There's a little Bess/Joe fluff in the first chapter, don't let that deter you- I am going to keep this as true to the series as possible, and will only insert romance if needed for the plotline. Here goes! Don't forget to check out my other Nancy Drew & the Hardy Boys fanfic, The Mother She Never Knew!

"Bess! Hey, wait up a minute, will ya?"

Joe Hardy, mouth smeared with frosting, rushed towards Bess. The two looked quite alike, except the fact Joe was tall and muscular and Bess was short and slightly plump.

Bess turned, brushed a lock of blond hair away from her face, and giggled. "Uh, Joe, there's some frosting on your face..."

"Huh? Oh, yeah," he swiped at his mouth with the back of his hand, "Well, ah, it was a good party,huh? I think George really was surprised."

Bess nodded. "Yeah. I got a zillion pictures of her face when we all yelled 'surprise'."

"Mmhm. Well, see, Bess, I wanted to ask you if you would, that is, consider, ah-" Joe, think! You never get nervous when talking to girls,his brain screamed at him. He swallowed. "Wouldyouliketogoeattomorrow?"

Bess looked confused, so, slower, he explained "Would you like to go eat with me tomorrow? Like, a date? Maybe at this little Italian place...?" He blushed suddenly.Blushing?Pull it togather, man, he berated himself. Nevertheless, he waited nervously for her reply. She squealed.

"Ooh, Joe, really? Of course!"

Frank honked, and Joe gave a little finger wave. " 'Bye, Bess. I'll call ya with details!"

"Dude, did you just ask Bess out?" Frank was grinning maliciously. Joe smirked.

"Ah, Frank, wouldn't you like to know?"

Frank stared at him solemnly for a few minutes before announcing,"You did. That's why you're giddy."

"Giddy? Who uses a word like that, anyway?"

"I do, thank you very much!"

Frank's phone, sitting on the car console, rang suddenly, and he jumped, causing Joe to laugh. "Frank Hardy here." He held up one finger, indicating Joe should be silent, and hit the speakerphone button.

"Mr. Hardy? ATAC here. Code names, please?" Remembering the names they'd been assigned in case of an emergency and they were contacted by phone, Frank answered, "Sherlock and Watson ready to proceed."

Maybe the names were cliche, but he kind of liked them. The ATAC agent continued, "Good. You have all your equipment, I trust?" "It's in the trunk. What's going on?" Joe leaned forward slightly. An emergency mission?

What the man said next shocked them both,but only for a second. "A gang broke into Bayport Shopping Center this afternoon thirty minutes ago. They had an argument with one of the employees, there was a fight, and now the gang has barricaded themselves inside. For some reason they've taken hostages.

They're all waving guns, from what we can see on the store video cameras, and we believe the leader is probably mentally unstable. According to the tracking devices on your phone's, you and Joe are the closets ATAC agents to the center. Good luck, guys."

He switched out of his professional tone long enough to add "Vaya con Dios, Frank, Joe."

Frank smiled. Vaya con Dios meant "God be with you",or "Go with God."

"Okay, thanks. I bet we'll need all the help from above we can get. We'll head to the center. 'Bye. We'll contact headquarters occasionally to report in."

"Great."

Click! The man hung up, and Frank and Joe were left staring at each other.

"Woah, Frank. This is probably gonna be one of our most exciting cases!"

"Joe, don't do anything stupid. This is one of our most dangerous cases, and...I don't want you getting hurt."

It normally annoyed Joe when Frank, ever the older brother,began worrying about him,but,he knew what Frank was saying was true. He did have a tendency to rush into situations. So now, as he strapped his ATAC-isued gun to his belt, he laughed grimly.

"This is gonna be fun."