hardy boys fan fiction
MAKE A WISH
hardy boys nancy drew fan fiction
by
Cherylann Rivers
Chapter 12
hardy boy fan fiction
THE CHAPTERS
Fortunately, Callie didn't have to make the first move, because the next thing she knew, Iola was on the floor behind her. Wrapping her arms around Callie, Iola only whispered, "Oh, God. You, too. They got you too. What will we do?"
Callie couldn't control her shaking , but she managed somehow to back away from her friend. Trying to clear her mind, Callie could only stare at Iola for a moment. Then in a voice that was far more unsteady than Callie could remember, she managed, "Iola? Is it you? It can't be. You're gone. What's happening?" Trembling, Callie could only think to herself that this was what it must be like to lose your mind.
Iola had a pained look on her face. Actually, if Callie could read her right, it was somewhere between horror, awe, and hope. Iola reached out to her friend, but stopped immediately when she saw how terrified Callie looked. Slowly, she began.
"Callie? Gosh, you look so beautiful. I... I began to forget what everyone looked like. How.. how are my mom and dad? And Chet? And.. and Joe? Do they know I'm here? Are they still looking for me? How'd you get here? What have you been doing? Can you help? Oh, Callie. I'm afraid you're stuck here forever like me, too." Iola, stammering these words, finally broke down in tears.
Callie tried to regain some of her composure. Be calm, she told herself. Sure, you're talking to a ghost. No. Actually, she wasn't. She was either in the presence of the real Iola Morton, or someone who sure did look and sound a lot like her. Trying not to focus on the sobbing girl in front of her, Callie attempted to think of what Frank had told her once about clones. She knew that the people who worked for these terrorists were pretty good at making doubles of people. Unluckily for her, Frank had never shared a lot of information on those cases with her, so Callie had to rely on her own judgement, which, she had to admit, had definitely seen better times. But, she had come an awfully long way and had endured a lot to not find out the truth. Taking a shaky breath, Callie addressed Iola.
"Iola? Iola, please. Don't cry. I need to know some things. If.. if you're YOU, then I'm here to help, if I can. Where have you been? What's happened?" Sensing that the girl in front of her had finally looked up and met her eyes, Callie felt her own tears welling in her eyes. No time for that now, she thought, and fought them back. "If you're Iola, God.. there's so much I need to say. If you're someone else, then you already have what you want. It's not a secret. I'm scared to death. PLEASE don't do this to me any more."
The girl looked up at Callie, and then covered her mouth with one hand. Callie shuddered. Iola used to do that all the time at the horror movies that Joe had subjected them both to. This girl looked so much like Iola. Callie felt chills running down her spine. How terribly eerie this was.
"Cal, it's me. It really is." Iola spoke in soft tone, as she usually had. Her words, though, were clipped. "I can't expect you to believe me, Callie. Twice before I've been used to get at Frank and Joe, and they keep me around here just in case they need me again. JUST IN CASE. Can you imagine? Living your own life- if you can call it that- JUST IN CASE you're needed. It's hell, Callie."
Callie looked at Iola. She was stunned. Never before had she had so many unanswered questions, but in this moment, she couldn't think of a single one. She just stood there, transfixed.
Iola looked so frail. Callie couldn't help but notice that although she was as cute as ever, she looked thin and stressed out. Her face, as Callie could remember it, had always been carefree and happy. No laughter lines now existed around her mouth, and her eyes had a deadened quality to them.
Iola continued. "I know you probably have so many things you want to ask, but I can't answer everything. I simply can't rehash all the horror that I've seen here. I hope you can understand, Callie. It's something no one should ever have to go through. And I survive, day by day, thinking of that day, and not of the past. For me, there is no longer any future. I can't hope. Can you imagine? Is there anything worse than living life without hope? That is my life."
Callie looked down. She had recently felt the same way, and she had to agree; without hope, there was nothing.
"But... HOW, Iola? I want to believe you. Please, know that. Because if you're not real, then I think I just traded my life for a lie. How.. where..." Callie could barely get out the words.
Iola looked pained, but she managed to go on. "That day... when we all went to the mall... Joe got me so angry! I can't believe that he had left me for another girl. I think about that time a lot." She paused. "Anyway, I went to the car, and all of a sudden someone grabbed me. I felt an immediate hand over my mouth. I couldn't scream. I was terrified. Less than about 30 seconds later, I'd say, I was dragged away and I heard a loud explosion. The heat , Callie. It was so intense...."
Callie nodded slowly. She remembered all too well the incident.
"Then, somehow, I wound up here. It's not just me, either, Callie. There's a group of us; the "Collateral's" they like to call us. They're dangerous, Cal. They keep people who may aid them in getting revenge on people who have done them wrong. In one guy's case, he's here because of his dad, a police officer. In my case, I'm here because of the Hardys'. They keep us separated for the most past, but they do let us get together every once in a while. They don't like the idea of us talking, because they think we'd try to plan to escape."
Iola took a deep breath. "And we did try to escape. But it's no use. This building has guards, and top -notch security. There are cameras everywhere. And, even if we did escape, we're surrounded by nothingness; we're in the middle of nowhere. Where could we go? What could we do? How could we survive?" Iola choked back a sob. "And if they catch you, they... well, oh, Callie- it's just terrible!"
Callie found herself believing this, as outrageous as this was. "Oh, Iola....." she muttered. Then, looking at her friend, she whispered, "I do believe you."
Iola started to cry, and the two girls embraced. Even Calllie started to cry.
Finally, Iola broke away. "Cal, I.. I'm so happy. I mean, not for you, but for me. I never thought I'd make contact with anyone again."
She continued. "Cal, I don't know what they've done to you, but worse can only be coming. Do you know they had my diary? And my personal belongings? They interview you for hours on end, trying to brainwash clones into torturing the Hardys. That stupid girl- Val, was her name?- worked for them. That's how they knew Joe would get distracted and I would be the one to get taken, not you. But now they have us both! What will we do?"
"Do you know one time, Frank and Joe were here? They tried to get a clone to mentally torture Joe, and she did, later. But you know what? Callie, it was ME who talked to Joe. It WAS. There's no way they could make someone remember all of the intimate details from our relationship. I wanted to hold him so much, and I need him to help me escape. But... he left here, thinking he was fooled the whole time. He wasn't. And here I still am."
"How... well, how is everything?"
Callie had to vaguely smile. "Iola, I can't exactly tell you everything that's happened over the past year or so, but I can try to fill you in as much as possible." With that, Callie began a tale that had Iola so engrossed Callie felt like she was a movie star. But, she reminded herself, this was real life, and there was no happy ending in sight. She told Iola about school, her family, Frank and Joe, and her friends. She recounted the horror of her memorial service, and Joe's reaction to it. She recalled as much as she could, leaving out only two things; the last month, and Vanessa. Oh, lord. THAT was another issue. Callie, though, saw no reason to upset her friend, especially when it didn't look like they were leaving anytime soon.
Iola laughed and cried throughout this tale. Finally, she said, "Even if we can't get out Callie, you've made a wish come true. You've shown me that ... no. That's wrong. You've given me hope."
Callie hugged her friend. "We'll get out of this, Iola. We will."
As Callie was about to check out the doorway from which she just came, she was suddenly overcome by intense pain through her sides. Crying out, she clasped her hands around her stomach and keeled over. Iola, who was standing next to her, grabbed her and helped her to the floor.
"Callie?! What is it? What's the matter?"
Callie couldn't answer. She found it hard to breathe, and she was suddenly intensely cold and nauseated. Closing her eyes, Callie tried to breathe slowly, but it hurt so much....
All at once, the doorway opened. In stepped a man whom Callie barely recognized. But she did. It was "Jeff."
Weakly, she looked up, as Iola held onto her.
"Well, girls, guess what?" he smirked. "It's touching to see your reunion here, but we have some news for you. Our sources tell us that we'll be having company soon. It seems your two men have decided that they know how to find you, and are on their way. So, we've arranged for them to have a special surprise."
Callie groaned, but managed to try and to listen. Iola just looked up, shocked.
"You see, girls, we encourage you to go and greet your men after their long trip. You're free to go."
The girls froze.
"There is a catch, however. You see, first you must find them. That may be a bit of a challenge because we're really isolated here, as you may have heard. So, you'll probably have to endure some harsh weather, bad terrain, and animals. Wild animals. Oh, and the traps we've set to catch them. They're all over. Plus, there is the problem of food and water. But, let's just say you get past all that."
Iola, shaking , said, "Yeah. Let's just say."
Well, then, when you meet your friends, you'll have one more little problem to face. You see, your friend Callie here has been injected with a kind of drug that's effects grow more severe as the days progress. Side effects tend to come and go, but slowly, the nervous system breaks down, causing severe muscle spasms- you know, as well as coldness, blinding headaches, and difficulty breathing. It's really quite a unique thing, really."
Callie stared up in horror as the pain gradually subsided. Weakened, she lay back against the wall. Iola started to cry.
"And finally, if you do meet your men, you may want to inform them that they should take a special trip back here where there is the only known remedy for Callie's little problem. And this better be fast."
With a shudder, Iola managed, "Why?"
"Because in 10 days Callie will be dead."
With that, he opened the doorway to the back and shoved both girls out.
"I wish you the best," he smiled, and left.
The girls were on their own.
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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.