Hardy Detective Agency featuring Hardy Boys Fan Fiction

“This has got to be one of the most fabulous New Year’s Eve celebrations I’ve ever been to!” Vanessa exclaimed. She clutched at Joe’s hand as another loud BANG! echoed about them, and colored sparks filled the sky above. “OOOOOOH!!!”

“Fireworks over the ocean at midnight – pretty spectacular, all right!” Joe agreed, his eyes fixed admiringly on the sparkles showering down. They were standing on the tiny lanai off the boys’ room; the view of the ocean and fireworks was unimpaired.

“The hotel teen dance was fun too,” Megan put in, leaning back against Frank’s chest and letting her head rest against his shoulder as she watched the fireworks display. She tilted her face upwards. “Happy New Year – again,” she murmured, smiling.

“Happy New Year, Baby – again,” Frank responded, and kissed the tempting lips.

All too soon, the last mortar shell was fired, and the fireworks display came to a close. Regretfully, the Hardys and their girls went inside.

“Now what?” Frank inquired, looking around at the others.

Joe and Vanessa exchanged a look. “Van and I,” Joe announced, “are going for a walk on the beach. And we do not wish to be accompanied,” he finished grandly. Vanessa laughed a little, but nodded her agreement.

“Well! I guess we know when we’re not wanted, huh, Megan?” Frank attempted to sound insulted, but he was grinning. “I guess we’ll just have to make our own fun by ourselves!”

“Uh-huh,” the little redhead concurred with a dimpled smile. “I suppose we will.” She batted her long eyelashes at Frank.

“Well, go on, go on,” Frank moved to escort his brother and Vanessa out the door. “Don’t let us stop you! Go – enjoy your walk!”

“Vanessa, do you think they’re trying to get rid of us?” Joe hung back teasingly.

“Why no, Joe, whatever gives you that idea?” Megan answered before Vanessa could, and added her own pushes to Frank’s. “Have a lovely walk...don’t hurry back!”

When the door shut behind Joe and Vanessa, silence abruptly fell in the hotel room. Megan’s giggles faded, and she gazed up at Frank with wide eyes, smiling a little.

“Alone at last,” she said softly.

“Yup.” Frank swallowed, and reached out to draw her into his arms. “Happy New Year,” he said once more, and kissed the top of her hair, then moved his lips lower. “You...have any ideas...what we might do?”

“Well...we could...play cards,” she suggested, between kisses. “Or...watch television...”

“Or not.”

“Or...not,” she agreed breathlessly.

“Megan – your mother’s not here tonight.”

“Mmmm-mmm...she’s not...”

“Mom and Dad aren’t around....”

“No...they aren’t...”

“Joe and Van are gone...”

“Mmm-hmmm...”

“It’s just...us.”

“Mmm-hmmm...”

Slowly, they moved to sit on the end of one of the beds, still exchanging kisses. Frank wrapped his arms more tightly about Megan, and rested his head atop hers for a moment.

“Celebrate...this is a....good way to celebrate...New Year’s.”

“And...and...celebrate...this.” The promise ring was waved vaguely before his face; Frank reached out and kissed it in passing.

“I love you, Baby.”

“I love you, too – for always!”

With another soft “love you,” Frank leaned back, pulling Megan down with him and bending over to press his lips against hers again. Her eyes fluttered closed.

BRRRRIIIIIIIING! BRRRRIIIIIIIING! The shrill ringing of the room’s telephone shattered the charged silence of the room.

Frank sat up straight, gasping as if he’d suddenly had a bucket of ice water poured over himself. “Oh, God...the...the phone!” He stared at the instrument blankly as it continued its insistent summons.

“Well, aren’t you going to answer it?” Megan sat up too, and moved slightly away from him.

“Yeah...yeah.” Dazedly, Frank fumbled for the receiver. “Hello?” he croaked.

“Frank? I didn’t expect you to be there! I’m surprised I caught you – I was just going to leave a message!” Fenton’s startled voice boomed over the wire. “You kids done partying already?”

“Uh – no, no, Dad, I – uh – just came up to, uh – change my shirt!” Frank blurted, and saw Megan dissolve into silent giggles. He stuck out his tongue at her and tried to pay attention to his father’s words.

“Well, I just wanted to let you boys know that I wasn’t able to get our helicopter tour of Kilauea scheduled for tomorrow, after all. It seems everyone is booked solid for the next couple of days. We’ll get it in, but it will have to wait for a day or two,” Fenton said apologetically.

“Oh! Oh, well...that’s too bad, Dad, but – well, I’m sure it won’t matter if we can’t do it tomorrow. Any other day is fine,” Frank said. “I’ll – um, I’ll tell Joe and the girls.”

“All right, son. Have fun, and we’ll see you tomorrow. Happy New Year!”

“H-happy New Year, Dad.”

Frank replaced the receiver slowly, and turned to his girlfriend. She was standing now, and smiling, but her beautiful blue-green eyes were full of regret.

“Boy, was THAT a mood-breaker!” he groused. “Might as well have had Dad come bursting through the door!” He eyed her questioningly. “Spoiled it for you too?”

“I’m afraid so,” she admitted.

“No chance of getting it back?” he asked hopefully, but she continued to shake her head. “Ah, hell....” He reached for her hand, the one wearing the ring, and lifted it to his lips. “What do I have to do, kidnap you to a deserted island and cut off all communication?”

“Tell me you love me anyway?” she beseeched.

He held her tightly against himself. “I love you anyway,” he said fervently. “I’ll always love you anyway.”

And as he watched her cross the corridor to her own room, he knew it was the absolute truth.

*****

The next morning, Frank didn’t even bother trying to wake Joe up; he hadn’t heard his brother return to their room, and had no idea what ungodly hour Joe had come in. He himself had tossed and turned for awhile after going to bed. Frustration, no doubt! he thought glumly. But he couldn’t fault Megan, he’d felt the same way. They just seemed to have the worst luck when it came to timing, that was all.

He showered, dressed and made his way down to the hotel coffee shop, where barely a third of the tables were occupied, and ordered coffee, juice and a bagel. He’d considered tapping on the girls’ door and asking Megan if she wanted to join him, but was afraid she might not be awake, and he didn’t want to risk waking Vanessa anyhow, so he sat in solitude, scanning through a copy of the morning paper which was lying on an adjacent empty table.

To his surprise, he was joined by his brother before he’d finished eating breakfast. Joe sank into the chair across the table and picked up a menu. He looked rumpled and bleary-eyed, and was yawning prodigiously, but he was awake.

“I didn’t expect to see you upright before noon,” Frank observed dryly.

“New Years Day,” Joe mumbled, after a few gulps of coffee. “Football games are on, ya know.”

“You really are going to spend a whole day in Hawaii watching football games?” Frank was incredulous. He liked football too, liked it a lot, but he couldn’t see wasting all of New Year’s Day in front of a television set when he could be out in the water on his surfboard.

“Not the whole day,” Joe denied, shaking his tousled blonde head. “Not all that interested in all of ‘em. But...” he broke off to yawn again. “Rose Bowl,” he finished. “S’on at eleven, Hawaii time, I think. And there’s a couple on earlier we could watch.”

“Vanessa won’t mind?”

“Vanessa likes football,” Joe declared, “and since we can’t go to the volcano – I saw your note—”

“We can just hang with the girls on the beach today,” Frank suggested. “Or...we could maybe walk down to the harbor, they haven’t been there yet...”

Joe glanced up, his sleepy blue gaze sharpening. “And while we’re doing that, we can see what’s up with the container ships and the warehouses?”

“Maybe.” Frank hid a smile behind his coffee cup.

Joe nodded, contentedly. “Gotta admire your brain,” he said, and began to look over his menu.

*****

Since both Megan and Vanessa slept late, Joe and Frank actually spent a good part of the morning watching the football games. There was a television set in the coffee shop, and a sizeable number of hotel guests settled in to enjoy themselves. The boys noted that their parents were not among them; they surmised that Fenton and Laura had taken advantage of the hotel’s Room Service today. There was definitely something to be said for vacationing with parents when you were old enough to be left to entertain yourself and be on your own, and only needed to check in often enough for politeness!

The girls made their appearance in the coffee shop about noon, both looking well-rested and utterly fetching in shorts and light tops and sandals. They were carrying sun hats and tote bags.

“Happy New Year!” Vanessa patted Frank on the head in passing, and leaned over to kiss Joe’s upturned face, then plopped herself into an empty chair. “The seminar is over and vacation has officially begun!”

“Hear, hear!” Megan applauded softly and kissed Frank as she sat down beside him.

“And you know what that means?” Vanessa paused dramatically.

The boys exchanged wary looks. What might they be leading up to? “Um...no, what?” Joe said at last.

“SHOPPING!” the girls chorused.

“Shopping?” Frank echoed feebly. Given a choice, staying inside and watching football all day sounded like the better bet, after all!

“Oh, stop sounding so terrified,” Vanessa said, laughing. “We can go and do whatever you two want, as long as it’s within easy walking distance of places Megan and I can buy things!”

Frank considered that, and decided it worked just fine with him. Surely there were lots and lots of stores between the hotel and the harbor. And all the little shops here at the hotel, adjacent to the sand and water, as well.

Joe was nodding his agreement too.

“So, who’s up for a long walk down to the harbor?” Frank inquired a short time later. “Joe and I wanted to check something out down there – but we can take a cab if you’d rather; it would be faster, and then afterwards you can...” he shuddered eloquently for the girls’ benefit, “shop.”

“Why don’t we take a taxi there, and then walk back?” Megan proposed. “That would let you two check out whatever it is you want to check, and then we can...” she paused as Frank had done, dimpling, “shop as we walk back here. And then we can play on the beach!”

Joe grinned down at her approvingly. “Red, I like your style,” he announced. “I’ll even do the honors and get us the cab!”

*****

The ride down to the harbor took little time, and soon the four of them were strolling along the pathway Joe and Frank had taken a few days before. To the boys’ surprise and disappointment, both the large container ships were gone!

“Can you believe that?” Joe exclaimed in dismay. “They’re gone – along with all our possible evidence!”

“We don’t know that there was any evidence,” Frank pointed out reasonably. He looked around at the docks, which were almost deserted. “I suppose they wanted to get them out of port and on their way before the holiday – today,” he noted.

“Oh...right.” Joe kicked idly at a small rock. “I keep forgetting what day it is,” he apologized. “Well...” he stared out at the ocean swells as if he could conjure up the large ships. “I guess this idea was a bust, huh?”

“It’s all right, Joe.” Vanessa wrapped an arm about his waist and snuggled in. “It’s still pretty, and we can have a nice long walk back and enjoy the scenery and look for stores...”

“Of which there are plenty,” Megan noted. “There’s those ABC Stores on every corner, almost!”

“Yeah, but they’re full of...tourist stuff,” Joe complained.

“And what were you thinking we were?” Vanessa challenged, her eyes twinkling. “They’re full of the sorts of things people take home as souvenirs and presents for their relatives and friends, aren’t they?”

“Oh. Um...well....” He looked at Frank. “Help me out, here!”

“Not me,” his older brother refused. “You wallowed in there all by yourself, you can get yourself out.” He turned around and started walking back the way they had come, pulling Megan along by the hand. “We’re heading back now,” he announced.

Still shaking his head over their ‘lost’ cargo ships and the disappearance of any clues about the stolen cars, Joe put his arm around Vanessa’s shoulders and followed.

Shopping was on the girls’ minds, and they made the most of their time. Despite it being New Year’s Day, almost every store, shop and boutique was open for business, and there were many of them between the harbor and the Island Resort Spa. Finally, even Vanessa admitted she had just about reached the end of her ‘gift list,’ and was tired of walking for awhile, so, laden with paper and plastic sacks, they hailed a taxi and climbed in wearily.

“All done, then?” Joe asked hopefully as they rode along.

“With gifts, pretty much,” his girlfriend told him. “However, there’s a couple things I saw in one of those little shops right at the hotel that I want for myself.” She batted her eyelashes at him beguilingly. “Maybe we could check those out when we get back?”

“Vanessa!”

“How about if we play on the beach for awhile first?” Megan the peacekeeper intervened. “Those stores stay open until late every night, Van, and there’s always tomorrow or the next day, or the next. We don’t go home until the 6^th, after all.”

“Okay.” Vanessa readily agreed to the plan. “I haven’t been in the water for a couple of days; that sounds like fun!”

“Thank you, Red!”

Frank squeezed his girlfriend’s hand and gave her a grateful look. She winked at him.

*****

“GAAAAAAAHHHH!” Joe’s yell was cut off abruptly as he submerged into the water, lunging after the Frisbee Frank had tossed. After a few seconds he surfaced, triumphantly clutching the bright blue plastic circle in one hand. “Got it!” He sailed it towards Megan, who was standing just outside the waves; she in turn threw it to Vanessa.

They had swum and boogie-boarded, they had dug holes and played in the sand like children, they had had water fights and Frank and Joe had both attempted to surf, without a great deal of luck. Now the in-and-out-of-the-ocean Frisbee game was winding down, for all four of them were getting a little winded!

“Whew!” Frank retrieved the Frisbee from the water again, waded to shore, then bent over and braced his hands on his knees. “Time out!”

The others gathered around, agreeing with him. “Maybe we should find something quieter to do for a little while,” Vanessa suggested.

“We already played in the sand...” Megan looked around for new options.

“We could just lie in the sun for awhile.” Frank set down the Frisbee and began wringing water from his shorts. “Didn’t you want to go home looking like you spent ten days in the tropics?”

“I did, and I do,” Vanessa nodded, “but I also want to run into that one little boutique near the deli where we had lunch the first day, and see if that scarf is still there. It won’t take all that long – come with me, Joe?” she pleaded. Leading the way to their lounge chairs, she picked up her wrap-around skirt and fastened it over her swimsuit, then added a voluminous t-shirt and slid into sandals. In ten seconds she was ready to shop.

Joe looked down at himself. “Like this?” he protested.

“Just put on your shirt and shoes,” his girlfriend advised him. “Nobody cares how you’re dressed in these stores, and your shirt’s long enough to cover your swim trunks. Besides, they’re shorts, anyway!”

Mumbling softly to himself about how some people were awfully bossy, Joe complied. A few moments later, he and Vanessa were ready to start on their expedition to the ‘store with the scarf.’

“We’re just going to stay here and relax,” Frank declared, flinging himself onto one of the beach chairs. He reached for a towel and folded it to lay across his eyes. “Wake me up when you get back.”

“Think about what you want to do for dinner,” Megan reminded the other two as she spread out her beach towel and settled onto an adjacent chair. “It’ll take a little while to get cleaned up from all the salt and sand, if we’re going someplace even a little bit dressy.”

“You got it, Red. See you two in a little while.”

They basked in the late-afternoon sun, enjoying the warmth and the soft hush-shush of the nearby waves, but before long Megan sat up again and reached for her tote bag.

“I’m thirsty,” she announced. “I’m going to go get some lemonade from that little stand that’s up closer to the hotel. You want anything?”

Frank lazily lifted one corner of the towel. “Sounds good.” He felt a little guilty about having her get the drinks and wait on him, but was too comfortable to move.

“I’ll be back in a few minutes, then.” The quiet slap of her sandals lulled Frank back into a half-doze, and he was surprised when he felt a nudge against his elbow. He hadn’t heard her return. “Here.”

He sat up and took the paper cup, sipping the tart sweetness gratefully. “Baby, you are the greatest! This hits the spot!” He drank it swiftly, set the cup in the sand and lay back, covering his eyes once more. He was asleep within minutes, one arm hanging limply off the chair.

Megan smiled and sat quietly, sipping her lemonade more slowly, keeping watch over her slumbering boyfriend and people-watching in general as well. The beach was still crowded, despite it being late afternoon. There were numerous people frolicking in the surf, or playing on the beach. She reveled in the fact that although it was January 1^st, and Bayport was cloaked in cold rain or snow, here where she was, it was hot and sunny!

Nearby, a group of children were working on a large sandcastle – or rather, a series of interconnected castles, in a circular formation. It looked like they were creating a whole medieval village. She watched them for awhile, wondering what it would have been like to come here as a child. What a fantasy it would be – to know it was Christmastime, and yet be able to play on the beach in your swim trunks or bathing suit, and not catch cold!

She glanced over at Frank, who had shifted slightly to curl onto his side on the lounge chair. He was sound asleep, the towel still draped across the upper half of his face. She leaned back in her own chair, setting her empty glass down in the sand. She closed her eyes, drowsing in the warm air and soft susurrations of the waves.

“Hey – you Megan Wright?”

She awoke slowly, opening her eyes to find herself looking up at a young Hawaiian man standing over her chair. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the light again.

“Yes, I’m Megan,” she answered the question.

“You gotta phone call – they said it was an emergency, and I was to find you. Said you’d be here.” The boy jerked his head in the direction of the hotel.

“Oh...oh, all right.” An emergency phone call? Had something happened to her mother? Or was it Joe or Vanessa calling her; had they met with an accident? Heart pounding with anxiety, she got to her feet, and then looked at Frank, who was still sleeping peacefully. Ought she to wake him? Or let him sleep?

I’ll be back in a few minutes; if it’s something important I’ll come get him. Deciding to let Frank rest despite her worry over the phone call, Megan followed the boy into the hotel, where he indicated a phone on one of the desks in the lobby, then sauntered off, his job done. She lifted the receiver in trembling fingers.

“This is Megan,” she said, and waited for a response. And waited. “Hello? Mom, is that you?” No reply. “Joe? Vanessa?”

And again she waited.

But no one answered.

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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.