The man emitted a yowl as the tray struck him, and fell back. His grip loosened on the syringe, leaving it hanging with the needle still embedded in Joe’s arm.

Vanessa had reacted almost as rapidly as Megan, and she lunged forward toward the bed. Her foot shot out, and she savagely kicked the man who was attempting to hurt her boyfriend. He yelped again, as her foot connected with his leg.

Arriving just seconds behind the girls, the nurse leaped to grab the syringe, and pulled it carefully from Joe’s arm. She leaned protectively over her patient, attempting to shield him from further attack.

The orderly, although beset on all sides, did not give up easily. He shoved Vanessa roughly backwards, knocking her to the floor. She fell with a cry of dismay, and the man plunged past her, heading towards the door – only to be tripped up by Megan, who shoved her foot directly into his path!

"Van! Grab him!" she shrieked, as the man fell heavily to the floor, and followed her own advice, flinging herself at his ankles and holding on, despite his struggles. Vanessa scrambled across the floor and threw herself on top of the guy’s back, effectively pinning him down.

The nurse, wide-eyed and aghast at this incredible turn of events, had edged around the fray to get to the door. Now she put her head into the hallway and yelled "Security! STAT!" at the top of her lungs. Almost immediately there came the sound of running in the hall, and nurses and other hospital personnel crowded into the room.

Their adversary continued to struggle, attempting to throw the girls off himself, and snarling threats and imprecations, but the two were determined to keep him subdued and away from Joe. Vanessa straddled his back, clutched his hair in her hand, and pushed his face hard against the linoleum flooring; while little Megan, feeling as if she had taken up alligator wrestling, plumped herself firmly onto his feet, gripped tightly, and sat there, refusing to be dislodged. She grinned triumphantly at Vanessa, her dimple showing deeply in her cheek. She could see that while Van was still worried, and casting apprehensive glances at Joe, she was quite proud of what they had just done! Maybe this is the guy who hurt Joe to begin with! Megan thought, happily. And we caught him!

It seemed like eons, but two security guards arrived in just a few minutes, and took Joe’s assailant into custody. Megan and Vanessa picked themselves up off the floor, and began to explain what had happened. Their story was corroborated by the nurse, who displayed the syringe he had attempted to use.

"Okay, we’ll call the police, and keep him locked up until they get here to take him away," one of the guards assured them, and they departed, hauling the sullen prisoner between them.

While they waited for the arrival of the Bayport officers, several helpful nurses took charge of the shaken Megan and Vanessa, who were suddenly feeling a reaction to what had just occurred, and brought them sodas and coffee from the waiting room. They carefully checked Joe’s condition, and placed the syringe safely away from tampering. The girls were assured that no harm had come to Joe; although the needle had penetrated his skin, none of the contents had left the syringe – for which they were extremely thankful!

When at last the police arrived, Megan and Vanessa leaped to their feet with relieved smiles, for one of the officers was none other than Lieutenant Con Riley!

"Oh, Lieutenant Riley, we’re so glad it’s you—" Vanessa felt as if she could have gladly hugged the tall policeman. Con patted her shoulder, and gestured for her and Megan to resume their seats.

"I take a personal interest in things having to do with the Hardy family," he said cheerily, and instructed his partner to handle taking the suspect into custody while he talked to the girls. Con listened intently and took notes, while the nurse, Megan and Vanessa told what they had seen, and done.

"Has there been any change in Joe’s condition?" he inquired of the nurse, who shook her head.

"No, but there would have been if that man succeeded, I’m sure!" she replied indignantly. "Luckily, we stopped him before he actually injected anything. He didn’t get to push down on the plunger."

"Okay, we’ll take this as evidence," Con said, carefully bagging the syringe, "and we’ll let you know as soon as possible what’s in it."

"Check for Rohypnol first, or something like it," Megan suggested. "After all, these people used it on Joe once already!"

Con nodded somberly, willing to heed her advice. Just as he was leaving, however, Mr. and Mrs. Hardy arrived, immediately alarmed at Con’s unexpected presence. Megan and Vanessa breathlessly related what had just occurred, while Laura and Fenton listened, aghast.

"I’m going with Con," Fenton announced brusquely, at the end of the recital. "I want to find out if this man is behind everything, or just a hireling."

Laura sighed, almost imperceptibly, but didn’t bother arguing. She kissed her husband goodbye, then turned and followed the girls back to Joe’s room.

Joe hadn’t stirred. He was still unconscious. He looked almost as if he was sleeping, and it was obvious that he had no idea what had gone on around him. Laura smoothed his hair gently, and kissed his cheek, then turned to the watching girls.

"Okay, I’ll hold down the fort for awhile. You two go grab something to eat – or better yet, Vanessa, go home and get some rest. You’ve been here all day."

"No – no, I don’t want to leave yet," she protested, and Laura smiled understandingly.

"Okay, honey, okay – but really, go and take a break. I’ll track you down, if anything happens."

*****

"You think he’ll be able to follow Zacary wherever he’s going?" Matt queried, as he and Phil waited for Allison to finish packing up Angel’s violin. "Man, why didn’t we go with him? Or follow separately?"

"I don’t know," Phil shrugged, "but I think you’re right. It would have been the smart thing to do. I don’t think Frank should have gone off alone any more than Joe should have, on Sunday." He draped an arm about Allison’s shoulders. "After we drop Alli at the dorm, let’s go back to the apartment. Maybe he’ll call."

The walk to the Julliard dorms was a pleasant one, despite their worry over Frank’s situation. They discussed the case, and Allison voiced her agreement with Phil that Zacary Stein was an unlikely suspect – despite all the evidence mounting against him!

"Phil, call me if you hear from Frank," Allison begged, as Phil kissed her goodbye. "Let me know if you hear anything about him, or Joe, or…anything."

"I will," he promised. "Don’t worry, Alli."

"I’ll try," she murmured disconsolately, and departed for her room.

Phil looked around, seeking his erratic roommate, who appeared to have wandered off for the moment. After a bit, Phil figured out where Matt had gone: to find Macey. Sure enough, Matt showed up a few minutes later, accompanied by a thin, leggy girl with short-cropped dark brown hair and long, spangly earrings. Macey was medium-height for a girl, which made her only slightly shorter than Matt, and as usual, she was chewing on a wad of bubble gum. Every time he saw her, Phil was freshly amazed that such an amazingly powerful and beautiful singing voice could come from this ordinary-looking young woman; she could sing like an angel!

"Hi, Macey," he smiled, and she grinned and popped her bubble gum in reply.

"I wanna talk to Allison," she said. "I want her to catch me up on all this stuff you guys are doing, that Matt won’t tell me!" She fluttered her fingers in farewell at the boys, and turned to re-enter the dormitory, blowing a kiss to Matt as she did so. "Later, stud…."

Matt winked at her and growled deep in his throat…and let Phil drag him away, in the direction of the lot where Allison had left Phil’s car when she drove in from her parents’ home.

Phil and Matt walked the three-block distance from their favorite parking garage in virtual silence, each busy with his own disturbing thoughts. Entering their apartment they were both relieved and worried to find no messages on the answering machine: relieved that no one had called with threats – worried that Frank hadn’t called with news.

"Hey, man, you want something to eat?" Matt glanced at the clock on the microwave. "It’s been awhile since lunch."

"Not very hungry," Phil said. He paced, restlessly. "I wish Frank would call."

Matt set about rummaging through the freezer compartment, and cupboards. Eventually, he opened a can of chili. While it was heating, the telephone rang, and Phil leaped to answer it. He nodded at Matt, mouthing ‘Frank,’ and continued with the conversation. Matt listened to the half he could hear, and avidly demanded to know what was going on, once Phil hung up.

When Phil explained Frank’s request, Matt evinced keen disappointment. "Man, I wish I’d gone with him!" he mourned. "It would have been totally rad to be able to do a stake-out!"

"Been there, done that," Phil told him. "Believe me, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be!" He yawned. "Okay, so how are we going to work this, tonight? I have to be at the store tomorrow morning early; I’m opening. I probably should go to bed and try to get a little sleep. I can set my alarm for eleven."

"Go ahead and catch some Z’s – I can flag the phone calls. I’ll call Allison, since you promised we’d tell her if we heard anything; and I’ll wake you up if Frank doesn’t call in time." Matt surveyed his roommate critically. "Go on, dude, go to bed," he reiterated. "You look worn out."