TAKING TO TASK
CHAPTER 7
"TRUST ME"

"I don't get it," Joe admitted a few minutes later. He had been driving for about a half hour in relative silence.

"Get what?" Nancy asked as she leaned forward to check on Frank. He was sound asleep in the front seat, leaning against the window, propped up against a pillow they got from the hospital. Frank looked somewhat more comfortable with it but Nancy knew the rib hurt him when he moved too quickly.

"How did Ned get hold of you when we just got those phones?" Joe said. "I mean, did they hand out the number to everyone we know before they gave us the phones?"

Nancy frowned as she leaned back, considering.

"Good question," she admitted. "I didn't even stop to think about it when I was talking to Ned. Maybe the number was given to my dad, though. He would have given Ned the number if Ned said why he wanted to call."

"That's true," Joe nodded. "It's just the timing is weird. You didn't have the phone that long before he called."

"I know," Nancy shrugged and flipped her hair out of her face again. "Let's stop up here and get some clothes. I don't feel like setting a new fashion craze."

"Good idea," Joe said. "Talk about a fashion statement nobody wants to make."

The scrubs were comfortable but that's about all that could be said for them. They got off at the next exit from the highway and drove down the street until they got to a Target Store.

"Everyone out for clothing, lingerie and all that jazz," Joe quipped.

Nancy laughed as she gently woke Frank up again. Frank sat up, gingerly, but slid his feet out of the door and followed his brother and girlfriend into the store. Once in the store they got a handicapped cart for Frank to ride around in and made their way to the men's department to pick out some clothing for Frank and Joe and then the women's department to get a few things for Nancy.

They made the stop as fast as they could, changed, and went out to the car again. Nancy saw Frank's face was pale and drawn and worried, she knelt beside him outside the car.

"Frank," she said. "Are you sure you're all right? Would you like one of your pain pills?"

Frank shook his head. "How far are we from St. Louis?"

"We won't be there until tomorrow," Joe said. "You should go ahead and take a pill."

Frank frowned. "They make me all muzzy headed," he complained petulantly.

Nancy sighed in exasperation. "It's one pill," she said. "I know you hate it but I hate seeing you in pain."

Frank looked up at her but finally nodded. Nancy fished one of his pills from her small bag in the backseat and gave him a bottle of water to down it with. When he settled back again he went to sleep almost immediately and Nancy relaxed, feeling a little less worried.

"Maybe we should make him go stay with your mom," she suggested to Joe.

"It'll never happen," Joe shook his head. "Stubborn isn't just my trait, you know. He's at least as stubborn as I am."

"Hardy and stubborn are synonymous," Nancy smiled as she climbed into the back seat and got comfortable again. "You okay?"

"Who me?" Joe asked. "I'm great."

They continued westward, heading for the city of St. Louis. Nancy still felt the occasional knot of anxiety in the pit of her stomach, especially when Frank groaned, but she knew they were doing the right thing. Still, taking on an international terrorist was not something one did lightly; no matter how much help they were getting from outside sources.

Nancy knew part of the anxiety was worry over Frank and they very idea that his life was in danger made her stomach do flips. She wanted to take him and hide him away from any more danger in his life and not worry that he would be hurt.

"What do you think Ned wanted?" Joe asked suddenly and Nancy jerked, startled.

"What? What do you mean?" Nancy asked. "Are you still thinking about that?"

"I don't like the timing," Joe admitted. "I mean, I always liked Ned – he's a nice guy – but the timing is bugging the hell out of me."

Nancy frowned. "It's possible he just decided he had to call. He's like that sometimes – something comes to him and he has to act, then and there. I don't like the timing either, though and not just because of the new cell phones."

"What else don't you like?" Joe asked curiously.

Shrugging, Nancy stared out the window for a few minutes, thinking, trying to figure out what, exactly, was nagging at her.

"It's that we just got Frank back, Frank and I are finally working on a relationship and Ned calls me out of the blue for the first time in months," Nancy said finally. "More of a personal bearing than anything to do with our case. Unfortunately it's throwing me off, though."

"So push it to the back burner and we'll readdress it later on," Joe said. "Let's decide what to do when we get to St. Louis. We have to decide how to tackle this problem with Ras-Alman."

"We have to come up with a way, at the very least, of making him leave Frank alone," Nancy said. "Whatever else we do, that's the most important thing."

Joe nodded his agreement. "You have me there, Drew. So what first?"

"We develop a way for him to have to worry more about his business and less about his issues with Frank – and us. Which means financial problems."

"How do we create those?" Joe frowned. This was sounding less like a mystery to solve – which it wasn't really – and more like a war.

Nancy considered for a few minutes.

"I have a plan," she smiled at Joe. "But I need more time to develop it – and I want to talk to Frank about it too. But trust me. It's a good plan."

"Great," Joe muttered. "Trust me.

"Why are those the two most dangerous words in the English language?"