Chapter Seven

No one moved, too stunned by what had occurred. Chet rolled over to see the broken brick a few inches away from him.

"Look!" Vanessa cried out.

Someone jumped down from the tree, but the friends could only get a good look at the culprit's back. They noted the slim, wiry build and dark hair, plus the Bayport letterman jacket that he wore.

"I bet that's Mike Dawson," Joe told Frank, and sprinted after the youth.

"Joe, wait!" Frank sighed in frustration as Joe paid no attention to him.

Checking to make sure that Chet and Carolyn were not hurt, Frank ran after his brother. Biff and Tony, who had seen what happened, also chased after Frank and Joe.

Mike Dawson knew he had a good head start and he was counting on that. Joe Hardy wasn't known as the best runner in Bayport for nothing.

Although there was a school zone speed limit, not many drivers paid much attention to it. Seeing that the way was clear, Mike ran headlong across the busy intersection.

Keeping his eye on Mike, Joe wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. He saw Mike Dawson run across the four-way intersection and followed. Joe never saw the Honda come speeding towards him. Frank did and his heart caught in his throat when he realized the driver wouldn't be able to stop in time.

Chet and Carolyn, Vanessa and Callie had started to follow after Frank and Joe. Vanessa was the first to see the Honda come barreling down the road.

"Joe!" Vanessa gasped in fear.

Too late, Joe heard the blast of a car horn and the screech of tires. Watching as the front end of the Honda came speeding towards him, Joe closed his eyes and waited for the impact.

To Joe's surprise, he felt himself fly up into the air and land on top of the hood of the Honda.

The driver of the car stared at Joe, shock and fear registering on his face. The driver and Joe just stared at each other; both too stunned to comprehend what just happened.

Frank, Biff and Tony finally caught up to Joe.

"Joe," Frank wasn't sure what else to say. "Joe, what…are you hurt?"

Joe very slowly slid off the car; he could feel his legs shaking.

"I'm…umm…I'm okay. I think."

"That was quick thinking, jumping up on the car like that," Biff commented. "How'd you manage to jump so high?"

"Yeah, why can't you do that when we're playing basketball?" Tony asked.

Joe was at a loss for words; Frank could tell that Joe didn't know what was going on. Getting Biff and Tony to help Joe back to the school parking lot and assuring the driver that Joe was not injured, Frank turned to leave; he wanted to make sure that Joe really was unharmed.

As Frank was heading towards Joe, he noticed Carolyn staring glumly at the ground. She had done the same thing after the incident with the chair in the cafeteria. Frank's curiosity was piqued.

The school bell rang out, letting the students know that classes would soon begin. As the teens headed inside, no one noticed a man dressed in gray standing silently next to a stop sign.

Mr. Gray had noticed the look on Frank's face. He had no doubt that Frank would soon learn of Carolyn's gift.

As the teens entered the school building, Joe turned around and locked eyes with Frank. Giving Joe a slight nod, Frank moved closer to his brother. Putting an arm around Joe's shoulders, Frank smiled at his friends.

"If you don't mind, I'm going to take the brat down to see the nurse. Make sure he really is okay."

"Hey, how did I become a brat? I thought I was your lovable baby brother?" Joe feigned a hurt expression.

"You were, until I realized that I would be the one getting into trouble with Mom for letting you run out into a busy street," Frank replied.

"That's the price you pay for being the big brother." Joe smiled sweetly.

Frank let out a long-suffering sigh. "And to think, I actually wanted to have a younger brother! What was I thinking?"

*endofchapter*endofchapter*endofchapter*

Authors Note: Please read the author's profile for this story. The author, copagirl, passed away in 2013. I am posting these stories up with the permission of her family, who want her to be remembered as well. Lola was a long-time member of the Hardy Detective Agency and we miss her soooooo much! Love you Lola!