Please continue to review, as it really motivates me to update. Everyone give a huge thanks to Fraidy Cat as I'm sure I changed my mind at least ten times on this chapter. Thanks for all the great reviews so far. :)

Joe was terrified and exhausted. His stomach felt awful and his throat was clenched tight; he knew he was on the verge of getting sick. He was terrified because he knew that his father's promise was coming true. His father was going to kill him. That's what he'd always said, ever since day one: "If you tell, I will kill you!"

His father had used various threats across the ages, but that wasn't what worried Joe now. What worried Joe was that his father's promise was about to come true. He knew his father didn't even want Frank around, except to fulfill the promise he'd always made about torturing him. He really knew it was his mother who was keeping Frank alive.

Joe's family looked great to everyone else. All his friends told him, "I wish I had parents like yours!" Joe, however, knew the true story. A single misstep at a bad time could and would erupt the sleeping giant (also known as Fenton). Even simple things, like asking to stay out at a friend's overnight, were forbidden.

In Joe's life, he felt that there had been favoritism, too. He was ignored by both parents unless his mother was yelling at him or his father was hurting him. In his eyes, Frank was always being sent away to visit relatives while he was stuck at home. He knew that wasn't the case now, but it still didn't help matters much.

Ever since Frank had told, Joe had felt like there was a there was a growing distance between them. Frank wouldn't talk to anyone, especially not Laura. During the drive to the house, Frank had regained consciousness. Joe had begun whispering to his brother, at first to keep Fenton from discovering that Frank was awake and deciding to finish the job of killing Frank wherever they were; the middle of nowhere. Eventually Joe could not stop himself from asking Frank if he had suspected their mother's involvement in Fenton's organization. The younger boy was still having difficulty reconciling the woman he had thought was his mother with who she really turned out to be. For some reason, it seemed important to know if Frank had been as taken-in and sucker-punched as he was. Frank hadn't replied, but from the look on his face, it was evident that he already knew. Joe had never felt so betrayed in his life. If his brother had known his mother was a traitor, why hadn't he told him?

Suddenly, boots clunked down on the stairs, jarring Joe back to the present. He tried to hide behind the roll of old carpet that hadn't been removed. He knew it wouldn't work, but he wanted to try.

"Joseph, get out here!" At the sound of his father's voice, Joe winced, and he knew he was in for trouble. Fenton spotted the roll- one of the few remaining objects in the room - and grabbed his arm. "It's time for you to die," Fenton said, laughing. "How would you like to die today, Joseph?"

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Don's eyes bulged as he threw open the interrogation room door, letting out a strangled protest."Megan, did you just hear what she said? I believe you - she's off her rocker!"

"I think she might be right," Megan replied.

"What?" Don's face turned bright red. "Are you overruling my judgment?"

"No, I'm saying that Fenton infiltrated people into places to 'keep tabs' on his workers –and his son. Come to think of it, Liz was involved in the case, wasn't she?"

"Yeah, she was doing most of the questioning of the people we thought were--" Don broke off in mid-sentence and swore. "Dammit! She was out here a second ago, wasn't she?"

"She took off the minute that you started talking to Gertrude. Muttered something about a 'damn traitor' and then stalked off. She's been kind of funny the last week, too. That's what tipped me off and why I think Gertrude might be right. What's wrong?"

"She has all the contact information for all the people we thought were Fenton's moles that we haven't found yet. Dammit, get her now!"

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Somehow, Frank knew that when they arrived at the old Bayport house, it was where Fenton planned on killing Joe. He couldn't explain it, but he knew it was going to happen – and soon. He had slept most of the way there, but when he was awake, thoughts where churning in his brain about how to get away—they had to get away; they had no choice but to get away, because if they didn't, his brother was as good as dead.

Not that he knew where to go, though. Before, he would have gone to Oswald, but now that Oswald was dead, he had no clue where to go. He was starting to have a nagging doubt about the Eppes family, as well. For all he knew, this was totally Fenton's plan.

When Fenton had thrown Frank in the bedroom, he'd gone to his old hiding spot and dug into it. Sure enough, there were tools and he got right to work. He didn't have much, but he hoped to be able to break through the window.

All hope of escape was gone, however, the second that Fenton and Joe entered the room. Joe looked like he was about ready to cry, and Fenton looked furious. "What do you think you're doing, Franklin Hardy?" he bellowed.

Dropping his tools, Frank turned towards Fenton in shock. He hadn't really expected to get caught, though he'd known it was a possibility. "You have been outright disrespecting me since we met up," Fenton growled, his voice low and menacing.

"You had my best friend killed." Frank's voice was infused with anger, but he kept it low, glancing nervously at Fenton and Joe. What was going on?

"Best friend, my ass. He was your bodyguard. Nothing more, nothing less." Fenton smiled. "At any rate, you outright disrespected me. Since you did, I'm going to change plans."

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"Change plans?" It was the first time Joe had seen Frank look nervous since this nightmare had started. Before, his brother was just angry.

"Yes, change plans." Fenton smiled. "I'm going to take Joe out in the back and kill him. When you hear the gunshot, that means your brother is as good as dead."

Frank bolted up from his seat. "No, Dad, please--"

"Shut up," Fenton yelled, pushing Frank back down to the ground. "Did you really think you were going to get away? Well, you did for awhile. But it's only a matter of time before I'm up and running again." He smiled an evil grin, making Frank's stomach churn. "You are going to be one of the pawns. Surely, they wouldn't want you hurt. After all, they hired you a bodyguard!"