Here's chapter 12!
FRANK
Joe closed his eyes and panic began to set in.
"Frank, he's going to be alright" Biff patted my shoulder. He must have seen the panic in my eyes.
"What if he's not?" I whispered.
"Don't think like that. We were just talking to him and an ambulance is on its way. He will be okay".
"Thanks Biff" I mumbled, wiping my eyes.
"It's okay. I'm going to call Phil and the gang. Let them know what's up. I think Chet is waiting for the ambulance. Are you okay to stay here?"
"Yes, you go" Biff ran up the stairs, pulling his phone out. For the first time, I was left alone with my brother. I moved myself closer to him and softly held his hand. His hand was cold as ice. I quickly took off the sweater I was wearing and put it on Joe, as a blanket.
"I'm so sorry Joe" I muttered to myself, "How did I not realize that Joe wasn't you? I'm supposed to be your older brother, your best friend, yet I failed terribly. Sure, I had my suspicions but I didn't act on them. I'm the worst brother ever". A few tears fell from my eyes and I quickly wiped them from my face.
"You can't blame yourself for this, Frank" Biff's voice called out from the stairs, "You didn't do this". I nodded slowly, not able to talk, "I called Phil and told him that we found Joe. The date is going fine. They were calling the police when I hung up. The imposter is going to get caught and put in jail".
"I hope so" I whispered.
"He's just down here" Chet called from the top of the stairs, he was leading two paramedics. I moved away from my brother to give them space, never taking my eyes off of Joe…
One hour later, I was sitting in the waiting room of the hospital with Biff and Chet. My parents had arrived and were filling out paperwork. My brother was being looked at by doctors and I hadn't heard any news.
"Hey guys!" Biff got out of his chair to welcome the newcomers. I turned my head to see Callie, Tony, Phil and Vanessa all with solem expressions.
"What happened?" Chet asked, with regards to their faces.
"He, the imposter... he got away" Tony whispered, looking down at the floor.
"What!" Chet yelled, "How did that happen?"
"I don't really know, it's like he knew we had called the cops. Right before we had told Vanessa what was going on, the imposter went to the washroom and slipped out the backdoor. The police and us looked everywhere, but couldn't find him. They are still looking but told us to come check in. That's why we were so long coming" Phil explained.
"He's, he's still out there?" I asked softly. "I'm sorry Frank but the police won't give up looking for him" Callie piped in.
"He's not getting found unless he wants to, he's too smart" I said with a blank expression, "He has given up for now, but he will probably be back".
"Do we know who this imposter is?" Tony asked.
"No, no idea" I replied, "I'd ask Joe but the doctors are checking him out"
"How's he doing?" Van asked hopefully.
"I really don't know, they haven't told us anything" We all sat down in silence, lost in thought. The imposter had hurt my little brother and gotten away.
"Family of Joe Hardy" A pretty blonde haired doctor had come in the waiting room.
"That's us" My dad spoke up, him and mom looked up at the doctor.
"How is Joe? Can we see him?" My mom questioned as the doctor walked over to our group.
"You can see him very soon. There are just a few things I need to go over with you. Joe has a couple of injuries that I will list out for you. He has a broken leg that has been put in a cast, several broken and bruised ribs that have been tapped and his wrists have been wrapped. Joe is dehydrated and malnourished. Any questions so far?" We shook our heads. "Joe is still unconscious due to a concussion he obtained. We have taken an MRI of his head, nothing alarming showed up on it, although he may be asleep for awhile. We will know more about his condition when he wakes up. Joe will be out in room 306, just give us ten minutes until you go visit him.
"Thank you doctor" My dad said, the doctor headed back.
"We should head home, it's getting late" Chet piped up.
"That's probably a good idea, it's a school night after all" My mom exclaimed.
"I'm not going to school tomorrow, i'm coming back tomorrow morning to see Joe" Biff explained, everyone else was doing the same thing.
"Thanks you guys, for everything" I gave all my friends a hug and they left together. It was just me, Van and my parents. My parents were going to visit my brother first, then it would be mine and Vanessa's turn.
"I couldn't leave just yet, I need to see Joe" She said to me. I knew exactly how she felt, "I, I kissed that imposter more than once Frank. How did I not notice it wasn't Joe? I, .."Vanessa broke off and sobbed. I put my arm around her and she continued to sob in my shoulder.
"Van, don't blame yourself. It's not your fault" I whispered to her.
"You guys can go see him now" My mom said softly to us, "I think me and your father are going to run home soon, get a shower and then come back."
"You guys go home and come back tomorrow morning , I want to stay with Joe" I begged.
"Fine, that's' fine" My dad didn't even try to argue with me, "We will take Vanessa home first"...