"He'll be here," Vanessa said. "He won't stay away until he finds out how Joe is doing."
The phone rang at the desk and the nurse looked at Fenton. "Mr. Hardy," she said. "You may take this here," she said, handing him the receiver as he came over with Laura, Callie and Vanessa following.
Alarmed because he knew the booths to the side of the room were for the families to take the calls about the patients, he lifted the receiver to his ear with trepidation. "Hello?" he said.
Fenton grasped the edge of the desk, his face whiter than the new sheets his wife had put on the bed earlier that morning. "How...how bad is it?" he rasped as his wife grasped his arm in a painfully tight grip.
"Yes, I'll be right down," Fenton said. He returned the phone to the nurse and took Laura in his arms. "Frank's been stabbed," he informed her.
"No," moaned Callie, tears springing to her eyes. "Is he..."
"He's in surgery two floors down," Fenton said. "Charlie was attacked as well," he said.
"Poor Frank," gasped Vanessa.
"But they won't go after Joe now," Chet said coming to join Fenton and the women with the rest of his friends in tow.
"Want to bet?" Fenton countered grimly. "And I bet that is what Deerborne and Loewan are counting on. Boys, I want you to do something for me," he requested.
"Name it," Biff said.
"Fenton?" Laura stopped him, grabbing his arm. "Frank?"
"They are going to call up here as soon as his surgery is over," Fenton informed her. "Just stay here for now," he added, squeezing her hand tightly before releasing it and leaving with the boys.
"Okay, Mr. Hardy," said one of the two orderlies who entered pre-op. "They are ready for you now."
"Good," Joe said. "I'm getting hungry."
"Well, you won't be able to eat anything for a while but at least it will be over with soon," the orderly said.
The two men dislodged Joe's wheels and began moving Joe's bed as two men who had been in his room followed.
"You won't be allowed in the operating theater," one of the orderlies informed the men.
"We know," said Officer Tomlinson who was in plainclothes because he was doing this off duty. "But we're going with him as far as we are allowed."
The orderly shrugged and helped wheel Joe out of the room and down the corridor, aware they had picked up two more to the entourage. At the double doors of the operating room the four men came to a stop as Joe went through with the orderlies. A few minutes later the two orderlies exited. Two men took up sentry on each side of the doors.
"I know Joe is still in danger," Chet said, his face turning green as the operation began below them. Mr. Hardy had asked them to keep an eye on things while the surgery was in progress. Since no one but medical personnel were allowed in the actual operating theater, the boys had been allowed to watch from the observation room that medical students used to observe. "But do we really have to watch?"
"You don't have to," Phil told him, taking pity on his friend who looked like he was about to throw up. "Why don't you wait outside? If we need you, we'll get you or yell."
"Thanks," Chet said, relieved. He exited the room and took several deep breaths. Ugh! He was never going to go into medicine! Granted, he hadn't actually seen anything that would qualify as gory but just the thought was enough to do him in.
A little over an hour later Phil, Biff and Tony joined Chet in the corridor. "How did it go?"
"We don't know," Biff answered. "They are taking him back to his room now."
"We'll head back to the waiting room and go see Joe with Mrs. Hardy if they let us," Phil said.
The boys walked down the corridor and returned to the waiting room where Mrs. Hardy had been called into one of the booths.
"Have you heard anything about Frank yet?" Phil asked Callie.
"No," she answered. "And poor Mrs. Hardy is trying so hard to put up a brave front, but I know she broke down a little while ago. She went to the bathroom and when she came out her eyes were bloodshot."
Mrs. Hardy came out of the booth and joined the youths. "Joe is out and has been taken to room 445. His doctor will meet us there shortly to tell us the results."
"What about Frank?" asked Callie.
"Let me check with the nurse," Laura said. The youths took a seat while Laura approached the desk and put in a request. When she returned she told the teens that Frank was still in surgery and Fenton would call Joe's room once Frank was out. "Now, let's go see Joe," she ended.
When Fenton got off of the phone with Laura he looked at Chief Collig expectantly. He had entered the room while Fenton was talking and stood looking at Fenton with an air of excitement. "Find something?" Fenton asked.
"Not something," Collig said, his face breaking into a huge smile. "Someone. Two someones to be exact. Loewan and Deerborne. They were hiding out in a bathroom on the fourth floor. Officers Davenport and Johnson are escorting them to the station."
"That's the first good news I have had in along time," Fenton said, his face showing some a brief flash of relief before vanishing once again.
"Well, I have some more," said Dr. Billingsby from behind Collig. Collig stepped aside as the doctor entered the room. "Frank is out of surgery and is doing well. I want to keep him for a couple of days but he should make a full recovery."
"Thank God," breathed Fenton.
"He was very fortunate that we could treat his wound almost immediately after he had been attacked," the doctor said.
"Thank you," Fenton said. "Are you putting him in with his brother?"
"Sorry," Dr. Billingsby replied. "Joe is in the cardiac ward and it isn't allowed."
"Can I see him?" Fenton asked.
"He's in room eight twelve," Fenton was informed. "But he's unconscious still."
"Thank you," Fenton said again. He left the room and made his way to the elevator where he took it back up to the fourth floor. There he made his way to Joe's room.
"How is Frank?" Laura asked as Fenton entered the room.
"He's going to be fine," Fenton told her and the teens. "He's in room 812 but is still sleeping. Where's Joe?" he asked, noticing the lack of bed.
"They haven't brought him in yet," Laura said.
"If you don't mind, I'm going to go wait with Frank while you wait for Joe," Callie said. "Let me know how Joe is doing?" she asked.
"Thank you Callie," Laura said, relieved. She didn't want Frank to wake up alone but felt she needed to be here for Joe too.
"I'll see if they took him back to another room," Fenton said, exiting. He hadn't even reached the nurses' station when he came face to face with a somber looking Con Riley.
"Johnson and Davenport are dead," Con informed Fenton. "And Joe and his doctor are missing."