Joe, Frank, and Fenton had heard everything.  They had rushed to her rescue when they heard the man talking.  Joe had recognized his voice.  When they rushed onto the scene the other kidnappers met them.  Fenton had called the police before he had joined his sons in the rescue attempt.  

When they finally reached the dock in which Jay had been thrown from, she could not be seen.  Frank took out Mac while Joe kicked off his shoes and dived into the freezing water.  He searched as quickly as possible, but he could only see a few feet in the murky water.  He came up for air and then quickly dived back in again.

Fenton, Frank and the police, who had shown up quickly, had captured the smugglers and the kidnappers as well as the other men at the dock.  The police found the stolen goods.  Frank decided that he wasn’t needed, so he went to help his siblings.

Joe came up for air again.  He was beginning to feel hopeless, then he saw Frank beside him.  They nodded and dived.  Joe felt something, which he found was Jay.  He pulled her to the surface where Frank met him.  They pulled her back to the dock where Fenton was waiting with the paramedics.  She wasn’t breathing.  They started CPR immediately. 

It seemed like it was an eternity to Joe and Frank.  They hated feeling so helpless, watching Jay’s lifeless body for any sign of life. The seconds seemed to tick by endlessly, until they were sure all hope was lost.

Then, all of a sudden one of the paramedics yelled, “We’ve got her.”  The other replied, “Let’s get her to the hospital.”  Fenton said he would ride in the ambulance with Jay while the boys changed into dry clothes that they had stored in the trunk of their car.  Before Fenton left he called home and told the ladies what had happened and that he would meet them at the hospital.

Frank and Joe changed clothes and then left for the hospital. Neither spoke, but both boys were thinking of Jay. The Hardy’s knew their job was dealing with dangerous criminals who could hurt or kill them, but to watch it happen to someone else was harder to handle.

“You think she’s okay?” asked Joe.

“Yes,” said Frank trying to think positively.  “She was stable when they left and I’m sure she’s fine.”  Frank was worried too.  He thought if he said that out loud, then he would begin to believe it.  He looked at his brother.  Joe was staring at him, his piercing blue eyes going right through his brothers deep brown ones.

Joe shook his head and said, “You are a terrible liar.”

“I know,” said Frank.  “Here is the cell phone, see if you can call Dad.  I don’t think I can wait any longer.”

Joe called several times before his Dad finally picked up.  “Dad, what’s going on?  Is Jay okay?”

“The doctor is with her right now,” said Fenton.  “We won’t know anything for quite awhile.”

“Okay,” said Joe.  He hung up the phone and told Frank what had transpired.

They arrived to find the rest of the family, along with Vanessa and Callie in the waiting room.  They had literally just joined the group when the doctor came to talk to them.

“Fenton, I didn’t know you were here,” said Dr. Marsh.

“We are here waiting for Jay,” said Fenton.  “Do you know anything?”

“Yes,” said Dr. Marsh.  “She is fine, if a little irritable.” The group smiled on hearing this.

“She also wants to leave.  We wanted to keep her over night to be on the safe side, but she is adamant about leaving the hospital.  She is malnourished and she needs to be on vitamins to get her strength back.  We noticed that some of her broken bones did not heal properly.  They need to be repaired.”

“What broken bones?” asked Joe in shocked wonder.

“She told me that she had broken her arm several years ago, but she didn’t go to the doctor or a hospital.  I don’t know how she can deal with the pain.  She refused the painkillers.”

“How would you fix it?” asked Laura.

“We would have to re-break the bone, and then reset it. And she would have to receive plenty of rest,” said Dr. Marsh.

Fenton spoke at once, “We would like to take care of this as soon as possible.”

“I didn’t know she was your child, Fenton,” said Dr. Marsh, looking slightly surprised.

“Well, I think she will be,” said Fenton, marveling at how easily the words came out. Part of the family¼  “We are going to adopt her.”

“That will be great,” said Dr. Marsh.  “But first, before we proceed you need to be her legal guardians.”

“I have my lawyer working on it right now,” said Fenton.  “He said the judge will agree to if after talking with Jay.”

“Dr. Marsh could you guess how old Jay is?” asked Vanessa.

“Well, if I was to guess by what I’ve seen so far,” began the doctor, turning to face Vanessa,  “I would say about sixteen to may eighteen, probably closer to sixteen.” Just then his pager began to beep and after a hurried goodbye the doctor walked off, leaving the small group discussing what had been said.

“Sixteen?” said Joe after the doctor left.  “She is a baby.”

“A baby that has seen a great deal,” said Frank.  “And who we allowed to get into a whole lot of danger.  Dad, you and Mom should know that Jay has trouble sleeping.  Actually, she doesn’t sleep at all.”

“We will have to tell the doctor,” said Laura.

“It’s a good thing I’m here,” Joe smiled and looked at Callie, who looked at him quizzically in response. “I’ll just have to teach her how to be a kid,” he continued, a broad smile on his face.

“Well, that is certainly true,” Frank broke in.  “You certainly know a lot about that topic.”

Joe made a mock dive at his older brother, who stepped neatly out of the way. He pretended to look offended. “I’m not sure how to take that,”

No one, however, was fooled by Joe’s expression. Vanessa came up and put her arm through his, kissing him on the cheek. “Take it as a complement, sweetie,” said Vanessa.  “I love you just the way you are.”

“See, someone loves me,” Joe stuck his tongue out at Frank playfully and in turn Frank just rolled his eyes.

“Can we get out of here?” asked Jay from behind them.  A nurse had just wheeled her out to them. Jay looked tired, but somehow lighter, as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

Laura turned to Frank and said, “I want you to take Jay home and make sure she eats, showers and then to bed.  She can at least rest, even if she doesn’t go to sleep.  Fenton and I have a few errands to run.”

“Sure, Mom,” said Frank.

“Don’t worry, Jay.  I won’t let Frank poison you,” Joe chipped in as he grasped the wheelchair and began pushing Jay down the corridor making racing car sounds as he went.

Laura and Fenton couldn’t help laughing as they left the group.

“We are taking on a huge responsibility,” said Laura to her husband as they walked down the hospital corridor.   “She is going to need lots of love and attention.”

“I know, honey,” said Fenton.  “But I believe we are the family to give her what she needs.  Besides, I already see her as part of the family.  I am not going to loose her.”

“I feel the same way,” said Laura, “but she needs to see a psychologist.  With everything she has been through, I’m sure she is going to need professional help to heal.”