Joe Hardy couldn’t believe his eyes!  He started moving toward the “jail” that held his brother prisoner, but suddenly stopped in his tracks.  He heard voices coming close to his hiding place.

Joe froze.  He kept his small body perfectly still.  He even held his breath, wrinkling his nose at the smell of cigar smoke, as he listened to the two men talking.  They had stopped right in front of Joe’s hiding place.

“Hey Clem,” the first man was saying, “Ya goin’ to the hangin’ at dawn?”

“Sure thang, Jeb,” the second man drawled.  He glanced toward the empty window of the jail where Frank Hardy had been just moments before. “Gonna be fun, don’cha know.”

“Yup,” the first man agreed, blowing cigar smoke out the corner of his mouth.  The pair started walking back the way they had come. “Gonna be a good time in the mornin’ fer sure!”

Joe’s heart was racing as he let go the breath he’d been holding.  Panic gripped his young heart.  The Rattlesnake Gang was going to hang Frank and probably Chet and Tony, too!

As much as he wanted to run to his brother, Joe knew it was important to tell the Lone Ranger and Tonto what was about to happen.  He scurried to the loose boards in the wall of the fort and tapped on the rough wood. 

“Tonto,” the child whispered, “It’s me, Joe. Let me out.”  Joe frowned when there was no response.  Where was Tonto?

Joe tried to wedge his fingers between the loose boards, but even his small hands wouldn’t fit.

“Ouch,” Joe muttered, peering at the splinter in his finger.  He sighed and glanced around for something he could use to pry the boards open.  He spotted a large nail in the grass nearby.  He snatched it up and wedged it between the two loose boards.

Joe used his right hand to push the nail to one side, forcing one of the boards toward him.  Joe grasped the edge of the board with his left hand and held tight.  Dropping the nail, he reached with his right hand and pulled on the board with all his might. He crouched down and wriggled into the narrow space between the boards, finally squeezing through.

“Man! That would’a been a lot easier if Tonto had helped,” Joe complained. He looked around for Tonto.  The dark woods stared back at Joe and the boy shivered.

The seven-year-old bravely shook off his fear, knowing that Frank, Tony and Chet needed him.  He had to find the Lone Ranger and Tonto.  He needed them to help rescue his brother and friends.

Joe started walking quickly toward the pine trees that hid the creek from his view.  He swallowed nervously and tried to ignore the darkness all around him. Finally, he heard the water and sighed with relief as the bridge came into sight.

Joe stopped and stared just beyond the bridge.  It couldn’t be!  Four gruff looking cowboys had the Lone Ranger and Tonto tied up.  The men were leading Silver and Scout into the woods with their prisoners on the horses’ backs.

As Joe watched them disappear into the woods, fear threatened to overcome him.  How could he help Frank and the others now?

He bit his lip as he thought about trying to find his way home through the woods.  Joe knew his dad would come up with a plan to rescue everyone.  But as he glanced toward the sun beginning to rise in the eastern sky, he knew he’d never reach his dad in time.

Now that the noise of the horses and the muted voices of the men had faded away, the sounds of the night closed in around the small child and Joe began to tremble.

The little boy suddenly felt as if the weight of the whole world was precariously perched on his trembling shoulders, and the heaviness of it was too much for the seven-year-old to bear.

Joe fell to his knees, crying.  He curled up in a tight ball, trying to shut out the darkness and noises around him.  He was so afraid.  He was afraid of the dark, the night sounds, the Rattlesnake Gang and he was afraid Frank was going to die.  He felt helpless and alone.

* * *

Frank Hardy had no idea how he’d gotten into this predicament.  One minute, he and Tony Prito and Chet Morton were building the bridge with some logs they’d pulled out of the wood.  The next thing they knew, some rough men grabbed them and carried them off to the fort the boys had started building.

Frank, Chet and Tony had been shocked when they first saw the fort.  It looked bigger and stronger than they remembered.  When they were hauled inside and locked up in a jail cell, they were even more surprised.

“What’s happenin’?” Tony had asked, fear evident in his voice.

“Y-yeah, this is p-pretty weird,” Chet commented.

“I don’t understand this at all,” Frank had replied, “but I know we didn’t make the fort this big.”

“W-who are t-those guys?” Chet asked.

“They sure look mean!” Tony added.

Frank just shook his head.  Something strange was happening and his eight-year-old mind couldn’t quite figure it out.

“It almost feels like I’m stuck in a dream and I can’t wake up,” Frank whispered to himself.

He walked over to the only window and peered through the bars.  He had no idea how long he’d stood there, but Frank suddenly realized that night had fallen and no one had come looking for him or his friends.

He glanced at Tony and Chet, who were both sleeping.  Frank sighed, ‘This is bad. This is really bad.’

* * *

“Holy kiddie-time! He’s just a little boy!”

Joe jumped up at the sound of the near-by voice and stared unbelievingly at the two strangely dressed men.  The taller man was obviously older.  He was dressed in grayish tights and shiny black underwear.  He wore a hooded mask with pointed ears and a black cape.

The other man was younger and wore a little black mask across his eyes.  He also wore a funny red and green costume, yellow cape and silly looking green elf shoes.

“Are you, B-Batman?” Joe asked tentatively.

The man in the hood smiled at Joe and nodded.  Then he faced the man in the yellow cape. “Don’t let his diminutive size fool you, Robin,” the man said.  “This little one may be small in stature, but he’s brave and has a very big heart.”