It had been more than a week since anyone had heard from Fenton, and the family was starting to worry. Mrs. Hardy, determined to keep the peace between her sons, gave them direct orders to "stop acting like children", and work together in finding their father. Frank agreed, even though he had very little interest in the idea. Despite all the evidence against the Gray Man, Joe was determined to find out if the Network was involved in what had happened or not. Also, Joe didn't trust Taylor in any manner shape or form. For reasons that he couldn't think of, his doubts returned, stronger than ever. The press, after learning about the marriage between Frank and Taylor, had dubbed them the "Billion Dollar Couple", and would not stop calling every three hours. That is until Frank grimly promised legal action and that was the end of all requests for interviews and sent the media fleeing from the Hardy household. Joe went into the Network database and found no evidence that the Gray Man had contacted the Hardy household at any time before his arrest. What he did find was more evidence against him concerning Taylor and her family. Disheartened, he gave up that end of the search and focused more on his father's credit cards. In a matter of hours, he found the purchase of a plane ticket to Paris and was stuck with a problem: whether or not to inform Frank about it.

In the courtroom one day later, Callie Shaw tried not to look at the judge as he leaned forward and asked her, "Is it true that you attacked Taylor Westbrooke on three separate occasions?"

"Yes, sir."

"Is it true that you were involved with the murders at the Westbrooke home?"

"Yes, sir."

"Is it true that you committed the murders that you stand accused of?"

"Yes, sir."

Is it true that you were working with Arthur Gray and was ordered to commit the murders that you are accused of in order to assist him in embezzling millions, if not more from the deceased, Vachel-Thiery Channing?"

"Yes, sir."

"Is it true that over three million dollars worth of drugs found in your room, ready for distribution?"

"Yes, sir."

"Was this your property?"

"Yes, sir."

"I've heard enough." The judge turned his glare toward the ADA (Assistant District Attorney), "I have heard of foolishly made deals before, Counselor, but NEVER have I heard one this sloppy. I am tossing out the agreed upon jail sentence and forming one of my own." He then turned back to Callie. "Miss Shaw, I am sentencing you to a prison sentence that will be no less than 40 years and nothing longer than your natural life. There will be no chance of parole in any manner shape or form. This case is dismissed." The family members of the victims became crying and laughing in joy. Some went as far as applauding. Callie stared in shock as the guards came forward and placed the handcuffs on her and led her away. In the back, Iola, Joe and Chet gaped in disbelief. Taylor stood next to Frank and leaned on him for support, or so everyone thought. In actuality, Taylor buried her face in his shoulder to hide the sinister joy in her eyes.

Outside the courtroom, Taylor leaned against Frank and said slowly, "Now what will happen to her? Is there something that can be done to make sure that… I don't know, that…" Taylor stopped and turned to look at all of them. Chet shrugged and told her that there was nothing that could be done. Because of the evidence, the judge was well within his right to do so and because Callie had agreed to what was being said, she was…in the eyes of the court, guilty.

"I know, but, I wish that…" Taylor stopped and then started walking again.

The next few days of school were filled with rumors. No one thought that Callie was innocent, not even people that had been friends with her for a long time. Joe was starting to get sick and tired of hearing about how Callie had shown her true colors at last. He then decided that perhaps a trip to Paris was in order. That weekend, he told Frank what he had found out. Frank gaped for a moment, in shock that Joe was just now telling him. Before he could say anything, the phone rang. Joe grabbed it, and before he could say a word, a voice told him, "If you wish to save your father, go to this address. Tell no one but your brother. If I see anyone else at the address, I will kill that person." A second later there was silence on the other end of the line. Joe hung up the phone and repeated the cryptic message. The two packed quickly and were almost out of the door when Taylor saw them. "And just where do you think you are going?"

Joe glanced at Frank before he quickly told her, "Nowhere."

"I see, and since when do you need an overnight bag to go to 'nowhere'?" Frank closed the door and quickly explained the situation to Taylor. Looking thoughtful, she said, "I'm going with you."

"No, you're not. Taylor, if anything happened to you…"

"This person said that no one else could go to the address where your father is being held, correct?"

"That's right."

"But that doesn't mean that I can't enter the country with you. Think about it, they'll expect you to be alone and that will make the two of you stand out. But if a third person went, someone that could call the police if you were taken prisoner, they wouldn't be able to do anything about that, correct?"

"They could take you prisoner."

"If I were to make myself a target. But if you told me that you would meet me somewhere for lunch and didn't show up, I'm more than certain that the police would be more than willing to ease the mind of a newlywed by searching for her husband and her brother-in-law." Taylor smiled at them and added, "Also, there is the matter of taking the jet. The pilot would enjoy listening to the two of you explain why I'm not with you." Seeing the looks of shock that both were wearing, she asked, "You certainly weren't thinking of taking a regular flight were you? That would be a waste of time. The sooner you get there, the less time they…who ever they are, have of setting up a trap." Frank agreed, reluctantly. Joe on the other hand wondered why Taylor was so determined to be helpful.

In Paris, Frank drove to the address as Joe tried not to think about how once again, all the connections in one form or another led to Taylor. He had, during the flight, made the mistake of hinting that the Assassins may be using Taylor in a way that even she would not know about. Frank had then given his brother a glare that could have turned the polar ice caps into water in a matter of seconds. Once at the address, Joe looked at the building. It appeared run-down and not in use. But one didn't put anything past the Assassins. Inside, both brothers glanced at each other and then went in two different directions.

Frank was about to open a door when he heard, "This is an interesting place to run into you…L'ange de mort" Vachel-Thiery stepped out of hiding and said, "It is time to begin. You will take my place and you will bring honor to the Assassins. The plan, and my niece are all that matter to you. Is that clear?"

"Very clear, Mentor."

"Good. Begin."

Fenton looked up as the door opened and a guard was thrown in. A moment later, Frank entered and said calmly, "This is an interesting place for a vacation."

"Not as interesting as it will be to leave." At that moment, Joe raced down the hall with three other guards right behind him. Once the guards were knocked out, the trio made a quick escape. On the way back to the hotel where Taylor was waiting for them, Frank told his father what had happened while he was away. The only thing that he left out was the fact that he married Taylor. Joe noticed this and decided not to comment. Fenton frowned thoughtfully and said, "I heard the guards say something about the Gray Man being too greedy. I wasn't sure what they were talking about, but if what you just said is true, I'm starting to wonder…"

"I wonder just how much of it the Assassins made up." Joe commented and winced when he saw the look Frank gave him. Waiting a moment, he quickly added, "Let's not forget that both the Assassins and the Network have a reason to be interested in Taylor."

"That is something else that's bothering me." Fenton confessed. "Her mother joined the Network, but why? Why would the Gray Man go out of his way to recruit her? And why would the Network claim that Al-Rousasa was after Phillip Walker if in fact Al-Rousasa was on our side?"

"Maybe these are questions that the Gray Man can answer." Frank tightened his grip on the steering wheel. He then added coldly, "I'm sure he'll be glad to tell us since he was the only person that was in Taylor's home with the gun that killed her family." Joe said nothing else. At the hotel, Taylor was surrounded by shopping bags and had a grin on her face. Without waiting, she said, "I was right. A man followed me from the hotel to the stores that I went to, and then to the café where I pretended that I was waiting for you, back to the hotel and once again to the stores. The moment I flagged a police man, he stopped following me. I told you that having me along would ruin their plans. Maybe next time I won't have to let my words speak louder than my actions."

"Let your actions speak louder than your words." Frank couldn't stop from laughing. Taylor pouted slightly and grumbled something as she gathered the bags. Fenton saw the wedding ring that Taylor was wearing and realized that something else had happened.

After the plane took off, Taylor went to double check with the pilot that everything was working correctly. Fenton turned toward Frank and asked, "Is there something else you want to tell me?" Frank took a deep breath and told Fenton about the wedding. Fenton nodded thoughtfully and said, "It sounds as if Taylor's had it pretty rough."

"I still think that all of it is just a little too convenient." Joe said in a low voice.

"Do both of us a favor. Stop before we find out if you can fly." Frank turned to glare at Joe. "Because it sounds like you're about to accuse Taylor of working with the Assassins."

"What makes you so sure that she's not? Don't you think that it's a little strange that all of this started when she arrived?"

"Joe, shut up. If not for Taylor, we never would have known that Iola was alive."

"And that wouldn't have happened if not for Taylor's father."

"Are you trying to say what I think you're trying to say?"

"What that all of this is an Assassin scam? That's exactly what I'm trying to say." Fenton grabbed Frank by his shoulder and gave both of them a look as Taylor returned. Glancing at the two brothers, Taylor informed them that the pilot had been informed that there was a storm heading for Bayport and that the plane would land in New York instead.

After the jet landed, neither of the brothers were speaking to the other. At the Hardy household, Mrs. Hardy hugged her husband until he was a light shade of blue. She then noticed the tension between her sons. Frank turned and glared at Joe. "I want you to stop acting as if you know everything about Taylor."

"I just want to find out if the Network is into anything shady."

"You saw the files."

"Sure, but how do we know those are real?" Joe was about to say something else when he saw Taylor walk in and stopped talking.

"Look, the last thing Taylor needs to find out is that her father fell to his death because of you!" Frank snapped, without realizing that Taylor was in the room. He then turned and saw her standing there, one hand holding the door as if her life depended on it.

"Is that true?" Taylor looked at Frank and then at Joe. "Did you cause my father's death?"

"It wasn't like that." Frank went over to her, and held her.

"What happened? I want to know everything." Taylor looked up at him and added, "You promised to never lie to me. Tell me everything." Frank told her the details that had been left out. He then looked at her thoughtfully. The last thing that he said, ''Kleine Blume, es tut ich Leid, dass ich versagt habe, mein Versprechen zu Ihnen zu behalten'. What does that translate into?"

"It translates into, 'Little Flower, I am sorry that I failed to keep my promise to you'. He always called me that. He promised me that he was going to take me on a holiday. Just the two of us. He promised me…it was the only thing that he ever promised." Taylor turned to look at Joe. "He said that he didn't like his job, that his 'employer' was blackmailing him. I begged him to go to the proper authorities. He told me that the man worked for a very powerful group. He said that no one would listen to him. I thought that he was being forced to work for some business company. And you're telling me that my father was some sort of murderer that you let die because of what you thought he did? He had no other choice!" Taylor then let out a loud scream and charged, knocking Joe down and she then started punching him. The blows caught him by surprise, but didn't hurt him. Fenton went over and pulled Taylor off. Just as Joe stood, Frank grabbed his brother and threw him out of the back door. Before Joe could try to defend himself, Frank went on the offensive and started landing mind numbing punches and kicks. The neighbors heard the noise and called the police. Con Riley came out with two other officers. It took a total of twenty minutes to pull the two apart. Frank glared at Joe for a moment before he turned and went to comfort Taylor. Taylor was gasping for air as Con Riley explained that the ADA had already decided not to press charges against Joe for what had happened. Taylor gaped for a moment and then screamed, "THAT'S JUST PERFECT! JUST BLOODY PERFECT! MY FATHER IS KILLED AND THE PERSON THAT MURDERED HIM GETS TO WALK AWAY FROM WHAT HE DID! THAT'S PERFECT AMERICAN JUSTICE! I GUESS I SHOULD BE GREATFUL THAT MY UNCLE AND MY AUNT WERE GIVEN JUSTICE! I GUESS THAT I SHOULD BE HAPPY WITH THE FACT THAT THE WOMAN THAT I LOOKED UP TO WAS GIVEN HER DAY IN COURT, BECAUSE MY FATHER WILL NEVER HAVE HIS!" Frank sent another look at Joe and after whistling for Killer, led the two out of the back yard and drove off with Taylor and her canine companion.