i own it not

"Why are we going out on a Saturday again?" Don's question hung in the air for a few seconds, waiting to be answered.

"Umm..." Charlie was still thinking about something else ― math, more likely then not, and was now on what David good-naturedly called "answering machine mode" meaning that he recorded everything anyone said and played in back later.

"Umm...yeah. We've had a bad week." Don snorted out a "no duh" kind of sound. They hadn't gotten any closer to finding the Hardy boys. The leads that they'd thought they'd had had been wrong. Whenever they'd thought they were close to the Clowns, they got thrown threw a loop and ended up on another cold trail.

"So, I went back to the beginning. You know that warehouse thing? Turns out there was a pattern called the ―" another look from Don made him stop. "The pattern basically said that these guys would choose abandoned buildings on seeming random streets. Now according to my math, there are two places where they could be." He threw a map at his brother.

Don fumbled with it, finally managed to get it open, and looked at the circled spots. "These houses are being condemned. They're due to be torn down next week." He glanced at Charlie, "that's a gamble."

Charlie nodded, pulling over on a side street. Every house on this street had warning signs on the front door, stating that it was state property and would be torn down. "This place is just asking for a mob to take it over," Charlie observed sullenly.

They pulled over a couple of houses away from number fourteen, the house that Charlie had circled.

"We should call for backup," Don started to take out his cell phone. Charlie put his hand over the phone. "C'mon Don, we're only seeing if they're there, we don't need a whole team. Aren't you tired of being the Boy Who Called Wolf?" this time included, it would be the eighth time that Don called backup in a week.

Don shook his head, "can't risk it, dude. I'll call the operator, tell him to call the Bureau if he doesn't hear back in an hour, 'kay?"

Charlie nodded his head eagerly. "Let's go!" he said eagerly, going up to the house. Don rolled his eyes, his hands going towards the gun on his belt.

Charlie's enthusiasm left him after a sweep showed no signs of forced entry. "This isn't the house, Charlie," Don called, "it must be the other one."

Charlie shrugged, "okay." Before the word was even really out of his mouth, though, the ground beneath him gave way. Don, trying to catch him, got dragged down as well. They fell the ten feet into the basement.

Likey?