Frank’s car came to a rocking stop outside a small house sitting on an ample corner lot. The house was surrounded by a large privacy fence and he just shook his head.  “Is this it?”

Seth nodded, already getting out of the car, and the older Hardy boy was stunned – they were only about a block from his own house; this place was closer to them than Biff’s!

“Look!” Callie pointed excitedly at the white Corvette parked on the street across from them, and both boys nodded grimly.  Davis was here.

As they walked towards the house Frank suddenly stopped, and Callie winced as she saw what he was looking at – it was Lily’s car.

Swallowing hard, the dark-haired teen forced himself to keep moving even as he was faced with the hard facts of what Callie had been telling him.  Lily had known….

“Do we knock?” Seth asked, but Frank shook his head and gestured towards the gate that led into the back yard.

“We go through there,” the teen told the other two, picking up his pace as he did so. “The hole will be out back.”

As he put his hand on the latch to open the gate, Frank glanced back at Callie.  “As soon as we know for sure that Joe is here, call the police, okay?”

The girl nodded as she took out her cell phone.  “Okay.”

Frank looked at Seth, “Dogs?” The other dark haired teen shook his head, no the Gettys did not have a dog.

Steeling himself for what he might find, Frank slowly lifted the latch and pushed the gate open; Seth and Callie were right behind him.

* * *

Davis and Evan dumped Joe’s body unceremoniously into the hole they had dug. Then picking up the shovels, they started to toss dirt in on top of the unconscious teen.  Lily watched as a cruel smile played across her face.

Pulling out her cell phone she said, “I think I’m going to give Frank a call and see how’s he holding up…maybe even drop by to offer some physical moral support.”

“That won’t be necessary,” a cold voice from behind her said. Whirling around, she saw a furious-looking Frank Hardy striding towards her.  “seeing as I’m right here…”

* * *

Callie’s eyes widened in shock as she realized what was happening; they were burying Joe alive!  Or at least she prayed he was still alive, but as she couldn’t get a good look, she wasn’t sure.  Deftly she stepped back through the gate and dialed 9-1-1….

* * *

Davis was out of the hole like a shot as he moved in on Frank.  Evan paused to watch, his glance catching Seth’s for one moment, but the more muscular teen just shook his head, a silent warning not to interfere.  This was between Frank and Davis.

Frank met the charge with a calm control that was frightening to watch, as the look on his face was anything but….

“What are you stopping for?!” Lily hissed at Evan, “Fill the hole!” Immediately the red-haired teen started shoveling more dirt in.

“Damnit, Pratt,” Seth growled as he sighed and moved to grab the shovel, “We don’t do this kind of crap!”  The struggle was brief between them before Seth pulled the shovel away and pushed Evan back from the hole.  He glanced down; Joe was only half covered. Looking back at Frank, he saw the teen was busy with Davis.

* * *

Every move Davis made, Frank countered perfectly, letting the older teen exhaust himself with the attack before making his own move. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Seth leaning down in the hole to check on Joe.

“You’re too late,” Davis panted as he took another swing at Frank, trying to psyche the other boy out.  “He’s already dead.”

Frank faltered for one moment and Davis managed to catch him squarely on the chin, staggering him, but he didn’t go down. Instead he immediately launched his own assault on Davis, two powerful kicks followed by a brutal uppercut; the older boy was out before he was down!

Whirling away from Davis, Frank started to move towards Seth and Joe but then stopped when he saw Lily.  She had a gun and it was pointed into the hole!

* * *

Fenton Hardy’s car peeled out of the driveway, a patrol car, with lights going and siren blaring, right behind him.

Jorgen Fruz sat in the seat next to Fenton while Biff and Chet sat in the back….

* * *

Seth breathed out a sigh of relief when he felt Joe’s pulse.  It was very shallow, but still there.  The kid was cold though; a virtual ice-cube, and he quickly pulled off his jacket and laid it over him, ignoring the brisk wind and biting night air.  He didn’t try moving Joe; he’d leave that decision up to Frank.

Glancing up he saw the older Hardy finish off Davis and then a soft click drew his attention back to Lily, who had been watching, wordlessly from the side.

He gasped; she was holding a gun and pointing it directly at him…. No, he amended, directly at Joe!

* * *

“Get out of the hole,” Lily commanded, looking at Seth, “NOW!” Immediately he scrambled out and went to stand beside a pale-faced Evan.

“Lily—” Frank started, desperately needing to diffuse this situation.

“No,” she cut him off, her face an uncustomary mask of anger, “this doesn’t concern you—”

“Like hell it doesn’t!” Frank yelled at her, “That’s my brother you’re pointing a gun at!”  Hearing the sound of rapidly approaching police cars, Frank gave a silent thanks to Callie for remembering her part even as he said, “It’s over, Lily.  Just put down the gun.  No one else has to get hurt.”

Lily shook her head as she smiled fondly at Frank.  “Silly boy.  You still don’t get it, do you?”

“Get what?”  Frank’s mind was desperately trying to think of some way to disarm her.  As each second passed, he knew he was running out of time and he had no idea what kind of shape Joe was in….

“This is my game.  It’s what I say, over when I say it…and I say this isn’t over yet.”  Lily’s blue eyes locked onto Frank’s brown ones.  “Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for you, yet you don’t seem to appreciate any of it!”

“What are you talking about?” Frank demanded, wondering why Joe had to be so right about her – would it have been so bad for his intuition to be off, just this one time??  The girl was crazy!

“I’m talking about everything!  I wanted to spend time with you and did everything for you!  From the moment I decided you would be the perfect boyfriend I tried to make you better,” Lily explained.  “I got you a nice jacket, a nice car to ride, and you rejected it all!  I made you cool enough to be my boyfriend!”

“Lily,” Frank’s voice rang with disbelief as the implications of what she was saying hit home, “you make me sound like some male Barbie doll that you accessorized!”

“Damn straight,” Lily boasted, “I would have molded you into perfection, but no, this brat had to work behind my back to ruin everything!  Even after Davis tried to beat my warning into him!  He’s not very bright, is he?”  She glanced down into the hole and then back at Frank, who was thunderstruck at her words.  “I told the boys to play nice.  Maybe I was too considerate…”

“Lily—” Frank started, but she cut him off.

“Maybe they should have put him in the hospital. You know, I usually don’t condone violence, but for some people, that’s the only way they’ll learn!” Lily mused as she started to squeeze the trigger.

“NO!” the sixteen-year-old yelled, “Please Lily, you don’t have to do this!”

Lily pursed her lips and looked at him, imploring him to continue.  And he did.

“You can have me. I’ll be whatever you want.”  Frank was desperate. “We can leave…go anywhere…be anyone you want us to be!  I know you’ve got the money…we can do this.  Me and you!”

All eyes were on Lily as, behind Frank, Davis began to stir, but Seth moved to keep him from getting up.

The beautiful brunette glanced down into the hole again, and then back at Frank. “Why?” He shook his head, not understanding what she was questioning. “Why would you do this?  Agree to go with me so I won’t shoot him?  If you do, you’ll still never see him again.”

“I – I know,” Frank stammered, “But – but he’d still be alive.”

Slowly the girl nodded, and started to move away from the hole.  She looked at Evan and Seth.  “Anyone tries anything and they’ll get an extra hole in them, got it?”  Both boys nodded.

Frank let out a shuddering sigh as the gun was finally no longer pointed at his brother.  He waited for Lily.

* * *

“That house! There!” Jorgen shouted, pointing excitedly at the Gettys’ ‘safe-house’.

* * *

Callie stood outside the backyard, on the other side of the fence, listening to the whole exchange.  She could hear the police cars pull onto the street and knew in seconds they would be here.  She just prayed it would be soon enough to stop this crazed girl!

And then she heard Lily’s voice again and pressed herself up flush against the side of the fence; they were coming out!

Darn it, Callie thought as she glanced back to the street and saw a dark colored sedan and a police car screeching to a halt, they’re going to be too far away to do anything!

The girl realized, with growing alarm, this was about to turn into a hostage situation – with Frank as the hostage!

* * *

“We’ll take my car,” Lily told Frank as she indicated for him to move to the gate.  She glanced back at the three boys, caught her brother’s eye and indicated the hole.

Davis nodded almost imperceptivity. He got her message, loud and clear. Fill the hole….

* * *

Fenton slammed on his brakes and shoved open his car door; Jorgen, Chet and Biff moments behind him!

* * *

Callie saw Frank step through the gate, and before he knew what was going to happen, she grabbed his arm, pulled him sharply to the side and kicked up with her foot, sending Lily’s gun flying!!

And then before Lily could respond, Callie had grabbed her outstretched arm, spun her around and deftly put her into a restraint hold, her pretty face smashed against the fence!

Frank stared at Callie in shock for a moment before he realized what she’d done.  Barely giving her a quick ‘thanks,’ the teen raced back into the yard – he had to get Joe!

* * *

“Let me up,” Davis growled, but Seth refused.

“This is as far as I’ll go,” Seth told him, and then before either could say anything else, Frank Hardy came flying past them and dropped into the hole!

* * *

Fenton Hardy and the teens reached Callie and Lily a hair’s breadth ahead of the cop. The detective paused only long enough to shake his head at the struggling brunette before he hurried into the yard after Frank!

* * *

“Joe!” Frank yelled, kneeling down beside his brother and quickly searching for a pulse.  Letting out a relieved sigh as he felt one, shallow, but still beating, he quickly pulled off his jacket, laid it on top of Seth’s and then called up to his father, whom he saw hurrying towards him, “We need an ambulance, he’s hypothermic!”  And then he turned his attention back to his unconscious brother, knowing that it was too dangerous to try and move him right now; any type of jarring could induce a heart attack in a severely hypothermic person!

Gently he brushed the hair away from the bluish-pale face as he said softly, “It’s okay, Joe. You’re going to be okay now…just hang on a little bit longer….We’re going to get you out of here.”  He glanced up at his father, who was now kneeling down beside the hole looking worriedly at them, his own face pale and anxious.

Fenton removed his heavy overcoat and gave it to Frank to put over Joe as he nodded his head.  “He’ll be just fine, Frank. He isn’t about to let them beat him,” he winced at his own choice of words, “at least not like this.” His eyes looked grave, but his voice held a note of assurance that Frank latched on to, thinking only one thing: Joe would be okay…he had to be….

The sound of an ambulance in the distance relieved some of the heaviness in his heart, but as Frank caught a glimpse of a handcuffed Lily pass the outside gate, he shook his head and tightened his grip on Joe’s cold hand.

“Hang on, little brother,” he whispered, gently stroking the icy forehead.  “I need you, kiddo.  Now more than ever….”