The Hardy Bros in Hot Ice by Ann ~ Chapter 7

HOT ICE

Chapter Seven

   Frank’s plan was to be inside and ready to get the hostages out through the front door he’d just fixed to keep it from completely shutting and locking. As he talked he moved his hands, and he mixed some sign language in it to communicate in code with Joe right in front of the two thieves.

   Joe instantly interpreted the message and plan. He was ready and waiting for the signal.

   “So you want jewelry for your girlfriend? Hillary and Bill here aren’t quite finished clearing out the whole place,” Joe told ‘Martinelli’.

   “Bonnie & Clyde!” yelled the female thief.

   As the Hardy brothers kept them talking, Detective Levin got the ventilation system ready to add a little knockout substance to the party.

   “You want to steal jewelry that should be for my girlfriend?” ‘Martinelli’ wanted to know. And he didn’t look happy about that at all. “You would do that to my girlfriend?”

   “We didn’t know-” the male thief started to say, but was interrupted by his mild-mannered girlfriend.

   “Shut up!” she yelled. “Let’s not lose focus here. We are going to walk out of here with all of this.”

   “You steal from me, it will become family business,” ‘Martinelli’ stated.

   The female thief sighed. She was going to start shooting people soon. Except the gun was starting to feel a little heavy…and…did she just yawn during this whole intense robbery and hostage situation?

   As everyone started to feel a little groggy, Frank and Joe, both experts from holding their breaths when diving, did just that for as long as they could so they’d be ready when they saw the first good opening.

   The guns lowered just a little bit, and that was when Joe and Frank leaped into action. Once the weapons were knocked from the thieves’ hands, Frank called through the open mic he was wearing for the police to come in.

   They soon had the customers, employees, and thieves outside. No one was completely unconscious, just a little groggy. Frank and Joe fist-bumped then they gave each other a hearty bro hug, very thankful they’d both survived.

   There was a happy reunion with all of the Bayporters. Iola came and jumped into Joe’s arms. She gave him a kiss on the lips and smiled into his eyes.

   “Oh, Joe! I’m so thankful!”

   Joe smiled and kissed her again. He was, too.

   The thieves were arrested and Joe told the police searching their pockets that the female thief had five-fingered an item in the store. A diamond necklace she’d put in her pocket. Joe also had something else to say to the thieves.

   “Your wildest dreams are about to come true,” Joe smiled and looked over at the increasing number of news crews showing up then back at the in-custody-thieves-almost-murderers. “I think you maybe made the news…”

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   Aunt Gertrude and Callie hugged the Hardy brothers and Iola when they got back. Joe and Iola said hi to Aunt Gertrude’s special surprise guest who’d arrived at the Hardy home during the situation at the jewelry store. Then they took off for a late dinner at the Morton farm where family members were anxiously waiting.

   Callie pulled Frank aside. “I was disappointed at first that you didn’t get to see Aunt Gertrude’s face when she saw the special guest, but then I realized the happy expression would still be there and it is.” Callie gave Frank a kiss, which he returned and they both looked in the dining room where Aunt Gertrude’s beau was helping her bring the food to the table. It had looked like he wasn’t going to be able to get to the Hardy home by this evening and that it would maybe even be another week before he could get back. He’d worked hard to do what he could and he had help.

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   The next day Aunt Gertrude went to Bayport High for that meeting she’d said would take place. The hot topic was the ice that had caused Callie to fall earlier in the week.

   “And anyone willing to use students as slave labor like she did – under the guise of ‘mandatory community credits’ and having the chutzpah to accuse the accident victim, caused by something this teacher did, well, that’s failing the students by too much, I believe. An epic fail.” Aunt Gertrude tried to keep it short – she had a lot she could say. “At the very least she should give an apology to Callie for calling and harassing her. And she shouldn’t have had her phone number, which has been changed.”

   Callie’s mom and dad were also there at the meeting. The principal said a lot of nothing rhetoric and Aunt Gertrude suspected the side job of the principal was as the incomprehensible adult voice on the Peanuts cartoons.

   Ms. Faring tried to also accuse the maintenance crew of negligence, but Callie spoke up for them, that they’re very conscientious at keeping things safe and nice at the school as far as the buildings and grounds.

   The teacher wouldn’t admit she’d kicked over the water, but a little bit of incriminating footage supplied by security cameras told the tale. An apology came, even though it was forced and unfriendly.

   Aunt Gertrude told her she better not take it out on Callie. The wishy-washy principal  gave empty, non-committal promises to everyone and that was the end of the meeting. Aunt Gertrude decided maybe some more people needed to get involved and get better faculty for the school.

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   Fenton and Laura were walking along the beautiful grounds of the resort and the messenger accepted that they were to receive the message. That turned out to be information about a package about to exchange hands at a nearby library. The details had been picked up by the good guys without the enemy even knowing.

   The husband and wife changed into planned disguises then hurried to the large library and stepped inside the fancy interior. The details had included a description of the box. Fenton and Laura carried an identical looking one. While Laura kept watch, Fenton went to the empty alcove, out of sight of cameras, and switched the box. They had only a short amount of time of when it would be there and when someone would come pick it up.

   Once back in their suite, Fenton and Laura checked the contents as they were supposed to. Shiny, sparkling, beautiful white diamonds filled the box.

   These had been bought with money collected to finance murderous actions by the Assassins and other evil people like them. Now it would be used to help the victims of the Assassins and the others. The ice, as diamonds are sometimes called, intended for bad, would be used now for good instead.

NEVER THE END!