Disclaimer: I do not own the Hardy Boys...sad but true.

A/N: Please read and review...it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Spion din Romania

Chapter 1: The Extent of Romania's Hospitality

The small town in the hills of Romania was roughly ten miles away from Bucharest. But for the brothers scouring the countryside for an almost nonexistent warehouse, it seemed as if it were thousands of miles away from any form of civilization.

Ten minutes into their stay in the country the younger of the pair had already regretted not studying his brother's Romanian dictionary. He never figured it would have been so impossible to function in the country not knowing the whole damn language.

But of course that was where his brother came in handy. The seventeen year old had always taken his older brother's bilingual abilities for granted, but now he was thankful to at least pick up a few phrases from his partial knowledge of the Romanian language.

After multiple--but anticipated--arguments and a few debriefings from a not-so-happy higher up, the brothers had finally managed to pinpoint the exact location of the building they were looking for. An orphanage hidden in the remote hills of a literal ghost town.

The older boy sighed as he watched his year younger counterpart fiddle with the walkie talkie in his hands. He scrutinized him as he attempted to adjust the dial, having to frequently brush his unruly blond bangs from his face. The eighteen year old finally decided that his brother was in desperate need of a hair cut.

The blond, clearly unaware of his siblings insignificant observations, was about ready to throw the piece of technology through the windshield of their rented SUV when it was snatched out of his hands by the scrutinizing party aforementioned.

The older, brown haired teen turned the knob to the appropriate notch and handed it back to his brother, trying to hold back a smug smile. Wordlessly the two got out of the car which was hidden in the undergrowth of the surrounding trees and headed due north, straight towards the rundown orphanage.

Their mission? Well for starters, don't get caught. But their primary goal was to gather enough evidence, preferably photographed confirmation of the suspected operations taking place just inside the foreign building.

The Gray Man had leveled with them that it was a straight forward mission. There was no need for them to do anything other than prove that the Valea Orphanage was a host to more than just unsanitary living conditions. He'd given them strict orders not to look into anything other than the illegal operations. The brothers both knew what he meant. The children were not their first priority.

So the brother team had taken it upon themselves to take the necessary precautions not to get shot, caught, killed or any other action that could ruin the Network's activities.

The two walked along stealthily, the younger, more impulsive teen ahead of his brother. The high tech camera around his neck swaying slightly as they trudged onwards with their prefabricated plan.

Upon reaching the building's entrance--which was saying a lot considering the "entrance" wasn't more than a literal hole in the wall--the fair haired teen advanced, leaving his worried brother behind to act as the lookout.

Of course, being the elder brother he had argued at length that he should be the one inside the orphanage. But his younger sibling, also being the stubborn teenager that he is, had out right refused. So with yet another heavy sigh, the eighteen year old leaned against the cement warehouse, keeping his grip tight on the walkie talkie in his hands.

The blond brother managed to situate himself so that his back was facing a wall--heeding to a lesson his father had taught him, "never leave your back vulnerable to your enemies." His front side was partially hidden by a wooden crate and the shadows the midday sun created through the high positioned windows in the structure.

The camera, equipped with high speed film snapped off shots of it's unsuspecting victims while the young spy viewed the happenings through the small lens. There were three men, all speaking in a heavy accented Romanian tongue that even his brother wouldn't be able to decipher. But for the blond observer, the pictures spoke a thousand words.

Standing next to the men was a crate filled to the brim with small parcels each individually wrapped to secure it's safety during a transaction. From the looks of it, the young brother could only assume that this was what the Gray Man was after. They were smuggling drugs, using an orphanage as their cover. He might have even considered it ingenious if he wasn't a good guy.

Soon though he became bored with the proceedings at hand and let his eyes wonder around the rest of the facility. He was only on the first level and looked up to see a metal walkway stretch all the way around the building. On the second floor there were many padlocked doors which the teen could only assume was where the children were kept.

Staring up at the doors he felt his blood boil, but he had to remain focussed and remember why he was here. The children were not his first priority. That is what Gray had told him. But Gray wasn't here. He couldn't see the steel doors and dirt floors. He couldn't feel the draft and hear the mice running through the rafters.

The young man blinked as he heard a scuffling. Pulling his attention back to reality he realized that the three men he had earlier been photographing were now gone and his mission was complete. He brought the walkie talkie to his lips and was careful to whisper.

"Frank?"

The noise started the older teen at first. He'd been almost too preoccupied with worrying about his brother to realize that he was talking to him through the electronic device he clutched in his hand.

"I'm here Joe. What's happening--"

But he never got the chance to finish his sentence. Through the static of the walkie talkie he could hear heavily accented voices yelling in Romanian and the stampeding of feet on the dirt floors. But what chilled him the most was the muffled yell for help from his brother.

"Joe!" he yelled into the device, fear setting in, taking over his capacity to think straight. "Joe!"

But there was no answer. Just cold, dead silence.

Then an explosion rocked the air around him. He was sent tumbling to the earth, scrambling away as heat and flames escaped from the building, licking at the dry grasses surrounding it. Another series of explosions sounded and debree flew everywhere. The energy was transmitted as a shock wave through the air, sending the older boy sprawling.

He could feel an overwhelming pressure in his head and could taste the copper in his mouth. He didn't seem to have control over his limbs and the sensation of sleep was quickly seeping into his mind. He could feel blood dripping down his forehead mixing with the tears and dirt already splayed across his features. He couldn't fall asleep, he had to save his brother. But he couldn't fight the spots that presented themselves across his eyes.

Through as haze of bare awareness and tears Frank Hardy took one last look at the burning building, called his brother's name once more, and sank back into a dark cloud of unconsciousness.

A/N: "Spion din Romania" literally means "Spy of Romania"

As well "Valea Orphanage" is "Valley Orphanage"

Okay, well I really hope some readers like this new story...I am dedicating it to my longest and closest friend who was adopted from an abusive home in Romania. I love her dearly....I hope you will read and review! Thank you!