"This is your room," Joe was informed later that afternoon. His dad had brought him to the school, signed him in, and assured him that he would pick him up for Easter Break and then left. "You have the handbook that Dean Stewart gave you?" asked the school secretary with the lift of a brow.
"Yes," acknowledged Joe, setting his suitcase by the bare bed.
"Good. You will need to read through it tonight," Joe was ordered. "Dinner begins at seven pm and ends at eight thirty in the dining hall. There is a map on the inside cover of the handbook. Lights out at ten thirty. You are not allowed to leave your room from ten thirty until six thirty when it is time to begin the day. Your first class is at eight am and the dean gave you your schedule with your handbook?"
"Yes, Sir," Joe acknowledged meekly.
"Report to Aaron Weigand in room 317, that's two floors down, to obtain your linen and uniforms," the secretary continued. "Any questions?"
"Who is my roommate?" inquired Joe.
"Jeff Hartley," was the answer. "Anything else?"
Joe shook his head. "No. Thank you."
"Don't look so down," the secretary told Joe in a kind voice. "We're not such a bad lot once you get to know us."
"I'm sure you're not," Joe replied politely. What was his name again? Oh yeah, Joe remembered. Steve Goodman.
Joe waited until Mr. Goodman had left before opening his suitcase. He emptied the meager contents into the empty drawer at the bottom of the chest near the window. He gazed out the window at the ground covered with a light layer of snow for a few minutes then left the room, noting there was no lock on it and made his way to the third floor to obtain his new uniforms and bed linen.
An hour later he had his bed made and was sitting at one of the desks in the room wearing his navy uniform and reading the handbook when the door opened and a young man with curly brown hair and green eyes entered the room.
"Make yourself at home," said the boy coming inside and tossing some books onto the bed opposite Joe's.
"Oh, do I have a choice?" Joe retorted sarcastically.
The boy opened his mouth to return the snide remark but his new roommate's eyes were so sad that the verbal rebuttal died before it was born. "I'm Jeff Hartley," he said instead.
"Joe Hardy," Joe introduced himself.
"Memorizing the do's and don'ts?" asked Jeff, sitting down on his bed.
"Trying too," acknowledged Joe with a scowl. "But there are so many."
"I know," Jeff agreed. "This is probably the strictest non-military boarding school in the country."
"Figures," Joe said bitterly.
"You don't sound too happy," Jeff observed.
"Why should I be?" Joe demanded. "My parents decided they didn't want me around anymore."
"That's not necessarily bad," Jeff said. "I had to beg my parents to send me here."
"You wanted to go to boarding school?" Joe demanded in shocked surprise.
Jeff shrugged. "It was better than hanging around and watching them fight over how I should be raised."
"Huh?"
"Dad wants me to go into the family business," Jeff explained. "He wanted me to start getting involved on my sixteenth birthday but mom wants me to be a doctor instead."
"What do you want?" asked Joe.
"Truthfully, I don't know," Jeff answered. "But I don't want to go into the family business and I don't want to be a doctor. How about you?"
"Mom wants me to be a doctor or lawyer," Joe said. "Must be some universal mom thing," he added with a smile. "I'm not sure about Dad. I thought he wanted my brother and me to follow in his footsteps but after yesterday, I don't think so."
"What happened yesterday?" asked Jeff curiously.
"Dad said I screwed up," Joe confessed. "But I don't think that I did. I mean, something happened that wasn't a part of my plan but Morrison instigated the confrontation when he had Leland put me on McFadden's trail. So that was really his fault; not mine," Joe ended thoughtfully.
"Whoa, hold on," Jeff interjected although Joe had already finished talking before the last word left his mouth. "Who are you talking about? What are you talking about?"
"It's a long story," Joe said, shaking his head.
"We've got some time before the dining hall opens," Jeff said. "So spill."
After a slight hesitation, Joe did just that. He told Jeff about his resemblance to Leland and how his abduction had been planned so his dad would trust Leland when they escaped and how he had realized Morrison planned to use that trust to eliminate his enemies.
"Sounds to me like you did your dad a favor," Jeff commented when Joe had finished.
"Yeah," Joe agreed. "I thought so too, but he tripped out."
"Could be he's just worried about you and wants you to choose another career so you will be safe," suggested Jeff.
"But he didn't send Frank away," Joe pointed out.
"You're the baby of the family, right?" asked Jeff.
"Yeah, but..."
"Well, that explains it," Jeff continued, ignoring Joe's attempt at an interruption. "The youngest members of the family are expected to be more prone to getting into trouble and less conscious of their own safety."
"But I'm..." Joe started to say he wasn't but the truth of the matter was quite the opposite. He was always getting into trouble even if it wasn't always his fault and he did act without thinking because he knew Frank would always be there to get him out of whatever he had gotten into. Only this time, Frank had been the one in trouble and he hadn't considered all the consequences before rushing in. Was that why his dad had sent him away? For his own safety? Of course that was the reason! Joe's s mind screamed at him. Remember what he said? You nearly got yourself, Frank and your friends killed!
"You okay, man?" Jeff asked, seeing how green Joe was turning.
"I'm fine," Joe replied with a wan smile. "I guess you're right. I am a menace."
"I didn't say that" Jeff objected.
"Not directly," agreed Joe. "But dad did. I guess sending me here was the only way he could make sure I didn't get anyone hurt...including me."
"Going to stick around?" Jeff asked.
"Yeah," Joe decided. "I honestly don't think breaking the rules would get me home. To another school, maybe," he amended. "But I kind of like my new roommate."
"Well, I hope you still like me when I tell you what my family business is," Jeff said
Joe looked at him questioningly. "My father is Thomas Hartley," Jeff informed Joe. "He works for McFadden."
"Yes," acknowledged Joe, setting his suitcase by the bare bed.
"Good. You will need to read through it tonight," Joe was ordered. "Dinner begins at seven pm and ends at eight thirty in the dining hall. There is a map on the inside cover of the handbook. Lights out at ten thirty. You are not allowed to leave your room from ten thirty until six thirty when it is time to begin the day. Your first class is at eight am and the dean gave you your schedule with your handbook?"
"Yes, Sir," Joe acknowledged meekly.
"Report to Aaron Weigand in room 317, that's two floors down, to obtain your linen and uniforms," the secretary continued. "Any questions?"
"Who is my roommate?" inquired Joe.
"Jeff Hartley," was the answer. "Anything else?"
Joe shook his head. "No. Thank you."
"Don't look so down," the secretary told Joe in a kind voice. "We're not such a bad lot once you get to know us."
"I'm sure you're not," Joe replied politely. What was his name again? Oh yeah, Joe remembered. Steve Goodman.
Joe waited until Mr. Goodman had left before opening his suitcase. He emptied the meager contents into the empty drawer at the bottom of the chest near the window. He gazed out the window at the ground covered with a light layer of snow for a few minutes then left the room, noting there was no lock on it and made his way to the third floor to obtain his new uniforms and bed linen.
An hour later he had his bed made and was sitting at one of the desks in the room wearing his navy uniform and reading the handbook when the door opened and a young man with curly brown hair and green eyes entered the room.
"Make yourself at home," said the boy coming inside and tossing some books onto the bed opposite Joe's.
"Oh, do I have a choice?" Joe retorted sarcastically.
The boy opened his mouth to return the snide remark but his new roommate's eyes were so sad that the verbal rebuttal died before it was born. "I'm Jeff Hartley," he said instead.
"Joe Hardy," Joe introduced himself.
"Memorizing the do's and don'ts?" asked Jeff, sitting down on his bed.
"Trying too," acknowledged Joe with a scowl. "But there are so many."
"I know," Jeff agreed. "This is probably the strictest non-military boarding school in the country."
"Figures," Joe said bitterly.
"You don't sound too happy," Jeff observed.
"Why should I be?" Joe demanded. "My parents decided they didn't want me around anymore."
"That's not necessarily bad," Jeff said. "I had to beg my parents to send me here."
"You wanted to go to boarding school?" Joe demanded in shocked surprise.
Jeff shrugged. "It was better than hanging around and watching them fight over how I should be raised."
"Huh?"
"Dad wants me to go into the family business," Jeff explained. "He wanted me to start getting involved on my sixteenth birthday but mom wants me to be a doctor instead."
"What do you want?" asked Joe.
"Truthfully, I don't know," Jeff answered. "But I don't want to go into the family business and I don't want to be a doctor. How about you?"
"Mom wants me to be a doctor or lawyer," Joe said. "Must be some universal mom thing," he added with a smile. "I'm not sure about Dad. I thought he wanted my brother and me to follow in his footsteps but after yesterday, I don't think so."
"What happened yesterday?" asked Jeff curiously.
"Dad said I screwed up," Joe confessed. "But I don't think that I did. I mean, something happened that wasn't a part of my plan but Morrison instigated the confrontation when he had Leland put me on McFadden's trail. So that was really his fault; not mine," Joe ended thoughtfully.
"Whoa, hold on," Jeff interjected although Joe had already finished talking before the last word left his mouth. "Who are you talking about? What are you talking about?"
"It's a long story," Joe said, shaking his head.
"We've got some time before the dining hall opens," Jeff said. "So spill."
After a slight hesitation, Joe did just that. He told Jeff about his resemblance to Leland and how his abduction had been planned so his dad would trust Leland when they escaped and how he had realized Morrison planned to use that trust to eliminate his enemies.
"Sounds to me like you did your dad a favor," Jeff commented when Joe had finished.
"Yeah," Joe agreed. "I thought so too, but he tripped out."
"Could be he's just worried about you and wants you to choose another career so you will be safe," suggested Jeff.
"But he didn't send Frank away," Joe pointed out.
"You're the baby of the family, right?" asked Jeff.
"Yeah, but..."
"Well, that explains it," Jeff continued, ignoring Joe's attempt at an interruption. "The youngest members of the family are expected to be more prone to getting into trouble and less conscious of their own safety."
"But I'm..." Joe started to say he wasn't but the truth of the matter was quite the opposite. He was always getting into trouble even if it wasn't always his fault and he did act without thinking because he knew Frank would always be there to get him out of whatever he had gotten into. Only this time, Frank had been the one in trouble and he hadn't considered all the consequences before rushing in. Was that why his dad had sent him away? For his own safety? Of course that was the reason! Joe's s mind screamed at him. Remember what he said? You nearly got yourself, Frank and your friends killed!
"You okay, man?" Jeff asked, seeing how green Joe was turning.
"I'm fine," Joe replied with a wan smile. "I guess you're right. I am a menace."
"I didn't say that" Jeff objected.
"Not directly," agreed Joe. "But dad did. I guess sending me here was the only way he could make sure I didn't get anyone hurt...including me."
"Going to stick around?" Jeff asked.
"Yeah," Joe decided. "I honestly don't think breaking the rules would get me home. To another school, maybe," he amended. "But I kind of like my new roommate."
"Well, I hope you still like me when I tell you what my family business is," Jeff said
Joe looked at him questioningly. "My father is Thomas Hartley," Jeff informed Joe. "He works for McFadden."