"What?" Joe whispered, shock evident on his face as Con took his shoulder and turned him around.
"You have the right to remain silent..." Con began.
"I know my rights!" Joe shouted, spinning around angrily.
"Joseph!" snapped Fenton. Joe glared at his dad then turned back around and let Con search him down.
Con pulled Joe's wallet out of his pocket and his keys and handed them to Frank. "You might want to keep those here," he said, glancing back at Collig a bit fearfully because he wasn't really allowed to do things like that. But the chief was busy looking at Fenton, either intentionally or not, Con wasn't sure.
"Why do you think I did it?" Joe demanded as Con snapped the metal bracelets onto Joe's wrists.
"Good question," agreed Fenton. "Who is Roger Billings?"
"Vanessa's new boyfriend," Frank answered softly, refusing to look at Joe.
'That doesn't mean I had anything to do with it," Joe insisted. "I've been home since almost eleven last night."
"How did you know it happened after eleven?" Chief Collig asked, turning a gaze on Joe that had gone from contrite to suspicious. He hadn't really believed Joe had tried to kill the boy. Even after the physical evidence had been produced, he had been skeptical, but now he wasn't sure what to believe.
"It had to of," Joe replied. "He and Vanessa were at Mr. Pizza last night and she has an eleven o'clock curfew. You said the attempted murder of him. Not him and Vanessa," he explained.
"Don't." Frank said. "Don't say anything. We'll get Felix," he added, naming their attorney.
Joe turned and looked at Frank in disbelief. Why had he told him not to say anything? He had to clear himself. "Frank's right," Fenton agreed. "Don't answer any questions until you talk to Felix."
Joe started to object, but at the stern look from his father, he closed his mouth. "I'm sorry, Fenton," Ezra said again as Con led Joe outside and to the squad car.
"Why do you think he did it?" Fenton asked.
"Billings' brakes went out near the cliffs. He's been driving race cars for almost a year now and knew how to handle it. Otherwise, he would have gone over. A necklace was found caught beneath the car. It was silver and had an inscription on it," Collig informed him.
"To Joe with all my love, Vanessa," Frank said, remembering the necklace and its inscription.
Chief Collig nodded. "We'll start questioning people today about Joe's relationship with Billings. But it doesn't look good," he added before leaving.
"What's going on?" Laura demanded, coming into the room. "Who was here? Where's Joe?"
Fenton told her about the arrest. "Get him out," she ordered. "That's preposterous." She looked from her husband to Frank. "Tell him!"
"I..." Frank stopped speaking and shook his head.
"Frank," Fenton said, his voice becoming suspicious as he gave his eldest son a hard look. "Is there something we should know?"
Looking miserable, Frank gave a curt nod. He told his parents of Joe's comments about Roger the previous evening at the restaurant and when he arrived home last night. "NO," Laura rasped. "You don't...you can't think he would try to kill him."
"Mom, I...I just don't know," Frank admitted, feeling horrible for the doubts which were currently plaguing him.
"I had better call Felix and have him meet us at the jail," Fenton said, his voice more subdued than earlier. Like Frank, he was no longer sure if Joe was innocent or not but he was sure of one thing: he would do what he could to get Joe out of jail and keep him out of prison.
When Fenton and Frank arrived at the jail almost thirty minutes later, they met up with Felix Andrews, a short rotund man with thinning red hair and freckles. They walked to the steps and waited as the man climbed out of his blue Lexus and hurried up to them. "Do you know what kind of evidence they have against him?" he asked Fenton as they climbed the steps. Fenton had been brief on the phone, saying only Joe had been arrested for attempted murder and he needed to meet the Hardys at the police station as soon as possible.
"Ezra said they had Joe's necklace," Fenton informed him. "It was found caught on something underneath Billings car."
"Anything else?" he demanded.
"Not that we know of," Frank replied.
Felix narrowed his brown eyes on the youth, intuitively knowing something was amiss. "Frank, talk to me. I can't help Joe if I don't know everything."
So Frank repeated his earlier conversation with his parents about Joe. When he had finished, Felix's mouth had drawn into a thin line and his eyes had moved closer together. "There were how many people who heard his comment about Billings last night?" he asked.
"Biff, Chet, Tony, Phil, Callie, Karen and me," Frank said, counting them off. "Six besides me," he said. "Unless someone from another table was listening in."
"And he went for a walk, by himself, after he left the restaurant?" Felix repeated something Frank had told him. Frank nodded. Felix's frown deepened. "This doesn't look good," he said, opening the door for them to enter the building. "This doesn't look good at all."
"You have the right to remain silent..." Con began.
"I know my rights!" Joe shouted, spinning around angrily.
"Joseph!" snapped Fenton. Joe glared at his dad then turned back around and let Con search him down.
Con pulled Joe's wallet out of his pocket and his keys and handed them to Frank. "You might want to keep those here," he said, glancing back at Collig a bit fearfully because he wasn't really allowed to do things like that. But the chief was busy looking at Fenton, either intentionally or not, Con wasn't sure.
"Why do you think I did it?" Joe demanded as Con snapped the metal bracelets onto Joe's wrists.
"Good question," agreed Fenton. "Who is Roger Billings?"
"Vanessa's new boyfriend," Frank answered softly, refusing to look at Joe.
'That doesn't mean I had anything to do with it," Joe insisted. "I've been home since almost eleven last night."
"How did you know it happened after eleven?" Chief Collig asked, turning a gaze on Joe that had gone from contrite to suspicious. He hadn't really believed Joe had tried to kill the boy. Even after the physical evidence had been produced, he had been skeptical, but now he wasn't sure what to believe.
"It had to of," Joe replied. "He and Vanessa were at Mr. Pizza last night and she has an eleven o'clock curfew. You said the attempted murder of him. Not him and Vanessa," he explained.
"Don't." Frank said. "Don't say anything. We'll get Felix," he added, naming their attorney.
Joe turned and looked at Frank in disbelief. Why had he told him not to say anything? He had to clear himself. "Frank's right," Fenton agreed. "Don't answer any questions until you talk to Felix."
Joe started to object, but at the stern look from his father, he closed his mouth. "I'm sorry, Fenton," Ezra said again as Con led Joe outside and to the squad car.
"Why do you think he did it?" Fenton asked.
"Billings' brakes went out near the cliffs. He's been driving race cars for almost a year now and knew how to handle it. Otherwise, he would have gone over. A necklace was found caught beneath the car. It was silver and had an inscription on it," Collig informed him.
"To Joe with all my love, Vanessa," Frank said, remembering the necklace and its inscription.
Chief Collig nodded. "We'll start questioning people today about Joe's relationship with Billings. But it doesn't look good," he added before leaving.
"What's going on?" Laura demanded, coming into the room. "Who was here? Where's Joe?"
Fenton told her about the arrest. "Get him out," she ordered. "That's preposterous." She looked from her husband to Frank. "Tell him!"
"I..." Frank stopped speaking and shook his head.
"Frank," Fenton said, his voice becoming suspicious as he gave his eldest son a hard look. "Is there something we should know?"
Looking miserable, Frank gave a curt nod. He told his parents of Joe's comments about Roger the previous evening at the restaurant and when he arrived home last night. "NO," Laura rasped. "You don't...you can't think he would try to kill him."
"Mom, I...I just don't know," Frank admitted, feeling horrible for the doubts which were currently plaguing him.
"I had better call Felix and have him meet us at the jail," Fenton said, his voice more subdued than earlier. Like Frank, he was no longer sure if Joe was innocent or not but he was sure of one thing: he would do what he could to get Joe out of jail and keep him out of prison.
When Fenton and Frank arrived at the jail almost thirty minutes later, they met up with Felix Andrews, a short rotund man with thinning red hair and freckles. They walked to the steps and waited as the man climbed out of his blue Lexus and hurried up to them. "Do you know what kind of evidence they have against him?" he asked Fenton as they climbed the steps. Fenton had been brief on the phone, saying only Joe had been arrested for attempted murder and he needed to meet the Hardys at the police station as soon as possible.
"Ezra said they had Joe's necklace," Fenton informed him. "It was found caught on something underneath Billings car."
"Anything else?" he demanded.
"Not that we know of," Frank replied.
Felix narrowed his brown eyes on the youth, intuitively knowing something was amiss. "Frank, talk to me. I can't help Joe if I don't know everything."
So Frank repeated his earlier conversation with his parents about Joe. When he had finished, Felix's mouth had drawn into a thin line and his eyes had moved closer together. "There were how many people who heard his comment about Billings last night?" he asked.
"Biff, Chet, Tony, Phil, Callie, Karen and me," Frank said, counting them off. "Six besides me," he said. "Unless someone from another table was listening in."
"And he went for a walk, by himself, after he left the restaurant?" Felix repeated something Frank had told him. Frank nodded. Felix's frown deepened. "This doesn't look good," he said, opening the door for them to enter the building. "This doesn't look good at all."