by:
Author's Note: Thank you as always to all those that have read and reviewed this story so far- if you haven't reviewed yet, you might consider it! ;)
Also, a quick note- As of the previous chapter, this story is now simultaneously published at www.fanfiction.net and www.hardydetectiveagency.com
Thank You,
Lord Dreadnault
Nancy turned to the Gray Man, "How did you and Mr. Fairchild get here like that?"
Mr. Gray smiled briefly, "Apparently the housekeeper found Joe knocked out in one of the rooms. Her niece called Andrew who promptly took a helicopter flight out here. The rest you know."
Frank and Nancy nodded slowly. "What should we do about the corpse?" Frank asked, pointing to the body of Hertz.
"Leave it for the authorities. We should go in and see what Andrew needs." Mr. Gray responded.
Frank and Nancy nodded and followed the Gray Man into the mansion and up to Mr. Fairchild's office. Fairchild was on the phone while Amanda sat in one of the chairs across from the desk. Nancy could tell that she was extremely shaken up.
"Where's my brother?" Frank asked her anxiously.
"Downstairs. . . somewhere, my aunt is looking after him. He'll be fine." Amanda replied faintly.
Fairchild put the phone down. "I've notified the local police." he announced.
"The police!" Mr. Gray exclaimed. "What about the Network!"
"The Network," Mr. Fairchild answered slowly, "has been corrupted somehow. That is the only possible way that they could have spirited Elayne away like they did. Our enemy won't have players within the Denver Police Department. Possibly the FBI though, and they will get involved whether or not I call them."
"What about the press?" Mr. Gray pointed out.
Fairchild smiled coldly. "The press, yes the press. Amanda?"
"Yes?" Amanda answered slowly.
"Would you please coordinate with the police about what to say to the press? I would like you to become the family spokesperson."
"I'd be honored," Amanda said, smiling.
"Only one thing, you will tell the reporters that Elayne's bodyguards were killed and or severely injured during the kidnapping. Avoid names. I will issue a gag order to the police so they don't blow the story." Fairchild instructed. The wail of sirens echoed in the distance. "You had better go greet them. I will see them later for any questions they might have."
Amanda nodded. "As you wish." She left quickly, closing the door behind her, to go and meet the police and tell them what had happened.
"That doesn't answer my question," The Gray Man sighed.
Mr. Fairchild smiled again. "The press will be a useful tool. The kidnappers have no reason to believe that the Hardys and Miss Drew are still alive. The press will keep a constant eye on me. Our kidnappers will not see the Hardys and Miss Drew sneaking up behind them."
"We're perfectly willing to go and chase Elayne and her kidnappers," Nancy said, "but, wouldn't it be better if you came with us? You are obviously more skilled than us by far."
"Not by so far I think," Fairchild replied, sighing sadly. "I would go, but kidnapping is the least of their crimes, the very least."
"What do you mean?" Frank inquired.
Fairchild tilted his head and looked at them while smiling. "Do you think these kidnappers went to extreme effort, great risk, and substantial cost just to kidnap my daughter for revenge, or to rape her, or to get ransom?"
"That did occur to us. . ." Nancy admitted.
"I did not think it had," Fairchild replied, "I'm afraid you don't know all of the facts and probably won't for some time to come. However, imagine a chessboard. Imagine that I am the queen, imagine that my daughter is a pawn, and imagine that you are a bishop. The pawn is in extreme danger from another opposing piece, say the black knight or rook. I, the queen can save the pawn easily. It would be a mere matter to strike down the opposing piece."
"Then why don't you?" Nancy burst out.
Mr. Fairchild held up his hand, "Hear me out. Yet, you the bishop, with some maneuvering could undermine the piece that puts the pawn in danger."
"Yes," Frank agreed, "but, it's still quicker and more efficient for you to strike down the danger."
"I can't budge from my position." Fairchild countered.
"Why not!" Nancy demanded.
"It would be an illegal move. If I move from the position I currently stand on, that creates a condition most unfavorable towards our side."
"What's that?" Frank asked slowly, beginning to realize what Fairchild meant.
"It's called checkmate." Fairchild answered.
*******
Joe groaned and lifted up his hand weakly to rub his forehead. Abruptly he remembered what had happened. Elayne! Joe sat up quickly looking around.
"Lay back down!" came the voice of the housekeeper.
Aha! He had known all along, it was the housekeeper! Joe jumped out of the bed. "You'll have to force me!" he exclaimed.
Martha looked at Joe as if he belonged in a lunatic asylum. "All right, don't lay down. Undoubtably your brother and Miss Drew will be wanting to see you. They are in Mr. Fairchild's office." With that she left.
Joe looked down and realized that he was wearing nothing but his boxers. He groaned.
********
The group in Mr. Fairchild's office was interrupted by Joe's arrival. "What happened?" he asked.
"You got conked out and they took Elayne away, from right beneath our noses." Frank explained to him.
Joe sighed, "I was afraid of that."
"We were discussing Elayne," Nancy told Joe. She then turned to Fairchild, "Checkmate?"
Fairchild nodded slowly. "My daughter's kidnapping is a diversion, if I go off after her all chaos will break loose here. I'm afraid I can't explain any further though."
"Who's the king on your little chessboard?" Frank asked Fairchild.
"It could be many things," Fairchild said, "the President, Congress, the Pentagon, any of those, perhaps even more."
"Do you know which it is?" Nancy asked suspiciously.
"I do, but you don't need to know at this point."
"Just when we thought we were getting somewhere," Joe muttered. He always hated it when the words, "need to know" came up.
"Where will we go to get Elayne back?" Nancy asked, eagerly.
Fairchild and the Gray Man shrugged. "We'll have to wait a little longer for that. Be assured though, we will know shortly and we can send you on your way quickly. First though," Fairchild glanced at his watch, "we need to get a couple of things done. It's high time that you became official employees of the Network."
Frank and Joe's mouth dropped open along with Nancy's in surprise. They had not expected this. "Are you joking?" Frank managed to get out.
"Does that mean you accept?" Fairchild asked, smiling.
"Of course!" All three answered at once.
"I thought so," Fairchild said, "I took the liberty to get your ID's and other equipment ready." He pulled out a large envelope from a drawer in his desk and pulled out several different credit and ID cards. First he handed them each a set of five ID's. He began to explain each one. "The first one is an official Network ID. This identification is not really valid or recognized outside of the Network except for particularly high up officials. Don't show it to anyone unless they're a member of the Network or knows about the Network and is friendly to us. After you take care of my daughter's kidnapping you will be briefed on all of the official protocol."
Frank studied his Network identification. It had his picture and stats as well as several security patterns on it. "Thank you Mr. Fairchild."
Mr. Fairchild smiled. "As you'll notice I've assigned you all 'ranks.' Frank, you're a marshal. Nancy and Joe, you are both deputy marshals. You three must work together. However, when it comes to a final decision, either it's unanimous or, Frank is the one to decide. Frank answers to me directly, he takes orders from no one else, period. Joe and Nancy, Frank is basically your leader but you answer to Frank and I directly, and to no one else."
"So how does that stack up against other Network agents?" Joe asked.
The Gray Man chose to explain. "All agents are assigned some sort of military rank. It helps keep the organization together and running effectively. Mr. Fairchild here is regarded as the General Commander answerable only to the President of the United States. Assuming that the President knows of his existence. If the President is not aware of the Networks's existence then Andrew doesn't really answer to anyone. He carries out business as normal against terrorists and perhaps coordinates with the heads of the CIA or FBI."
"Why would the President not be aware of the Network's existence?" Nancy asked.
"Some Presidents would try to get a strong grip on the Network, use it to their own advantage, or compromise our security. The last thing we need is another Watergate. Thank heavens we weren't involved." The Gray Man answered.
"Or perhaps, they may just not need to know." Fairchild explained with a smile.
Frank nodded. "I see, please continue explaining the ranks."
"Right," the Gray Man said, "I'm regarded as a four-star general, I'm also Mr. Fairchild's chief-of-staff. All the others have their own ranks. Other than me and Mr. Fairchild you've only met privates and corporals. You might meet more. As a marshal or deputy marshal you aren't under anyone's command except for Andrew's. Basically you do your own thing."
"When you're on a mission or task that I've assigned then you outrank every single person in the Network, excepting me of course." Fairchild said. "You may or may not have direct command authority over everyone but you certainly don't have to take orders from anyone else."
"So basically," Joe reasoned out, "when we're on your orders the only person that outranks our authority is you. What if we're just doing something routine or we're not on your orders?"
Fairchild answered, "When you are not actively on my orders then you're not under anyone's command, but you and Nancy have the command authority equivalent to a lieutenant and Frank has the equivalent to a captain. Basically, you don't answer to anyone, but you don't give orders to anyone with a higher rank. As time goes on your equivalent ranks will rise. I think that you'll most likely serve for marshals for the duration of you employment."
"Can we use our ID's and other things to help with our normal cases?" Frank asked.
"I'm well aware that you three frequently get involved in other cases other than terrorism or what concerns the Network. We support justice so we do grant you some of our resources to help you in your exploits against crime. However, if you ever stumble upon terrorism or a potential threat of terrorism you must notify me immediately." Fairchild replied.
"What resources do we get?" Nancy asked.
The Gray Man frowned sourly. "You'll have unlimited access to the Network's files, records, dossiers, and other such things that shall remain unmentioned."
Frank nodded. "That sounds great, what are these 'other things' though?"
Fairchild smiled grimly. "Well, there's all types of spy satellites and if you ever need a terrorist base to be taken out quickly or to conveniently disappear off the map. . ."
Frank's eyes widened in shock. "I don't think we'll need that. What other resources do we have at our disposal?"
"The Network does try to keep within the bounds of the law, at least when operating within the United States, so we have a deal with the Supreme Court and Justice Department. The Network does them some favors here and there and they, with the authority of the President issue select people in the Network the right to issue search warrants and gag orders providing that these orders and warrants are within bound of the law and not unreasonable, as the Bill of Rights states."
"Are we some of those people?" Nancy asked.
"Just Frank for now," Fairchild replied. "I had to push them rather hard just for him. Hopefully we'll get you and Joe that privilege in the coming future." Fairchild turned to Frank. "Don't get wise and try to issue some before you've been sworn in and briefed in protocol though."
"Don't worry," Frank replied.
"What about these other ID cards?" Nancy inquired.
"Those are just FBI, CIA, Justice and State Department ID's. They'll get you the help and cooperation of any of those agencies and of course any local police or law enforcement without you having to reveal yourself to some station chief or office manager." The Gray Man explained.
"That sounds good to me." Joe said excitedly. He always hated it when the police shoved them off a case. "Can we use them when we're not necessarily on you orders?"
Mr. Fairchild rolled his eyes. "Just don't abuse them Joe, moderation is the key." Fairchild handed them several credit cards. "Here are you expense account cards. Use them for dining, getting hotels, flights, or for whatever expenses you have while on a Network or terrorism case, which should be one and the same in most cases. No one but the Network can trace these because they are 'special.' There is no maximum amount you can charge on them. However, remember moderation. Don't abuse them. You can only use these when doing Network stuff, or something we would approve of."
Frank whistled softly as the three young adults studied them. "This is heavy duty Mr. Fairchild."
The Gray Man nodded in agreement. "Be sure that you hide you Network card where only you or someone close can find it. As for your other cards, just keep them safe."
Next Mr. Fairchild pulled three passports out of the envelope. "These are diplomatic passports. Useful if you need to skip customs or smuggle something questionable but necessary. If you are trying to sneak into a foreign country in which the government is unfriendly and possibly your enemy on the case, either stay at the U.S. embassy or use your normal passports."
"Thank you," Nancy said smiling.
"I should thank you," Mr. Fairchild replied, "you are doing the Network and I a great service. As soon as you rescue Elayne and have had enough time to rest we'll began teaching you all the protocol you need to know. Next, before you leave, we need to discuss your employment terms."
"Do we get paid?" Joe asked getting even more excited.
Mr. Fairchild rolled his eyes. "Yes Joe, you get paid. You three still have yet to finish up college so you will be only part-time employees. Basically, we'll have you once in a while go on some case and then we will pay you on commission."
"How much per case?" Joe inquired eagerly while Frank, Nancy, Mr. Gray, and Mr. Fairchild rolled their eyes.
"It depends on the case," Fairchild replied dryly, "probably not as much as normal considering that the Network will be paying all of you tuition for you."
"Is there anything in particular we should study?" Nancy questioned.
Fairchild thought for a moment. "It's lucky that all three of you saw fit to take so many Advanced Placement and summer courses that earned you credit. You're halfway graduated from college already. I suggest that you, Nancy should major in law and minor in language and culture. Frank, major in law and minor technical and crime investigation. Joe, major in political science and minor in crime scene investigation. Remember, these are only suggestions so you don't have to follow them, but it would be nice. You'll also receive private instruction from the Network on other things."
Nancy frowned and thought for a moment. "You suggested basically what we would have taken anyway!" she accused Mr. Fairchild.
Fairchild laughed. "I'm glad. I think that it is time for you to head to your rooms and pack so that you can be ready as soon as word comes as to where Elayne is." The trio turned to leave. "One last thing though."
They turned back as Mr. Fairchild pulled three guns and three gray colored, cloth packets. "Here are your service guns. They'll not be the only guns you ever use, feel free to go and buy what you need when you need it. If your guns are place in these packets airport security will not be able to detect them."
They walked back and each took up a gun. "I feel like James Bond," Joe commented.
Everyone rolled their eyes and the three young adults left the room closing the door behind them. As soon as they were safely down the hall the Gray Man spoke. "So once you're gone you mean the Network to be ruled by a triumvirate eh?"
Fairchild smiled. "I think it is time to address the police and see what they have found. Let us hope that the Hardys and Miss Drew are able to be on their way quickly. As we speak both enemies and friends converge upon this place, I know not how to tell them apart. Trust not you colonels Arthur, nor your fellow generals until this is resolved."
The Gray Man nodded grimly as the pair left the room.
A/N: So ends this chapter. :) Perhaps we shall see more action soon. Please review now, your reviews support me more than you could ever believe. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns feel free to e-mail me at: dreadnault@netscape.net
Thank You!