“Like I said, Alice abandoned the car – she parked it; I guess she thought the homeowners weren’t there. They saw a woman get out of the car and run towards the back alley…she was spotted boarding a bus heading towards town.” Collig paused to catch his breath. “She then went to Big Al’s Pawnshop where she attacked the owner, Al Stanton.”

“Oh dear God!” gasped Laura.

“He was stunned and pretended to be unconscious. Alice took his keys, we’ve got the license plate and all of my officers know it.”

“Speaking of your officers – what happened to the patrol car assigned to watch my home?!” Fenton bristled with anger.

“Oh dear…I hope Alice didn’t do something to them!” cried Aunt Gertrude anxiously.

“No, they should be so lucky. They left before their replacement arrived. Seems one of the officers decided to leave early to catch one of the NCAA college games.” Collig clenched his jaw. He had been very angry when the officer had been located and he found out why he left early.

“He’s going to be walking the warehouse district beat until he retires!” Collig growled. “He’s also been suspended for a month without pay.”

“Chief Collig – Frank told Sergeant Riley that he had a theory where Alice might be. Before he had a chance to tell him the ambulance arrived,” Callie informed him.

“Did Frank tell you what his theory was?” asked Fenton.

“I’m sorry Mr. Hardy, he didn’t. But Sergeant Riley went in with Frank; maybe he’s telling him now.”

“Mom – Dad!”

Laura spun around and let out a sigh of relief when she saw Frank walking out on crutches. Con was walking beside him. Giving Frank a pat on the back, he then hurried over to Collig, while Callie and Laura went to Frank.

“Oh honey – are you okay?” Laura gently touched Frank’s cheek.

“Ankle’s broken but otherwise I’m okay,” Frank assured her. “Especially thanks to Callie.”

Callie blushed as she recalled her defense attack against Alice.

“Callie – think you’re up to making a statement?” asked Fenton he placed his hand on her shoulder.

Callie gave him a smile. “You bet!”

“Count me in too, Dad. Besides, Con is going to help me with a search.”

*****

Alice hid the station wagon in the garage. She ran inside the house – she had to see Joe. He appeared to be sleeping. Alice stood at the end of the bed gazing at him.

Joe stirred then stretched slowly, opening his eyes. He saw Alice and sat up. He let out a moan, placing his hands over his face. He felt the bed shift and knew that Alice had sat down. He flinched when she touched him. He wanted to stop her when she ran her fingers through his hair but the loving endearments that she whispered in his ear made him happy.

“Oh Joe, my darling.” She moved his hands away from his face and hugged him. She gently rubbed his back, then pulling back, Alice gazed into his eyes. Placing a hand at the back of his neck, she pulled him in for a kiss. She sighed happily when it was returned.

Joe had fallen asleep again; Alice lay in his arms for awhile, but not knowing how long the effects of the Rohypnol would last, she carefully got off the bed. It was time to make Joe some dinner. She decided to cook spaghetti, that way she could crush a few pills and mix it with the parmesan cheese. Alice also made some tea, dropping another Rohypnol into Joe’s glass.

Putting the food dishes on a tray, Alice carried it into the bedroom. She gently woke Joe, fluffing up his pillow so he could sit up. They ate dinner with Alice making sure that Joe ate every bite and drank all of his tea.

When they were done, she suggested Joe take a shower and unshackled his ankle. Alice led Joe to the bathroom and helped him remove his clothes. Joe was unsteady on his feet; Alice had him lean against the wall while she adjusted the water temperature. She got Joe into the shower...and then she got undressed and joined him.

*****

Thinking of the neighborhood where Alice had abandoned the car, Frank concentrated his search in that area.

“What exactly are you looking for, Frank?” asked Collig.

“I was thinking about when Alice kidnapped Joe. She took him to a house that was owned by her grandparents. The house had been sold and luckily the new owners were on vacation when she took him there. So I thought if she took him to a place she knew, that she would….”

“Take him to another place she was familiar with!” Fenton exclaimed.

“I’m sure I can find any properties the Walker family may have owned. We probably should contact the law firm that the Walkers used,” Frank said.

“That’ll have to wait until Monday unless we get lucky and one of the associates works on the weekend!” said Collig.

“Let’s hope we’re lucky,” sighed Frank.

“Someone call for a pizza delivery?”

Frank, Fenton and Collig looked up to find Chet Morton holding a large pizza box. Biff and Con were standing behind him.

“Mrs. Hardy called in the order. She said you should have a home-cooked meal but this would do,” Chet explained as he placed the pizza on the table. Biff took out some paper plates, napkins and utensils from a plastic bag. Con set down the drinks he was carrying. Callie walked into the room and gave Chief Collig a large coffee from Starbucks.

“I got one for you too, Mr. Hardy.” Callie smiled as she gave Fenton his large coffee.

“Finally a decent cup of coffee,” sighed Fenton.

“Any luck?” asked Biff.

“Not yet but I will,” Frank answered with determination.

*****

Joe woke up feeling nauseous and light-headed. He turned his head to find that he was alone in bed. He lay still, waiting for the bed to stop flip-flopping. He carefully sat up, and his eyes grew wide when the blanket slid down to his waist. Where were his clothes?! He vaguely remembered wearing a pajama top. His hands shaking, Joe lifted the blanket. His heart was pounding with fear – why was he not wearing any clothes? The bedroom door opened, and Joe grabbed the blanket and covered his bare chest.

Alice walked in with breakfast. “Good morning my love.”

“What did you do to me, you crazy witch?!” Joe cried out.

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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.