Chapter 11:

"Morning, Mom," Frank greeted his mother, as he came into the kitchen, feeling decidedly hungry. He yawned again sleepily. "Where's Joe? I didn't see him when I was coming down."

"Gone over to Vanessa's" was his mother's reply, as she went over to the fridge to pour out a glass of milk for her oldest son. "You two are supposed to meet up with the rest of the guys at the docks, aren't you?"

Frank felt a moment of alarm as he glanced at the kitchen clock. He was going to be late and he knew it. Before leaving Mr. Pizza last evening, the boys had made plans with their friends to spend the morning taking their boats out for a leisurely spin. It had been Joe's idea to take their Sleuth for a cruise on the cool waters, and perhaps a race with Tony's Napoli. But he had spent half the night in his father's study after he came home, reading through old CIA reports, and by the time he went to bed at about five in the morning, he had forgotten all about their plans.

He had done this to Callie many times before – planning a date for the weekend, and then forgetting it completely when one of his cases came up. It was no wonder that Callie got mad at him. And he couldn't exactly blame her for it…

"You looked so tired that Joe didn't want to wake you," his mother continued.

"Aw, he should have," grumbled Frank. He had planned to let Joe on about his findings before they went out. He did not manage to speak to Joe last night, as the younger Hardy was already in bed. But then again, maybe it was a good thing that Joe had left him alone – God only knows what drastic measures his mischievous young brother would use to rouse him.

"Anyway, Joe was up early. Vanessa came over to pick him up at around eight this morning," continued Laura. "He had incentive, you know? Vanessa made pancakes, and invited him over for breakfast." Frank let out an 'ooh' and a chuckle as he ate his scrambled egg and toast.

"And oh yes, he asked you to pick Katie up on your way out later," she added, with a smile. Frank immediately felt a warm sensation on his cheeks, and his head snapped up at once. What? Is this a setup? His eyes narrowed suspiciously remembering Joe's annoying grin the day before. "What else did Joe tell you?" he asked, frowning. "Anyway, I can't pick her up. I'm taking the bike."

"You can take the car. I won't be using it today," his mother told him, smiling. As Frank opened his mouth to say 'no', she interrupted him. "Frank, I'm not having you on your bike. At least not on your own without Joe. I heard Joe telling your dad how a car almost ran you both down yesterday. You'll be safer in a car than on a bike.

"Okay, run along now. You're late already. Leave those dishes in the sink. Joe and the rest are probably waiting for you." Frank thanked his mother and gave her a peck on the cheek before he left.

-xx-

"Wow, Frank is sure late today," Tony remarked, looking at his watch. He was already at the docks with Biff and Chet, together with Joe and Vanessa.

Joe grinned. "He has a girl to pick up," he said, giving Vanessa a sly wink. His girlfriend giggled and told them how Joe had called her and told her that he caught Frank checking up on Katie. That was when she decided to make pancakes to drag Joe out of Frank's way.

Biff let out a low whistle. "Yeah, so I wasn't wrong at Mr. Pizza that day!" Tony and Chet nodded and agreed. "You mean you guys noticed it too?"

"Noticed it when he came rushing up for a first aid kit," Tony grinned. "By the way, we have three boats between us – the Sleuth, the Napoli and Katie's."

"Katie has a boat?" queried Chet, as he looked incredulously at Tony. Tony nodded.

"Yeah. A pretty neat one too. But one of us will get to drive her today. Katie won't be able to, 'cause of her sprained ankle. She'll just ride and enjoy the wind."

The boys looked out towards the horizon. It was a perfectly lovely day. The sea was now a rich cornflower blue, glistening in the sun as it stretched out beneath miles and miles of clear blue sky. Little white crests foamed on the surface as the waves swirled and bubbled with joy, gently crashing against the docks. Gulls rose and fell, crying and cawing as they circled above the water, looking for food. The cool sea-wind blew hard in their faces, and in the distance, they could see a few boats already out in the waters. Tony glanced at his watch, then at Joe. He, too, couldn't wait to sail on a fine day like this.

Joe caught Tony's gaze, and shrugged, a frown creasing his brow. He was becoming increasingly worried. It was not like Frank to be this late, and without phoning up even. He kept looking at his watch. It was five to eleven now, and that meant, they had been waiting for almost a whole hour. Finally he pulled out his cell phone and dialed Frank's number.

There was no answer. All he got was the standard voice message from the telephony provider, saying that the phone could not be reached. Frantically, he tried again. Same thing. He tried another two times, then dialed Katie's number. A cheerful voice chirped on the line.

"Hello! You have reached the voicemail of Katie Ryan... so SAY something!" Joe gave an impatient grunt and terminated the call.

Vanessa was the first to notice his anxiousness. "Maybe he has gone off for a late brunch or something," she suggested. "After all, he has company today. Or maybe he decided to ditch us…"

Joe shot her a look. "This is Frank we are talking about. Frank will never ditch an appointment without calling. He always calls, even though he is going to be just ten minutes late."

"Maybe his phone has ran of battery?" said Chet hopefully. Joe shook his head.

"You could say that if it was me. But no. Frank's cell phone never runs out of battery. He always keeps it fully charged." He felt a sudden knot in his gut – the familiar feeling that he always got whenever Frank failed to turn up as he should. Please, don't tell me that he's run into trouble again. His hands shaking slightly, he finally decided to call home.

"Frank left the house about forty-five minutes ago," Laura Hardy told him, as Joe popped the question. "He should be there by now. You mean…" her voice grew hushed. "You mean he's still not there yet?"

"No. But it's possible he might have detoured and gone for brunch or something. Or maybe Katie kept him waiting. You know – rich girls…" Though he knew that was not at all likely, he was hoping that it would keep their mother from worrying for the time being, until his father came home. He didn't tell his mother that Katie's cell phone was not answered either. "Don't worry, Mom, We'll find him," he said, ringing off. Then he called Fenton Hardy's office and told his father about Frank.

"No luck," he muttered to his friends. Biff placed a hand on his shoulder to steady him.

"Come on. We'll drive up the road to Katie's house, then back to yours," he suggested to Joe. "Maybe we'll find him. "But don't worry too much. After all, like Vanessa said, he may have just been caught up with in his own plans. You know…"