Joe snatched the phone from his aunt. "Who is this? How did you get this number?" The line went dead.
"But, which case was he referring to?" asked Jack as he took the phone from Joe and hung it up. "You two are on a case, and so are both of your parents."
Frank and Joe shot a worried glance at each other. "I bet it was Mom and Dad's case," said Frank worriedly. "We've already gotten our own warning."
"And since they can't get a hold of either of their cell numbers, they had to call the house," said Joe. He glanced at Jack. "They're in real danger!"
"I'll contact your father and let him know about this," said Jack. He placed his hands on his hips and eyed the boys. "But first, what's this about getting your own warning?" The teens told him the entire story, interrupting each other from time to time with some slight correction or what they thought was a necessary addition.
When they had finally finished their story, Trudy gasped. "They shot arrows at you?" She turned to Jack and grabbed his arm. "Please make them stay home and let the police handle this!"
Jack patted her hand reassuringly. "You know they take after their father, and from the stories I've heard, their mother as well when she was their age."
Trduy threw up her hands. "Exactly! Do you know how many times those two and their little gang got close to dying, scaring me nearly half to death?"
Jack held up a finger. "And, if these two are anything like their parents, they've got a whole bunch of luck rubbed off on them that should keep them safe until each mystery is solved." He took both of her hands into his and looked deep into her eyes. "And you of all people should know that they have formed such deep friendships that their friends will always have their backs. Plus, Laura's given them some of her brain power, they know how to think on their feet."
Ellen let out a squeal and clapped her hands. "Ooh, when's the wedding?"
Trudy threw up her hands again. "Oh for crying out loud!"
Jack laughed. "It's a work in progress. You'll have to forgive her for waiting so long, their parents did kind of traumatise her with their mystery-solving back in the days."
"Traumatise? Traumatise? I was worried sick, to the point of nearly dying! Since Dad was gone a lot, I was in charge of Fenton's well-being, and I have no idea how Mrs. Bolton was able to handle it! Mrs. Keen on the other hand practically encouraged it!"
Jack reached out and pulled her into a hug. "But they came back, every time, right? And they will this time."
That's when it hit Frank and Joe. She was equally as worried about their parents as she was about them! Joe went over to her and patted her back. "Don't worry, Auntie, they'll be back before you know it."
"I think the only thing that will throw Dad for a loop is having Mom there with him," said Frank. "He's been solving cases on his own for quite a while now that he's not used to having her help."
Jack chuckled. "Oh, I highly doubt that would ever be a problem for your dad."
"See?" said Joe. "They'll be just fine!"
Jack gently eased her out of the hug. "As a matter of fact, I can still call him. Do you want me to do it now? Will that ease your anxiety?" She nodded and sniffed, wiping a tear from her eye. Joe took over the hug while Jack pulled out his phone. He dialed the number and put it to his ear. "Hey Fenton! How's progress on the case?" He began to smile widely before bursting out into a laugh. "OK, OK, I know, you just got there." There was another pause as he grinned. "Yes, actually, there's been a lot going on here, your boys seem to have had quite an adventure. Hang on Fenton, let me put you on speaker and they can tell you and Laura all about it." Jack put his phone on speaker and for the third time that day, the teens told their story. They finished it up by telling them about the ominous phone call they had just gotten.
Fenton gave a low whistle while Laura let out a gasp. "I . . . I . . . wow, that's . . . first off, Callie darling, I can't thank you enough for saving Frank's life," said Laura.
Callie beamed. "You're welcome!"
"And I think you're right," said Fenton, "that call was for us." He gave a low chuckle. "Apparently we each have just barely started on our mysteries and we're already getting told to stop." He paused and his voice became very stern. "These guys obviously mean business. Be very careful. Not only are you in danger because of your mystery, but also because of ours." Frank and Joe glanced at each other, they couldn't quite voice their concerns that the two mysteries were in fact connected, otherwise it would give away that their father was hired by Elekton.
"Jack, Chet, Trudy, girls, we can count on you to keep an eye on them?"
"Well considering Callie already made an awesome save, you bet!' said Ellen enthusiastically.
Laura let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you all so very much!"
"I . . . I really think you guys should call it off," said Trudy softly.
"Trudy, this is my job, and if my family wants to get involved, well, it's going to be on me if something happens to them. Besides, I trust that Frank and Joe will have each other's backs, and their friends will be there for them as well. Things always look better when you're surrounded by your friends and family."
"That's right!" said Joe as he gave Trudy a squeeze. "Besides, they don't know about our secret weapon, Aunt Trudy!"
She blinked at him in surprise. "Say what? Me?"
Joe grinned. "Yeah! If we all were captured, which is very unlikely, you'd come in, give those criminals a run for their money, and save us! You know, like Alfred does for Batman and Robin sometimes!"
"Oh goodness, I don't think I'd have it in me!"
Frank dashed to her other side and wrapped his arms around her. "You're a Hardy, Aunt Trudy, you definitely have it in you!"
"Yeah! I mean, it's why you like Jack so much . . . I mean . . ." Joe clamped a hand over his mouth.
Fenton clicked his tongue. "Jack, Jack, what have I told you about getting overly romantic with my sister? I told you the fastest way to her heart was to quit working for me."
"And have him stop watching your back? Not in a thousand years!"
Laura gasped. "What have you done to Trudy?"
"Yeah Jack, what potion did you give her? And where have you been hiding that?"
"Fenton!" said Laura and Trudy at the same time.
"What? It seems to be working!"
"Wait, so you knew that Aunt Trudy and Jack were a thing?" asked Joe incredulously.
"You mean you just now figured it out?"
"I . . . wha . . . we . . . we made a deal with Aunt Trudy not to tell you!"
"Oh?" said Laura, clearly intrigued. "And what, exactly, did Trudy promise you if you kept your mouth shut?" Jack eyed the boys. Frank and Joe winced.
"Well, I suggested she bake more cookies and pies for us to enjoy," said Chet sheepishly. "I was in on the deal too. Oh, and Nancy knows too, but she didn't have to make a deal since she doesn't live here."
"Well, well, well, this has been quite the development," said Fenton. "We have arrows, threatening notes and phone calls, and the ever looming question of will they or won't they get married." He let out a breath. "Sounds like you guys have been going at this non stop. I suggest a break . . ."
"But!" began Joe.
"No buts. It's best to lay low for a while and let them think they got through to you, put them off their guard. You'll have the element of surprise, which is always a good thing."
"He does have a point," said Frank. "And after that close of a call, I definitely need a little rest."
Joe looked at him before sighing. "Oh, alright. We'll take a break for, say, two days. Will that work?"
"I think that's good, just to recuperate from such an experience. Those counterfeiters aren't going to leave too soon if Elekton's still going to use the old mill as a guardhouse," said Fenton knowingly. "And it will put them into a false sense of security, which is a pretty sure method of allowing them to continue at their own pace and eventually make a mistake when you take them by surprise."
"Alright, then that's what we'll do," said Frank. "But what about you?"
"Well, we already have our cover story," said Fenton. "We'll be on our honeymoon." he chuckled. "And we'll enjoy it for the next two days ourselves. Does that work for you too, Trudy?"
Trudy seemed to sigh with relief. "Yes, Fenton, that will work."
"Good, then we'll all take a break for two days, stay low, and let the criminals think their threats worked."
Trudy then did sigh with relief. "Thank you."
"You're welcome. Keep us posted once you've found out anything more!"
"And you two enjoy that honeymoon as much as possible," said Jack with a chuckle.
Fenton laughed. "We'll try."
Laura scoffed. "Oh we can, and we will enjoy this, Fenton Hardy." She let out a soft chuckle. "After all, what's more fun than catching a few criminals?"
"Well you definitely married the right woman," mumbled Trudy.
"Exactly why I married her." There was the distinct sound of a kiss.
Jack chuckled. "OK you two, get a room!"
"But we are in our room!"
"Then I'm going to end the call. Good night!"
Fenton and Laura laughed. "Alright, smarty pants, good night."
"And, Frank, Joe, please be careful!" said Laura.
"We will!" chorused the boys.
"You be careful yourselves!" said Joe. "We're not there to bail you out if you get in trouble!"
Fenton chuckled. "Duly noted. Good night."
"Good night!" the others chorused. Jack hung up the phone.
"Well, I'd say that's a great way to end this whole entire adventure." He glanced at the teens. "And you have all had a trying day." He turned to Trudy. "Maybe we can feed them something for looking after your nephews so well?"
Trudy glanced at each of them before her eyes lingered on Jack. "Oh, alright, you have a point. Call your folks first, you're all invited to dinner!'
Chet whooped. "Alright! And, um, may we get one of your pies?"
Trudy laughed. "How about three!"
Chet jumped with joy. "Yes!"
Frank and Joe laughed. "Careful Aunt Trudy," said Joe, "this just might turn into a nightly thing."
Trudy scoffed. "It's already a weekly thing."
"Aw, you don't like it when I come over?" Chet said with a pout.
Trudy rolled her eyes. "No, I don't like it when I don't have any new recipes for you to try when you come over."
Chet instantly brightened. "Oh! But I was just teasing, Miss Hardy."
Jack patted his back, laughing. "It was a good try, Chet, a very good try. But despite living here, the sarcasm still manages to go over her head."
Trudy humphed and crossed her arms. "Do you want me to fix you dinner, or what?"
"Alright, Trudy, alright. Come on everyone, let's help her get dinner on the table, shall we?" The teens chorused in the positive and led the way down the stairs. The guests called their families to ask about staying, and got an affirmative from all of them. They helped set up for dinner, and they talked of other things than mystery, just having a grand time.
(Author's Note: And we're back with the Hardys! Thank you all so much for reading this so far! I do hope you are all doing well during this time! And, uh, Racey, posting that in a very public review isn't being very secretive, and to be honest I find that rather silly. If you take it seriously, ok, I just don't have any reason to. I do appreciate that you enjoy this story and I hope that you'll like my other stories as well! I do hope you'll check out my Wattpad account soon as, though it's not going to be as soon as I would have liked, I will be posting an original novella, so to speak, full of short stories. It's starting to come together finally, I just have to do a lot of worldbuilding and figure out what stories I want to tell, lol. XD I will let you know for sure when that happens, if anyone's interested, and I hope you will check it out eventually! Thanks for reading, and have a blessed day!)
