Joe stumbled backwards and fell onto the trunk of a car. He lifted his left foot and put it on the bumper and planted his hands over his head on the car. He did a backward flip and landed on the top of the car as the renegade vehicle scraped along the bumper of the car Joe was on before taking off out of the parking lot and down the road.

Annie ran over to Joe as a crowd began to gather. Restaurant patron's rushed out and Biff pushed his way through. "You okay?" he demanded, staring at Joe who sat on top of the damaged car.

"I go through all of this and you still don't have our food?" demanded Joe trying to make light of the situation.

"My car!" screamed a short man with curly black hair coming out of the restaurant. "Get off my car!" he shouted at Joe when he saw him.

"You hold it right there mister!" Annie ordered the irate man poking him in the chest and glaring down at him. "Someone just tried to kill him and hit your car in the process," she informed him. "You get your priorities straight and zip it!"

Annie ended her triad and looked over at two uniformed employees. "Have the police been called?" she demanded.

"And an ambulance," was the reply.

Joe jumped down from the car. "You had better take it easy until the paramedics check you out," Annie told him.

"I'm okay," he assured her. Then he looked around at the people gathered around them. "Did anyone get a good description of the car or driver?" he asked. "Or the tag number?" he inquired as sirens made themselves heard in the background.

A few people admitted to having seen the car and/or the driver but most just shook their heads. "Okay," Joe continued. "The police will want to talk with anyone who can help provide a description but would the rest of you please go back into the restaurant and wait until the police have finished?"

Annie looked over at Biff. "One would almost believe he knows what he's doing," she commented with twinkling eyes.

"He does," Biff informed her. "Joe and his brother, Frank, are detectives. They're working on something now and that is probably why someone just tried to run him down."

Annie looked back to where Joe was talking to the man who owned the car he had just been on. "And he's only seventeen?" she asked, shaking her head in awe.

The police and the authorities arrived shortly and a large black van with side and back doors pulled in behind one of the squad cars. Frank Hardy climbed down from the driver's seat of the van and made his way over to where Biff stood. "Joe?" he asked.

Biff nodded in the direction of Joe and Frank hurried over not giving the woman with Biff a second glance. "That's Joe's brother, Frank," Biff explained Frank's rudeness to Annie.

Frank reached Joe and grabbed his shoulder. "You okay?" he demanded as Joe turned to look at him.

"Never touched me," Joe assured his worried brother with a grin as Frank's eyes scanned Joe's body for damage. "What are you doing here?"

"I was with Con when the call came through," Frank answered. "I thought you might be the boy who was involved in the hit and run."

"Learn anything about the truck?" asked Joe. Frank told Joe what Con had told him, finishing as two paramedics came over.

"I'm all right," Joe told them, refusing to let them check him.

"Let them do their job," ordered Frank sternly. Biff snickered and Annie grinned as Frank made Joe sit down and get checked out.

Biff introduced Annie to Frank while the medics took care of Joe. After they had declared him okay, causing Joe to smirk at his brother and friends, Con came over to take statements from Joe, Biff and Annie.

Biff, having been inside, could give no information but Annie turned out to be an excellent witness. "It was a new blue neon Sentra," Annie described the car. "The tag was Maine issue DGK-4139. The driver had a brown cowboy hat pulled down over his hair. I didn't get a good look at him but he was wearing a green tie and brown blazer."

"You're very observant," Con complimented her.

"Thank you," she replied. Joe could add nothing more to the description so Con told them they could leave. He remained to fill out a report about the damage to the patron's car.

"It's getting too late to go to the park tonight," observed Annie. "Why don't you boys just drop me off and go have some fun?"

"No way!" Joe declared. "We still haven't eaten. Let's head over to Mr. Pizza," he suggested aware of the grateful glance Biff threw at him. "You'll probably get a chance to meet more of Biff's friends there."

"After meeting you, I'm not sure if I could handle any more of Biff's friends," Annie retorted playfully, grinning her acceptance of the plan anyway.

"I think I'll give it a pass," Frank said. "Mom's expecting me back and well..." he broke off.

"You don't want to leave her home alone for too long," Biff guessed wrongly. "We'll drop Joe off later," he promised.

Joe shot Frank a look before he joined Biff and Annie in Biff's van. Joe knew Frank was going to find out who owned the car that had nearly run him down and probably run a check on everyone who had a hand in the creation of the tournament.

Once they were underway Biff glanced over at Joe. "Okay, give," he ordered. "What are you guys working on?" Joe told Biff and Annie about the attacks on the tournament contestants and the secret prize.

"But if none of the contestants know about the prize.." Annie began.

"Then there has to be some other reason for the attacks," Joe finished for her. "We're thinking it has to involve someone who helped set it up," he continued. "But we still need a motive," he concluded as Biff pulled to a stop in the parking lot of Mr. Pizza.

Across town, Frank had arrived home and told his mom about the attack on Joe, assuring her that he hadn't been hurt. "I'm going to use dad's office for a bit," he said, heading toward the stairs.

Frank sat down at his father's desk and logged on the computer. Mr. Hardy, formerly of the New York City Police Department and currently the foremost private investigator in the world, had access to several databases even other investigators did not have and it was these Frank used to conduct his research.

Frank began his investigation by running a check on the person who owned the green truck. Michael Wilson was an employee of Braun Enterprises. Frank's brow furrowed in thought. His father had taught him and Joe that in a mystery there was no such thing as a coincidence. Obviously, someone from Braun Enterprises was involved in the alleged accidents. Frank, however, did not believe it was the truck's owner. Too obvious.

Next, Frank looked up George Braun. The man had inherited Braun Enterprises upon his father's death nine months previously. He graduated from Princeton University before becoming the vice president of Braun Enterprises.

Frank then checked Braun Enterprises' finances. According to the last report, the company was doing very well. Frank sighed. From the looks of things, Braun Enterprises didn't need to negotiate with the schools for their businesses but he was glad they did. Frank grinned. Joe wouldn't care nearly as much about the money as he did about the trip. Knowing Joe, he would use the money to pay for their friends to accompany him. And me, of course, he added silently, looking up the tag number for the car that had nearly run Joe down earlier.

"Figures," Frank groaned out loud. The tag belonged to a '87 Chevy that had been totaled several years ago. I should have known it would be untraceable. Frank logged off and stood up. He turned off the monitor and headed to the door. Opening it, he nearly crashed into his father.

"Dad!" Frank exclaimed in surprise, looking at the man whose reflection mirrored his own in about twenty more years.

"Hi, Son," Mr. Hardy greeted Frank. "Your mother said you and Joe were working on a new case."

"Yes," admitted Frank. "I was just doing some research," he explained. "You finished your case?" he inquired.

"I did," Mr. Hardy said. "And it's good to be back home. London seems colder than Bayport." He entered his office as Frank stepped aside. "Want to tell me about your case?" he asked as Frank took a seat in front of his dad's desk. Frank told him about Principal Dylan's phone call, the contest, the prizes and the attacks on the contestants, including Joe.

Mr. Hardy frowned but before he could comment there was a loud yelp from outside and the sound of a trash can falling over.