18. Chapter: Memories.
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The Hardy family sat silent in their livingroom and worried about Joe and Nancy.
The news had reported their disappearance. Fenton had called Carson Drew the same day they disappeared. Two days ago.
The police had found the trapdoor in the ground on Galeriver's waterside. That was where the man that attacked them came from. But it wouldn't open and the police didn't risk to explode it. There could be people under it. It was made of thick steel so it was impossible to see through it. With a steel-search-machine it appeared to be a lot of steel in the ground. There could be some huge undergroundhost. Or an old mine!
That wasn't what Laura Hardy was thinking about. She only knew that her younger son could be dead. His whole lifetime flew through her mind. Joe's first word, first steps, first day at school, he and Frank playing in the garden in the summer, when he and Iola were together, when he had his car license, the time before the brainwash...
Fenton was thinking pretty much the same. Normally he and Frank wouldn't have give up searching but they had been searching without a stop for two days without a single clue. That was unusual and pulled down their courage. For some reason it came to Fenton's mind when Joe was kicked out of the police academy after a week. He didn't follow any orders at all and was too much into the violent solutions. Frank had quite a month after that, well, they would do better on their own...
Frank was thinking about the case before their last case. He remembered everything like it had happened yesterday:
------------------------- Joe looked nervously around. 'I have a bad feeling about this all.'
'Yeah, so do I' Frank answered.
'I wonder what all this stuff is for' Joe said and looked at all the machines, conduits, and wires all over the floor.
The flashlights shafts moved around the hall.
There was a elevated dais in one corner. Something was on it but it was covered with an old sheet. Joe went there.
'What does the psycho keep here?' he muttered to himself and deprived the sheet of the thing.
Under it there was an armchair, like an electric chair with something that looked like the hairdryer in the ladies' hairdresser (it's like a big bowl, you know?), over it.
'It's like from a horror film. Leave it, Joe. It gets me goose pimps to watch it, come on. He can't be far away' Frank said and walked over the hall to the only door there. He pushed it. Locked.
Joe sat in the chair and grinned.
All of a sudden the lights turned on and the hall became bright.
Frank startled and turned around.
Wires wrapped around Joe's wrist and held him thigh down on the chair.
'Hey, what's that about?' Joe said surprised.
The ' bowl' slowly subsided on his head.
'Joe! Don't move!' Frank's voice came from somewhere.
There wasn't very good view underneath the thing on Joe's head.
'Well, well, little Hardys!' a voice came from a speaker.
'I'm going to make your lives so miserable' the voice said coldly with creepy breaths.
Frank tried to realize where the voice had come from.
'Say goodbye to little brother' the voice said.
Suddenly the bowl on Joe's head started to spin. Red shafts blinked on his face, then Frank heard a sound of someone getting an electric current and Joe yelled. 'Ouch!'
Another electric current, another scream, that one's higher.
'Help me, Frank!' Joe begged.
Frank ran to him and tried to understand the machine's nature.
The red shaft blinded his brother and the electric currents made him scream from pain.
'What is it doing to him?' Frank asked himself over and over again.
He tried to move the bowl but it pushed him away with electric current.
Then suddenly the bowl stopped spinning. It moved slowly off Joe's head and he lay unconscious in the armchair. The wires let go of his wrist.
Frank checked his pulse. He took a deep breath of relieve when he felt weak beat.
He didn't know, but behind a mirror glass an old man watched him pull Joe out of the armchair. He grinned evilly.
'Enjoy the future, Mr. Hardy!'
Frank placed his brother on the floor. His head bleed.
Joe opened his eyes so suddenly that Frank jumped.
'Joe? Are you all right?' he asked worried.
Joe sat up and looked around. Then he looked at Frank with cold eyes.
'Where is he?' he asked sharply.
'I don't know, Joe. We've got to get you home' Frank said, he was going to help him up but Joe jumped up and ran to the mirror glass.
He hit it with his fist. 'I know he's in there! Why didn't you go and find him?' he said angrily.
'Joe, I know you're upset, but...'
-'But what!? I'm going to kill this f*%#-ing freak!'
Frank didn't like the way Joe was acting. 'Joe, relax! Come on! Let's get out of here!'
Joe didn't listen, he ran around like a mad man and yelled at the professor.
Frank tried whatever he could to calm him down but nothing worked.
At last Frank sighed. He didn't have much choice...
He knocked his brother out with the flashlight but right before, Joe turned to him so the flashlight hit his forehead. The surprising in his eyes was indescribable. Frank grasp him before he fell on the floor.
Then he ran off to get help. -------------------------------------------
From then Joe had had repulsion on his brother. The brainwash had also pushed his violent. But no one really knew what the professor had programmed into Joe's head. After his suicide all the machines were destroyed. So were the computers that controlled them. Frank shook his head.
The Hardy brothers had lost a little of their reputation because on their next case Joe did whatever he could to spoil it. But now he seemed to be coming around. Although he was still mad of Frank. Without any reason at all.
Gertrude stood up from the couch. She sniffed mightily.
'Well, I'm going to bed, goodnight!' She kissed Frank on the head.
'Goodnight' Laura and Fenton muttered. --------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Hardy family sat silent in their livingroom and worried about Joe and Nancy.
The news had reported their disappearance. Fenton had called Carson Drew the same day they disappeared. Two days ago.
The police had found the trapdoor in the ground on Galeriver's waterside. That was where the man that attacked them came from. But it wouldn't open and the police didn't risk to explode it. There could be people under it. It was made of thick steel so it was impossible to see through it. With a steel-search-machine it appeared to be a lot of steel in the ground. There could be some huge undergroundhost. Or an old mine!
That wasn't what Laura Hardy was thinking about. She only knew that her younger son could be dead. His whole lifetime flew through her mind. Joe's first word, first steps, first day at school, he and Frank playing in the garden in the summer, when he and Iola were together, when he had his car license, the time before the brainwash...
Fenton was thinking pretty much the same. Normally he and Frank wouldn't have give up searching but they had been searching without a stop for two days without a single clue. That was unusual and pulled down their courage. For some reason it came to Fenton's mind when Joe was kicked out of the police academy after a week. He didn't follow any orders at all and was too much into the violent solutions. Frank had quite a month after that, well, they would do better on their own...
Frank was thinking about the case before their last case. He remembered everything like it had happened yesterday:
------------------------- Joe looked nervously around. 'I have a bad feeling about this all.'
'Yeah, so do I' Frank answered.
'I wonder what all this stuff is for' Joe said and looked at all the machines, conduits, and wires all over the floor.
The flashlights shafts moved around the hall.
There was a elevated dais in one corner. Something was on it but it was covered with an old sheet. Joe went there.
'What does the psycho keep here?' he muttered to himself and deprived the sheet of the thing.
Under it there was an armchair, like an electric chair with something that looked like the hairdryer in the ladies' hairdresser (it's like a big bowl, you know?), over it.
'It's like from a horror film. Leave it, Joe. It gets me goose pimps to watch it, come on. He can't be far away' Frank said and walked over the hall to the only door there. He pushed it. Locked.
Joe sat in the chair and grinned.
All of a sudden the lights turned on and the hall became bright.
Frank startled and turned around.
Wires wrapped around Joe's wrist and held him thigh down on the chair.
'Hey, what's that about?' Joe said surprised.
The ' bowl' slowly subsided on his head.
'Joe! Don't move!' Frank's voice came from somewhere.
There wasn't very good view underneath the thing on Joe's head.
'Well, well, little Hardys!' a voice came from a speaker.
'I'm going to make your lives so miserable' the voice said coldly with creepy breaths.
Frank tried to realize where the voice had come from.
'Say goodbye to little brother' the voice said.
Suddenly the bowl on Joe's head started to spin. Red shafts blinked on his face, then Frank heard a sound of someone getting an electric current and Joe yelled. 'Ouch!'
Another electric current, another scream, that one's higher.
'Help me, Frank!' Joe begged.
Frank ran to him and tried to understand the machine's nature.
The red shaft blinded his brother and the electric currents made him scream from pain.
'What is it doing to him?' Frank asked himself over and over again.
He tried to move the bowl but it pushed him away with electric current.
Then suddenly the bowl stopped spinning. It moved slowly off Joe's head and he lay unconscious in the armchair. The wires let go of his wrist.
Frank checked his pulse. He took a deep breath of relieve when he felt weak beat.
He didn't know, but behind a mirror glass an old man watched him pull Joe out of the armchair. He grinned evilly.
'Enjoy the future, Mr. Hardy!'
Frank placed his brother on the floor. His head bleed.
Joe opened his eyes so suddenly that Frank jumped.
'Joe? Are you all right?' he asked worried.
Joe sat up and looked around. Then he looked at Frank with cold eyes.
'Where is he?' he asked sharply.
'I don't know, Joe. We've got to get you home' Frank said, he was going to help him up but Joe jumped up and ran to the mirror glass.
He hit it with his fist. 'I know he's in there! Why didn't you go and find him?' he said angrily.
'Joe, I know you're upset, but...'
-'But what!? I'm going to kill this f*%#-ing freak!'
Frank didn't like the way Joe was acting. 'Joe, relax! Come on! Let's get out of here!'
Joe didn't listen, he ran around like a mad man and yelled at the professor.
Frank tried whatever he could to calm him down but nothing worked.
At last Frank sighed. He didn't have much choice...
He knocked his brother out with the flashlight but right before, Joe turned to him so the flashlight hit his forehead. The surprising in his eyes was indescribable. Frank grasp him before he fell on the floor.
Then he ran off to get help. -------------------------------------------
From then Joe had had repulsion on his brother. The brainwash had also pushed his violent. But no one really knew what the professor had programmed into Joe's head. After his suicide all the machines were destroyed. So were the computers that controlled them. Frank shook his head.
The Hardy brothers had lost a little of their reputation because on their next case Joe did whatever he could to spoil it. But now he seemed to be coming around. Although he was still mad of Frank. Without any reason at all.
Gertrude stood up from the couch. She sniffed mightily.
'Well, I'm going to bed, goodnight!' She kissed Frank on the head.
'Goodnight' Laura and Fenton muttered. --------------------------------------------------------------------------