Sleight of Hand
Chapter 20
Arthur Gray listened with a mixture of surprise and amusement as Frank Hardy explained the reason for his call. While he felt badly about Callie's abduction, returning to assist in her rescue and turning over the disc to a civilian was out of the question. He wondered why Frank would even make such a request, knowing he would never agree to it no matter whose life hung in the balance.
"Frank, I'm truly sorry about your wife, I really am. But you know it's not possible for me to return and assist you in this. I have every confidence you and your brother will come up with a way to get her back unharmed," Gray replied once Frank had finished.
"Really," Frank said dryly. "I think it would be in your best interests to reconsider."
"Are you threatening me, Frank?" Gray's voice was tinged with amusement. "I'd expect something like that from your brother, but you…"
"No threats; just some friendly advice," Frank answered, suddenly annoyed that Gray rarely referred to Joe by name instead preferring to call him 'your brother'. "And his name is JOE, in case you've forgotten."
"Lord knows I could never forget him, no matter how much I'd like to," Gray said sarcastically.
"Trust me, the feeling is more than mutual. Now about the disc…"
"I can't believe you're asking me this. There is no way I am going to turn over the plans for the greatest discovery in military history to your brother's girlfriend-"
"Fiancée!" Frank corrected him angrily, his patience wearing thin with Gray's condescending attitude.
"Fiancée," Gray repeated.
"And I hardly think Vanessa is going to run out and try to build this… this… whatever it is you've discovered!" Frank said sarcastically.
"Be that as it may, the answer is still no. I'm sorry, Frank."
"So am I. You're not my favorite person in the world but I'd still hate to see your reputation ruined," Frank baited him.
"Excuse me?" Gray replied warily.
"You know, Callie is Vanessa's best friend. They're closer than sisters. And after the way you've treated Joe, you're not exactly at the top of Vanessa's list, if you know what I mean," Frank said cryptically.
"I understand I'm not Ms. Bender's favorite person, but I don't see what that has to do with this."
Frank dropped the bomb. "Vanessa was adamant that if you refused to help, she'd call all the major news outlets – CNN, the New York Times, Washington Post – and tell them everything."
Gray chuckled at the threat. "Tell her to call to her heart's content. No one will believe her."
"Oh, I think they will," Frank countered, wishing he could see Arthur Gray's face. "Think about it. She's engaged to Fenton Hardy's son. Fenton Hardy – one of the most respected names in law enforcement worldwide. At the very least, they'll know she's not some crackpot and check out her story." Frank couldn't help but smile when the only response was a very loud silence. "Still there?"
"I'm here," came the curt reply.
"Good, then hear me out. You come back here and bring the drive with you. Vanessa will take a look at it and create a duplicate – one that looks just like the original but with random numbers, letters and formulas inserted. When these guys call back, I'll tell them I have it and arrange a location to exchange the flashdrive for Callie." Frank winced at having to refer to his wife as something to be exchanged. However, he'd already let his emotions get the better of him once and he had no intention of letting it happen again. For better or worse, his best chance of getting Callie back alive was to treat this as he would any other case – logically and methodically planning a course of action.
"Aren't you the least bit concerned they're watching the cabin?" Gray questioned him. "If they see me come back to help you, they could kill her immediately."
"Actually, they're the ones who suggested I contact you. So I'm hoping they are watching the cabin. When they see you arrive, they'll assume I'm following their instructions to the letter," Frank countered. "Once they contact me and I get the specifics for the exchange, we can all put our heads together and come up with the best way to rescue Callie and capture them without compromising national security. You'd be in on the capture of the terrorists and get the glory for that as well as getting the flashdrive back," Frank prodded him. "Well…"
There was another lengthy silence followed by a sigh of defeat. "I'll be there in an hour," Gray said, not at all happy. "Make sure you and your bro…Joe… wait until I get there before you make any plans about how to proceed," he ordered.
"Agreed." Frank hung up the phone and turned to Joe and Vanessa, allowing himself a smile of relief. "He'll be here in an hour. He's going to bring the drive and let Vanessa take a look at it so she can create a duplicate with false information. Then we sit back and wait for the next call. After they give me the location for the exchange, we can come up with a plan to make it look like I'm following all their instructions."
"Make them think you're going alone, but we'll be there to back you up and bring Callie home," Joe finished for him, certain whatever they came up with would go off without a hitch.
"Right," Frank said, not quite able to match Joe's enthusiasm. Turning to Vanessa, he smiled at her gratefully. "Thanks, Van. If you hadn't come up with the idea for the fake program and a way to get Gray back here…" Frank let the words speak for themselves.
"Is she brilliant or what?" Joe beamed. He gathered Vanessa up in his arms for another kiss and the two quickly became lost in each other, seemingly oblivious to Frank's presence.
Frank watched them for a moment, conflicting emotions tearing at him. He was relieved to see that the unbridled happiness Joe and Vanessa had exhibited after learning the results of her final blood test hadn't diminished one bit. Yet seeing them so completely and totally wrapped up in each other left him with an overwhelming sadness. Standing, he made his way up to the bedroom, his heart aching for Callie.
oooOOOooo
Callie took a final bite and put the half-eaten breakfast sandwich on the table, pushing it away. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she smiled sadly, thinking of the breakfast she'd had twenty-four hours earlier. Joe and Vanessa had been so happy they were practically walking on air. Unable to keep their hands off each other, they had indulged in a steady stream of whispers and kisses, stopping only long enough to subject Frank to some good-natured teasing about their ongoing 'celebration'. Frank had willingly played the straight man, taking the jokes and ribbing in stride, grateful that they could finally put the past year behind them for good.
In an attempt to keep her own spirits up, Callie thought of the younger couple and how ecstatic they'd been. 'Thank God her blood test was negative. Now they can start planning a real future.' She glanced around the sparsely furnished room, her eyes coming to rest on her two captors. 'I wonder if I'll be around to share it with them.'
Pulling her knees in to her chest, Callie wiped at her eyes, catching the tears before they could spill over. Determined to be strong, she replayed the very brief conversation with Frank in her mind.
"Don't worry, I'll do whatever they want. We'll be back together before you know it."
He had been trying to reassure her that everything would turn out fine, but she heard the fear in his voice. Fear that he couldn't hide. He had never said it out loud, but Callie knew Frank's biggest fear was that she might someday be hurt – or killed – because of him. The exact same fears she had for the children they had hoped to have one day. But she had the utmost faith in her husband. While Callie was scared, she also felt a kind of calmness deep in her soul. She trusted Frank with her life. Somehow he would find a way to bring her home safe and sound.
Callie sat up a little straighter as reality slowly dawned. Despite her current situation, she couldn't help but smile, relief washing over her. She trusted Frank with her life, implicitly.
'Qhich means I trust him with our childrens lives – implicitly!'
When combined with the talk she had with Joe two nights earlier, this new revelation unexpectedly gave her a whole new perspective on the issues she'd been struggling with for months. While Callie understood there would always be a chance any children she and Frank had could be put in danger as a result of his chosen career, she knew that Frank – and Fenton and Joe – would do everything in their power to prevent that.
Her mind wandered back to the previous day and she could still hear Vanessa's bubbly laughter as she talked endlessly about the children she and Joe wanted to have and the future they could now plan. The recollection left Callie with the slightest twinge of guilt. For the past year, Joe and Vanessa had been living in limbo, desperately wanting to have children and not knowing if they'd ever get the chance.
'And for the past three months, I had all but decided to turn my back and voluntarily walk away from the precious gift of motherhood?'
While her fears had been valid to a certain extent, Callie now saw, shamefully, she had blown them way out of proportion, letting them take on a life of their own. Confiding in Joe had gone a long way towards taming those fears. That, in turn, had allowed her to think clearly enough to make the most important connection – she trusted Frank with her own life; how could she not trust him with the lives of their children?
Gazing around her 'prison', Callie was struck by the irony. It had taken her being kidnapped and threatened with death to realize that her children would be very well protected, by a father who would do whatever it took to ensure they had a safe and happy childhood.
Trying to quash the fear for her own safety that was threatening to erupt, Callie focused on her faith in Frank. She knew Frank would insist on following Carper's instructions to the letter, at least initially. He wouldn't be thinking straight, having been thrown way off balance by her kidnapping. Haunted by the knowledge of what had happened to Vanessa one year ago, Frank would be terrified of what might be happening to her, despite Carper's promise that she wouldn't be harmed. Consumed with worry for her, he'd refuse all offers of help – especially Joe's. She also knew Joe would be relentless in his efforts to change Frank's mind.
'Listen to him, Frank. Let him help you,' she silently urged, knowing Frank would slowly drive himself crazy if left alone.
As her thoughts changed direction yet again, Callie saw her future, feeling excitement instead of fear for the first time in months as she pictured the children she and Frank dreamed of. And for the first time in a year, she saw images of them playing with their cousins – Joe and Vanessa's children. Sadly the children's faces faded away as a new fear tried to poke it's way up from her subconscious – would her captors let her and Frank live long enough to make those dreams a reality?