?It was the house in the country. He drove a car, it didn¡¯t matter it was any car. He realized the ache simply wasn¡¯t going to go away. He read over Ireland¡¯s note again and again and each time it hurt more than the last. He was aware how much she loved him¡the potential that had been there for her to ¡®Love¡¯ him and he just simply blew it! But that wasn¡¯t the part that hurt the most¡the part that stabbed him in the heart repeatedly was this time¡this time he didn¡¯t get to make amends and her death left him with the last words that he wasn¡¯t her brother. It wrenched his heart in so many ways, to think the true love of his life, even over the romantic love that he shared with Kat. Ireland, his very soul thought he could ever put anyone over her. He stilled the tears as he wasn¡¯t going to let the weakness overtake him.
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?He loved their country home it was where he practiced it was where his father drove him, him, and Raine, and eventually according to Raine drove him away. He didn¡¯t understand his brother any more than he understood his sister it seems. He went to their treehouse, leave it to their father to make a simple treehouse project into a mini-mansion inside of a giant redwood tree. This was it¡this was their masterpiece, this was the last project the trio had worked on together¡this was¡this was a happy time one of the last few moments that the two boys weren¡¯t at each other's throats. One trying to get out of his father¡¯s shadow and the other trying to conform to it. Neither truly achieving their goals.
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?He had to move the rest of the way by foot it was a hard walk, not because of the terrain or anything. It was¡maybe his last walk here? He wasn¡¯t sure he would ever see this place again¡he wasn¡¯t sure he could handle the memories.
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?It was a few hours in and he was on the third floor having walked through the other two when he heard it.??
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?Raine did his guardian duties for the evening and made sure everyone was situated, even tucked her in, maybe they would talk more when he returned? Then he left late in the night to head to the treehouse. He made himself UV Rays which this time of night made him invisible and he pondered why pipsqueak would want to meet him here of all places. He paused as he was over his childhood home, he scanned the area for traps, bodies, other energy sources and found only one heat signature in the treehouse.??<<¡®Seriously?!?¡¯ >>?Maybe after all this time of being paranoid the urchin would find a way to get him back for all of their¡.issues growing up and throw him in jail for something. But Ireland made them make this place Switzerland so he was less nervous about coming. She was both the glue and bridge between them.
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?He landed on the ground changing back to his human form. He walked in.? ¡°Lucy I¡¯m home!¡± Raine called out in his comical way that generally brought attention to him.
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??The voice that was torturous to him that grated on that damned last nerve. Initially, Raine growing up was everything Brandon wanted to be, he seemed cool, suave, debonair, but he was egotistical to a fault. He simply believed he was the best of the best. He wasn¡¯t wrong. Brandon paled in his other brother¡¯s shadow and Raine never failed to let him know it. Sometimes he believed Ireland had been there to soothe Raine and protect him. He realized now he was a bit too emotional and wore them on his sleeve, he let self-defeatism and self-loathing define him and his life to the point that he always felt like everyone was out to get him. ¡®Woe is me,¡¯ as Harrison called it.??<<¡¯ Damn why didn¡¯t I listen more then, he thought of the woman that had been like a mother to him.¡¯>>??He wanted to scream in the frustration that left him in this state being forced to grow up and take the helm and reins of the company he never thought he was worthy to lead. But the will had yet to be read so at this point even he didn¡¯t know? He just knew he wasn¡¯t about to let his father's legacy either the company or protecting the city go up in smoke.
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?He jumped over the edge and lowered himself down almost like a feather to the ground.??
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?¡°I see your skills have improved and your new girlfriend gave you a backbone I see, standing up straight and tall, amazing what some good lovin¡¯ will do for you!¡± Raine did what Raine did. He teased his brother, to be serious and cordial would require more effort and not having beaten him down most of their teenage years.??
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?Brandon was different and yes part of it was Kat¡¯s doing even he couldn¡¯t deny her loving him made him feel much better about himself, but now she was gone too and he needed to just be the man everyone saw him to be but him!
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?This was the first time Brandon just took it, he didn¡¯t rise to the bait he just stood there watching his former idol and felt sorry for him, for the first time he realized..it wasn¡¯t him that was the weaker one. He didn¡¯t have any other way to say it. ¡°They're gone, Raine.¡± Just saying it now brought on physical pain the bile in his stomach came up and just sat in his throat as the tears wanted to come but couldn¡¯t.
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?¡°Hunh?!? What are you talking about? Who¡¯s gone?¡± Raine¡¯s face scrunched up and he looked at Brandon as if he had grown a third eye.??
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?¡°There was a helicopter crash, Kord, Harrison, and Ireland were on it and it exploded when it hit the water¡there were no survivors.¡± He said their names to distance himself from them¡he had to or he would be no more good. He couldn¡¯t say, Dad, Mom, and our baby sister was gone. He just couldn¡¯t he didn¡¯t have it in him to say that and keep it together.??
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¡°I thought you should hear it from me than from the news report¡I couldn¡¯t hold it back much longer. When I find out what happened I will let you know, it might have been an accident, but you and I both know we can¡¯t rule out someone wanting him dead, they were just casualties.¡± Brandon looked at him waiting. ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡±
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Raine listened to him Brandon who seemed so different somehow, he couldn¡¯t quite put his finger on it, but then he said some stupid nonsense like their family was dead, killed in a helicopter crash. He smiled as he thought he was just trying to lure him down here so that he could arrest him for something bring in the bad guy, but they had nothing on him, no one did even now it was just speculation and circumstantial at best. Dad taught him well and he learned his lessons. He frowned, sighing with exasperation.??<<¡¯ That was a lie¡it can¡¯t be?!? I just saw her?!?¡¯>>??He pulled out his phone and sent another message to Ireland¡no response. His little sister was bad but not 6¡now 7 hours. If nothing else they kept in touch, she knew if she didn¡¯t he would find her. ¡°You lie!¡±??He dialed Harrison¡.nothing¡. He even broke down and called Ko¡Dad! He said he would always answer! Nothing still!!
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?His phone it the ground¡he heard the last thing Brandon said. ¡°You're sorry? Your sorry!¡± Raine powered up to deep red hard light and ¡°You weak assed piece of¡¡± rushed Brandon, slamming the both of them into the door and through it where the air his both of them.? ?
Brandon had just enough time to power up to enhance his body with more gravitrons before Raine hit him like a freight train, yeah it still hurt but it didn¡¯t do half as much damage as it would have had he not been prepared.??
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Raine moved fast being light he laid into Brandon with several quick blows. ¡°I left you there on purpose to protect them, why didn¡¯t you protect them.¡± He said realizing that what Brandon was saying was true and the tears were flowing from his own eyes evaporating just as quickly in this energy form.? ?
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Brandon expected this, he wasn¡¯t sure if a part of him¡didn¡¯t want this in some sadistic way. He couldn¡¯t let go of the complex he couldn¡¯t let them see him breakdown, he didn¡¯t want their sympathy. He wanted to get this out with the only other person he knew that might understand. Yes, he would be there for Mia, Kites, and Gen¡but this was family and this was how this was to be dealt with right now. His hands moved quickly and he used more body to block the faster blows of his brother, but he was still able to keep up. His retort came and he realized, it was something that would be said to instigate an altercation, rather than bring it down. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you?!?¡± He said with a straight face that would have been Harrison talking or even their father¡¯s voice causing the boys to think the issue through and accept the responsibility.
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?¡°²Ñ´Ç³Ù³ó±ð°ù¡¡± With that he kicked at Brandon¡¯s chest, it was a truly forceful kick even as he blocked it, it knocked him back and down at least 40 feet. ¡°You did nothing, you brat you weren¡¯t there!¡± He growled and rushed to jump on him.
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?Brandon was down and back and he moved in enough time to get up or at least not be there when the massive blow struck the ground sending vibrations through the area.??
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?Brandon got up and began to hit back, it was what he needed what they both needed¡this time as the tears began he could barely see as they started to flow. ¡°Yo¡¯ ass tries to blame me but you weren¡¯t there either you were out living yo own damned life.¡± He said with a sweep that took him down, not sure how many of his blows had gotten through, he did notice some of his light was fading, the one thing Brandon could do was take a lot of punishment.
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?Raine heard him he didn¡¯t like it, it didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t the truth. He left because he wanted to do what he wanted to do and knew this would piss off his father that much more but even still Ireland never gave up, never doubted that one day even Raine would be back, but she would never see it. ¡°Hence you were supposed to step the hell up and protect them care for them instead, they are gone.¡±
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?¡°They needed both of us dumbass¡they needed you¡I needed you! You just too busy with yo head up yo¡¯ own ass to see! They are gone cause neither of us stepped up to make our family work¡in any way!¡±?
Even through all of this both of them traded blows till that last statement. He could see the recognition in Raine¡¯s eyes.
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?That was the one that truly broke him, Raine stopped, his energy slowly ebbed till he was standing holding Brandon by the collar, the ground around them torn up in places, depressed in some areas, scorched in others. He grabbed Brandon just as suddenly hugging him to himself and he seemed to fall into his little brother¡¯s arms his tears flowed freely as he changed back to normal.? ??
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?Brandon felt the change and the hug then he was done. He lost his entire family in one accident and now he was in charge of a tech empire that he hadn¡¯t truly been running and yet¡he had to be responsible. He had to grow up quickly and apparently, this was the first step¡he released it all in a deep flow of emotion¡the agony of the loss and words left unsaid that he couldn¡¯t put out¡or get any response back.
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?He could feel the wetness from Brandon now as his baby brother broke down. ¡°I am sorry¡.I wasn¡¯t there¡for all of you.¡± In that moment they both slumped to the ground they both just cried together and held each other something they hadn¡¯t done since they had been officially adopted, back when they were totally there for one another.
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