He was slowly becoming aware of his surroundings. He wasn’t in his bed – whatever he was lying on wasn’t very comfortable. He tried to raise his hand but it wouldn’t obey. His eyelids felt heavy...Joe tried to open his eyes. They fluttered for a moment then slowly opened. The room was dark, and slowly moving his head Joe saw a dark silhouette.

“Mom?” His voice sounded weak and raspy.

“You’re awake…here take a sip of this,” a female voice said.

The figure raised his head up; Joe felt a cool liquid touch his lips and drank greedily. Suddenly he started to choke and tried to spit out the liquid. “Tastes…tastes funny,” he complained.

“Yes, we’ve always had trouble with the water. But you get used to it after awhile.”

Joe’s eyes had adjusted to the dark and he could just make out the features of the woman sitting beside him. He wished he could see her better – and then a small light suddenly came on. He blinked a few times then got a good look at the woman.

“Oh no….I thought it was a dream! But it’s you…it’s really you!”

“Here, drink some more.” Alice smiled as she forced the rest of the water down Joe’s throat.

Joe tried to move his head but Alice had a tight grip on his hair, pulling his head back. He had no other choice but to swallow the water. His head fell back onto the cot.

“Where’s Vanessa – what did you do to her?” Joe’s voice cracked with fear.

“I don’t know where she is. I didn’t bring her with us,” Alice replied as she sat down on the stool.

Joe flinched when he felt Alice’s fingers caress his forehead. She leaned down, laying her head on his shoulder. He was glad that the cot he was on wouldn’t hold two people. Suddenly the room began to spin.

“Wha…what wasss in…the wa…wa…” Joe giggled.

Alice giggled along with Joe; she then sat up, smiling down at him. She waited for a minute then began to release Joe from his bonds

“I’m going to help you sit and then stand up.”

She helped Joe to his feet, but they almost fell when his legs buckled. Alice managed to keep her balance. Walking towards the stairs, weaving as they went. she made sure that Joe was close to the wall, having him lean against it as they slowly made their way up. It took a few minutes as Joe didn’t always raise his leg high enough to reach the step. They almost fell a few times because of this.

Finally reaching the top of the stairs, Alice led Joe to a guest bedroom located on the first floor – not wanting to attempt climbing up to the second floor of the home. She had Joe sit down on the bed and then removed his clothes.

Alice helped Joe into pajamas then tucked him into bed. Walking to the foot of the bed, she pulled back the covers, then bent down and picked up something off the floor. Taking hold of Joe’s ankle Alice shackled his leg before covering it back up. That done, she changed into a nightgown and crawled into bed with him. She let out a happy sigh as she cuddled next to him. Raising her upper body, Alice gazed down at Joe. She caressed his face before leaning down to kiss him goodnight. Her heart soared when he returned the kiss.

Joe didn’t know what was wrong. Alice had removed his bonds yet he wasn’t doing anything to escape, merely letting her help him walk up the stairs. He knew that he should be trying to get away but…he could hear Alice whispering to him, telling him where to go, what to do. He felt giddy…confused.

Joe felt a soft surface, then Alice was removing his shirt. A part of him was appalled at what she was doing – he wanted to stop her but couldn’t. His mind was screaming with shame and anger as Alice removed his clothes. It was finally over and he felt Alice push him back into the bed. A few minutes later Alice crawled into bed, lying beside him. He shivered with revulsion when she cuddled him.

Joe was confused – he didn’t understand why he was repulsed by what Alice was doing to him but his body wouldn’t obey his brain’s command to make her stop. He wondered when this nightmare was going to end.

*****

Frank and Fenton had left with Con Riley for the police station. The police sketch artist had returned and the Hardys wanted to see the sketch. Arriving at the police station, Con led them to Chief Collig’s office.

“Hello Ezra – was Vanessa able to tell you any more about the attack?” Fenton shook the Chief’s hand before sitting down.

“Not much, the only thing she could think of was how the woman got into the van. Apparently she and Joe were um…being affectionate and horsing around. Joe used the remote to unlock the van but they weren’t paying attention to their surroundings. She thinks the woman must have been hanging around the van and when the doors unlocked…”

“She took advantage and sneaked inside,” sighed Fenton.

Collig frowned as he gave Fenton a slight nod. Frank had picked up the police file and was reading Vanessa’s statement. There was something about it that bothered him.

“Dad…this is really strange. According to Van’s statement…she and Joe were talking about our picnic tomorrow and then she invited Joe to stay for dinner. She was about to give Joe a kiss when they heard a scream. That’s when the woman came out of hiding and attacked them.”

“What’s so strange about that?” asked Con.

“It’s strange because…because it sounds as if this woman was upset that Vanessa was going to kiss Joe and the only woman I know who would do something like this is…dead!”

A feeling of dread overwhelmed Fenton as he turned to Chief Collig.

“Ezra…are the Southport authorities positive that Alice Walker died in that riot fire?”

*****

Alice gave Joe more of the Rohypnol; she had mixed it in some orange juice. Satisfied that he would be compliant and not try to escape, she left the house. She needed to get rid of the van.

Since Tony Prito was out of the country on vacation Chet figured that Mr. Prito was shorthanded for delivery drivers. Looking for a part-time job while he was on vacation, Chet had asked Mr. Prito if he needed or wanted any help. He had just delivered a pizza and was heading back to the Pizzeria when he saw the Hardy van. Chet was going to honk the horn to get his friends’ attention when he caught a quick glimpse of the driver. He didn’t recognize the young woman and at first thought he had made a mistake until he caught sight of the license plate: Hermano 2. Spanish for Brother 2 – Frank was Hermano 1.

Thinking Frank and Joe were in trouble, Chet followed the van. The driver drove the van a few miles before stopping in front of an empty lot. Chet watched as the young woman got out of the van and opened the back doors. She took out a ten-speed bike, mounted it and rode back the way she had come.

Chet got out of his car. Taking his cell phone out he used the camera feature to take a few pictures of the woman. They weren’t very clear but they were better than nothing. He then ran over to the van, his curiosity piqued. Growing worried when he didn’t see Frank or Joe, he took a chance and dialed Frank’s cell phone.

Frank stood anxiously with his father as they waited to hear from the Southport authorities. Suddenly his cell phone rang.

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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.