Disclaimer: I don't own Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, or the characters associated with them.
Author's Notes: Thank you for the reviews. I especially appreciate those of you who offered your critique on my Carson, it really helped.
For a Detective You're Not That Smart. Did You Miss Physics Class Or Something?
Frank and Bess were compliant when it came to what the men told them to do. They followed them out to their van, and sat in the back obediently while one of the men tied their hands behind them. Both knew enough to know that they needed to wait for the right moment.
This was all completed in mostly silence, until they were driving, when the kidnapper who had spoken to them in the airport, began to talk. "You don't have to worry about your luggage. It's being picked up by some of my associates." He was coming across as almost congenial, the opposite of what he had been inside. Neither Bess, nor Frank answered him. "Come on now, just because we're kidnapping you doesn't mean we can't be friends. I think you'll find the accommodations that we'll be keeping you in are rather nice, all things considered."
"I'm not exactly in the habit of becoming friends with my kidnappers." Bess huffed indignantly, sending a glare his way.
"Oh relax, we're not going to hurt you." He laughed a bit. "The guns were just for a bit of show. How else would we have gotten you to come with us?"
"Asking is always a nice option." Bess continued her attempt at instigating him.
"But if we told you that we were just going to hold you until your friend turns herself over to us, I doubt you would have come along."
That was when it hit Frank that this was still about Nancy. They had taken them to get to her. He knew that meant in all likelihood, that she and Joe were still in the city, and not in New York like the should have been. This wasn't good. But he could make the best out of it. "What do you want with Nancy?"
The kidnapper turned around in his seat, as he wasn't the one driving. "Don't tell me you're that dumb. My background check told me that you're a detective like she is."
"Frank, I think he's probably looking to get in on that money promised for Nancy's death."
"I know that." Frank sighed. A minute into his plan and already things weren't working in his favor.
"Actually I'm the one who offered to pay the money. But that offer expired once you all started to leave the island."
"Why do you want Nancy dead?" Frank tried again, asking his question far more specifically. He was doing his best not to let the surprise that he was talking to the man who had started this particular mess of a vacation, show.
"I don't think that I care to share that with you." And his somewhat friendly attitude disappeared. He grabbed Bess' purse that they had taken from her upon her entrance of the van and started to rifle through it, not stopping until he pulled out her cell phone, that was covered by a pink faceplate. "Oh look, I wonder who we'll be able to call on this."
Joe and Nancy stood in the hotel lobby, waiting in line to check out and go back to the airport. They hadn't spoken about the events of the previous night, both having the unspoken agreement, that it was to be unspoken about. "I guess all of my worrying was for nothing. Nothing's happened." Joe commented to her. "And the bright side of all of this is that we'll actually be meeting up with Frank and Bess." Nancy was about to respond, but her cell phone rang. "Take it. It could be important." Joe told her.
She nodded, and pulled the phone from her pocket. "Hello?" She answered, stepping away from the line as she did so.
Joe waited in line as he watched her talk for about a minute. The line was about to move when she returned, her face white. "Who was it?" He asked quickly.
"We need to cancel the flight." Nancy informed him. "And extend our stay here."
"What do you mean? It's not safe Nance." Joe watched her in concern, noting the difference in her appearance; she was suddenly more tired and upset looking. "Are you OK?" When she didn't answer, he stepped out of line, and took her by the arm, leading her to a chair that sat unoccupied. "Here, sit down." He forced her to sit and then knelt down next to her. "What's going on?"
"Someone kidnapped Frank and Bess." Nancy told him after taking a deep breath.
"How do you know?"
"Whoever it was…just called me."
Joe breathed a bit of a sigh of relief. For a moment he had been worried, but this appeared to be pretty obvious. "Nance, it was probably just someone trying to keep you in the city. The longer you're here the easier it'll be to track you down. I'm sure Frank and Bess are fine." He tried to assure.
"They called me from Bess' phone."
OK so maybe it wasn't as open and shut as he thought. It could potentially be a problem.
"All they said was that they had them, and that for now they would be safe. And that they'd e-mail you in a minute with proof that they have them and demands."
Joe decided he was going to take charge. "Come on. We'll go upstairs and get the e-mail and then we'll see what there is to do. We'll worry about the hotel and flight stuff later."
Frank looked over to Bess. They had been left in the van for a moment while their captors went into the house they were parked in front of, claiming that they were preparing it for their guests. In captors defense, they weren't completely stupid; the door locks had been modified slightly, and could only be locked or unlocked from outside. "How are you doing?" He asked quietly, adjusting his bound hands behind his back.
"Peachy. I just love getting kidnapped. Especially when I'm wearing my new cute skirt."
Frank sighed. Sarcasm was not what he was looking for at the moment. "I actually I was wondering if you were up for a run."
Bess gave him a look. "The doors aren't about to open."
"I know. But they're going to bring us inside in a minute. In all likelihood they're going to put us in separate rooms. They know I'm a detective, and they know that you've been helping Nancy for a long time, so you're bound to know a thing or two." Frank began to explain. "They're also probably going to be guarding me a lot more extensively than they are you, I pose a bigger threat.
"Once they leave you alone, you need to escape. You stand a better shot of getting out than I do."
"And if I get caught I stand a better shot of getting shot."
"I don't think they'll hurt you Bess. They only want Nancy, and the only way they're going to get her is if we're both alive and unharmed."
"OK, so let's say I pull off this whole escape thing. Then what?"
"Call Joe and Nancy, and meet up with them. Then get the police involved."
"And bring the police here to get you?"
"Well, yeah. But these guys aren't that dumb. Once you're gone, I'm the only bargaining chip, and you know where I am. Most likely I'll be moved."
"Then what would the point of me escaping be?"
"Well, first of all, you won't be any immediate danger. Second, Joe's gonna need your help to keep Nancy from doing anything stupid."
"What constitutes something stupid?"
"Trying to give the kidnappers what they want."
Joe sat impatiently in front of the laptop, refreshing his e-mail page every few seconds. Nancy was pacing behind him. They had been following this routine for about five minutes. Joe clicked the refresh button once more, and something was finally there. "Hey it's here." He announced, opening the e-mail quickly.
Nancy stopped pacing and hurried over. "What does it say?"
The first thing in the e-mail was a picture, of Frank and Bess sitting in the back of a van, both looking unharmed. Then there was the message that Joe was already reading. "They're not going to hurt them if you show up, alone in the parking lot of the Aquatic Complex, at 2:45 this afternoon. If you show up, they'll be released. If you don't show up, the consequences will be bad. It's your usual ransom stuff without the money. This must be from the guy who wants you dead." He turned around to find Nancy pulling on a sweatshirt. "What are you doing?"
"I'm going to the Aquatic Complex."
"If you go there, they'll kill you."
"And if I don't they kill Bess and your brother."
"Nancy this is crazy. I'm all for saving Frank and Bess but this isn't the way to do it." He stood and walked over to Nancy, grabbing her arms and forcing her to look at him. "Let's just call the police and see what they can do."
"The police can't do anything." Nancy pulled her arms free, and stepped away from him. "They couldn't do anything for April, and they aren't going to be able to do anything here."
When it hit Joe that this was why Nancy was so upset, it made perfect sense. She had just gone through a bad kidnapping case, of course it would be a problem. It also made him feel even stronger about his stand point. "Nancy, you're acting crazy." He grabbed her again, this time keeping a stronger grip on them. "The police will be able to trace the e-mail and find out where this guy is."
" Joe you know that's not true. If he has any brains at all he didn't use a computer anywhere near where he is. Or he rerouted it. Our only chance of getting them back, is if I go now, and see what they want."
"They want you dead."
"They haven't been successful at killing me yet." Nancy struggled against Joe's hold. "Now let me go! I'm going to get Frank and Bess back."
"You can't go there Nancy."
"Joe, it's my decision. Now let me go!"
"I'm only letting you go if you promise that you aren't going to try and go to the Aquatic Complex."
"Fine. I won't try to go to the Aquatic Complex. I promise." Nancy had said the sentence angrily and unconvincingly, so she was still pulling away from Joe when he released her arms. Unprepared for the momentum she went careening backwards, hitting her head on the corner of the wall and then slumping to the floor, unconscious.
Joe's eyes grew wide, and he rushed forward. He sighed, realizing she was just unconscious. "I guess that's one way of keeping you from going."