HDA - Living in Darkness Trilogy - Pt 2 - The Search

Laura Hardy placed the three glasses of iced tea and two of cold soda on the tray and started back toward the living room, but hearing her sons' voices, she paused, not wanting to burst in on them. She'd known about the incident at Halloween and later during Thanksgiving break, after the boys had finally told all, but listening to Joe telling about Christmas made her hands tremble and bring tears to her eyes.

She swallowed hard, steadied the tray and walked in just as Joe finished telling the couple about their trip to Albany. MacKensey and his wife shared a look. "Unless that man is out of jail, I'm not sure it would explain—" He broke off and took a glass of iced tea. "Thank you."

"No need to stop on my account," said Laura, a thread of steel in her voice. She looked first at Frank, and then glanced at her youngest son. "What's going on?"

Joe took a deep breath and told his mother about Ione Martin. Laura's blue eyes widened. "Oh my..."

"Something's going on, Mrs. Hardy," said Casi. "But we're not sure what."

Laura sighed. "Joe, I think you should tell them about what happened at the end of December."

Joe stared down at the floor. "This guy had an obsession with Vanessa, thought she was his ladylove who'd died six months before. He tried kidnapping her, getting rid of me..."

MacKensey leaned forward. "Where is he now?"

"We don't know." Frank cleared his throat. "When we realized that Joe and Vanessa had been grabbed, Dad and I had gone to the James' estate but he and his butler were gone."

"James." Casi frowned. "That's not Bruce James, the man who started a trend with the magazine Current."

Frank nodded. "Byron is his only son. Bruce and Alexia were killed when Byron was seven. By the age of twelve he was in a boarding school."

MacKensey shook his head. "It doesn't make sense though." He looked at Casi. "Does it? I mean could the two incidents be connected?"

"I don't see how—" Casi broke off as the telephone rang. Laura got up to answer it and called out, "Joe, it's for you."

MacKensey and Joe looked at each other and then MacKensey shook his head. "Unless Jack's psychic, I think she means you." He looked at Casi again. "You don't think Jack's psychic, do you?"

Joe heard Casi sigh as he left the living room. "Oh do be quiet, husband," he heard her say as he took the phone from his mother. "Hello?" He went very still as he listened to the voice on the other end of the line. For a moment, past and present seemed to blur and he closed his eyes against the sudden unexpected spurt of painful loss.

"I'll be there," he whispered. Joe hung up the telephone and took a deep breath and turned to see Frank standing there. "I – Ione wants to talk."

Frank frowned. "Joe, I don't think it's such a good idea." He glanced over his shoulder toward the living room. "Look what just happened."

"I don't think Ione is trying to run me over with a truck." Joe shook his head. "I'll be fine."

Before they could dwell on it, they heard the front door open and a moment later, their father's voice. Joe sighed. "Dad's home. Frank, I told Ione I'd meet her at that coffee shop over on Ninth." Joe started for the front door when his father saw him. "Oh, hey, Dad."

Fenton Hardy nodded and then turned back to MacKensey. "Did you manage to get a look at the driver?"

MacKensey shook his head. "My first thought was getting Casi out of the way." He jerked suddenly and looked at his wife. "Stop that. I'll be the one needing the first aid kit."

"I didn't kick you hard."

Joe pulled open the front door and Fenton looked over at him. "Joe, Frank, where are you going?"

"Over to Callie's, Dad, we'll be right back," said Frank, edging his brother slowly out the door.

Fenton arched an eyebrow and then nodded. "All right." He turned back to MacKensey but Laura got up and walked to the door.

She looked first at Joe, and then at Frank for a long moment. "That wasn't Callie, was it," she said softly.

Joe just looked at her and took a deep breath. Laura sighed. "Be careful."

"We will, Mom, and we'll be home for supper," added Frank as they left. He waited until they were in the van before he said, "Whew, I thought for a minute there, she'd try to keep us home."

Joe shook his head. "She knows I finished all my Batman comics and I've nothing to do in my room." Joe headed for the van but when Frank started to follow him, Joe spun around and stopped him. "No."

Frank arched an eyebrow. "No what?"

"No, you're not going with me."

"Joe, don't be stupid. Something's going on and it's not exactly wise to go meet her alone."

"Like she's going to beat me up, knock me out and kidnap me. Ha."

"She may have an accomplice." Frank waited a heartbeat, and then added, "If she's an Assassin, she won't need one though."

Joe gave him a glare. "I can take care of myself."

"Joe, I'm suddenly craving a low-fat _mocha latte. You'll never know I was there." Frank sidled to his left, inching closer to the van's passenger door.

"You don't like lattes. Last time Callie tried to get you to drink one, you said it didn't even taste like coffee."

Frank yanked open the passenger door. "I'm going – or you'll have to push me out of the van."

Joe grunted and got into the driver's seat. He shot Frank one last glare and started the engine. "Don't tempt me."

Frank bit back a grin, satisfied he'd won the skirmish. "Well, just don't sit there. Don't want to keep her waiting."

Joe grunted again and backed out the driveway. "I'll drop you off a block away."

"No dice. Or let me drive, and I'll drop you a block away."

"It's cold out there."

Frank gave his brother a look. Joe sighed and managed a faint grin. "Okay, okay, point taken." He sighed again and shook his head. "Big brothers, a royal pain."

"Ditto."

Joe pulled into a parking space in front of the coffee shop, Cafe Java, and shut off the van. "Wait at least a few minutes before going in, okay."

Frank nodded. "Okay." He watched Joe get out and go inside. Cafe Java was a new place done in soft neutrals with comfortable seating on one side and a cyber chat space on the other. You could either visit with friends on overstuffed couches or surf the net. He got out of the van and made sure the door was shut and started for the glass entrance doors when he froze. Vanessa was walking toward those same doors with Callie. Vanessa looked somewhat upset and Frank wondered if it was about what had happened earlier.

He glanced through the nearest window, saw his brother sitting on a loveseat with Ione and realized that was the worst thing for Vanessa to see at the moment. He darted to the front door and nearly knocked Callie down. "Cal, I'm sorry."

Callie looked up at him. "Frank, what are you doing here?"

"I was telling Mom about the exotic coffee flavors they have here, so she asked me to get her some." Frank moved to block the doorway without being too obvious. "What about you?"

Vanessa swallowed hard. "I just needed a little peace and quiet."

Callie glanced at her. "Ask him."

Vanessa stared down at the ground and shook her head. Frank arched an eyebrow. "Ask me what?" When Vanessa didn't say anything, he looked at Callie. "Ask me what?"

Callie waited a moment but when Vanessa still didn't speak, she sighed and looked at Frank. "Someone sent Vanessa three dozen roses – for Valentine's Day."

Frank looked over at Vanessa. "You think it was Joe?"

Vanessa finally raised her head to look at Frank but her gray eyes focused on something past his shoulder. The look on her face told Frank she'd seen Joe with Ione. At first she was stunned, and then her _expression grew angry. Then her eyes filled with tears and she took a step back. Frank swallowed hard. "It's not what it looks like." The second he said it, he realized that was the absolute worst thing to say. "Vanessa—"

Vanessa gave him a shocked look, shook her head and took off toward her car. Callie frowned at Frank and took a look inside for herself. She swatted his arm. "Shame on you."

"She called Joe, wanted to meet with him. Something's going on, Callie. Something like Halloween two years ago, I just know it."

Callie looked like she wanted to argue with him but then went pale. "You mean that time you went up to Maine and came back all unsettled? And Joe thinking his mom was dead—?"

Frank gave a sharp nod. "Please try and convince Vanessa."

Callie looked over her shoulder. "I'll try. Frank, did Joe send her those roses?"

"I don't know. He might have. I don't know."

"Vanessa said the person who called in the order had a British accent."

Frank thought back to Leigh's offer. Had she gotten her cousin to order the roses? But no, she'd said she would only find out what Vanessa wanted. This was getting weirder. "Was there a card?"

"Vanessa said it sounded like some weird poem, about keeping him from his solitude, to stay with her was all he asked."

Frank felt an echoing to those words, like he'd heard them before. How would he go about finding out if he had? "I'll tell Joe."

Callie looked back inside the coffee shop and narrowed her eyes. "Hmm, you'll have to find him first."

Frank went cold at her words and spun around to look for himself. Joe and Ione were gone.

***

"I – I'm glad you came," Ione whispered, making Joe lean forward to hear her. They were seated on a small loveseat and Joe felt a frisson of déjà vu. Ione was wearing a rich purple sweater and black jeans. Her dark hair hung past her shoulders, half hiding her face. "I don't know what I'd have done if you said no."

"What's going on?" asked Joe, swallowing hard, forcing himself away from the memories.

"I need your help."

Joe felt tension settle in his shoulders. The way she seemed to be dragging things out bothered him. "Help?"

She gave him a shy smile and nodded. Suddenly, she looked around. "I can't tell you here."

"Why?" Joe tried not to be too obvious looking around. Where was Frank? He caught sight of someone standing just outside the door and frowned. Had Frank been wearing that dark blue sweater?

"It's a secret." Ione scooted to the edge of the loveseat and took Joe's hand. "Come on."

Joe watched her stand up, tug on his hand but didn't move a muscle. "Where?"

"My apartment. It's safer to talk there."

"I don't think that's a good idea, Ione."

Ione crouched down in front of him, gave him an impish smile. "What? You don't trust me?"

"I don't think I should."

Her smile faded somewhat. "That's not like you. Perhaps you have changed after all." She straightened up, tugging him to his feet. She bounced on tiptoe and kissed him. When Joe would have pulled back, she wrapped her free arm around his neck and held on. After a long minute, she stepped back, breathless. She glanced at the doorway, smiled and started for the back of the shop. "Come on."

"Ione, no."

"It's too late to back out now. We're together again and that's all that matters."

Joe pulled his hand free and looked toward the door again. He could still see someone standing there, now he could make out another person with blond hair. He went ice-cold. Was it Vanessa? Oh dear God, had Vanessa seen them kissing again? He shuddered. "I'm going home."

Ione grabbed his hand with both of hers. "Oh no, not now. We've just begun. Let's go dancing."

"I said no."

A tall distinguished man got to his feet from the sofa nearest them. "Perhaps, you should listen to the young lady," he said in a soft British accent. "It might save you some grief."

Joe's eyes went wide. "Damien Forsythe!" Then he saw the gun half-hidden in the man's hand.

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Disclaimer

The Hardy Boys belong to Simon and Schuster and the Stratemeyer Foundation. The authors 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.