J.M.J.
A/N: Thank you so much for continuing to read! In particular, thank you to Torchwood Cardiff, ErinJordan, max2013, beachgirlsrule, Cherylann Rivers, and Candylou for your reviews on the last chapter!
Chapter XI
Artemis Silver
"I hope you know what you're doing," Cole Warner said as he pulled his car into a parking space at the Calliope airport. He still looked sick, and from the dark circles under his eyes, he clearly hadn't slept at all the night before.
Nancy reached over from the passenger seat and placed a hand on his shoulder. "We've got good people working on this. We'll find Serena and put a stop to whatever is going on in this town." She paused. "If there's anything else you can tell us - anything at all - don't hold it back. You won't be helping anyone if you do, and you will be putting Serena and all of us in danger."
Cole rested his forehead against the steering wheel. "No, there's nothing else. I told Adrienne that we were going to be all right; that even though the threats were still coming, they didn't mean anything. I told her I'd taken care of it, and now look at what's happened."
"You were right about one thing," Nancy told him. "It is going to be all right. You understand what you have to do?"
"Yeah." Cole nodded slowly and resignedly.
"Captain Ellis is going to be right there the whole time," Nancy assured him. "You don't have to worry about anything."
"If we can trust him," Cole said.
"We can," Nancy said. "I'm certain of it."
She, Bess, and George gathered their luggage from the trunk of Cole's car and went inside the small airport. They picked up their boarding passes and went through security as if they were really leaving on a flight. However, Agent Harris had arranged with the airline that as far as anyone at the Calliope airport knew, the girls had boarded the plane although in reality they weren't going to. He had also left his own personal car in the parking lot and given the keys to Nancy so that the girls would have transportation. Lastly, he had booked another room at the hotel he and Agent Sokolawski were staying at in case it took more than a day for the plan to work out.
Once they were through security, the girls went into a restroom and emerged with their appearances altered as much as they could manage in a short time. They had all changed into bulky sweaters and covered their hair with hats or scarves, as well as doing their make-up considerably different than they usually wore it. They also left the restroom one at a time and went in different directions in case they had a tail who was watching for the three girls together. They doubted that since they were through security, but a little extra caution wouldn't hurt.
They met at Agent Harris's car and climbed in. Nancy immediately left the airport and headed for downtown Calliope, where Jason had told them Sergeant Valence was scheduled to work his beat.
"What's the plan when we spot Valence?" George asked. "I mean, he's a cop. He'll catch on if we start following him, and he can check the license number of this car and find out it belongs to Harris. If that doesn't send up some red flags for him, nothing would."
"I think it would be best if we found a place to park the car and wait for him," Nancy said. "We'll keep our distance while he's on duty. He's not too likely to try anything shady now and besides that, he is on duty and we shouldn't get in the way. We'll have more luck once he gets off duty."
"We'll still have to try to keep him from noticing that we're following him," Bess pointed out.
"True," Nancy agreed. She was about to start outlining a plan for how to accomplish this when something caught her eye. She immediately started signaling and pulled over to the side of the street.
"What is it?" Bess asked, looking out the car windows and expecting to see Sergeant Valence bearing down on them or something equally as disastrous.
"I just spotted the perfect place to watch for Sergeant Valence," Nancy said. She pointed through the windshield at a business a short way up the street. "See?"
The buildings in this part of town were old and packed closely together. In the window of the red-brick building that Nancy had pointed out were painted the words: "Artemis Silver, Fortune Telling & Horoscope Readings".
"The fortune-teller?" George asked. "I don't get it, Nancy. Why would Valence go see a fortune-teller?"
"I don't know whether he'd go see just any fortune-teller," Nancy replied, "but this one is something special. Look at her name."
"Artemis Silver." George shrugged. "What about it?"
"Artemis is the Greek goddess of the moon," Nancy explained. "I can't help still feeling that there's some connection with all these names out of Greek mythology, especially since Artemis was also the goddess of the hunt, and as such, carried a bow and arrows."
"A bow and arrows?" Bess repeated. "Do you think that fortune-teller is the one who's been shooting arrows at the Warners' doors?"
"I don't know," Nancy admitted. "It's just a hunch that it's all connected. I know one way to start finding out, though. You two stay here."
She climbed out of the car and headed up and across the street to the door of Artemis Silver's shop. A heady scent of perfumes, oils, and herbs wafted out the moment the door was open, and Nancy was immediately struck with how warm it was in the shop. The shop was mostly dark and filled with too many strange objects to look at any of them properly.
A dark-haired woman dressed in a long skirt with bangles on her wrists and large hoop earrings seemed to materialize out of the background and appear at Nancy's side, making her jump.
"You have come for a reading?" the woman asked.
"You wouldn't have to be a fortune teller to guess that," Nancy replied.
The woman smiled. "No, I suppose not."
"Especially since that's not why I came in," Nancy said. "Are you Artemis Silver?"
"Yes," the woman replied. "Why have you come in if not for a reading?"
"I was wondering if you sold herbs here," Nancy said. "You see, I've been skiing and I've been having some trouble with getting stiff. I was wondering if you had some herbs that could help with that."
"Perhaps," Artemis said. "I'm not a doctor, though, and this is not a pharmacy. I have no medicine here."
"I was looking for a natural solution," Nancy replied.
Artemis smiled again. "I deal mostly with the supernatural, but as you perhaps know, the natural and the supernatural go hand in hand. I think I can find something for you. Wait here a moment."
She disappeared into a back room, leaving Nancy to look around the shop. Nancy couldn't begin to guess what most of the objects were supposed to be, but she did spot two in particular that caught her attention. One was a painting of the Muse, Calliope, and another was a small statue of the goddess Artemis with her bow and arrows.
Nancy was still examining them when Artemis Silver returned with a small pouch in her hand.
"Here is a mixture of herbs that should cure any stiffness," Artemis said. "They are very hard to come by and so, unfortunately, I cannot sell them to you cheaply. Even this small amount cost me thirty dollars. I will just barely cover my own costs if I ask your for forty."
Nancy doubted very much that there was anything in the pouch besides basil and thyme and other common herbs, but now was no time to quibble over being overcharged. She took two twenty-dollar bills from her purse and handed them to the woman. Then she pointed out the statue. "Your namesake?"
Artemis nodded. "That's right. I've always been fond of Greek mythology, having a name that comes straight from it."
"Then it's probably extra exciting for you to live in a town that's named after one of the characters," Nancy said innocently.
"Oh, yes. As you can see, I also have a painting of Calliope." Artemis pointed it out.
"It's a lovely painting," Nancy commented. "You know, I think Artemis is one of the coolest of the Greek goddesses, being the goddess of the hunt and all."
"Are you a hunter, then?" Artemis asked.
Nancy grinned. "Not exactly. But still, the bow and arrow looks very cool, you have to admit."
"I wouldn't deny it," Artemis agreed. "She's the reason I've practiced a bit with a bow off and on over the years."
"Only a bit?" Nancy asked. "If I lived in a place like this, I'd probably be practicing archery every chance I got. With all this wilderness, there ought to be plenty of places to practice."
"There are," Artemis told her. "In fact, there's even an indoor archery range where you can rent all the equipment you need. Maybe you would like to look into it while you're here."
"I should," Nancy agreed. "Thank you."
She took the pouch of herbs and went back to the car where Bess and George were waiting for her.
Bess breathed a deep sigh of relief as Nancy climbed into the car. "Thank goodness you're all right. We were sure that fortune teller was going to murder you or something."
Nancy laughed. "She didn't even try."
"Did you have any luck, though?" George asked.
"I think so," Nancy said. "Even if she's not involved in this whole thing, she might have given me a clue to figuring out who is."
NDHBNDHBND
It was damp and underground and they had driven a long way. Those were the only things that Frank and Joe could gather about their surroundings. After they had agreed to help the mysterious men who had shown up in their hotel room in return for keeping the FBI off "Phil and Chet's" trail, the boys had been hustled into a car and hoods had been put over their heads. When they had arrived, they had been led through a doorway of some sort. Although the hoods were still over their heads, Frank and Joe both judged they were in an underground tunnel from the sound of water dripping off the ceiling and the earthy scent.
They could hear the footsteps of several people accompanying them - Frank estimated about half a dozen but there might have been more - yet no one said a word. Then they stopped. The hoods were whipped from both boys' heads and they found themselves in a pitch-dark room. Then several flashlights snapped on at once, all directed right into the boys' faces.
"Hey! What is this?" Joe protested, blinking at the sudden, blinding light. "This is the second time tonight!"
Finally, a voice spoke from somewhere beyond the lights. It was the same sort of rasping, disguised voice that had been used by the men in the hotel room. "We are the Order of Mount Calliope. Who are you and what are you doing in Calliope?"
"We already told your friends," Joe went on. He was glad that Frank had managed to put together a coherent-sounding cover story. "We're here to try to get the FBI off our trail. It didn't work out so well."
"It didn't work out at all," the man told them. "My men reported that the two FBI agents attempted to follow you from your hotel. Fortunately, my men were able to lose them before they came here."
This was definitely not welcome news for the Hardys, but they didn't let it show.
"Good," Frank said after a momentary pause. "I figured they'd be following us. Now, what exactly is this deal you offered us? What kind of work do you want us to do for you?"
Before the stranger replied, there was a loud beeping sound. Frank and Joe could hear several of the men jump to their feet in the dark.
A voice rasped, "You two are spies!"
