Black and Blue

by Phx

As Frank goes to see Callie for the final time, a good Samaritan act by Joe leads to a deadly confrontation with his father. Completed.

This takes place a week after "The Chosen". Some of the content might not be suitable for younger or sensitive readers. Phoenix - January 2004. Black and Blue PG15 The Island –

Winston Abernathy sighed as he stood on the veranda looking out on the beach. It was another gorgeous day on the island and he watched the clear green waves playing tag with the golden sand. He could see Callie Shaw enjoying the morning and envied her.

It had been hard on her when she first arrived on the island and the beautiful blond spent most of her time in her room, even after she had fully recuperated from the gunshot wound. But slowly over the last couple of months, she had withdrawn with her self-inflicted exile like a butterfly from its cocoon and she now spent most of her time on the beach. She even took her homework with her and did it while sitting on the beach.

Callie once admitted to him that she felt a remarkable peace when she was there listening to sound of the surf and the cawing of the seagulls. Even the smell of the sea was medicine for her wounded soul. The only thing that would have made it perfect is if Frank was there.

Reluctantly he turned his attention from Callie back to his current problem – BJ Smith.

BJ had shown up on his doorstep over three months ago as a friend of the late Andreya Plyth's. Mrs. Corradi had been quite happy to see him and had vouched for him in persuading Winston to allow BJ to stay at the house. And although his instinct told him "no", the old cook never asked anything from him before, so he relented and let him stay.

BJ seemed pleasant enough and kept to himself as he became a fast friend to the lonely girl and helped get her out of her shell.

But there was just something about the man that sent alarm bells off in his head – he just couldn't place it…yet.

Hearing a sound in the hallway behind him, Winston turned and smiled warmly at the man who was now standing in the doorway.

"Welcome Fenton, I'm glad you came", he said extending a hand to the other man. World-renowned Private Investigator Fenton Hardy smiled back and shook his hand. Standing 6'2, the tall dark haired handsome man looked younger then his 42 years.

"Winston, you're looking well", he said in greeting before sitting down in the chair facing the large desk that Winston moved behind.

"Thank-you, Fenton…How's the house? Is it all fixed up now?", Winston inquired. The Hardy home had been the victim of a fire set by cultists in an attempt to send a message to Fenton. Luckily enough no one was hurt and most of the damage was localized to his older son Frank's bedroom.

"It's fine. We've settled back in and Frank likes the new bed", Fenton said briefly wondering what this was all about. Winston had left the detective a brief message saying that he needed to see the senior Hardy as soon as possible and that it was important.

As it turned out, Fenton was going to be in the area anyway as he had to testify in a trial in Athens, Greece. And since his younger son was recovering nicely in the hospital, Fenton had decided to leave a day earlier so he could stop by the island and see the other man.

"And how is Joe feeling? I know he's still in the hospital," Winston asked hoping that the teen was making a good recovery. Fenton's son, through a bizarre turn of events had become the beneficiary to one of the largest global fortunes, Plyth Industries. And was currently still in the hospital recovering from a near fatal chest wound at the hands of the same blood cult that had torched Frank's room and killed countless teenaged boys in the area.

Fenton sighed heavily. Something was going on with Joe but he couldn't place his finger on what it was. Although his son was doing much better and expected to be discharged today, the boy was behaving very strangely. Whenever he asked him anything Joe seemed to be unable to look him in the face and when he had reached out to take his hand, Joe had flinched and drew away. This bothered him although he figured it was still part of his recovery. It had been a bad year for his youngest son.

"It's slow, but he's doing better. He's getting out of the hospital soon at least", he finally decided and Winston nodded – that was good news.

The two men looked at each other as Winston tried to think of the best way to broach the subject and Fenton, wondering why Winston had asked to talk to him face-to-face pressed, "Ok Winston, what's the real reason you wanted to see me? If you needed a progress report on my son, you could have just called him or visited yourself".

"I want Joe to stay here for the summer", he said cutting right down to business and waited to see Fenton's reaction. He knew that Joe's parents were still finding it difficult to come to terms with Joe's relationship to this island. It was as if they were afraid that once he was there they would lose him.

Fenton didn't say anything for a few moments so Winston continued, "I don't know if he has anything else planned but I just though that in light of everything that has been going on, it might be a good idea."

"Why?" Fenton asked sensing that there might be an ulterior motive for this and his suspicion was confirmed as he saw Winston squirm slightly in his chair, obviously uncomfortable.

"Well um…" Winston stalled and then taking a deep breath outlined his plans, "I have a friend…well more an acquaintance actually, and I want him to teach Joe how to protect himself."

"Excuse me?" Fenton said sure that he had misheard the other man.

"Look David trains butlers in the art of self defense for themselves and others. And he is also quite a proficient street fighter…among other things. I just think he might be able to show Joe a thing or two…kind of mentor him", Winston explained and Fenton scoffed.

"You want to teach Joe how to street fight? The kid can actually take pretty good care of himself in that regard".

Winston ignored him and went on, "Hear me out, please. No…I don't want to train Joe to fight…but I do want him to be trained to take care of himself. Frank is going to University in a few months and you work. Joe needs something else as a backup whether you like it or not. Some people attract trouble and as much as it pains me to say it, your son is one of those people".

Fenton couldn't argue with him on that and remained silent as Winston continued, "So far Joe has bounced back from everything that he has gone through…but it is only a matter of time before whatever charm he seems to have wears out... And there is one more thing."

"What?" Asked Fenton although he already suspected what it might be.

"Joe is turning 18 in a few months. Now as much as I have guarded his privacy, it will still be news in the social circles and I am afraid that he will become a more lucrative target for people wanting to get their hands on the inheritance".

"But he doesn't get the money until he's 25…and then he's turning it over to Romulus," Fenton said slowly as he chewed on the ideal.

"Right – however Joe's intentions are not publicly know and until then…I do have the authority to use funds as I see fit for his well being."

"Hence the hospital room upgrades", Fenton remarked and Winston nodded.

"Yes and some other monetary privileges that I have allowed him", Winston continued, "so I just feel it would be in Joe's best interest to have someone teach him how to take care of himself. And I mean more then his current capability.

Everyone has his or her own style. I know that Frank is into marital arts…but that isn't Joe. No, I think that the David's style would work much better for Joe. If not, then I would suggest hiring a full time bodyguard for the kid…but I think he would like that idea even less".

Fenton looked at Winston for a few minutes as his dark brown eyes reflected on what the other man was saying and then he asked, "Why now?"

"What?" Winston asked slightly startled as he had hoped that Fenton would not ask this question but it would appear that the PI was not going to let him off easily.

"Why now?" Fenton repeated curious to hear Winston's real explanation, "Joe is no more a target now then he was 6 months ago – why are you only suggesting this now?" The excuse that Joe was turning 18 wasn't enough for him and he wanted Winston to at least admit to him what he suspected was the driving force behind this incentive.

The other man cleared his throat nervously as he was uncomfortable under Fenton's penetrating stare, "Well like I said Frank's going to University in a couple of months…and you're working…"

"And"

"And?"

"Winston, cut the crap – why now?" Fenton leaned forward to emphasize that he wanted the truth and Winston finally relented and blurted it out.

"And since he has returned home in the fall he has been poisoned…"

"Not intentionally", clarified Fenton.

"He has been harassed and beaten up; he has been assaulted; he was almost killed by Callie's father; he tried to commit suicide", he paused as he saw Fenton's face darken and then finished.

"And most recently, he has been shot, kidnapped and now almost offered up as a sacrifice. Now I ask you, why do you think I want him to be taught professionally?" Winston went on the offensive, as he was getting angry about the way Fenton was challenging him on this when it was so obvious that Fenton was not able to protect his son!

"He was almost killed by Romulus in this house", Fenton pointed out his voice low, as he didn't like the implication that Winston was making. And also because it was hard to hear everything outlined so brutally about what Joe had gone through. He, as his father…probably his father, took each incident as a personal attack on his ability to protect his sons as he partially blamed himself…especially over the most recent incidents.

'True and that is all the more reason why Joe needs this training. Fenton…", Winston said leaning towards him, "I am not trying to imply that you have failed in any way to keep Joe safe. However, in light of the predicaments that he keeps getting himself into, I honestly think it would be the best thing for all of us…and for Frank".

"Frank?" Fenton said confused as to how this would benefit Frank who he knew would also see it as a personal attack on his ability to protect his little brother as he blamed himself every time something happened with Joe, "How would this be the best thing for Frank?"

Winston sighed, "Fenton I have never seen brothers as close as your boys. And I see how it affects Frank every time something happens to his brother – the boy is aging before my eyes! You know this, you know how he is…I haven't seen Joe in a while but I do talk to him quite frequently and I know he has changed and he is still going through hell. And if Joe is going through hell then Frank is going through hell…how can he concentrate on his studies and taking care of himself if he is always worried about Joe?

And Fenton…" his voice trailed off as he prepared to state the obvious and Fenton just raised an eyebrow in response so he continued, "Joe has been incredibly lucky – charmed even, if I may. But does this charm extend to Frank? I would hate for something to happen to him because he is trying to protect his brother…Joe needs something else and it can't be Frank".

Winston finished and watched Fenton sit back and let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding.

Fenton wasn't sure how to feel. He was angry at Winston's implications but he also knew he was right. He was worried about both Joe and Frank. And he was worried that Winston was right – neither he nor Frank could protect Joe all the time, this was becoming more and more apparent. Fenton wasn't willing to take the chance of losing Frank, either, if there was another choice.

Winston was right – Frank would die in a heartbeat if he thought it would save Joe – and Fenton wasn't ready for that. If nothing else it might help rebuild some of the confidence in himself that Joe had lost after Paul's attack.

"He isn't going to go for it", Fenton said finally and Winston relaxed. Fenton had realized he was right…that was a start.

"I know", Winston said, "But I think it will go a lot better if he thinks we are doing this to give Frank some peace of mind".

Fenton nodded. Joe might accept it if he thought it was in Frank's best interest.

"Did you say you have someone in mind?" Fenton then asked as he felt the beginning of a migraine and absently rubbed his temple as Winston nodded.

"As a matter of fact I have someone lined up…are you ok?" The other man asked instantly concerned and Fenton nodded.

"I will be. Look Winston can we finish this conversation later. I'm feeling the start of a migraine and I would just like to go and lie down for a couple of hours, if you don't mind".

"Of course not", Winston said rising. He had already prepared a room for Fenton as he anticipated him staying the night.

As they walked out the door, he said, "I didn't know you suffered from migraine's"

"I take pills to keep them at bay, but every now and then one still sneaks in. I started getting them just after Frank was born", Fenton explained as his head began to pound and he started feeling lightheaded. This one was going to be bad…he could already feel it. It was partially his own fault as he had not been taking care of himself and he was now going to pay the price.

I'll see a doctor when I get home, he thought, I can't take too many more of these.

phx

Callie Shaw was coming down the stairs when she saw Mr. Hardy and her mouth fell open in surprise. In the few months she had been on the island, this was the first time she had seen any of the Hardy's and she hadn't known Frank's dad was coming for a visit. But before she could say anything, Mr. Hardy threw her a half smile, "Hi Callie, do you mind if we visit a little later?"

She saw the pained look on his pale face and realized he must be having a migraine. Frank had told her once that his father suffered from them but she had never seen him having one before and it was interesting to see Mr. Hardy looking so weak. That was the one thing she would have never considered Mr. Hardy as being - weak.

"Sure thing, Mr. Hardy", she said and smiled sweetly as she saw Winston lead him to one of the guest rooms. With one final look in the direction of the guest room, Callie turned back and continued down the stairs and into the kitchen. Mrs. Corradi had lunch waiting for her and she was starved. Although right now she wasn't sure if she was going to be able to eat anything as she was nervous about her next meeting with Frank's father – nervous? No, terrified…

phx

It was almost suppertime before Fenton left his room and went to find Callie. He had wanted to see how the girl was doing, as he was sure Frank would quiz him once his son found out where he had been.

Callie was finishing up some homework in the kitchen as she munched on some cookies that Mrs. Corradi had just baked and offered him one when she saw him come in the door.

"No thanks", he said politely not really feeling like eating anything yet.

"It's funny isn't it?" Callie started as she watched the senior Hardy pull out a chair across from her and graciously accept the cup of tea that Mrs. Corradi had already poured, "Of all the places in this whole house, this kitchen is my favorite place".

Mr. Hardy glanced around. It was a large kitchen with all the modern conventions but due largely in part to the talent of whoever had decorated the room, it seemed quaint and retained the feel of a small older style kitchen. He closed his eyes briefly to inhale the wonderful mix of spices, baking, and other culinary aromas and could understand why Callie liked the kitchen.

"I think I can understand that", and then Fenton turned to the older woman who was busily attending to whatever she was making for supper, "How are you doing, Mrs. Corradi?"

The woman turned and smiled as the light twinkled brightly in her old eyes, "I can't complain and how is Mr.…. Joe?" She paused and grinned mischievously as she knew he was expecting her to refer to Joe as Mr. Remus. Even after she found out that Joe was not Remus, she could not help but call him Mr. Remus from time to time. More recently it had become a private joke between the two. But she knew very well that the real Remus Plyth was dead and that the new young master was Joe Hardy.

"Good – but he's going to get fat if you keep sending him cookies every week!" he smiled back.

At least once a week, Winston sent Joe a package containing legal forms and other items that he needed to be aware of. Of course Joe, having no intention of ever running Plyth Industries seldom looked through the package unless Winston expressly asked him to address something – but Winston still sent it religiously every week.

The one thing that did make Joe look forward to the package…and ultimately enticed him into opening it up in a timely fashion…was the fresh batch of cookies that Mrs. Corradi insisted on including for him.

"But he sure does enjoy them", Fenton finished making sure that the old cook was not insulted. Mrs. Corradi blushed and then excused herself to run to the garden and get some fresh vegetables for the meal.

Fenton was relieved, as he wanted to have a private chat with Callie but didn't want to ask the old woman to leave her kitchen.

Callie closed her textbook, as she knew it would be futile to try reading anything now and looked at Fenton. Frank Hardy looked a lot like his father and Callie sighed inwardly as she wondered if he would continue to look like his father, as he grew older. If he did, age would be kind to him. Mr. Hardy was a very handsome man.

"How are you doing?" Fenton finally said and Callie tensed a little although she didn't know why.

"Fine."

"Do you like it here?" Callie suddenly became worried that he was going to ask her to leave the house and she really had nowhere else to go. She did have an aunt and cousin in the Midwest but their last meeting had not gone very well when her visiting cousin had made a blatant pass at Frank. Callie would be destitute before she asked anything from her!

"It's been great", she said trying to keep the anxiety from her voice. But Fenton, being the astute investigator he was, knew that the girl was uneasy and he tried to still her concerns.

"Callie…don't worry. I'm not going to ask you to leave the house or anything. I just want to make sure you're ok".

Callie's voice rang with shock, "You're not?'

"Of course not", he said reassuringly, "for one thing, this is not my house. You are Joe's guest…just as I am. And secondly, even if it were, I still wouldn't ask you to leave."

Callie breathed out a small sigh of relief, 'Thanks…I don't know where I would go", she admitted and Fenton nodded knowingly.

"Anyway, I just wanted to check in with you because I'm sure that Frank will want to know how you're doing".

At the sound of Frank's name, Callie brightened, "Frank would want to know about me?"

"Of course he would", Fenton said sipping his tea, "he was originally planning on coming over to see you but then Joe got hurt and he wants to stick around until his brother is back on his feet." Frank had told his father that he was intending on coming out the island to see Callie when he was driving him to the airport.

Fenton knew that Frank could never forgive the girl for what she tried to do to his brother…but he still cared. This whole thing was hard on his oldest son.

Callie was shocked – Frank was going to come and see her? But then Joe got hurt…again.

Some things never change, she thought bitterly but then brightened instantly – Frank was coming to see her!

"I saw your father yesterday", Fenton continued watching the girl carefully. He had seen her reaction when he told her Frank had been planning on coming to see her and hoped she was not reading too much into it.

Callie felt a sick feeling in her stomach as she heard Mr. Hardy mention her Dad and she didn't say anything for a few moments.

"How is he doing?" she finally asked once she realized that he was waiting for some kind of response.

Fenton shrugged and got up to place his cup in the sink, "Not bad. He wanted me to tell you how sorry he is". Fenton left out the details of the visit as he didn't want to upset Callie but it had not gone well.

At first he wasn't even sure if Reginald Shaw would see him but finally he did and Fenton was shocked at the change in the man.

Reginald Shaw was usually a well-turned out man who prided himself on his appearance but now he was a shadow of his former self, complete with stubble and dirty fingernails. He had been surly and rude to Fenton who really only wanted to tell him that he was going to see Callie in the morning and that he would take a letter or message to her, if Mr. Shaw wanted it. But Reginald had actually scoffed when he heard the offer and it was only when Fenton finally got fed up with his behavior and was leaving that Reginald blurted out to tell Callie how truly sorry he was.

It was in that one moment that the man let down his façade long enough for Fenton to see how just how truly remorseful he was – to Callie at least.

As for Joe? Reginald made no bones about letting Fenton know that he should have succeeded and he was now also blaming Joe for losing Callie. There was such hatred in his eyes when he talked about Fenton's son, that the private investigator felt chilled. He made a mental note to keep a close eye on Reginald's case and make sure no loopholes put his son in jeopardy.

…I want him to teach Joe how to take care of himself…Some people attract trouble…Joe is one of those people…Fenton could almost hear Winston's voice in his head as he thought about his visit with Reginald. And he heard himself saying to Callie, "Winston wants to professionally train Joe to take care of himself ".

Callie was momentarily stunned but recovered quickly, "Well he has always had a perchance for trouble…" she understated, pursing her lips together in thought, "but I don't know how well received the ideal would be, honestly."

Fenton knew she was right – no matter what had happened, Joe still prided himself on being able to look after himself…given normal circumstances. However, the most recent happenings were anything but

Normal he reminded himself. And then the horrible images of finding Joe in the bathtub after he tried to commit suicide flashed across Fenton's mind – and look what happened when he lost that pride…

"Yeah that's the problem", the detective honestly confided in the young girl although he wasn't even sure why he was talking about this to her but he just couldn't seem to stop himself.

Callie was enjoying the feeling of being on the inside tract again. She needed them to trust her again.

"Well…I guess it's all in the presentation. Maybe if Joe doesn't see it as a way of saying you think he is incompetent and can't look after himself…but as something to ease Frank's mind, he might go for it. After all Frank is going to University in the fall isn't he?" Callie wasn't sure anymore as she had not spoken more then a few words to her boyfriend since January.

"Yes, as a matter of fact he has been accepted in the pre-law program at Bayport University", Fenton said feeling his chest swell with pride.

"Wow", said Callie truly impressed, "pre-law? I thought he was going to study Criminology". She was surprised and a little stung as it started to hit home that she was no longer a part of Frank's life and that he was continuing on without her.

"I know, we all thought the same thing", Fenton started, "but Frank wants to focus on Criminal Law. He figures that by the time Joe finishes at the Police Academy and is ready to open an Agency with him, having a lawyer's background would be a great asset".

Callie nodded – it made sense and Frank was certainly smart enough. Oh well, she thought, at least Joe hasn't changed his plans…yet.

And then she thought about her old friends who were graduating in a few months…what were they going to do?

"So what about everyone else? Chet, Phil and Tony – and is Chet going out with Liz or are they still playing dumb with each other? Is Tony out of the hospital yet? And what about him and Sophia? Has he dumped that witch yet?" just saying their names made Callie feel a little homesick and made her realize how much she missed talking to Vanessa. She just didn't know what to say to her if she did call. She knew that Joe and Tony were in the hospital and wondered how Tony was doing.

Fenton held up his hand laughing at her enthusiasm as he began to realize how cut off she must have been feeling, "Whoa! Slow down! Let's see if I can get this right…Chet's been accepted in Bayview Community College – he wants to be a chef…" Fenton knew that for sure because he remembered Frank mentioning that Mr. Morton was a bit disappointed that Chet didn't want to take over running the farm, "Phil is going to University with Frank but I don't think he has decided what he wants to do there yet. So I guess he is doing General Studies…probably something with computers though."

Fenton continued as Callie soaked it in" Tony? He's doing much better and should be home in a couple of days…He's also going to B.U – Business Education, I think…yah, that's right. As for their love lives? I really try to know as little as possible about that as I can." Callie actually laughed when she heard that as he was, after all, a parent…not one of her girlfriends.

"I really do miss everyone", she sighed suddenly feeling more isolated then before as she heard about everyone's plans – and they didn't include her.

"Do you have any new friends here?" Fenton asked trying to take her mind off her old life in Bayport.

"Not really", she admitted, "I guess I've been so busy feeling sorry for myself that I haven't really opened any doors in the friendship department. I've even given poor BJ the cold shoulder and he has been nothing but nice to me since I got here…but I don't know he kind of creeps me out". She admitted and Fenton looked confused for a few moments.

"BJ? Don't you mean Winston?" He asked as he had no ideal who BJ was.

"No", Callie said adamantly shaking her head, "I mean BJ. He's been staying here longer then I have. Although no one will really tell me his connection to the Plyth family, I get the impression that he knew Ms. Plyth very well…maybe even an old lover" the girl speculated although she grimaced at the thought.

Fenton started to ask her why BJ "creeped" her out but then Mrs. Corradi came back in laden down with fresh vegetables. Although Fenton was still feeling the affects of his headache, he promptly got up to give her a hand.

"Thank you", she smiled graciously as she then directed him to put them in the sink so she could wash them.

"Well if you will excuse me Mr. Hardy, I need to freshen up for supper", Callie said as she stood up to excuse herself, "When are you leaving?" She didn't want to miss saying goodbye to him.

"In the morning, I'm afraid. I have to fly to Athens – we'll talk again before I leave", he assured her and she waved and left.

"Mrs. Corradi do you know where Winston is?" he asked as he suddenly needed to talk to him.

The old woman shrugged her shoulders as she washed the lettuce, "Not really but I saw him heading in the direction of the kennels about 10 minutes ago".

"The kennels?" Fenton repeated but before he could ask her anything else, Winston Abernathy strode into the kitchen looking for a glass of water.

"Glad to see you feeling better", he said after he downed a big glass of cold water.

"Thanks", said Fenton, "Winston can we talk for a few minutes?" Winston nodded and beckoned for him to follow him back to his office.

Before Fenton could say anything, Winston asked him, "Fenton if you don't mind can I ask you something?"

"What?" Inquired the detective.

"Well I was wondering…I know that when this Moore guy kidnapped Joe and his friend, Tony, he thought Tony was Frank – right?"

"Correct", said Fenton as he suspected what Winston was going to ask him.

"How in the world could he have possibly thought Tony was your son? The boy has an olive complexion and looks nothing like Frank!"

Fenton laughed as he shook his head, "That's Gerry for you. One of the reasons he was a lousy cop was because he never paid any attention to details. Most of my enemies could pick my sons out of a lineup…but for Gerry it was enough that Tony had dark hair, dark eyes and was in the house."

"Oh", Winston said sitting down.

Once they were seated, Fenton then cut right to the chase, "Who's BJ?"

Winston laughed, "I wondered when you would ask about him. Can I assume that Joe hasn't told you that he had another 'guest' staying here".

Fenton looked confused for a moment, "Joe knows him?"

"No. No", Winston said shaking his head, "Not personally anyway. I sent Joe a memo about BJ a couple of months ago but I would imagine he's paid as much attention to it as he does anything else I send him".

Fenton nodded, "I know – I'm sorry about that. But he just isn't interested…" Winston cut him off as he held up his hand, "You don't have to apologize about it Fenton – he's just a kid."

"But to get back to BJ…he showed up on our doorstep a couple of months ago pretty broken up about Andreya's death. Mrs. Corradi vouched for him and asked if he could stay for a while – that was almost 4 months ago now". Winston remembered the old woman's pleas to let the stranger stay and he had some reservations but finally gave in because she was so dear to him.

Winston had come in to meet the visitor after being informed that an old friend of Andreya Plyth's had come and wasn't sure what to make of the mess of a man who was seated at the table.

"Winston Abernathy – this is BJ Smith. He's a dear friend of Andreya's – please you have to let him stay for a while…look at him – he's a wreck", Mrs. Corradi never asked anything from Winston and he felt obligated to consider it.

"He's Pharaoh's father", she added and Winston paled for a moment wondering if he was going to try and make a challenge to the estate but then he decided not to worry about that now. But he would have to keep an eye on him.

"Fine, he can stay for a while", Winston reluctantly said and then left to make sure a room was made up for him. He stopped into the office briefly and added a memo into the weekly courier pack that he sent to Joe Hardy advising him that they had a house guest.

Joe:

Hope all it well. FYI – Mr. BJ Smith will be staying in the house for an undisclosed period of time. He is referred by Mrs. Corradi and is an old friend of Ms. Plyth's. Please let me know if this is of concern to you. Say hello to your family.

Winston

PS – enjoy the cookies.

He then put the container of Mrs. Corradi's cookies into the pack and sealed it. He doubted Joe would read the memo, as the boy seldom looked past the cookies in the package, but even if he did, he was confident that Joe wouldn't mind the houseguest.

"He's Pharoah's father", Winston said after a moment of hesitation. At first he wasn't going to disclose that bit of information, as he didn't want Fenton worrying. But then he realized that Mr. Hardy should know.

Fenton's face paled, "I thought Jeff Pug was their father" he said referring to the small dark haired man who they had arrested months earlier but Winston just shook his head.

"No apparently Mr. Pug was only the father of the twins and this other guy is Pharaoh's sire".

"Is he a risk?" Fenton demanded thinking about Callie's sentiment.

Winston's brow furrowed as he thought about that for a moment before answering, "I don't think so. He's been nothing but a courteous houseguest since he came - no trouble, nothing. And Mrs. Corradi certainly dotes on him."

"What's his interest in Joe?" Fenton demanded, as he needed to know if this man was going to pose a threat to his family.

"Not much actually. He seems more focused on finding out who Pharaoh was", Winston admitted and saw a look of relief cross Mr. Hardy's face and he commented, "Make you feel better?"

"Yes", Fenton admitted, "Joe doesn't need anymore enemies".

"Speaking of which", Winston started returning to the conversation they had earlier that day, "that brings us back to the topic of having Joe spend some time with my friend."

"Let me talk to Joe first and see how he feels about it before we just force it on him. Trust me if there is one thing I know about that boy, if you push, he'll push right back", this made Winston smile, yeah that sounded like Joe, "And you already have someone lined up?"

"Kind of – talk to Joe and let me get the details squared away…" Fenton saw a twinkle in Winston's eye and wondered what he was up to, "I think this is going to work out better then you can anticipate".

Fenton snorted but before he could say anything he heard a soft musical chime and Winston smiled and stood up, "Supper is ready" and he escorted the other man to the formal dinning room for one of Mrs. Corradi's memorable meals.

phx

After supper, Fenton excused himself to go to his room where he called Laura and then laid down, as he still felt tired from his earlier migraine. He had hoped to meet this BJ Smith person but Mrs. Corradi said that BJ wasn't feeling well and had taken the meal in his room.

Determined to meet the other guest before his 11:00 am flight, Fenton closed his eyes and promptly fell asleep.

phx

The next morning was beautiful but Fenton Hardy awoke with another dull throbbing headache. However he had a plane to catch and unfortunately he couldn't put off going to Athens. He had worked too hard to not testify at the trail.

Sitting up, he groaned and sat on the edge of the bed for another little while waiting for the ache to subside. Finally, he got up and fumbled through his small shaving kit until he found his prescription and, after a little trouble opening the lid, he popped one of the pills in his mouth and dry swallowed it.

He couldn't figure out why his migraines were starting to act up again and became more determined to see Dr. Bates when he got back to Bayport. But right now, he had people to see and a plane to catch.

He was hoping to finish his testimony in the afternoon and catch the redeye back home.

Coming downstairs for breakfast the man saw no sign of Mr. Smith.

"Good morning Mrs. Corradi", he said pleasantly, "Has BJ been down for his breakfast yet?"

Mrs. Corradi quickly poured him a hot cup of tea and smiled, "Good morning Mr. Hardy. As a matter of fact, yes. Mr. Smith was up at the crack of dawn and just left a little while ago to go to town. He won't be back until tonight", she informed.

"Hmmm", the detective thought as he sipped the tea although his suspicions were aroused, "I guess he is feeling better today", he speculated as he remembered the man had been too ill to come down yesterday.

"Oh yes", the old cook agreed as she heaped his plate with eggs, bacon and sautéed fresh vegetables.

Digging in, Fenton glanced at his watch and realized he didn't have enough time to go out and track the elusive guest down before he had to leave. But he made a mental note to see what he could find out about the man when he got home.

"Good morning Mr. Hardy!" Callie said brightly as she came into the kitchen and the older man smiled at her warmly. She had her long blond hair pulled back into a French braid and was wearing a light blue low cut cotton sundress that accentuated her figure and the older man shook his head as he chastised himself – you're a happily married man and she's your son's ex-girlfriend…you shouldn't be looking at her like that!

"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly as she saw a strange look filter across his face. Recovering, he laughed nervously, "Yes…you look very nice this morning".

'Thanks" she smiled back and did a little curtsey before sitting down.

Did the room suddenly just get warmer?

And then she bit her lip and looked at him a bit sheepishly, "I know it's a little late but could you give something to Frank for me?" She asked.

If he was surprised, the older man didn't show it as he just nodded, "Sure" and took another sip from his tea as he tried to think of something else. Oh yes, definitely warmer…

Callie pulled out a letter and held it out to him.

"I was going to mail this to Frank but since you're here…" her voice trailed off as she looked down at the envelope in her hands and his heart ached for this young girl…woman in front of him. Having recently turned 19, he could not think of her as a girl anymore.

Fenton reached out and took it from her as he gently placed his finger on her chin and lifted her face up so she had to look in his eyes.

"Callie…it would my honor to give this to Frank for you", he said softly although all he wanted to do was lean across the table and kiss her. What was wrong with him?

Callie must have read something in his tone because she gave him a strange look and he instantly pulled his hand away, "I'm sorry". And getting up from the table, he put the envelope in his pocket and hurried out of the kitchen.

The young woman sat at the table for a few more minutes thinking about Mr. Hardy…Fenton. She wasn't stupid. She had seen the look, the tone in his voice, and the touch of his fingers on her chin…she knew…but she was still shocked. It was Mr. Hardy. Fenton Hardy. Frank's dad…

phx

What is wrong with me? Fenton asked himself angrily. He couldn't believe how he had acted in the kitchen. He was married for god's sake! His head was throbbing uncontrollably and he felt himself getting lightheaded as he just kept thinking of how good Callie looked.

Grabbing his bag, he decided that it was time for him to go. He would grab a coffee and wait the time out at the airport, as he suddenly wanted to get away from this house and from Callie.

Opening his door, Fenton dropped his bag in surprise as Callie was standing there with her hand poised to knock on the door.

"Callie…" he said huskily as he cleared his throat, "what…"

Callie saw it in his eyes and before he could say anything else she flew into his arms and kissed him.

At first she thought she was wrong as he stiffened briefly but then his arms were encircling her narrow waist and he was kissing her back.

Fenton's mind screamed STOP but he couldn't. It was as if he had lost all control as he lifted her up and carried her back into his room…closing the door behind him.

phx

Callie Shaw smiled as she looked down at the sleeping form next to him. Gathering the blankets around her like a robe, she sat down next to him and placed her hand gently on his rising chest. Instantly Fenton's eyes flew open and at first she saw confusion and then horror as he realized that not only was she naked, so was he!

"Oh my god, what have I done, " he blurted out as he quickly sat up and moved away from her. Callie watched in amusement as the world famous PI blushed and acted like a schoolboy.

Shaking her head she cooed, "Oh Fenty…" and enjoyed the return of the look of horror on his face.

Fenton looked at her and his face lost all its color as he fought for any memory but all he did was draw a blank. Finally he stammered, "D-did…we?"

Getting up the long legged blond let the sheet fall away as she reached for her pale blue sundress. Fenton gasped and turned away.

"What do you think…honey?" she smiled slipping the dress on over her head and turning back to him. Her smile was replaced by something colder and she came back towards him, pulling her disheveled hair into a loose ponytail, "As fun as this was, you're not the one I'm interested in. So let's say we make a pact and no one ever has to know about this".

Fenton knew she was thinking blackmail but right now he had no response but to only listen in increasing dismay as she continued, "We forget this ever happened but you need to do me one little favor".

"What?" his voice reflected the dread he was feeling.

"You convince Frank to give me a second chance. After all, everyone deserves a second chance", she smiled sweetly at him and saw him cringe under her gaze. She enjoyed this position of power over him. And she knew one thing. If anyone could convince Frank to come back to her, it would be his father.

Or at least she hoped it was. If not, then Laura was going to be in for quite a shock…

"Callie…" he started but she stopped him.

"No Fentie listen to me. I love Frank. I love him more then anyone in the whole world – and I mean that. I need a second chance. Hell, I deserve a second chance! And you're going to give it to me, " she said raising her voice, "if not then the whole world will know that famous private investigator Fenton Hardy is nothing but a dirty old man!"

Fenton had no idea what to do. For the first time in his entire life, he had no plan… no escape route. After a few moments he relented.

"Fine", he said so softly that at first she didn't think he said anything, "I will tell Frank that I think he should give you another chance". Then he raised his tormented gaze and fixed her with his dark brown eyes, "But so help me god Callie, if you hurt either of my sons, you will curse the day you were born".

Callie grinned, "Deal" and then blowing the detective a good-bye kiss, the young blond left the room with a satisfied smirk on her face. Frank would be here soon.

phx

Bayport –

Sean Todd stood hesitantly in the driveway of the large house on the corner of Elm and High Streets. But as he looked around the nice neighborhood and then back at Joe's own house, he felt very much out of place.

The lawn was nicely manicured with a garden of tulips and daffodils welcoming in the spring as a swing on the front porch swung lazily in the slight breeze. In the driveway was a new black GMC Envoy and he suspected that Joe's bike was in the double garage. The youth glanced nervously back towards the curb at his own bike that was resting there. Now that he was working part time at Mr. Pizza's, he was finally able to pay to get his tires fixed.

Sean very much wanted to see his friend and make sure that Joe was alright but this was proving much harder then he thought. He could almost feel suspicious unwelcoming eyes on him as the neighbors were probably wondering what 'the color' was doing in their neighborhood.

Just then a silver Mazda 626 pulled up in the driveway next to him and he knew it was too late to turn back now.

A blond haired woman got out of the driver's seat and smiled at him and he was instantly struck by how beautiful she was.

"Hi there, can I help you?" The woman asked pleasantly as Sean knew immediately who she was. Although her eyes were a pale blue and her hair was a shade darker, there was no mistaking that this woman was Joe Hardy's mother. Her manner instantly put Sean at ease as her voice reflected no accusation or suspicion.

"Mrs. Hardy?" Sean asked tentatively as she slammed the door of the car and moved around to the trunk.

"Guilty as charged", she continued smiling as she reached in and pulled out a bag of groceries, "You must be Joe's friend Sean."

Sean was surprised, "How'd you know?"

"Well", said Laura, "By process of deduction".

"Ah", Sean said as realization hit him, "I guess Joe doesn't have too many black friends".

Laura stopped and looked at him strangely for a moment, "No…actually Joe never mentioned anything about that. But he did tell me he had a new friend who likes rugby and rode a motorcycle. And you look like you can do both." She finished with a quick nod towards the bike.

"Oh", Sean said sheepishly as he offered to carry some of the groceries.

"Thanks", Laura said slamming the trunk of the car, "I'm sure he'll be happy to see you. He's beginning to get a bit restless".

"How is he doing?" Sean asked as Mrs. Hardy opened the door and led him into the house.

"Much better", she said closing the door behind him, "He'll be back in school on Monday. He just needs to take it easy for a while."

"Hey Mom…" Frank Hardy's voice trailed off as he pushed open the kitchen door and saw Sean standing there. He had heard his mother's car and came down to see if she needed any help.

"Hi honey", Laura smiled, "Where's Joe?"

"He's in his room just finishing up some catch up stuff for school", Frank said as he eyed the other boy warily. He still wasn't sure what to think of Sean, yet.

"I just came by to see how he's doing", Sean explained and Frank nodded, "Oh".

"Honey why don't you take Sean up to Joe's room – I'm sure he'd love to see him", Mrs. Hardy said as she noticed her son's reaction to the other kid and wondered what was going on.

Frank seemed almost hesitant but one stern look from his mother changed his mind and he smiled – not warmly but at least it was a smile, and beckoned, "Come on Sean."

"Hey Joe", Frank yelled out as they hit the top of the stairs, "You gotta a visitor".

Just then the phone rang and Frank grabbed it as he indicated which of the closed doors was Joe's, "Hello Hardy Residence…"

phx

Joe Hardy rested his textbook on his lap and lay back on his bed. He hated studying and it was always worst when it was catch-up because he knew that no matter how much he did he was still behind!

He was feeling much better and going pretty much stir crazy as his mother used Frank to make sure that he actually followed the 'bed rest' prescription that Dr. Sidhu had given him before discharging him. And Frank had been religious in following his mother's request and been scolding Joe whenever he heard his feet hit the floor.

"Stupid bionic hearing", Joe muttered after the last time Frank yelled out from his room "Get back in bed!"

Of course it wouldn't have taken bionic hearing to figure out that every 10 minutes or so, Joe would think of some reason why he needed to get out of bed. So all Frank had to do was watch the clock…

Joe heard his mother's car pulling into the driveway and had just pulled back his covers to go and look out the window when Frank poked his head in through the door and growled, "Don't even think about it! I'm going down to see if Mom needs a hand". He closed the door in time to miss being hit by the tossed pillow or to see the scowl on Joe's face. The teen was tired of being bed-ridden!

A few minutes later he heard Frank call out to him and he grinned broadly when Sean stuck his head in around the door.

"Hey Sean!" he said enthusiastically and started to get out of bed when Frank shouted out from the hall, "And…Stay in bed!" Rolling his eyes he pulled the covers back up, "Have a seat".

Sean grinned back relieved to see that Joe seemed to be in such good spirits, "Yo Hardy, you tired of faking it yet?"

Joe tossed the pillow at him that Sean easily caught and fired back, "All kidding aside, I'm glad you're looking so good".

"Where have you been?" Joe jested, "I always look good…but thanks man for dropping by."

Sean sat down at the computer desk and marveled at how clean Joe's room was – his own was a mess of clothes, dishes and papers. Joe saw him looking and shook his head, "Sad isn't it? You turn your back for one moment and your mom comes and cleans up your room! I'll never be able to find anything again…IF THEY EVER LET ME OUT OF THIS BED!" he finished the last part loudly for this brother's benefit.

Both teens burst out laughing as they heard Frank harrumph from his own room.

"On bed rest?" Sean surmised and Joe nodded glumly, "Yeah for the rest of the weekend."

"Sorry I didn't come to see you in the hospital", Sean started, "but honestly, man, I hate those places."

Joe nodded empathically, "So do I but don't sweat it."

"How's Tony?" Sean asked. Tony's dad owned Mr. Pizza and Sean had hardly seen him at work since the boys had been rescued to ask him personally.

"Pissed because his big birthday bash got messed up…but other then that pretty good. He's getting discharged tomorrow, I think", Joe said. He hadn't seen his Italian friend but Frank had and reported that Tony had been chagrined to spend his 19th birthday in the hospital.

"Why did he have to stay longer?" Sean asked. He didn't really know what happened beyond the rumors at school and the little bit of info he had gotten from Chet between classes. He didn't feel comfortable phoning Joe's best friend, Biff Hooper. Sean wasn't too sure what he thought about Biff, yet, and he sensed the feeling was mutual.

Chet Morton, Frank's best friend since kindergarten, had filled him in on the cult stuff but hadn't gotten a chance to give him all the details before class. And he hadn't really seen him since as Chet had been spending most of his time at the hospital visiting either Joe or Tony.

"Tony didn't respond as quickly to treatment as I did", Joe said, "it took longer to stabilize him."

"Ah", Sean said knowingly and then as Joe gave him a funny look, he continued, "What's wrong? Do you need me to get your Mom or something?"

"No…" Joe said slowly and then just blurted out, "What happened to your eye?" At first he wasn't sure, but after careful scrutiny, he knew it wasn't just the lighting in his room – Sean had a black eye.

Involuntarily, Sean touched his bruise and grimaced as he had hoped that Joe wouldn't notice it. Shrugging he started to deny anything was wrong but Joe cut him off, "You ran into those guys again didn't you?"

Sean tried to brush it off, "Nothing I couldn't take care of".

Joe felt his face flush with anger as he flashed back to the run in he and Sean had with four guys, including Joe's old teammate Stephen Fell, in the parking lot of the coffee shop. But then he paled as that memory brought with it another one…his father's office…it should have been you in that bed…

"Hey Joe…". Frank's voice cut off as he saw the look pass over his brother's face. He was just going to see if they wanted anything from downstairs and had poked his head in through the door, "Are you okay?" Joe was pale and trembling slightly. Frank shot Sean a look as he came into the room and towards his brother wondering what he had said to upset Joe. Sean just shrugged, as he had no idea where the change had come from either.

"S-sure", Joe stammered and then recovered as he smiled weakly, "I'm just suddenly feeling really tired. Sean…" he turned apologetically at his friend, "can I give you a call later…I just really want to lie down for a while".

"Cool", Sean said rising from his seat wondering what had come over Joe. One minute he seemed fine and then next… "Call me. Catch you later, Joe. I can see myself out", he finished to Frank as he nodded and left the room.

Frank placed a hand against Joe's forehead and was relived to feel no fever, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing", Joe lied, "I just suddenly got really tired". At least that part wasn't a lie. Thinking back to what had happened with his father, Joe had suddenly become overwhelmed by fatigue. He let Frank help him lie back down and cover him up.

"Thanks bro", he said softly as he closed his eyes, "I'm just going to take a nap".

Frank stood beside him tentatively for a moment. He was worried about Joe but then he shrugged, "Okay kiddo – but remember I'm just next-door if you need anything".

Keeping the bathroom door open so he could hear Joe if he called, Frank went back to his computer to finish the Internet chess match he was having with Phil. He found it hard to concentrate, though, as he thought about Sean Todd. There was just something about him that set off warning bells for the older boy – he wished he knew what it was.

phx

Sean frowned as he sped across town and back towards his own house. He was worried about Joe. One minute, he was fine – in fact getting upset because he knew that Sean had another run in with those jerks and then…

Perplexed, Sean thought back to that day in the parking lot…

"What did you do that for! " Sean turned on Joe; "I never took you as a chicken!"

"And I never took you for stupid", Joe said slowly staring straight out the window and concentrating on his driving, "if your idea of morning fun was to have the crapped kicked out you by 4 guys…"

Sean cut in, "2 on 1 isn't that bad in a fight…"

"So what. One good punch and it would be 4 on 1 – do you think that would be so hot?" Joe was flushed and they drove in silence for a while before Sean finally said sounding a bit calmer, "I can teach you to fight."

"What?" Joe said stunned.

"Well…then you wouldn't have to back down the next time someone dissed you", Sean explained genuine in his offer.

Joe actually pulled over the car and stared at him in disbelief, "Are you kidding?"

"No – I'm being serious. I know your parents probably discouraged you from learning how to fight but, honestly, every guy should know some basic moves. Then they wouldn't have to turn tail and run all the time".

"Sean I don't need you to teach me how to fight", Joe said shaking his head.

"Okay. Then why'd you think you'd be out in one punch and I'd get the crap beaten out of me back there?" Sean demanded.

In exasperation, Joe pulled up his t-shirt and showed Sean the large purple bruise over his ribs.

"What the…" was all Sean could say as he saw the angry bruise.

"I don't get into fights I can't win", Joe said and then, pulling down his shirt, he drove back onto the road and they finished the rest of the drive in silence.

As Sean waited for a light to turn green, he wondered for the first time – exactly how did Joe get that bruise? A very private person himself, Sean hadn't asked Joe but was now wondering if that had anything to do with his reaction just a while ago.

His thoughts then wafted back to their first meeting in the lunchroom after which there was a violent confrontation between the brothers…. and then about Joe's split lip only days before he and Tony were hospitalized.

Sean sucked in a breath…he didn't like where this was pointing…

phx

Tall, blond and muscular, Biff Hooper parked his car outside the Hardy house and strode around the back to the kitchen door. He was armed with three coffees, a hot chocolate and a dozen donuts.

"Hi Biff", Laura greeted warmly as she opened up the screen door and let him into the kitchen. "Thank you", she said as Biff handed her a coffee and offered a donut.

"No prob", Biff grinned, "Where's the boys?"

Laura indicated the upstairs as she bit into a powder donut and then wiping the excess powder off with a napkin, "In their rooms. I think Joe might be sleeping but Frank's on the computer. Go on up".

With a nod, Joe's best friend, carried the tray and donuts up stairs. He knocked softly on Frank's room and then pushed open the door when he heard Frank's "Come in".

"Hey Biff", Frank said getting up from the computer desk and stretching. He had just finally finished the chess match he and Phil had been playing for the past while and was glad to see that the other boy was 'packing'. He gratefully accepted the coffee and took a large gulp, 'Thanks".

"I figured you might like some java and sinkers", Biff said selecting a Boston cream donut and sitting down on Frank's bed, "How's Joe?"

"Sleeping", Frank said fingering a honey crueler, "Sean was by a little while ago and the visit wore him out".

Biff raised his eyebrow quizzically, "Sean Todd? What did he want?" Like Frank, he had some concerns over Joe's blossoming friendship with the new kid but he knew deep down it was probably just jealousy.

Sean had been there when Biff couldn't be to help after the episode in the school cafeteria between the brothers. And Biff had been spending a lot of time with his new girlfriend, Jan Biggerman, lately and felt that Sean was making use of that time and moving in on his friendship with the younger Hardy brother.

Jan Biggerman.

Jan Biggerman and her best friend, Lisa Hann, were still suspended from school for their roll in perpetuating the false rumor about Joe that almost got him killed – and for which he was still in counseling. It was only after that through an unforeseen turn of events, that Biff had started dating her. But Biff knew that it was still a sensitive area for Joe and was very careful to keep his relationship with Jan and his friendship with Joe very separate.

But it was getting harder because Jan was pressuring him to include her in the other buddy events that he, his friends and their girlfriends went to. Tony's birthday had been becoming a bone of contention between the couple.

In fact, Biff could never admit it but he was a tiny bit relieved that the party had been put off only because it saved the fight that he knew would be inevitable.

He just couldn't bring himself to put her and Joe in the same room yet…he still needed to talk to Joe about this but whenever he casually tried to bring up anything about it, his friend got this haunted look on his face and Biff knew he wasn't ready.

And today had been no exception. Biff would have been over much earlier but Jan dropped by unexpectedly and they ended up going to a movie.

"I don't know. Just to see how he was doing I'd guess", Frank admitted chewing on the donut, "Whatever they were talking about, when I popped my head in to see if Joe needed anything, he looked like he was ready to pass out. Sean left and Joe's been asleep ever since".

Biff became alarmed, "What? Did Joe say anything?"

"Not really, " Frank shook his head, "he just said that he hadn't realized how tired he was."

"Do you think that's it?" Biff pressed, "or do you think Todd said something to upset him?"

Frank sighed and shook his head, "I don't think so. Sean seemed just as worried about Joe…I think he just did overdo it and when it finally caught up to him, he just zonked out. Hold on, I want to check on him".

The dark haired boy walked through the bathroom that the brothers shared. It connected the two bedrooms and the boys seldom used the outside hallway to go between rooms – unless they were arguing or something.

A few minutes Frank came back in, "Joe's awake" and Biff followed him back through the bathroom with the hot chocolate and donuts in tow.

By the time Biff walked into Joe's room, the younger teen had struggled into a sitting position with only a slight grimace crossing his face as he felt a sharp pain in his chest from the movement.

"You okay?" Frank asked immediately worried as Joe was still looking a bit pale but his brother brushed his concerns away, "Yeah – just moved too fast. Hey Biff is that for me?" he indicated the hot chocolate and Biff nodded and passed it to him.

"You're a life saver – I'm dying for something chocolaty", this made his brother and friend smile. Joe was a well-known chocoholic among his friends. Taking a careful sip in case it was hot, Joe let Frank put it on the nightstand next to his bed for him and he lay back down against the pillows. He was still very tired and it reminded him that he needed to take his recovery a bit more seriously.

"Heard you had a visitor earlier", Biff said casually still wondering what he and Sean had been talking about and Joe shrugged, "Yeah Sean came by. We chatted for a bit before I realized just how tired I was and cut the visit a bit short. I'll have to call him later or something", Joe finished, mumbling slightly as he felt his eyes starting to close again. He was just so tired.

Biff and Frank exchanged a look and then they both stood up to leave.

"Get some more rest kiddo", Frank said, "We'll be in my room".

Joe mumbled something else but it was clear that he was already asleep and Frank reached over and turned on the bedside lamp before turning off the main bedroom light. Joe hated the dark.

"I'm going over to see Tony in a little while. Wanna come?" Frank asked. Tony Prito was still in the hospital but was expected to be discharged in the morning, "Joe was supposed to go but I don't think that's going to happen now".

Biff agreed with him on that, "Sure. I was planning on dropping in anyway. I know that Chet's there now." Frank nodded already knowing that.

Chet had driven with him to the hospital just after breakfast to pick Joe up and then hung around the house until just after lunch. He had a few errands to run for his mother and then he was planning on going over to see Tony. He left with a Scrabble board under his arm. Both he and Tony loved playing the game and he figured it might help him pass the time, as Tony made no bones about the fact that he felt he should have been discharged with Joe.

"When do you want to go?" Biff asked sitting down on Frank's bed and lazily stretching out.

Frank glanced at his clock and shrugged, "As soon as Joe wakes up." Biff nodded expecting as much. Frank wouldn't want to leave until he saw the Joe was feeling a bit better.

Changing the topic he asked, "Is your Dad home?"

"No", Frank said setting up the computer so he and Biff could play some games for a while, "he had to go to Greece to testify at a trial. He should be back in a couple of days, though."

"Is he going to drop by Joe's island?" Biff asked grinning at the private joke referring to the fact that Joe had inherited one of the largest estates on the small Mediterranean island and knowing that it was a puddle jump from Greece.

Frank held up his hand for him to wait for an answer as he ducked into Joe's room and quietly removed his desk chair for Biff to use. As he came back through the bathroom he shrugged, "Probably. He mentioned that Winston wanted to talk to him about something."

"Think he'll see Callie?" the words were out of Biff's mouth before he realized that he had done more than think them. Seeing the look flash across his friends' face, he immediately apologized but Frank waved him off.

Callie Shaw had been Frank's girlfriend since the day he had first taken notice of the female species. However, a number of events culminating with her New Year's Eve party had damaged this relationship beyond repair – as far as Frank was concerned.

He did still care about her…he had loved her and that was hard to turn off. However, as he recalled how hard she had worked to hurt Joe and manipulate him, Frank knew he could never trust her. She had more then hurt his brother…she had almost killed him.

Sure while she hadn't physically delivered a blow against him, she had started too many things… too many things that had hurt his younger brother.

The big problem now was that Frank felt there were still things that had been unsaid and, in light of her birthday gift to him, he was worried that she might still be thinking of him.

The last thing he needed was for her to become obsessed. He was terrified of what she might do to Joe…Callie Shaw would never share. Of that Frank Hardy was more then certain…

Shaking his head, Frank smiled at Biff weakly, "Probably. Unfortunately that's a trip that I need to make myself".

"No way", Biff said stunned, "You're going to see her?" He stared at his friend in disbelief.

"Yeah", Frank said as he turned at looked into Biff's blue eyes, "Biff I need to make sure she knows that it's over…and that there can never be anything between us anymore…" He paused trying to find the words before continuing, "She was the one I thought I would marry. And I need to see her one more time…I need to finish this…for both of us".

Biff nodded. He understood. Frank needed to end this once and for all – they both needed closure.

phx

Joe heard Frank come into the room and take the chair from his desk. He had been sleeping but woken immediately when he heard someone moving in his room. Realizing it was Frank, he kept his eyes closed and didn't let his brother know that he was awake. He just wanted some quiet time.

He heard their voices filtering through the bathroom but couldn't really make out what they were saying as he suspected that they were keeping their voices low in consideration of him and smiled weakly in appreciation before his thoughts turned inward.

What was going on with this father?

Joe had been doing a lot of thinking about this during his hospital stay and had come to the conclusion that not only hadn't he dreamt the whole thing up; he was not losing his mind either. In fact the hospital stay, although exasperating, had allowed him a brief reprieve from his family and allowed him some time to mull everything over.

And then when Joe found out that his Dad was going out of town and he didn't have to face him for a couple of days, the teen was relieved. He was finding it increasingly difficult to be around his father. He had no idea where his father's aggression was coming from and was terrified of being alone with him.

It was getting harder and harder to pretend that nothing was wrong and he couldn't understand how his father was doing it. How could you beat the crap out of your kid one moment, and then pretend nothing happened two minutes later?

Joe didn't know and it was terrifying him.

It was even harder in the hospital and he sensed his father's frustration with him whenever he came near him and Joe shrunk away. He couldn't even look in his father's eyes without shriveling.

The only thing that he could figure is that Fenton was so angry with Gerry Moore that he was now taking it out on Joe. Maybe I am really Gerry's son…and he hates me, Joe thought but then immediately shook his head knowing that didn't make sense.

His father had saved his life. He had shot and killed Officer Greenly to save him.

Or did he?

Joe fought to remember everything that had happened and now wondered if Fenton was acting to save him…or to save Frank? Would he have done the same thing if Frank hadn't been there? After all Fenton hadn't come to the hospital with him…had he? Of course not, he knew that Frank was all right and that was all that mattered wasn't it?

The teen burrowed his head into the pillow in agitation – it didn't make sense! He knew his father loved him….or at least he was pretty sure of it.

Shaking his head, he tried to make some logic out of the illogical. He wanted to talk to Frank about it but he was afraid that Frank wouldn't believe him.

After all who would believe that famous Private Investigator Fenton Hardy was beating up his son…when he couldn't believe it himself?

phx

"So when are you going?" Biff asked grabbing another donut and sitting down on one of the desk chairs. Frank gave him one of the joysticks as he sat down next to him, "I was going to go last weekend but that didn't work out too well".

Biff grinned and shook his head, "Understatement of the year Hardy".

"But now I think I will wait until Dad gets back…so maybe next weekend", Frank said as he and Biff picked out their players and started the game, "I don't want to leave Joe and Mom here by themselves".

Frank had become even more protective of his family over the last year and Biff wondered how his dark haired friend was planning on living in the dorms in the fall and leaving his family behind.

As if sensing what his friend was thinking Frank sighed, "I haven't told anyone yet but I am having second thoughts about staying in the dorm this year".

Biff was shocked as Frank continued, "I just don't feel like I can leave them yet. Joe has had such a bad year and he hasn't fully recovered from anything yet. And now with summer coming…"

Frank's voice trailed off as he saw Biff shaking his head, "What?"

Recovered from the shock Biff just said, "Don't".

"What do you mean 'don't'?" Frank asked pausing the game so he could give Biff his full attention.

Biff put down the joystick and chewed on his lip for a moment before trying to explain himself, "Look, Joe has had a bad year…but let's put this in perspective…Joe had been through worst then this." He said thinking about the stabbing.

Frank looked doubtful as Biff continued, "He's gotten through Iola's death and what Paul tried to do to him and next to that…this is nothing. All Joe needs is our support…. and time."

Biff looked deep into Frank's dark brown eyes, "I'm just afraid that if Joe sees you change your plans then he's going to give up on himself. I don't know about you but I don't think I want to even see what that Joe would be like. Do you?"

Frank flashed back to that Sunday morning in January when he and his father found Joe in the bathroom tub after he tried to commit suicide…and he shivered.

"I'm just afraid that he's going to need me sometime and I won't be here…what will he do then?" Biff saw the look on Frank's face and knew what he was thinking of.

"Then he will turn to one of friends. Frank, I'll still be right here…and so will Vanessa…"

Frank cut him off as it became evident that Joe hadn't told Biff about Vanessa yet, "Actually Biff, Vanessa and her mom are moving. They're going to Canada".

Biff was shocked – Joe hadn't told him that. It was then that he wondered just how much out of touch he had become with Joe. At one time they were as close as brothers but now…

Shaking his head, the blond boy said softly, "I didn't know, " and then he said more firmly as he resolved to fix their distance, "I'll still be here and I'll keep an eye on him".

Frank saw the fierce protectiveness on Biff's face and had to smile – yes Biff certainly would.

After a few seconds Frank finally turned back to their game, "When did you get so smart?"

"I'm not all good looks", Biff quipped turning his attention to his controller.

phx

The next time Joe woke, it was dark outside. He was thankful that Frank had remembered to turn his lamp on before going back to his own room. Wincing as he reached over, Joe picked up the hot chocolate and took a long drink. It was cold now but still good.

Joe heard the sounds of a computer game coming from Frank's room and pulling back the blankets, he let his feet touch the floor. He half expected to hear his brother shout out to him to get back in bed but Frank's super hearing must have been blocked by the sounds of the game. Joe guessed it was one of the racing games as he could hear the sound of car engines revving up and down.

He sat for a few minutes with his feet over the side of the bed and finished the drink. The sleep had made him feel much better and he decided he needed to get dressed if he was going with Frank to see Tony.

Standing up Joe felt weak and grabbed the side of the computer desk to steady himself – he hadn't been out of bed much in the past week.

I gotta call Sean, the teen thought as he remembered his friend's visit and the bruise on his face. It was obvious to him that Stephen Fell's new friends were giving Sean trouble and he wondered what he could do about that. He wished he could get his father's advice on it but right now that was not an option so he would just advise Sean to stay out of their way and maybe they would lose interest in harassing him.

Joe slowly made his way to the bathroom and managed to close both doors without being heard by Frank or Biff and then he leaned over the sink and turned on the facet to splash cold water on his face.

Looking in the mirror, he decided he looked like crap. His hair definitely had something bad going on with it as blue eyes peered back at him from the reflection of a pale unhappy face.

He made a halfhearted attempt to do something with his hair before eyeing the shower. The doctor had told him it was okay to wash but advised against soaking in the tub for any lengths of time, which was okay with Joe because he was really just longing for a shower. The sponge baths in the hospital left much to be desired (tee he- I doubt the nurses thought that…LOL).

Unbuttoning his pajama top, he pulled back the bandage to check the wound. It looked good and was healing very well but it would be another couple of weeks before the stitches fell out – it had been a nasty knife wound as the blade of the Khurkuri knife was curved to inflect the maximum amount of damage.

Turning on the shower, he carefully adjusted the nozzle for a light spray before undressing and stepping into its rejuvenating warmth. He leaned heavily against the side of the shower wall and let the water trickle down his neck and back – it felt so good he wished he could stay in there for ever. But he couldn't and after a short time, he turned off the water, stepped out and grabbed a towel.

Joe was panting by the time he finally finished drying off and ran a comb through his hair as his chest and lungs protested the activity. While he was more presentable then previously, his face was still pale and his stitches pulled every now and then to chastise him for making too quick a movement.

"Joe?" he heard Frank's voice outside the door, "Are you okay?" Joe didn't have to see his face to hear the worry in his voice.

"Yeah…I'll be out in a minute", Joe answered as he bent over to brush his teeth and rinse his mouth.

A few minutes later, dressed in a robe and clean pajama bottoms, he stepped out of the bathroom and made his way carefully into his own room. Frank and Biff were already waiting for him and they moved from the bed when he came in but he didn't lie back down. Instead he began opening dresser drawers looking for something to wear.

"What are you doing?" Frank asked watching him with curiosity. Joe moved slowly and still looked tired.

"Getting dressed. I can't go naked to the hospital. They don't like that", Joe said as he pulled out a pair of jeans and tossed them onto the bed, "Is it cold outside?"

Behind him Biff and Frank exchanged looks – was Joe still planning on going?

"A bit chilly', Biff said as Joe closed the drawer and walked over to his closet, "Where are you going?"

Joe started checking out his shirts deciding to put on something button up rather then having to lift it over his head and chest, "To see Tony."

"Why don't you stay home and get some more rest?" Frank said rolling his eyes at Biff. They should have realized that Joe would still want to go and although he asked it, Frank did not expect Joe to change his mind. He was a wee bit stubborn on some things.

Joe paused and turned around to look at the other boys with a look of absolute exasperation on his face. He started to say something but then changed his mind and just shook his head, as he said bluntly, "No".

Biff couldn't help but grin. He hadn't expected anything else.

"Joe?" Laura knocked softly on the door, "Can I come in?"

"Sure", Joe said opening the door for her.

His mother was surprised to see him out of bed, "Why aren't you resting?" And then seeing his clothes on the bed, "Where do you think you're going, young man?"

Frank hid a small smile.

"I'm going to see Tony", Joe said honestly and then stopped as his mother shook her head.

"Indeed not. You just got out of the hospital today, yourself. There is no way you're going anywhere tonight so hop your butt back in that bed. And that is not a suggestion", Laura said fixing her son with a firm look. Joe inherited his stubbornness from his mother and for one long moment vibrant blue eyes locked with pale blue eyes before Joe sighed and made a big production of getting back into bed. He shot Frank and Biff a venomous glare, challenging them to say anything.

Turning away, so he couldn't see their grins, Frank and Biff pretended to be very interested in the wall behind them.

"Anyway", Laura continued fixing Joe's blankets and picking up the empty hot chocolate container, "Your teacher, Mr. Convoy, called to see if he could drop in and visit you this evening. So Frank and Biff will just have to send Tony your regrets. Besides, he's supposed to be getting out tomorrow and you can see him then."

Mr. Convoy? Joe repeated to himself surprised – why was his drama teacher coming over to see him?

"Well if you've got everything under control", Joe shot Frank a look who ignored it and stuck his tongue out at his brother behind his mother's back, "we'll get going. We should be back in an hour or so."

"Okay boys – send the Pritos my best", Laura sat down on the bed beside Joe as Frank and Biff left, "How are you doing honey?" She asked, her eyes warm with concern as she took in his pale face and dark circles under his eyes.

Reaching out to touch his face gently, Laura stopped when she saw him flinch and her eyes immediately filled with a deep sadness. She had thought he was past this.

Scolding himself, Joe reached out and pulled her hand to his face. As she gently touched his cheek he closed his eyes and sighed. Her hands felt so warm when he felt so cold.

"I'm fine", he lied and then when he saw she didn't look too convinced, "No, I am…really. I just want to get back to life and I can't believe I am going to say this but…back to school."

Laura smiled and gave him a quick peck on the cheek before standing up, "I know honey. It's just a few more days, though. I don't want to see you back in that hospital because you over did it. Okay?"

Joe smiled back as he gave in, "Okay…" and then thinking about his teacher's impending visit, "I wonder what Mr. Convoy wants?"

His mother shrugged, "I don't know. He said he needed to talk to you about something. Anyway sweetie, I'll be up to check on you in a while, I'm going downstairs for a while."

She winked at him as she opened up his desk drawer and pulled out the writing tablet she kept hidden in his desk.

"Mom", Joe said as he watched his mother pick up the paper and then close the drawer, "Why don't you just type it up on my computer instead of writing it on paper and then re-typing it. Isn't that making it twice the work for you?"

His mother shook her head, "No I write then when I type it into the computer, I edit it. It works great. Anyway, I'll let you know when your teacher is here". With a final nod, she left and Joe absently wondered why he had even bothered combing his hair. This bed head was going to be permanent!

phx

"Yo Prito, what you still doing here?" Biff said loudly as he and Frank walked into Tony's room.

Tony grinned at his new visitors as Chet stood up and stretched. He and Tony had been playing Scrabble for the past couple of hours and he was glad his friends were here as his butt was going numb from sitting down.

"I'm going to go then Tony, " Chet said starting to fold the game up, "I haven't been home since this morning and I should really be going before my Mom reports me missing or something".

"Thanks for coming", Tony said genuinely. Chet had really helped him pass the time. His father had gone to work tonight to help pick up some of the slack that Tony's absence was causing at Mr. Pizza's while his mother had went to the airport to see her brother off.

Sal "Luigi" Salerno had stayed in town an extra couple of days to make sure his nephew was going to be okay, and to finish making his statement to the police about what happened that night in the Deathe mansion.

"No problem. Well since the doc says you're getting out tomorrow – I'll drop by your house next time", and then Chet was gone before the nurse could scold them for having one to many visitor's in the room.

"How's Joe?" Tony asked after Chet left. They had seen each other only once since they had been brought in the hospital. And that had been earlier today when Joe snuck into his room after he had been discharged. Although he looked good, Tony noticed he was still pale and wondered why Joe was being discharged when even to his untrained eye, he looked like he needed more time.

"Fine", Frank said sitting down in Chet's spot, "He was going to come to see you but Mom busted his escape attempt and sentenced him to more bed rest, " Frank quipped not wanting to tell Tony about how tired Joe had been.

Tony grinned imagining Joe's chagrin at being bed bound. Looking around his own prison, he knew exactly how he felt.

phx

Mr. Convoy cleared his throat and Joe could sense the man's awkwardness and this further peaked his interest as to why his drama teacher had come to see him.

Frank and Biff had been gone over an hour before his mother brought the drama teacher to his room.

The teacher made a weak attempt at a smile and then started speaking, "Joe I really wanted to talk to you about this earlier but…well things just kept coming up…" as he stalled for a few seconds Joe couldn't help but become wary…what was this about?

"I…um… ," Mr. Convoy tried again, "I saw your face when I told the class that our gift to the graduating class would be a performance" oh, thought Joe with sickening dread, so that's what this is all about, "and I feel I need to explain myself to you."

Joe didn't say anything although he could tell the teacher was expecting him to, so the older man continued, "I want to do this for Natalie."

Stunned, he watched as Mr. Convoy continued talking, loosening his tie as he did so, "Right now all anyone remembers about our drama production is that a young girl died during our last program… and I want to erase that. I can't let her death kill our school's drama. I don't want that…and more importantly she wouldn't want that."

Mr. Convoy's voice shook a little as he finished, "M-Ms. Grenfell loved performing arts. Please Joe…I need you to understand that I am not trying to cause you any further distress with this program…I just feel I owe it to Natalie to make sure something that was so important to her, lives on…in her memory."

Joe didn't know what to say. His mind flashed back to that fateful autumn evening. Everything was going great and he had thought his biggest worry was going to be how much teasing he would have to endure from his brother and friends for wearing tights and goofy pants.

He was Romeo. Natalie Grenfell was Juliet…

As the death scene started, Natalie winked at Joe, it was time to turn on the water works in the audience. She knew she was a great Juliet and she relished being the leading lady – look out Hollywood, she thought as she took a sip of the "poison" and faded into Juliet's death sleep.

Romeo seeing Juliet's "dead" body laments, drinks his "poison" and he falls dramatically next to her. Joe almost gagged on the drink, it was more bitter then he thought it would be and as he closed his eyes and dropped down next to Natalie he briefly wondered why she hadn't started to get up yet and then darkness overtook him.

Joe shook off the memory as he tried to find a response, "Mr. Convoy…" his voice faltered and he just stared at the man. He absently scratched the old scar on his chest, which seemed to burn with the memory, as the room suddenly seemed to close in on him and he could feel his heart thumping in his chest.

It brought with him such a flood of emotions he was overwhelmed and wished desperately that Frank were here, as Mr. Convoy seemed oblivious to Joe's discomfort. He was too intent on getting what he needed for his own conscience.

But he was wrong.

He wanted Joe to tell him that he was okay with this and that he wasn't still haunted by the events of that night. But he couldn't…because Joe felt it was wrong. It was too soon.

Mr. Convoy leaned towards him and Joe fought the sudden urge to bolt from his bed screaming as he involuntarily shrunk back.

"I…", Joe tried again desperately wishing for backup, "No…it's too soon". He finally blurted out and was surprised by the hint of resentment that flashed across the teacher's face. Had he honestly expected Joe to be okay with this? Yes, Natalie was dead, but Joe had almost died that night as well. He wasn't ready.

Mr. Convoy didn't say anything for a few moments and then when he finally did his voice was low and sad, "I'm sorry Joseph if this is going to distress you…but quite honestly the decision has already been made."

Joe found no voice so he just looked at the man who now stood up and moved towards the door. As his hand reached the doorknob he turned back to the boy, "I am really sorry." And then he left.

Long after Mr. Convoy left, Joe sat trembling as he relived the events of the horrible night and by the time that Frank returned from visiting Tony he was shocked by his younger brother's appearance.

Joe was still sitting on the bed, staring straight ahead and for a few moments he didn't even acknowledge his brother's presence.

"Joe…what's wrong?" Alarmed Frank sat down on the bed beside him but Joe was lost to him.

Just as Frank was starting to panic, Joe looked at him and then without saying a word he reached out to his brother and Frank grabbed him in a fierce hug shocked by how badly his brother was shaking.

"What's wrong?" he repeated more gently this time. But Joe didn't' say anything and Frank let him cry himself to sleep.

What was wrong now?

phx

Joe's eyes flew open and he bolted up – someone was holding him down!

But then he relaxed as he saw it was just Frank and for a second he wondered why Frank was in his bed.

His older brother was awake and looking at him with a fair amount of worry on his handsome face.

"Are you okay?" Frank asked softly watching Joe very closely. He had continued holding his brother long after he fell asleep amazed that even in the peace of sleep, Joe had kept shaking. He had released Joe when he felt him wake up knowing what kind of reaction his brother would have to being held.

Even months and countless hours of therapy later, Joe was still skittish about unexpected touch.

Narrowing his eyes at his younger brother, Frank wondered what was going on that he didn't' know about. No matter how many demons he helped his brother fight, there always seemed to be more lurking around the corner.

Joe stared at Frank for a few moments before answering that question. He remembered everything including the breakdown when Frank came home and now he felt sheepish about it, "Nothing…" he started to say but then sighing he lay down against Frank seeking comfort from his warmth. Joe just felt so cold.

"My drama teacher was here", Joe said quietly and Frank actually found himself holding his breath in anticipation of Joe's explanation, "He wanted me…to tell him I was okay with his plans for the senior class gift".

Frank was curious. Joe hadn't mentioned anything to him about the "gift" before. It was a Bayport High tradition for the upcoming graduation class to present the current graduating class with some sort of "gift".

Joe continued not caring that it was taboo to tell anyone outside his class about it, "Mr. Convoy wants…he wants…" the younger boy faltered not understanding why this was so hard. This happened months ago…

Frank squeezed his arm supportively getting worried by the amount of trouble Joe seemed to be having with this. What the heck could the gift be?

Summoning up the courage, Joe just blurted out, "Mr. Convoy wants to do another class play!"

The sharp intake of breath that he heard told Joe that Frank was just as shocked as he had been. Maybe his own reaction hadn't been as much an overreaction as he originally thought.

"What?" Was all Frank could finally say as he was floored that the teacher would do this so soon after Natalie's death. The school had hardly had any time to mourn.

"He wants to do this in her memory but Frank…" Joe turned his vivid blue eyes to his brother who involuntarily shuttered by how electric they were in his pale face, "but Frank I think it's too soon. Maybe next year…you know to include her in our graduation we could something…but I just…no…it isn't right!"

Frank was appalled, "Principal Davis is okay with this?"

"I don't know", Joe said softly.

Neither brother spoke for a few moments and then with a big sigh, Frank decided, "Look Joe, don't worry about this, okay? I'm going to talk to Davis myself and if that doesn't work then we'll talk to Dad. You're right – this is too soon…it's inappropriate right now."

Frank saw a strange look filter across Joe's face at the mention of their father but assumed it was just that he was worried about this and he gave his brother one final pat on the back as he got up to go and make sure the alarm was on, "So try not to worry. I'm going to make sure Mom put the alarm on".

Joe laid back down but doubted he was going to get anymore sleep that night as he heard his brother and Mom talking. But he knew one thing for sure – the last thing in the world he wanted was to talk to his father about anything…

phx

By Monday, Joe was feeling much better although he was dreading going to class. He didn't want to see Mr. Convoy especially since he knew that Frank was going to talk to Principal Davis about this whole play thingy.

Joe had originally wanted to go with Frank to see Davis but Frank had convinced him that it might not be such a good idea. In reality Frank didn't want Joe there because he wanted to explain to the older man just how upset Joe was about this and knew that his brother would protest this tactic.

But to Frank it was important that Principal Davis realize what a profound effect this was having and going to have on not only Joe but everyone else who knew Natalie.

And so he needed for Joe to not be there.

phx

Joe waited impatiently in the Envoy for Frank after school. When his nerves were just about to snap, he saw the familiar figure leaving the school and walking towards the parking lot. Unable to stop himself, Joe got out of the SUV and trotted over to find out what had happened.

Frank smiled at him, "It's okay Joe. I spoke to Davis and he's going to talk to Mr. Convoy. This isn't going to happen."

Joe couldn't believe it, "You're sure…you're not just trying to make me feel better and then break it to me when you feel I'm a little less…. whatever I am now?"

Frank couldn't help but laugh wondering when his brother had become so neurotic, "No I'm not kidding". He opened the driver side door and climbed in. As he buckled his seatbelt he continued, "He didn't know what Mr. Convoy was planning. Apparently all he was told was that Convoy wanted to do something special in honor of Natalie. Davis told him that as long as you had no problems with it, then it would be fine with him".

Glancing at his brother, Frank finished, "I explained to him that you weren't all right with this – and that this 'honor' was actually going to be another play, and the Principal immediately vetoed it. Mr. Convoy is going to have to find something else to do for the grad class".

Joe was relieved but at the same time he hoped that Mr. Convoy didn't give him a hard time about this. That was the last thing he needed right now.

As if sensing what his brother was thinking, Frank commented as he pulled out onto the street, "And Mr. Davis is going to make sure Mr. Convoy understands that you weren't the one who came to him with the complaint. He is going to call me an 'anonymous concerned student'."

Joe was relieved and looked at Frank as he said a heartfelt, "Thank you big brother".

Frank reached across and messed up his hair affectionately as he watched Joe try and restore it to some semblance of order, "No kidding kiddo…that's what we big brothers do."

The rest of the ride home, Joe felt better then he had in a while…until he burst into the kitchen and saw his father sitting at the table finishing the last of his cup of coffee.

Crap, was all Joe could think, Dad's home.

phx

Andrea Bender was getting tired of this ongoing argument. She knew it wasn't going to be easy on Vanessa when she accepted the job in Vancouver and told her that they were going to be moving away. But she had no idea of how persistent Vanessa was going to be in trying to convince her mother to either rethink the plans or somehow let her stay in Bayport anyway.

Vanessa had at first suggested she stay at her best friend Tammy Connor's house. Mrs. Bender was sure that it wouldn't be a problem with Tammy's family but as she told her daughter, "No. I'm sorry…if we were talking about a month or two…maybe. But not for another full year and then lord knows how long after that. The Connor's are not your family!"

The girl left somewhat defeated and Andrea should have expected the next request, but she hadn't…so when it came, she stood speechless and stared at her daughter in disbelief.

Andrea had just finished loading the dishwasher when Vanessa came into the kitchen and sat down. All during dinner, she had gotten the feeling that there was something on her daughter's mind and had even asked her if everything was all right. Vanessa had smiled weakly but didn't say anything. So Andrea didn't press the issue knowing that she would confide in her when she was ready.

It had been a hard week for the beautiful ash-blond teen. Joe was in the hospital after being stabbed by some crazed cult member and Vanessa had spent most of her spare time there with him.

And it was hard on Andrea, watching her daughter go through all the pain again that comes from almost losing someone you love so much. But it helped further intensify her decision to take Vanessa and move as far away as possible from Joe Hardy. Some people just attracted trouble – no matter how nice they were.

And that made it even worst. Andrea Bender was quite fond of Joe…but no matter how fond she was of him… she loved her daughter and there was no competition or second thought needed. Vanessa needed to be kept safe and that meant getting her away from Fenton's son.

Then without warning, Vanessa just blurted out, "What if I lived with Dad?"

And that was almost 5 minutes earlier…

"E-excuse…me?" Andrea finally managed as she sat down heavily in the chair across from Vanessa. Her face had gone white and for a few moments Vanessa was terrified that her mother was going to drop dead on the spot or something.

"Well I was thinking…you didn't want me to stay at Tammy's because they're not family…but Dad is", she knew it wasn't that simple as she would have to convince her father to relocate first but she thought that might be easier then getting her Mom not to move to Canada.

Robert Bender was a writer who had moved back to Provo, Utah after splitting up with Andrea, and Vanessa didn't see him very often. His pre-teen series about a group of teenage ghosts who solved mysteries was a moderate success and he, like Andrea, had some flexibility in choosing where to live – he chose Provo…she chose Bayport.

"NO!" Andrea said much harsher then she intended. Vanessa was taken aback by her mother's tone and Andrea immediately apologized. It wasn't her daughter's fault…she had no idea, "I'm sorry honey. It's just that it isn't fair to ask your Dad to give up his new life to move out here…just so you can be close to your boyfriend. And you know how much he hates the coast".

Andrea hated using this tactic – trying to make Vanessa feel she has no right to inconvenience him, but it was the only way she could think of to try and get Vanessa to drop this idea. She didn't want to tell her the truth and she especially didn't want Vanessa calling Robert.

One of the largest bones of contention between them had been Robert's insistence that Vanessa was old enough to know the truth. But Andrea wasn't ready to tell her yet…and some days she felt like she would never tell her.

Vanessa didn't need to know the truth. Andrea had lived her life happy enough without it…and so could her daughter. And now she was terrified that if Robert spoke to Vanessa he would tell her the real reason why he wouldn't move to Bayport…and then Andrea was afraid she would lose Vanessa forever.

No, she would do whatever she could to keep them from talking…

"And sweetie", she heard herself lying, "your Dad is actually out of town for a while. He's gone to Europe doing some research and won't be back for a couple of months."

"What?" Vanessa asked in disbelief, she hadn't heard that.

"I'm sorry, I was going to tell you at suppertime but you looked so distracted, I thought I would wait until later. He called this morning to tell me he would be out of phone contact until the middle of the summer. He told me to tell you he loved you and would drop you a postcard when he got the chance, " Andrea couldn't believe how easily the lies came and she only hoped that Robert and Vanessa had enough distance between them for her to never have to eat her own words.

Vanessa sat there and looked at her mother in shock – her father had left the country for a couple of months and never even had the decency to talk to her before he left? Sure, they weren't as close since the divorce but she would never have taken him to do something like this.

"Oh", was all she could say. She was officially out of options as her mother wasn't willing to let her stay with Tammy which meant that any of her other friends were out…and now she couldn't even ask her father. Canada was getting closer everyday.

"I'm so sorry", Andrea apologized again. But this time, it was for having to tell her this lie.

"It's okay", Vanessa found herself saying, "It isn't your fault. Look, if it's okay with you, I think I'm going to drop over and see how Joe's first day back at school went."

"That's fine", Andrea said watching her daughter slowly get up from the table, "say hello to the Hardy's for me."

"Yeah", Vanessa said absently as she grabbed her jacket and Explorer keys.

A few minutes later she was pulling out of her driveway and heading over to Joe's.

phx

"Hey", Frank protested as he ran into Joe who had stopped dead in his tracks when he saw his father in the kitchen.

"Hi boys", Fenton said as he noticed Joe's reaction. He instantly became alarmed wondering what Joe was hiding from him as he also thought about Joe's evasiveness in the hospital, "Are you okay Joe?"

Joe moved into the kitchen as Frank gave him a strange look and then shrugged his shoulders figuring that Joe had just been shocked to see his father home. He wasn't supposed to be back until tomorrow.

"Yeah", Joe said vaguely as he hurried past his father and towards the other door and into the living room, "I'm going to start on my homework." And then he was upstairs in a flash.

Fenton looked at Frank who was now bent over looking in the fridge for something to eat. He was starved.

"What's wrong with your brother?" Fenton asked his older son as he fished out an apple and then turned around to face his father.

Shrugging, Frank told him what he suspected, "Nothing probably. We weren't expecting you back until tomorrow," Frank said honestly biting into the apple. Joe had asked him not to mention anything about what Mr. Convoy had been planning and he thought that was a good idea. No need making a mountain out of molehill since it had been resolved now, anyway.

"Did the trial wrap up earlier then expected?" Frank asked sitting down at the table.

Fenton wasn't sure he agreed with Frank's assessment of his brother but let it drop for now as he sighed, "Well as I expected, at the last moment, the defendant coped a plea. So I got to come home early."

Eyeing his oldest son carefully, Fenton thought back to his promise to Callie and shuttering, he wondered if now was a good time to talk to him about it. Joe was upstairs doing his homework and Laura had left for work already.

Sighing, he decided now was probably as good as it was going to get.

"Frank…" he started and saw his son look at him with curiosity, "I saw Callie". Frank paled and he inwardly winced at what he was going to say…he was still in shock himself, "Son…" this was going to be harder then he thought, "I had a good talk to her…and Winston…and I think you should go ahead with your plans to see her".

Frank couldn't believe his father was saying this. When he had told him in the car on the way to the airport about this intention, his father hadn't been so sure he should do that. He was worried that Frank wasn't ready to see her yet.

Hearing his father continue, he tried to remain focused on what he was saying, "She's changed…she understands that what she did was wrong…and…" Fenton wished he had a good stiff drink as he felt himself break into a cold sweat. He hadn't thought it was possible to hate himself anymore then he did when he found out he had been with Callie…but he was wrong, "and I think you should consider giving her…giving her a second chance."

There he had said it…and now he waited to see what Frank's reaction was going to be.

Frank stared at his father in disbelief. He was sure he had misheard but as he saw the look on his father's face, he became aware of two things:

His father had said he should give Callie a second chance

His father wasn't saying it because he believed it…

Pursing his lips, he slowly nodded his head as his dark brown eyes burned into his father's own, "Okay…I'll go and see her".

Oh yes, he definitely needed to see her now…more then ever. He needed to find out why his father was saying something that he so obviously didn't believe.

Then Frank saw something else flash across his father's face just before Fenton abruptly got up, "That's good. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be in my office. Oh, " Fenton's hand fished into his pocket and he pulled out the letter Callie had given him – he was on two minds about giving it to Frank but then realized it was not his place to keep it from him, "Callie asked me to give this to you."

Taking the letter, Frank stared at for a few moments and barely noticed his father leave the kitchen. Sighing, he pocketed the letter and then stared at the door with a troubled look on his face. Frank had recognized the look that had flashed across his father's face and it gave him an incredibly bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Guilt…he had seen guilt on his father's face. What did his father have to be guilty about?

phx

Vanessa was a block from her house when her cell phone rang. Hitting the hands free, she heard her best friends voice on the line, "Hey Van, what'cha doing?"

"Going to see Joe", the words weren't even out of her mouth before Tammy was already asking if she could go with her. She was dying to meet Frank.

"Besides I want to see how Joe is doing – I got him a card, " Tammy ended and Vanessa couldn't help but smile. She knew Tammy had been chomping at the bit to go to the hospital when Joe was there but had decided to wait until he had gotten home and was feeling better. After all, hospital lighting is so unflattering…

"Fine – I'll pick you up in 10 minutes…" the phone clicked off and Vanessa shook her head as she imagined Tammy scrambling to put together an outfit and do her hair and makeup in 10 minutes. But Vanessa knew Tammy Connor very well…10 minutes wouldn't be a problem.

phx

Joe was amused a little while later as Vanessa finally introduced Tammy Connor to Frank Hardy. With a seemingly endless supply of energy, Tammy had taken the older boy by storm and had already finagled Frank back into his own room to show her his computer.

Vanessa laughed as she could hear Tammy's bubbly voice coming from Frank's room in a seemingly endless stream, "Do you think she's letting him get a word in?"

Joe pulled her into a tight hug relishing her warmth. He felt so cold lately, "Who cares…she's certainly keeping his mind off anything else right now…and that's all I care about."

Nodding in agreement, she nestled down against Joe and felt his heart beating through his chest. Sighing she wondered how she was supposed to leave this…to leave him?

phx

When the girls finally left an hour later, Frank came in and flopped down across the bottom of Joe's bed. The younger boy couldn't help but grin, "So what did you think of Tammy?"

Groaning, Frank feigned the strength to sit up as he grinned back, "Well I'll give her one thing…she certainly has enthusiasm!"

And then sitting up he smiled fondly at Joe, "Thank you."

Joe had no idea what he was thanking him for, "You're welcome…but for what?"

Until Vanessa and Tammy had arrived, Frank had been moping around his room trying to figure out why his father had such a change of heart and about what he should say to Callie. He couldn't bring himself to open the letter and had put it with the small box containing the lock of hair, "For Tammy. She certainly took my mind off anything else for the past hour…and I will admit, she is pretty easy on the eyes."

Joe grinned – while he still didn't think Tammy was his brother's type, she might be a good friend for him right now, "In that case, you'd better thank Vanessa as I had no idea that Tammy was coming over until they walked in".

"I will…. well I think I'm going to turn in…good night kiddo", Frank said as he got up off the bed, turned on Joe's lamp and then turned off the big light on his way to his own room, "Don't let the bed bugs bit."

"Bed bugs!" Joe cried out in alarm, "Great! Give me something else to stay up at night worrying about!"

Frank smiled to himself as he left the room – his brother must be feeling better if he was joking about his sleeping problems.

Bed bugs indeed!

phx

Fenton lay in the bed being consumed by guilt. Hearing Laura in the bathroom, he winced with the thoughts of his impropriety. And the most frustrating part of it all was not remembering it.

He remembered Callie coming to him…they were kissing…he picked her up and carried her into the room…Fenton squeezed his eyes shut in irritation – why couldn't he remember anything past that?

As Laura came into their bedroom, the detective couldn't bring himself to look at her and kept his back turned as he felt her climb into bed and snuggle up next to him. But he couldn't bring himself to return her caress.

"I'm sorry…I'm just tired from the flight", he lied and could sense her immediate disappointment…but he couldn't.

Not right now…maybe not ever.

phx

The rest of the week passed fairly uneventful for the boys.

If Mr. Convoy suspected that Joe had anything to do with the play being pulled, he never did anything to show it. He merely announced on Wednesday morning that he had reconsidered his idea and was now opening the floor to the students for suggestions on what else they could do.

As of Friday morning, no one had come up with anything very good so they were all given the weekend to think about it.

Joe waved to Biff and Tony as he walked towards the parking lot with Phil Cohen, Frank's sandy haired best friend, who was getting a ride home with him as his car was in the shop getting the brakes replaced.

Tony had returned to school on Tuesday morning although as he had teased Sean at lunchtime, "I won't be back at work for another two weeks so you'll have to burn the midnight oil for me". Tony was the Asst. Manager at Mr. Pizza's.

Sean had laughed as he retorted, "With the amount of work that you do…that shouldn't be too difficult."

Joe was almost feeling that everything was back to normal…even at home. He still felt a little like he was walking on eggshells around his father, expecting him to explode at him at any time. But his father had been home for 4 days now and nothing had happened – nothing at all.

In fact, his father had been great. Not even pressuring Joe to talk to him about what might be bothering the boy although he was sure to have noticed Joe's unease by now.

So by Friday, he was beginning to relax…a little.

Which was a good thing since he had driven Frank to the airport in the morning on his way to school.

His brother had finally decided to go and see Callie. And although Joe really wanted to beg him not to leave, he loved his brother too much to try and stop him. Frank had to do this for himself.

Joe didn't like it…but he would live with it. That was what brothers did for each other.

phx

The Island -

Frank stepped off the plane and stretched. The flight was long and he was tired. Normally he would just go to sleep but this time sleep was not his friend, as he couldn't get his mind off the reunion he was about to have. He just prayed he would have the strength to do what he had to do and that Callie would understand.

And then a few minutes when he saw Callie Shaw for the first time in over 4 months, he knew he didn't.

phx

Even in a crowd of beautiful girls, long legged blond Callie Shaw turned heads. Her normally blond hair had been bleached even lighter in the island sun and was now neatly pulled back into a single long French braid. Her green eyes peered intently out of a sun-tanned face, which broke into a wide smile when she saw Frank Hardy stepping off the plane.

"FRANK!" She yelled as she waved at him feeling her heart catch in her throat. Although she would have never thought it, she had forgotten how handsome he was. And if possible, it looked like he was in even better shape then the last time she had seen.

Wearing a pair of Levi's and a casual off-white shirt, with his dark hair and eyes, Callie was sure Casanova would have been jealous. She heard a couple of appreciative comments from two girls who were standing behind her and it intensified her feelings – that was her boyfriend…hers.

As Frank came into the airport, Callie made sure to make a big production out of giving him a hug and kiss in front of his admiring audience. If the girls noticed his jaw clench when Callie gave him a kiss or the uncomfortable look on his face during her embrace, they didn't care – that man was fine.

"Hi Callie", Frank said disentangling him from her reception. It threw him for a loop, as did how good she looked. She was wearing a light blue low cut cotton sundress that accentuated her figure.

What's good for the goose is good for the gander, she had thought when picking out what to wear when she saw him.

"Come on", Callie said lightly as she entwined her arm through his, "the car's out front".

And sure enough the black limo was and Frank actually grimaced when he saw it. He had hoped for a less pretentious ride, a convertible even.

Sighing, he gave his overnight bag to the driver and climbed it. At least it was air-conditioned.

Callie made sure to sit as close to him as possible although Frank tried to move away a bit until he was actually pressed against the door. He didn't like the effect she was having on him…the effect she always had on him.

This is ridiculous, he thought wondering for the hundredth time if this was such a good idea as right now he was feeling like he was between a rock and a hard place.

The things he knew and things he was feeling where worlds apart and Frank soon found himself needing air as it felt like the whole back of the limo was closing in on him.

And it didn't help that as she talked to him and asked questions she found every excuse to touch his leg or his arm or the side of his face. Frank heard himself answering her questions but he had no idea what he was saying. It must have made sense because she would nod and then talk about something else…or smile…or smell good…

He could smell her perfume and the shampoo in her hair and he wanted to gather her in his arms and not believe everything he knew as true. This was his Callie…the woman he was going to marry.

Callie knew she was distracting him and was glad now to have had the foresight to impress upon the driver that she wanted to relish this ride back to the estate with Frank.

And then as the car went around a particularly sharp curve, Frank leaned down against her and before he could pull away, Callie slide her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Momentarily taken by surprise, Frank didn't pull himself away but instead found himself returning her kiss. She was intoxicating…

Suddenly he became lost in her…as the limo slowly made its way towards the house.

phx

"Frank…"Callie murmured in his ear, "I've missed you so much…I knew you'd come back to me…I knew…"Frank froze. Whatever he had been feeling for her instantly shriveled up. As he pulled away he stared deeply into her green eyes and saw the mask fall away.

She hadn't changed…she was still the girl that he didn't really now…and in that one instant, Frank realized the truth – he didn't love her anymore. What he felt was something else. Pity.

He pitied her for being so insecure that she had considered his brother as competition…and then she had hurt Joe…purposely…No, now he was glad he had come.

It was over.

"What's wrong?" Callie asked instantly alarmed by his sudden rejection.

"Callie…this is wrong", Frank shook his head sadly as he buttoned up his shirt, ashamed by his own weakness but thankful that he had heard her…the real her before he made another mistake, "this is not why I'm here."

"W-what?" she was confused. This was supposed to be her second chance…Fenton was going to get her a second chance!

"We need to talk…but not like this, " Frank turned away from her and stared out the tinted windows. It was funny that given how beautiful this island was, Frank was never here to enjoy it.

Callie sat back in her seat and tried to keep from panicking. This was not going the way she had planned everything and she was terrified. Frank said they needed to talk…what was he going to say?

phx

As soon as the limo pulled up in front of the estate house, Callie bolted from the backseat. She needed to regroup and did not want to have the "talk" with Frank until she was ready.

Frank sighed recognizing that she was avoiding him and knowing why. Oh well, he could always talk to her later. Right now as he saw the surf breaking across the beach behind the house, he felt a familiar call and was aching to get his feet wet.

Winston greeted him at the door and if he had any questions about why Callie rushed by him, he never said anything but extended his hand and warmly greeted the young man, "Welcome back, Frank. How was your flight?"

Frank shook his hand and followed him into the house wondering which room he was going to be in this time, "Not bad – the food was definitely better then on a commercial flight". Winston nodded – Frank had flown to the island in one of the Plyth Private Jets and no expense was spared when it came to comfort…or food.

He saw Frank look longingly out one of the massive windows towards the beach and grinned, "Come on. I thought you might like to stay in Joe's old room. It has the best view of the beach…"

"Sounds good", Frank said as they started up the stairs.

"If you're interested", Winston continued leading him down the decadent corridor to the room that used to belong to Remus Plyth and more recently Joe Hardy, "there's a nice breeze on the water today and it's perfect for surfing." The older man knew that Joe was an avid surfer and suspected that his brother was likewise guilty.

Immediately Frank's face broke into a wide grin and less then 20 minutes later he licked the salt spray off his lips and rode a nice wave into the shallow water.

Frank spent the next couple of hours surfing, swimming and generally lounging on the beach. It was nice although over his head hung the shadow of the impending conversation.

Winston brought out some sandwiches and ice tea and sat with him for a while in the sand around lunchtime. They talked about what had been happening over the past couple of months and about the impending summer and fall.

He wanted to get Frank's opinion on his proposal to Fenton about having Joe come and spend the summer on the island. But knew it was better if Fenton talked to Frank about it.

"Well that sounds pretty exciting", Winston commented after hearing about Frank's impending summer job, "I didn't realize that you had your pilot's license." Frank had just told him that he was going to be working for his father's personal pilot and friend, Jack Wayne.

In addition to flying the famous investigator, Jack was kept busy with private charters and had been enthusiastic in his suggestion that Frank help him out for the summer. Although he had only recently turned 19, Frank was a very competent pilot and in between helping Jack with the flying, the experienced pilot was going to help him bone up on engine mechanics.

Frank was extremely excited about this. He loved flying…. almost as much as Joe disliked it.

"I have to admit I'm kind of surprised to hear that you love flying…especially since I know how much Joe abhors it", Winston stretched out in the sand beside Frank. He still had some time before he needed to go back to work.

Frank plucked out a pair of sunglasses to shield his eyes as he also lay in the sand relishing its hot warmth on his back. He folded his hands under his head and sighed as he looked up at the clouds overhead, "Actually Joe used to like flying. He was even thinking about getting his pilot's license but then when he was 15, he was in a plane crash."

"Oh, " said Winston surprised. He didn't know this.

"Yeah", Frank elaborated thinking back to the accident, "Dad, me, Joe and Jack Wayne had flown to Alaska to do some fishing. Dad had rented one of those cabins where the only way to get there was by floatplane. We were there for three days when a bear broke into the cabin and trashed most of our supplies so Jack was going to fly back to town and pick up some more."

Frank paused for a second to take a large sip of the cool ice tea, "Joe went with him because he had taken a nasty spill down an embankment earlier…and Dad was worried that he had broken his wrist…which he did. Anyway, we stayed back in the cabin to try and clean up some of the mess. They were gone for a couple and the whole flight was uneventful until they tried to land on the lake. Me and Dad came down to watch them and I saw it too late to warn Jack."

"Saw what?" Winston asked with his curiosity peaked.

"A submerged log. That's one of the biggest dangers when landing a floatplane…floating debris. Well by now the weather had gotten windy and there was a swell on the water churning it into a dark mass which made it difficult for Jack to see the log that was lying just under the water. I tried to signal them but he never saw me and they crashed into it when they landed…the plane nose dived into the water."

Frank stopped for a moment reliving the emotion of watching his brother's place crash into the water. He had thought Joe was dead.

"By the time we were able to reach them Jack had gotten out of his seat and was trying to get Joe out of the plane which was rapidly sinking…but Joe was trapped by his seat belt. The locking mechanism was stuck and neither of us had a knife. I was sure I was going to watch my brother drown in front of me as Dad told Jack to get me out of there. And then…I don't know how…but Dad somehow got the strength to snap the belt open and pull Joe out."

"I've heard of people getting such an adrenaline rush when the lives of someone they care about are at stake, that they become living superheroes, " Winston commented shuttering as he imagined how Fenton must have felt watching his son drown in front of him because he couldn't get the seat belt off.

Frank nodded knowing it was true. There was no other way Fenton could have gotten Joe out of that plane, "Well needless to say, since then Joe has been a lot less enthusiastic about planes. But, I have to give him credit", Frank finished fondly, "he will still fly…when he has to."

Winston nodded in agreement. Once again marveling at what remarkable people the Hardys were.

phx

Callie watched Frank from the house. She wished she knew what he and Winston were talking about but suspected it was her.

Having rethought her strategy, Callie grabbed a towel and started walking down the beach towards Frank.

phx

Frank saw her coming and watched her sit down next to him. She was wearing a one-piece bathing suit and wordlessly handed him a bottle of suntan lotion before asking, "Can you please put some on my back?"

Obliging, Frank couldn't help but notice how she quivered under his touch and he felt bad.

He felt bad because he knew that she was thinking there could be something between them again…and there couldn't be. It was really over.

Waiting until she had settled down beside her, Frank spoke softly, "Callie…" but before he could say anything else, she placed her hand on his lips silencing him, "No Frank…don't say anything. Can't we just sit here together for a little while and not say anything…not think anything?"

Frank started to protest but decided that maybe she was right, besides he did not want to have this conversation in his Speedos!

Gently removing her hand from his lips, he lay back and felt the warm sand settle gently beneath his back. The smell of her coconut suntan lotion mixed with the salt from the Mediterranean Sea and he felt his body soaking it in as much as the hot sun.

Beside him, Callie didn't say anything. In truth she didn't know what to say and was hoping that their being together would be a good start. Frank just needed to remember how good she was for him.

phx

The big man walked along the beach and let the surf lick his legs as he carried his sandals lazily in his hands. Further down the beach he saw Callie and stopped, squinting his eyes as he saw the young man laying beside her.

He wanted desperately to meet this young man and hoped that if he got close enough Callie would call them over and give him a formal introduction, although he did not really need one.

He had never met this boy before but he knew exactly who it was…it was Joe Hardy's brother. Frank Hardy. And while he had hid from the father, he was looking forward to meeting the son.

phx

Callie saw him standing in the surf and sucked in her breath – what was he doing?

She knew how he felt about the Hardy's and was surprised to see him brazenly walking towards them. Damn it, she thought, what are you doing here?

BJ Smith.

The young girl had met BJ when she first came to the house and although she tried to have as little as possible to do with him, they found out they had something in common and had forged an unlikely friendship based on it. She knew very little about him except that he was Pharaoh's father…oh and he hated Joe Hardy.

phx

Frank was just deciding to go back into the water when he saw the big man walking towards them. Instinctively he stood up unsure of whether this person was supposed to be here or not. Standing 6'4 and very muscular, Frank was hoping that the bald-headed man was a friend because he really didn't feel like getting the crap kicked out of him today.

Callie didn't bother to stand as she looked up from the sand with her hands shielding her eyes from the sun as she sighed wearily.

She had no choice and made the introduction, "Frank Hardy this is BJ. BJ Smith this is Frank Hardy". That was all she was giving, as she wasn't sure what BJ's game was yet but was determined that it didn't ruin hers.

BJ held out his hand and Frank hesitated a second before shaking it. Although the new man was smiling, Frank saw that the smile didn't extend to his eyes. The sleuth's instincts were warning him about this guy – he just didn't know why…yet.

"Hardy? Are you by any chance a relation to our generous benefactor?" BJ released Frank with a satisfied smirk as he saw the boy wince from the strength of the handshake.

Callie groaned inwardly, generous benefactor?

Frank rolled his eyes but smiled, "You could say that. Joe's my brother".

"Really?" BJ sounded pleasantly surprised, "Is he here with you?"

"No…not this time", Frank replied as the two men still stood facing each other.

"Too bad", BJ sounded genuinely disappointed, "I was hoping he might drop in sometime". He was just fishing for information and ignored Callie's glare – he really did want to see Joe…again. They had some unfinished business to be taken care of.

Now Callie stood up and grabbing Frank's arm she started to pull him towards the water, "Yeah that's really too bad", she said quickly, "Now if you'll excuse us, BJ – there's a couple of waves out there with Frank's name written on them".

Curious, Frank let her steer him away from the big man. He sensed something was amiss and would like to have a more in-depth chat with the other guest but, like his impending conversation with Callie, some things were best not done in Speedos!

phx

Satisfied that he hadn't been recognized, Ben Mitchell strode back to the house. Know thy enemies, he smiled to himself as he turned around briefly before going back into the house. Frank Hardy had just caught a good wave and was riding it in as Callie watched from the beach.

There were so many possibilities and so little time. Dead was dead…so he needed to make sure that he got full satisfaction before Joe Hardy 'rested in peace'…or pieces.

phx

Bayport -

Sean Todd sighed as he watched the clock ticking down to 11 PM. It was Friday night and he would have preferred to be chasing some of the fine Bayport skirts he had seen hanging at the mall, but he had to work. Not that he wasn't happy to be working…but Friday evening shifts were always a bummer.

Tony Prito had put in a good word to his father, who owned Mr. Pizza's, and gotten Sean this part time job…one that he desperately needed. Always short on cash, it became worst when someone had slashed his tires shortly after he moved to Bayport and without this job, he would still be riding the bus or bumming rides.

Feeling guilty, Sean put his self-pity away and finished wiping down the tables and booths. Jeannette, one of the waitresses, was outside leaning against the side of the building having a smoke as the last customer had left 10 minutes earlier and Raul was finishing up the deliveries. Sean, Jeannette and Raul were the last of the Friday evening staff. The other waitress, Cammie, had left at 10:30.

They would stay until 11 PM and then Raul, one of Aldo Prito's nephews, would do one final check and then lock up. Small and wiry, Raul had a sharp tongue and relished his responsibility as third in charge behind Mr. Prito and Tony but Sean had quickly learned to pay as much attention to him as the rest of the staff did. And quite frankly, they didn't pay him much attention at all…

"Hey Sean", Jeanette leaned in through the front door, "Raul's back…" She stubbed out her smoke and came back inside. It was close enough to 11 now for her to get her coat and leave – they were finished for the night.

Grabbing her tips and purse, she called out over her shoulder, "See you tomorrow!"

Sean waved good-bye to her and then grabbing three bags of garbage, he used his back to push open the door and walked out into the alley to toss them in the garbage dumpster.

Letting the heavy lid fall after he tossed in the garbage, Sean wiped his hands off in his apron and turned around to go back and get the rest. He never saw the fist until it was too late.

phx

"Hey it's not 11 yet!" Raul Prito protested as Jeannette passed him in the parking lot.

"It's 10:59 for cripes sake…dock me!" Jeannette called out and then hopped into her 1991 Ford Mustang and sped off the lot.

Shaking his head, he wondered sarcastically if Sean was still there or if he had cut out already too…but he doubted that. Although he would never admit it, Raul liked Sean and found him to be a good worker so he wasn't surprised to hear the back door as he walked into the joint.

Sean's taking out the garbage, he thought as he quickly went to check the bathrooms.

phx

Joe lay awake in his room staring at the wall. It was almost 11 pm and he hadn't fallen to sleep yet. He glanced forlornly towards his brother's empty bedroom and thought that was what it would be like in September when Frank had moved into the University dorms.

And then he scratched his chest absently and wondered if Tony's stitches were as itchy as his own.

Yes, Joe was restless. He couldn't sleep…and he was itchy.

Sitting up in bed, he looked back at the clock and decided he had just enough time to whip by Mr. Pizza's before it closed. Maybe Sean would want to grab a coffee/hot chocolate or something.

Hastily getting dressed, he went downstairs and saw his father asleep on the living room couch with the newspaper folded across his chest. But as the bottom stair creaked, he froze as he saw his father open his eyes and realized he wasn't sleeping.

Fenton had heard the sound and turned to see a fully dressed Joe standing between the stairs and the kitchen door. His head was splitting again and he was just waiting for Monday to come as he had finally made an appointment with Dr. Bates…if he could just tolerate these headaches until then.

"Joe…w-where are you going?" He asked as his head pounded and it hurt his eyes to have them open. Laura was working the graveyard shift and he was glad she wasn't here to see him now or else she would have probably made him go right to the hospital.

Swallowing the familiar lump of apprehension that rose in the back of his throat, Joe heard something in his father's voice and taking in his peaked face, he instinctively stepped closer to see if he was all right, "Are you okay?"

Fenton would have nodded if his head didn't hurt so badly but he didn't want to admit that to his son so he tried to smile…it came out as a grimace, "Yeah…migraine".

Ah, Joe nodded in understanding. Although he had never had a migraine before, he knew they were painful enough to be debilitating, "Can I get you something?" he spoke quietly knowing that sound would further intensify the headache.

Fenton started to say no but then changed his mind, "Actually yes…my pills are in…" he stopped and closed his eyes, "are in my shaving kit…my bathroom."

Joe took the stairs two at a time, only too happy to be doing something for his father. Maybe if he made himself useful, his father would never hit him again.

A few minutes later, he took off the lid and was surprised when his father resisted the water he offered and just dry swallowed two small pills.

"Thanks", Fenton said as he lay back and closed his eyes again.

Remembering his father's earlier question, Joe said, "Dad I'm going out for a while. Sean's getting off in a few minutes…I won't be gone too long."

Fenton would have preferred that Joe stay home but right now was just too happy that Joe was talking to him. The last week had been a bit stressful…although he had no idea why.

"Okay…be careful, " Fenton managed.

"I will. I got my cell", Joe finished and a few minutes later he was backing the Envoy out of the driveway and onto Elm Street.

phx

The fist hit the startled boy squarely in the face and although Sean staggered back, he didn't go down…he couldn't afford to. Immediately he fell into a boxer like stance as he saw his assailants. There were three guys of varying size wearing ski masks over their faces but Sean was pretty sure who they were.

He had run into two of them last week and got a shiner for his trouble. And Joe thinks I should try and stay out of their way, he thought sarcastically dodging another fist as he swung wildly and felt some satisfaction as one of the ski masked guys grunted when he connected. And then the three of them pounced on his all at once.

After a lively scuffle, two of them pinned him against the dumpster as the third began throwing punches into his abdomen.

Sean started to yell for help. He was sure that Raul would hear him but his cry was cut off as a rag was shoved into his mouth and a voice rasped into his ear, "Now the real fun can begin".

Not one to scare easily, Sean suddenly became very afraid as a fourth masked goon stepped out of the shadows and in his hands he held a baseball bat.

Someone help me… was all he could think as he struggled even harder but the blows to the stomach and chest had done their job in weakening him and as the blood dripped from his nose, Sean began to pray.

phx

Joe grinned to himself as he pulled into the parking lot in time to see Raul going in through the door. He had seen the flicker of taillights speeding down the street and assumed correctly that Jeannette had just left – that girl drove like a bat out of hell!

He had known Raul almost as long as he had known Tony and even had the 'privilege' of working for him on occasion when he had helped out at Mr. Pizza in the past. So he knew very well what a torment working with him could be.

"Hey Raul, where's Sean?" Joe asked as he stepped into the Pizzaria as Raul was coming out of the bathrooms.

Raul's smile immediately turned to a scowl as he saw who it was, "For a second I thought you were a customer."

"I am a customer", Joe quipped back as he turned around and flipped the "OPEN" sign over to "CLOSED" and then locked the front door for Raul.

"A paying one", Raul said turning away so that Joe wouldn't see the grin on his face. He liked both Joe and Frank although he usually found Joe easier to bait.

"Hey", Joe said feigning indignation, "That's a low blow!"

"He's taking out the trash", Raul ignored his outburst as he popped into the kitchen to check the stoves and stock room.

Joe, seeing two bags left in the kitchen, grabbed them and then went outside to give his friend a hand.

phx

It is hard to say who was more surprised – Joe…when he heard the crack of the bat as it hit Sean…. or the man holding the bat…when he was tackled so hard from behind that he lost his grip on the bat!

Oblivious to anything else, Joe dropped the garbage and threw himself with fury into the assailant before the bat could hit its mark again as he yelled, "RAUL!"

Grabbing the bat as it slipped out of the man's grasp, Joe swung it at the two guys holding Sean as the third guy took off out of the alley.

Cursing, they let go of Sean who slumped to the ground and grabbing their friend, who was still on his hands and knees from the force of Joe's tackle, jumped into a waiting car just as Raul ducked his head out the back door, "Wha…" his words were cut off as he saw Sean unconscious on the ground with Joe standing over him holding a bat.

"CALL 911!" Joe screamed, dropping the bat to check on his friend. With a sigh of relief, he found a pulse.

"Hang on man…help is on the way", Joe kept repeating as he took off his jacket and it draped over his friend.

After what seemed an eternity, the police and ambulance showed up at the same time and after a quick assessment, Sean was strapped to a back board and placed into the back of the vehicle. With lights flashing and the siren blaring, they tore off to the hospital.

Joe waited to talk to the police who were talking to Raul first as he had called them.

Now that his adrenaline rush was over and Sean was on his way to the hospital, Joe leaned back against the wall and felt his body starting to shake. What would have happened if I had fallen asleep…or not decided to drop by? Joe tormented himself over and over again with many different scenarios that would have all ended up the same way. Sean would have probably been dead because lord knows how long it would have been before Raul started wondering what was keeping him…and even if he did come into the alley looking for Sean, Raul was not a fighter…

"Joe Hardy?" Joe's thoughts were broken by the sound of his own name, as the police were ready to talk to him.

"Yeah", Joe said straightening up. He didn't know this officer and for a second he felt a wave of panic as he remembered his most recent run-ins with an officer he didn't know… Officer Greenly.

He wished it were Officer Riley, Officer Chan, Officer Barrett, or any one of the other cops that he knew but instead he got one of the few people he didn't.

"I'm Officer Hardy, " the cop introduced himself, "and I understand that you were involved in this altercation tonight".

Joe was stunned and his mouth actually dropped open Officer Hardy? The only Officer Hardy he knew was his dad's cousin Kyle who was a California Highway Patrolman.

The officer sighed loudly, "You heard me. Yes…Hardy. But don't go flattering yourself or anything…we aren't related!"

Joe closed his mouth and frowned – did all the new cops he met have to be so irritable?

"Sorry", Joe muttered trying to get on the good side of the cop. The last thing he needed was more police trouble.

The cop took notes as Joe told about what he saw when he opened the back door and came into the alley. And then when he finished speaking the cop asked him to wait as he stepped away so that Joe couldn't hear what he was saying on the radio.

A few minutes later, Officer Hardy came back over to where Joe was still standing, "I would like you to come down to the precinct with me. I have a few questions, I want to ask you." Joe was curious as to why he didn't just ask him right there. But before he could say anything, the CSI guys showed up and Officer Hardy ushered him towards his waiting patrol car.

"Am I being arrested?" Joe asked surprised that he wasn't being allowed to follow in his own vehicle.

"No", the police officer said but didn't elaborate.

As Joe climbed into the back of the car, he turned to look once again at the alley and grimaced as he saw one of the crime scene investigators gingerly bagging the bat.

phx

The sound of the ringing phone was one of the worst experiences in Fenton's life. His head exploded with each ring as he desperately grabbed it, knocking it on the floor before finally getting the receiver in his hand and up to his ear, "Hello?"

10 minutes later, the detective stumbled out of his house, got into his car and drove as fast as he dared to the police station.

phx

Joe sipped a cup of water as he waited for his father to arrive. He wasn't sure what was going on and was getting very perplexed by the whole business. He was being treated like he had done something wrong and this gnawed at him – what could possibly be going on?

Wincing, he felt a sharp pain in his chest as he stretched. His chest was sore and he was getting very tired. He just wanted to go home.

When Officer Hardy had realized that Joe was underage, he called his father to come down to the precinct. He couldn't question Joe without a parent present so Joe just sat in the waiting room and…well…waited.

Finally a half an hour after his son was brought in, Fenton rushed in through the front doors and barely acknowledged any of the 'hellos' from his numerous friends who was also all wondering the same thing – what was Fenton's son doing here?

phx

"Joe I just have a few questions to ask you", Officer Hardy said after the introductions had been made. Fenton made no comment nor gave any indication of surprise when he heard the last name of the officer. And although he hated himself for it, Officer Hardy felt a bit intimidated by being in the same room as the famous Fenton Hardy.

Fenton was sitting down next to Joe and the Officer couldn't help but notice that the kid had flinched and moved away slightly when his father had first sat down. It wasn't a big movement and the police officer doubted that Fenton even noticed…but he did…probably because he has such high expectations for the sleuth and his family. He thought it was interestingly in conflict to all the stories he had heard with regards to how close the detective was to his sons. And as he sized the legend up, he was curious at how distracted the detective seemed to be. It was as if he was having a hard time keeping his focus on them.

Pushing it aside he saw the kid nod and answer, "Okay."

The officer turned to his notes and glancing down at what he had written, he then looked up, "Can you just explain again why you were in the alley behind Mr. Pizza's at 11 PM?"

Joe sighed, "I couldn't sleep so I decided to take a drive by the pizza joint and see if Sean wanted to grab a coffee…." Officer Hardy interrupted, "Sean Todd? The victim?"

"Yes", Joe confirmed wondering how Sean was doing. No one told him anything about his friend's condition and all he could do was hope he was all right.

"Continue", the Officer implored. Fenton was trying hard to focus on what they were saying but it was taking all his concentration not to just pass out at the table. And he was still stunned from learning about the alley attack.

…Some people attract trouble and as much as it pains me to say it, your son is one of those people…Winston words haunted Fenton. But it wasn't Joe who had gotten attacked this time, he reminded himself, it was his new friend.

"I saw a couple of garbage bags that still needed to be put in the bin, so thinking I would give Sean a hand, I grabbed the bags and stepped into the alley…" Joe paused for a second and felt a cold shiver go over him as he heard the sound of the bat hitting Sean again.

"And?" The officer pressed.

"And", Joe said clearing his throat, "and I saw a guy wearing a ski mask hit Sean with a bat…he was being held by two other guys wearing ski masks…I didn't stop to think about anything. I just tackled the guy before he could hit Sean again, " Joe quickly sped through the incident as he remembered it vividly. But then again it had only happened about an hour earlier!

Fenton was staggered as he looked at Joe. Only two weeks earlier he had been in the hospital after the near fatal stabbing by Greenly…but he still threw himself into the middle of a very dangerous situation…without thinking about himself…for a friend. Fenton felt proud but at the same time…terrified.

Joe needed to think about himself. In his still weakened condition, he could have easily been seriously hurt…

And then he heard Officer Hardy asking Joe something and pulled himself back to their conversation.

"And that's how you got the bat?" Officer Hardy was asking and Fenton suddenly began to have an idea what this was about…and he didn't like it.

"Yeah", Joe said warily, not liking what was being implied.

"And what did you do with the bat?"

"Once I grabbed it, the two guys holding Sean, dropped him, grabbed their buddy and peeled out of there in a car", Joe watched the officer as he flipped a couple of pages and then looked up at Joe again.

"How many guys were in the ally with you and Sean?"

"Four."

"Including you and Sean?" The officer asked and Joe just looked at him for a moment before shaking his blond head, "No. Four of them…two of us…Six if you included everyone."

"What did these guys look like?"

Joe felt himself getting riled – he started to say something but bit his tongue and answered tersely, "I don't know…like I told you, they were wearing ski masks. All I can tell you is the one that had the bat was about 6'1 and in good shape. An athlete maybe…the other two holding Sean were my height…the fourth guy peeled out of there to quickly…I don't know."

"Did you get a look at the car they left in or the driver?" Officer Hardy watched the young man carefully.

"No. I was too worried about Sean. All I can tell you is that the car was an older model and large. But I didn't see what kind it was, " Joe sat back in frustration as he kicked himself for his own negligence – he should have at least seen what kind of car it was.

Officer Hardy sighed and sat back in his chair. Closing his notebook he stared intently at Joe for a few minutes before excusing himself, promising to be right back.

Fenton started to put a supportive arm around his son's shoulders but stopped as he saw Joe pull away.

"How's your headache?" Joe asked quickly as he saw his father's face register his avoidance.

"A little better", Fenton lied not wanting to worry his son and was saved from further scrutiny as the door opened and the officer stepped back into the room.

He opened the manila file folder he was holding and read something as he sat down. Then closing the file folder he sat back and shook his head.

"Your fingerprints were on the bat."

"Of course they are…" Joe started to protest but his father held up his hand and Joe stopped.

"Joe told you he obtained the bat from one of the assailants…I want to know what this is really all about?" Fenton demanded tired of all this pussy footing around. His head was pounding, he was tired and he could feel Joe's frustration growing.

"Fine. Let me be frank", Officer Hardy said noticing a strange look pass between father and son but not getting the connection to his reference to being 'Frank'.

Joe went as far as to open his mouth but a stern look from the elder Hardy silenced whatever he was going to say.

"We have a problem," Officer Hardy said ignoring Joe and staring into Fenton Hardy's dark brown eyes, "we have two witnesses. Raul Prito says he never saw anyone in the alley except Joe and Sean. And what he saw was Joe standing over Sean holding the baseball bat."

Fenton heard Joe gasp as he pressed, "And your other witness?"

"Well not a witness really, "the young officer admitted, "a TIP more like it. A woman who didn't want to identify herself, called in to say that she had seen a blond haired boy attacking a black kid with a baseball bat behind Mr. Pizza's at 11 PM. So you see…we have a problem."

Joe felt as if all the air in the room had been sucked out but before he recovered enough to say anything he heard his father asking what he was thinking, "Well what is the victim saying? I am sure he can corroborate my son's story".

Officer Hardy shook his head and Joe almost threw up – what was wrong with Sean?

"Unfortunately, the young man in question is still unconscious. He has a fractured skull and the doctor's aren't even sure if he'll ever wake up, much less if he'll remember anything about the attack. So I'm going to tell you what I'm thinking happened…"

Joe paled. Sean was so badly injured that he might be in a coma for the rest of his life…?

Fenton didn't know what to say – he was floored.

"I think that you, Joe, went out into the back alley to help your friend, like you said. But then something happened. Now exactly what…I am on two minds about…but I figure it was one of two things. Maybe you can help me out, " Officer Hardy stared intently at Joe as he spoke, "I think you and Mr. Todd were horsing around and you accidentally struck him with the bat and then concocted this 'masked attackers' story because you were afraid of getting into trouble…or…you and Mr. Todd had an argument and you hit him with the bat in anger…now maybe you can clarify for me Mr. Hardy…which was it?"

Joe exploded as he jumped up, "WHAT!"

Fenton put a restraining arm on Joe who was too furious to even notice, "My friend is attacked by three guys…I jump in to help out…and now I'M to blame!"

Officer Hardy didn't flinch at the young man's outburst, "Were you this upset with Sean tonight in the alley?"

"I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!" Joe shouted in utter disbelief. He knew that this eruption wasn't helping but he was tired and cranky…and this was just too unbelievable!

Letting go of Joe's arm, Fenton grabbed him roughly by the shoulders and pushed him back into his seat. At first Joe resisted but then seeing something in his father's eyes, he shrank back down and closed his mouth. But his mind was still screaming.

Fenton turned to Officer Hardy and said coldly, "This is all nice…in theory. But once your guys finish processing the scene, I'm sure you will find ample evidence to substantiate my son's story. In the meantime…unless you're formally charging him with something, I would like to take him home. We both could use some sleep."

Officer Hardy was torn. As much as he believed that Joe and Sean were alone in the alley, he didn't have enough to charge the teen or to hold him…yet. So standing up, he indicated for them to follow him, "As your son is a suspect in a crime, he is not allowed to leave the state…"

Fenton stopped and cut him off and the police officer actually froze when he saw the cold look on the detective's face, "I don't know what kind of Hardy you are…but my kind doesn't run. Good day officer."

Grabbing his son's arm, Fenton led him from the police station and towards his car, "Get in." He growled. He felt his patience wearing very thin. It was almost 1 AM in the morning and they should have been both in their beds a long time ago.

Why the hell did he have to go out, Fenton wondered as he drove towards their house. Wordlessly, Joe sat in the passenger seat and stared out at the empty streets. He just wanted to wake up and find out the whole thing had been a dream.

phx

Fenton Hardy unlocked the front door, turned off the alarm and said goodnight to his son before going upstairs to his room. Tossing and turning, he tried to go to sleep but it was useless. Between the raging fire in his head and the gnawing worry about what had really happened in the alley, he grew more and more agitated.

Everything started to jumble and become very confusing as he fought between waves of believing Joe and not believing Joe….

Joe wouldn't attack his friend…but there are witnesses…no…Joe isn't like that…but he's changed…that much? No! Yes? Two witnesses saw a blond haired boy attacking a black kid with a bat…two witness? NO! One? A phone tip? Joe? NO MY SON WOULDN'T DO THAT!

…NO! MY SON WOULDN'T DO THAT!

The victim has a fractured skull and might never wake up…some people attract trouble… Maybe he isn't your son…

Fenton Hardy sat up so suddenly that the throbbing in his head stopped. And then like the eye of a hurricane, after a brief lapse the storm inside his head came back with such a fury that Fenton Hardy was lost to himself.

Getting out of the bed, he calmly walked to his door pausing briefly to pick up the belt from where it lay on the floor. That had been as far as he had gotten before deciding that undressing was too much trouble…

Opening the door, he walked down the hall and not even pausing to knock, he opened Joe's bedroom door and went in.

phx

Joe Hardy fell asleep almost immediately. He was just so exhausted.

He never heard the door open or his father coming into the room.

phx

The man stood over the sleeping boy and watched him for a few moments. He looked so serene and in his tormented mind, this further enraged him. How dare he sleep so peacefully while it hurt for him to even put his head on a pillow?

Fenton Hardy, engulfed in a black rage, grabbed the corner of the blanket and whipped it off the unsuspecting teen. Joe's eyes flew open in time to see the belt and then he screamed out as it struck the wrist he rose defensively over his face.

"Dad…" his words were cut off as the belt lashed out again but this time Joe escaped it as he rolled to the side of the bed and tumbled onto the floor. He started to say something but then froze when he saw the look on his father's face – he had never seen such anger directed at him before…by anyone.

But before the teen could recover, his father grabbed him roughly and flung him against the door before dropping the belt to tower over him. Joe bit his tongue as his head hit the door and for a second he saw stars before he slumped down against the door in an attempt to protect himself.

Fenton glared down at the boy cowering in front of him…and felt euphoric – there was no other way to explain it. When he had heard Joe cry out after the belt hit him, it had brought such a powerful feeling that he actually got goose bumps. He felt his heart racing in anticipation as he stepped back and retrieved the belt…but this time instead of holding the belt buckle…he held the hard leather end.

Letting the belt buckle dangle limply for a moment, he savored the terror he saw in Joe's eyes when the boy saw the swaying buckle. With his gaze never once leaving the boy's, Fenton drew back his arm and put all his strength behind the swing.

There was no way Joe could prepare himself for the pain and a second later he screamed again as the belt buckle struck his arm and left an imprint beneath the t-shirt that he had worn to bed. Two more quick lashes followed before Fenton stopped to adjust his grip on the belt.

Attempting to crawl away, Joe was struck repeatedly on his back, arms, neck and head.

Fenton, working himself into a fury, continued to strike with the belt buckle and every sound Joe made was 'feeding' him. Panting heavily, the detective stared down at the boy huddled in front of him.

"Who the hell are you?" Fenton growled. Joe raised his tear streaked swollen face to his father's in total confusion – what?

"Who the hell are you?" Fenton repeated and belted him across the face with his open hand to punctuate the question. Joe bit his tongue again and felt the coppery flavor of the blood in his mouth.

Mustering his strength, Joe struggled to his feet and glared at his father as he spat out the first thing that came to his mind, "Betty Crocker."

He knew it was a mistake as soon as he said it…and as the look on his father's face turned from a black rage to a murderous rage, Joe Hardy was certain of one thing…his father was going to kill him.

phx

Next door to the Hardy house, Wilson Fitzpatrick rolled over in his sleep and then sat up rubbing his eyes as he looked at the clock.

"Rufus? What's wrong boy?"

His three-year-old border collie was standing by the bedroom door growling. His hackles were raised and he turned to look at his owner imploringly as he heard his voice. The dog gave a couple of sharp barks and then pawed at the door.

"You want to go outside?" the old man asked in disbelief. Rufus was well past puppy stage and never needed to go out in the middle of night anymore, "At this hour?"

The dog cocked his head to the side and then suddenly jumped at the man and barked at him as if to stress the urgency of his request.

Sighing tiredly, Wilson grabbed his robe and slipped his feet into a pair of slippers. Then padding noiselessly across the room, he opened up the room door and was almost barreled over by the black and white dog as it raced towards the back door.

"Hold on…hold on", the old man grumbled, "I ain't as young as you are".

Opening up the back door, he watched as the dog did not go out and pee but raced across the lawn towards the fence that divided the lawn between his and the Hardy's.

Rufus started barking and jumping at the fence.

"Rufus", the old man scolded, "Hush up and pee!" He was afraid that the barking would wake the neighbors but the dog ignored his master and continued to bark.

Angrily, the tired man raised his voice, "RUFUS…HOUSE…NOW!"

That got the dog's attention…but he hesitated…he was torn between obeying his master or not. Finally, casting a furtive eye towards the other house, he crept back towards his own. As Wilson bent down and grabbed the dog's collar, Rufus turned back around and let out one more growl before allowing himself to be taken inside.

Wilson was shocked by the dog's behavior. Rufus was a very well behaved dog and as he closed the back door, the dog's light brown eyes met his own and for one second Wilson could have sworn he saw disappointment in the animal's eyes.

Shaking it off, he went back to this own room and closed the door after the dog, which refused to lie down, but continued standing by the door whimpering softly. Covering up in his still warm bed, he wondered what in the world the dog was carrying on about.

phx

Fenton Hardy closed the door softly and walked back to his own room. He paused in the hallway to massage his right shoulder before going in and collapsing on his bed. Completely exhausted, he was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

phx

An eerie silence fell over the Hardy house…. there was no noise from Joe's room… there was no light.

"Sean? Sean!"

Sean Todd slowly opened his eyes. Where am I, he wondered vaguely as he fought to focus on the anxious faces peering down at him.

He heard whispers but couldn't make out what anyone was saying…where am I?

"Sean…. Sean…"

His head was hurting and he just wanted to close his eyes and escape back into the darkness.

"Sean…SEAN!"

He wanted to scream at that person to shut up…didn't they know his head was hurting?

"SEAN…SEAN!"

Closing his eyes, he let himself drift back into the darkness.

"SEAN JEDADIAH TODD – you open your eyes right this minute!"

Sean's eyes flew open – it was his mother!

"Mom…", his throat was dry and he fought to stay focused on his mother's worried face. Beside her were a doctor and another man that he didn't recognize. The man was about 6'1 with black hair and hazel eyes.

"Sean…thank goodness!" His mother gushed taking his hand. Sean was confused – and seeing the look in her son's eyes, she continued, "Hon, you're in the hospital…but don't worry you're going to be okay." She looked at the doctor who nodded supportively.

"Welcome back Mr. Todd", he said warmly, "I'm Dr. Sidhu. You had us worried for a little while, " the doctor checked his vitals as he spoke, "You have a fractured skull and had sufficient swelling to give us concern. But with ample rest, you should be fine."

"What…happened?" Sean asked shakily as Dr. Sidhu shone a light in his eyes. His mother cast a worried glance at the doctor before answering, "You were attacked in the alley behind Mr. Pizza."

Sean furrowed his brow in disbelief as he looked at his mother – was she being serious?

"Sean", Dr. Sidhu said softly, "this is Officer Con Riley from the Bayport Police Department. He has a few questions he would like to ask you…if you feel up to it".

A cop? Sean thought reappraising the other man suspiciously before nodding his head ever so slightly. And even then it cost him a groan as it felt like his whole skull was going to slide off onto the floor!

Officer Riley moved closer to the bed and pulled out his badge to show the teen, "Hi Sean. Sorry about the attire, but I'm not officially on duty yet."

Sean didn't say anything so Con continued as he pulled out a small notebook, "I need to ask you what you remember about last night. Specifically around 11 PM."

"Last…night?" Sean repeated slowly realizing now it was early Saturday morning. Closing his eyes he tried to recall, "I…um…Jeanette left…just as Raul came back…from deliveries." Sean screwed up his face as he tried to remember what had happened after that, "I needed to take the garbage out…so I grabbed a couple of the bags…and went to the dumpster…" Sean's voice trailed off, as he couldn't seem to get past the fog of pain to remember what happened after that.

"Do you remember what happened after you threw the garbage into the bin?" Con pressed hoping to hear the kid say that he saw a couple of other guys there…that would substantiate Joe's story.

Con Riley was a long time friend of the Hardy's and thought of Joe and Frank like brothers. It was because of this relationship that Chief Collig had called him and asked him to interview the victim although he wasn't on duty.

Collig was not convinced that Joe could have perpetrated such violence against anyone, let alone a friend, and hoped that Sean would be able to clear Joe. He had watched Officer Hardy questioning Joe from behind the two-way mirror but there was nothing he could do. They had a witness and a phone tip…

Con could see the young man fighting to recall anything else and his heart fell as he saw the look of frustration on Sean's face. He didn't remember.

Sighing, he closed his note book and put it back into his pocket, "Okay, Sean. That's okay. But can you promise to call me if you remember anything else?"

"Okay", Sean said closing his eyes. And as Con left his card on the tray and put his hand on the door to push it open, he froze as he heard Sean ask the question, "Is Joe okay?"

"Joe?" Con said whirling around as Sean opened up his eyes in shock as he had remembered something else – he remembered that Joe Hardy had been there!

"Yeah Joe…Joe Hardy. He was there…wasn't he?" Sean sought confirmation that the image he saw was reality and not a dream.

"What do you remember?" Con pressed ignoring his question. He didn't want to deny or confirm that Joe had been there in case someone said that he was leading the witness.

Sean closed his eyes tightly as he tried to will back the details of the fleeting image that he had seen just as the Officer was leaving….

"He saved my life", Sean finally said. The images were all disjointed but he knew one thing…Joe had saved his life.

"Can you elaborate?" Con pressed needing more.

Sean sighed heavily and started to shake his head but caught himself, "No…not really but I do know that if Joe hadn't come when he did, that I would be dead."

"So Joe didn't hit you with the baseball bat?" Con risked 'leading the witness'.

Sean was shocked, "Joe hit me? Who told you that?"

Con grinned as he thought about Officer Hardy, "Oh no one…just a theory."

"Wait!' Sean burst out in excitement, "NO I remember….I went to the garbage bin and when I turned around I met the business end of someone's fist!' Con was elated – so there was someone else in the alley!

"There were four guys in ski masks!" Sean continued as everything came flooding back to him, "Two pinned me against the dumpster while the third worked me over. And then a fourth guy came out of nowhere and used my head for batting practice. The last thing I remember was seeing Joe tackle the batter and then I was falling…. that's it."

"That's great Sean…thanks", Con said smiling. At first he had been skeptical that Sean would be able to remember what had happened but this was better then he could have hoped for. Not only did Sean clear Joe, but he also placed four assailants in the alley. But then his grin turned to a frown. That presented a new problem. This meant that Bayport had four dangerous people on the loose…four unidentified people.

And speaking of witnesses…Con thought about the phone tip… a blond haired boy attacking a black kid with a baseball bat…he didn't like the this one bit. Someone was trying to throw them off by setting up Joe. It couldn't even be a case of mistaken identity as the woman had said that it was a 'blond haired boy' but Joe and Sean confirmed that the assailants were wearing ski masks.

After thanking the youth, Con stepped into the hall and walked towards the pay phones – he needed to talk to the Chief.

phx

Sean lay back and closed his eyes. He didn't trust cops…they were always jumping to the wrong conclusion.

phx

Con Riley pulled up his jacket collar as he knocked on the door and waited. It was 7:00 am and, as the weatherman forecast, a severe rainstorm had moved into the area. Although it was morning, the day was overcast, dismal…and now…wet.

The police officer had just finally gotten a chance to come by the Hardy's and tell them that Joe was no longer under suspicion, although he still thought it should have been Officer Hardy who told them the news since he was the only person who believed Joe was guilty. But Hardy had already left for the day so Con came himself.

A few minutes later, he rang the buzzer hoping that someone would hurry up and answer it – he was getting soaked!

Finally Fenton Hardy opened up the door and stood surprised for one moment to see his friend standing there. Recovering he quickly motioned for Con to come in.

"Business or pleasure?" Fenton demanded immediately, hoping that it was business and that Con had some good news for them. He had woken as soon as Con knocked on the door but it took him a few minutes to reorient himself enough to get out of bed, as for a few seconds he wasn't sure if someone was really at the door, or if it was just another thunderclap.

"A bit of both", Con grinned to alleviate any fears that Fenton had and then seeing the haggard look on his friend's face he commented, "You look like crap."

Fenton's face broke into an easy smile as relief washed over him. Although Con hadn't said anything yet he knew that Joe had been cleared. He started to say something but then stopped and looked at Con in shock. While he might "look like crap" Fenton actually felt better then he had in a long time. His mind was clear and there was no familiar throb in the back of his head.

"Believe it or not", he said in genuine astonishment, "I haven't felt this good in a long time. Come on up…let's go tell Joe the good news!"

"Hold on there partner, " Con said trying to keep a serious face, "What makes you think it's good news?"

But after one fixed look by the detective, Con just threw up his hands and followed him up the stairs, "Fine. Lead on Holmes…"

"Joe!" Fenton called out knocking on the door and waiting for his son's groggy reply. Shrugging, he called out to him again as he slowly opened up the bedroom door, "Joe…Con is here…"

Whatever he was going to say was lost in shock as he swung the door wide open and stepped into the room. Con was behind him and he too was speechless for a moment.

And then a second later, Fenton was yelling his son's name as he checked out the bathroom, Frank's bedroom and then downstairs.

Con Riley couldn't move for a moment as he surveyed the mess in Joe's room. The lamp was broken…the computer lay smashed on the floor…the desk chair was broken…the whole room was broken. And then he saw the blood.

Grabbing his radio, he keyed the mike and demanded tersely to speak to Chief Collig.

Fenton came rushing back into the room, "He's not here!" His eyes swept over the room, "What the hell happened in here?"

Con didn't say anything and reached out to grab Fenton when he saw him starting to reach down and pick up an object that was lying on the floor, "Don't touch anything".

Fenton straightened up but his eyes remained fixed on the object on the floor. It was his belt and he could see the buckle had blood on it.

"Fenton", Con said gently as he saw the detective staring at the belt, "Were you here the whole time?"

Still unable to tear his vision from the piece of leather, the detective just nodded his head slowly, "Yes…we came home from the precinct…Joe went to his room and I went to mine."

"And then what?"

"I don't know… nothing. I went to sleep…and then I heard someone…you…at the door." Fenton looked at him helplessly, "Where's my son?"

As the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance, Con Riley shook his head as he stared at his long time friend and wondered the same thing…where was Joe Hardy?

phx

Chief Collig arrived at the same time as the Crime Scene Investigators and nodded curtly to their supervisor. He was pleased that the man had come out to this one himself instead of just sending his people. Fenton Hardy and his family were fairly high profile particularly in light of the recent arsonists fire at their home and then the sensational take down of the East Coast Vampire Killers cult.

He could just imagine the field day the press would have with this one.

Going into the house, he quickly led them upstairs, "Officer Riley and Fenton Hardy are in the big room at the end of the hall." Nodding, the supervisor continued down the hall to see Fenton while the other guys went into Joe's room.

Collig felt sick when he saw the state of Joe's room. How could Fenton have slept through this?

phx

Con Riley came to stand beside Collig in the boy's room and they quietly watched as pictures and measurement were taken of the scene. It was the blood that disturbed both men.

A few minutes later, the CSI supervisor came looking for the Police Chief. Sighing heavily because he knew that they were close friends, he said, "He has traces of blood on his hands."

In horror, Con said, "What?"

"Fenton", the supervisor said miserably, "he has traces of blood on his hands…his pants…his shirt…. quite frankly, he is covered in it."

"But I didn't notice…" Con started in disbelief but the supervisor cut him off, "And his knuckles are both bruised and swollen…"

When Collig turned to look at them, his eyes were cold as ice, "Officer Riley, please escort Mr. Hardy to the station."

"How long to confirm whether or not this blood is Joe's?" He then asked CSI.

"It's already on the way to the lab", he said watching his guys process the belt and slip into carefully into a plastic bag, "Give me half an hour. I'm taking that belt back with me right now."

"30 minutes it is", Collig said before turning briskly and leaving the room, going downstairs and out to his car. He needed to get away because he was knew that in 30 minutes time, he was going to have arrest one of his closest friends for the murder of his son.

phx

"FENTON!" Laura screamed as she jumped out her car and saw Con Riley leading her husband into the back of a police cruiser, "WHAT'S GOING ON?" Laura had finished a long nightshift at 7:00 am and became terrified as soon as she saw the police cars in front of her house…and now she saw her husband being lead out of her house…in handcuffs!

"Laura…" Con said grabbing her before she could open the door of the car, "Joe's missing."

Stunned, the woman looked at her husband in total confusion as Con continued, "I think you should come with us to the station."

phx

Exactly 30 minutes later…

Collig read the report himself. Looking at the supervisor, he just nodded for a moment before slowly pulling himself up and away from his desk. Then he took the longest walk in his life.

He opened the door to the small room where Fenton Hardy was sitting and staring into a cup of black coffee. Con Riley stood up and the Chief gave him a brief nod.

Understanding, the police officer got up and left the room to check on Laura. She had been on the phone since arriving at the station, trying to find out where Joe was.

Seeing Con, she tried to hold back the tears and hung up the phone, "None of his friends have seen him…no one…" Con gave her a hug and held her as he felt her thin body shaking. His heart ached for her.

"Did you call Frank?" he asked gently knowing that young man would want to know if something had happened to his brother.

"No", she said hoarsely – that was the one call she didn't want to make. She knew why he had gone to the island and hated to worry him if Joe was just at one of his friends…or something.

"Laura", he pulled away and looking deeply into her pale blue eyes he said softly, "Frank needs to come home…now."

phx

Chief Collig sat down across from Fenton. He pushed the file in front of him and then watched as he read the report from the CSI lab - it was Joe's blood. All of it – the room, Fenton's hands and clothes…the belt.

And it was Fenton's fingerprints on the belt…both ends.

He watched the blood drain out of the private investigators face as he stared down accusingly at his own hands.

"Fenton…where is Joe?" Ezra Collig saw the man start to shake and when he finally raised his eyes to meet his own, the look on his face would haunt the Police Chief forever, "I…. don't…know…".

And then Fenton's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the floor.

phx

The sound of thunder rumbling roused the boy from his sleep. Grumbling, he pulled the pillow over his head but it was no use, so sitting up, he glared accusingly at the clock – it was too early to be up on a Saturday morning!

Hearing the rain beating against his window, the boy was almost hypnotized and just about jumped out of his skin when he heard the phone ring a few minutes later. Quickly he grabbed the phone before it woke his parents up – no reason why everyone was up at this horrible hour, "Hello?"

10 minutes later, a fully dressed Chester Morton was driving into town as quickly as the rain would allow…Joe Hardy was missing…and Chet was terrified because he knew exactly where he was…

phx

The Island -

Frank sat in the kitchen and drank a hot cup of coffee. Looking at his watch he knew it was only early Saturday morning in Bayport but picked up the phone to call home anyway.

He had this nagging feeling that something was wrong but before he could finish dialing Callie came into the kitchen and smiled sweetly at him when she saw him there.

"Hi Frank" she said walking over to get a drink of cold water from the fridge.

Frank watched her and then before he knew what he was doing, he heard himself say to her, "Callie…it's over."

He saw her body tense before she turned around with a fake smile plastered on her face, "What?"

"I'm sorry", Frank heard himself apologizing, "if it seemed I was leading you on…but this isn't going to work. I'm not the man for you…and you're not the woman for me."

"But we're perfect together!" She protested.

Frank shook his head, "No we aren't. You weren't happy… If you had been then Joe would have never been a problem…"

"Joe? Why does it always have to be about him?" she tried to keep the bitterness out of her voice but she couldn't and he just shook his head sadly.

"This isn't about him… This is about you and me. And quite frankly, Callie I don't trust you. I'm sorry but I don't…"

"Give me another chance Frank! I promise I'll be good!"

Frank looked at her sadly, "Callie. I'm sorry but it's apparent to me…that I bring out the worst in you…so this is good-bye. We both need to move on".

For once in her life, Callie Shaw was speechless.

Frank stood up and reaching into his pocket he pulled out the small box that contained the locket of her hair.

"I can't accept this", he said and put the box on the table, "…and I hope you find the man that will make you happy. But it can't be me."

Frank walked past her. He was tempted to give her a goodbye hug or a peck on the cheek but was afraid that she would read something into it. So instead he just nodded, "Good luck." And then he walked out of the kitchen and heard the door close on that part of his life…he hoped anyway.

But a small part of him was concerned that she wouldn't give up that easily but then the phone rang.

phx

Bayport -

Fighting the dizziness that threatened to consume him, Joe looked up at the cemetery fence. He needed to get inside…Iola was here…he wanted to feel the comfort of her presence even if it was in death.

Closing his eyes to stay off the latest round of nausea that rose in the back of his throat, he was assaulted by a barrage of images that overwhelmed him…his father throwing him across the desk…his father's fists pummeling him as relentless as this rain……his father enraged…

Shaking uncontrollably, the teen sobbed…I can't climb this…not now…

Sinking weakly to his knees, the broken figure leaned against the barrier and closed his eyes, defeated. He was tired of fighting…he was just too damn tired.

phx

…As Joe Hardy hung over the cliff he felt the strength in his arms going. He looked up but saw no one. Looking down, he saw the drop. But he was too tired…he had been holding on for too long.

With tears stinging his cheeks, Joe let go and felt himself falling…it was too hard…he was just too tired…

And then suddenly with a jerk, his fall was broken. Looking up, he saw two strong hands grasping his own…and he heard a voice…

"When you are too tired to go on, I will pick you up and carry you…"

To be Continued in "Revelations"

Phoenix

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