"You’re staring," Vanessa stated, snapping Callie out of her daze.

"Oh, sorry," Callie mumbled, embarrassed at having been caught.

"Why?" Vanessa asked, taking the bag the cashier offered her and heading for the exit.

"You look different…happy…" Callie replied with a smile.

Vanessa stopped short and turned on her friend. "I am," she said, practically glowing from within. "Joe and I can actually start planning a future again. Something beyond the wedding," Vanessa shared the secret of her happiness. "We haven’t dared to talk about anything past the wedding or the honeymoon for a year…just in case…" she shrugged.

"But that’s all changed now," she continued excitedly as the two girls walked down the street gazing at the quaint shops. "Last night we talked about having children again - for the first time in a year. Joe wants six!" she laughed, rolling her eyes. "We sorta compromised on four but he’s still pushing for two more…"

"Easy for him to say!" Callie laughed. "He's not the one who has to carry them for nine months!"

"I pointed that out to him," Vanessa said dryly. "He told me a couple sets of twins - or triplets- would be fine with him!"

Callie smiled and listened as Vanessa rambled on, changing from once subject to another and then veering back to the first again. She had obviously been keeping a lot inside for the past year and Callie was more than happy to listen as Vanessa let it all come tumbling out in a rush of words, giggles and glowing smiles.

As they stepped into another shop and began browsing the aisles, Callie realized she didn’t know if Laura and Fenton had been informed of the good news yet.

"Did you get hold of Joe’s parents last night?" Callie asked, absently thumbing through a pile of sweaters.

"Mm-hmm," Vanessa nodded, suddenly pensive. Her eyes welled up with tears as she turned to Callie. "Joe said his Dad cried when he heard the test was negative," she said quietly. Swiping away a tear, she picked up a royal blue fleece pullover with the name of the resort town tastefully embroidered on the left chest and scrutinized it intently.

‘I’m not surprised,’ Callie thought, watching Vanessa. ‘You stole a big piece of his heart when you gave Joe a reason to start living again.’

"Think Mr. Hardy would like this?" Vanessa asked holding it up for Callie to see.

"He’ll love it."

After purchasing the pullover, Callie and Vanessa found a cozy restaurant with a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains, to rest and refuel for the afternoon.

"So did Joe have any other specifics other than six kids?" Callie teased, taking a sip of her drink.

"Five boys and one girl," Vanessa replied. "As if we have any control over that!" Vanessa gave Callie a sidelong glance. "And how many kids do you and Frank plan on having?" she asked with raised eyebrows. "And when are you going to start trying? I mean you've been married for a year and a half now. Aren't your Mom and Laura getting impatient?"

"We haven't really decided yet. And yes they are, so I don't need it from you too, okay?" Callie replied evasively. "So bring me up to date on the wedding plans. What do you still have left to do? And what do you need your matron of honor to help out with?"

While Callie felt much better after having spoken with Joe about her fears, she still had a few nagging reservations; reservations that wouldn't be completely resolved until she spoke to Laura Hardy.

Sitting back, Callie smiled, listening as Vanessa excitedly brought her up to date on the wedding plans, occasionally veering off into plans she and Joe were making for their future - a future that was now virtually guaranteed.

*****

‘God my arms hurt!’ Joe thought. The on and off achy feeling in his shoulders had long ago turned into a continuous throbbing pain that seemed to increase with each passing minute. The tingling pins and needles in his fingers had ceased, but only because they were now completely numb.

‘Why does this stuff always happen to me?!’ he groused silently, staring into the blackness of closed eyelids. ‘How come Frank never gets kidnapped and tied up like a stuck pig?!’ Joe fumed in frustration. ‘I can’t believe this! I wasn’t even looking for trouble this time! Mindin’ my own business…trying to have a nice vacation with Van…next thing I know I’m hanging from the rafters like some super-sized piñata… man, if this doesn’t suck, nothing does…’

Joe sighed heavily, shifting as much as his position would allow, trying to find something that resembled comfortable. Deciding it was a lost cause, he gave up and returned to his earlier musings.

‘They thought I was Frank…idiots! We’re about as different as night and day, for God’s sake!’ Joe snorted to himself. ’And where does that hot brunette fit into all this… I can’t feel my fingers anymore… She and that laptop have to be at the center of all this…man, she had incredible eyes… God my arms hurt…’

Frank trudged up the porch steps feeling totally exhausted. The heli-skiing had been fun and exciting, but it was physically and mentally challenging. Returning from the adventure to find out their cabin had been broken into and his laptop had been stolen had fueled his anger and given him a shot of adrenaline. That had worn off about halfway through his hike back to the cabin, now leaving him tired and cold, and still very angry. After reporting the theft to Mr. Graves, the resort’s manager, Frank learned the mysterious woman hadn’t been seen around the lodge in several days, although she hadn’t checked out, increasing his level of frustration. Thoroughly disgusted, Frank had left a terse voice mail message for her before beginning the trek back to the cabin.

Opening the door, Frank stood in the doorway, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. Despite Joe’s promise to straighten up before Callie and Vanessa returned, the cabin was still in a shambles. Glancing around, Frank saw Joe’s heavy jacket and gloves were still on the couch where he’d tossed them earlier.

"Joe?" Frank called out, getting no response. "JOE!" he repeated, much louder. Still he got no answer.

Cursing himself for leaving Joe alone, Frank reached for his cell phone only to be stopped by a click that sounded suspiciously like a gun being cocked.

"I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Frank," a deep voice suggested.

"Where’s my brother?" Frank demanded.

He heard a chuckle and felt the gun press against the back of his head.

"He’s with my associate. But you’re the one we really want."

"Fine. Take me to your associate and then you can let my brother go," Frank insisted.

"Right," the voice chuckled sarcastically. "Now, I’m going to tie your hands and blindfold you. After I call my associate and let him know you’ve agreed to cooperate, we’ll take a little walk."

Frank felt the larger man lean closer to him as he whispered, "And if I don’t make that call… your brother dies. Understand?"

Frank nodded, and allowed himself to be blindfolded, knowing he’d have to comply for now. He knew he could overpower the man, but he had no idea where Joe was or whether the man was bluffing about the phone call. Frank then submitted to having his hands tied in front of him and listened as his kidnapper placed the call, uttering four words.

"We’re on our way."

Frank heard the phone click shut and then felt the rope binding his wrists tighten as he was dragged forward and out the door into the cold. Stumbling down the steps, Frank did a slow burn as he realized this man was going to drag him, tripping and slipping in the snow, all the way to their destination.

Initially, Frank tried to memorize the twists and turns they took, but soon gave up, finding he had to concentrate simply on maintaining his footing. He’d had no idea how challenging it was to walk without being able to see where you were going, and vowed right then never to take the gift of sight for granted again.

He estimated forty-five minutes had passed when he was finally pulled up several steps and through a door into a building. The blindfold was roughly yanked off and Frank blinked several times as his eyes adjusted to the fading afternoon light. Glancing around he saw a folding table with his laptop open and booted up sitting on top of it. An empty chair sat in front of the table. The rest of the cabin was empty, obviously in the middle of renovations, given the exposed beams and wood, some old and rotted, some brand new. Frank then looked at the large man standing in front of him, blocking his view.

"Where’s my brother?" Frank demanded.

The man didn’t answer. He simply smiled and stepped aside giving Frank a full view of the small cabin. Frank blinked again and then gasped, his eyes widening in shock, as he realized he wasn’t hallucinating.

In the center of the room, Joe was practically suspended in mid-air. A rope that led from Joe’s wrists had been tossed over an exposed support beam that ran the length of the ceiling. It was pulled tight and anchored to another beam and tightly tied off, making it impossible for Joe to move more than a fraction of an inch in any direction. Joe was blindfolded and his arms were extended overhead in what looked to be a painful position, and his feet were just barely brushing the ground.

‘He can’t even move!’ Frank thought, infuriated at how vulnerable Joe was in that position. His body was open and exposed to attack, with Joe completely unable to defend himself against any kind of assault.

"You okay, Joe?" Frank finally asked.