The Network Mystery

By Cassidy Montague

Chapter 3 "ANCHOVIES DON'T A PIZZA MAKE"

Frank stared blankly at the picture and just as blankly up at his father and back at the picture that he held loosely in his hands. The picture never changed and, in fact, looked more like the man Frank knew as the Gray Man than ever. He read the obituary provided with the picture and noted that the Gray Man died over a week ago from wounds sustained in an automobile accident.

Yet it made no sense. Frank saw the Gray Man earlier that day at the church. Frank knew he saw the Gray Man; there was no doubt of that. During the past year of their association with that mysterious man, Frank met up with him at least a dozen time in various capacities and got to know the man well enough to recognize him instantly on site, despite the man's ability to blend in with his surroundings.

"Not him," Frank said as he lay back on the couch. He pushed his dad off so he could have the length of the couch and Fenton moved to the top of the end table. He flopped his arm over his arms and burrowed back under the blanket that covered him. He shifted until he got into a comfortable position and sighed with contentment, even as he coughed several more times.

"What do you mean it's not him?" Fenton sounded incredulous. Frank sighed and moved his arm off his eyes so he could see his father. Fenton frowned, brown eyes intent on the picture in front of him and back at Frank again.

"Look, Frank," his father started to say. "I know you don't want to…"

"Saw him," Frank explained patiently and with as few words as possible. His throat really hurt now and talking became a chore he wanted to leave for another day. "At the church. He bought diamonds. Not him."

Frank flopped an arm toward the newspaper article his father held and closed his eyes again.

"What do you mean he bought diamonds?" Dad shook Frank's arm slightly and Frank sighed.

Is there no rest for the tired, or sick, around this place? Frank groaned as he sat up again and took a drink from the glass of water behind his father on the table. The young man coughed a few more times and shifted uneasily before he found a comfortable sitting spot and leaned his head back.

"He bought diamonds," Frank said as clearly as his voice allowed. "I was at the sale at the church with Callie and Joe and Vanessa. I went to get a glass of water and I saw the Gray Man and another man. Gray handed a satchel to the other man and the other man gave him an envelope which Gray opened up enough that I could see the diamonds inside. Then they left. I followed. They both disappeared."

Frank took the obituary from Fenton and waved it at him. "Not the Gray Man. Can't be dead and in the church today. Probably faked his death to go undercover or something."

"Hmm," the noncommittal sound drifted past Frank as he started to drift off again. Mmm, the couch was so comfortable. I can just go back to sleep and not worry about anything for the rest of the day. Wouldn't that be nice?

"I think I'll look into this a little more," Fenton said to his son. "I can't figure why Gray would buy diamonds at a church rummage sale, much less in a place where you and your brother just happened to be. I think he wanted you to see him."

Frank's eyes popped open again. "Why?" he rasped and coughed several times. The spasms caused him to lean forward and cough harshly into his hands. "How'd… know we'd… there…" he asked.

"I don't know," Fenton admitted. "It's a puzzle and we'd probably have to find Gray to get an answer to it. The Network sure won't be opening up to us anytime soon."

"Put the thumbscrews to 'em, Dad," Frank murmured. "Lock him in a room with Joe and threaten to make him stay there and listen to Joe talk until he tells us what's going on."

Fenton laughed. "You're running a fever, Frank. Go back to sleep and try not to run any marathons today."

"Go 'way," Frank suggested as he burrowed back down into the couch, found his comfortable position and flopped his arm over his eyes again.

"Yes, your highness," Fenton laughed. "Have a good rest, son."

- - - - - - -

"Not a bad sale today!" Joe exclaimed as he looked around the fellowship hall of the church and saw that most of the tables were now empty. There were a few items left over, mostly clothing, shoes and a few pieces of kitchenware but just about everything else went. Joe grinned as he saw Callie and Vanessa counting up the proceeds from their tables. He left them in peace as he went over to the snack table and got one of the last brownies. Chewing on it, he went to get a leftover cup of fruit juice and then went back to the table.

"1,948 dollars and 52 cents," Callie grinned. "Not bad at all. I wonder how much everyone else made."

"I don't know but it looks like everyone did well," Joe said. "You practically sold the rafters in this place."

"That's what we want to replace, Joe," Callie said. "The roof needs repair, the rafters are damaged – all from that hurricane we had last year, remember?"

"How could I forget?" Joe shuddered in memory. Bayport didn't seem the type of town to suffer from such natural disasters but, located on the ocean as they were, one of the southern bred storms had actually made it this far north before hitting landfall. It had done its damage and then some.

"Looks like you're well on your way to getting it fixed up," Vanessa grinned. She threw an arm around Joe's waist and held onto the wandering young man. "Should we start cleaning everything up now, Cal?"

"If you don't mind, that would be fantastic," Callie nodded. "If we all work together we should be done in less than a half hour. Just make sure all the tables get wiped down, would you?"

"No problem," Vanessa agreed. Joe helped her wipe tables down before lowering the legs and carting them into the storage room where they belonged. It took them no time at all to get the leftover goods boxed up, the tables cleaned and stored and the floors swept and mopped.

"Whew," Joe leaned back against the wall behind him and crossed his arms as he looked around the large room. Now spotless, it was hard to believe that it had held a rummage sale only an hour before. He grinned over at his girlfriend and his brother's girlfriend, feeling satisfied and looking mischievous.

"How do you guys feel about going to find something more fun to do," Joe asked the two ladies. "I'm starving, for one."

"Joe Hardy, you ate five brownies, several cookies and at least three handfuls of peanuts. How can you still be hungry?" Callie demanded.

"I'm a growing boy, Cal," Joe stretched and motioned at the door. "I need more to keep me fed than a few snacks. I want something more wholesome, like a Mr. Pizza pizza. What do you say?"

Callie frowned. "You think Frank will be okay with that? He might…"

"Callie," Joe interrupted. "Frank is sick. He's not going to go all jealous on us if we go out to get some pizza. He doesn't get jealous, remember?"

Callie shrugged. "You're right, I know you're right." She smiled. "Race you to the car!"

Callie took off running and Joe gave Vanessa a startled glance before he took off running after her, laughing as he caught up and passed her just short of his van. "All right, my ladies," he called out. "Let's get going. My stomach is rumbling and my whole body is primed – for pizza."

He opened the sliding door so Callie and Vanessa could get inside, then slid the door shut and got into the driver's side. He turned on the radio to a local rock station and whistled along with the song as he drove down the road to the mall.

"What do you think about what Frank said he saw back at the church?" Callie leaned forward as far as her seatbelt allowed so she could speak to Joe. "Do you think the Gray Man was doing something wrong?"

Joe shook his head. "I don't know. Seems like a weird place to do a drop, though. I talked to a few people who were at the church and no one else saw the Gray Man."

"You don't think Frank was making that up do you?" Callie demanded hotly. Mercurial was such a good word to describe her, Joe thought with a grin. Cold one minute, hot the next.

"Nah," Joe shook his head as he passed a slowpoke on the road in front of him. "He wouldn't make something like that up, no matter how sick he is. It still seems like a strange place to buy diamonds. I mean, why? And why not do it a jewelry store, if everything is on the up and up?"

"I don't know. Maybe the guy had a better deal on diamonds and was going to be at the church anyway so he offered to make the exchange there," Vanessa offered as an idea. Joe considered it but finally shrugged and shook his head.

"That's one suggestion. We aren't going to know until we find the Gray Man and ask him. Or beat it out of him."

"That's my boy," Vanessa beamed. "Always thinking with his fists."

"You love me for my brawn," Joe complained jokingly. "And forget the keen intellect that goes along with it!"

Callie snorted but her brown eyes sparkled.

"Keen intellect is not quite the word I would use," Vanessa commented idly. "But if you'd like to use those words, that's fine with me."

"I knew I loved you for a reason," Joe said.

"Because I allow you you're delusions?" Vanessa grinned impishly. "Or because I'm sooo beautiful?"

"And modest," Callie laughed.

Joe laughed, for once enjoying Callie's presence. He knew they butted heads more often than not but he did appreciate her devotion to Frank.

Maybe I'm growing up, Joe thought. But it's nice to see that they're still happy together even though they've dated for so long. I suppose I can see her as a potential sister-in-law.

Eventually. Not soon, though. I need more time to warm to the thought. But yeah. Eventually.

"Check out all that smoke!" Vanessa exclaimed from the second seat of the Van.

"Smoke? Where?" Joe stared out the windows, looking for any smoke in the area. Was something on fire?

"From your ears, baby, your ears," Vanessa leaned forward and managed to get a kiss on Joe's cheek. "You were deep in thought there for a few minutes. I thought maybe you grounded out a few gears."

"Oh, ha, ha," Joe sighed mournfully. He peered back at Callie through the rearview mirror. "I get no respect at all!"

"Aww," Callie teased. "You poor baby."

Joe finally found a decent parking place at the mall and all three of them filed inside, heading straight for their favorite pizza place. As he smelled the delicious smells of pizza wafting down from the restaurant his stomach grumbled in anticipation and he inhaled, heartily.

"Well, if it isn't Hardy, Shaw and Bender," Joe, Callie and Vanessa's good friend, Tony Prito, said. He leaned forward on the counter for a moment. "You seem to be a Hardy short."

"Hardy senior is out sick," Joe told Tony. "Poor guy caught Aunt Gertrude's virus and is out for the count. We, however, still have hearty appetites and need a special with the works."

"No anchovies on half!" Callie chimed, reminding them, unnecessarily, that she hated anchovies.

"Got it!" Tony said. He called into the back. "One full back special, hold the fish on half!"

Joe grinned and led the way to a nearby table. They managed to find a spot near the windows and Tony brought them all their usual drinks – water for the two girls and a large cola for Joe.

"Caffeine!" Joe inhaled the drink. "Just what I needed."

Vanessa shook her head. "You're delusional again, babe. Nobody needs caffeine."

"Says the girl who had four cups of coffee this morning," Callie reminded her friend.

"Four cups?" Joe exclaimed. "Geez! Did you save any for anyone else?"

"I needed a little pep me up," Vanessa admitted. "I was up late helping mom with her animation."

"I had to get up early to do something," Joe reminded them. "Oh yeah, work at a rummage sale. I'm surprised I didn't keel over halfway through."

Joe took a deep breath and inhaled more pizza scents. Now that they were so close to getting a pizza his stomach rumbled even more. Finally, he was saved when Tony laid a pizza on the table in front of them, filled with all kinds of meats, veggies and, on one half, anchovies.

"Enjoy," Tony said.

"Thanks, Tony. I thought I was gonna starve to death!"

Joe ate his first piece in about two minutes but took his time on his second piece. It took no time at all for the pizza to disappear, even though the two girls only had two slices apiece. Four was nothing!

"All right, let's you two home," Joe announced. "And I'll go see if my brother died yet or not."

Joe paid for the pizza and thanked Tony again, promising to get together with him the next week and he went with the two girls back out to the van. Once again he got the door for them and waited until they were inside before he slammed the door shut and went around to his own door.

Joe slid into his seat and was about to start the car when he saw a small slip of paper sitting on the dashboard of his van. Curiously, he opened it and read the scrawled note within the scrap of paper.

Hardys,

Meet me at the train station, track b, midnight.

Important. Come alone.

AG