Note: A lot of the mystery of Stella will be addressed in this rather lengthy (5300 plus word) chapter. Thanks so much to everyone who has Followed or Favorited the story. It makes me happy that you like it and I so appreciate the support and feedback. For your kind reviews on the last chapter, many thanks to the following people: Drumboy100, Hero76, EvergreenDreamweaver, Paulina Ann, ChrisCorso, Ella Tremaine, HighFlyer, sm2003495, Guest, hbndgirl, max2013, candylou, ErinJordan, BMSH, Ritu, and Caranath. You are all amazing!

Relative Fortune

Chapter 29

"Uh… hi," Frank said awkwardly as everyone descended on his hospital room at seemingly the same time. While he had loved talking to Vanessa and she had provided a much needed distraction for him, he knew that the today and tomorrow would be terribly important; life-changing. He needed to concentrate.

At the same time, he wasn't used to being surrounded by so many people, even on a normal basis, and he found it disconcerting. Unlike Joe, he was reserved and a little shy on the best of days. Now, he felt almost overwhelmed by everything: the cases, the people, the facts, the sheer magnitude of what the next days meant. Plus, he felt terrible, knew he looked like a mess.

Joe seemingly sensed his discomfort as everyone began to settle in, because he leaned down, squeezed his forearm quickly, and quietly told him, "breathe."

"You just missed your wife," Frank managed. And, remembering her words to him and how much Joe had been through in the last day alone, he went on, "you breathe, too." He watched as that simple assurance brought the smallest of smiles to Joe's face, and he felt a little better.

"How are you feeling, son?" his dad asked him.

"He's fine, dad," Joe answered for him, and Frank suppressed a smile and mentally thanked him.

Fenton shot Joe a look, but Joe mouthed "not now" and, to his relief, his dad, for once, backed off.

"So where are we at?" Frank asked as everyone quickly settled in.

Joe took a deep breath and looked around. He updated everyone on what had transpired last night. As Frank listened, his heart broke for that little boy who was still in the hospital, but was mercifully now reunited with his parents. And, though Joe spoke matter of factly about everything professionally, he saw the pain in his eyes as the memories clearly came back strongly to him.

Frank also met Sean's eyes briefly, saw Sean give him the smallest of nods. He had kept his word to watch out for Joe, and Frank knew they'd be forever bonded over their younger brothers.

"Well, at least we got a resolution to that case," Collig said at last, and Frank watched as he quickly put his arm around Joe, a move so completely out of character for him that he was shocked. So, too, was Joe, though Frank noted he was trying not to show it. The only one who seemed completely at ease was Fenton. In that moment, that small gesture, Frank saw the man who he had grown up knowing as "Uncle Ezra," not "Chief Collig." It comforted him to see how very many people loved his brother.

"Not a great one," Sean added, sadly. "But we have to move onto the Santitori case while we can."

"Did you find something else?" Frank asked.

"That's why we're here," Collig replied. "Apparently, some things don't add up. My people are on it, but Joe told me that you have some concerns about my officers. Frank," Collig went on, "you know damn well that my department is like my family, so before you say things like that, I would hope you have proof."

"I only said it to Joe," Frank replied evenly. "And I'm sure he explained why."

"I need more," Collig insisted.

"Let me start," Sean began. "I'm not a member of your department, but Pat is." He smiled at his younger brother who was standing quietly next to Joe. Despite the heavy bandages around his shoulder keeping his arm completely immobile, and his pale complexion, he was looking stronger and would be released soon, though his road to recovery would be long, and his future as a police officer uncertain at best. "But we all need to touch base quickly about what we know, what we think, and see if we can figure out what's happening."

Nancy chimed in. "And I'm completely outside on this one, since I've been working on the Gellers's case with Agent King and the BAYPD. But Joe and I have exchanged some thoughts, and he mentioned, Frank, that you saw some parallels to that case. Maybe a meeting of the minds would help here, because we have two very important cases to work on."

Frank nodded, looking down slightly. It was so strange seeing her again, and it brought up so many feelings he thought he'd held at bay. There was nothing between them anymore, other than the guilt he assumed they both shared. The crushing guilt would never leave him, as the aftermath of their attraction, which had seemed so innocent back then, had almost destroyed his life… and he would never forgive himself for what had happened to Callie in his absence from her as a result.

But it was more than that, too. Looking at Nancy was a curious exercise in what his life might have been like if he had let himself fall in love with her. He couldn't imagine ever not being deeply in love with Callie— she was his life, his everything—but having Nancy here made the 'what if' pop into his mind. Still, he had never really loved her; it had never gotten that far... but it could have, and he knew they both knew it.

Almost at once he felt his eyes go wide and he gasped. Oh, god. He got it now. It had taken her presence in front of him to truly understand what he had tried in vain to intellectualize. What he had accused Callie of— being in love with Johnny —was exactly the same thing. She had insisted, begged him to believe that she hadn't been, that what could have been simply wasn't, but he hadn't really understood it until right now. He felt his face flush, deeply ashamed. Why had it taken him to this moment to understand? Silently, he apologized to his wife.

"Frank?" Nancy asked him, and when he looked up, he saw everyone looking at him, curiously.

"I… I'm sorry," he stuttered, caught off guard.

"I know it's hard with the concussion," Joe said smoothly, and met his eyes. Frank thanked god again that his kid brother knew him so well.

"No, go on," he said at last. "Nancy is right."

"Well," Collig began, "one thing that has bothered me since Joe brought it up was the drug test that Jessica Santitori and Josh Flagstone agreed to take." He paused for a moment. "Honestly, I had forgotten- why did it matter? They lived in a poor area; they'd both had a history of drugs. Hell, Tanzini's people were double crossed by Josh, which is why that baby is still missing. But I did check early this morning… and I'll be damned. It came back negative for both of them."

Frank nodded. "I thought it might."

"Why?" Pat asked, curious. "I mean, wasn't a bag of weed confiscated from the place? And that wasn't exactly hidden well."

"Gut feeling," Frank replied.

"You know, that's pretty irresponsible," Joe said with a straight face. "Logic is where it's at."

Everyone chuckled as Frank rolled his eyes. "Dumbass," he said, unexpectedly, making Joe laugh even more.

"Seriously," Fenton asked. "You're not known for hunches."

"Because there was something about Jessica Santitori I guess… I liked," Frank admitted. "She's been down on her luck; nothing has gone her way; she was looked at like dirt by the detective there. Plus, she was genuinely concerned about her baby and readily agreed to everything we asked her to do. She just looked like she was telling the truth."

"How did you get involved in this case again?" Nancy asked, adeptly picking up and assembling the pieces seamlessly.

"The brother- Lorenzo-" Fenton answered. "He actually called me before the police, and I had him call Ezra immediately after. I thought that was odd."

"Did he tell you why?" Joe asked, curious. He and Pat had been so busy with the Griffin case and Frank had handled the Santitori one, so now he was trying to put the pieces together as well.

"He told me that Jessica had called him hysterically in the morning that Stella was missing," Frank replied. "When I asked him why Jessica hadn't called the cops first, or why he hadn't, he deflected."

"Meaning?" Collig asked.

"Meaning he answered with questions," Frank explained, searching his memory for the exact conversation. "He implied that Jessica may have wanted to get rid of drugs in the home before the police came, but…. I don't know." He sighed. "If one of my children was missing, I wouldn't give a damn about anything other than getting help as quickly as possible, no matter what else I was doing."

"But she and Josh did have a drug problem," Nancy reminded them.

"Yeah, But DID is in the past," Frank answered. "I believe her when she says she's straight, and that Josh only drank. The drug tests proved that for her and, for him, I assume the autopsy would show the same thing."

"It did," Sean replied. "I had my dad call in a favor to confirm that."

"It still doesn't explain why she didn't call the cops," Joe replied, thoughtful. "When Stella was gone, period- why didn't she just call?"

"Unless…" Fenton cut in. "Huh. I'm just thinking… do we know that for a fact?" he mused. "Are we sure there were no calls to 911 immediately?"

"None," Collig confirmed.

Frank looked so deep in thought that Joe could practically smell the smoke from the wheels burning in his head. "What, Frank?" he asked.

Frank bit his lip and then spoke quietly. "Unless Lorenzo is lying."

"About what and why?" Nancy asked.

"I don't know," Frank admitted. "Jessica told me that he was always judging her; that nothing she did was ever good enough. He told me the same thing, basically— that their little trailer was no place to raise a child. And he was there when we arrived in his nice Mercedes, pretty damned calm, now that I think of it, for a guy whose niece was missing." He sat up a little straighter, wincing. When he caught his breath, he continued. "I know this sounds crazy, but… what if he was calm because he … "

"What? Staged it?" Joe asked. "That's out there and it doesn't make sense. Why? You mean he called in to 911 instead of Jessica doing so because he knew the baby would be missing? I don't know," Joe said doubtfully. "Because nothing else would add up. Where's the baby? What the hell happened with Tanzini? Didn't he admit to it? That's what got people killed. You and Dad were there," Joe said.

"The place reeked of weed when I went, though," Frank admitted. "It doesn't make sense, given the drug results."

"You talked to him in Jessica's trailer, right?" Fenton asked. "That's what I remember."

"Yes," Frank replied. "Why?"

"Because she was outside with us and Josh Flagstone for a bit," he said. "And he was inside by himself."

"Wha-" Joe began, shaking his head. "What?! You're saying he could have called in the missing child because he knew where she was, and then planted the weed? That's nuts!"

"I'm confused," Pat admitted.

"Me, too," Sean said.

"Let's talk through this," Fenton said. "I don't care how improbable. What are the loose ends? Because right now we have one dead officer, two dead gangsters, one dead man, and a missing child… and zero leads. Keep going."

"What are you missing?" Nancy asked. "Frank, didn't you say that Tanzini confessed? That's why he was in the meeting, right? To negotiate for the stolen money from Flagstone? So why are we focusing on Lorenzo?"

"Just kicking around ideas," Joe replied, though he silently agreed with Nancy. Frank's ideas were a little out there on this case.

Frank sighed before speaking. His head was hurting, he felt clammy, and his knee throbbed incessantly, but he still had to make sense of everything. "Tanzini denied any knowledge of the kidnapping at first- he seemed completely oblivious to it. Later, he changed his mind. He left a recording that was played for the FBI investigators, and dad and you, Chief."

"I remember," Fenton said.

"I heard it, too," Frank went on. "It was pretty direct. Tanzini was willing to negotiate a return of the child in exchange for all monies returned with interest. He would appear with his nephew in an abandoned part of town, an old industrial plant where the specifics of the deal could be "laid out clearly."

"So what was the issue again?" Joe asked.

"Why would Tanzini leave that message, Joe?" Frank asked. "He's a well known criminal and wouldn't want to implicate himself, and all calls that come in here are recorded. On top of all of it, why the hell would he deal directly with Flagstone? He'd send someone else to take care of business. He'd kill him, or have someone else do it- kidnapping a child is too risky- and that child wasn't even Josh's."

"Can we get a copy of the message?" Fenton asked, and Collig nodded, taking out his phone.

"I'm on it," he said, and immediately began texting.

"There's something else what I wanted to say," Sean cut in. "I called Joe last night and spoke to Biff Hooper. Something weird happened and I can't shake the feeling that something was off."

"On the Rydell case?" Pat asked. "What does that have to do with the Santitori case, other than the fact that both families lived in the same vicinity?"

"Nothing," Sean replied. "Except that after the shit went down last night with that scum Platt, we were trying to get a lot done: get the kid to the hospital, get Platt to the morgue, and start the mountain of paperwork to explain the events. I killed a guy— and I'd do it again— but you have to dot your "I's" and cross your "T's" on a homicide case."

"Damned police protocols from the brass," Pat added, dryly, and Joe laughed as Collig stared him down. Joe smiled at his buddy, grateful beyond anything that he had survived and would be okay.

"What's your point?" Collig asked Pat directly, but Sean, ever protective and more serious than Pat, answered, "Sir, I'm just explaining the background of what happened yesterday. No disrespect intended."

"None at all," Pat replied with a straight face, and Joe didn't miss the tiniest, most fleeting smile he had ever seen on Collig's face when he heard Pat speak.

"What bothered you, Sean?" Nancy asked.

"That detective- I don't know his name- came up to me and tried to make me feel better about killing Platt. I guess he thought I felt bad- I didn't."

Joe nodded. Indeed, he understood that.

"He said that sometimes you have to cut corners and work with pieces of shit to get what you want in the end. He said that once he had to work with a druggie and he had to do what he had to do to make things work out."

"What the hell was that supposed to mean?" Collig asked, aghast. "Who worked with whom over what?"

"I have no idea, Chief," Sean answered respectfully. "But the message was clear. Cut corners if you need to in order to get the outcome you want." He looked up. "Chief, I've been an officer a long time. You know my dad, Pat, and cousins. Your guy was right about working with shitheads sometimes, but I can't agree on anything else. You don't set up innocent people and you preserve the integrity of an investigation. It's been bothering me all night."

"That behavior won't be tolerated," Collig replied, furious. "What detective?"

"Vogelthorpe?" Pat suggested, a little too innocently.

"No," Sean replied. "Uh… Kurt?"

"Kirk?!" Collig asked. "You're sure? He's been around forever. You have to be sure."

"Yeah- that's his name," Sean verified.

Collig's lips were tight, and Fenton's brow furrowed. "Kirk's been around a long time," Fenton said at last.

"How much do you know about him?" Nancy asked.

"He's not a regular in our department," Collig replied, "but he's been around for years. He works high profile cases in Manhattan and Brooklyn, primarily, but he's called into other New York towns to help on major cases. He specializes in child abductions. I've known him a long time. I don't like this at all."

Nancy stood. "Let me see what I can find out about him," she offered. "I'm going to go downstairs for a few minutes where I can think … and get better internet connectivity," she added, wryly.

"Thank you," Joe told her, and she smiled softly as she left the room.

"Kirk," Frank went on, thoughtful. "I've met him a few times, and he was okay to work with. But… to be honest, I didn't like the way he spoke to Jessica. He looked disgusted by the scene. And that's okay, I guess, but it's not for us to judge people; just to help them. He was much more dismissive than other officers I have worked with."

"Being dismissive doesn't make him a criminal," Collig pointed out, offhandedly. He finally looked up from his phone. "Here," he said, holding it up. "I got a copy of Tanzini's message. Want to hear it again?"

"Go ahead," Fenton said, and Collig hit the speaker button. "This is Tanzini. You know why I'm calling… about the child. Flagstone's girl. Call me back for the arrangement."

"That's it," Collig said.

"Play it again," Frank said.

Shrugging, Collig did so. Then, at Frank's insistence, he played it at least four more times.

"I see it," Fenton said. "I know why that bothers you."

"What?" Joe asked.

"A high level godfather would not identify himself. Frank was right- he wouldn't get involved with a low level drug dealer, either. And if he did-" Fenton started.

"He would sure as hell know that Stella was not Flagstone's daughter," Joe finished.

"It's more than that," Frank said quietly. "I've spoken to him in the past. I was in on the negotiations when all hell broke loose. That's not Tanzini's voice."

"What?!" Pat asked, shocked. "Who is it then, and why did Tanzini show up?"

"I… I think…." Frank started, and he sucked in his breath, felt the color drain from his face. "That sounds a hell of a lot like Lorenzo Santitori."

Collig was aghast. "My head is spinning," he groaned. "That call came into the station."

"Did you trace it?" Fenton asked. "Who brought your attention to it?"

"No- why would I trace it?" Collig asked. "Fenton, there was no time and no reason. And Kirk- George Kirk again. He was in charge of the call- brought it to our attention."

"What if that's what he was talking about?" Sean interrupted. "Kirk. When he talked to me, he talked about involvement with a druggie. Lorenzo?"

"No," Joe answered. "Lorenzo Santitori was not a druggie. But Flagstone was… at one point. Hmmm," he intoned. "I have to think. If Lorenzo took the baby, and that's a big IF, why would he do that? And how… does he know Kirk? And when would Kirk have worked with Flagstone… and why?"

"I've worked with Kirk before," Pat said, and everyone turned to look at him, as he had stayed relatively quiet throughout the exchange. "I hadn't even thought about it before now, but… this is probably stupid," he ended. "Never mind."

"Pat," Joe encouraged, meeting his friend's eyes. "No, I'm sure it's not stupid. ANYTHING is helpful at this point, no matter how insignificant you think it could be."

Pat nodded after a few seconds. "The timing could totally be off, but why was Kirk at the station so fast?" he asked. "We got the missing child call on a Saturday. He was there at least Thursday or Friday… I think. Is that right?"

Collig nodded. "Yes. He was. He was investigating increased gang activity in the area and was sent in by higher ups in the city- or so he told me."

"Why would he do that?" Joe asked. "His specialty is child kidnappings, not gang activity."

"I didn't even think to question it," Collig admitted. "Detectives come in and out all the time. He's done other things before."

"That's not all," Pat went on. "I remember I was at the office, sort of shooting the shit with him, and he was talking about gang activity- you're right. He was saying something- asking questions about Tanzini's stolen money."

"So?" Collig asked.

"So," Pat replied, "Tanzini didn't know his money was missing until at least Saturday. How could Kirk be asking questions about money before Tanzini knew it was missing?"

"That's a very good question," Fenton replied. "Frank, are you sure that the voice you heard was Lorenzo Santitori's? We could get proof of it, but there's not much time."

"I think so," Frank replied. "I'm not sure, but it sounds like him."

At that moment, Nancy returned, and she looked serious. "George Kirk is an interesting guy," she began, addressing the room. "On the surface, clean as a whistle; decorated cop; highly advanced; competent. But, given the parameters of Stella Santitori case," she went on, "I started digging a little; then a lot."

"What did you find?" Joe asked her.

"He lives in a very wealthy area in the suburbs of northern New Jersey," Nancy began. "An area that seems to be out of his price range. I haven't had time to look into his finances, but still- it's suspect."

"Okay," Fenton encouraged her.

"And then, he's been very active in gang cases; specifically, MAFIA cases," she clarified. "It's been a focus of his as much as child abduction cases, apparently, over the past seven years or so."

"So you're saying he knew Tanzini possibly?" Joe asked. "And… what? He was working with him?"

Nancy raised her hands in a questioning manner. "I have no idea," she said. "But based on what you've filled me in about, maybe."

"So if he knew Tanzini, maybe he was working on getting him on something- some charge? That wouldn't be a bad thing," Collig answered.

"No," Fenton cut it. "It wouldn't be. But maybe he was working WITH him. And Flagstone?" Fenton ran a hand through his hair. "Why? What are we missing?"

"That's not all," Nancy added. "Kirk and his wife have been married for 25 years," she went on. "Again, clean marriage; no indication of anything untoward. But when I did a little digging into his personal records, I found something odd. He has a grown daughter- she is married- but no grandkids. He's been on the record talking about his daughter's series of miscarriages."

"So?" Frank asked. "A lot of people can't have children." He kept his expression neutral, but Joe caught the slightest tremor in his voice.

"So," Nancy answered, "it struck me as odd. It just doesn't seem to fit into the type of investigation in which he would be interested, unless he was on some sort of quest to save kids since he didn't have grandchildren, himself. Did you know that Kirk has also been spending a lot of time investigating illegal adoptions? Something is off."

Frank sat forward, and sucked in his breath quickly as his body screamed in pain. He felt nauseated and cold.

"Frank?" Fenton asked, moving to him.

"No," Frank shook his head. He raised a shaking hand to his forehead. "I… I might understand."

Joe had moved instinctively closer to his brother. He was starting to see how much pain Frank was really in, and that spoke nothing of the emotional agony he was dealing with regarding little Hope Gellers. But they were so close, and Frank was brilliant. He knew that Frank could hold on. He moved aside the bed rail and wrapped his arm around him in support. Not that it mattered, but he knew everyone in that room would understand, and they did, giving Frank a few minutes to steady his breathing.

"Five minute break," Collig said. They nodded, and the room slowly emptied.

"As soon as this is done," Joe told Frank, quietly, "I am sending in a doctor. This is too much for you with the concussion and the severity of your injuries. It's bad, isn't it?" He felt Frank trembling slightly.

"Yes," Frank finally answered. He turned weakly to Joe, barely able to keep his eyes open. He looked feverish, and Joe was worried. "God, Joe. I see it. But it's… so hard… to concentrate."

"Then tell me," Joe told him, holding onto him harder. He leaned his head against Frank's. "You can do it," he told him quietly.

"Okay," Frank replied, closing his eyes. Everytime he breathed in deeply it hurt. "Kirk," he began through gritted teeth. "It's just a theory," he half-moaned.

Joe rubbed Frank's good shoulder. "Shut up," he told him gently. "Just get to the point."

Frank nodded weakly. "Let's say that Kirk started out good," he began. "He investigates kids; does good work. Maybe feels like he can help kids when he can't have his own. But then he starts developing a God complex. He thinks he can save the world, and everyone tells him how good he is, and… he is. So he gains a feeling of superiority."

"Uh huh," Joe said. "Go on." He had no idea where Frank was going, but he had to help him get through it.

"Fast forward a few years. He starts working on cases and scrimping off the top when it comes to drug deals - the mafia is involved in a lot of trafficking. He knows a lot of people, from the cops to the mob members to the addicts. They help each other out. He feels entitled to cutting corners because he's getting the bad guys. That explains his financial stability."

"Can you get to Stella?" Joe asked.

"Tanzini is-was- a pretty famous godfather. He would have known him. Keep that in mind."

"Keep going," Joe encouraged him.

"So let's say that Josh Flagstone DID steal money from Tanzini. Kirk would have investigated that case. Maybe Josh came to him for help if he feared retribution. Or maybe a mole came to Kirk looking for a favor and turned Josh in. In either case, Kirk knew about the missing money BEFORE Tanzini found out."

"Makes sense," Joe told him. "But what about Lorenzo?"

"He's wealthy," Frank went on, weakly. "And his sister is dirt poor. I looked into that-their whole family came from poverty. What's the quickest way out of poverty?"

"Crime- drugs," Joe commented. It was starting to become clear. "So you think that Lorenzo and Kirk came into contact? I see," Joe told him. "And one day they made a connection, where Lorenzo confided about his sister living in poverty and the fact that his niece deserved better."

"Yes," Frank whispered. "Eventually, they conspired to stage a fake kidnapping to teach Stella''s supposedly "neglectful" mother Jessica a lesson - a moral one- on what happens when you don't raise a child 'properly.' Lorenzo wouldn't want his niece raised as she was, and Kirk would be resentful when he would have wanted more kids in his own family. They used Josh Flagstone, whom they both hated, as a pawn. He was in trouble with Tanzini, or he would be, so Kirk offered to intervene. He had Lorenzo call, pretending to be Tanzini, who would have known better than to ever leave that message. Then, Kirk contacted the real Tanzini, probably offering to have a lead into getting his money back."

"And when Tanzini realized that he was, in fact, missing the money, then he was furious, and would have agreed to a meeting, for sure. Kirk could have lied and said that the ruse would involve a child- Tanzini would not have cared. But he would have brought backup, and he did. Tanzini thought he was dealing with Kirk, not Flagstone, and that if Kirk was helping him, he would help Kirk, eventually. Holy shit. This is complicated." Joe sighed, continuing to rub Frank's shoulder.

"Not so much," Frank replied, trying to catch his breath. "Now you know WHO— George Kirk. Get Lorenzo Santitori. When you find them, you MIGHT find Stella."

'You're right," Joe said. "If everything was done for Stella, she has to be somewhere. Neither one is a murderer... Just riding the moral high horse. That kid has to be safe- somewhere."

"And Joe?" Frank asked.

Joe looked into his eyes, which were glassy. "What?"

"They might not have been murderers, but they are now. At least four people, one of whom is an officer, are dead now, as a result of a setup gone wrong. All they were planning was for Josh to get the money to THEM, and they would have returned a portion to Tanzini. They probably had Josh bring Stella- or maybe Stella was never present at all, and the doll and shoe were props. Yeah… she was probably never there at all. The blood won't be a match- I can feel it. And Kirk must have instigated the shooting somehow as a ruse before it all went wrong. Be careful."

"I will," he assured Frank. "And I think I know where Stella is," he went on. It was suddenly as clear as day.

"Hope…" Frank whispered.

"We'll get there. We'll get her. That's tonight. Right now, we go for Stella. I'm also sending Vanessa and Mom back here to watch you, because Callie is too big of a risk to leave the house." He removed his arm from around Frank and touched his cheek, which was hot. "Frank, I'm getting a doctor in here. Van will be here soon."

"Okay," Frank mumbled.

"I have to go now," he told him. "Time is of the essence."

"Go," Frank whispered.

Joe leaned forward and carefully hugged his brother. "I love you. Please stay healthy. You were amazing, Frank. You may have just saved a little girl's life."

He stood to go, putting on his jacket, and, when he turned around, Frank was fast asleep.

On the way out, he hooked up with everyone in the hallway and filled them in; asked a nurse to go immediately to check on Frank; texted Vanessa. And, as much as he hated to do it, with everything else going on in her life, he texted Callie, too. She had a right to know that Frank was sick.

But he would be okay- he had to be.

"Let's go," Joe said gruffly.

"Where to?" Collig asked, radio in hand.

"George Kirk's daughter's house," Joe replied. "I think she may be babysitting…"