When they arrived at the Hardy home, Joe pulled into the driveway, while Ned parked on the street in front. They went inside and Joe introduced Nancy and Ned to his father. Fenton said, "It’s nice to finally meet you. My boys talk about you often."

"It’s a pleasure to finally meet you too, sir. I just wish is wasn’t under these circumstances," Nancy said.

"I know," Fenton said and they went into the kitchen to eat an early dinner.

"I’ll be there in a second," Joe said. "I need to make a call."

He picked up the phone and dialed, he had to make sure one person knew what was going on before it was seen on the news. After the second ring, he heard a voice say, "Hello?"

"Hi, Callie. It’s Joe."

"Hi Joe. How’s Frank? I was going to call him in a little while."

"That’s why I called," Joe said taking a deep breath. "Callie, sometime last night Frank was kidnapped."

"What?" Callie asked. "You’re kidding, right?"

"I wish I was."

"What happened?"

Joe quickly explained what happened. He finished by saying, "I’m doing everything I can to find him."

"I know you will," Callie said trying to sound reassuring. "Let me know if there is anything I can do to help."

"All right," Joe said and hung up.

After dinner, the three of them explained to Fenton about their plan to get Frank’s abductors out in the open. They turned the television on and heard the news anchor say, "And in local news, Fenton Hardy, Bayport’s own resident crime solver, has reported his eldest son, Frank Hardy, missing. He disappeared sometime Monday evening and hasn’t been seen since. Officers are now searching for him. If anyone has seen Frank Hardy, they should contact Bayport Police immediately. And in other news..." Joe clicked the television off.

Fenton looked at them. "I hope this works."

All at once, the phone began to ring and didn’t stop. Fenton put the machine on while the three of them went into the living room.

Nancy was sitting on the couch beside Ned while Joe sat in the recliner. "I’ve been thinking about the computer science lab."

"What about it, Nancy?" Joe questioned.

"Let’s say there is a scholarship or some award at stake," Nancy began getting to her feet. "And the only way to get either of those is to get straight A’s in a number of classes."

"So, the person responsible is probably stealing the tests for themselves to keep their average up instead of selling them," Joe finished.

"It could be the right answer," Nancy said as she paced. "But who would know what scholarships are being offered?"

"The principal and guidance counselors would," Joe said. "They know about everything that goes on at school."

"I guess I’ll talk to the principal tomorrow morning," Nancy said as she sat down beside Ned. "Now, you need to tell me about Debbie Stellar."

"What do you want to know?" Joe asked.

"Anything."

"She was standing behind those two guys with Nathan today. You usually can’t miss her. She has brown hair with blue streaks. She’s part of that group. It’s weird."

"What is?" Ned asked.

"Most of those people, except Debbie, rarely come to class. Debbie gets really good grades and is trying to be valedictorian."

"Then why is she hanging out with them?" Nancy asked.

"I don’t know," Joe admitted. "She was never popular. She might have joined them to fit in somewhere."

"Do you know where she lives?"

"No," Joe said. "But her father is a doctor and has a private practice downtown."

"He does?" Nancy asked as a smile appeared on her face.

"Joe, where do you keep your phonebook?" Ned asked.

"Why?"

"Because Nancy is going to want an appointment with Dr. Stellar," Ned said.

"You’re kidding."

"You know me so well, Ned," Nancy said giving Ned a quick kiss.

Joe pulled out the phonebook and said, "You could try to get an appointment for tomorrow afternoon."

"Why tomorrow?" Ned asked as Nancy flipped through the pages.

"Because we get out a noon for our monthly parent teacher days."

"Here it is," Nancy said copying the number down. She looked at Ned. "It’s time to make the call, big brother."

"All right," Ned said as he moved toward the phone. He dialed as Nancy and Joe stood by him. "Hello? I’m surprised someone was in the office after six." He paused. "Yes, I would like to make an appointment for my sister." He paused again. "The problem? She has just gotten over pneumonia and has been complaining about chest pains when she takes deep breaths. I just want to make sure she is all right." Ned smiled. "Tomorrow at one is fine. Thank you."

Ned hung up the phone as Nancy placed another kiss on his cheek.

"Good story," Joe said with a smile.

"Pneumonia?" Nancy asked with a laugh.

"It was the first thing I could think of," Ned whined defensively. "But I think it was pretty good. It was a good thing the receptionist was working late."

"It was," Nancy said.

"It’s getting late," Ned said.

"You’re right," Nancy said looking at Joe. "If you hear anything, please call."

"I will," Joe said. "I’ll see you at school."

"See you later," Ned said and they left.

*****

Frank opened his eyes and was temporarily disoriented. There was still a dull throb in his head as he tried to get his bearings. He could barely make out his surroundings because it was so dark. He figured it must be night.

Frank tried to slide up on the cot to pull the tape off his mouth. He was struggling to get the tape off when the door opened with a slam and a bright light was flashed into his eyes. Frank squinted trying to see who was standing there.

A light was turned on overhead and Frank saw four people wearing black pants, sweatshirts and ski masks.

"Take the tape off his mouth," one male voice said.

One of the others came over and ripped the tape off his mouth making Frank cry out in pain. Frank moistened his lips then asked, "Who are you?"

"That’s really none of your business, Frank," the first voice said. "If you behave, you’ll be out of here in no time."

"Where am I?" Frank asked trying to figure out who was hiding behind the ski masks.

"Someplace no one will ever think to look for you," the first voice said and turned to the others. "Make sure he’s secure."

"Why are you doing this?" Frank asked as he struggled. "I don’t understand why you’re holding me."

"Just think, if you behave, everything will be fine. If you don’t, then enjoy your last days of life."

"You won’t get away with this."

"I think we will." He laughed and nodded to the two others.

Frank saw one of the masked figures had a bottle with a chloroform label on it. He tried to turn his head away as the two taped a cloth over his nose and mouth. Frank tried to stop them from putting a few drops on the cloth, but was unable to. After a few breaths, Frank was unconscious.