“Is there any blood on it or anything?” Joe asked.  

“Not that I can see,” Fenton said. “Get the trooper and have him mark off this area of the woods.”  

Joe hurried back to the road, being careful of where he walked. He quickly told the trooper what had been found. The trooper pulled out some crime scene tape and cordoned off the area.  

As the trooper was working, Fenton emerged from the woods. Joe could see the worry lines etched on his father’s face.  

“Joe, I want you to call Sam and have him start searching. Give him a brief synopsis of what’s happened. He’ll know what to start looking for.”  

“Dad, do you know what’s going on?”  

“I wish I did,” Fenton said. “But with Sam working, we’ll know if it has to deal with someone I’ve put in jail.”  

“All right,” Joe said. “I’ll call Sam.”  

As Joe pulled out his phone, he wondered what had happened. He just hoped that wherever his brother was, that he was all right. Joe quickly dialed his phone.  

* * * * *  

Silence. That’s all that he heard. Silence. There was no noise and that bothered him. As he slowly came to his sense, he could feel his head throbbing and tried to remember what had been the cause.  

He figured he must have gotten a migraine and was now waking up. His head still hurt and figured the migraine was easing a bit. He turned his head to the side and felt a hand touch his forehead.  

The hand brushed the hair back from his forehead with a delicate touch.  

Frank opened his eyes and was greeted with darkness. He reached his hand to his forehead and found the one brushing his hair back. He took the hand in his and gave it a squeeze.  

“You’re awake?” a female voice asked.  

“Caren?” Frank asked, his voice raspy.  

“It’s me,” she said and broke down in tears. “I’m so glad you’re awake. I’ve been so scared.”  

“It’s all right,” Frank said soothingly as he squeezed her hand again. “Caren, I need you to calm down, okay?”  

He heard her take a couple shaky breaths. “Okay.”  

Frank took a breath and tried to focus. His headache was easing up and knew in a while he would be all right.  

“Now, Caren, are you hurt at all?”  

“I’m okay,” Caren said. “But I’m scared. I have no idea what’s going on.”  

“It’ll be al right,” Frank reiterated. “Now, I need you to do something for me.”  

“What’s that?”  

“I need you to check this room to see if there is a light switch.”  

“How do I do that?” Caren asked.  

Frank struggled to sit up. “Try crawling straight back from where we are. You’re bound to come to a wall. When you reach the wall, stand up and slowly move about keeping your hands on the wall. As you feel your way around, you’ll look for a light switch.”  

“Okay,” Caren said.  

He listened as Care moved to the wall and started around the room. “I’ve reached a corner, Frank.”  

“Okay, keep going.”  

Frank listened as Care shuffled her feet as she moved around the room. Caren said, “I reached another corner.”  

“You’re doing fine,” Frank said.  

A few minutes later, Caren said, “I think I found something.”  

A moment later, the room was bathed in light, forcing Frank to close his eyes. He slowly opened his eyes, adjusting to the light. Once he was no longer blinded, he looked about.  

Caren was standing by the wall where the light switch was. There was also a door, which was closed. Caren was also blinking her eyes as she adjusted to the light. She appeared to be unhurt, but he had to know for sure.  

“Caren, are you sure you’re all right?”  

Caren looked at him. “I’m not hurt.”  

“Okay,” Frank said. “Try that door and see if it will open.”  

Caren pulled on the doorknob, but the door stayed closed. Caren sighed. “I guess we’re stuck.”  

“It’ll be all right.” Frank slid himself backward toward the wall so he was leaning against it. “We will get out of here.”  

“How?” Caren asked. “The door’s locked. There are no windows and there’s nothing in here to help us get out.”  

“Caren, my brother will realize something is going on. I was due home a while ago. Joe will retrace my steps and figure out what has gone on.”  

“Are you sure?” Caren asked, a tremor filling her voice.  

“Caren, you need to trust me on this. And I trust my brother. He will help us.”  

Caren moved to Frank and sat down beside him. Frank decided to try to get Caren’s mind on something else. “Caren, tell me what happened. What was going on when I found you?”  

“Well, the car seemed to come out of nowhere and forced me off the road. I pulled to the shoulder and the car did the same. Two men climbed out of the other car and approached me. They pulled me out and took me into the woods. They were trying to subdue me, but weren’t getting too far when you arrived.”  

“Did they say what they wanted?”  

“They never did,” Caren said. “They scared me.”  

Frank instinctively wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. He could feel her shudder and wished he knew why they had been taken.  

“What happened after I blacked out?” Frank asked.  

“Well, they rolled you over and put something in your mouth. I didn’t see what it was. They then pocked you up and took you to the car. I was dragged behind. They tossed you in the trunk and forced me into the backseat. They blindfolded me and then drove away.”  

“Did they say anything?”  

“No,” Caren said. “The ride was completely silent.”  

Frank let out a breath. He figured what the men had put in his mouth could have been a sedative. But he still couldn’t understand what had gone on or the reason they had been taken. At that moment, that was on the bottom of his priorities. He needed to figure a way out and fast.  

Before he could even discuss a plan with Caren, the door swung open. They both looked and saw a man standing there with a gun.  

“Come with me. Now.” He had a deep voice that seemed to blend well with his dark looks. His black hair was slicked back from his face. He had a small black moustache above his lip. His black long-sleeved buttoned shirt and black jeans seemed to fit him.  

Frank knew this wasn’t the time to try anything. With the man holding a gun, they could be hurt in the blink of an eye.  

“Help me up,” Frank said.  

He got to his feet with Caren’s assistance. She stayed on his left side to offer some balance. They exited the room with the man right behind them. Frank struggled to keep his balance. He was having a difficult time walking with his cast and wished he had his crutches.  

They made their way down a long hallway, coming to a door at the end.  

“Go in,” the man said.  

Caren reached for the doorknob and turned it. She pushed the door open and stepped into the room. When they cleared the door, that’s when they saw the man sitting in a black, leather recliner.  

Frank gasped as he recognized the man sitting there. It was Arthur Gray.

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.