Frank awoke to the ringing of the phone. "Hello," he answered sleepily.

"Frank, it's Craig," Craig whispered into the phone. "Joe's in big trouble."

"What do you mean?" Frank asked, fully awake and alert.

"Temple called Dad about twenty minutes ago. I listened in on their conversation," Craig explained. "They overheard Joe talking to your dad on the phone. They know you've got something planned for later this morning so they're clearing out. They're going to kill Joe after they've left."

"You sure he's still alive?" Frank asked, dread creeping through every cell of his being.

"Yeah," Craig said to Frank's relief. "They're going to keep him as a hostage until they're sure it's safe."

"Where are they now?" Frank demanded.

"I'm not sure," Craig replied. "But Dad just left for his warehouse."

"Thanks, Craig," Frank said and hung up. He jumped out of bed and grabbed his jeans. Putting them on as he went down the hall to his parents room, he knocked loudly and strode inside without waiting for a reply.

"What's wrong?" his mother asked.

Frank didn't look at her but at his father. "Change of plans," Frank told him. "We've got to so something now."

Mr. Hardy got out of bed. "Go to my office and call Agent Samuels," he ordered after Frank had told him about Craig's call.

Jonny was waiting for Frank in the hall. "I thought you didn't trust Craig," he said to Frank, following him into Mr. Hardy's office.

"I didn't," Frank said. "But what reason would he have for lying?" he asked, picking up the receiver.

"To trap us," Jonny suggested.

"I don't think so," Mr. Hardy said, coming into the room. "Daniels probably thought you would turn against your father so easily because he and Craig get along so poorly."

"But he was at the party where we were going to discuss business," Jonny argued.

"As your friend," Mr. Hardy reminded him. "He was probably telling you the truth."

"And if he wasn't?" Jonny demanded.

"He is still telling the truth," Frank said, hanging up. "Craig had no idea you weren't Joe," he told Jonny. "He knew nothing about you two ever having met or switching places again."

"So the only way he could possibly know is if Joe did get caught," Jonny said, finally understanding.

Frank nodded, then turned to his father. "Agent Samuels already searched Daniels' World Trade with a special warrant and found the cocaine. His men were present when Mike and Miller and a few others showed up to move it."

"Why did he go ahead with the search when we were supposed to wait for Jon and Joe to pull off their act?" Mr. Hardy demanded angrily.

"He was having everyone watched," Frank explained. "When they started to move the shipment, they realized something had gone wrong. He had the warrant ready for the scene between Jonny and his dad, but had to use it earlier instead," Frank repeated what Samuels had told him. "They lost Daniels," Frank added. "Kelly and her dad were arrested but they have decided to turn state's evidence. Stone, Temple, Daniels, and Joe are still unaccounted for."

"You've got to find them before they kill Joe," Mrs. Hardy said fearfully from the doorway. Frank came over and put an arm around her shoulders.

"I'll call Chief Anderson," Mr. Hardy said, mentioning the Southport Chief of Police. "He can put out an all points bulletin and check the airports."

"You think they're going to fly out of the country?" Jonny asked.

"Not fly, sail," Frank said as an idea came to him. "Didn't Mr. Harrrison say he and Daniels only quarreled once?" he asked.

"That's right," Jonny agreed. "Over Dad's yacht."

"Call and see if it's still in port," Frank ordered Jonny.

Five minutes later, Jonny hung up the phone. "It's gone," he said. "I know Dad didn't take it," he added.

"Laura, alert the Coast Guard. Then call Biff. He can use his boat to help search for the yacht," Mr. Hardy ordered her. "We'll take the Sleuth," he added, mentioning Frank and Joe's own motorboat.

"The yacht's name is Maria," Frank told his mother as he, Jonny and Mr. Hardy left.

"This is the end of the line for you," Temple said, walking over to where Joe was lying, bound and gagged. "You not only ruined our plans but you cost us a fortune," he added, bending over to untie Joe's feet. Finishing, he stepped back and pointed his gun at Joe. "On your feet kid," he ordered.

"Faster," he snarled, as Joe slowly started to rise. "Thanks to you we lost our last shipment as well as our distribution centers." He pushed Joe ahead of him.

When they reached the upper deck, Joe squinted into the morning sun. He'd been below deck for hours and his eyes weren't accustomed to the bright light.

"Time for a swim," Temple said, forcing Joe back against the rail.

"Not yet," Stone interrupted. "Not until we reach international waters."

"We're close enough," Temple argued. "They don't even know we're gone."

"Maybe," Stone said. "But we keep him until I say we don't need him," he added, his voice just above a whisper. Joe recognized it as the tone of voice one would never argue with.

"At least get him ready to go," Daniels said, joining them. "An overdose would have been a nice touch, but since no one's ever going to find your body, what's the point," he added maliciously, smiling at Joe.

"Grab an anchor and some wire and bring it over," Stone yelled to one of the crew. Soon Joe's feet were bound with wire and the anchor was tied to him from the waist down. "Just a little bit farther out and we can dump him," Stone promised, pushing Joe down on the deck.

"Sir, there are two boats coming up fast," a crewman shouted to Stone. "Make that two boats and three ships," he amended. "The Coast Guard has arrived."

Stone reached down and retrieved a megaphone he had brought on deck. "Keep your distance!" he shouted. "We have a hostage," he added as Temple and Daniels pulled Joe back to his feet. Temple held a gun to Joe's head.

"What now?" Daniels asked Stone. "They aren't going to leave."

"Of course not," Stone replied. "But with Joe as a hostage we will get an escort to international waters. The Coast Guard has it's limitations."

Not willing to be their ticket to freedom, Joe did the only thing he could think of. He threw himself over the railing and hit the water, the anchor quickly dragging him down.

Above, everyone was shocked at Joe's sacrifice, but Frank quickly recovered. He pulled the Sleuth up beside the Maria and pulled out his Swiss army knife. He and Mr. Hardy kicked their shoes off and dove into the water.

The Coast Guard pulled forward and boarded the ship along with the DEA agents. Daniels, Temple and Stone, along with the entire makeshift crew of the Maria, were arrested.

Biff and Chet, whom Mrs. Hardy had also called, waited with bated breath until they saw Mr. Hardy break the surface, followed by Frank and Joe. The relief they felt was soon dashed when they saw Joe was unconscious.

Pulling the boat closer to the Hardys, Biff and Chet helped get Joe on board. While Mr. Hardy and Frank climbed on board, Biff started mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on Joe. A few seconds later, Joe took a breath on his own and started coughing up water. Biff turned Joe on his side and let the water dribble from his mouth. Soon Joe quit coughing and took a few deep breaths.

"He's okay!" Chet shouted over to Jonny who also breathed a sigh of relief.

"Are you crazy?" Frank demanded angrily of Joe, now that the danger had passed. "You could have died."

"Like I really had anything to lose," Joe said, smiling faintly. "They were getting ready to toss me overboard before you guys arrived anyway." He sat up and Chet pulled some blankets from beneath a seat. He wrapped one around Joe's shoulders and gave one to Frank and the last one to Mr. Hardy.

"Temple said you found the cocaine," Joe said.

Frank filled Joe in on the raid at Daniels' World Trade and about the Martins' turning witnesses for the state.

"How did you know they would try to escape by sea?" Joe asked.

"Frank remembered Jon saying the only quarrel he and Sommer ever had was over the Maria," Mr. Hardy said.

"I figured if he was closing up shop, he would probably steal the Maria too," Frank replied with a modest shrug.

"I've got some good news," Joe told the group. "Daniels admitted to framing Jim. He made him a scapegoat so no one would find out what was really going on over there."

"By the time this is over, all charges against Jim will have been reversed," Mr. Hardy stated. "It won't make up for the time Jim spent behind bars but it will give him a clean slate."

"Maybe Mr. Harrison will hire him," Frank said thoughtfully. "With Martin and Daniels going out of business, he's going to be busy."

"I bet Jonny and Craig go to work for him too," Chet added.

"As long as it's Jonny," Joe said. "I'm staying as far away from the import export business as possible," he added with feeling.

"You mean you didn't like being Jonny?" Frank asked with a sly wink at his dad and friends.

"Trust me, brother dear," Joe said to everyone's amusement, "there's no one better to be than me."

End