Hardy Detective Agency featuring Hardy Boys Fan Fiction

“Mm-hmm,” Joe said distractedly, pulling out his cell phone. He pressed a button and waited, feeling eight pair of eyes watching him expectantly. A moment later he scowled and flipped the phone shut. “Voice mail.”

“Where could he be?” Callie asked, her voice soft and anxious.

Instinctively Joe put an arm around her and gave her a quick hug. “So where were you guys when you split up?” he asked, looking at Phil, Chet and Liz.

“Down by the waterfront,” Liz replied.

“Which way did he go?”

“Um… north? Right?” Chet looked to Phil, Callie and Liz for confirmation.

Phil nodded. “At least that’s the way he was headed. He may have gone in a completely different direction once we lost sight of him.”

‘North on the waterfront,’ Joe thought. Mentally reviewing what was in that section of town, he wondered why Frank thought he could find a medal commemorating one of the military’s highest honors there. ‘Restaurants, specialty stores, the marina, high-end condos…’

“Joe?”

He felt Vanessa’s hand on his arm and turned to her, something niggling in the back of his mind. “Do you have any idea where he went?” she asked, concern clouding her pretty features.

“I’m not…” He began to answer but stopped suddenly. Staring at Vanessa, feeling her hand on his arm, an old memory flashed through his mind.

A Christmas Eve four years removed… A botched armed robbery… A gunshot… Vanessa holding his arm, looking at him with worry and concern…

Joe heard his friends' hushed voices and held up a hand to silence them. Vanessa had triggered a long-forgotten memory that, for some reason, wanted to be heard. Now! And Joe was going to listen. He’d learned long ago to trust his gut instincts and feelings even when he couldn’t logically explain them. So while it seemed to make no sense recalling a joyful holiday gone horribly wrong, he let the random bits and pieces of that very long night float around him.

A last-minute trip to the supermarket for eggnog… standing in a very slow express line… a wink and a smile from an elderly man… “Hold on to her good and tight, sonny.”… “The good ones are hard to find; you don’t want her to get away.”

Joe felt the butterflies in his stomach take off. ‘The old man!’ The elderly couple Joe and Vanessa had befriended in the supermarket that night accepted Laura Hardy’s invitation to have Christmas dinner with the Hardys and had spent a good part of Christmas Day with them. Joe had made it a point to stay in touch with the sweet, elderly couple ever since.

One final memory dropped into place… a spring weekend when Frank, Joe and their friends volunteered to help the old couple move from their now much-too-large home into one of the new condos on the waterfront. When they arrived, the old man had been packing up the last of his mementos, lingering over one he proudly shared with the Hardy brothers – a Purple Heart he’d been awarded during World War II.

Joe looked at his friends, zeroing in on Biff and Phil. “You guys come with me. The rest of you wait here.” He started walking rapidly across the square, his friends’ startled voices echoing behind him.

“What?!”

“Why?!”

“Do you know where he went?” Callie’s voice rose above the rest.

“I’m not positive… but I have a pretty good idea”

“Then I’m coming with you,” Callie insisted, hurrying to match his long strides.

“No,” Joe shook his head.

“Yes!” Callie said stubbornly.

Joe quickened his pace, trying to outdistance her, when a hand on his arm yanked him to a stop.

“Yes, I AM coming with you!” Callie yelled.

Joe whirled around, briefly letting his emotions overwhelm good judgment. “And I said NO!”

Quickly Vanessa stepped in, effectively placing herself between them. Putting a hand on Joe’s chest she gently pushed him back a step while looking directly at Callie. “Just hold on a second, okay?” Turning back towards Joe she asked, “How long will it take you to check this out?”

“I’m not sure,” Joe replied evasively. He wasn’t sure what they’d find but he was certain Frank’s absence wasn’t simply because his brother had lost track of time. Beyond that he had no idea what to expect. Calculating how long it would take to walk to the waterfront condo the elderly couple had moved into while allowing time to look for clues along the way, he responded, “Fifteen-twenty minutes, maybe?”

Vanessa nodded once, looking back to Callie. “We’ll give them twenty minutes.”

“But-” Callie started to protest, with Vanessa firmly interrupting.

“It’ll be quicker and easier with just the three of them,” Vanessa half lied. She knew Joe didn’t want Callie along simply because he had no clue what they’d find. “Besides,” Vanessa’s voice softened, “someone needs to stay here in case Frank comes back while they’re gone.”

Callie looked like she was about to protest again then her face crumpled for the briefest moment. Swiping at her eyes, she looked up at Joe, doing her best to look composed again. “Twenty minutes. If you’re not back I’m calling your dad.”

“Deal,” Joe nodded. He leaned in and gave Vanessa a quick kiss, murmured “Thanks, Babe,” then led Biff and Phil away from the square.

In less than fifteen minutes, the three young men had quickly but thoroughly retraced the route they thought Frank would have taken, finding absolutely nothing to arouse suspicion. They approached the high-rise condominium in silence, climbing the cement steps to the large, double glass doors of the lobby. As Joe reached out to press the buzzer, Phil grabbed his arm to stop him.

Turning, Joe looked at Phil who was staring at the ground at Joe’s feet, as was Biff. “What?” Joe asked following their gaze downward.

Leaning against the brick wall where it met the sidewalk, was a white business sized envelope. The envelope was completely blank save for a name written in large block letters – JOE HARDY.

Like his friends, Joe simply stared at it for a moment as the butterflies in his stomach took flight once more. Patting his pockets, Joe muttered a curse, promising never again to make fun of his brother for routinely carrying a pair of latex gloves in his pocket. Exhaling in frustration, Joe squatted down and gingerly picked up the envelope by the corner. Trying to touch it as little as possible and hoping he wasn’t smearing any fingerprints, Joe opened the envelope and shook it, watching as two folded pieces of paper floated down to rest on the sidewalk.

Holding the papers by the very edges, he unfolded them and stood up. Reading the note on the first sheet, he could feel Biff and Phil reading over his shoulder:

In order to find your brother, you must participate in your own private scavenger hunt – ALONE! You have until 6:00 a.m. to find the items on the attached list. At exactly 6:00 a.m. you will be contacted and told where to deliver the items. We have the ability to monitor your movements. If you allow anyone to help you, your brother will be killed immediately.

Joe stared at the terse note, suddenly chilled at the thought that while he’d been lounging on the grass in the town square, Frank had apparently been ambushed. Lifting the note, Joe glanced at the list of items, then turned to Biff and Phil. “Go back to the square and make sure the girls get home.”

“What?” “Are you crazy?!” His friends exclaimed in unison.

“Joe, you can’t do this alone!” Biff cried out.

“Yeah, I can. And I will,” Joe replied, turning and jogging back down the steps.

Biff looked at Phil and quickly followed. “Come on, man, you have to know you’re walking right into a trap!”

“I don’t care,” Joe said stubbornly.

Biff grabbed his arm, yanking Joe to a stop. “You don’t really think they’re going to let Frank – or you – go just because you deliver everything on that list do you?!” he said, incredulous.

“Joe,” Phil interrupted them, his voice quiet but firm. “Look at that list. Really look at it.”

Joe stared down at the list again, carefully reading each item, not quite sure what Phil was getting at. “What? What am I looking for?” he asked, agitated.

Phil threw a quick glance at Biff before replying. “Clocks, timers, electrical wire…those are all things you need to build a bomb.” Even in the moonlight they could easily see Joe pale. “Joe… you have to go to the police. Or at least tell your dad,” Phil tried to reason with him.

Joe was silent for a moment, glancing at the note again, and then shook his head. “No. I can’t.”

“Come on, Joe,” Biff’s voice was softer now. “If you won’t go to the police or your dad, at least let us help.”

“I can’t,” Joe repeated miserably, shaking the piece of paper at his friends. “They said they’d be watching me. They’ll know if I have help.”

“They said they have the ‘ability to monitor you’,” Phil corrected. “Which could mean anything or nothing at all. They’re probably bluffing.”

Joe was about to respond when the familiar song he’d downloaded as a ringtone onto his cell phone broke the quiet of the late night. Glancing at the display, his eyes widened and he flipped it open. “Frank! Where the hell-”

“You’re wasting time,” an unfamiliar voice cut him off.

Momentarily stunned at the strange voice, he quickly recovered. “Who is this!” he demanded of the stranger using Frank’s cell phone.

“This is the person who is keeping your brother company while you collect the items on your shopping list.”

“I want to talk to him – now!” There was silence for a few seconds and then he heard Frank’s voice.

“Joe?”

“Frank! Are you all right?” Joe asked anxiously, oblivious to the stares of his two friends.

“I’m fine. Listen Joe, don’t do anything they say! They’ll ki-”

Abruptly he was gone. “Frank?! FRANK!” Joe yelled into the phone.

“I’d advise you not to listen to him,” the unfamiliar voice said.

“If you hurt him-” Joe began, seething.

“He’s perfectly fine,” the man assured Joe. “And he’ll stay that way as long as you do exactly as you’re told. However, if you don’t, that will be the last conversation you ever have with your brother.

“Now, I suggest you tell your friends – the two that are with you and the ones waiting in the square – to go home. It’s almost midnight. You only have six hours to collect everything on that list… everything…”

Joe listened to a dull buzzing for a moment before it sank in that the man had hung up. Closing the phone, Joe turned to Biff and Phil. “Leave… now.”

“Who was that?” Phil asked, ignoring Joe’s order.

“It’s the guy who has Frank. And he knows you’re here with me, and that everyone else is waiting in the square.” He fixed Phil with a mild glare. “So now we know he’s not bluffing.”

“Joe, what do you think’s gonna happen once you get everything on that list and turn it over to them?” Phil asked gently. “Do you honestly believe they’ll just let you and Frank walk away?”

Joe looked at the concern in his friends’ faces and his shoulders slumped in defeat. “I know it’s a trap, okay? But I don’t see that I have much choice, do you?” When neither Biff nor Phil spoke he continued, “Please, go back to the square. If you really want to help, make sure Vanessa and Callie get home safely.”

“And what are we supposed to tell them?” Biff made one last desperate attempt to prevent his friend from walking in to what was so obviously a set up.

“Tell them the truth – I’m looking for Frank.”

“Half-truth,” Biff muttered in disgust.

“Come on let’s go.” Phil tugged on Biff’s sleeve as he threw one last glance at Joe. “Good luck.”

Phil turned and walked away, an open-mouthed Biff catching up to him a few seconds later. “Are you nuts?!” he said angrily. “We can’t just let him go off by himself-”

“Will you shut up and listen to me?” Phil hissed as he hurried back towards the square. “Joe said he couldn’t go to the police or his dad… he didn’t say we couldn’t.” Phil spared a glance at Biff and saw confusion quickly followed by understanding.

“Ahhhhhh…” Biff nodded in agreement. “We’re going to tell Mr. Hardy what’s going on.”

“Exactly. But we have to hurry if Mr. Hardy is gonna have any chance of picking up Joe’s trail. Who knows what’ll happen to him – let alone Frank – once he gets everything on that list.”

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Disclaimer

The Hardy Boys belong to Simon and Schuster and the Stratemeyer Foundation. The Hardy Boys Fan Fiction authors of the Hardy Detective Agency have just borrowed them for an adventure or two. The authors promise to put the boys back when they are done with them. The authors do claim copyright to the original characters in this story. Please do not borrow original characters without express permission of the authors.