Twisting and turning, desperately trying to free himself, Joe used up what little oxygen he’d had left in his lungs. Hitting bottom, he swallowed yet another mouthful of dirty water, at the same time trying to hold his breath.

‘Stop! Don’t panic!’ Joe told himself. As his lungs screamed for air, Joe tried to settle on the best course of action – push himself up from the bottom or try and get his hands in front of himself first? Deciding it would be better to have his hands to help propel himself to the surface, Joe bent his knees and crouched down, trying to wriggle his arms down and bring them up in front of him.

His lungs began to burn and spots danced behind his closed eyelids. ‘Don’t pass out!’ he admonished himself, knowing he had only seconds before the inevitable happened. With a last, desperate effort Joe finally pulled his arms up over his ankles, cradling his hands in front of his chest.

‘Now push!’ Joe ordered himself.

While his spirit was more than willing, the contortions Joe had to go through to get his hands in front of him, had depleted his very last reserves of oxygen. His muscles were still numb from disuse, and his limbs simply refused to obey his commands. Feeling conscious thought slowly fade away, Joe relaxed, inhaling a final mouthful of water as he gave into the darkness.

*****

"Keep your eyes on the spot where Joe went over!" Fenton ordered Vanessa, knowing immediately what had happened. Scrambling to the bow, he turned on the high-powered searchlight and began playing it over the foreboding waters of the bay.

"Tell me when I hit the spot where Joe went under," he requested. A muffled sniffle was his only reply.

Thirty seconds later they arrived at the spot Vanessa had indicated. "Get up here and hold this!" Fenton barked at Frank, even as he was making his way to the edge of the boat. In one fluid motion, Fenton dove over the rail and disappeared beneath the water.

Taking his father’s place next to the searchlight, Frank checked his watch. ‘He’s been under for almost a full minute already!’ he thought nervously. ‘If he was bound and gagged he can’t really hold his breath; he’ll be swallowing seawater like crazy!’ Frank suddenly hated the logical way his brain worked.

"How-how long can he survive under there?" Vanessa asked in a choked voice.

"He’s a great swimmer, Van. He can hold his breath forever," Frank responded lamely, knowing how ridiculous he sounded. They both pointedly ignored the fact it was impossible for Joe to hold his breath or swim the way he’d been bound.

The tense silence was finally broken as Fenton surfaced. Vanessa’s heart soared only to plummet just as quickly – Fenton was alone. Taking another deep breath, he disappeared beneath the surface again.

‘If he’s been in that footlocker all day, he’ll never be able to swim – even if he did manage to get free…’ Frank continued his morbidly logical train of thought, checking his watch again. ‘Two minutes…’

Hearing Vanessa muffle a sob, Frank’s heart twisted in pain. He continued to play the spotlight over the area where Vanessa had last seen Joe, praying for a miracle. He let his hopes rise as Fenton once again broke the surface, but they were quickly dashed as Fenton shook his head. There was no sign of Joe and Fenton Hardy looked as if he were beginning to panic. Just as he was about to submerge for the third time, Vanessa’s frantic cry stopped him.

"There!" she yelled, clamoring onto the bow and grabbing Frank’s arm. "There! Air bubbles!"

Frank fixed the searchlight on the spot as Fenton dove one more time. Seconds ticked by feeling like an eternity. Frank kept one hand on the light and one arm tightly around Vanessa, the two of them taking refuge in the other’s touch. Suddenly Fenton broke the surface with Joe clutched under one arm. Instinctively Frank looked at his watch.

Pushing the horrifying thought out of his mind, Frank scrambled off the bow after Vanessa. Leaning over the side of the boat, they pulled the unconscious Joe aboard.

Laying him on the floor of the boat, Vanessa pulled off the gag and blindfold and immediately checked his pulse. She smiled up at Frank, tears in her eyes, when she felt the comforting thump-thump-thump against her fingers. As Frank cut the ropes on Joe’s wrists, Vanessa leaned down and checked his breathing. Her smile suddenly disappeared and her eyes grew huge.

"Oh, God, Frank! He’s not breathing!!" She repositioned Joe’s head and checked again.

Frank hovered closely, feeling helpless as Vanessa began rescue breathing. ‘Come on, little brother…BREATHE!’