Hardy Detective Agency featuring Hardy Boys Fan Fiction

"Sure, kid," the man replied, "But you’re too late to catch him. He’s about to lift off." With that, the man pointed to a gold and red balloon with a lion emblem on the side. Frank quickly thanked the man and took off running as fast as he could toward Mc Intyre’s balloon.

"Dad!" Frank called as he ran, "This way!" Fenton heard Frank’s cry and ran with all his strength, following his son.

Deputy Downing saw the two Hardy men racing toward him. "Lance, Fredricks and his other kid are comin’ our way!"

Mc Intyre looked up and locked eyes with Frank. The youth took a diving leap forward, crashing into Mc Intyre and knocking him out of the gondola. Frank was hardly a match for the muscle-bound man, but concern for Joe brought on a powerful surge of adrenaline, making the pair evenly matched as they exchanged blows.

Fenton tackled Downing and had little trouble over-powering the man. A swift upper cut rendered Downing unconscious and Fenton ran to assist Frank.

Onlookers were bewildered as to what was going on, some even rushing to help Downing and Mc Intyre. Sirens caught the attention of

everyone as three police SUV’s came tearing across the field.

"Everyone freeze!" Sheriff Marcus Williams called out. Downing had recovered enough to sit up with the help of a bystander. Frank, Lance and Fenton stood stock-still and looked directly at the sheriff. "What in the world is goin’ on here?"

"These men came running up here and started beating up on Mac and Stu," offered Artie the balloonist.

"Mc Intyre was kidnapping my brother!" Frank shouted, stunned by his own outburst.

"So where is your brother now?" Williams asked the young man.

"He’s in the ..." Frank’s voice trailed off as he glanced behind him.

Mc Intyre’s balloon was lifting off and the gondola was already 10-feet above the ground. "Joe! He’s in the basket!" Frank ran to the rising gondola and grabbed a dangling tether rope.

"Frank! No!" Deputy Ronnie Benson cried, "You’ll never make it!"

"I don’t know what these guys are talkin’ about," Mc Intyre snarled, "I was just takin’ a ride."

Fenton watched in helpless frustration as Frank began the perilous climb up the tether rope to the gondola basket. Meanwhile, without anyone controlling it, the burner continued to fill the balloon with hot air, making it rise higher in the evening sky.

"Mc Intyre," the sheriff said, "If that Fredricks kid is in that basket, I’m puttin’ your sorry butt in jail, son."

"What about my kids?" Fenton cried out, "Frank doesn’t know how to operate one of those things!"

"We could talk him down," offered Artie Fisher, glancing at his partner, Bert Gilbert. "It’s not too hard to learn. We’d need a mega-phone to communicate."

"Better yet," Fenton said, "Frank’s got his cell-phone in his pocket." Fenton felt relieved. Frank was safely inside the gondola and he had a means of communication with him.

* * *

Frank Hardy held on to the tether line for dear life. He knew Joe was in the gondola basket and he knew his brother was in trouble or Joe would have gotten away from Mc Intyre. He didn’t dare look down as the hot air balloon continued to rise in the twilight sky. Instead, he was determined to climb the rope and get into the basket himself.

‘Can’t be any harder than climbing the rope in gym class," Frank told himself, ‘You can do this Hardy!’ He began the climb, wrapping his legs around the rope and using his hands to pull himself up.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Frank climbed over the edge of the basket and collapsed on the floor of the gondola. The flame on the burner lit the inside of the basket and Frank saw the tarp wrapped up tightly and secured with duct tape. His heart hammered as he realized if Joe was in there, he wouldn’t be able to breathe. Had Mc Intyre already killed Joe and was just planning to dump his body out of the gondola?

Frank pulled out his pocketknife and his cell-phone fell to the floor. ‘Yes,’ he thought, ‘I’ll be able to call Dad and find out how to land this thing!’ Frank began to cut away the duct tape at one end, praying that Joe was still alive.

The tape finally gave and Frank pulled frantically at the tarp, trying to get it open. He saw Joe’s blond hair and pulled farther, opening the tarp enough to pull Joe free.

"Joe! Come on Baby Brother, don’t you dare die on me!" Frank implored. Joe Hardy was pale and his skin was clammy and moist. Frank quickly pulled the adhesive off of Joe’s mouth and became instantly alarmed at the tinge of blue that colored Joe’s lips. Joe wasn’t breathing!

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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.