veiledndarkness | Four Brothers

Title: Another Life 4/?

Author: veiledndarkness

Rating: R

Pairing: None

Summary: You can change your name, but you can't change who you are.

Disclaimer: Not mine, no harm intended, no profit made.

Four Brothers/Death Sentence Cross-over

For

littlewitch34 cause she's all kinds of awesome.

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

XX

Evelyn went over the house rules with Billy before sending him up for a quick shower. It was all a jumble of words that he was having difficulty processing. Rules...rules, he understood. Never skim more money than strictly necessary from the day's haul; never piss a man off when he had a gun in his hand, never complain that you're hungry, things like that. He knew those kinds of rules; he'd lived them for twelve years.

These rules though, he rubbed at his wet hair tiredly. These rules he couldn't quite get. Keeping things neat...no foul language...and chores, Billy made a face in the mirror. Chores...Was she out of her mind?

He tugged the towel closer, wiping the water droplets off his skin. He shivered despite the warm air, his gaze drawn to the ugly scar that snaked across his left shoulder. He touched the raised, jagged skin, running his thumb along the length of the scar. Billy closed his eyes, lost for a moment in his memory, a horrid night where he'd screamed himself hoarse.

"Billy, you drown in there?"

He blinked, startled. "M' fine," he called, holding the towel tightly to his chest.

"Hurry up. Dinner's ready," Bobby thumped the door with one fist.

Billy stiffened at that sound; he could see the door opening, a filthy leer greeting him. He grasped the towel, exhaling sharply. "Y-Yeah," he mumbled. He sighed in relief when the footsteps echoed away from the door.

He dried himself off and redressed in the borrowed clothes that Evelyn had insisted he take. He tugged the sweater on, the freshly washed scent making his nose twitch. He sniffed the sweater again, smiling at the warm, clean smell. He finished dressing and hurried down the stairs. He stopped on the last step, hearing the timid footsteps behind him.

Billy whirled around, looking back to see Jack at the top of the stairs, his eyes on Billy, wary and fearful. Billy curled his lip at him, narrowing his eyes. Jack gripped the banister, nervously swallowing.

"I..." Jack looked down, his gaze on the stairs.

Billy's lips curled into the faintest approving smirk. Jack understood the laws of dominance, Billy was certain of that. He turned and stepped off the last stair, walking to the kitchen.

Jack made a muted sound of pure misery before heading downstairs.

XX

Dinner was a silent affair. Billy gripped his fork, darting quick glances at Bobby, to Evelyn and to the boy she'd introduced as Angel. Billy glanced at Angel, assessing him by his own criteria. He was certainly bigger, taller than Bobby, and muscled. Billy chewed on a green bean. Angel had given him no more than a cursory look and a nod.

He listened to Evelyn speak about her day, and watched with some interest as she tried to coax Jack to eat. Billy smirked again, inwardly rolling his eyes. He was never too upset to pass up food. Jack pushed his food around on his plate, answering only in whispers when necessary.

"Jack, please, you've hardly touched your roast," she touched his forehead with her wrist.
"Are you getting sick again?"

Jack shrank back from her touch. "No..."

Bobby set his glass of milk down, frowning. He shot a warning look to Billy and then leaned forward. "Jack."

Billy paused, watching Jack lift his head an inch or so to acknowledge Bobby.

"Eat," Bobby pointed to the meat that Evelyn had cut into thin strips. Jack opened his mouth to protest, but the look on Bobby's face stopped him. "Please."

Jack nodded glumly and began eating small pieces, his shoulders hunched up. Bobby watched over him protectively, ensuring that he ate at least half his meal. Jack mumbled an excuse and all but fled the room.

"Ma..." Bobby dropped his fork, the metal clanging loudly. "This is bullshit. I know you did somethin', Billy!"

Billy kept his attention on his plate, his body tensed and ready to run if needed.

"Bobby! That's enough. Don't you dare blame him for what just happened," she said, standing up. "If Jack's not feeling well, then what on earth does Billy have to do with it?"

"Don't be so naive," Bobby scoffed. "You weren't here before I was today. I know he did somethin' but neither him or Jack will fess up to it."

"Bobby, sit down this instant," Evelyn pointed to his chair. "Whatever may or may not have happened has nothing to do with you. I will deal with any problems."

He sat down with a disgruntled snort. "So, you don't need no one's help anymore, huh?
News to me."

"Robert!"

Billy bit down hard on the inside of his cheek, halfway between laughter and outright fear. Bobby looked thoroughly enraged.

"You aren't helping right now, this is only making things worse," Evelyn glanced at Billy. "Are you alright, sweetheart? I'm sorry, Bobby means well, but his mouth sometimes gets away with him."

Billy toyed with his fork. "M' fine," he murmured. The little flickers of guilt weren't helping matters. He wanted Bobby's approval, but damned if he could figure out how to get it. He'd heard every word that Bobby had said to him and he knew not to touch Jack. He sighed under his breath, frustrated by the new concepts of approval.

"Bobby," Evelyn's voice had smoothed out, her annoyance gone. "I do need your help, but I need you to stop and think before you act."

"I do," Bobby protested. "An' what I think is more than likely the damned truth."

"The point is," she stressed. "That we work together instead of accusing and arguing. Am I being clear enough?"

"Yeah,” Bobby sighed.

"Good," she turned back to Billy. "Finish your dinner; I have ice cream for dessert tonight."

Billy's eyes lit up. He loved any kind of sweets. "You got it," he said, crunching his way through a pile of green beans happily.

XX

Jack hovered over his dresser drawer, debating over the clothes before him. He favored the heavy black sweatshirt that Bobby had given him a few months prior. It still smelled like him, the cotton perfectly worn in. He slipped it on, snuggling into the fabric.

With a quick glance to ensure he was unobserved, Jack stuck his hand in his pocket. He fished out the red toothbrush, rubbing his thumb over the bristles. With a sigh, he buried the toothbrush at the back of his sock drawer, covering it with a pair of wooly socks. He closed the drawer, the bang echoing in the room. There...at the very least, his toothbrush would still be his no matter what.

Jack curled up on the bed, digging his homework back out. He worked steadily on his math work, chewing on his pencil for inspiration while he deciphered the page of fractions. He heard the door open after some time. Jack tensed up, half expecting to see Billy looming over him. It was the scent of lilacs that calmed him. He looked over his shoulder at Evelyn, his lips quirking in an almost smile.

"Jackie," she sat down on the edge of the bed. "I brought you some dessert."

He sat up, the smell of chocolate chip ice cream wafting under his nose. She smiled, offering him the bowl.

"Go on, have a nibble. I know you're not feeling the best right now, but a treat might help."

"Mom...I don't...I'm not hungry…" he pushed the bowl away, guilt gnawing away at him.

Evelyn edged closer to him. "I know when one of my boys is upset," she persisted. "Do you feel like talking?"

Jack shook his head. "No..."

She held up the spoon. "Try some? I added little drizzles of caramel, just the way you like it."

Jack hunched up, folding up on himself. "Mom..." he was horrified when tears prickled under his eyelids, "Please…"

"I'm worried about you. I'd like to think that we can talk to each other about anything."

Jack turned to look at her, his blue eyes gleaming with unshed tears. "Stop it; stop acting like I still fit in here!"

Evelyn set the bowl down on the bedside table. "Jack..."

"No! Don't you say it! Don't you be like everyone else! Don't lie to me, please, Mom, please don't lie to me, an' tell me I belong here!" Jack shouted, moving away from her.

She sat perfectly still, her hands in full view. "Jack," she soothed. "Jackie...Come here, please? Come sit with me."

"Mom, please," Jack whispered, tears thick in his throat. "God, don't do this. You said I could stay, you said I belonged here."

"You do belong here," she smiled sadly. "You're my Jackie. No one's ever going to replace you."

Jack flinched. God...that right there was the nerve, the white-hot pain of everything. "You don't need me."

"Jackie, even a hundred more kids would never, ever replace you. I wouldn't trade you for anything."

He made a soft sound in his throat. "Please...don't make me go, I wanna stay here. I wanna stay with you, with Bobby, an' Angel and Jerry."

“Jack, listen to me,” Evelyn touched a hand to his. He tensed in anticipation, but nothing followed. “Billy will not replace you. He’s…well, he’s lost and frightened, like you were, like all of you were at one point or another. He’s been through suffering, like you have. The two of you have so much in common. And he’s scared, just like you were in the beginning.”

“He’s too mean to be scared,” Jack mumbled.

Evelyn curled her fingers with Jack’s. “No, he’s a frightened young man, acting the only way he knows how. Bobby was like that, he still acts like that sometimes.”

Jack sniffled, edging closer to her. He badly needed one of her hugs. “You think he’s like Bobby?”

“Yes,” she nodded. She smoothed some of Jack’s messy hair back from his face. “I think he’s a lot like Bobby. They come from the same rough neighborhoods, the same kind of everyone for himself type of thinking. I know this is hard for you, Jack, but I swear, you are here with me, you are very wanted, loved like nothing else, and above all else, safe.”

Jack crawled onto her lap, curling up and resting his head under her chin. She smiled, rocking him slowly. “You’re getting so tall now; soon you’ll be able to pick me up like this.”

“Swear I get to stay?” Jack looked up at her.

Evelyn kissed his forehead. “I swear,” she whispered, rocking him until the tremors running through him stopped.

XX

Billy stood at the top of the stairs, a pang of intense longing seeping through him. He sat down on the stair, listening to the murmurs between Jack and Evelyn, listening to her hum soothing sounds, and he could only imagine how good it must have felt. He closed his eyes, pretending for one brief minute that he was there, tucked in her lap and being cuddled, loved for once.

XX