"Ok Frank, let the games begin, just stay quiet and follow my lead" murmured Joe, as the pair made their way through the plush carpeted reception area and into the doors of the casino.

Frank was immediately hit with a thousand different sounds as he and Joe made their way though the front part of the casino. Old ladies sat with buckets filled to the brim with quarters which they steadily pumped into the one armed bandits. Occasionally they were rewarded with a noisy ‘ching’ and a row of bright lights, and then a shower of coins would cascade out of the machine.

Frank noticed too, that as they moved further back into the casino, the games seemed to get more expensive, and more serious. He could see the roulette tables with the 50 and 100 dollar chips piled high or the blackjack tables where men in expensive suits were drinking neat whiskey. It also got quieter towards the back, except for the occasional groan or protest as someone lost their nights winnings in one fell swoop.

Frank turned his concentration back to the men that Joe was talking in rather a loud voice too. These were obviously Frazer’s gambling buddies, and Frank didn’t like the look of them. They were obviously all into crime of some kind; all were wearing expensive suits and jewelry and seemed to be surrounded by an army of scantily dressed girls.

"Danny, you’re late!" one of the men said coming up and slapping Joe on the back.

At the same time Frank could also here him say quite savagely into Joe’s ear "Who’s your friend, Danny, I thought I told you this is a closed table"

Joe however, remained unfazed. He merely turned around and looked at Frank. "Stewart" said Joe, "I’d like you to meet Al McCarthy, Al here has been trying to take all my money for the past two weeks, just as well you’re here now to help me win it back, isn’t it" Joe winked at Frank.

Frank immediately plastered a huge smile across his face and grabbed Al’s hand, shaking it heartily. "Why it’s a pleasure to meet you" Frank drawled, putting on a slight southern accent. "I sure hope we have a good nights gambling" he continued, "My business partner Danny here tells me that there’s no better blackjack game going in Vegas"

Al looked at Frank suspiciously for a moment, then his features relaxed somewhat and he turned his attention back to the blackjack table. ‘Stewart’ was introduced to the other players, there were about 8 in total and then they all sat down to play cards. Frank was glad he had taken a good bit of cash with him, it looked like it was about to be an expensive night.

Frank took little part in the gambling, claiming that he ‘preferred to watch’. He looked at Joe, who was in the middle of telling some wild story about a post office he had apparently robbed some years earlier.

‘They are completely taken in’ thought Frank, and again he couldn’t help but feel somewhat proud of his brother who seemed to have put his anger and emotion aside in order to successfully find Frazer. He didn’t have much more time to muse however, as Al and Joe had stood up and were heading for a side entrance. Joe motioned for Frank to follow, and he did so.

Once the three of them were outside, Al lit up a cigarette and looked nervously again at Frank. "How do I know I can trust this guy" Al asked Joe "How do I know that if I tell you where Frazer is that he won’t go to the cops? Hell, Frazer is a wanted man; he tried to ice some detective and his girlfriend a few months back"

Frank froze and looked at Joe quickly, afraid that his brother would snap. He saw the anger rising in his eyes, but the expression on Joe’s face never changed.

"Look, Stewart here is my business partner, he and I go back years, I told ya, I trust him" Joe took out a cigar from the pocket of his jacket as if by magic, and handed it to Al saying "Here, have this, its genuine Cuban. Stewart here brought it back with him today"

Al stubbed out the cigarette, took the cigar and lit it, looking slightly mollified.

"Ok," Al said between puffs. "So you want Frazer to kill someone for you, right?"

"Right" replied Frank.

"All I know is that Frazer is holed up in some cabin right beside the Grand Canyon; he’s laying low for a while there. I don’t even know if he’ll do the job for you, I mean….."

"Why don’t you let us worry about that" Joe interjected. "Now here’s your money" He handed Al a bundle of notes. Frank wondered where he had gotten all the money from, but figured he’s tackle Joe about that once they caught Frazer.

The three turned around and headed back into the casino. They had only just walked inside the door when a voice called out "Frank! Frank Hardy!, Joe! What are you boys doing here?"

It was Brad Hooper, Biffs father. He and Biff’s mom were divorced and didn’t keep in contact. He obviously didn’t know anything of the past few months. The boys tried to keep walking at first, hoping that he would realize they were undercover. Al was looking at them suspiciously.

"Frank, Joe" Brad Hooper persisted, following the two boys and grabbing Joe by the arm. Joe could see that he had been drinking. "Hey" the man continued. "What’s up, you two wouldn’t ignore your best friends father now?"

"I’m sorry; I think you must have the wrong…." Joe started to say, but it was too late. He looked at Frank and the two looked over at Al. They could see the realization coming over him and the movement of his hand as he reached for his gun.

"RUN!" was all Joe could say, and the two boys made a run for the entrance they had just come in. They heard the sound of bullets being fired and heard people scream as they ran for cover.

"GET DOWN" yelled Frank, but it was too late. Almost before he had the words out of his mouth Frank heard Joe yell in pain as he clutched his right arm. He fell to the ground. Frank grabbed him and made for the roulette table nearest the door, where the pair crouched down in hiding.

Joe was groaning in pain as he held his arm and blood was dripping down between his fingers. His face had gone very white. Quick as lightening Frank took off his tie and put it around Joes arm, tightening as much as possible to stem the flow of blood.

The Hardy’s could see peoples legs as they ran too and fro, trying desperately to get out of the line of fire. Another man had joined Al, and the two were heading towards the side entrance, guns ready to fire again.