"Hey, what do you think you are doing!" Adam said when he was in arm length of the short and lanky boy. The boy jumped and threw a metal bar at Adam. Adam, though, was ready for that move and swiftly dunked the possible blow. The boys tried to run, but Adam already had him pinned to the ground.

"Now you are going to tell me what you were planning to do to MY car," Adam said as he panted from the small struggle. At first the teenaged boy tried to get away, but he could not break Adam's iron hold on him.

"Could you let me up first?" the blond haired boy said.

"Not until you answer my question," Adam replied still holding him down.

"So this is your car?"

"I rebuilt it myself," Adam answered. He thought to himself that maybe this boy could be connected to the car lot and this would be a great opportunity.

"Wow! You did a great job! You must know a lot about cars," the boy said with wide eyes.

"Yes, but you had better tell me why before I call the police," Adam said. "You know, my did works for the state police so I know that the charges would stick."

"Why should I tell you then? I am not confessing to anything!" the boy snorted back.

"Just because my dad is a good guy it doesn't mean that I am following in his footsteps," Adam replied without a thought. "But I might use his name to get you put behind bars if you don't tell me what you are doing here."

At first the boy just stared at him, then he said, "So are you saying this car might be a little hot?"

"Parts of it if you get what I mean? They don't pay him enough for that. That is why I am going to get a real job," Adam said. He was still holding the boy down. HE was going to get the whole story before he let up on him.

"We could sure use you then. My name is Chris Hardin. I work for my brother Rod, the one with the new car lot in town."

"I might be interested. How is the pay and what exactly is the job? I don't plan to get myself behind bars working with amateurs.

"We are not amateurs. Besides how do I know that I can trust you with your dad being with the law?"

"You are going to have to trust me or go to jail and explain it to them."

The boy thought for a short moment. He knew that he was not in the greatest of spots and decided to trust Adam instead of having to go to the police.

"Okay, you have a deal. What is your name anyway?"

"Adam Kramer. But I have not agreed to a deal yet," Adam said staring down at the boy.

"What! You are just fooling with me," Chris said as he began to struggle. Adam still had a good grip on him so the boys did not move much.

"Here is the rest of my deal. You have to include my partner. He is a computer whiz and can hack and change anything that you need him to do," Adam said with a stern voice.

"Another guy! How can I trust him!"

"He is my older brother and I trust him with my life," Adam replied with an even tone. He knew that he needed Jason and had to get him in on the deal.

"Fine, now can you let me up?"

"One more thing, you keep your hands off of my car and my friend's and family's cars," Adam said. "I guarantee you that if you touch one of their cars or my car again, I will turn you in."

Chris sighed, but agreed to Adam's terms. They shook hands and Adam let the boy up.

"So what else do you do besides try to break into cars?" Adam said as the boy brushed the dirt off of his clothes.

"I like to hustle pool, but one of these days I am going to have my own car to race," Chris said as they stood by Adam's car.

"Sounds cool. Did you just move here?"

"Yeah, I live with my brother Rod. I have to start school on Monday. I am not too crazy about that. They are putting me into the eleventh grade even though I should be a senior!" Chris said scuffing at the ground with his tennis shoes.

"Why?"

"From where we have moved around so much since my parents died in an accident, they said that I only had enough credits to be in the tenth grade. But since I am eighteen, almost nineteen, they put me into the eleventh grade," Chris responded. "I hate school. All I ever get from it is detention and lunch."

"Well, that sounds like me. I am a junior and I am usually in detention. My brother who is a senior though is the school brat of the family," Adam said with a smile. "I can't wait to introduce you to Miss Meade."

"Who is she?"

"The crabbiest teacher at Emerald Beach High and the lady who constantly puts me into detention," Adam said. "She always says, 'why can't you be like your older brother Jason'"

Chris laughed at that. It as apparent that he related to Adam in that manner since he had an older brother himself.

"So what is going on here?" Chris asked.

"A victory party and we are missing it. Why don't you come in and meet everyone? You should mix in you know."

At first Chris was reluctant, but soon joined Adam as they walked back to the party. While Chris was very shy around the rest of the students, he managed to talk to a few people and played one game of pool just for fun. His pool skills amazed the rest of the teenagers, especially when he jumped an opponent's ball to sink the eight ball in for the victory. After promising to meet Chris at the car lot after church, Adam helped Alyssa to her vehicle and made his way home. He was extremely excited about starting a new case and could not wait to tell Jason about their new job.

When Adam arrived home, he was surprised to find his brother fast asleep on the front couch. The Discovery Channel was on and was featuring a show on killer snakes. Taking advantage of the situation, Adam crept upstairs and got out his fake, but very real looking green snake. His mother had brought the snake back from a dig to use as a joke for Mr. Kramer, who shared his eldest son's disgust for any type of snake-dead or alive. Adam had basically taken over the snake and often used it in his practical jokes. After putting Vaseline on it to give it the slick feeling, he sneaked over to his brother and gently brushed it against Jason's face and hands. At first Jason began to stir, but then Adam dropped the snake onto his chest. Jason's eyes fluttered slowly at first until he saw a coiled up creature about 4 inches from his face. Suddenly he jumped up with a scream, flinging his arms as if to rid himself completely of the serpent while still in a sleepy daze. After realizing that he had been a victim of one of his brother's jokes, his dazed look turned into a scowl.

"What is the big idea?" He remarked as Adam was still laughing hysterically.

"I could not resist," Adam managed to say since he was almost breathless.

"Kara was right about one thing," Jason muttered.

"What?"

"You are an immature brat!"

"If you did not have me around, your life would be dull," Adam said as he flopped down in his father's easy chair. "And you would not have a new job."

At first Jason was going to continue to scold Adam, but at the mention of a job that thought disappeared from his mind. Crossing his arms and giving him a quizzical look, Jason said, "So what have you been up to tonight?"

"I have gotten us both jobs at the new car lot in town," Adam said putting his hands behind his head and propping his feet up on the coffee table. He then told his brother about what had happened that night and about Chris. Jason listened very closely and sat back down o the couch.

"So he just openly told you what was going on?" Jason asked when Adam had finished his story. "He doesn't even know you!"

"It was either that or I was going to call the cops on him anyway," Adam said without hesitation. "Besides I have a trusting face."

Jason smirked at Adam's last comment. "But how is this Rod going to feel about this? We might be walking into a trap."

"Chris said he needed help. After he saw the Trans Am, he knew that I could do the job."

"But I can't work on cars."

"I told him about your computer hacking skills so don't worry about that. You just stick to your letterbox and I will handle the real machines," Adam said cracking his knuckles.

"I still have an uneasy feeling about this," Jason said rubbing his eyes.

"Trust me, Jas," Adam said with a smile. "I have it all planned out."

"Like that is supposed to make me feel better," Jason said as he got up and stretched. Then he quickly made his way over to the snake on the floor and grabbed it up before Adam could even sit up.

"Hey! Give me back my snake!" Adam yelled out as he tried to get the snake from his brother who was dancing around the room trying to evade him. Finally Adam caught up to Jason and playfully wrestled him to the floor near the dining room table. He almost pinned his older brother until Jason trapped his feet and began tickling them. Adam was extremely ticklish and was fighting to break free of the torture.

"BOYS! Get to bed! You have church in the morning and I don't want you looking like the walking dead!" A voice said from the downstairs hallway.

"Sorry Mom! We didn't mean to wake you," Jason said as he let Adam up. Then he glared down at his younger brother. "You had better watch you back little brother. Your paybacks are coming!"