Hardy Boys Fan Fiction at the Hardy Detective Agency Presents "Quality Time" by CQB

Frank Hardy was shocked at the sight of the mangled plane wreckage. Jack Wayne also stood gaping at the devastation. ‘How could anyone have survived?’ Jack thought. Frank wanted to see in the plane, but Sheriff Tanner and his deputy made the two young men wait outside the wreckage with the rangers.

The sheriff came out after a few minutes, his face grave. Frank felt like his heart had stopped beating as he watched the sheriff’s face.

"There’s one body on board," Sheriff Tanner stated, "Looks like he was the pilot. Dark, graying hair, late fifties?" He looked toward Frank and Jack.

"Sounds like Chuck Fisher." Jack said, his eyes filling with tears. "He was a good buddy." Frank didn’t know Chuck, but put a comforting arm around Jack’s shoulder.

"There are some bloodied bandages laying in the wreckage," Tanner said, "Someone was well enough to do some first aid work." One of the rangers called for Tanner, and the sheriff went to where the young man stood.

"Most of the snow is melted, but it looks like something was pulled along here." the man pointed toward the dry creek bed that looked like a deep ravine. Tanner left two men to prepare the deceased man for transport back to town. Everyone else mounted their quads and followed the trail left by the inflated raft Joe Hardy had used to carry his father away from the plane.

* * *

Maddie heard the engines of the powerful quads as the sound carried up the ravine towards her cabin. She and Carl slipped into the pines behind the cabin, disappearing from view.

Maddie had tracked mud and snowy slush into the doorway of the cabin. She used some of it to soil the t-shirt that Joe was now wearing. She had both Hardys smear some mud on their faces as well. She also took an old jacket of Carl’s and soiled it, since Joe’s had been cut up. Fenton was now lying on the folded up sofa, with his jacket behind his head as a pillow. Joe was on the floor lying on a blanket from the plane, using Carl’s jacket as a pillow. Their bandages looked convincingly bloody, using a plant dye Maddie made from her herbs that dried a brownish-red color. Both Fenton and Joe were sore and tired from all the moving around, and had drifted to sleep soon after Maddie had them situated.

* * *

Sheriff Colt Tanner parked his quad near the front steps of Maddie’s porch. He noticed a yellow, inflated raft under the porch.

"Andrews, take a look," Tanner called to his deputy. "Think this might be from the plane?" Tanner asked, pointing to the raft.

"Could be what was pulled across the creek bed from the crash site," surmised the deputy. Tanner waited until Frank, Jack and the other two rangers were near before climbing the stairs to the porch.

Frank saw the raft and guessed that it could have been what he had seen on that first pass yesterday. He told the sheriff. The sheriff agreed that it was probable.

Sheriff Tanner reached the door and was about to knock, when his eyes caught sight of a paper tired to the door handle. He smiled, knowing it was from Maddie. He read the note and glanced toward the pines behind the cabin.

"Mrs. White is off on one of her herb searching adventures," stated the sheriff, looking at the anxious faces at the bottom of the stairs. "Says she left the day she returned from town." Tanner knocked on the cabin door anyway. Hearing no sound within, he pushed the unlocked door open.

Tanner signaled for the others to stay put as he entered the cabin. A young, blond boy lay on the floor of the cabin and an older man, looking very much like young Frank Hardy, lay on a worn sofa. Both were covered in mud and had wounds wrapped in bloody bandages. He could see that both were breathing. ‘Something is wrong with this picture,’ the sheriff thought, but couldn’t figure out what.

"Frank, Jack!" Tanner called, walking out the door, "Go on inside." Frank dashed up the steps and peered in the door, his heart pounding wildly in his chest. Jack was barely a step behind the 18 year-old as they entered the cabin.

"Joe," Frank said softly, kneeling beside his younger brother. He reached over and brushed a stay strand of hair from Joe’s forehead. He almost jumped as Joe’s blue eyes opened at Frank’s touch.

"F-Frank? Is that you?" Joe stammered, his mouth dry from sleep. He was glad; as he suddenly remembered where he was and how he was suppose to act. "Y-your really h-here."

"I’m here Joe. Everything’s going to be fine now," Frank felt overcome with emotion. His brother had survived a horrid plane crash and he would be okay. Frank looked up to see Jack helping Fenton Hardy into a sitting position.

"Dad!" Frank moved to his father’s side. "Where are you hurt? How did you get here?"

"You’ll have to ask Joe," Fenton said, "Your little brother saved our lives."

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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 original characters without express permission of the authors.