HDA - Where Troubles Melt by Cherylann Rivers Introduction

It was late by the time Joe pulled his car into the Marriott Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts. He was tired, and it had been a long drive. That night, they all planned to rest up before heading in different directions first thing in the morning to speak with both the Smith and Wilkins families.

"Joe? Can you go and check in? Callie and I will be waiting here in the car for you to get back, and we’ll organize the few bags that we have."

Joe turned to the voice at his side, and smiled. "Sure, Iola. Frank and I will check in. You stay here." With those words, Joe opened his door and hopped out. He watched through the window as his brother gave Callie a quick kiss, and then followed him outside. With a sigh, Joe headed toward the lobby, taking one last quick glance at Iola. Well, his father had been right—Vanessa hadn’t been too pleased with his last minute plans and had decided not to come along. As it turned out, she was helping her mother on a computer graphics design project, and would probably be tied up for a few days. He should have known better, anyway. Vanessa meant the world to him, and one of the things he loved about her was that she could speak her mind and was independent. It should have dawned on him that she might have had other plans. With a pout, he thought about how he’d miss her as he waited in line to check in.

"Joe? You okay?" Frank’s voice snapped him out of daydreaming.

With a sheepish grin, he replied, "Yeah. I was just thinking about Vanessa. I wish she could have come."

Frank stared at him. "And how does she feel about you being here with Iola, anyway?" Frank couldn’t resist asking the question. Somehow, although Joe clearly loved Vanessa, he managed to get himself involved in this love triangle with Iola, and Frank didn’t like it one bit.

Joe blushed. "Well, you know…" His voice trailed off.

Frank’s eyes grew wide. "Joe? You DID tell her, didn’t you?!" Frank couldn’t believe this. Joe wouldn’t be stupid enough not to tell Vanessa- would he?

Clearing his throat, Joe replied to his brother, "Well, I mean, yeah I told her. Sort of. You know, this was kind of last minute and all, so she doesn’t know all the details…"

Frank eyes him suspiciously. "What do you mean you ‘kind of’ told her?" He refused to let this go.

Joe gritted his teeth. Frank could be really annoying sometimes. "I left a message on her answering machine, and told her Iola was coming since she was pretty good at jewelry identification and could possibly be a help." He tried not to sound annoyed.

Frank shook his head in disbelief. "You have got to be kidding me! She’s going to go nuts when you get home—and with good reason! Besides…" Frank stopped and met his brother’s eyes. "Are you sure that’s why Iola is here? It’s not fair to play both her and Vanessa, and you should know better than that."

Now Joe was angry. He felt his voice rise. "Of COURSE I’m sure that’s why she’s here, and how DARE you suggest that I would hurt either Iola or Vanessa. You’re out of your mind!"

"Be quiet!" Frank snapped back at him. "People are staring!"

Joe took a deep breath and noticed that people really were staring. He lowered his voice. "Fine!" he said quietly. "But mind your own business. You have enough to worry about with Callie and that whole stupid situation!" He regretted the words as soon as they were out of his mouth.

Frank looked shocked, and then lashed out. "What the HELL is that supposed to mean?"

Now Joe had gone too far to turn back. He answered back. "It means that maybe if she’d have been a little more careful, none of this would have happened. She has some responsibility in this. Both of you ought to make a decision about what you’re going to do! I refuse to let this ruin your life, and I plan to talk to her about it!" Joe couldn’t stop himself. "If she goes away after I talk to her, who cares? I need to say it to her, and to you, too!"

Frank felt his heart drop. Never, never could he have imagined Joe being so callous, so hard, toward his beloved Callie. How dare he blame her! How dare he try and tell her that his support of her was ruining his life. And Joe didn’t care if she "went"; if she died?! He wanted to hit Joe, to make him suffer like he was suffering; like Callie was suffering. However, he couldn’t. He obviously didn’t know Joe any longer, and he felt suddenly and completely alone. He might lose Callie; he had just lost Joe. Without a word, Frank turned on his brother and walked out of the hotel.

Joe, left alone, froze. On one hand, he was glad he had said what he did; Frank needed to hear the truth, and so did Callie. On the other hand, Joe felt un-nerved. Frank had actually looked- stung- when he had spoken. He’d never seen that look on Frank’s face before—never.

A shiver ran through him, which he ignored. He went to pay for two rooms for the night, ignoring that intense feeling of --- loneliness—he couldn’t remember feeling before. He shook it off.

Outside, in the car, he found Frank and the girls.

"We’re in rooms 202 and 204," he said matter- of-factly to them.

"Fine," Frank responded evenly. "Let’s go." He grabbed his bag and Callie’s, and headed ahead of the girls to the elevator inside. Joe stormed behind him.

Callie and Iola glanced nervously at one another. "What’s with Frank and Joe?" Callie whispered.

Iola shrugged her shoulders, bewildered. They followed the boys inside.

Once they arrived at their rooms, Frank jammed the key into the slot for the room that he was sharing with Joe. He tossed his bag inside, and left the door open. Moments later, Joe arrived, stalking past his brother into their room.

The girls appeared soon after. As soon as they did, Frank met Callie in the hallway and took her hand. "Cal? I need to talk to you about something," he said to her. "Let’s go to your room." He didn’t want to hurt Callie by telling her about Joe’s unfathomable words, but he did want to let her know that he and Joe would be working very separately on this case for a while, and that he’d prefer it if she stayed with him, by his side. There was no way he was going to let Joe say anything to Callie that might upset her or cause her pain. She was going through far too much as it was.

Callie, puzzled, nodded at him. "O…Okay. Iola, I’ll be back in a little while and then we can trade rooms. I’m a little tired anyway."

Frank shot a concerned look at his girlfriend. If she was tired, he’d make sure she got some rest very soon.

Iola gave a small smile to Callie. "All right." She followed Joe into his room, unsure of what to do or say next. She had been totally surprised when Joe had asked her to come along and help them out. He knew that she hated being on cases, so her presence must really be needed. She tried with all her might not to hope that Joe wanted anything more from his invitation. She was trying so hard not to hurt Vanessa, and, above all, not to love Joe. But, she thought, as she looked at his handsome face and bright blue eyes, she couldn’t help it. She did love him; she just couldn’t—and wouldn’t—act on it. She had more dignity than that.

She decided to check on him. " Joe? You look upset. Is there… is there anything I can help you with? Or… would you like me to leave you alone? I’ll give you privacy if you’d like to call Vanessa." The words hurt, but she wanted to make sure Joe was okay. That was the most important thing.

Joe, sitting on the bed, felt overwhelmed. He looked at Iola. After all she had been through, she was still so sweet and loving. He really wanted to talk to someone, but he knew Vanessa would be busy at home, and he didn’t want to bother her.

"You don’t have to leave. I’d…I’d like you to stay," he found himself saying to her. He surprised himself, too, because he meant it. Iola had always been there for him. She looked so lovely….

Joe snapped himself out of it. What was he doing? He loved Vanessa. He had been there and done that with Iola. Still, he did love Iola, too, in his own way. Chiding himself for letting him think anything other than a platonic thought for Iola, Joe just sighed.

Iola sat down next to him. "Would you like to tell me what’s wrong? Maybe I can help you," she said earnestly to him.

Joe, feeling totally upset about his argument with Frank, opened his mouth to say something, and then immediately shut it. He had promised Frank that he wouldn’t say anything. Then again, he had just told Frank he’d be speaking with Callie, and Iola always HAD been trustworthy….

Finally, he met her eyes, and found himself taking her hand. "Iola? I’d like to tell you, but you have to promise me not to say anything."

Iola felt her heart beating wildly at Joe’s touch, but she remained composed. "Of course. You know I’ll be quiet," she said, sincerely. She squeezed his hand.

Taking a deep breath, Joe spent the next ten minutes telling Iola about everything he knew, including Frank’s planned engagement. He ended with, "….so Callie’s pregnant, and Frank feels obligated to marry her. What should I do?"

Iola almost gagged. Callie was pregnant? Frank was going to marry her? There was no way this could be true. She told him that.

"It IS true, Iola." Joe’s eyes pleaded with her to understand.

"Oh, Joe…" Iola managed, flustered. "I’ll help you think of something." They continued to talk.

When Callie and Frank hadn’t returned after nearly an hour, Iola decided to bid Joe good night and head over to her room next door. Opening the door a crack, she looked in, and found Frank sitting on the edge of the bed, next to a seemingly sleeping Callie. He was holding her hand.

As Iola was about to close the door, she saw Frank lean over and kiss Callie’s forehead. She also heard him whisper, softly, "Good-night, Callie. I’m so sorry, baby. You’ll pull through—I know you will. We’ll get through this together. I love you."

Iola closed the door and pretended to just get there as Frank exited the room. With barely a glance at her, he left. Iola entered her room, in shock. Joe had been right. Callie was pregnant. What were they going to do?!

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Disclaimer

The Hardy Boys belong to Simon and Schuster and the Stratemeyer Foundation. The authors 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 them without express permission of the authors.