Carl had the same look on his face as he glanced over at Jason. Mr. Hardy looked at the Kramer men with a grimace.

"Laura answered the phone and a male’s voice asked for me. Laura told him that I was not there and if she could take a message. That is when he told her that he had her son. Laura didn’t believe him right off so they put another person on the phone. She said that the person said to not do a thing that they wanted that he was fine. The male voice then took the phone back and acted as if it was Joe. Laura did not think that it was Joe’s voice, but she was so terrified at the possibility that someone did have Joe and his voice was just distorted for some reason," Mr. Hardy explained. "It seems that someone is out for a little revenge against me. I am going to contact my colleagues back home to see if we can isolate who it could be."

"Did they say what they wanted?" Mr. Kramer asked.

"The caller said he would call again. The next time Laura is going to set up the call to come to my cell phone. The person was bound and determined to speak directly to me and said he would call back with further instructions and that Laura was to contact no one," Fenton added. He could not help but feel guilty as he looked at Mr. Kramer and his son. Adam was in danger because of an old debt of his own. Then part of him was relieved to look over and see his own two sons standing beside him safe and sound.

"That means we have to play the part," Jason spoke up.

"What do you mean Jason?" Carl said with a quizzical look.

"If they think that they have Joe, then Adam stands a chance. They are not going to kill Adam if they still think he is Joe and that they can get one over on Fenton. But if they find out they have the wrong person, then they just might kill Adam," Jason pointed out. "By playing the part, it will keep Adam alive, buy us time and keep the real Joe safe as well."

Everyone in the group nodded with agreement. The group remained silent as they each pondered the situation at hand.

"I think that Jason is right. Joe is going to have to pose as Adam, at least out in public. We don’t know if we are being watched and at least in the public eye, Joe is going to have to take Adam’s place. It will keep both boys safe," Fenton commented. "Frank and I will get a hotel room in town to play the part out even more. I don’t want to take any chances that these people will figure out their mistake. Let’s just hope Adam plays out his part for his own sake."

"I think he will," Carl said in a reassuring voice. "Adam has a good head on his shoulders when the time is right."

At that, the Hardys and the Kramers finished up their report to the sheriff and left towards the Kramer home. When Carl reached his backdoor, Laura was standing there in her nightclothes. It looked like she had not slept at all and the worry was showing on her face. Carl gave her a small hug and reassured her that Adam was fine.

"But we have to get him back…soon," Laura said under her breath. Carl knew exactly what she was talking about and nodded. Frank Hardy saw this exchange and it made him feel even more suspicious.

Since it was late, Carl drove Frank and Fenton to the Emerald City Motor Lodge. The small town hotel was not used to having visitors in the middle of the night and Carl feared that Old Man Humphreys would not rent to them. Carl got the Hardys the "suite" of the six hotel rooms that were available if the Hardys agreed to clean the room themselves. That suited Mr. Hardy fine since he preferred not having strangers in his hotel rooms when he was on a case.

While Frank and Fenton were getting settled into their new surroundings, Joe was getting settled into his own new environment. Laura gave him a choice of the guest bedroom or Adam’s bedroom. Joe chose the guestroom. While Joe was going to have to be Adam for a while, he was not prepared to go that far. Plus, he felt like an intruder in Adam’s room. Mrs. Kramer made sure that Joe had everything he needed and then some. She reminded Joe of his own mother in so many ways. It was kind of scary just how much their mothers were alike not only by name, but in their mannerisms as well. Her presence made Joe feel more at home with the Kramers. By the time his head hit the pillow, Joe Hardy was in a deep sleep.

RRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!

Joe thought he heard a loud shrill sound pierce his deep slumber. He stirred just a little and peeked out from under the covers. It was now morning, but how early, Joe did not have a clue. Then he heard a commotion come from down the hallway and footsteps that went downstairs in a hurry.

Still groggy from his lack of sleep, Joe slowly stretched and forced himself to get up to see what was going on. He walked over to the door and cracked it open. All he could see was the empty hallway, but that was not what got his attention. It was Carl Kramer’s voice that he strained to hear.

"That was Fenton. He just spoke to the kidnappers. They called Bayport and his wife was able to route it to him. They definitely think that they have Joe instead of Adam. They even put Adam on the phone this time," Carl announced. Joe assumed that Laura and Jason Kramer was the audience.

"So Adam is okay?" Jason’s voice asked.

"For now he is."

"What do they want?" Laura asked, her voice was very tensed.

"Fenton said that the kidnappers are with a James Cooper. It seems that Fenton and Cooper worked together on the New York Police Force. Cooper was a great cop and highly respected, but his brother was the total opposite. His brother was one of the big leaders of one of the biggest stolen merchandise fencing gangs in New York. They set up a raid to catch his brother and James tipped him off. An officer was killed in the exchange. James Cooper and his brother were both sent to prison. James vowed to get back at Fenton because he felt that he was the one who ratted him out. It seems that James escaped from the prison about two months ago, but no one alerted Fenton. Cooper vowed to gain "restitution" for his lack of allegiance to him and for the years he spent in prison."

"Is Cooper’s brother with him?" Jason asked.

"No, he left his brother to sit in jail. Never has even made an attempt to get in touch with him. As a matter of fact, his brother helped him escape and James left him high and dry so to say," Carl commented.

"So they didn’t really say exactly what they wanted?" Laura nervously asked again.

"No, just that he wanted restitution and that he would be back in contact with him soon," Carl answered.

"At least we know that Adam was fine then," Laura said. "You know we have to get him back soon."

"I know Laura," Carl replied, his voice was now even tenser. "I think though, that we are going to have to level with the Hardys on this one even though Adam will be upset."

"Why? You know how he was about this dad. I mean, it has not been too long. It will still be in his bloodstream," Jason pounced in.

"Fenton knows something is up because Adam was able to relay a message through him."

"What message?" Laura and Jason both said at the same time.

"He said Adam told him on the phone to not worry, that he still had four days left until the earthquakes could start," Carl replied.

"That is right! Adam does have his medicine on him. He must have four days worth of medicine on him," Jason exclaimed. "That makes me feel a little better."

"Me too considering things," Laura added. "But if they beat him or he hits his head, they might figure out that he is not Joe Hardy. I hope he keeps that medicine bottle hid."

"I am sure he knows that Laura and he will be fine. We have to trust Adam’s capabilities," Carl said with confidence. "However, Fenton found that message quite strange and thinks it might be a clue. I think we are going to have to tell them about Adam."

Joe heard a loud sigh. Medicine? He knew Adam had medicine, but it must be more important than the Kramers let on. What would be so bad that they would have to hide the secret from his father, brother as well as himself?

‘Just downplay the message Dad," Jason responded. "You know how strict he was about people knowing about the accident."

"I know Jason, but Fenton is a very shrewd man and so are his sons. If I was in his position, I would investigate Adam’s message too," Carl said. His voice seemed like it was getting more and more tense. "I am sorry, but I am afraid that we are going to have to tell the Hardys about Adam, whether he likes it or not. The bottom line is that we need to work together and we can not have secrets taking away from the investigation."

There was a long pause. "Carl is right Jason. It is really no big deal anywise. Adam’s condition needs to be known. It is in his best interest. Besides, we all have thought all along that the Hardys will not think anything of it. They seem like such nice people."

"They are a nice family, smart too. We need to work together to not only get Adam back safely, but to protect Frank as well," Carl agreed. "I am calling Fenton right now. Jason, can you go up and get Joe?"

"Sure dad," Jason’s voice replied.

"And Jason, we are not betraying our word to Adam. We are doing this in his best interest," Carl’s voice added.

"I know dad. I know."

Joe heard the approaching footsteps and he quickly tiptoed back over to the bed and covered back up. He didn’t want the Kramers to know that he had been eavesdropping on them. His mind quickly turned.