The flight bearing Fenton and Laura Hardy arrived on time at Shermetyevo Airport . As they waited in line at customs, Laura found herself remembering the last time she’d done this, the trip that brought Frank into their family.  

The couple standing in line in front of them had been sitting next to Laura on the plane. While Fenton slept like the international traveler he was, Laura had struck up a conversation with the woman, Dawn Anderson. She and her husband Peter were adopting a little girl, so Laura had given her some hints and advice and proudly shown off Frank’s picture.  

She now smiled encouragingly at Dawn as she and Peter stepped up to the desk.  

“Did you two talk the entire flight from Amsterdam , love?” Fenton asked, leaning down to whisper in his petite wife’s ear.  

“Yes we did,” Laura answered with another smile. “They happen to be staying in the same hotel as us and I thought we might could eat dinner together.”  

Fenton smiled and brushed a kiss across his wife’s cheek. “Business first for me. Have to see what the boys have uncovered.”  

“That won’t take all afternoon, Fent, and you know it,” Laura said as they stepped up to the desk and presented their passports. Fenton answered the routine questions with his routine answers and just minutes later the two officially entered Russia .  

As it turned out, they ended up sharing a cab with the Andersons . Fenton smiled to himself, wishing they’d had someone to ask for advice. Arriving at the hotel, the two couples went in, Laura and Dawn still chattering away.  

Fenton’s attention was drawn immediately by the sight of Frank pacing on the other side of the lobby. Peter was asking him a question, but he never heard it. Pressing the credit card into Laura’s hand, he pointed at Frank. “I’ll meet you upstairs in their room.”  

Laura nodded. This was not a good sign. Frank rarely paced.  

Fenton hurried over to his son and laid a hand on his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”  

“We’re not sure,” Frank answered. “That Milov guy is not who he appears to be and Matt Walker is in our room.”  

“What?!” Fenton’s voice mirrored the surprise on his handsome face. Father and son stepped into the elevator and Frank pushed the “5” button. Since they were not alone, all conversation stopped. Once inside the room however, he quickly related what Milov had said about a sting and then what Matt had told them.  

“We followed Milov from the café, and he went to a warehouse. It was too late by then to do anything so we went back yesterday to scope the place out and saw Matt inside. We were going to go back and try to get inside this morning, but then Matt showed up on the doorstep saying they let him go.”  

Fenton sat down on the vacant bed and stared at the young man who was still sound asleep. Unless he liked getting beaten to a pulp, he was the one telling the truth. “Did he say anything else?”  

“Yeah,” Joe put in. “He thinks they were going to sell him.”  

Fenton looked at his sons, not quite believing what Joe had just said. “Sell him?”  

Joe nodded slowly.  

“I need to make a few calls then and see what else I can find out about Milov. Either he’s legit, or he has a great cover story.”  

“I’d say he has a great cover story,” Frank commented as he sat down on the bed.  

Fenton glanced at Matt, then back at his sons. “Have any plans for this afternoon?”  

“The cemetery,” Frank said quietly.  

Fenton nodded and hugged Frank. Today was the anniversary of Sophia’s death. Something deep inside Fenton told him not to let Frank go, that it was too dangerous. But Frank needed to go, needed to say good-bye. “Joe’s going with you.”  

Frank nodded, even though it was a statement and not a question.  

A knock sounded on the door and Joe went to answer it. It was Laura. She gave her younger son a quick hug and then moved over to Frank, giving him a long hug and kissing his forehead. “Find it?” she asked softly.  

Frank just nodded, not trusting his voice.  

“Go ahead and go,” Fenton interjected. “I’ll stay here until he wakes up.”  

“Be careful,” Laura admonished.  

Frank stood up from his place on the bed and went to the box to retrieve the envelope of pictures. He then handed it to Laura. “I’ll think you’ll like what’s in here.” He kissed her cheek. “I promise we’ll be careful. And we’ll be back by dark.”  

The brothers exited the hotel and took the Metro to the area where the cemetery was, then walked the few blocks to the gate. Once inside, Frank’s jaw dropped at the number of tombstones stretched out before him.  

“I’d offer to help you look, but…” Joe shrugged and let his voice trail off.  

Frank smiled as thanks for the offer, but it was a very sad smile, one that reminded Joe just how different he and Frank really were. All the times he’d defended Frank from bullies came crashing through his consciousness, the taunts in grade school that had often left the older boy in tears.  

Frank started walking. “It shouldn’t be too far back.”  

Joe stayed beside his brother, silently, as Frank searched the stones. Joe knew all too well how his brother felt, how hard that first visit really was. It was the one where the guilt could pick you up and sweep you away before you even knew what was happening. He’d never mentioned it, but he knew Frank had followed him that night of his first visit to Iola. He’d stayed in the shadows, but Joe had known he was there.  

I’ve never thanked him for that, Joe realized. Have to fix that when we leave.  

When Frank dropped to his knees, Joe knew he’d found it, his mother’s grave. Joe moved back a few feet to give his brother some privacy, knowing exactly what was playing through his mind.  

Joe was so intent on his brother that he never heard the footsteps coming up behind him. A strong arm slipped around his throat and before his body could react, a saturated cloth was held over his mouth and nose. The sickly-sweet smell made his stomach turn over. Chloroform! Just great, was Joe’s last thought as he passed out.  

Stefan tied the knots himself, as tightly as he could, then wrapped duct tape around Joe’s wrists. “Hide him good, Milov. But not too good,” he instructed. “I want him found by tomorrow at the latest.”  

Milov nodded as he and another man hoisted Joe’s unconscious form and carried him to an abandoned shed about 30 yards from Sophia’s grave. The structure was falling in on itself and looked as if one good gust of wind would send it crashing to the ground. The two tied Joe to a support joist, passing the rope around his neck and then his chest. Milov then placed a long strip of duct tape over his mouth and taped his ankles together. The twosome then returned to the car to wait for their boss.  

Stefan silently approached his brother. Semyon was lost in his grief. Serves you right for taking her from me! he thought bitterly. He knelt down and put a hand on his brother’s back. “Miss me, Semyon?”

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.