Chapter 16

Thanks to God and Fluffykitty12.

JOE POV

I hold Dad's bloody wedding ring as Frank drives. Who has Dad? Is he hurt? Is he alive?

Frank parks by a condemned warehouse near the docks. Looks like something out of a horror movie. Graffiti covers the crumbling brick building. Someone wrote, "Stars Never Fade," in black spray paint.

Every window looks broken. Broken. That's how I feel. My body is a mess. I'm not healthy enough to be anyone's partner. Worried if I go inside, I'll be one thing Frank has to take care of – and we don't know Dad's condition. What if Frank has to choose between saving Dad or me?

I open the BMW door and swallow a groan. Everything hurts. Never have I felt less worthy of the name 'Hardy.' Do I offer to sit this one out? What if Frank gets hurt cuz I'm out here instead of watching his back?

Frank's phone rings.

"Tenth floor. Both of you. Leave your guns and phones in the car. I'm watching. Five minutes or Daddy dies."

And the decision is made for me. I have to go. No matter how unprepared I feel.

I lock our guns and Frank's phone in the glove compartment. When Frank gets out of the car, I palm my phone and put it in my pocket. My phone may be the only help I can give Frank.

When I get out of the car, my right knee buckles.

FRANK POV

When Joe's knee gives out, I grab him before he falls.

I throw Joe over my shoulder in a fireman's carry. It's the only way I can get us to the tenth floor in time.

Dad taught us to always notice escape routes. Unfortunately, I'm too out of breath to notice much.

My soul feels heavy. Why didn't I leave Joe in the car? Because I didn't have a choice.

JOE POV

My body is not happy being slung over Frank's shoulder. How can Frank haul us up ten flights of crumbling stairs in five minutes?

I close my eyes and concentrate on breathing. Anything to escape the pain. Frank slows down. I crack open an eye and see the top of a staircase.

Frank breathes heavy. When he climbs the last stair, something hard slams into us.

I feel a sharp pain in my back. Frank collapses on the dirty, wooden floor. Looking up, I see Staris and a stranger.

Both point guns at us. Blood gushes from Frank's skull. Not good. I press my hand against Frank's head to slow the bleeding. My brother's pupils are dilated. Crap. He has a concussion.

No idea how I'm getting Frank out of here alive or Dad.

"D-dad?" Frank slurs.

"The wedding ring was a fake," the stranger says. "Just a way to get you here."

"Mr. Ocalis paid me to get you both here, unharmed," Staris says.

"Who are you?" I ask the stranger.

"I'm Matt Silaoc. Frank, I'm surprised you didn't unscramble my last name. You killed my brother. I've come to even the score."

FRANK POV

Silaoc. A nightmare from the past.

Through blurry vision, I see Silaoc nod at Joe.

Staris grabs Joe and points a gun at his head.

"Why don't you tell Joe what happened?" Silaoc says as he lights a cigar. "Make sure you don't leave anything out."

I swallow hard and lick my lips.

How do I tell Joe about the day I've spent the last four years of my life trying to forget?

Will Joe want to work with me after he knows what I did?

The cold, hard truth is I have no choice. If baring my soul keeps Joe alive, it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

"You were in your last year of college," I mutter. "I needed to keep busy for a year. So I joined the DEA."

Truth was I didn't want to hold Joe back. Pro scouts were in the stands watching Joe play college ball. If Joe turned pro, I needed a backup plan. So I joined the Drug Enforcement Agency – a decision I regret every day of my life.

"Frank, you're wasting my time," Silaoc says. He backhands Joe across the face. Blood runs from Joe's nose.

I swallow hard.

"I went deep undercover and infiltrated the Silaoc family drug cartel," I say.

The words come out in a rush. I feel sick saying them. Tony Silaoc was my friend. And my target. Now he's dead.

"Frank, you're telling it wrong," Silaoc says. He takes a knife and holds it at Joe's throat. "Tony was my baby brother. He trusted Frank. Trusted him so much, he shared every detail of our family business."

He lightly cuts Joe's neck. Silaoc wipes his fingers in Joe's blood.

"You set us up Frank," Silaoc says, as he wipes Joe's blood on my face.

"You are covered in blood, Frank. The blood of my brother," Silaoc says. "And soon the blood of yours."

"So the story doesn't have a happy ending," Joe says.

I realize Joe's distracting Silaoc from hurting me.

"Finish it, Frank," Silaoc says. He walks to Joe.

I lick my lips and try to stall for time. So much happened. Any of it could set Silaoc off. What if he kills Joe?

"Frank, I need to hear words coming from your mouth," Silaoc says. He punches Joe in the ribs. Joe falls to the floor. "Talk or I kill him."

So I babble, unable to edit my thoughts. Everything comes out.

"Tony said he felt trapped in his family. I knew how he felt. Sometimes I felt trapped in mine...I pushed hard to get Tony full immunity. My superiors finally agreed. But I wasn't authorized to tell Tony until after the takedown," I say.

I remember the November day, Tony and I played tennis at his family's mansion. Armed DEA agents surrounded us.

"Frank, you are quiet," Silaoc says as kicks Joe in his bad leg. Joe groans and falls to the floor.

I force myself to concentrate and speak. Joe's life depends on it.

"Everything went according to plan, until Tony grabbed a rookie DEA agent. He held a gun to her throat," I say. "I was the only one close enough to see Tony's hands shaking. I broke my cover."

Why is it so hard to concentrate? Hard to put my sentences together. Concussion or panic?

"When I told Tony, I was DEA, he almost dropped the gun," I say. "I told him if he turned state's evidence, he'd get full immunity."

Silaoc walks across the room, while Staris holds Joe.

I remember the stunned look on Tony's face. Like his best friend had betrayed him. And I had.

"Tony treated you like a brother! He even stood up to Dad for you! He demanded Dad let you have access to everything!" Silaoc shouts.

JOE POV

Things are going south. No way are we getting out of here alive. But maybe, Frank will.

As soon as Silaoc said he didn't have Dad, I hit my speed dial. Number four is set to 911. Since I'm about 30% of a partner, I need all the help I can get. I don't go anywhere without my phone.

Frank turned pale when he saw Silaoc. A piece of the puzzle fell into place.

After working for the DEA, Frank was different…harder to reach. I thought maybe he didn't want to work with me – a dumb jock. I'd been offered a lot of money to play pro ball. But after Iola died, I didn't see the point. Even a seal can put a ball through a hoop. I wanted to make a difference.

FRANK POV

"I offered Tony a deal," I whisper.

The hurt in Tony's eyes still haunts me.

He was my friend, even if we were from two different worlds.

Part of me hoped Joe did play pro basketball. Maybe I'd just disappear. Maybe I could figure out who I was if my last name wasn't Hardy.

For a minute, I saw relief in Tony's eyes. Like he'd found a way out of his family.

Then some DEA agents, dragged Tony's brother away in cuffs.

"You told Tony if he talked it would kill his parents," I say to Silaoc.

And the look of hope faded in Tony's eyes. Silaoc killed his brother, but I pulled the trigger.

"I told Tony we could fake his death. But he wouldn't go for it," I said.

Tony couldn't handle prison. We both knew it. It's the reason I fought so hard to get him full immunity.

Silaoc nods at Staris. Staris tightens his arm around Joe's neck. Joe struggles to breathe.

"Frank, I want to hear your thoughts or he dies," Silaoc growls.

"Tony looked at me and started to pull the trigger on the DEA agent," I say in a dull monotone. "I fired a kill shot. Tony was dead when he hit the ground."

"You killed my brother!" Silaoc shouts. "I'm going to kill yours!"

"Kill him!" Silaoc screams at Staris.

"Any last words?" Staris asks Joe.

I try to get to my feet, but my body won't listen. Walking, even crawling is beyond me. My body won't obey my mind.

JOE POV

"Any last words?" Staris asks.

I send up a silent arrow prayer.** God, help me get Frank out of here. Not me, just Frank.

A line from Iola's Bible flashes into my mind. "Remember the Lord . . . and fight," I whisper. ***

I relax for a split second. When Staris' grip around my neck loosens, I grab his arm, aim at Silaoc's leg and fire the gun in Staris' grip.

Silaoc hits the floor as my bullet finds its mark. The lit cigar in Silaoc's mouth ignites a piece of paper. Flames race across the floor. Flames leap from one piece of trash to the next.

Staris grabs the gun and runs to Silaoc.

"Where's my money? You promised me the number code to access the Swiss bank account!" Staris shouts.

While Staris is distracted, I crawl over to Frank. I've got to get him out of here before the whole place goes up in flames. Fire blocks off the stairs – our only escape route.

"Frank?" I ask.

Frank struggles to focus. Sirens and flashing lights grow louder and closer.

I drag Frank to the window. We stay low to avoid the smoke.

Below firemen are getting out hoses. The smoke in my lungs makes shouting impossible. I mouth a prayer and toss a rock out the window. It lands inches from a fireman. He looks up and sees us.

"We need a life net, STAT!" he shouts.

FRANK POV

My eyes water as I struggle to breathe. What if the fire gets to us before the life net is ready?

"Should have left you in the car," I whisper to Joe.

"No choice," Joe says and coughs.

Either I'm seeing double or Joe has become twins. I close my watering eyes.

I have to explain about shooting Tony.

I open my mouth as a fireman shouts, "We're ready!"

"You first," I say through a coughing fit.

"No way. See you in five," Joe says and smiles. "I've been wanting to push you out of a window for years."

Joe shoves me through the broken window. I feel myself falling through the hot, smoky air. I land hard in the life net. Firemen drag me to the side.

I look up and see Joe and silhouetted in the window ten floors up. Smoke and flames pour out of the windows on either side of him.

"All clear!" a fireman shouts.

Joe pushes an unconscious Silaoc out of the window. He falls into the life net.

Before Joe can jump, an arm drags him from the window. Staris jumps as the building explodes.

Joe is dead. I killed him. Just like I killed Tony.

** "Arrow prayers, flash prayers, bullet prayers…and missile prayers, hurry prayers, and microwave prayers. All these are quick prayers said (or thought) at a moment's notice." I actually found arrow prayers first in The New Student Bible.

"Nehemiah characteristically prayed to God while he went about his duties. He even "shot an arrow" to God, silently asking God for help in the middle of a crucial conversation with the king." The New Student Bible, New International Version, Nehemiah book, note on page 442 re: Arrow Prayers.

*** The New Student Bible, New International Version, Zondervan Publishing House, 1992, pg. 444. Actual quote in notes is "Remember the Lord…and fight."