After much thought, I realized that this might have to be bumped up a rating because of what lies ahead. I might not in the end, but so far, I'm planning that the next few chapters will be full of blood and gore. Just a warning.

I do not own the Hardy Boys.
Enjoy!

This wasn't his son.

Joseph Hardy was lively, carefree, and certainly not broken. There were times when he wasn't any of these things, but they had passed with the breeze. Even if the last few weeks were far from ideal, Joe wasn't like this at all.

His eyes were filled with false hope. He helped out, was polite to everyone, and locked himself away in his room when time allowed.

Fenton couldn't even think properly as he tried to track down Snake. It didn't even bother him that more and more of his files that were connected to the case went missing. It had been a few days since Joe came back, but it was as if it was only a shell.

"Joe, can I talk to you?" he asked through the door of the blonde's room.

"Uh, yeah, sure. Door's unlocked."

Pushing the door open, Fenton was surprised to the sight that greeted him. Joe's room had been cleaned up for evidence, but Joe took it a step further. It was really clean, which was something the blonde was not known for. Said blonde was currently organizing his books on the lower shelf, his face relaxed but still possessing the sense of a mask over his feelings.

"Joe, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Dad."

"You usually don't clean your room."

"Well, I've been thinking a lot. It'll be better if I knew where everything was, just in case." The unsaid words played in Fenton's head: just in case Snake steals something…

"Can I ask you something?"

"Huh?" Joe looked up from the pile of books on the floor. "Oh, sure."

"Is that girl really okay? Because-"

"She's fine, Dad." Joe sighed. "You don't believe me?"

"I trust your words Joe, but she did kidnap you-"

"I told you, misunderstanding. She's getting help, and everything will be okay. Got it?" The blonde sighed. "Just let it slide, okay? You have more important things to worry about."

"Well..."

"Another question?"

"Snake told me that Frank tried to commit suicide, as I'm sure you're aware of by now. I want to know what actually happened."

The muscles in the teenager tensed up, as if the PI had asked some taboo question.

"Well?"

"It doesn't matter," the blonde mumbled. "He's dead now."

"Joe, it certainly does matter. Frank would have died because-"

"And he's dead now!" The sudden burst surprised them both, and Joe kept his gaze on the books. "Listen, it happened a while ago. I'm not gonna deny it. But it was the past Dad. There's nothing you could have done, anyways."

Fenton sensed that the conversation had ended in the boy's eyes. So, instead of prodding further with other things that needed answers, he got up, and walked out of the room.

The only positive thing that appeared to have happened due to the talk was that Fenton found it easier to concentrate on his work of bringing the assassin to justice.

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"I'll pick up the bag today, Shadow. You have your own stuff to do," Hawk said into the cell phone. "You can stop doing this altogether, if you want. Snake can handle everything else."

"I'm going to take you up on the offer. It's becoming too suspicious to see me hanging with the kid."

"I guess it is. Well, you'll come for the 'grand show'," Hawk said, very tempted to make quotation marks in the air even if Shadow couldn't see it. Shadow was the one who originally gave it the name, and it stuck. Odd, how people could find humor in this situation.

She hung up, before resting against the wall. It was happening all too quickly for them to sit back and enjoy. But maybe it was better this way. To have less time between now and seeing Fenton's horror as his own son dies right in front of him… on Joseph's birthday, too…

She smirked. Maybe time was going at the right pace, after all.

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I'm helping assassins kill off those stupid assholes. You would think I would be happier. Joe walked to school, once again ignoring all those stares headed in his direction. It had been like that since he was kidnapped, and he honestly stopped caring.

Look all you want. It'll be the last time you ever see me like this.

He opened his locker, to find a lunch neatly placed on top of all his books. He couldn't help but smile. His guardian angel was back.

The rest of the day seemed to be the exact same thing that had happened on the previous days. People asked in worried tones about his health, and he would reply in that fake, cheerful way, "I'm fine."

Was he truly alright? He liked to think so, considering the fact that his birthday was coming up, along with the idea of getting his wish.

He still had the image of Snake pointing the gun at his head, eyes merciless and almost uncaring. A hint of sadness was blended into those eyes, along with the permanent reflection of Frank.

Still, these thoughts never made their way to his face. Instead, Joe allowed people to think he was happy and content with the turn of events.

Classes passed by in a slow manner, worse than any other time before. Notes were pointless to write down, yet Joe scribbled words down anyways.

At lunch, he found an empty area in the courtyard near a maple tree. He had already gotten rid of the lunch his mother had packed that morning, instead leaving it in the fridge so his father could eat it later. He pulled out the lunch that Hawk had left him, and ate silently.

It was an entertaining fact; an assassin making an almost gourmet lunch without adding any kind of poison or such. If he wasn't wearing the mask he called his face, he probably would have laughed.

When the school day ended, the blonde found himself drawn to the track. He dropped his bag near the bleachers, away from everyone else. He jogged a few laps, ignoring the other activity around him.

In the corner of his eye, he saw his bag disappear into the shadows of the bleachers. Minutes later, it reappeared, looking untouched.

Ending his exercise, Joe walked over and picked up the bag. It was lighter, and a peak inside revealed that the folders were taken.

He slung it over his shoulder, and walked home as if nothing had happened.

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The stack of folders grew daily, which could have been a factor contributing to Snake's good mood. The boy was very loyal, easily betraying his own father when he found out the truth of the matter.

He couldn't help but smiled as he played out Joseph's birthday in his head. He alone can say that he got rid of the Hardy brothers. Maybe he would even get rid of Fenton in the end.

Of course, killing the mother would have finished the deal, making it all a package. But no… Snake was kinder than that, even if he never admitted it.

Thoughts about a family slowly erased the smile from his face. It bothered him, for some unknown reason. But, he brushed the feelings away. Emotions that had been locked way should not bother to reawaken.

"Only a few more days." Snake took out his gun, allowing the light from the window a rare glance at the metal. "I better keep myself occupied until then."

If anything, the idea of taking Joseph's life only increased his lust for spilt blood. The faster he got the folders, the faster he would kill off the targets. Some were silent, and they never realized what had happened. Others had to face Snake directly, fear painting their eyes.

Somewhere, deep inside of the assassin, a part of him looked out into the world it had hidden from. It hid from the bloodshed, the pain, and the truth.

And for some reason, that little bit of him smiled.