Darkness Falls (15 page)

Authors: Franklin W. Dixon

“Whew, that's some story,” Chet said, giving a little shudder before poking the last bite of his candy bar into his mouth. “That guy MacLaughlin sounds like a real sicko.”

“He sounds pathetic to me,” Biff said. Chet and Biff were back in the Hardys' bedroom, where once again Frank and Joe were getting dressed for a special occasion.

“By the way, where are your suntans, guys?” Chet asked, frowning. “You look like you spent the whole time indoors.”

“We didn't exactly get a chance to go surfing,” Joe said regretfully, knotting his tie. “We'll have to do that next time. Right, Frank?”

“You're on,” Frank replied. “I guess MacLaughlin felt ignored and underappreciated for years,” he said. “It must have driven him over the edge. We were lucky we decided to watch his tape more than once.”

“Not just lucky,” Joe countered. “A little talent went into the mix, too.”

Frank sighed, blowing on his knuckles and rubbing them up and down on his lapel. “Yes, it's true. I cannot tell a lie. I'm talented, and Joe's lucky.”

Biff and Chet let out a laugh, and even Joe had to chuckle. Just then Laura Hardy's voice came wafting up the stairs. “Are you boys planning to go to the Astronomy Club tonight?” she called. “Your father's holding my seat. Come on, get a move on!”

“You heard her,” Joe told his brother. “Duty calls.”

“Right,” Frank said, nodding. “Biff, Chetâit's time to go. We've got a little presentation to make about the exploded planet.”

“Yeah,” Biff said, grinning as he threw an arm around each Hardy brother. “And you're the âstars' of the show!”

Frank and Joe's next case:

It's August in New York City, and Frank and Joe are feeling the heat. Jeweler Biju Kumar has asked the boys to find his missing son, Sanjay. But Sanjay may not want to be found. He had secretly been planning to elope with the daughter of his father's worst enemy, and not only is he gone, so is $10,000 worth of his father's gold! But even as they are drawn into a century-old blood feud, the Hardys begin to suspect that the real danger lies in the mean streets of the city itself. They discover that Sanjay may have crossed the most notorious criminal in New York's Little India. Nobody knows the criminal's true identityânobody, that is, who has lived to tell about it â¦ in
Deadly Engagement,
Case #90 in The Hardy Boys Casefilesâ¢.

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