Back at the manor everyone was in shock. When the fiasco at dinner had started, Vanessa had called everyone in to listen. Frank looked at his father. "He's letting them hurt him to protect us," he said, his voice hoarse. If Austin Moody were there right now he would willingly choke the life out of the man.
Fenton never said a word. He pulled out his cell phone and called Jack Wayne. Jack owned and operated a flying courier service in Bayport but whenever Fenton needed him, he made arrangements to be his personal pilot. "Jack, I need to fly to DC right away," Fenton told him. "I'll be at the airport in about an hour and a half."
When he hung up, he looked at Frank. "You keep your job with Sturgiss. Find out what the dinner buisness meeting was about and keep an eye out for any new contracts...especially if they have Joe's name on them." He looked at everyone else. "Keep going as you did today," he ordered.
"We have to tell Joe," Frank said.
"We can't," Fenton said. "You heard what he did to Gertrude. He would turn everyone in even if it meant he got hurt in the process."
"No," Frank argued. "Once he finds out we know about the drug and that you are going to the Department of Defense to see about an antidote, he won't turn us in. Dad, he needs to know he isn't alone," Frank insisted. "He has to have hope."
"All right," Fenton finally agreed. He looked at Phil. "You can fill him in tomorrow when you take care of his back."
"Yes, Sir," Phil agreed at once.
Gertrude arrived a few minutes later. "Where is Fenton?" she demanded, not seeing him.
"He's gone to DC," Laura said, then brought her up to date on the latest plan.
The next morning Frank arrived at Sturgiss' office as he was unlocking the door. "I'm glad you're here early," Sturgiss told Frank, opening the door and letting Frank precede him inside. "I have several documents that need to be copied. Three copies of each. Then run them down the street to Mike's Insurance and get Dorothy to notarize them.
"Yes, Sir," Frank agreed.
Sturgiss set his briefcase on Frank's desk and pulled out a folder. He handed it to Frank, shut his briefcase, then took it with him into his office and closed the door.
Frank opened the folder he had been given and walked over to the photo-copy machine. As he lifted the lid, the phone rang. Leaving the lid up and the folder on the table beside the copier, Frank went to answer the phone. "Carl Sturgiss, attorney-at-law," he said upon lifting the receiver.
"This is Ronnie Harrison," came an agitated voice. "I want to talk to Carl. Now," he commanded.
"Please hold," Frank said, then flipped a switch on the intercom. "Sir, Ronnie Harrison is on the phone. He sounds upset."
"Thank you," Sturgiss replied, then picked up the phone. Frank bit his bottom lip, wondering what had Harrison in a snit but short of listening in and, most likely, getting caught, there was no way he could find out. He walked back over to the copier.
"Frank!" Sturgiss bellowed before Frank could set the copier for the appropriate number of copies. "Get in here!"
Frank went into Sturgiss' inner sanctum and stood waiting quietly while Sturgiss finished his conversation.
"One of my clients has been arrested," Sturgiss informed Frank when he hung up. "Pull Ronnie Harrison's file and leave it on my desk. Then call this number and speak with Donald Pearson. Tell him I want to know everything he can find out about," he paused and looked at the paper he had scribbled on while talking to Harrison. "George Winebarger and Kenneth Dokken. Then finish the copies and get them notarized."
"Yes, Sir," replied Frank, keeping his face expressionless.
"I'm going to see about getting Harrison released. I probably won't be back until after lunch, if then. Cancel all my appointments for the day. If I am not back by one, I'll call," he concluded, leaving.
Frank pulled out Harrison's file and laid it on the desk then called Pearson, who turned out to be a private investigator. He exited the office and walked to the front door. He checked to make sure Sturgiss had left, then retrieved Harrison's file and faxed a copy to his dad's machine. Finished, he returned the file then headed back to the copier. Setting it for the proper amount, he opened the file and looked at the first page.
His brow furrowed and his lips thinned as he scanned the contents of the file. He was already familiar with part of it since he had heard the plans the previous evening after his aunt had been fired and Joe had returned to the living room with Austin and Sturgiss. But the paper he was looking at must have been discussed prior to Joe's return to the Moody's. Obviously, Moody had planned for Joe's return some time ago.
Frank read over the paper. It was a marriage contract! Joe was to wed Rebecca Freemont, daughter of Ralph and Sarah Freemont, six months after Rebecca's eighteenth birthday. Frank scowled as he laid the paper face down on the copier and began his job.
Joe entered his home room and took his seat. "Joe," the boy beside him said, touching his arm.
Joe groaned silently. He wished everyone would just leave him alone."Shh," the boy added. Joe's eyebrows came together quizzically. He hadn't uttered a sound. Why was he being shushed?
"Listen, your dad has gone to DC to see about getting an antidote," Biff said before anything else. Before leaving that morning, Frank had told Biff to make sure Joe knew they would be in no danger by helping him.
Joe's eyes widened in shock as he looked at his friend. "Biff?" Joe asked in a loud whisper. Now that Biff hadn't bothered disgusing his voice, Joe recognized it even if he still didn't see the familiar face through the make-up and dye job.
"Yeah," Biff admitted, giving Joe a sympathetic smile as he saw the flash of joy and relief that had registered briefly in Joe's eyes before the sadness returned. "Your dad bugged the mansion before Moody made you make them leave."
"I don't understand," Joe said, shaking his head. "If you have been listening, then you know I have to be left alone."
"Forget that," Biff told him. "Your dad has gone to talk with the Department of Defense about the poison Moody sold them. He'll get an antidote. As soon as he comes back, you are out of there," he concluded.
Joe's eyes turned bright with unshed tears. Would this nightmare actually end? He closed his eyes and sniffed. "Your dad had Dr. Bates call in something for your back," Biff continued. "Meet Phil in the bathroom after home room."
As the day progressed, Frank felt more and more pleased. He had finished what he had been ordered to do and faxed copies of everything to his dad's machine. He had also called Sam and told him about Pearson and the information requested by Sturgiss. The FBI had contacted Frank shortly after he had hung up with Sam. They had asked Frank to give Sturgiss false information and he had been only too happy to agree. The FBI suspected Sturgiss "leaned" on the witnesses so they were going to arrange to get him in action.
Sturgiss called Frank at one and told him he wouldn't be back to the office. Frank gave him the falsified information the FBI had given him and informed him of two rescheduled appointments. "That's good," Sturgiss told him. "Why don't you just take the rest of the day off," Sturgiss ended the conversation.
Locking up, Frank climbed in the rental he was using and drove to Bayport to get his copies of the papers and take them with him back to the estate. Before leaving home, Frank called his dad's cell phone to see if he had obtained the antidote. He hated leaving Joe with those people longer than was necessary.
"Hello," Fenton answered.
"Dad? Have you found out anything?" Frank asked.
"An antidote hasn't been created," Fenton informed him. "But they are very interested in the fact that Moody may have the poison. It was part of the agreement that everything be turned over to the government."
"What are you saying?" Frank asked, a hopeful smile forming on his face.
"If Moody does indeed have some of the poison on hand, he is no longer a problem."
Fenton never said a word. He pulled out his cell phone and called Jack Wayne. Jack owned and operated a flying courier service in Bayport but whenever Fenton needed him, he made arrangements to be his personal pilot. "Jack, I need to fly to DC right away," Fenton told him. "I'll be at the airport in about an hour and a half."
When he hung up, he looked at Frank. "You keep your job with Sturgiss. Find out what the dinner buisness meeting was about and keep an eye out for any new contracts...especially if they have Joe's name on them." He looked at everyone else. "Keep going as you did today," he ordered.
"We have to tell Joe," Frank said.
"We can't," Fenton said. "You heard what he did to Gertrude. He would turn everyone in even if it meant he got hurt in the process."
"No," Frank argued. "Once he finds out we know about the drug and that you are going to the Department of Defense to see about an antidote, he won't turn us in. Dad, he needs to know he isn't alone," Frank insisted. "He has to have hope."
"All right," Fenton finally agreed. He looked at Phil. "You can fill him in tomorrow when you take care of his back."
"Yes, Sir," Phil agreed at once.
Gertrude arrived a few minutes later. "Where is Fenton?" she demanded, not seeing him.
"He's gone to DC," Laura said, then brought her up to date on the latest plan.
The next morning Frank arrived at Sturgiss' office as he was unlocking the door. "I'm glad you're here early," Sturgiss told Frank, opening the door and letting Frank precede him inside. "I have several documents that need to be copied. Three copies of each. Then run them down the street to Mike's Insurance and get Dorothy to notarize them.
"Yes, Sir," Frank agreed.
Sturgiss set his briefcase on Frank's desk and pulled out a folder. He handed it to Frank, shut his briefcase, then took it with him into his office and closed the door.
Frank opened the folder he had been given and walked over to the photo-copy machine. As he lifted the lid, the phone rang. Leaving the lid up and the folder on the table beside the copier, Frank went to answer the phone. "Carl Sturgiss, attorney-at-law," he said upon lifting the receiver.
"This is Ronnie Harrison," came an agitated voice. "I want to talk to Carl. Now," he commanded.
"Please hold," Frank said, then flipped a switch on the intercom. "Sir, Ronnie Harrison is on the phone. He sounds upset."
"Thank you," Sturgiss replied, then picked up the phone. Frank bit his bottom lip, wondering what had Harrison in a snit but short of listening in and, most likely, getting caught, there was no way he could find out. He walked back over to the copier.
"Frank!" Sturgiss bellowed before Frank could set the copier for the appropriate number of copies. "Get in here!"
Frank went into Sturgiss' inner sanctum and stood waiting quietly while Sturgiss finished his conversation.
"One of my clients has been arrested," Sturgiss informed Frank when he hung up. "Pull Ronnie Harrison's file and leave it on my desk. Then call this number and speak with Donald Pearson. Tell him I want to know everything he can find out about," he paused and looked at the paper he had scribbled on while talking to Harrison. "George Winebarger and Kenneth Dokken. Then finish the copies and get them notarized."
"Yes, Sir," replied Frank, keeping his face expressionless.
"I'm going to see about getting Harrison released. I probably won't be back until after lunch, if then. Cancel all my appointments for the day. If I am not back by one, I'll call," he concluded, leaving.
Frank pulled out Harrison's file and laid it on the desk then called Pearson, who turned out to be a private investigator. He exited the office and walked to the front door. He checked to make sure Sturgiss had left, then retrieved Harrison's file and faxed a copy to his dad's machine. Finished, he returned the file then headed back to the copier. Setting it for the proper amount, he opened the file and looked at the first page.
His brow furrowed and his lips thinned as he scanned the contents of the file. He was already familiar with part of it since he had heard the plans the previous evening after his aunt had been fired and Joe had returned to the living room with Austin and Sturgiss. But the paper he was looking at must have been discussed prior to Joe's return to the Moody's. Obviously, Moody had planned for Joe's return some time ago.
Frank read over the paper. It was a marriage contract! Joe was to wed Rebecca Freemont, daughter of Ralph and Sarah Freemont, six months after Rebecca's eighteenth birthday. Frank scowled as he laid the paper face down on the copier and began his job.
Joe entered his home room and took his seat. "Joe," the boy beside him said, touching his arm.
Joe groaned silently. He wished everyone would just leave him alone."Shh," the boy added. Joe's eyebrows came together quizzically. He hadn't uttered a sound. Why was he being shushed?
"Listen, your dad has gone to DC to see about getting an antidote," Biff said before anything else. Before leaving that morning, Frank had told Biff to make sure Joe knew they would be in no danger by helping him.
Joe's eyes widened in shock as he looked at his friend. "Biff?" Joe asked in a loud whisper. Now that Biff hadn't bothered disgusing his voice, Joe recognized it even if he still didn't see the familiar face through the make-up and dye job.
"Yeah," Biff admitted, giving Joe a sympathetic smile as he saw the flash of joy and relief that had registered briefly in Joe's eyes before the sadness returned. "Your dad bugged the mansion before Moody made you make them leave."
"I don't understand," Joe said, shaking his head. "If you have been listening, then you know I have to be left alone."
"Forget that," Biff told him. "Your dad has gone to talk with the Department of Defense about the poison Moody sold them. He'll get an antidote. As soon as he comes back, you are out of there," he concluded.
Joe's eyes turned bright with unshed tears. Would this nightmare actually end? He closed his eyes and sniffed. "Your dad had Dr. Bates call in something for your back," Biff continued. "Meet Phil in the bathroom after home room."
As the day progressed, Frank felt more and more pleased. He had finished what he had been ordered to do and faxed copies of everything to his dad's machine. He had also called Sam and told him about Pearson and the information requested by Sturgiss. The FBI had contacted Frank shortly after he had hung up with Sam. They had asked Frank to give Sturgiss false information and he had been only too happy to agree. The FBI suspected Sturgiss "leaned" on the witnesses so they were going to arrange to get him in action.
Sturgiss called Frank at one and told him he wouldn't be back to the office. Frank gave him the falsified information the FBI had given him and informed him of two rescheduled appointments. "That's good," Sturgiss told him. "Why don't you just take the rest of the day off," Sturgiss ended the conversation.
Locking up, Frank climbed in the rental he was using and drove to Bayport to get his copies of the papers and take them with him back to the estate. Before leaving home, Frank called his dad's cell phone to see if he had obtained the antidote. He hated leaving Joe with those people longer than was necessary.
"Hello," Fenton answered.
"Dad? Have you found out anything?" Frank asked.
"An antidote hasn't been created," Fenton informed him. "But they are very interested in the fact that Moody may have the poison. It was part of the agreement that everything be turned over to the government."
"What are you saying?" Frank asked, a hopeful smile forming on his face.
"If Moody does indeed have some of the poison on hand, he is no longer a problem."