Chapter 9

Frank sat back in the chair and ran a weary hand across his eyes. How did things go haywire in this direction? Paul's operation had gone off without a hitch and the peddler was now in their custody and being interrogated by their specialists. Hopefully the man would crack and they would have a better idea of the areas of distribution without having to rely on Joe completely. And Joe…Joe needed someone to help and that is what he had to do now. Yeah.. that is what he had to do. Get a grip Frank! He screamed internally. The situation was much better than the numerous times they had almost Joe in the past he told himself. The consolation however felt rather hollow, the reality was that at any time things could escalate.

What if Joe's cover gets blown and there was not anything they could do? He felt panic take hold until he felt a firm hand on his shoulder. "Frank...breathe. It's alright. Joe is okay. I am going to send Agent Anita to pick up Joe. Do you have a shirt to send with her?" Paul's voice broke in and it served to ground Frank. Frank looked up into Paul's eyes "what did you ask…? He asked absent mindedly before answering the question "the shirt! Yeah I have a spares that you can send. Which hospital will she be taking him to?".

Paul looked at Frank assessing him. Deeming him alright for the moment he spoke "Not any of the big ones. We don't want to explain to the police how he has a knife wound or instigate any police investigation. She will take him to a clinic manned by our folks, you can actually drop in there for a few minutes and see him if you want. It is just people on our payroll there, they know to keep quiet" Paul offered. Frank hesitated deeply conflicted over the suggestion and finally decided that the knowledge actually rankled within him.

He took a deep breath "Paul, I am sorry to be saying this but I think it will be better if he is taken to a normal small clinic. I know our agency is tightly controlled but I don't want to risk the chance of a mole. If Joe is spotted by a rogue agent he is done for…Please".

"Okay I will let Anita know and you can relax about Anita. She is reliable, I know her very well" Paul assured Frank as the door opened and a tall strikingly beautiful blond lady walked in. "Hope you have the shirt ready" she drawled in a husky voice and raised an eyebrow at Frank's hassled look.

Paul looked up as well and smiled "Frank meet Anita and vice versa" he made the introductions. Frank smiled at the lissome blonde and fished out a cover from under his desk "I usually have a spare set of clothes for the both of us. In our line of work sometimes it is handy" he said and extended the bag to Anita.

She took the bag simply saying "Don't worry I will take care of him" and turned to Paul "send me the location of where I have to pick him up". Paul nodded and she did not waste any time striding out purposefully." "Well how is Joe going to explain her in case he is watched? She is too good looking for Joe leave alone Alan" Frank commented chuckled pleased to see his partner more in control of himself. Watching Frank lose control had freaked him out momentarily. The man was usually like the bloody phoenix for heaven's sake.

"She won't be once the make-up dept do their magic" Paul answered equally drily and turned back to the monitors in front of him. "So, do we have any more info from that Rafe guy?" Frank enquired and Paul suddenly whooped "yeah..looks like it! The guy broke. Check your screen Frank he's given us all the drop points in the city".

"Yep, I see it too which brings us to the question of what next?" Frank asked hopefully as Paul smiled "phase two obviously. Now we hit multiple locations based on anonymous tips to the police ".Frank nodded thoughtfully "what will it mean for Joe though?" and Paul smiled softly "hopefully nothing bad but realistically Frank he could be hauled in by the police as part of the dragnet. I am sorry but we just have to think positive and hope he gets off light".

Frank nodded and ran a hand through his hair. He breathed out heavily "Okay let's do it but this time I will let Joe in on the plan. Would Anita have reached him by now, perhaps I should call her and do a video call". He then turned to Paul again deeply disturbed "do you sometimes feel like a conductor? We are sitting here and pulling strings and the repercussions are being felt somewhere else…it's scary".

"It is scary and believe it or not, when a friend's brother is hurt because of your actions it is even more stressful. Definitely more than when the brother is the one doing it. It is a tremendous responsibility because I have to face the both of you when all this goes down" Paul replied in a bout of wisdom and Frank smiled thinly. "Don't I know it? But seriously let me be the only one freaking out alright. One of us has to be cool at all times and I doubt I am going to be the one and besides neither of us will blame you for anything. You don't know Joe..he is the most forgiving soul on the planet. He will be coming up with explanations for your actions before you do" he said with a chuckle. Paul grinned back "I think I like your brother already and he seems to be way more cooler than you" he smiled mischievously as Frank protested with a "hey!".

Joe on the other hand was not feeling too cool. He was out on the pier trying to stem the blood that was still leaking blood from the stab wound that Alex had inflicted. His ribs throbbed at every moment and he had no doubt that his face had matching bruises from the multiple times he had been slapped. In spite of the pain he radiated he was thankful for small mercies like the fact that this make up had held up under the abuse. His cheek pads were still in place along with the contact lenses. If they had been dislodged even a bit he shuddered to think what would have happened. He probably would be fish feed by now at the bottom of the pier.

Even as he sat mulling over the events a car pulled up and a tall woman approached him. Joe could see the tell-tale signs of the famous make up dept and he wondered what her real looks were and then he grinned. If she managed to look quite nice with all the camouflage she probably looked deadly underneath all the paint. "Hey Al! What have you done to yourself now? You don't call for ages and then this happens" she called out. "Never mind what happened. Just help me out will ya?" he called back more for the benefit of others who might or might not be watching and walked gingerly to the car. Once seated he turned to her and smiled warmly "thanks for the help" he said meaning it entirely.

She smile back "I am Anita and this car is clean. You can speak openly" she assured him as she pulled out the cover with the shirt. Joe took it and his eyes became shaded with emotion as he recognized Frank's kitbag. Silently he changed into the new shirt while holding the old one as a makeshift bandage against his wound and leaned back into the seat utterly spent. The loss of blood coupled with all the physical labor was battering at him with a vengeance and it was becoming a challenge staying awake.

"Joe don't go to sleep yet. Won't it be better to talk to Frank before you do?" Anita's voice intruded on his twilight zoning. "Yeah I guess you are right although all I want is a nice bed and sleep for like two weeks" he confessed softly. Anita tapped his hand sympathetically "hold on for just a bit and then you can sleep all you want. I am going to be taking you to a normal clinic by the way and we need a cover story for a stab wound of all things. And it's not even in a location where we can claim it to be accidental".

"I know..I know and I seriously can't think of anything except the truth...a little altered of course. I could have got mugged in the alley..I do live in a shady area after all but since I don't want trouble can the doctor be bribed to keep it from the cops?" Joe offered a weak story as Anita handed him the phone. "Well it doesn't hurt to try" Anita said as Joe dialed Frank's number and switched to video mode.

Frank's anxious face filled the screen as Joe tried to smile winningly. "Hi bro" he spoke as Frank ran an eye over Joe's countenance. "How are you and don't downplay anything" Frank said and Joe grinned wider. "Sometimes you are a pain you know…you shouldn't know me so well. You are spoiling my hero image here" Joe quipped. "Too bad you should have thought of that before going solo. Now tell me honestly what the score is?" Frank insisted.

Joe hesitated and contemplated lying but then remembered that Frank had heard everything. He sighed "I am pretty banged up" he confessed "and this.." he said removing the shirt that had been bundled against his cut "will probably leave a scar but I will live. No doubt I will be incredibly sore but nothing that some sleep and pills can't fix" Joe said indeed downplaying the pain. "Then why do you look like you are going to collapse any moment?" Frank asked the worry dominating his voice. Joe let out a breath noisily "because mom all I want to do is crash alright…but I will be okay" he insisted forcefully.

"Fine, I have no choice but to take your word for it" Frank deflated as Anita intervened. "Okay we are almost here. Better save your chat for later" she advised pulling into the parking lot of the small private clinic. "Will talk to you once I am all sewn up, there are things I need to ask you" Joe said as he disconnected the line. He then turned to Anita "okay I am all yours" he said as he followed the blonde to the emergency services.

A nurse approached them and after a dubious look at Joe directed them to a consulting room where a doctor in his mid-forties was seated. "Hi, I am and should I even ask how this happened? Seeing as you are here and not the bigger hospital" he asked with a friendly smile and Joe heaved a sigh of relief. Thank goodness for friendly doctors, this one he could work with. "Probably not doc" he replied gruffly before adding "all the alleys apparently are not manned by Spiderman. Sure could have used the help".

"Ahh you have a point, I will definitely tell him the next time I see him. Now, let's have a look shall we?" the doc quipped as he removed the shirt holding the leaking cut together and hissed under his breath. "This looks nasty and definitely needs stitches" he looked sharply at Joe while prodding the wound. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the police considering that this wound tells me a lot…like how it's from a knife that has not only pierced you but also caused a tear from being twisted inside" he asked pointedly and eliciting a muffled groan from Joe in the process." At this point going to the police would only complicate matters, please doctor I hope you can understand" he said softly.

"Okay tell you what I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt and let this go but consider yourself lucky. This wound alone warrants a battery of tests you realize. Now if you will lay down on the table we can get that out of the way and for your sake I hope the wound is only as deep as stitches. If I feel it warrants surgery I will have to notify the police. It will be unavoidable" he said and stood up to guide Joe behind the curtains. Joe exchanged a quick look with agent Anita at the pronouncement and followed the doctor where he changed into the hospital gown and lay down with a groan. The doctor was swift and thorough and before long the wound was stitched and bandaged leaving Joe even more exhausted than before. "You are indeed lucky young man, it is holding up with stitches but you need to be careful".

"The ribs on the other hand just look like they are bruised and not broken which is a blessing. The decorations on your very colorful face will fade off in a couple of days. Nothing much I can do there except for some ointment. I assume you were not hit in the head" the doctor resumed his summary as he ran his fingers over Joe's head "so that is a bit of a relief as there is no risk of concussion. Which means with the medicines I will prescribe and with your ribs taped you need to stay in bed for a couple of days. Is that possible?" he asked his eyes sharp and assessing.

Joe squirmed uneasily "I have a new job and no, taking off will not be appreciated" he explained. The doctor peered at him over the top of his glasses and Joe felt like he was under a magnifying glass. "well in that case it is not going to be an easy couple of days I am afraid. Just be careful with not reopening the stitches and go easy on the ribs. The recovery would be faster if you rested properly so this might take longer than normal to recover" he said helping Joe to sit up albeit rather shakily.

"You have lost a considerable amount of blood and normally I would keep you overnight for observation but since you do not show any other fluctuations like BP or sugar levels I am going to let you go. You need to go home and sleep like for two days ideally but before you say it I will amend that statement. Sleep as much as you can, right now your body needs rest to heal and eat foods that will boost your blood volume. Beetroot for instance" he said writing down the necessary prescription which Anita took.

"I will get these and will look after him" she said as the doctor shrugged. "Yeah that will be good. If there are any complications you can come back as long as it is safe for you and me" he said with a knowing glint in his eye. The two agents nodded their understanding and walked out after thanking the doctor. "Seriously if the man had been difficult I would not have had the energy to do anything "Joe commented getting into the car. "Well that is what I was there for. If there was a problem I would have handled it. Now you just lean back and try to sleep for the rest of the drive" she replied with a smile.

"Thanks for everything and I am going to take your advice and doze off" Joe said leaning into the seat at a more comfortable angle and closed his eyes. Few minutes later and Anita was pulling into the parking of "Alan's" apartment. She then leaned over to rouse him gently shaking his shoulder. "Okay hero we are here" she said softly as Joe opened bleary eyes to look into her own. Rubbing his eyes to clear the grit he smiled at her and stretched as he got out of the car. "If the apartment was even halfway decent I would invite you inside. So I will just say thanks again and perhaps once this is all over we can meet for a coffee just as a token of appreciation" he said eliciting a smile from the other agent. "Sounds good. Now please get inside and rest. You look two minutes away from keeling over and as much as I look fit I am pretty sure I cannot haul your ass two floors over" she retorted giving Joe a small push.

"Yes mam" Joe saluted her and quickly made his way to his apartment as the car squealed away. Fitting the key into the key into the lock was a feat in itself what with him swaying on his feet and his vision graying at the edges but he finally managed it. Letting himself into the flat he stopped short. His apartment seemed to be rather occupied. There was Mike sitting on the couch like he owned it and he heard a rustling from the direction of the kitchen. He had a vague idea of who it could be and he was split in two. The person he wanted it to be was also the person he did not want it to be. He closed his eyes in anticipation and when he opened it he saw his brother standing in front of him clear as day.

A heavily made up hardly recognizable Frank to everyone but him, and he felt his resistance melt away. Everything came at once, the physical meltdown, the emotional meltdown and everything else in between and he hardly recognized his own voice when it came out. "Frank" he whispered and then Frank was there gathering him into a hug. Joe fell into the hug like a man in the desert faced with an oasis. All the strength left him as he collapsed in Frank's arms sobbing softly and fisting his hand in Frank's shirt. "I got you kiddo..I got you" Frank murmured enfolding Joe in his arms. He turned to Mike "Mike can you heat up some soup? I will get him settled" Frank said taking almost all of Joe's weight and leading him to the bed and lowering him onto it gently.

Joe relaxed becoming putty in his brother's hands as he relished in the feeling of having his brother by his side. Just for now he could let go, he could surrender to the needs of his body without being on guard. He could sleep without tension edging his dreams secure in the knowledge that someone was there to protect him. Yes, he could let go and he did let go as Frank lifted him and sat down cradling Joe's head in his lap. With Frank's hands running through his hair Joe dozed feeling warm from the inside after a long long time. By all rights he should be shooing Frank out but for tonight he neither had the energy nor the inclination to do so.

It had been too long since he felt a warm touch and he knew that he was shamelessly leeching onto the love that Frank exuded. He could feel the tears gathering in his eyes and he knew that he was being extremely emotional but the days of continuous strain and tension had drained him out. Now there was nothing he could do to contain himself and so he allowed the tears to flow, to strain the jeans that Frank was wearing as words came unbidden. He curled onto Frank's lap holding onto his brother who smelled of.. home. "Frank…thank goodness you came".

"It's a good thing I am not cowed by your stubbornness…after all I am the big brother here" Frank teased as he added "Joe, I need you to sit up and eat this soup. Then you can sleep all you want. I am staying here tonight and we can discuss everything in the morning. Now come on..slowly" Frank urged helping Joe to sit up albeit in a woozy state.

Joe was nowhere near alert and he only vaguely remembered eating the soup before he felt Frank wiping his mouth and pushing him back onto the pillow. "Just sleep okay, I will send Mike off and come right back" Frank said softly as Joe opened a partial eye. "Don't go..stay..please" the words slipped out and Frank reached out clasping Joe's hand and ran a hand through his brother's hair. "One minute, that's all I will be right back" he assured before releasing Joe's hand regretfully and walked into the hall.

"Mike, sorry to leave you like this but I think I will be better if I stay here the night. Can you bring us some breakfast in the morning and I can leave with you then?" Frank asked as Mike smiled. "Sure, take care of him. He needs you right now. I honestly don't know how he is going to be able to work tomorrow with so many medications in him" he said going sober at the tiredly ran a hand through his now beach blond hair and sighed "I don't know either but he has managed worse earlier. He is one of the most iron willed people on this earth and right now that's a good thing. I will let you know how it goes" Frank assured the man as he walked out of the apartment quietly.

He then rushed back to Joe and took his first good look at his brother. Joe was a mess, there was no other way to describe it. Joe's face was bruised from probably being backhanded and his lip was split as well. As if that was not enough what made Frank's blood boil was the clear handprint on Joe's throat. It made Frank want to hit something especially as he knew that there were bandages under Joe's shirt that wound around his ribs that had taken too many beatings the last few days. Last and definitely not the least, the one thing that brought simmering rage to Frank's eyes was the bandage holding the stitches in place near Joe's collarbone.

Frank's stomach tightened and his dinner threatened to come out as he thought about what he heard the doctor saying. The monster had not only pierced Joe but twisted the knife in deep. The only saving grace was the fact that the wound was deep but not long and the pressure had held the blood in. It could have easily been a fatal wound and Frank was relieved that Alex had chosen to believe Joe for all the pain his brother had borne.

Which brought him back to the question of why Joe was even subjected to this. Was Alex more paranoid after what happened with the two agents? or was this a random event? What did he do with the agents? Were they even alive? So many questions and no answers yet. Frank had made sure to take out the gang member from a location that Joe had not even visited with and yet he was questioned. At this point Frank wondered whether Mike being in was even a necessity or were they needlessly risking one more agent. And then then he rescinded the statement as soon as he considered it, Mike's role was to support Joe. If ever Joe's cover was blown Mike might be required to get him out at least until Frank could take over. And knowing Joe's luck nothing would be easy..but then nothing had been easy for the both of them..ever.

Frank rubbed a hand over his face, smothering a dry laugh. He had never thought he would be sitting alone and playing devil's advocate with himself. Not to mention the next plan was to force Alex's hand even further and Frank could not deny the small bubble of worry that had settled down permanently in his gut these days. Not for the first time he wished that they had done things differently. "Oh Joe! What did you do this time brother…and why on earth did I agree?"

Author notes: Hi everyone! First of all let me apologise for the delayed upload. Life intruded and the last week was super chaotic. Now that is out of the way let me convey my thanks for the great response to the last chapter. Thank you! Thank you to everyone who has this story on their list as well and remember it is your reviews that give me the energy to put up the next chapter. It is a great feeling to know that someone out there likes your work. So please do read and review. I know for some the pace might be a bit slow compared to the other fics of mine but I could not realistically go to the end point before creating a background. The only thing is the background is becoming a lot like the foreground (haha!)

Do feel free to let me know your views and every review is valued. Thanks and take care. Ciao!