Later that evening, Frank Hardy sat in the outpatients’ section of the hospital describing their eventful camping trip to his father. Fenton and Laura had received a telephone call from Chet Morton and quickly made their way to where their sons and friends were being treated. After an emotional reunion with Frank, Vanessa, and Callie, Laura had rushed to the surgical recovery ward where Joe was resting after surgery to remove the bullet. There she would remain, she had told staff in no uncertain terms, until her son had regained consciousness and had told her in his own voice that he was okay. No-one, it seemed, was prepared to argue with Laura Hardy about her declaration!

Frank and Vanessa had both been examined and treated for dehydration. Frank had a bandage across his forehead but was otherwise pronounced fit and well.

Fenton Hardy listened in silence to all the details his son had to recount. Callie had described what had transpired while he and Vanessa were being held captive, so Frank was able to tell his father the full story. Fenton looked grave.

"I’ve spoken to Ezra,’ he told Frank. ‘He’s eager to interview each of you as soon as possible so that he can formally arrest and charge this man. He’ll be here soon. He plans to conduct the interviews in one of the rooms here. Of course I’ve told him that Joe is in no condition to be asked questions yet.’

Frank nodded. It was in all their interests for the man to be arrested as soon as possible, even if it meant Callie and Vanessa having to relate the distressing details of the past two days.

‘I’ll be sitting in with each of you during the interviews,’ Fenton said, as though he had read Frank’s thoughts. ‘I trust Ezra, but I really want this guy nailed. I’ve told him I’m at his complete disposal for as long as he needs me on this.’

‘Aren’t you in the middle of some big government case?’ Frank asked his father.

‘I am,’ Fenton told him, putting his hand on Frank’s shoulder, ‘but Sam can go ahead on his own for the time being. I wouldn’t be much good to him at the moment anyway given what’s happened to you and your friends. This is personal.’

More accustomed to Fenton being out of reach, even during times of crisis, Frank was more than delighted.

‘Thanks Dad,’ said Frank, warmly.

‘Besides,’ said Fenton with a grim smile, ‘I have a feeling that your mother would skin me alive if I told her I had a more important case to deal with right now! And I wouldn’t blame her!’

…..

In the dimly lit, post operative ward, Laura was sitting by Joe’s bed, holding her son’s hand. She looked up and smiled as Frank came into the room.

‘How is he?’ her older son asked quietly.

‘He woke up a little while ago, but he’s drifted off again,’ said Laura. ‘He managed to tell me he was sorry and that he was fine. You know what he’s like! And then he was rambling on about needing to get some daffodils to give to Callie!’

Frank raised his eyebrows and brought another chair closer to the bed so that he could sit next to his mother and Joe. His brother’s shoulder was heavily bandaged and he was hooked up to various monitors, but Frank thought he looked peaceful.

‘You know,’ said Laura, patting Frank’s arm affectionately with her free hand, ‘I worry about you two so much when you’re helping your Dad on a case, and here you are in hospital after taking your girlfriends camping! At least I can’t go ballistic at your father over this!’

‘We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time,’ said Frank quietly. He still couldn’t quite believe the turn the weekend had taken. It was definitely NOT what he and Callie had had in mind when they had planned it!

‘How are Vanessa and Callie?’ asked his mother, her blue eyes shining with concern.

‘They’re okay,’ Frank assured her. ‘They’re not looking forward to the police interview, but Dad says he’s going to be there, so they’ll be okay.’ Images of Vanessa’s bravery and Callie’s rescue bid flashed through his mind.

‘Those girls should be asking for danger money for going out with you two,’ Laura was saying. ‘Even though you’re two of the most handsome young men I’ve ever seen, I wouldn’t be blaming them if they’d dropped you by now!’

‘What about you, mum?’ asked Frank. ‘You and Dad have been together for a long time. Some pretty awful things have happened to him. You haven’t dropped him yet.’

His mother took his hand and squeezed it, her lovely face beaming.

‘You don’t have much choice other than to stick around once you truly love someone, whatever happens,’ she told her son.

…..

Ezra Collig could tell the attractive young woman sitting in front of him was extremely uncomfortable relating the details of her and Frank’s imprisonment, but she was coping very well. Fenton had convinced him to interview Vanessa and Frank together. They were finally at the end of their story.

‘Will we be able to get our things back, Chief Collig?’ Vanessa asked hopefully.

‘What are you referring to Vanessa?’ asked Fenton kindly.

‘My bracelet and Frank’s watch,’ she replied. ‘The man took them from us. I didn’t see what he did with them.’

‘I assumed you’d find them on him,’ said Frank, but Collig shook his head.

‘We found no jewellery or money in his possession,’ he told them. Frank noticed his father and Collig exchange alarmed looks. Suddenly, Chief Collig was more interested in full descriptions of what had been taken from them than in what had been said or done to them.

‘Was there anything else this man said or did that struck you as unusual?’ Collig asked them finally. Frank furrowed his brow. It had been an exhausting couple of days but he forced himself to think carefully.

‘Visitors!’ he exclaimed suddenly. Collig, Vanessa and Fenton all looked at him curiously.

‘Remember, Vanessa? He said something about me joining his "other visitors". I didn’t know what he meant, and I still don’t. There were no other people there with us.’

Again Fenton and Collig exchanged significant looks. Collig closed his notebook and smiled at Vanessa warmly.

‘Vanessa, I’ve been very impressed with your ability to answer all these questions. I’ve interviewed people who have endured half of what you have gone through and hardly got more than sketchy details and a whole lot of tears out of them. You’ve done well!’

‘I’m very proud of you as well,’ Fenton told her, causing Vanessa to blush fiercely.

‘I just want you to be able to put that man in jail for a long time for treating us like that and shooting Joe,’ she said earnestly. Collig looked grave and again exchanged knowing glances with Fenton.

‘Oh I think we’ll have absolutely no trouble organizing that,’ he told her. Vanessa smiled gratefully. Frank was pleased but puzzled.

….

Frank watched from the corner of the private room his brother had been moved to that morning, while Chief Collig interviewed Joe. Frank, Vanessa and Callie had all eventually spent the night at the hospital. While it wasn’t deemed to be absolutely necessary, the unusually high number of vacancies had influenced the doctors concerned to keep all three of them overnight for observation. Joe had finally come out of the anesthetic but had dozed on and off all night. Even though Joe was still weak and needed several more days in hospital, the surgeon was more than happy with his recovery so far.

‘I didn’t actually see the guy shoot me,’ Joe was telling Collig. ‘I did glance back a couple of times to make sure he was still following me, but once I ran around the hole, I didn’t dare.’

‘I’ve been out this morning to see that hole you dug,’ said Collig, shaking his head in amazement. ‘It was VERY deep! I can’t believe you managed to dig it on your own.’

Joe shrugged modestly. ‘I needed to make sure he wasn’t going to be able to climb out once he fell into it,’ he said. ‘I guess I also had a lot of nervous energy to burn.’

‘Well he did more than just fall into it,’ said Fenton, his eyes smiling. ‘He broke his femur clean through and dislocated his shoulder. Apparently, getting him out was a very painful process.’

‘Can’t say I’m sorry,’ Joe told them. ‘Not after what he put us all through.’ He looked over at his brother. He hadn’t had a chance to speak to Frank on his own yet. He was eager to hear about how Vanessa had coped. She had already been to see him, of course, but had wanted to only focus on him.

Sensing Joe’s need to be alone with Frank, Fenton suggested to Collig that they have further discussion over coffee. The two men left, with Fenton promising Joe that he would be back later that day to talk further with him.

Frank occupied the chair by the bed and placed on the blanket a huge paper bag he had been holding. Joe looked at him questioningly.

‘From Callie,’ Frank told him. ‘Must be a joke, but I don’t get it.’ He opened the bag so that his brother could see the fifty or so red lollipops inside the bag. Joe’s pale face broke into a huge grin.

‘What’s the joke?’ asked Frank, putting the bag onto the bedside table.

‘There’s no joke,’ Joe told him. ‘It’s just something between Cal and I.’ His smile disappearing, Joe looked anxiously at Frank.

‘He didn’t hurt Vanessa at all,’ Frank told him, anticipating what his brother wanted to ask him. ‘She got a bit spooked, but so did I!’

‘I’m sort of glad you were together,’ said Joe in a somber voice. ‘I wouldn’t have liked her to have been alone with him.’

The brothers said nothing for a while, enjoying the comfortable, silent closeness between them. Eventually Frank spoke.

‘You took a big risk Joe.’

‘It was worth it.’

‘What if he didn’t fall into the trap?’

‘He did.’

‘He could have killed you or injured you more seriously.’

‘He didn’t.’

‘I thought you and Callie would spend the whole time fighting. Vanessa had more faith in the pair of you than I did.’

Joe smiled.

‘We did have a few little differences of opinion, but I reckon we made a great team.’

‘Well she nearly bit my head off when I told her your plan was idiotic. And now she can’t speak more highly of you.’

Joe’s grin became even broader as he thought about Callie yelling at him for not having a phone to ring for help. One day he would tell Frank the whole, entertaining story. But now was not the right time.

‘She gave you back the coin?’ he asked Frank.

‘Certainly did,’ Frank told him quietly.

‘That coin helped me you know,’ admitted Joe, his face growing serious. ‘It made me determined to find you and get it back to you. And it reminded me that were still with me, even though I didn’t know where you were.’

Frank took Joe’s hand in his and their fingers became entwined.

‘Always,’ he sighed.

…..

At 2.00pm that afternoon, Fenton took Frank aside to give him some very important but disturbing news. The police had determined the identity of the kidnapper. John Winter already had a criminal record. A preliminary search of the grounds of the cabin had revealed the skeletal remains of three bodies. The authorities were yet to run tests on the remains, but they were currently checking the age of the skeletons against records of three teenagers who had gone missing in the same vicinity a number of years ago. It was deemed very likely that Winter was a serial killer.

Frank’s mouth dropped open in disbelief.

‘But digging up the grounds isn’t part of a normal preliminary investigation,’ he said in amazement. ‘What made the police think there were bodies buried there?’

Fenton lowered his voice as a nurse walked by where they were sitting.

‘Ezra instructed his men to look for your missing watch and Vanessa’s bracelet. They were found in a small canister amongst Winter’s belongings in that cabin, along with other items of personal jewellery. We expect to be able to link those items to poor souls reported missing in the area several years ago.’

Frank’s face paled over.

‘Something to remember his other guests by,’ Frank whispered.

‘Unfortunately, yes,’ said his father grimly. ‘It seems you and Vanessa had a luckier escape than any of you realised.’

Drawing Frank into a comforting embrace, Fenton closed his eyes with relief. How close he had come to losing both of his sons! And they hadn’t even been on a case!

‘Joe needs to know,’ he told Frank. ‘The story will be all over the news very soon. I know he’s still recuperating, but I’d rather he hear it from us and be given the chance to break it to Vanessa.’

Frank drew back from his father and looked him in the eye.

‘You tell him,’ he urged Fenton. ‘Joe still remembers you keeping him in the dark during the last case. He’ll really appreciate you bringing him up to speed on everything.’