'Exhausting, but worth it.' She smiled to herself.

Joe and Vanessa had been so happy; so relaxed. She almost didn't want it to end and could see in their eyes they didn’t either.

'Yes,' she thought, recalling how much fun they'd had. 'It was worth every lost wink of sleep.'

Having had an extremely hectic week of work, Callie was looking forward to doing absolutely nothing except relaxing with Frank for the next two days. Getting out of the car, she walked to the front door, stopping to retrieve the mail before going inside. Kicking off her shoes, she padded into the kitchen and stopped to get a glass of iced tea, before continuing out onto the deck. Throwing the stack of mail on the little table beside her, Callie sat down to enjoy the unseasonably warm spring evening. Gazing out onto the large backyard, she couldn't believe how lucky she was.

'Blessed.' She thought gratefully. 'I've been so blessed.'

Looking at the flowers beginning to bloom in the garden and the newly sprouted leaves on the trees, Callie looked forward to a new season as she thought pleasantly about the past, recalling when she and Frank had first started dating. She had developed a crush on him the first time she saw him, as had many other girls at Bayport High, and couldn't believe he even noticed her, let alone asked her out. Callie had fallen for him hard and fast and remembered, somewhat sheepishly, the countless hours she had spent fantasizing about marriage and raising a family with Frank when she was supposed to be studying.

Enjoying her trip back in time, she vividly recalled the day she had first seen this house. It was the house she saw in her fantasies and dreams. Many nights she had lain in bed, picturing herself, Frank and their children in this very house. She had been stunned when one day shortly before their wedding, a "For Sale" sign went up in front of the house, almost as if fate were stepping in to make all her dreams come true. When she shared her well-kept secret of so many years with Frank, he somehow managed to buy the house, surprising her with the news on their wedding day.

Since that day, Callie had lost count of the hours she spent sitting on the deck, gazing out over the yard, imagining the children who would one day play there. Whenever she asked him, Frank always insisted he didn't care if they had boys or girls as long as their children were healthy and happy. While she kept it a closely guarded secret, Callie longed for two boys, close in age, who would share the same special bond that Frank and Joe did. If that dream did indeed come true, as so many others had, she would make one change - she hoped her sons would not follow their father, uncle and grandfather into the "family business".

Callie had never thought much about it until she and Frank were married and began talking about raising a family. But once they did, she found her respect for Laura Hardy grew immeasurably. Callie shuddered wondering how she would react, as a mother, to some of the situations Frank and Joe had found themselves in over the years.

'Joe.' She smiled, thinking fondly of her impulsive brother-in-law. Their relationship had been antagonistic, to say the least, for many years. Somewhere between high school and college she had finally admitted to herself she was quite jealous of Joe’s close relationship with his brother. Frank's fiercely over-protective attitude when it came to anything having to do with Joe only fed her jealousy. Being an only child, she couldn't even begin to understand the intense bond the brothers shared.

However, as she got to know Joe better over the years, she found she genuinely liked him and his fun loving, throw caution to the wind, view of life. There were even a few times she wished Frank had inherited a little of Joe's free-spirited personality. One day Callie surprised herself when she realized she now thought of Joe as the kid brother she always wished she had.

With a sudden chill, she thought back on the weeks after Vanessa had been raped and Joe had been arrested and tried for murder. While Frank had been trying to sort out his emotions during that time, Callie stepped in and tried to be there for Joe. That was when she finally learned why Frank always felt so over-protective of his younger brother. During the trial Callie had seen a side of Joe, a very vulnerable side, that she never knew existed.

Ever since that time, she felt almost as protective of Joe as Frank did. Joe and Vanessa. The both of them had been through so much recently. Too much, really. Yet, they appeared to the world to be handling all of it beautifully. Callie suspected that, at day's end, they turned to each other for comfort thinking, incorrectly, that they had already been too much of a burden on their family and friends. It did not go unnoticed by the people who loved them that, as time went on, they seemed to keep their troubled feelings to themselves more and more. In spite of all that, Callie vowed to continue to offer her unconditional love and support and do her best to protect them from the curves life seemed intent at throwing at the young couple.

Feeling much more relaxed than she had upon arriving home, Callie reached for the stack of mail and lazily began to flip through it.

Callie stopped when she came to a large manila envelope addressed to her. Looking at the corner, she saw there was no return address. The postmark showed it had been sent from New York City. Intrigued, Callie opened the envelope and pulled out several 8x10 photographs. As she flipped through the pictures, she could feel the color drain from her face. Stunned, she stared at them, unblinking. When her mind finally acknowledged what her eyes were seeing, she dropped the pictures on the table, pulling her hand away quickly. Her mouth was suddenly very dry and she could feel her heart racing. Reaching forward, she gingerly picked up the pictures again and forced herself to look at them closely.

Yes, that was she in the photos, but the man…the man holding her so closely, caressing her, nuzzling her neck, kissing her passionately…the man was not Frank! She stared at the face of the man who could be clearly seen in some of the pictures and began to panic. With reddish blonde hair and hazel eyes, he stared back at her.

'Who is that?! I've never seen him before in my life? Where did these pictures come from?!'

The sudden ringing of the phone she had brought outside, startled her to the point that she actually jumped.

"Hello?" Callie answered, her voice shaking just a little.

"Mrs. Hardy? Mrs. Callie Hardy?" a male voice asked, a little too cordially.

"Speaking." Callie replied, suddenly filled with apprehension.

"You've had a chance to look at the photographs?"

Callie gasped. 'My God, am I being watched?'

"Who is this?" she demanded.

"It's impolite to answer a question with a question, Mrs. Hardy. Have you looked at the photographs yet?"

"Who are you? And who is the man in these pictures?"

"You mean it's not your husband?" the man chuckled.

Callie's blood ran cold as she looked at the pictures again. They had to have been computer generated, or at least altered.

"I've never seen this man before in my life. These pictures have been altered or fabricated completely." Callie said, evenly.

"Really? And your husband would believe that?" the man asked.

"Of course he would!"

"You're sure?"

"Yes!" She said, getting angry. "I'm positive."

"I admire your faith in him. Especially since it wasn't so long ago that he refused to believe his younger brother - Joe, isn't it? - when Joe insisted he did not murder the man who raped his fiancée. And I understand Frank is very close to his brother. But if you're certain about it, then surely you won't mind if we send your husband a few photos."

Callie gasped out loud, certain her heart had stopped. Who was this man and how did he know so much about them?

"Mrs. Hardy? Are you still there?"

"Yes." She said quietly.

"As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. Now, I'm not trying to tell you what to do, mind you, but if you are willing to risk your marriage - well, that's up to you."

Callie's head was pounding. Frank would believe her…wouldn't he? Of course he would! But then again, he had thought Joe was capable of murder, at least for a day or so, no matter how vehemently Joe had professed his innocence. Frank hadn't believed him, at least not initially. Callie looked at the pictures again and her eyes began to burn.

"What do you want?" Callie asked as a tear trickled down her cheek.

"A file." The man said simply. "Your husband, his brother and their father placed an informant in the Witness Protection Program. They are his only contact with his former life. I want the file on him that contains his new identity."

"You…you want me to steal a file from my husband?" Callie asked, incredulous.

"Yes, I do." The man said, calmly.

Callie remained silent, trying to digest this information.

"If it's any consolation you're not condemning an innocent man. He was a drug dealer. When your husband and his brother went undercover and broke up the drug cartel, this man turned state's evidence in exchange for immunity." The man said, contempt evident in his voice.

Callie closed her eyes recalling the case Frank and Joe had worked on the previous summer. She remembered, as if it were yesterday, when the headquarters of the drug cartel had been raided. In the chaos and confusion, Frank had been shot by one of the government agents participating in the raid, who didn’t realize Frank was working undercover for the government. She recalled the frantic phone call she had gotten from Joe and could still hear the terror in his voice as he told her Frank had been rushed to the hospital.

‘Frank, would you believe me? You didn’t believe Joe. At least not at first…you wouldn’t even give him the benefit of the doubt. Would you do it for me?’ Callie’s heart ached. ‘I know I could convince you. Eventually. But would our marriage survive?’

"What’s his name?" Callie said, hoarsely.

"Travers. Gary Travers. At least it was."

"I…I don’t know where he would keep something like that." Callie said honestly.

"I’m sure you can find out. So I can expect your cooperation?"

Callie’s lip quivered as she remembered how Joe begged Frank to believe him, to believe he was telling the truth regardless of what Frank thought he saw. Glancing at the photographs still in her hand, Callie was no longer sure she trusted Frank to believe her when he would be staring at a picture – several pictures – that would convince him to believe otherwise.

‘He was a drug dealer. In a way, he’s responsible for Frank being shot. And he got off scot-free.’ Callie said, desperately trying to talk herself into something she instinctively knew was wrong.

"Yes." She replied quietly, feeling sick to her stomach.

"Good. I’ll contact you Monday."

"Monday?!" Callie cried out. "That’s only two days away!"

"I’m sure you’ll have it by then." The man said confidently. "If not, your husband will have some new pictures to add to the family album by Tuesday." He concluded and hung up.