Fenton and Laura raced up the stairs and down the hallway to the boys' room, coming to a standstill in the doorway. Laura went weak with relief when she saw what had caused all the commotion.

Frank was standing by the bed, scowling down at a broken snow globe. Joe, sitting on the lower bunk, saw Fenton and Laura enter the room and cowered back against the wall.

"I'm sorry," Joe said, crying. "I'm sorry."

"What for?" Frank asked, looking at him in confusion. "I'm the one who dropped the stupid thing."

Fenton walked over, picked Frank up, and sat him on the top bunk away from the broken glass. He stooped down and Joe flinched. "It's okay!" Fenton told him, reaching out to push a stray lock of hair from Joe's eyes. "I'll clean it up and then you two can play some more."

Joe looked at Fenton, his eyes holding a mixture of wonder and fear. His real father would have beaten him senseless for something like this. "You - you're not...going to hit me?" he quavered, not quite believing it.

"Never," Fenton vowed, staring solemnly into the boy's eyes. "There's nothing you could ever do, that would make me hit you." he promised.

"Nothing?" Joe asked, hesitantly.

"Nothing." Fenton reasserted.

"Wh...what if I broke a window?" Joe asked, curiosity overcoming fear. The Hardys caught a glimpse of the mischievous creature hiding within the terrified child.

"Not even if you broke every window on every house on the block." Fenton assured him, smiling inside, although he managed to keep his face serious.

"You mean you won't punish him if he does something bad?" Frank asked curiously - and enviously.

"I didn't say that." Fenton said, standing up and looking at Frank. "He'll get the same type of punishment I give you."

"Oh," Frank said, leaning down and looking at Joe. "He'll make you write a whole page about why you shouldn't have done it." he confided, making a face.

Joe gave him an impish grin, and relaxed.

The next morning, Fenton helped get Joe ready for school and, once again, the Hardys had breakfast in the living room. After breakfast, Fenton departed for Burnsville. Laura gave Joe a pair of small crutches she had found in the garage, and drove the two boys to school.

Frank went ahead to his homeroom while Laura went with Joe to the principal's office.

Two hours later, after Joe was tested to find out how much he knew, and Social Services had been contacted, Joe was taken to his new classroom. He was a little behind the other second graders, but not enough to warrant being put back in first grade. Laura assured his teacher she would work with him at home until he caught up, then promised Joe that she would pick him and Frank up after school.

Meanwhile, Fenton had checked out the address for Jim Wood and driven there, to apply for the job of his personal assistant.

In order not to be recognized, he had stopped in at Erin's Hair Designs in Bayport before leaving. Erin had helped Fenton with his disguises before, so she wasn't surprised when he dropped in and asked her to lighten his hair and eyebrows to a dirty blond shade. This she did, then glued on a dishwater-blond mustache, just a tad darker, as well.

"I'm using super-glue on this mustache." she told him. "When you want to remove it, you'll have to use fingernail polish remover." Fenton paid her, thanked her for her help, and left for Burnsville.

Fenton rang Wood's doorbell and waited. Perhaps two minutes later, the door opened, revealing a large man, about six-feet-four, roughly three hundred pounds, and muscular.

"May I help you?" the man asked, his brown eyes boring into Fenton.

"I'm here to apply for the position of personal assistant." Fenton stated firmly, his tone demonstrating to the man that he was not intimidated by either his size or his demeanor.

The man moved aside and said, "Come in. I'm Mr. Wood's butler, William. Billy to my friends and peers. If you will have a seat," he added, leading Fenton into the study, "I'll tell him you've arrived. Who might I say you are?" he asked as Fenton sat down.

"Jeff King." Fenton introduced himself. Billy nodded, then left the room. Fenton sat quietly, observing the room from the chair. He had a feeling he was being watched, so he wanted to prove he could follow orders.

Five minutes later, a blond-headed, blue-eyed man walked into the room. He stood six foot two and weighed roughly one hundred and eighty pounds. Fenton could see the resemblance to Joe - this man was definitely Joe's father. Fenton felt his teeth clench, remembering Joe's nightmares and pleas of "Daddy- stop." Deliberately, he made himself relax.

"Mr. Wood?" Fenton asked, rising to meet him. Wood nodded. "My name is Jeff King. I am here to apply for the position of personal assistant."

"Do you have any experience?" Wood asked, sitting down and motioning for Fenton to do likewise.

Fenton sat, placing his briefcase on his lap. He opened it up and pulled out the resume he had prepared the night before. He handed it to Wood. "As you can see, my most recent position was that of personal assistant to Anthony Wilkins."

"He died last month, did he not?" Wood inquired, looking from the paper to Fenton's face.

"Yes, sir." Fenton affirmed, not elaborating.

"I believe Wilkins was involved in gun running?" Wood inquired, raising an eyebrow at Fenton.

"I never discuss my employers' - past or present - affairs with anyone." Fenton informed him stiffly, sitting up straight and staring Wood in the eyes, at the same time wondering how Wood knew of Wilkins' 'business.'

Wood's eyes fell first. He looked at the resume again.

"Very well," he said after a few minutes, getting to his feet. "I'll give you a three week trial period." he told Fenton and named his salary. "You will be given a room on the second floor, near mine." he added. "There are times when I will need you in the middle of the night. You will serve as my secretary, confidante, and at times, bodyguard. In order to assure you are capable of the latter, you will have to fight Billy."

"As you wish." Fenton agreed calmly.

Wood looked surprised but pleased. "Billy!" he raised his voice to get the man's attention.

Within seconds, Billy arrived. "Billy Catherson is my butler, chauffeur and valet." Wood informed Fenton. "He also serves as a bodyguard, on occasion." He turned to Billy.

"Show Jeff upstairs and loan him a sweat suit. You two will hold your sparring match in the courtyard, in thirty minutes.