Chet waited nervously as his father examined the puppy. "Um… Chet, you do know that this puppy can and will grow up."
"I know that."
"And you do know that it's going to be a handful."
"I know that."
"And what about feeding it?"
"I can handle it." Chet looked worried.
"We're barely hanging onto the farm as it is." Mr. Morton was about to add more when a limo pulled up. A man that neither Chet or his father knew got out and looked around. Hurrying over, Mr. Morton asked, "May I help you?"
"One moment." The man turned and assisted another man from the limo. The second man spotted Chet and began speaking to the first man in excited French. The first man turned and said to Mr. Morton, "My employer says that he heard about what happened to your son, and feels that he should do what he can to help you." The man pulled out an envelope and added, "Inside is a check for $500,000. Will this be enough to help out in any manner?"
"Um, yes it will. But I don't understand."
"My employer feels that your son has gone through something that could have been prevented. My employer has also instructed me to inform you that he has hired skilled workers to come and do anything that you need of them. He has instructed them that while he is the one paying them, they are to obey your orders to the letter. Also, he is sending over people to do any renovations that you need done."
"I…I'm not sure what to say."
"My employer understands." The two men got back into the limo and left. Chet looked at his father and tried to figure out what was going on.
In the limo, the first man turned and looked at Vachel-Thiery. "I don't understand."
"Simple, I want Joe Hardy to start to suspect something. I want him to turn his brother against him without even trying."
"May I ask why, Mentor?"
"Simple, I have already planted the seeds of doubt in Frank Hardy. All that we do from this point is start those seeds to grow. When it is time, we will have a new Assassin, and for once, since we learned the truth about Taylor's traitorous mother, the girl will have some one in her life for her and her only."
"So this goes beyond the revenge for our brother, Al-Rousasa."
"You are close to the truth. I look at Taylor as if she were my own daughter. I wish for her the happiness denied to me when I had to give up my life for revenge against the Network agent that killed my father."