Chapter 7

Joe was awoken by the glare of bright florescent lighting. His surroundings hazily swam into view, as he tried to figure out were he was. Pushing himself onto his elbows, he glanced around. He was lying on a cot with white sheets in a small room. His brother looked to be sleeping peacefully on the cot to the right of his. Glancing to his left, his mouth dropped open as he recognized the man sitting in a chair next to him.

"Good morning Joseph. Glad to see you're awake," said the Grey man, quite cheerfully.

"Mr. Grey! B-b-bu-" Joe stuttered, still stunned.

"Now you just lie back down now," he said as he pushed Joe's shoulders down. "You need your rest. The antidote we gave you should clear your system within the next few hours - but only if you rest."

"But how? What? I don't -"

"Rest! Now!" Quickly the Grey man left, shutting the door and locking it as he exited.

Joe was trying to get up and awaken his brother when a wave of dizziness passes over him. Moaning, he lay back on his cot and soon fell fast asleep.

He awakened once more to the bright lights shinning overhead. Surveying the windowless room, he noticed his brother sitting awake on the cot next to his. Frank held a ponderous expression on his handsome face.

"Frank?" Joe managed to croak.

"Joe! Thank goodness you're awake," cried Frank as he rushed to his brother's bedside. "Where are we? Who were those men? I hear them moving about outside the door, but who are they?"

Joe thought for a second and then his mouth hardened in a straight line. "The Network!" he exclaimed.

"The Network!" Frank echoed. "WHAT?

"I woke up earlier and the Grey Man was sitting right here next to me."

"WHAT!" Frank repeated. "What do they want?" Then a sudden thought hit him. "McNelson is an assassin!"

"Right," Joe said as the expression on his face hardened even more.

"I wonder what the assassins are doing in Bayport," Frank began to think. Joe could already see the wheels turning in his head.

"There's only one way to find out," said Joe as he stood and crossed over to the door. "Mr. Grey!" he hollered as he banged loudly. "Mr. Grey! Open this door!"

"Joe! Calm down!" shouted Frank, trying to restrain his younger sibling.

But moments later, Joe got the results he had been hoping for. There was the sound of keys rattling outside the door, and then they stood face to face with the Grey man.

"Good morning boys," he said with a smile. "So, how are you feeling now?"

"Cut it out!" Joe screamed as he grabbed the collar of the Grey man's shirt and lifted him off of the ground. "What is this all about! Where are we! What are the assassins doing here! WHERE IS MY SISTER!" Joe was trembling with emotions and began to shake the man he was holding in front of him.

"Joe! CALM DOWN!" Frank cried as he once again tried to restrain his brother. After pulling him off of the Grey man, Frank held Joe's arms to his sides.

"I almost forgot about that temper of yours!" Mr. Grey said, brushing himself off. "Now slow down. One question at a time."

"Where is my sister?" Joe sobbed, close to tears.

"Sister? What sister? I don't know what you are talking about." He looked at the eldest Hardy boy. "Frank, has he gone nuts?"

Frank just stared at the Grey man. There seemed to be a genuine expression of confusion on his face. It appeared that he honestly wasn't sure what they were talking about. But Joe didn't see it.

"I AM NOT GOING NUTS! WHERE IS MY SISTER!" Joe was franticly trying to break free of Frank's grasp.

"Joe, do I have to tell one more time to calm down! Now, we aren't going to get anywhere if you try and kill the Grey man. Just calm down and I'm sure we will get some answers," he soothed in his brothers ear. After several moments, Joe calmed down and the trio sat together on one of the cots. Frank decided to take over the situation because Joe still couldn't trust himself to talk without getting all riled again.

"Where are we?" Frank demanded, looking hard at the Grey man.

"A Network station," came the Grey man's short reply.

"What are the assassins doing in Bayport?" he tried.

"I can't tell you that."

"WHY! TELL US NOW!" Joe snapped as he jumped from the cot as if it had bitten him.

"The matter doesn't concern the two of you. If we would have needed you, we would have contacted you," the Grey man spoke as he too stood from the cot and challenged the younger Hardy.

"Well obviously you did if we are here," alleged Frank from his spot on the cot.

"Look you two," the Grey man began. "We saw that you ran into some car trouble and we decided to help."

"How do you know we ran into car trouble if you weren't following us?" Frank said, skeptical.

"Your van has a tracer in it. Sort of like a homing device. Face it. You two are some of the assassin's biggest enemies. We are only trying to protect you."

"You put a WHAT in our van!" Joe lunged after the Grey man once more. Quick as a flash, Frank was holding his brother down.

"But what do the assassins want?" Frank questioned.

"Like I said, I can't tell you that. But don't worry we have it all under control. Now I want the two of you to go home. The antidote seemed to have worked fine. Just go home and take it easy. Trust us."

Joe growled at the last statement. He was trying everything he could to break Frank's grasp, but his older brother still held his ground.

"Now I have some agents outside, ready to take you to your house. When you get home, we have a van for you there. It is identical to your old one, so no one will notice the difference. Here are the keys," he stretched out his had to Frank's and handed him a set of keys.

"But what about my sister?" Joe bellowed as they were being pushed towards the door and into the evening's setting sunlight.

"Frank, take care of him. The toxin the assassins gave him seems to have affected his mind. Now take care you two. Don't worry about a thing. It is all under control." With a wave, the Grey man shoved them in a car with dark windows, turned, and walked back to the warehouse.

The two sat in silence for a while thinking about the events that had transpired. The entire car ride home was silent as the two sat wallowing in his own thoughts. Frank thought of the assassins and the possible plans they could have in store for the city of Bayport. Joe, on the other hand was still thinking about his long lost twin.

When the two arrived home, they found a note from each of their parents. Laura had gone to visit a friend while Fenton was spending some time at his agency.

"Gee, mom and dad haven't spoke to each other since we found out about Elizabeth," Frank remarked.

"Frank, we just have to find her. We have to." Joe's eyes were wide as he spoke, big, innocent, tears forming in the corners. The stress of their secret past was taking its told on his emotions.

"We have to find what the assassins are up to first, then-" Frank began to say but was cut off.

"NO! We have to find her now. We do that first. Besides, the assassins are the Network's problem. They even said so," he sighed. "I'm going to Pennsylvania. I'm going now, while mom and dad are away so they can't object. I have to go. I have to find her Frank. I'll go alone if I have to, but all the same I'm going."

Joe turned on his heel and went up the stairs to put together a quick overnight bag. Seeing Frank in his doorway, he turned to him and said, "If you are coming with, you'd better get some stuff together."

"Joe-" he started to say, but then stopped himself. He knew how stubborn his brother could be and knew from the look in his eyes that he meant what he said. Sighing in defeat he went to his own room and gathered some items together.