Lance Mc Intyre sat in his office and watched the ranch hands heading home. He stood and walked to the window as Frank Fredricks came walking across the gravel drive. The boy was looking around as he walked, probably seeking his brother. 

Lance rubbed his chin thoughtfully, ‘Just what were you doin’ by Ryan’s locker, young Mr. Fredricks?’

A Jeep Cherokee pulled into the gravel lot and Lance watched Mr. Fredricks senior step out of the car. The two men leaned against the jeep talking, both occasionally glancing toward the stable. 

"How was your day?" Mr. Hardy asked his oldest son.  

"Pretty uneventful," Frank replied, "I’ve been working on the stable shutters all day. There’s hardly a chance to do any investigating." 

"Patience, my son," Fenton smiled at the exasperation in Frank’s voice, "I’m sure some opportunities will arise."

"I almost got into Ryan Wagner’s locker," Frank confided, getting a stern look from his father, "I know, Dad. I wasn’t planning to take anything, just look. Anyway, Mc Intyre almost caught me in the act. I bluffed my way out, but it was close." 

"Frank, you’re sensible enough to realize that these people play for keeps," Fenton admonished, "You’ve got to be more careful. I expect Joe to be impatient and want to rush things, but I’d hoped you’d be there to bail him out if he does. I certainly don’t need both of you acting impulsively." 

"I know," Frank blushed, "I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful."

"Speaking of Joe," Mr. Hardy said, glancing at the stable, "Wonder what’s keeping him?" 

"I’ll go have a look inside the stable," Frank offered, jogging toward the building. 

* * * 

Joe Hardy froze. If he got up they would see him for sure, but if he stayed and they came this far, how was he going to explain his presence? 

The footfalls kept coming and Joe was on the verge of panic. He quickly covered the stains on the flooring, knowing the person coming would probably hear the sound. As Joe was moving the straw, the clasp on his watch came loose. 

‘Yes!’ Joe thought, letting his watch fall into the straw, ‘Good thing I didn’t get that thing fixed before we came like I planned to do.’

 * * *

Ryan Wagner walked down the aisle on the East wing with purposeful strides. He’d left his truck keys in ‘Hawks’ stall after his ride earlier that day.  

The swishing of straw near the end of the aisle caught the young man’s attention. His heart began to pound as he realized where the sound was coming from. 

‘Maybe that crazy Indian was tellin’ the truth,’ Ryan thought as he walked closer to the end stall, ‘Maybe there is a ghost hauntin’ that stall.’ Ryan grabbed a pitchfork and leaped into the entrance of the stall with a Kamikaze yell.  

It took every ounce of reserve in Joe Hardy’s body not to jump at the sound of Ryan Wagner’s yell. Joe casually continued to look for his ‘missing’ watch, but his heart was pounding, he was sweating profusely and his mouth was completely dry. 

Ryan just stared as he saw a kid kneeling and digging through the straw. Ryan frowned as he realized that the kid hadn’t moved a muscle when he pounced inside the stall yelling.

Ryan stepped back, perplexed, staring at the blond hair and blue, sweat stained t-shirt. Why didn’t the kid jump or scream? What was...the new mucker! Ryan remembered his father saying the new kid was deaf. But, that didn’t explain why the kid was digging in this stall.

Ryan stepped back into the stall and grabbed Joe Hardy’s arm, pulling the boy to his feet. 

Joe’s dark blue eyes flew open wide as he felt himself being pulled up and slammed against the side of the stall. His eyes locked onto Ryan Wagner’s blazing green ones. 

"What are you doin’ diggin’ in this stall, mucker?" Young Wagner asked, his left hand on Joe’s chest, pinning him to the wall of the stall, while Ryan’s right hand still firmly grasped a pitchfork.

"I-I was l-looking for m-my watch!" Joe said, his stomach churning with terror. ‘This is the man that killed Jimmy!’ Joe’s mind screamed, ‘He let Carl take the blame!’

Frank started to call Joe’s name, then chuckled to himself. ‘That would look real good if someone saw me calling for my ‘deaf’ brother! Man, this case is so much harder with all this ‘play-acting’ we have to do!’

Frank walked the length of the West wing and the main wing without seeing any sign of his brother. 

Frank came around the bend of the East wing in time to see a man push his brother against the side of the stall. He ran forward toward the pair as fast as he could.

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.