Disclaimer: I do not own the Hardy Boys or any of the book characters.
Rating/Setting: Rating is T. The series started as kinda blue spine with a touch of Casefiles but is now completely AU. F/21 and J/20. In the first story (Taken), the boys are J/16 and F/17 and they have aged as the series continued. Takes place about 2 months after Sometimes 'Never' Happens.
Summary: Taken Series: What was supposed to be a simple meeting at the bank for Joe becomes anything but ordinary. Circumstances are clouded as Elise Sacco and her daughter are also at the bank. Is it a bank hold-up or is something more going on? F 21/J 20
**Don't even try to make sense of this story without having read the rest of the series. See my author's page for the reading order. And if you do go back and read them all, be sure to leave a review at least at the end of the story so I'll know how you like it. :-)
Author's Notes: Thanks for all the kind reviews and the welcome back! Thanks to Drumboy100 for letting Cherylann know about the chapter. I'm excited she got to read it as she is such a HUGE Frank/Callie shipper. :-D Also, just everyone knows, the rest of these chapter all take place in one day. So no wedding yet. :-D
Chapter Two
Joe twirled the key fob for the Bronco around on his finger a couple of times before pocketing it. He had researched a lot and decided to go for a one-year-old version to avoid the value drop of driving a brand-new vehicle off the lot. Yeah, he could afford a brand new one with his settlement with the Laird estate, but he didn't need a brand new one. And really, he laughed to himself, he probably didn't need the version he bought. He had found a top of the line one with decent mileage that was ready to do some serious off-roading. He wondered when he'd ever get the chance to try that function out. Bayport didn't offer much in the way of off-road trails, and the Network and ORT always provided their own top of the line vehicles for whatever his mission needs were.
He was still smiling as he walked into Hope Trust Bank. He nodded at the guard and then did what had become habitual to him: he scanned the room for possible problems. The lighting from the chandeliers was perfect. Not too bright on the eyes, not so dim you had to squint. The large windows at the front of the bank were great for letting inside what natural light made it to street level. Of course, that section of windows was only fifteen feet wide, so the hanging fixtures gave off the most light. His damp sneakers made little squeaking sounds on the marble flooring as he made his way to one of the manned desks that were in the middle of the bank floor. He glanced at the teller windows and saw that they weren't very busy. It was pretty early, and it was a Monday as well. No one caught his eye, except a little girl, maybe eight or nine with dark hair and a laugh that made him grin. He could see that she was with a woman with matching dark hair who was talking to another bank employee at a similar desk to the one that he was approaching. He took one last look as the little girl tossed her doll in the air and caught it while laughing.
Joe looked at the heavy brass and marble nameplate on the desk in front of him: Gwen Johnson. Gwen appeared to be in her late fifties with a brown and gray bob and tortoiseshell glasses that wanted to slide down her nose. He hadn't seen her before. Smiling, Joe said, "I'm Joe Hardy and I have a nine o-clock appointment with Mr. Harris."
Gwen turned to her laptop and tapped a few keys and then looked back up at Joe with a smile. "Mr. Harris will be with you-"
A loud noise caused both Joe and Gwen to turn to the bank entrance. Joe saw four men, one of whom was putting wedges under the entry doors while another man raised a pistol in the air and fired off several shots. A third man was standing over the guard who was on the floor and had a hand to his head. The fourth man just strode into the bank with a pistol pointed to the floor. Amidst the screams, Joe placed his hands on Gwen's desk and vaulted over the top. He grabbed Gwen on his way to the floor where they both landed heavily with the breath knocked out of them.
Joe looked at Gwen as they lay side by side on the cold stone floor and asked, "What is your procedure for this? Who's notifying the police?" His voice was calm but whispered and his eye contact was direct. It must have been reassuring to Gwen.
Gwen straightened the glasses on her face and kept her frightened eyes on Joe as she whispered back, "The tellers should have already placed the alarm and the vault has now been closed automatically. The only money they will have access to is right here in the lobby." Gwen stopped talking as one of the masked men began to speak.
"I need everyone to come out and form a line over against the back wall. We don't want to see any phones, empty hands on your head. Everyone cooperates and no one gets hurt. We just want some money."
Joe seriously doubted that, or they wouldn't have blocked the door off. If that was just their goal, they'd be getting the cash and heading out. Joe felt Gwen's hand on his chest bunching the fabric in her hand as her fingers clinched. Putting his hand over hers, he softly said, "We have to get up. We need to follow their directions."
For now, Joe added in his head. Kidnappings were more his thing; a hostage situation was similar, but there were a whole lot more people he'd have to worry about. His eyes scanned the floor around him looking for anything he might be able to use. Seeing a long silver letter opener that had been knocked to the floor when he went across the desk, he quickly pocketed it as he stood. It just fit inside the pocket of his khaki pants without being seen. His eyes scanned the people as he extended a hand down and helped Gwen up. He saw about twenty people who were either employees or customers. All were moving toward the back wall as directed. All but the woman and her daughter who were with one of the masked men. The woman took a step back and pulled her daughter close. Joe wasn't sure about what was going on, but it bore watching. He put his hands on the back of his head and began walking behind Gwen.
His thoughts were interrupted as one of the men who was wearing a gray and black striped ski mask spoke from the side opposite of where he was looking.
"You there!" he said.
Joe stopped and Gwen stopped with him.
"Not you, lady, keep going to the wall," he said in a normal tone.
Joe nodded reassuringly at Gwen and then looked turned to the man in the striped mask. He didn't speak. The air in the bank was filled with tension and the sounds of whisperings and shuffling feet and clicking heels on the marble floor as people made their way to the wall.
"You're not going with them; you're going over to see the boss." Stripes gave a head motion indicating the direction of the man speaking to the woman and child.
Joe merely nodded and began walking in that direction. He looked around and saw that one of the robbers had taken out a laptop from his backpack and had patched it into the system and was typing furiously. Stripes was moving toward the people lined up on the wall. He grabbed a trash can on the way. The fourth man was a big hulk of a guy wearing a black ski mask and was closing all the blinds for the doors and windows.
The floorspace was open in the direction Joe was walking. There was a small conversation/seating area close by and he stopped beside the couch, hoping he'd be able to get some cover from it if the boss started shooting. He was about ten feet from the woman and child who were backed up against an employee desk. The young girl had her arms wrapped tightly around the woman's legs and the doll she was holding, but she didn't seem to be crying. Joe looked at the mom and met her eyes. Wait, I know her, he thought as the boss began to talk.
"Ah, the other player in our game today."
Joe quickly turned to the boss. The woman's name was on the edge of his memory. But then the boss began to speak, and some things became clear. And it wasn't anything that made him feel better.
"Joe Hardy and Elise Sacco. Not sure if you've met or not. Oh," he said with mock sincerity, "and let's not forget Elena Sacco." His tone became dark as he continued, "Nick Sacco's daughter." He looked at Elise and said, "Really thought you'd have brought the boy today." He shrugged. "Doesn't really matter, one kid will do as good as the other for my purposes."
Joe was looking back and forth between the silent, angry woman and the man who seemed to know both of them.
Boss looked to Joe and said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to leave you out of the conversation. Elise and I have already shared a few friendly words." The expression on Elise's face contradicted the man's statement.
"What's going on? How do you know my name?" Joe was looking at Boss when Elise answered, her words laced with suppressed fury.
"He's Robert Couch. RJ Couch's father." Her eyes moved over to look at the guy on the computer. "And I'm sure that the computer guy is Robert's other son, Tony. He's been known to hack into all sorts of companies.""
Joe vaguely registered the information about Tony; his mind was focused on one thing: RJ Couch. Joe wasn't sure if he turned pale or not, but he wouldn't have been surprised if he had. An unfinished and often nightmare inducing event came rushing back to him. Things from that abduction were used against him when he was kidnapped by the Assassins and altered his daily life – such as how he felt about parking garages. Travis Rosetti, RJ's accomplice, was never caught by authorities as the Sacco family had spirited him away with his immediate family into hiding. Joe was still trying to find him to help gain closure to that horrific chapter in his life. All these thoughts passed quickly through his mind, but it was brought back to the present when Robert spoke again.
"That's right. I'm here to finish what RJ started," he said looking at Joe. "We had only planned for the Saccos and then Tony was able to find that you had an appointment today. How... fortuitous." Then he turned to Elise and said with menace, "You were our primary objective. It's time to take an eye for an eye." His eyes dropped to Elena as Elise held her tight.
This can't be happening, Joe said to himself. Does Robert Couch plan to kill me to complete what RJ started? Is he really going to kill… no, not just kill, but shoot an eight-year-old girl in the back of the head to punish her father? Joe's hands clenched into fists behind his head. Not today, he said to himself. He looked at Elise Sacco and saw the same determination in her eyes. In this, they were united.