With a groan, Joe opened his eyes and then looked around in shock. Just where was he…?  Why was he wearing handcuffs?  And what the heck was he wearing?

Instead of his navy sweater and jeans he was wearing…?  A pirate outfit??

The last thing he had remembered was fighting with King Kong….No, that wasn’t right.  It just felt like he was fighting with the giant ape.

Stifling another groan, he attempted to sit up on the bed, but the handcuffs made it difficult. Difficult but not impossible, and as he swung his legs over the side, the pounding in the back of his skull intensified and he leaned over, holding his aching head gingerly.

He had been on his way to the mall when he saw a stretch limo pulled over on the side of the road, with apparent engine trouble.  Automotive tinkering being one of his favorite pastimes, Joe couldn’t resist pulling over to see if he could help. He’d never worked on a limo before!

Glancing down at his watch the teen knew he could spare about fifteen minutes and still get to the mall without making Vanessa wait…well, wait for too long anyway.

Things didn’t quite work out that way though, as the driver, a huge man standing well over 6’5” jumped him as soon as he leaned over the engine. Joe managed to get one good punch in, and while the giant staggered, he never went down.

Seconds later though, Joe did….

“Oh man,” Joe muttered, wondering if he had the word ‘Sucker’ tattooed on the back of his head or something.  “So much for my Good Samaritan act…”

“Here, this will help your head,” a very deep, monotone voice said, and Joe jerked around, instantly regretting the quick movement as the room spun into motion and he fought down nausea in his stomach.

The giant was standing to the side of him, holding an ice pack.

For someone so big, he moved without making any sound, and Joe had never even known he was there.

Good thing to know, Joe thought even as he said, “You weren’t so concerned about my health earlier.” Begrudgingly, he did take the ice pack when the big man never said anything.

As Joe applied it to the back of his head, he was thankful that his hands were cuffed in front of him. It was still bit awkward though.

Eying his abductor, Joe asked,” You aren’t by any chance related to Lurch or something, are you?” The giant had the same dark brown straight hair and long square face as the fictitious butler from the old TV series.  That and the height…

Muir just continued to look at him without saying anything.

“No sense of humor then, either, I guess,” Joe said sarcastically, as he glanced around the room again.  It wasn’t unpleasant. In fact, it was very large, with a fireplace, and Joe was right now sitting on the edge of a huge canopy bed, although the linen did smell of mothballs.

His eyes lit on the balcony to his right, but the big man just shook his head discouragingly.  “Long way down.”

Joe scowled and turned back to the giant.  “Okay, this is all a bit creepier than I usually like, so why don’t we just cut to the chase and you tell me why I’m here and not at the mall with my girlfriend. This isn’t exactly how I planned to spend my Saturday.”

Sighing in exasperation when the large man didn’t say anything, Joe looked back down at the clothes he was wearing, “Okay…then what’s with this pirate’s outfit?  I get the feeling that there is a pretty pissed-off, and mostly naked, Black Beard stalking the streets of Bayport…looking for his duds!!” Joe grimaced at the snug-fitting black pants and very frilly white blouse he was wearing.

“And that’s not even talking about your choice of wrist wear. I personally prefer something a lot less…hmmm, restrictive!!” The irritated teen finished holding up the handcuffs in display, the ice pack still held in his hands.

In answer Muir just indicated the door.  “You are expected for lunch. Suitable attire has been provided.”

Joe screwed up his face even more.  “Where are my real clothes?” 

Inwardly it bothered him that someone had changed his clothing, but he wasn’t about to say that.

“These are your real clothes,” Muir said, and Joe was rewarded to notice a tinge of impatience in his voice.  It might have seemed a bit childish, but it gave him some small satisfaction to irritate this man.

“If I was Captain Hook, maybe…. Look Goliath, I ain’t exactly David, but I don’t intend to hang around and play dress up doll for you, either.  So I want to know why I’ve been brought here, and I want to know now!!” Joe’s temper got the best of him and he stood up, fighting back a wave of vertigo and resisting the urge to stamp his foot like a petulant child.

“You are expected for lunch,” Goliath repeated, but Joe dropped the ice pack, crossed his arms defiantly and refused to move.

Finally the big man sighed; he really did hate teenagers, particularly obstinate ones like this one.  “You can walk or I can carry you.  But you are expected for lunch and my employer detests tardiness.”

“Yeah, well, so does my girlfriend, and I think this is way past ‘tardy’,” Joe didn’t even mention how his brother or parents would feel – tardy Hardys were never a good sign….

Two minutes later though, when he was picked up and slung over the giant’s shoulder with all the grace of a screaming two-year old, Joe realized he had much more trouble than just tardiness…

Much, much more….

* * *

Frank was frustrated. Joe had been missing now for almost four hours, and they were no closer to finding out what had happened to him than they had been four hours ago!

True, they had found the van…but that just complicated things.  Joe was going to the mall – this was about as much in the wrong direction of the mall as you could possibly go!

“Ahhh!” he screamed in frustration as he picked up a handful of leaves and flung them at the lake. Around him, the police had the area cordoned off, and a tow truck was just hauling the submerged vehicle out.

His father was off to the side talking to Chief Collig, and glanced up when he heard his son. He said something to his long-time friend, who nodded, and then the senior Hardy quickly crossed the distance between them and his older son.

“Frank?” he said, his handsome face marred with concern, “are you okay?”

The teenager just scowled at him, and his father sighed as he followed his son’s gaze back to the van slowly being dragged out.  “We’ll find him, Frank. We just need to be patient.”

Inside, the investigator felt like his son did, and hid a small smile as he wondered exactly what would happen if he let out a scream like that.  He knew, as well as Frank did, that in a missing person case, the first 24 hours were crucial – which left them with only 20 now.

Tick…tick…tick….

Frank had actually just returned to the scene, after having taken off on his motorcycle and prowling the immediate area for any signs of his brother.  His mind played cruel scenarios for him, each one ending up with Joe having been tossed out somewhere along the roadside, like used garbage.

It wouldn’t have been the first time, he thought morbidly before shaking his head; pessimism would do nothing to help find his brother!

In the end, he had returned to the scene with the hopes that the police had found something else out, heaven knows none of his friends were any help, as no one had seen or spoken to Joe since last night.

“FRANK!” the sound of a girl’s voice made him turn, and he forced a smile he didn’t feel as he turned in time to see Joe’s girlfriend, Vanessa Bender, hurrying towards him.

Giving his shoulder a supportive squeeze, Fenton moved back over to resume his talk with the police chief, leaving his son to deal with the obviously distraught girl.

* * *

“Vanessa,” Frank said, giving her a tight hug, “It’ll be okay, you’ll see. We’ll find him.”

Allowing herself to be comforted briefly, Vanessa pulled away and stared deeply into his dark brown eyes….So very different from Joe, she thought, but so very much the same too, and when she spoke her voice betrayed her worry.  “I’m just so scared, Frank.  I have this horrible feeling that this time it’s not going to be soon enough…that this time, he’s gone for good.”

Frank sucked in a sharp breath as he steeled his emotions and said, his voice strong with conviction:  “Vanessa.  I won’t let that happen. Joe is my brother and I will find him. You have my word on that.”

Vanessa smiled, heartened by the resolve she heard in the older boy’s voice, and then as the van was finally pulled all the way out of the water and Frank turned back to watch once again, the girl whispered to herself, “I just hope you find him in time, Frank.”

* * *

When Muir finally put an extremely pissed-off Joe down, the teen shot him a dirty look before he turned around, his eyes widening in disbelief.  “You have got to be kidding.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Hardy,” the old man sitting at the head of a very long and ornate table said, “while I might kid about many things, I can assure you, that in this, I am very serious. Now please sit down…”

Joe just glared at him, and Mr. Rosado sighed and picked up a goblet of wine to smell before he tasted it, “or if you’d prefer, Muir can feed you.”

Horrified as the large manservant moved towards him, Joe quickly sat down in the only empty chair with a place setting before it.

“Now, was that so hard?” the old man said as he put the goblet back down and smiled at his new guest; amused by the rebellious look he could see on the blond teen’s face.

And then beaming widely, Antoine spread his arms out and said in a grand voice, “Joseph Hardy, welcome to Deathe House….Welcome home, my child.”