Shane and I arrived at the cabin before noon the next day. We had spent the night at my apartment.
When I walked into the cabin, Erichson was waiting with the tape. "Eddy told me that you talked to Matt and Amy about what happened to him. This tape should answer your questions. It's something I doubt Matt and Amy know. You can watch it in my room. It will be quiet in here. It's the second one on the left. I'll be outside if you need anything."
I walked into the room. It was very clean. I put the tape into the VCR and sat in the desk chair.
The tape reminded me of the one from Atlanta because it was only from one camera angle. It looked like a normal match and then it got to the point Matt and Amy told me about. Matt was climbing up the ladder. He was almost at the top. His hand touched the belt. That was when I saw Jeff. He was wrestling Buh Buh Ray Dudley. But for some reason Jeff backed into the ladder hard. I didn't even see what caused him to do it. I saw the ladder tilt. Matt went flying. I saw him crash into the barricade and lay there motionless. Jeff continued to wrestle not even turning to see if Matt was okay. Maybe he hadn't realized what happened. I saw Amy run out to see how he was. Jeff finally saw what happened and jumped out of the ring. The last image on the screen was Amy checking Matt's pulse with Jeff kneeling next to her.
I left the room and found Erichson sitting on one of the couches. "You watch it?"
"Yeah. Did Jeff do that on purpose?" I asked. It would go with what Amy said about what happened before during and after that night.
He didn't say anything right away. "Yes. Jeff was jealous of Matt. Matt's career was going better. He had a successful gimmick and had a great girlfriend. Jeff was dating Trish but they weren't nearly as in love as Matt and Amy. Of course this is all based on what I've heard. Jeff left in 2003 trying to make himself a bigger star. From what Shane has told me, Jeff was a problem employee. He noshowed several times. He didn't come back to the WWF until Matt asked him to be best man in the wedding. Things seemed to be fine. Eric told us after Matt got hurt that Vince bribed Jeff into coming back by telling him he'd get a chance to take Matt out. Eric said he heard the conversation between Jeff and Vince two days after the accident. Jeff showed no remorse or regret. It probably is for the best that Matt and Amy don't know."
"Amy said that she thought Jeff resented her because she had an operation to fix her broken neck and was able to return to the ring."
"I'm not sure if that is the case but then again I don't know Jeff."
The cabin door opened. Bret, Uncle Ric, Uncle Arn, and Athena entered the cabin. Neither of us mentioned the Hardy's. I hated keeping things from them but I had a feeling it was something that should remain until later.
***
Later that day my phone rang. Darn I should have turned it off. I looked at caller id and quickly went outside. She definitely didn't need to hear two certain voices.
"Hello?" I asked.
'Danny where are you?' Yep was definitely my mother. And yep I should have turned the phone off.
"Kentucky." Well it's the truth. I just didn't tell her where.
'I heard about Nitro.'
How in the world did my mother find out? She hates wrestling! "How..."
"Trevor was watching Nitro at Jaycee's house."
Jaycee is my stepcousin or something. She's Jason's niece. She and Trevor get along great. They are roughly the same age. But I hadn't realized she was a wrestling fan. Okay now I definitely wish I had turned my phone off. I sat on the porch readying myself for what I knew was coming. "Oh? I didn't know she watched."
'That's besides the point Daniel! Trevor said Vince was on TV and you two weren't that far from each other. I thought you said he'd be in Oakland.'
"Well we thought he'd be. That's what the RAW schedule said. I was in no danger mom."
'I thought you'd know better. Now I have to explain why you were on Nitro. I tried to keep you and him away from wrestling and this is what I get.'
"You know maybe now would be a good time to tell him you were Woman." Probably not the best thing to say. I mean she probably didn't want my advice.
'How'd you know that?' She demanded.
How'd I know what? I wondered. Oh shit. She didn't know I knew about her career. "Oh um..."
'Look Daniel I know you're eighteen but listen to me this once. Stay away from the WWE. I don't want to lose you like I did your dad.'
Tears started to come. Mom I wish you knew that you didn't. "Mom can you call back late?" I was fighting to keep my voice steady.
'Sure Daniel. Be careful.' She hung up.
I brought my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them. I just stared out at the trees.
I felt a hand on my shoulder causing me to jump slightly. "Hey." Dad said.
"Hey." I replied back.
"You okay?"
"Yeah." I lied.
"You don't sound all right. Was that Nancy?" I nodded. He sat down next to me. "Bet it's hard to lie to your mother."
I nodded again. "She said Trevor had watched Nitro and told her about. She also said to stay away from WWE because she didn't want to lose me like she lost you." I heard him sigh. "It's so hard not to tell her she didn't."
"I know it must be. Your mother..." he stopped talking. I knew there was something he wanted to say but didn't. "She loves you and just wants to keep you safe. As do I."
"If she knew I was going to the RAW in Atlanta..."
"Yeah well even I don't like that. But it needs to be done. And I wish I could be there to see him taken down. But we'll be watching on TV here."
I decided to change the subject. "Who's all going to be in Atlanta?"
"Last I heard it was you, Shane, Matt, Amy, Eddy, Michael, Tammy, Athena, Ric, and Bret. Arn might go but I'm not sure. Anyway everyone's in the cabin plotting. Well with the exception of Matt and Amy of course. I think they are still trying to figure out how to sneak you and Shane into the building. Vince will most likely be on the lookout Monday even though Nitro's in Minneapolis. Was probably surprised that Shane wasn't in Orlando for Thunder."
"Hey can you come in here a second?" Eddy asked from the doorway. "We are trying to talk about Monday."
I followed dad into the cabin, which was pretty crowded. I took a seat on the floor allowing my dad the spot on the couch.
"Okay two things we need to address. One is how we are getting Shane and Danny into Philips Arena. And second there's the business of our spy." Michael said.
"A spy?" Bret asked. "You have a spy? Or someone's spying on you?"
"We have a spy in Vince McMahon's office. He's been the one sending the tapes."
"And stirring up trouble." Eddy added which gained him a glare from Erichson.
"At any rate we thought you should know so you don't attack him Monday. It's Eric Bischoff."
Uncle Ric's on his feet immediately. He looks like he's going to explode. About the reaction I expected. "Why would you work with that snake?" He yelled. "Eddy you know what he's like. What he did in WCW..."
"Pales in comparison to what Vince has done believe me." Eddy said. "Personally it takes all I have not to strangle him."
I looked over at Ric who didn't look like he was going to explode. But he looked mad.
"I just can't believe you guys would willingly work with Bischoff. He's almost as big of a snake as Vince." Uncle Ric continued.
"That may be so but without his overhearing Stephanie and Hunter Chris may not have survived the powerbomb." Erichson countered.
Ric didn't say anything. He's probably still trying to take the new information in.
"We've still got to figure out how to get Shane and Danny into Philips Arena. Now some feds and I will be in the arena as security guards. That disguise won't work for them since Vince probably would expect it. Any ideas?"
"I think I know of an idea." Uncle Ric said. He was watching Andi play. It would be a disguise Vince certainly wouldn't be expecting. Shane and Danny could watch from the audience."
"How?" I asked. The idea seemed impossible to me. To be in the audience? How could we possibly do that?
"In drag." Uncle Ric said with a grin.
"You'd be the expert on that Ric." Dad said laughing. Now that sounded like something to ask about later.
"Drag?" Shane sounded as uncertain as I felt. "I don't know Ric."
"Hey that could work! I'm sure between my clothes, Tammy's, and Athena's we can figure something out." Marissa said.
I slid down further on the floor. I had a feeling arguing wasn't going to help. They had made up their mind whether I liked it or not. Jason always said that sometimes it's easier just to go along.
When I walked into the cabin, Erichson was waiting with the tape. "Eddy told me that you talked to Matt and Amy about what happened to him. This tape should answer your questions. It's something I doubt Matt and Amy know. You can watch it in my room. It will be quiet in here. It's the second one on the left. I'll be outside if you need anything."
I walked into the room. It was very clean. I put the tape into the VCR and sat in the desk chair.
The tape reminded me of the one from Atlanta because it was only from one camera angle. It looked like a normal match and then it got to the point Matt and Amy told me about. Matt was climbing up the ladder. He was almost at the top. His hand touched the belt. That was when I saw Jeff. He was wrestling Buh Buh Ray Dudley. But for some reason Jeff backed into the ladder hard. I didn't even see what caused him to do it. I saw the ladder tilt. Matt went flying. I saw him crash into the barricade and lay there motionless. Jeff continued to wrestle not even turning to see if Matt was okay. Maybe he hadn't realized what happened. I saw Amy run out to see how he was. Jeff finally saw what happened and jumped out of the ring. The last image on the screen was Amy checking Matt's pulse with Jeff kneeling next to her.
I left the room and found Erichson sitting on one of the couches. "You watch it?"
"Yeah. Did Jeff do that on purpose?" I asked. It would go with what Amy said about what happened before during and after that night.
He didn't say anything right away. "Yes. Jeff was jealous of Matt. Matt's career was going better. He had a successful gimmick and had a great girlfriend. Jeff was dating Trish but they weren't nearly as in love as Matt and Amy. Of course this is all based on what I've heard. Jeff left in 2003 trying to make himself a bigger star. From what Shane has told me, Jeff was a problem employee. He noshowed several times. He didn't come back to the WWF until Matt asked him to be best man in the wedding. Things seemed to be fine. Eric told us after Matt got hurt that Vince bribed Jeff into coming back by telling him he'd get a chance to take Matt out. Eric said he heard the conversation between Jeff and Vince two days after the accident. Jeff showed no remorse or regret. It probably is for the best that Matt and Amy don't know."
"Amy said that she thought Jeff resented her because she had an operation to fix her broken neck and was able to return to the ring."
"I'm not sure if that is the case but then again I don't know Jeff."
The cabin door opened. Bret, Uncle Ric, Uncle Arn, and Athena entered the cabin. Neither of us mentioned the Hardy's. I hated keeping things from them but I had a feeling it was something that should remain until later.
***
Later that day my phone rang. Darn I should have turned it off. I looked at caller id and quickly went outside. She definitely didn't need to hear two certain voices.
"Hello?" I asked.
'Danny where are you?' Yep was definitely my mother. And yep I should have turned the phone off.
"Kentucky." Well it's the truth. I just didn't tell her where.
'I heard about Nitro.'
How in the world did my mother find out? She hates wrestling! "How..."
"Trevor was watching Nitro at Jaycee's house."
Jaycee is my stepcousin or something. She's Jason's niece. She and Trevor get along great. They are roughly the same age. But I hadn't realized she was a wrestling fan. Okay now I definitely wish I had turned my phone off. I sat on the porch readying myself for what I knew was coming. "Oh? I didn't know she watched."
'That's besides the point Daniel! Trevor said Vince was on TV and you two weren't that far from each other. I thought you said he'd be in Oakland.'
"Well we thought he'd be. That's what the RAW schedule said. I was in no danger mom."
'I thought you'd know better. Now I have to explain why you were on Nitro. I tried to keep you and him away from wrestling and this is what I get.'
"You know maybe now would be a good time to tell him you were Woman." Probably not the best thing to say. I mean she probably didn't want my advice.
'How'd you know that?' She demanded.
How'd I know what? I wondered. Oh shit. She didn't know I knew about her career. "Oh um..."
'Look Daniel I know you're eighteen but listen to me this once. Stay away from the WWE. I don't want to lose you like I did your dad.'
Tears started to come. Mom I wish you knew that you didn't. "Mom can you call back late?" I was fighting to keep my voice steady.
'Sure Daniel. Be careful.' She hung up.
I brought my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them. I just stared out at the trees.
I felt a hand on my shoulder causing me to jump slightly. "Hey." Dad said.
"Hey." I replied back.
"You okay?"
"Yeah." I lied.
"You don't sound all right. Was that Nancy?" I nodded. He sat down next to me. "Bet it's hard to lie to your mother."
I nodded again. "She said Trevor had watched Nitro and told her about. She also said to stay away from WWE because she didn't want to lose me like she lost you." I heard him sigh. "It's so hard not to tell her she didn't."
"I know it must be. Your mother..." he stopped talking. I knew there was something he wanted to say but didn't. "She loves you and just wants to keep you safe. As do I."
"If she knew I was going to the RAW in Atlanta..."
"Yeah well even I don't like that. But it needs to be done. And I wish I could be there to see him taken down. But we'll be watching on TV here."
I decided to change the subject. "Who's all going to be in Atlanta?"
"Last I heard it was you, Shane, Matt, Amy, Eddy, Michael, Tammy, Athena, Ric, and Bret. Arn might go but I'm not sure. Anyway everyone's in the cabin plotting. Well with the exception of Matt and Amy of course. I think they are still trying to figure out how to sneak you and Shane into the building. Vince will most likely be on the lookout Monday even though Nitro's in Minneapolis. Was probably surprised that Shane wasn't in Orlando for Thunder."
"Hey can you come in here a second?" Eddy asked from the doorway. "We are trying to talk about Monday."
I followed dad into the cabin, which was pretty crowded. I took a seat on the floor allowing my dad the spot on the couch.
"Okay two things we need to address. One is how we are getting Shane and Danny into Philips Arena. And second there's the business of our spy." Michael said.
"A spy?" Bret asked. "You have a spy? Or someone's spying on you?"
"We have a spy in Vince McMahon's office. He's been the one sending the tapes."
"And stirring up trouble." Eddy added which gained him a glare from Erichson.
"At any rate we thought you should know so you don't attack him Monday. It's Eric Bischoff."
Uncle Ric's on his feet immediately. He looks like he's going to explode. About the reaction I expected. "Why would you work with that snake?" He yelled. "Eddy you know what he's like. What he did in WCW..."
"Pales in comparison to what Vince has done believe me." Eddy said. "Personally it takes all I have not to strangle him."
I looked over at Ric who didn't look like he was going to explode. But he looked mad.
"I just can't believe you guys would willingly work with Bischoff. He's almost as big of a snake as Vince." Uncle Ric continued.
"That may be so but without his overhearing Stephanie and Hunter Chris may not have survived the powerbomb." Erichson countered.
Ric didn't say anything. He's probably still trying to take the new information in.
"We've still got to figure out how to get Shane and Danny into Philips Arena. Now some feds and I will be in the arena as security guards. That disguise won't work for them since Vince probably would expect it. Any ideas?"
"I think I know of an idea." Uncle Ric said. He was watching Andi play. It would be a disguise Vince certainly wouldn't be expecting. Shane and Danny could watch from the audience."
"How?" I asked. The idea seemed impossible to me. To be in the audience? How could we possibly do that?
"In drag." Uncle Ric said with a grin.
"You'd be the expert on that Ric." Dad said laughing. Now that sounded like something to ask about later.
"Drag?" Shane sounded as uncertain as I felt. "I don't know Ric."
"Hey that could work! I'm sure between my clothes, Tammy's, and Athena's we can figure something out." Marissa said.
I slid down further on the floor. I had a feeling arguing wasn't going to help. They had made up their mind whether I liked it or not. Jason always said that sometimes it's easier just to go along.