply. He had been planning to spend at least another year in the submarine service. He had accepted it though, especially when the others unveiled Thunderbird 4 upon Gordon's arrival home. They all had thrown themselves into finishing the craft before Gordon was released. Scott and Virgil had made a great show of ripping the drop cloth off the mini-sub, painted that bright hazard yellow that had been picked out.

He had laughed and embraced his brothers. With their assistance, he had managed to climb in the hatch of the sub and sit at the controls. It had taken hours to get him back out again as he kept asking Brains to explain all of the systems and capabilities of the craft.

After they had coaxed him from the sub, Gordon first noticed the craft's call sign. He turned around for one last glance at his new toy and saw the large black letters across the back.

THUNDERBIRD 4

"Dad?" he asked quizzically.

"Let me tell you a story, Gordon. . ." Jeff had put his arm around Gordon's shoulders, and they left the hangar together.

"Calling Tracy Island." Jeff turned around, a familiar voice breaking his musings. A red light blinked on the receiver built in to his desk. "Anybody home?"

Jeff looked toward the east, grinning at the approach of a small plane. He turned and went inside. "This is Tracy Island. Good to see you, kid."

"You, too," Kai replied. "The only problem is I have to bring way too many clothes whenever I come back here from Barrow."

"It is a bit of a climate difference." Jeff watched through the glass doors as the plane grew in size. "You're late, by the way."

"That would be the stopover in Hawaii." Jeff could hear the girl smiling as she gave him a hard time. "I brought you a grass skirt. Am I cleared to land?"

"Yes, see you in the hangar."

"Roger."

Jeff rose from his desk, noting that the sounds of splashing had resumed with more intensity than before. He let them go, trusting that Virgil would put an end to the roughhousing if it became too intense.

He met Kyrano in the hall as he left the lounge. The older Malaysian man bowed slightly. "Lunch will be served in just a few minutes, Mr. Tracy."

Jeff smiled at his friend. It had taken quite a bit of convincing to get Kyrano to come to the Island. He had been a godsend to the household, helping them organize their lives so that International Rescue could run smoothly.

"Better set two extra places, Kyrano," Jeff said. "Brains and Kai are back, and they're probably anxious for some good food after being stuck in the arctic for three months."

The gentle man smiled slightly at the compliment and moved back to the kitchen.

By the time Jeff reached the hangar, the propeller of the plane was winding down. He greeted Brains first as the young scientist disembarked. "How was the trip, Brains?"

"I-It was good, Mr. Tracy." Brains looked a little sick, in spite of his testament. He could fly himself but always seemed to suffer from airsickness whenever he was in the passenger's seat.

Jeff decided to use the situation. "I know, Brains; flying with Kai is definitely the test of a steel stomach."

"I heard that." Kai appeared from the far side of the plane. Jeff was struck by how tired she looked. Maybe sending her along with Brains wasn't such a good idea. "Flying with you is no picnic."

Jeff recovered as Kai gave him a quick hug. "How are you doing, kid?"

"All right, I guess." There was very little enthusiasm in her.

Jeff let the subject drop for the moment. "Everything done?"

"Yes, Mr. Tracy," the scientist replied. "The a-arctic relay station is, uh, complete."

"We even tested it for you." Kai seemed to perk up as she began to talk about the project she had been working on with Brains since the day she had come to Tracy Island. She reached in to the plane and withdrew a folder. "This came in from your Russian contact just before we left."

Jeff took the folder and flipped it open. There was a picture of a strikingly beautiful blonde woman clipped to a thick packet of papers. "Very nice."

Kai chuckled. "Also very persistent. That is Penelope Creighton-Ward, London's top British Secret Service operative."

Brains took over as Jeff skimmed the dossier. "She was, uh, r-responsible for toppling a drug ring last year and, and an illegal s-smuggling operation only, uh, two months ago."

"And now she is investigating the rumors of an international rescue operation," he finished for them.

"You better head this on off at the pass, Mr. Tracy," Kai told him. "She's a lot sharper than those CIA guys you fleeced."

"You're right," Jeff said. "But right now, I'm starving and Kyrano has prepared lunch."

Brains headed eagerly for the lift that would take them to the house, but Kai followed more slowly. Jeff fell in step beside her. "What's bugging you, kid?"

She waved a hand at him. "Nothing, long trip, I guess." She smiled and looked up at him hopefully. "Is John around?"

"He went with Scott and Alan to begin construction on the satellite." He hid a smile as her disappointment became clear. "They should be back this afternoon."

Jeff watched Kai as they ate lunch. Gordon and Virgil had been happy to see her again, and she clowned with them all during the meal. It always amazed Jeff how easily she got on with his sons, not the least bit intimidated by their rambunctious tendencies.

Kai had come to Tracy Island after she was released from the hospital. Jeff had insisted that a change of scenery would do her good, and John had greeted her in Calgary after two surgeries to repair the damage to her injured arm. Jeff had hoped that the island would grant her a peaceful haven. It was very quiet while the Tracy's spent most of their time on the mainland with Gordon.

He had given up on that thought when he had returned home, only to find Kai one-handedly assisting Brains as he installed an automatic camera detector in Thunderbird 1. She was drawn to the hangars like a magnet, and since she had already learned so much about IR, Jeff saw no harm in it. She was keeping herself busy, and for Kai, that was an important thing.

Her help had been crucial in getting the relay station built so quickly. She enjoyed the colder climes of the north and got on well with the inhabitants, understanding their ways better than any of the rest of them could, thus getting them much need supplies and materials. Kai had suggested the property outside of Barrow, which while remote, still allowed a person living on the grounds access to the city by a short plane ride.

Brains, along with Lynn Becker, a communications engineer that John had known at Harvard, had built the small, inconspicuous relay, giving them a failsafe in case anything ever went wrong with IR's satellite system, and allowing them to gather information more quickly from all over the world. Lynn, liking the solitary life of the north, said she would stay on if Jeff wished. He had agreed.

Abruptly, Kai excused herself from the table after listening to one of Gordon's awful jokes. Jeff watched as she picked up her plate full of barely touched food and moved to the kitchen. She came back a moment later. "I'm going down to the beach for a while. See you guys later."

"I didn't think it was that bad," Gordon said after Kai had left the room.

"It was," Virgil replied, rising from the table himself.

"Brains," Jeff turned to the scientist. "Was she like that the entire trip?"

Brains shook his head. "O-only the last few days before we left. She became very quiet."

"What do you think, Dad?" Virgil asked as he returned.

"I don't know," Jeff rose from the table, "but I intend to find out."

He went down the stairs and left the villa through the doors that opened out on to the beach. To his left, he could see Kai walking slowly along the surf.

Jeff called to her, walking up swiftly. She stopped and turned, smiling at his approach. "Gordon was worried that you didn't like his joke."

She frowned slightly. "It was pretty bad."

"He does have a few of those."

"Did I hurt his feelings?" Kai adored Gordon, ever since she had come to see him in San Diego.

Jeff shook his head. "I think he was worried that he'd hurt yours."

She smirked, "How can a 'two ducks walk into a bar' joke be offensive?"

"He was just concerned. So what's new with you?" Jeff asked as they began to walk along together.

"I was in the artic for three months, there isn't much to tell since the last time I saw you."

"Did you get along well with Lynn?"

"Oh yeah. She was a little quiet at first, but we got to talking. She's pretty sweet."

"I thought maybe you didn't get on well with her or Brains."

"We got along fine."

Jeff sighed. This wasn't the same person he had talked to three months ago. "Well, something's up. Are you going to tell me?"

He waited her out, watching as she stared at her bare feet. "I got a job in Denver, flying freight for a small company."

He raised his eyebrows, "I thought you were going back to High Level."

"I don't think I would be a very good charter pilot anymore." She stared up at Jeff. "Do you know how many times I made Brains check the plane before I took off? Four times."

"So you were thorough," Jeff said, though he knew what she meant.

"I had him looking for the Hood, Mr. Tracy. What charter service is going to want a paranoid nut flying its passengers around?"

There was more to this than Kai's choice of careers. As much as he wanted her to get on with her life, he got the distinct impression she was having a hard time with it. "What's really bothering you about this job in Denver?"

Kai crossed her arms across her body, staring out to sea. "It's boring," she finally answered. "How can I be happy ferrying around tourists or freight after the things I've done?" She gave him a concerned look. "Am I some kind of closet thrill junkie?"

Jeff chuckled at her. "I don't think that's it, but perhaps you have discovered something else about yourself."

"What?"

"That you truly enjoy helping other people." Jeff rested a hand on her shoulder, "and that has become an important part of your life in the past months. You've been working with us, flying in parts and supplies to Barrow. You like to be needed."

Kai considered his words for moment. "So what am I supposed to do about it?"

"I have a proposition, Kai, if you're willing. How would you like to go back to Barrow and stay with Lynn?"

"Just. . ." Kai waved a hand. "Sit there?"

Jeff laughed. "Certainly not. You'd be working for me. I'd expect you to relay information, do a little flying for me. We're almost done with the Thunderbirds, but those machines are going to need parts eventually. I need someone to pick them up to bring them here. You'd be perfect."

She laughed. "I'd still be flying freight, though."

"I'm sure we can find other things for you to do." Jeff studied her. "I need as many friends as I can get to help me right now, Kai. An extra set of eyes, especially those of someone I know I can trust, would be very much appreciated."

"Like what?"

"I'll tell you later," Jeff replied. The sound of rockets firing over their heads caused them to look up. The red hull of Thunderbird 3 gracefully slid from the sky as the rocket gently settled into the hangar below the roundhouse. "For now, I think someone has just traveled a long way to see you."

Kai smiled as they began to walk back towards the villa.

The lift from Thunderbird 3 to the villa seemed to take longer than usual to make its long track through the hangars of the villa. John began to tap his knee impatiently.

"Would you stop?" Scott said next to him. "You've been fidgeting since we left the station."

"I never fidget," John replied.

"I think you are now," Alan told him from the opposite end of the couch. It was crowded with all three of them on it.

"Be quiet."

"Now, now," Scott chided, grinning. "Alan knows fidgeting when he sees it." John gave him no response. "This wouldn't have anything to a fiery brunette who is supposed to be back from the arctic today, would it?"

"Kai and I are just friends," John said evenly. He had rehearsed the line many times.

"Uh-huh," Scott smiled devilishly. "That's why you nearly killed us on re-entry to get back here."

"I did not nearly kill us."

"I beg to differ," Alan snorted.

"You simply have no faith in my abilities."

"You've got it so bad, little brother," Scott teased as the couch stopped momentarily before the hydraulics lifted it into the lounge.

"I haven't got anything."

The couch came up through the floor of the lounge, depositing Scott, Alan, and John within the house. The chatter between them immediately stopped when John saw Kai leaning on their father's desk.

He stared at her. She smiled back, a smile she reserved especially for him. "Did you forget about me?" she asked playfully.

Scott got off the couch first grabbing Kai in a friendly hug. "I didn't forget," he said. "But I'll bet John did." He turned Kai so he could make a face at his brother over her shoulder.

John sat on the couch, quietly shaking his head. His brothers teased him incessantly about claiming his territory with Kai. The easiest way to deal with them was not to bait them and simply let them wear themselves out

For a while he had wondered if the attraction he felt for her had been brought about by the situation. Gordon had called it "Knight in Shining Armour" syndrome, in which the hero slays the dragon and falls for the damsel in distress. John had found out quickly that this was not the case with Kai Taylor.

Scott let her go and, after Alan greeted her, he looked at John, his deep blue eyes twinkling. "Alan and I have to go check on a few things," he said, directly at John. "If you need anything, we'll be in the hangar."

"We will?" Alan looked confused. "What do we have to do down there?"

Scott grabbed him roughly at the shoulder, steering him from the room. "I'm going to accidentally kick over an oil drum and you can help me clean it up."

John turned and watched them leave. When he looked back to Kai, he found her scrutinizing him from head to toe, taking in the light blue clothes and purple sash. This was the first time she had seen him in his uniform.

His ice blue eyes met her gray ones. "It looks good on you." She came forward and wrapped her arms around him. He returned the embrace, resting his chin on the top of her head. "I missed you."

"I missed you, too,"

John felt giddy. "Really?" he asked stupidly.

"Yes, really," Kai laughed. "I've been stuck in Alaska for months."

"Oh, well, thanks," Of course she had missed him; she'd probably missed all of them.

"What?" Kai asked, feeling him stiffen.

"Kai, are you in the lounge?" John looked up to see Gordon in the doorway. "Hi, John!"

"Hey, Gordo," John replied, reluctantly letting go of Kai. Despite his little brother's intrusion, John couldn't be angry with him. It was nice to see him so full of life again.

Gordon moved slowly into the lounge, still limping a bit, with a cardboard tube in his hand. "I've wanted to give you something," he said to Kai. He handed over the tube.

"What is it?" Kai asked warily. She was not unaware of Gordon's tendencies toward practical jokes.

"Open it up." Gordon plastered on one of his most sincere smiles.

She pointed the end of the tube towards the wall and removed the plastic lid. To both John and Kai's surprise, nothing happened.

He gave them both a wounded look. "That really hurts, you guys."

"Well, what do you expect from people when you put a snake in their bed?" Kai asked.

John chimed in, "or fill the sugar container with salt?"

Kai began to launch in on him again but Gordon held up his hands in defeat. "The defense rests. Geez!"

Kai upended the tube and out slid a large laminated poster. She unrolled it and began to laugh. It was one of the official 2020 Olympic posters featuring Gordon on the podium, waving at the throngs of people around him, gold medal gleaming in the spotlights. In the background was a picture of the pool, showing a shot from the last leg of the finals. Gordon had even autographed the bottom. "To my number one fan from White Oak, Montana, Love Gordon."

Kai hugged him. "Your Dad told you about that, huh?"

"Yeah." Gordon grinned. "I had no idea I still had admirers out there."

"Thank you, Gordon," Kai carefully rolled the poster back up and put it back in the tube. "I will always treasure this."

"You're welcome," Gordon stood between them, smiling. He looked from Kai to John and then back again. "I'm interrupting something, aren't I?"

Kai bit her lip and looked at the floor and John felt himself go three shades of red. Gordon took the hint and backed towards the door. "I'll see you guys later."

"Little brothers," John said when Gordon was gone.

Kai moved closer and used the cardboard tube to slap him lightly on the butt. "You wouldn't trade him for the world and you know it."

"I think I got ripped off anyway. I asked Dad for a hamster, and I got Gordon instead."

To his surprise, Kai turned and put her arms around his neck. "I really did miss you, you know," she said softly.

"Didn't you miss everyone? Gordon, Dad, Scott, Virgil. . ."

"Not like I missed you."

He leaned his head against hers. Her hair smelled of the sea. "You really missed me?"

"Yes, she really missed you!" Gordon's voice came from the hall. "Now would you hurry up and kiss her already?"

John began to pull away from Kai, embarrassed, but she grabbed a hold of the sash, keeping him next to her. Smiling, he wrapped her in his arms and pulled her closer. Softly, he touched his lips to hers. The contact was timid at first, but it became more confident. Kai responded kissing him back with a passion she had never felt with anyone else before. It sent electricity through her body, awakening every sense.

When they parted, John looked back at her. "How long are you staying?"

"A few days," she replied, leaning against him, feeling as safe and warm in his arms as the day he had carried her from the forest.

"That's not too long," John grinned at her. "I guess we'll just have to make the most of it."

"Yes," she agreed, smiling back "I guess we will."