DISCLAIMER: If I owned Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys then I wouldn't be posting fanfiction on the internet. Trust me.
Author's Note: I've always wanted to read a fanfiction based on the Nancy Drew PC game 'Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon' and since there aren't many, I decided to write one for my own enjoyment. This is my first ever fanfic so please give good constructive criticism. Thanks!
Enjoy!
Chapter 1
Dear Hannah,
Here I am at the railroad station along with a handful of other detectives, about to board a train bound for who knows where.
The only person who knows where we're going is Lori Girard. That's the young woman who invited everyone. Actually, she didn't really invite me — she invited Frank and Joe Hardy, and they invited me, and I've always wanted to join forces with the Hardy Boys.
I just hope this isn't another one of Lori's silly attempts to grab publicity. Some people are a little too rich and a little too famous for their own good.
Wish me luck!
Love Nancy.
Nancy Drew folded her letter, sealed the envelope and made a mental note to post it when she saw a post box.
"All aboard!" Nancy's head snapped up as she spotted Lori and the other passengers making their way to the train. "C'mon Nancy! If we don't board the train now, then it'll leave without us" Joe Hardy joked.
Joe is the younger of the two Hardy Boys. He is very tall and muscular; he has blonde hair and almost always wears the trademark Hardy grin, which makes most girls feel as though they are about to melt in their own shoes. Most girls! Nancy Drew is possibly the only woman he has ever met who is resistant to his flirtatious attempts. Sure Joe is a flirt, a bit silly and always seems to have his mouth filled with food but he is a very loyal friend and is actually quite clever, despite first appearances.
Frank, the eldest, is the complete opposite to his carefree brother. Frank who is also strikingly handsome has dark hair and is slightly taller and more built than Joe. Even though Joe is the 'family clown' Frank does occasionally share a laugh or two in appropriate situations.
Nancy thought that this must be why they work so well together, Joe coming across as the happy and trusting friend and Frank being 'just the facts'.
Nancy was quickly pulled out of her thoughts as Frank grabbed her hand firmly but with care and pulled her out of her seat. She blushed with embarrassment but hid it by stepping past Frank and onto the train.
Once the trio had boarded safely they were ushered into a dining room with a large table in the middle. They took their seats and waited patiently for Lori to begin her speech.
"Well people, now that we're all on board, let's get started. Okay. I, again am Lori Girard and the first thing I want to do is thank you all for coming. John Grey…"
Nancy and the Hardys tuned out for most of the speech and only picked up on the names of the other passengers.
"And then there's Frank and Joe Hardy, they're… amateur detectives?" Nancy noticed that at that Frank and Joe exchanged a quick glance. Frank was wearing a calming expression while Joe was practically seething with anger.
"My dad and their dad are old friends" Lori continued. "And you must be the other amateur detective, their friend, Natalie?" Joe snickered and Nancy gave him a playful glare before returning to Lori. "Nancy, Nancy Drew" she corrected. "Whatever" Joe wasn't the only one angry by this point, Frank looked ready to kill after Lori blew her off like that.
"All right, I'll bet you're wondering where we're going. Well, we're going to Copper Gorge, Colorado. Why? To solve the mystery of what happened to Jake Hurley, the man who originally owned this train.
Because see, one day in 1903, his train — this train — was found in a place called Blue Moon Canyon, which is out in the middle of the Nevada Desert. Only the engineer was on board and he was dead. As for Jake Hurley? He had disappeared from the face of the Earth.
Oh, and two more things: before he disappeared, Jake was rumored to have found the richest gold mine in the world and the train he owned — this train? His wife, Camille, died on it while they were going to the gold fields. It was rumored to be haunted."
All of a sudden, the lights went out and they were sitting in pitch black darkness. Then, an ear piercing scream filled the silenced room and the lights turned back on as suddenly as they had turned off. Everyone was wearing the same gobsmacked expression on their faces as it dawned on them that in fact, Lori Girard was no longer with them in the room.
Everyone was whispering to themselves when John Grey, the star from the popular TV show 'Ghost Hunters' stood up and walked out of the room while muttering dangerously "People should never go tampering with things they don't understand."
Charleena Purcell, the famous author who writes romance novels set in the wild west looked very annoyed and was complaining about work until she got cut short by Tino Balducci, the 'famous', gorgeous and very stupid police stood up looking very smug and reassured everyone "It's okay, everybody just stay calm. No need to panic. I'll get to the bottom of this."
Nancy looked over to the Hardys as Tino confidently strutted out of the room. She was not very surprised to see that neither of them looked reassured. Joe looked at Frank and then Nancy with laughter dancing in his eyes "Well Nancy, you're up to all that social etiquette stuff. What're you supposed to do when you're hostess vanishes into thin air?" "Find her" Nancy stated simply as she walked out to go interrogate the other passengers.
Charleena was the first person she saw so she started up a conversation. "If I don't seem concerned, it's because I'm not. Lori Girard is a young woman whose only goal in life is to be famous. She craves attention and habitually uses her father's considerable wealth to get it." Charleena stated matter-of-factly.
"So, you think her disappearing like that is just some kind of publicity stunt?" Nancy enquired "I just think she couldn't resist showing off in front of all us minor celebrities."
Nancy was just about to ask Charleena another question but she heard a faint "Psst, Nancy" She turned around to see Joe standing in the doorway "Come here" Joe ushered.
Nancy excused herself from Charleena and walked back into the dining car to see what the Hardy Boys needed so urgently.
Author's Note: So what could the Hardy Boys want? Of course if you've already played the game then you already know!
I am in the process of writing the next chapter so you can expect it sometime next week. After all, this does take a lot of time and game playing, not that I'm complaining!
Read and Review please! Thanks
Love Shubabi xx
