Chapter 117: Sometimes we all need someone to yell at someone for us

“I’m going to wring his fucking neck when I next see him.” It was a warning from a rather pissed off sounding Ellie Woods. Brent felt a rather distressed, but light laugh leave his lips. He was still sat on the toilet seat in Aunt Dina’s bathroom on the main floor of her apartment.

Honestly, having this conversation with them felt rather surreal. Having any kind of conversation like this with anyone older than him was…something that Brent never expected to have.

He thought that he might have this conversation with Kellen, maybe, but he also knew that Kellen wouldn’t threaten Sergei openly like this. He’d do it far more stealthily. He had a feeling it was out of respect for Sergei, less so for Brent.

Brent smiled at the thought, even as Henry tried to calm down his wife.

“Ellie, I don’t think wringing the neck of a Captain is going to win you any brownie points with the civilians. You’ll have to take him into a gate. That way no one will question it when he comes out injured.” Brent let out a bark of laughter at the calm way Henry said it. Brent would have missed it if he hadn’t caught on to where Kellen got his deranged temperament from.

It wasn’t his Mother, that was for sure. Both kids had turned out more like their father, for better or for worse.

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t take him into a gate to beat him up. I think he’d go in willingly because he trusts you two. Even if one of you may or may not be invisible at the time.” Brent joked. “Honestly, I’m not quite sure how it happened, nor am I quite sure if it…is what I think it is. I’m actually terrified.” Brent rushed quickly. He paused, then groaned. “I shouldn’t have said that.” Brent muttered into the quiet on the other side. “I just know you two are going to think he’s forcing me or something.”

The silence on the other end of the phone was long, before Henry let out a slow exhale.

“Well, I think if I was speaking from just the first impression I got from you when I first met you in person and I hadn’t interacted with you anymore after that, yes. I would be worried. However, that’s not the case.” Henry said slowly. “For all of his stubborn faults, Sergei isn’t…like the S Classes overseas. He’s far too much like the rest of the S Class Espers that run the rest of the city. He’s similar to Rhys, which is why they butt heads so much.” Henry admitted, if not a little begrudgingly. Brent felt his lips curl up into a smile at that.

So, as much as they approved of Rhys now, they still had their doubts about him. Probably always would. Kellen was their first born after all, and would always be their precious son. No one, S Class hero or otherwise, would ever be good enough for him.

“Tragically, the man is a hard worker. I just wish he’d stop piercing himself.” Ellie muttered, and it was one of the few things that she had ever said that made Brent think that she was older than she appeared.

Brent snorted, before he couldn’t hold it in anymore and he just started laughing loudly.

“I can’t believe you just said that.” Brent said, unable to stop his laughter. It felt a little too hysterical, but honestly? He’d earned this. He was wheezing by the time that he had finally gathered himself enough, and someone was knocking at the bathroom door. “I’m fine.” Brent called, pulling the phone from his ear so that he didn’t deafen the two on the other side.

“You better be!” Aunt Dina warned from the other side, and Brent’s face hurt from how wide he was smiling.

“Oo. I think I needed that.” Brent said, settling himself against the toilet seat again. The tank behind him was warm from his own body heat at this point, and Brent just sat there, shaking his head, his sides hurting from his own laughter. “It’s been rough over here.” Brent admitted.

“I wish we could be there with you, or that we could send someone over there to be with you, but with-”

“-It’s okay.” Brent cut off Ellie, knowing exactly what she was going to say. “You don’t have to explain it to me, of all people. I get it. I wouldn’t want you to put yourselves in danger right now. I’d rather you guys focus on getting everyone to safety, and healthy, and then maybe I can do the reverse and go to you guys?” Brent’s voice was hopeful, even as he felt his heart begin to race in his chest.

He knew he was lying to them, and himself, but he could hope, right? It would take, what? A few weeks for them to sort out Kellen’s health, probably the health of the others who had been in the gate, maybe do some other things that they needed to do. Brent could wrap up everything that was going on here in that time, right?

Sure, his family was powerful, but he was supposed to be holding all the cards now, right? And he had the Phoenix Guild helping him now. He wasn’t alone in this endeavor. He had help.

The line on the other side was so quiet Brent wondered if the call had dropped. He checked the screen just to make sure, and the clock was still ticking. They were still there.

“We’ll see you there, Brent.” Came Ellie’s response after a long pause. “No doubt, Kellen will be with us, and so will Rhys. And…Sergei.” Ellie sounded like she hated saying that. That small bit of animosity made the moment easier to hear.

Brent’s shoulders drew in, the tension that had faded slowly coming back as he turned his gaze upwards again, staring at the ceiling.

“I can’t make any promises that there won’t be a trail of bodies in my wake.” Brent told them quietly. Ellie’s laugh on the other side was light, but filled with determination.

“You wouldn’t be Kellen’s prodigy if that wasn’t the case. Give us back to Dina. I need to rip into her about how much she’s coddling you.” Ellie muttered darkly and Brent smirked.

“Be kind to her. She’s grieving.” Brent reminded her softly and Ellie snorted.

“You’re a Field Guide. You’ll get soft if you don’t stab someone or climb an obstacle course soon.” It was humourous to Brent that those two things were equivalent, and it also told Brent that Kellen’s parents knew exactly who their son was. They did a damn good job of not showing it.

Brent sighed, getting to his feet, making sure he looked okay in the mirror of the bathroom before he opened the door and handed the phone back to its original owner. She was right outside the bathroom door, a scowl on her face.

“I’m not coddling you. I’m protecting you. Those aren’t the same thing.” She argued and Brent could hear the sound of disgust from Ellie, an Esper who was an expert on what coddling a Guide looked like.

She’d been doing it for nearly 30 years at this point.

Brent raised his hand up, not getting involved in this argument since he knew he had a rather biased viewpoint. He was feeling rather caged, and Aunt Dina, still scowling, took the phone and moved quickly towards the stairs so that she could have a more private conversation.

When Brent met the gaze of Esper Parker from across the room, his expression was lighter, more relaxed.

“How do you feel after talking to the Woods?” He asked quietly as Brent approached. Esper Parker scanned him. “You look better. More relaxed.” He noted and Brent almost felt embarrassed by that observation.

“I think I feel better. It was good to hear how everyone was doing even if I couldn’t speak to them directly.” Brent said and Esper Parker nodded. The other Lieutenants looked at Brent with small smiles of understanding.

“It’s hard to be away from family.” Esper Gardner said. “But, hopefully, this will be resolved shortly.” She said and it was Mr. Caulder who gave a snort.

“You’ve clearly never dealt with the devil that is Brent’s brother. He’d make the devil himself look sweet.” Mr. Caulder muttered, and honestly? Brent agreed.

~

They had some small talk, chatting to each other while they waited for Aunt Dina’s lecture to finish up. It turned out to be quite a long one, to the point that Esper Parker headed upstairs to check on her and make sure she was okay.

He was then gone for a while himself, before he came back, a shit-eating grin on his face.

“She’s fine. Henry’s just now tearing into her.” He said, a gleam in his eye. Brent smirked. It seemed that while Ellie was bad, Henry was worse.

Brent waited for her to come back.

Aunt Dina looked like a beaten puppy when she came down the steps. A perfectly scolded child, pouting and upset, but knowing that she had done something wrong and what it was. She came over to Brent, phone not in her hands, and she let out a heavy sigh.

“I’m sorry.” She muttered quietly and Brent felt his eyebrows shoot up and nearly off of his forehead.

“What?” Brent asked, surprised.

“And I’m sorry for blocking contact from the outside world, and keeping you locked up. I was given a lecture on what Field Guides need for nourishment and I realise I have been very lacking in your basic care.” Never mind how she had said that, Brent’s whole body went stiff as he heard the first part.

“You’ve been blocking contact from the outside world?” Brent asked and watched as she looked incredibly guilty.

“I didn’t know who I could trust.” She mumbled and Brent stared at this older woman who had decades of experience on him.

“You…could have asked me?” Brent suggested mildly and she flinched. She rubbed her face with her hand, looking frustrated and upset and guilty.

“Henry pointed that out in the middle of yelling at me.” She mumbled. Brent was a little flabbergasted that it took Henry yelling at her for her to get it. That, and she was referring to treating him well as nourishment.

Esper Parker and the other Espers were chuckling to themselves as Brent processed this.

“Who reached out?” Brent asked, and watched as her mouth snapped shut. Her eyes narrowed, she puffed out her cheeks a bit.

“That’s not a very nice tone, Brent.” She scolded and Brent felt his eyes narrow.

“Aunt Dina, who reached out? Who are you keeping from contacting me?” Brent asked, and from the suspicious way that she was darting her gaze away from him, he had a sneaking suspicion he knew who. Brent’s heart simultaneously raced in his chest, and dropped to his feet.

How in the world had that man figured out where he was?

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