Chapter 2
"I flunked!" Joe repeated, crossing his arms across his chest. "Do you understand what it means??"
"No need to shout," Frank replied and pulled the van onto the main road. "Yes, I understand. It means that you flunked."
"No, it means that Mom and Dad are going to kill me," Joe said. "If I ever say I'm going into business study, please, remind me of this shameful day and talk me out of it."
"I will," Frank promised and smiled to himself. It was Joe's typical behavior after a test – saying he failed it miserably. He thought it was his way of calling down luck or whatever, because in the end Joe's test results were always good. Not excellent like Frank's – Joe just never had his brother's patience to sit down and understand and remember every detail to be a straight A student. When needed, however, he could easily compose himself and come up with the right answer during a test.
"What a weather, huh?" Joe changed the topic, a wry expression on his face as he looked out of the window. "I wish it stopped raining and started snowing. We've had enough of this wet rubbish from above."
"Strange to hear it from you," Frank replied. "I thought you weren't fond of winter."
"I'm not, you know I'd rather live somewhere always warm and sunny, but if you get to choose between rain and snow – don't know about you, but snow's better with me."
"Same here," Frank nodded. "Don't worry, winter's already coming. Just two more weeks or so and I'll throw a snowball at ya!"
"I can hardly wait," Joe said mockingly.
Frank poked a tongue at him and halted the car in the driveway of their house. The brothers climbed out of the car and went to the house, avoiding puddles on their way.
"Dad must have left somewhere," Frank said, judging by the darkness and silence of the house.
"The Chief, probably, to talk about that Newman" Joe suggested, following his brother into the kitchen. "Hope they catch him in no time."
"I hope so, too," Frank replied.
After dinner the brothers went upstairs to their room and started their homework. Frank was finishing his chemistry when the phone in the living room began to ring. "I'll answer!" he shouted to his brother and descended down the stairs.
"Hardy residence," he said into the receiver.
"Hello?" a female voice asked, slightly wavering. "Frank?"
"Yes, who's speaking?" Frank asked, frowning. The voice sounded familiar, something in it indicated the caller was in trouble.
"This is Mrs. Morton," the woman replied. "Frank, is Chet with you?"
"No, he's not," Frank sat down on the sofa, still frowning. "Why?"
"He hasn't come home from school yet," Mrs. Morton explained. "I tried calling him on his cell phone, but he's not answering. I called all his friends, but no one knows where he is," her voice was quivering with worry as she spoke. "I-I just don't know what to think...."
"Last time I saw him was after school," Frank said, now having a bad feeling in his stomach. "He said he'd catch a taxi to go to the mall to buy something...."
"Yes, he was going to buy some fertilizers there," Mrs. Morton explained.
Should have offered to take him there and then drop him off at home, Frank thought to himself; Chet's car broke down and was being repaired at the moment, so he either used his father's sedan or had to catch a taxi. "I'm sure he's fine, don't worry," Frank tried to comfort the woman. "He must have met some friends of his and lost track of time...." He hated himself for lying like that. Chet would never forget to call his parents if he was running late – not after his sister's death more than a year ago.
"Frank, I'm just so worried," Frank could tell the woman was close to tears. "I'm sorry for bothering you....but could you...."
"Sure," Frank instantly agreed. "I'll go get Joe and we'll go look for him."
"Thank you, Frank. I'm sorry for asking, but I wanted to stay home in case he returned or called..."
"Of course. Don't worry, we'll find him," Frank tried to comfort her. "Everything is going to be alright."
The byed and Frank put the receiver down. The situation was not good. Chet knew his parents had had enough a year ago losing one child and he did his best not to cause them to worry about him now, knowing how much it meant to them. Frank dialed his friend's mobile phone number, but 'the subscriber was unavailable'. He hurried upstairs to get Joe.
***
"A penny for your thoughts?" Frank broke the silence.
Joe hadn't said a single word ever since they started their ride to the mall, he was staring out of the window with an unreadable expression on his face. Frank had a pretty good idea what was on his mind, but he wanted to get his brother to open to him If anything – Frank swallowed at the thought – happened to Chet, he was very afraid it would drive his brother even into a further withdrawal than after Iola's death.
Joe sighed, "I don't know, Frank. I was just thinking about Chet and...." He fell silent again, his eyes fixed on his hands.
"And?" Frank coaxed when the silence dragged on.
"And Iola," Joe finished quietly. "Not that I was thinking about the trouble he could end up in. Maybe he's fine, just stuck somewhere and there's something wrong with his cell phone or something. But.... I just can't explain it...."
Joe stopped again and Frank's ray of hope that they would find Chet safe and sound soon grew dimmer. "A bad feeling?" he asked. At Joe's nod, he felt a knot in his stomach.
There were things he knew he could trust even if there was no solid proof for their existence. Things like Joe's intuition. Or the fact that his 'bad feelings' only on the odd occasion turned out to be wrong.
Now it was his time to fall silent. He had opened his mouth to reply to his brother, but he couldn't come up with an answer.
"Frank," Joe broke the silence himself, "this time it's really bad...."
"What do you mean?"
Joe bit his lips before replying, "It's like....like it's not only about Chet..."
"Look," Frank stopped him before Joe could go on, "I trust you, you know it. But...let's not think such things."
"You're right," Joe nodded and then sighed heavily. "Forget it, I'm just being paranoid."
Forget it, Frank chuckled to himself. No way, he wasn't letting Joe out of his sight now. He pulled the van into the parking lot of the mall and stopped. The brothers climbed out of the car and went to the flower-shop Chet should have shopped at.
"Yes, he was here earlier," nodded the man behind the counter. "He bought a sack of fertilizers," he told them. "We talked for about five minutes, then he left, saying he was needed at home."
"Was he alone? Did you see anyone following him?" Frank asked.
"Yes, he was alone. No, I didn't see anyone after him," the cashier said and turned to serve a customer.
Crestfallen, the brothers left. They visited a few more shops Chet could have gone to and talked to several teens from their school who were at the mall, but no one had seen Chet.
"Well, if anything happened to him here," Frank mused, looking around the spacious building, "then somebody would notice and inform the police and we'd already know his whereabouts, right?"
"Right," Joe nodded. "But apparently he's not here."
"Apparently," Frank sighed. "What do we do now?"
Joe looked at the exit, irresolute. It was pointless continuing to look for Chet in the mall, so they should have left to check other places. But this feeling that was gnawing at him – a feeling that it was also pointless continuing to look for Chet in other places they thought he might be at. But at the same time they had to do something to find him.
"Any suggestions?" Frank looked at his quiet brother.
A pair of worried eyes looked back at him. "Call the police," Joe replied quietly. "That's the best thing we can do now."
Frank sighed, admitting Joe was probably right. There weren't many places in Bayport where Chet could be, but if something really happened to him they would just be wasting their – and his – time, searching in wrong places. "You're right," he said and reached into his pocket. "Agh, I left the cell phone in the van."
They left the mall and headed toward their van. Twilight was falling on Bayport, leaving the clouded skies dark-grey-bluish. It had started to drizzle and the leaves rustled in the chilly wind, but Frank thought he'd heard something else through the rustle – soft steps following them. He turned his head to see if his was right and.....
The last thing he saw before blackening out was a fist aimed at his face.
"I flunked!" Joe repeated, crossing his arms across his chest. "Do you understand what it means??"
"No need to shout," Frank replied and pulled the van onto the main road. "Yes, I understand. It means that you flunked."
"No, it means that Mom and Dad are going to kill me," Joe said. "If I ever say I'm going into business study, please, remind me of this shameful day and talk me out of it."
"I will," Frank promised and smiled to himself. It was Joe's typical behavior after a test – saying he failed it miserably. He thought it was his way of calling down luck or whatever, because in the end Joe's test results were always good. Not excellent like Frank's – Joe just never had his brother's patience to sit down and understand and remember every detail to be a straight A student. When needed, however, he could easily compose himself and come up with the right answer during a test.
"What a weather, huh?" Joe changed the topic, a wry expression on his face as he looked out of the window. "I wish it stopped raining and started snowing. We've had enough of this wet rubbish from above."
"Strange to hear it from you," Frank replied. "I thought you weren't fond of winter."
"I'm not, you know I'd rather live somewhere always warm and sunny, but if you get to choose between rain and snow – don't know about you, but snow's better with me."
"Same here," Frank nodded. "Don't worry, winter's already coming. Just two more weeks or so and I'll throw a snowball at ya!"
"I can hardly wait," Joe said mockingly.
Frank poked a tongue at him and halted the car in the driveway of their house. The brothers climbed out of the car and went to the house, avoiding puddles on their way.
"Dad must have left somewhere," Frank said, judging by the darkness and silence of the house.
"The Chief, probably, to talk about that Newman" Joe suggested, following his brother into the kitchen. "Hope they catch him in no time."
"I hope so, too," Frank replied.
After dinner the brothers went upstairs to their room and started their homework. Frank was finishing his chemistry when the phone in the living room began to ring. "I'll answer!" he shouted to his brother and descended down the stairs.
"Hardy residence," he said into the receiver.
"Hello?" a female voice asked, slightly wavering. "Frank?"
"Yes, who's speaking?" Frank asked, frowning. The voice sounded familiar, something in it indicated the caller was in trouble.
"This is Mrs. Morton," the woman replied. "Frank, is Chet with you?"
"No, he's not," Frank sat down on the sofa, still frowning. "Why?"
"He hasn't come home from school yet," Mrs. Morton explained. "I tried calling him on his cell phone, but he's not answering. I called all his friends, but no one knows where he is," her voice was quivering with worry as she spoke. "I-I just don't know what to think...."
"Last time I saw him was after school," Frank said, now having a bad feeling in his stomach. "He said he'd catch a taxi to go to the mall to buy something...."
"Yes, he was going to buy some fertilizers there," Mrs. Morton explained.
Should have offered to take him there and then drop him off at home, Frank thought to himself; Chet's car broke down and was being repaired at the moment, so he either used his father's sedan or had to catch a taxi. "I'm sure he's fine, don't worry," Frank tried to comfort the woman. "He must have met some friends of his and lost track of time...." He hated himself for lying like that. Chet would never forget to call his parents if he was running late – not after his sister's death more than a year ago.
"Frank, I'm just so worried," Frank could tell the woman was close to tears. "I'm sorry for bothering you....but could you...."
"Sure," Frank instantly agreed. "I'll go get Joe and we'll go look for him."
"Thank you, Frank. I'm sorry for asking, but I wanted to stay home in case he returned or called..."
"Of course. Don't worry, we'll find him," Frank tried to comfort her. "Everything is going to be alright."
The byed and Frank put the receiver down. The situation was not good. Chet knew his parents had had enough a year ago losing one child and he did his best not to cause them to worry about him now, knowing how much it meant to them. Frank dialed his friend's mobile phone number, but 'the subscriber was unavailable'. He hurried upstairs to get Joe.
***
"A penny for your thoughts?" Frank broke the silence.
Joe hadn't said a single word ever since they started their ride to the mall, he was staring out of the window with an unreadable expression on his face. Frank had a pretty good idea what was on his mind, but he wanted to get his brother to open to him If anything – Frank swallowed at the thought – happened to Chet, he was very afraid it would drive his brother even into a further withdrawal than after Iola's death.
Joe sighed, "I don't know, Frank. I was just thinking about Chet and...." He fell silent again, his eyes fixed on his hands.
"And?" Frank coaxed when the silence dragged on.
"And Iola," Joe finished quietly. "Not that I was thinking about the trouble he could end up in. Maybe he's fine, just stuck somewhere and there's something wrong with his cell phone or something. But.... I just can't explain it...."
Joe stopped again and Frank's ray of hope that they would find Chet safe and sound soon grew dimmer. "A bad feeling?" he asked. At Joe's nod, he felt a knot in his stomach.
There were things he knew he could trust even if there was no solid proof for their existence. Things like Joe's intuition. Or the fact that his 'bad feelings' only on the odd occasion turned out to be wrong.
Now it was his time to fall silent. He had opened his mouth to reply to his brother, but he couldn't come up with an answer.
"Frank," Joe broke the silence himself, "this time it's really bad...."
"What do you mean?"
Joe bit his lips before replying, "It's like....like it's not only about Chet..."
"Look," Frank stopped him before Joe could go on, "I trust you, you know it. But...let's not think such things."
"You're right," Joe nodded and then sighed heavily. "Forget it, I'm just being paranoid."
Forget it, Frank chuckled to himself. No way, he wasn't letting Joe out of his sight now. He pulled the van into the parking lot of the mall and stopped. The brothers climbed out of the car and went to the flower-shop Chet should have shopped at.
"Yes, he was here earlier," nodded the man behind the counter. "He bought a sack of fertilizers," he told them. "We talked for about five minutes, then he left, saying he was needed at home."
"Was he alone? Did you see anyone following him?" Frank asked.
"Yes, he was alone. No, I didn't see anyone after him," the cashier said and turned to serve a customer.
Crestfallen, the brothers left. They visited a few more shops Chet could have gone to and talked to several teens from their school who were at the mall, but no one had seen Chet.
"Well, if anything happened to him here," Frank mused, looking around the spacious building, "then somebody would notice and inform the police and we'd already know his whereabouts, right?"
"Right," Joe nodded. "But apparently he's not here."
"Apparently," Frank sighed. "What do we do now?"
Joe looked at the exit, irresolute. It was pointless continuing to look for Chet in the mall, so they should have left to check other places. But this feeling that was gnawing at him – a feeling that it was also pointless continuing to look for Chet in other places they thought he might be at. But at the same time they had to do something to find him.
"Any suggestions?" Frank looked at his quiet brother.
A pair of worried eyes looked back at him. "Call the police," Joe replied quietly. "That's the best thing we can do now."
Frank sighed, admitting Joe was probably right. There weren't many places in Bayport where Chet could be, but if something really happened to him they would just be wasting their – and his – time, searching in wrong places. "You're right," he said and reached into his pocket. "Agh, I left the cell phone in the van."
They left the mall and headed toward their van. Twilight was falling on Bayport, leaving the clouded skies dark-grey-bluish. It had started to drizzle and the leaves rustled in the chilly wind, but Frank thought he'd heard something else through the rustle – soft steps following them. He turned his head to see if his was right and.....
The last thing he saw before blackening out was a fist aimed at his face.