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A/N: This chapter is for my fabulous reviewers. Thanks so much for reading and keep up the reviews!
"Your brother is a very lucky man." Joe's doctor, Allison Laurence, told Frank. "Most comas last much longer than the 28 hours that his did. If he hadn't been in such good physical shape his body would have shut down completely. He might not have survived. And three bullets from an assault rifle... the trauma alone would have killed many people." the petite brunette doctor shook her head. "It's nothing short of a miracle."
"You have no idea." Frank told her. "This whole past forty-eight hours has been one long, painful miracle."
The doctor laughed. "At least it had a happy ending." she offered before she excused herself and went off.
A happy ending for who? Frank wondered.
Nancy's breath caught in her throat as she peered into Joe's hospital room. She'd thought, no matter how many times he got hurt, she would never get used to seeing her vivacious husband in a hospital- he seemed so out of place. But today, lying in the bed, so pale and weak, and with bandages wrapped around his chest, he seemed exactly in place, and that scared her. She stepped inside and turned to shut the door quietly behind her, not wanting to wake him. When she turned back to him, his eyes were open, shining bright blue against his pale skin.
"Nancy." he rasped, his voice scratchy but alert.
Nancy fought back a sob as she walked to his bedside and knelt on the floor next to him. "Joe." she choked. "Oh... thank god."
Joe gave her a half-smile. "Don't ever get shot. It hurts a lot."
Nancy gave a watery laugh; he wouldn't be Joe if he didn't try to play the comedian. "I'm sorry." she said, picking up his hand and squeezing it.
"For what?" Joe asked. "For not kissing me when you came in?"
Nancy didn't bother with laughter. She leaned in and cupped his face in her hand, pressing her lips to his urgently. The kiss was long and deep and when Joe finally pulled away there was new pain in his eyes. "Baby, what's wrong? Are you okay?" he asked, concerned.
Nancy leaned back, trying to catch her breath. "I am now." she answered. She recaptured his hand in her own. "And why are you asking how I am? I should be asking about you! Oh, Joe, I was so worried."
Joe nodded. "I'm not great, but I'll live." His father was right, Joe would never admit how much pain he was feeling. "I'm sorry you had to worry... If our roles were reversed, I'd have been frantic."
Nancy shook her head. "Don't think about it too much." she advised.
Joe nodded and took a deep breath, grimacing painfully as his bandages shifted. "How is Frank?"
"He's... okay." Nancy said uncertainly. "At first he felt bad about what happened to you, but- oh, did anyone ever tell you what happened?"
Joe nodded. "Dad did. When Mom left to call you. The Assassins. Frank is blaming himself, isn't he?"
"I think he realized it wasn't his fault." Nancy said. "Eventually."
Joe bit his lip. "He loves you, you know. That's what he told me right before I was shot."
"I know." Nancy whispered. "What are you saying?"
Joe shrugged. "I don't know."
Nancy opened her mouth to reply when a soft knock sounded on the door. "Come on in." she called.
Frank stuck his head into the room. "Mind if I join you?" he asked softly, feeling left out of so many things and hating himself for it.
"Frank!" Joe croaked, his voice still hoarse. "I missed you, bro."
Frank smiled, eyes lighting up. "I missed you too, little brother."
Nancy met Joe's eyes and stood up to let them know she was going to leave them alone. Joe nodded, pressing her hand to his cracked lips. Nancy's stomach twisted pleasantly at the gesture, and she suddenly realized, without a doubt, that Joe was the one for her. "Thanks." she murmured to Frank on the way past. Frank nodded in response.
Frank took the spot Nancy had vacated. "How are you feeling, Joe?"
Joe rolled his eyes in mock annoyance. "Why is it whenever you come out of a coma, everyone suddenly wants to know how you feel? The answer, obviously, is that I feel like three bullets recently entered my torso at high speeds." He fingered the bandages, trying not to let the awkwardness show.
Frank smiled at his brother's attitude. "So I guess you don't want to talk about your health. Would you be more interested in hearing about the capture of the guy that shot you?"
"You got him? No way!" Joe exclaimed, sitting up reflexively and regretting it. Moaning, he eased himself back down. "Really? Who was it? Is he alive?"
Frank chuckled. His brother had always had more interest in the action than anything else. "He's alive, all right. And it gets even better; it's that creep O' Toole who kidnapped me in the first place."
"The one that looks like a kid?" Joe was enthralled, his pain forgotten. "How'd you find him?"
"Well, the Gray Man was getting all set to check all the underground hideouts in Chicago separately..."
"The Gray Man! Aw, man, I guess we had to involve the Network, huh?"
"Yeah, but while we were checking out the inside of his truck, we started getting rammed..." It got easier and easier to talk to Joe, Frank thought as he filled Joe in on the events of the past day, from the shoot-out at the garage to O' Toole's favorite color being green. It was nice to spend some time just being brothers, without the underlying romantic entanglement surfacing at all.
They were interrupted fifteen minutes later when the Gray Man entered, Nancy and Fenton right behind him. "Bad news, Frank." The Gray Man said grimly. As if just noticing Joe, he added. "Joseph, how nice to see you alive and well."
"Well, yes, I am the epitome of 'alive and well'." Joe muttered sarcastically.
"Bad news?" Frank asked. "What is it?"
"The Assassins have a hit on you." The Gray Man told him.
"Still?" Frank groaned.
"Again." Nancy corrected.
"How do you know?" Joe asked before lapsing into a coughing fit. Nancy hurried to sit on the bed next to him and helped him take a drink.
"We have an undercover operative in the organization." The Gray Man said. "All he knows is that the Assassins still want Frank. They've sent out someone else to finish you."
"Nice guys." Frank said softly. "So what are we going to do?"
Nancy looked up from Joe. "Protective custody for you, Frank."
"What!" Frank said, swiveling toward her. "No way! I'm not going to run."
"I'm agreeing with Nancy on this one." The Gray Man put in.
The way Frank was looking at her made Nancy feel like a traitor. "I'm sorry, Frank, but I just think you should keep safe until this is over." she pleaded under his pained gaze.
"I'm not going to just sit out." Frank asserted, glaring at her. "I can take care of myself."
"I'm afraid it's already settled, Frank." The Gray Man told him. "We've located a secure area for you to stay until such time as it is safe for you to come out."
"What about my mom and Nancy?" Joe rasped. "You know full well that the Assassins would have no problem with using Frank's loved ones to lure him out."
The Gray Man nodded at him. "Of course, your mother will go to the safehouse with Frank. You need to stay here, obviously, and we've authorized your father and several of our agents to stay with you for your own safety. As for Nancy, however... we'd counted on her help on the investigation."
"No." The proclamation came from all three Hardy men at once.
Nancy shot a defensive look at Fenton, Frank, and Joe, all of whom looked back adamantly. "I want to do this." she said. "I have to."
"Nancy," Fenton said. "I realize you have a bone to pick, - we all do - but you need to leave this one to the experts. I don't want to see you get hurt."
"I know, but..." she looked to Frank for support.
"Are you kidding?" Frank joked gently. "After you just got me grounded?" It was clear, though, that he agreed with his father.
Joe picked up her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers, causing her to glance down at the troubled look on his pale face. "Please, Nan. For me."
Nancy's resolve weakened, and she almost cracked. She would jump off a bridge if Joe asked her to, but she didn't think she could let this go. "No." she said loudly. "They need me. I'm not going to hide any more than you want to."
The Gray Man nodded. "Her mind is made up." Nancy nodded quickly, ignoring the pressure Joe was putting on her hand.
"Come on, Nancy." Frank said rationally. "You just got shot in the thigh. You can't possibly-"
"You were shot!" Joe exclaimed. He felt terrible for not noticing the slight limp she had acquired.
Nancy frowned at Frank, then down at her leg where the bandages made a slight bulge under the fabric of her jeans. "I've barely noticed it at all." She turned to Joe. "It's only a scratch."
Frank shook his head. "You're lying. It hurts."
There was a soft knock and George entered the room. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything." she said, looking around. "I came as soon as I heard what happened. Good to see you awake, Joe. We were pretty worried."
Joe smiled weakly at her, then turned back to Nancy. "Nancy..." he warned.
Nancy squeezed his hand. "I'll be fine."
"Ah, George, I'm glad you're here." The Gray Man said. "There's another hitman out for Frank, and I figured you'd want in on the case."
"You bet I would." George answered.
"Now hold on one minute. This is dangerous business." Frank's eyes flashed, and for a second George thought she saw some deeper emotion behind them, but it disappeared before she could be sure.
George smiled genuinely. "I'm a police officer. I work in Chicago. I grew up with Nancy Drew. Dangerous business is my business." she assured him. Turning to the Gray Man, she gestured to herself and Nancy. "Where do we start?" she asked gamely.
The Gray Man had no time to answer before a breathless Bess burst into the room. "Don't forget me... I want to help too." she panted.
A/N: And Bess makes her return! Hope you liked this chapter. Make sure to review, I really value any comments you can give me!