A/N: I'm glad you guys enjoyed that chapter! Yes Joe is awake, but there's still the threat of his kidnapper out there... ;)

Without further ado, the last chapter :)

Chapter 12: An Arrest Is Made

After Joe's confession, Frank waited with him till their dad got back, who they immediately told and who called Captain Gordon afterwards. When the Captain showed up, he again pulled out his note pad and pen. "I'm sorry I wasn't being honest before," Joe said, looking at Gordon. "I was scared," he continued, moving his eyes down to his hands.

"It's okay Joe, but there's no need to be scared now," the Captain told him. "Now, why don't we start where you left off from last time?"

Joe nodded and with the comfort and safety of his dad and brother on either side, he told his story for the third time. When he said the sheriff was the one who did it, Gordon looked surprised.

"Are you sure it was him?" he asked, not wanting to believe. He was answered with a nod and a 'yes.' "Geez," he said. "I can't believe Tate would do that…" He looked down at his note pad for a couple of minutes before continuing. "Thank you Joe, I think I have everything I need. I'll send officers out to his house so he can be brought in," he told them as he walked to the door.

"Thank you Captain. We appreciate everything you've been doing," Fenton said as he shook Gordon's hand and closed the door behind him. He went back to his chair and sat down. "Frank and I never trusted that guy…and then when we found the property papers to the cabin in his house…" Fenton said, drifting off and getting upset. He calmed down before looking at his youngest and giving his hand a small squeeze. "They'll find and arrest him in no time," he told him with a smile.

Joe looked at his dad and gave him a small smile before looking down. Why was a part of him feeling guilty?

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By the next day, there had been no news on Tate's arrest but Fenton and Frank had been optimistic to Joe that he'd be found. Meanwhile, Dr. Sherman had told the Hardy's that Joe had recovered well enough that he could go home later that day, much to all of their relief. Throughout their time in the room before discharging, Frank had noticed that Joe seemed different at times, but just chalked it up to leaving the hospital and Tate still being free. Whenever he started to act a little differently, it would last a few seconds and then he would snap out of it. It happened so fast that nobody noticed it…except for Frank. 'He may be starting to act like himself, but with what he's been through, he may need to get some help…and I'll be there for him every step of the way,' he thought.

It wasn't long before Joe was getting dressed in his room while his father and brother were signing the discharge papers. After saying thanks and good-byes to Dr. Sherman and the nurses, the Hardy's got into a taxi and headed back to their hotel, where both Frank and Joe flopped down on their beds the second they walked in. "Aw man…this isn't home, but it feels good to be out of there," Joe said with his eyes closed.

"Amen brother," agreed Frank, looking at the ceiling while their dad smiled at them.

"I hate to leave, but I'm going to go to the police station and see if there have been updates or if they need help," Fenton said. He went to each bed and gave his sons a kiss on their head before leaving.

Neither brother moved from their spots after their dad left until there was a knock on the door. They both let out a groan, not wanting to get up. After another knock, Frank finally got up and answered the door where he was met with Tate Williams holding a gun. Without saying a word, he pushed Frank back with his free hand and closed the door before locking it, not taking his gun off the older Hardy.

By this time, Joe had sat up in his bed and kept looking back and forth from the man with the gun and his brother. "What do you want Tate?" Frank asked, moving slightly towards Joe.

Tate looked at Frank and then at Joe and pointed his gun at him. "You're gonna start telling the truth," he told him.

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Back at the police station, Fenton had walked up to Gordon and was gonna ask him if he needed any help. He was told before that they were looking everywhere for the sheriff, but it was like he just disappeared. This time however, they had gotten something. "Fenton, I'm glad you're here," Gordon said when he walked up. "We got a call from Tate not too long ago," he told him.

"What'd he say?" asked Fenton, surprised.

"Just that he was innocent and he was gonna prove it," Gordon told him.

Fenton looked at him in confusion for a few seconds before it dawned on him. "The boys!" he said, dashing out of the station with Gordon and other officers right behind.

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"What are you talking about?" asked a confused Frank.

Tate looked over at him, his gun still on Joe. "I thought I was helping when I wrote that note telling you where your brother was, but it just backfired on me," he told him.

Frank looked at him, still puzzled. "Wait, you sent that note?"

Tate ignored him. "I got fired because of that note and now I'm being blamed for this," he continued, moving his gaze to the younger Hardy who was still sitting on the bed. "I was doing illegal fights at night and he found out…threatened me to go along with everything or he'd arrest me. I didn't want to but I did…and then I sent that note and he was furious when he found out," he mumbled. His voice growled when he continued. "Now I'm a wanted man because of you!" He raised the gun towards Joe's head but Frank got in the way.

"What are you talking about?" he repeated.

Tate looked from Frank to Joe. "Tell him the truth!" he yelled. "You tell him that you've never seen my face until now or I'll kill him!" he said, pointing his gun at Frank's chest.

Frank looked at his brother with a perplexed look. Joe's breathing got heavier as he went from Tate to Frank, a scared look on his face. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "He told me to blame you or he'd kill my family," he whispered, still looking at Tate and his brother.

"That's not good enough!" Tate yelled. "Tell him who really did it or I swear I'll shoot him!" he said again, cocking the gun. Frank didn't stop staring at his brother, even with the threat of death in front of him.

Before anyone could do anything else, the adjoining door burst open and a gun shot went off. Both Frank and Joe jumped, not knowing who got hit. When Frank saw that Joe was okay and that he didn't feel any pain himself, he looked over at where Tate was standing and saw him lying on the floor. Then he looked up and saw his dad and a couple of officers standing by the open door and Captain Gordon in front of them, holding his smoking gun. "Frank, Joe, are you boys all right?" asked their dad as he went up to them to give them a hug.

"We're fine," Frank said quietly as he returned to look at his little brother. Joe still sat at the edge of the bed, starting at Tate's dead body.

"Did he tell you anything?" Gordon asked as he kicked Tate's gun away.

Frank looked at him. "Just that he was innocent, he sent us that note, and that Joe was lying."

Fenton looked at his youngest, took a hold of his arm, and had him stand up so that he was looking at him. "Why did he say that?" he asked, but got no response.

During the silence, Frank was still staring at the Captain, who was looking at Joe and who still had his gun drawn. That's when Frank realized that whenever Joe's demeanor changed, Gordon was around. He would slightly tense up when Gordon talked and he never looked him in the eyes when the Captain spoke towards him. Frank looked over at Joe. "I'm so sorry Joe," he said quietly. His brother and father looked at him. "You've been trying to tell us the truth, but I think I was so caught up in you being safe and blaming Tate that I never noticed it," he continued.

When Frank noticed that Joe did a side long glance at Gordon, he stepped in between them. Putting his hands on Joe's shoulders, he had him look him in his eyes and said, "It's okay Joe. You don't have to be scared anymore…I'm here."

Seeing the trust and seriousness in his big brother's eyes, Joe let out the breath he didn't know he was holding. "He was right. I did lie," he said quietly. "It was Gordon who did everything, not Tate. He had me blame the sheriff or he would kill you and dad," he confessed.

When he heard that, Fenton looked at Gordon with anger filled eyes. "He's lying!" the Captain yelled when he saw the look on the elder Hardy's face. He was gonna say something else but a punch to the jaw stopped him. Fenton stared at him on the floor, his fist throbbing, as the other officers arrested him. "You stupid brat! You were supposed to die so your father knew what if felt like to lose a son!" he screamed as he was being led away.

Frank looked at Gordon with disgust and hatred, his hands still on Joe's shoulders. He looked back at his brother when he heard him say "I'm sorry" again.

Fenton came up to them. "You have nothing to be sorry about son," he told him as he grabbed both of them into a bear hug.

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A few hours later, Joe and Frank were giving their statements to officers outside their hotel while a body bag came out and was put into a waiting ambulance. With all three Hardy's together, Officer Dayes, who had protected Joe at night while he was in a coma, told them why Gordon did all of this. He had confessed to everything and said that he saw Fenton walking that first night and attacked him. He was going to kill him when he saw Frank and Joe coming. When he ran away, he had an idea to kidnap and kill Joe to get revenge for what Fenton did when he still worked at the NYPD. His son, Jaeson Kreps, had robbed a bank and was holding hostages, threatening to kill them. Fenton was the one who took Jaeson out before he could hurt anyone. Gordon and his ex-wife divorced before Jaeson was born and before Gordon was a cop, so he just took his mother's maiden name; and his son was 17 when he died, which is why he went after Joe.

"I remember that," Fenton said silently, looking at his sons. After a while, he looked at Officer Dayes. "What about the property papers that we found in Tate's house?" he asked.

"Gordon confessed to planting those. He was hoping that you'd do some investigating yourself and find them," Dayes told him. Fenton nodded his thanks while the officer left the Hardy's.

"Some trip, huh?" Joe said, looking at his family. He smiled when Frank and Fenton looked at him and grinned.

With no worry about any trials, the Hardy's had no reason to stay in Florida any longer. "Why don't we go home a little early this year?" suggested their father. Both boys happily nodded, already counting down the minutes before they could lay in their own beds. With a laugh, Fenton walked over to Dayes to make sure it was okay for them to go home. After he got a yes, he called a taxi while a couple of officers went to get their stuff for them.

When everything was all packed and in the taxi, all three men relaxed in the backseat as their driver took them to the airport. Sitting in the middle and leaning his head back against the seat, Joe closed his eyes. "Thank you guys…for everything," he simply said without opening his eyes.

Frank looked at his brother, then his dad who smiled, and back at Joe. "Anytime little brother," he replied. Joe didn't say anything as he smiled in return.

The rest of the car ride and plane ride were quiet until they got home hours later. They had never been so happy (and relieved and relaxed) until at that moment when they sat down on the couch. "So," Joe said, ending the silence. "Since we're home now…you were right Frank. You should have just left without me," he said with a sly smirk. Frank and Fenton looked at him and broke out in laughter. They were together again, they were a family again...and that's all that mattered.

THE END

A/N: Did I surprise you about who really did it? ;) My original idea was to have Tate be it but when I was writing it, I was like "no, that's too obvious...let's have the captain do it and then blame the sheriff!" lol...I hope you still liked it! :) And sorry again about not having Laura in it...

Any-who, I'm sooo happy that all of you loved my story! Thank you so much for all the reads and reviews! :D