Ignoring the pounding in his head, Joe forced himself off the ground. He charged at Matt who had his attention on Frank. He reached Matt and wrapped his arms around Matt taking him to the ground, knocking the bat out of his grasp.

"What did you do?" Joe asked.

"I did what was necessary."

Joe had enough. Joe’s right hand formed a fist and his hit Matt square in the jaw. Matt’s head snapped back. He was unconscious.

Turning to Frank, Joe quickly got to his feet and moved toward him. "Frank?" He received no response. Crouching down, he found his brother’s pulse but saw his breathing was labored. Looking closely, he saw blood trickling from Frank’s mouth. He knew that wasn’t a good sign.

He quickly hurried to the van and grabbed the phone punching in the emergency number. He requested police and an ambulance knowing there was a need for both.

*****

Hours later, Joe paced the waiting room at the hospital. He had a lot of nervous energy. He, Laura and Fenton were waiting for word on Frank. Upon arriving at the hospital, Frank had been wheeled into surgery. One of his broken ribs had been punctured his lung and the only way to repair the damage was surgery.

Joe was worried about Frank. He had not regained consciousness by the time they reached the hospital and that bothered him.

I need to calm down, Joe thought. The doctor said I needed to take it easy even though I don’t have a concussion, just a sore bump on the side of my head. But how can I take it easy when Frank is in surgery having his lung repaired. I should have confronted Matt with Frank there instead of by myself. If I had, then he probably wouldn’t have been injured more and in surgery now.

"Joe, you need to sit down," a female voice said interrupting his thoughts.

Turning, he saw Vanessa standing behind him. He took a step toward her and she gave him a hug. "Frank will be all right."

Joe remained quiet. He didn’t think he could believe it until he saw Frank for himself. He allowed Vanessa to guide him over to a couple chairs and they sat down.

Looking around the waiting room, Joe realized his family had been joined by Callie, Tony, Biff and Chet. Everyone was quietly waiting for some word.

Several more hours passed. Joe wasn’t sure how much more he could take. Thoughts of losing Frank kept swirling through his head. He was beginning to feel responsible for what happened.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hardy?" Joe looked up and saw Dr. Wilson standing there in scrubs. "Would you both come with me?"

He watched his parents get to their feet and follow Dr. Wilson out of the waiting room. He had a feeling something had gone wrong with the surgery. Unable to sit still, he got to his feet and resumed pacing. The nervous energy was back in full force. No matter what anyone said, he couldn’t stop moving.

"Joe?" He turned and saw Fenton standing in the doorway alone. He felt as if a lead weight had been dropped in his stomach as he stared at his father. Fenton finally smiled. "He’s going to be all right."

Joe closed his eyes and let out a breath. He was so relieved. He opened his eyes. "Can I see him?"

"Laura is with him right now," Fenton replied. "But you can as soon as he’s moved to his room."

"Good."