Burnt Bridges

[Rokia]

INTRODUCTION

Author's Name: Tara Lynn

Title of Story: Burnt Bridges

Type of Story: HD/AU

Rating of Story: OT

Characters in Story: F, J, ND, OC

Warnings: Some violence, 1 Adult situation, dealt with throughout the course of the story, character's apparent death at beginning of story.

Date Story Posted: An HDA Classic Story - reposting March 2009; original posting - around May, 2002.

Plot Blurb: Everyone grows up. With growing up, comes change. Sometimes that change is not always expected or for the best. Frank and Nancy have become a couple, but when Nancy is lost to an accident, Frank refuses to allow Joe to help him grieve. When this finally pushes Joe away, both brothers start a new life - at opposite ends of the country. But what happens when Joe finds himself on a double date and finds himself face to face with Frank's lost love? Should he tell Frank? Or should he investigate why she is living under an assumed name in California?

Splash Page: Frank ran one hand through his dark hair. His eyes swept over the sea of waiting people, then stopped as he caught her gaze. His eyes took in the hair, now the same brown as his own, blue eyes, tentative smile...He felt his heart freeze as recognition settled in. This isn't possible! He thought. I'm seeing things! He watched the young woman rise and make her way through the crowd toward him. He took several steps in her direction, then stopped, allowing her to finish crossing the distance between them.

"Frank," she said softly, holding out her hand to him. "Thank you for coming I, uh, I don't know where to start. I need your help.

I mean, we do, Joe and I. We need your help. I mean..."

"Nancy?" he asked. "Oh my God, Nancy, is that you?".....

Special Notes: takes place 8 years after the Super Mystery line of books.

[Rokia]

PROLOGUE

Joe Hardy stared expectantly out into the dark, churning waters of the ocean below. His gaze traveled upward, to the twisted metal of the broken guard railing, then back down to the jagged rocks and slowly receding tide. Sliding his gaze along the shoreline, he stopped to watch the rescue crew working furiously to extricate the small blue convertible from the water. Or what was left of the small blue convertible. As a fireman from below gestured at one of his crew from above, the grinding winch began to turn. Chains slowly pulled the remains of the little blue car from the water. Joe winced as it emerged.

What on earth had she been doing out here at this time of night? he wondered. She wasn't supposed to leave until Saturday. She had decided to come to Bayport to spend spring break with Frank. Everything had been going so well, until tonight. Joe sighed and stared out at the wrecked car. The front end had crumpled in upon itself and the windshield was entirely gone. Joe felt a stab of grief at the thought that she might not have survived. Sure, they had their differences. But she was still his friend.

"I'm sorry Fenton," Joe heard Chief Collig tell his father. "They haven't found a body. The windshield appears to have been broken from the inside. I'm betting she was thrown from the car as it went over."

Joe looked up. "That's impossible. She always wears her seat belt."

Chief Collig frowned. "Sorry, Joe. Doesn't look like she did tonight. Maybe she

was distracted by something. All I can tell you is that there is no body in the car, and it appears she was thrown out. We have to hope that the tide didn't wash her out to sea."

"The 911 call you got? Did anyone mention seeing someone thrown from the car?" Joe asked.

"Sorry, Joe. All the man said was that he'd seen a small car lose control on the curve, smash through the guard rail, and go over the cliff. He didn't stick around for questioning. Apparently he told the emergency dispatch that he was behind on his run and would lose his rig if he was late with one more shipment. We'll try to track him, of course. But don't expect much. He called from a pay phone at a rest stop 2 miles from here."

Joe fought to keep the tears from falling. This just couldn't be happening. Why would she be out in a storm at this time of night? Was this his fault? After all, they'd fought this evening. She'd been preoccupied all day, and he convinced her to share what was bothering her. The little bombshell she dropped caught him completely off guard, and he reacted badly. Told her what a mistake she was making - a mistake that would ruin everyone's lives. He knew he upset her. He hadn't really been thinking clearly. She commented that if she had been Callie, he wouldn't have acted this way. He'd retorted that he most certainly would've. He didn't want to see Frank waste his life on any girl who thought only of herself.

It's not that he didn't like her. Sometimes she aggravated him; but that was just because he was jealous of how quickly Frank seemed to forget he existed when she was around. He'd been like that with Callie too. Finally, Joe had realized that Frank was a one woman man and he, Joe, would have to adjust. Secretly, he hoped that Frank would one day marry her. Just not any time soon. They were all too young to be planning for stuff like that. He repeated the comment on wasting Frank's life; then followed it up with a "this conversation never happened" remark. Oh, and the warning not to mention this to Frank. The look on her face could've shown no less hurt than if he'd slapped her. He'd wanted to take what he'd said back, but pride wouldn't let him. He'd simply walked away from her, leaving her to deal with this alone.

And now she was gone. And he might have been responsible. Why else would she have been out on this stretch of highway, during a storm, in the middle of the night, if she wasn't going home? Going home because of something he'd said. Joe felt as if a giant weight had settled on his chest and he struggled to breathe.

"I'm going to need to contact her family" Chief Collig was saying. "Do you have a number, Fenton?"

Fenton Hardy looked haggard. He stood looking out at the water silently for a moment. "Yes, I do. But I'll make the call. I've known Carson Drew for a number of years. If someone is going to wake him up in the middle of the night to tell him his only child has died, I'm going to do it. But you're going to have to give me an hour or so to figure out how. This is going to be the hardest thing that I've ever had to do in my life."

Joe looked over at his dad. Suddenly he felt much older than his 20 years. "No, it isn't, Dad."

Fenton looked at his son. "What do you mean?"

"Telling Nancy's dad will be the second hardest thing. The hardest will be when we break the news to Frank."

[Rokia]

CHAPTER 1

Frank Hardy sipped his coffee as he stared out the window of his New York City apartment. Lacy white snowflakes were falling softly against the backdrop of the city lights. They were beginning to blanket the street and cars below, giving everything in sight a much softer appearance. For just a moment, he was able to escape the reality of his work and just relax in the beauty that was coming with winter's last gasp. He had been working around the clock lately for the Computer Investigation and Technology Unit - tracking down cybercrimes - and needed a break. Even if it was only a few minutes of solitude to watch the falling snow.

The telephone rang, breaking Frank from his reverie. Sighing, he set his coffee cup down and crossed the living room to his phone. "Hello," he said. "Frank Hardy here, what can I do for you?"

"Happy Birthday, Bro!" came the cheerful voice through the line. Frank flinched, sighed again, and spoke.

"Hey Joe, thanks. Nice to hear from you. How's life treating you in California?"

"Man, it's awesome out here. Sun, surf, girls. Lots of girls. Did I mention all the girls?"

"Yeah," Frank said dryly. "I think you've mentioned that part a few times."

"Well, you can't beat these California women. I mean they are hot! You should be out here, you know. Having fun, celebrating with me!"

"Some of us have work to do, Joe. And you and I both know you are not out there chasing girls. Bess Marvin wouldn't allow that." Frank grinned at the thought of what Bess would do to Joe for trying to date someone else while he was dating her.

"Bess doesn't care," Joe responded. "I mean, we've went out a few times, but it's not like we're going steady or anything. She likes to play the field as well as I do." He laughed. "It wouldn't be good for her career to stick to one guy just yet."

"How is she, anyway? Last time I saw her was when you brought her back to Bayport with you for Chet's birthday. That was over a year ago." Frank walked over to the couch and sat down. "Is that acting thing working out?"

"That acting thing? Man, where have you been lately?" Joe asked incredulously. "She's been on that new TV show, LA Life, for most of this season. The fans love her! It looks like her contract's going to be renewed for at least another year."

"Hey, that's great!" Frank said. He glanced over at a framed snapshot sitting on his coffee table. He picked it up and looked at it as Joe rattled on, telling him about the current photo shoot he'd been working on in Hollywood, the sights he'd been seeing. Suddenly Frank found himself lost in time, remembering when the photo had been taking.

There were 6 people in the photo, and at the time they'd all been blissfully happy, completely unaware of the changes life would throw at them in just a few years. He had one arm slung over Joe's shoulder. Joe's other arm was around Bess Marvin's waist. Kneeling in front of them were their friends, George Fayne, Ned Nickerson, and Nancy Drew. Nancy's blue eyes sparkled as she gazed out at the camera, Ned's arm around her shoulders. The photo had been taken during a party aboard a boat - the Isabella Queen. They'd just wrapped up a case involving a rash of robberies on Padre Island in Texas. Everyone was having such a good time in that photo...



"Hey, you still with me?" Joe's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Uh, yeah, I'm still here," Frank said. "You were telling me about this model you met. Ashlyn." Frank shook his head. He still couldn't understand how Joe managed to go from getting a degree in criminal justice to doing fashion photo shoots in Los Angeles. He could only hope this was some phase Joe was going through.

"Ashlee," Joe corrected. "And you're doing it again, aren't you?"

"Doing what?" Frank replied innocently.

"You've either got that ring out, or one of her photos."

"No I don't," Frank said, quickly setting the frame back down.

"Yes you do. I know you too well, big brother. Instead of being out, celebrating your twenty-sixth birthday, you're staying in, moping over HER."

"No, I am not! I'm staying in, catching up on some paperwork. You know how law enforcement is. Every case we open showers us in mountains of paperwork. And the newest case I've been assigned is killing me. We've got some jerk running an adoption scan online and so far, he's managed to stay 2 steps ahead of me on everything I've done to track him."

"Um hmm." Joe said. "She's dead, Frank. She's not coming back. I know you loved her very much, but it's been five years. Time to move on with your life. Go out, get a girlfriend, enjoy living. Nancy would have wanted that."

"Yes, I know that Joe. For your information, little bro, I have a girlfriend. And maybe one day, I might want to take our relationship to the next level. But for now, I'm just too busy. It's not easy being one of the younger detectives on the unit. I feel like I have to work twice as hard just to prove that I'm as good as the rest of them."

"You are as good as the rest of them. You're a Hardy. Doesn't matter how young you are. That's just an excuse not to go out and date. You're afraid of falling in love again - afraid you might get hurt."

"I am not. I'm also not in the mood for another one of these lectures, especially on my birthday."

"Yeah," Joe said, "I know. I never wanted to hear it either, after Iola died. But I needed to hear it. And you were there to push me along, make me live my life again. I only wish you would have let me return the favor to you."

"I AM living my life again, Joe. And it's not my fault you're living in California now. That was your decision. You could've stayed in Bayport and we could've opened that detective agency we'd always talked about..."

"Frank," Joe said. "You're heart just wasn't in it at the time. Maybe one day, but for now..." his voice trailed off. "Anyway, let's not get into this now. I just wanted to wish my big brother a happy birthday. Get out of that apartment tonight, Frank. Go out, have a few drinks, get that girl of yours, and take her dancing. Have some fun tonight."

"Sure, Joe," Frank said. "Maybe I will. "

"Okay," Joe said. "Catch you later then?"

"Yeah," Frank said. "Later. Love you, Joe."

"Love you too big bro." Frank heard the sound of the phone clicking on the other end. He placed his phone back on it's base and walked into the bedroom. Opening the top drawer, he fished a black velvet ring box out from under his socks. Flipping up the lid, he stared at the heart shaped diamond nestled in the red satin. "Get a girl, go dancing. He makes it sound so easy." Carefully Frank slid the box back under the socks and shut the drawer.

[Lindsey]

Any chance you could post or provide a PDF for the complete story?? Have been searching for it for ages!

[redrosey38]

Same! I really miss this story. Could you please post the rest of the story?? Or is there a PDF version?? I cannot seem to find this story anywhere!

[PaulinaAnn]

I can't find it anywhere. You might want to send rokia a PM as she was the one posting it. Sorry I can't help.

[redrosey38]

That's okay! Thanks anyways!

[Taydee]

As it happens, I know the author, and I will try to get her to send me a PDF of this. I will post an accessible link if I should get one. She will love to know that this many years later so many people are still enjoying her work.

[JD]

How nice of you!  

[Lindsay]

Would love to receive a PDF of the story if anyone has managed to come across one!

[notanotherblankpage]

Jul 9, 2019 18:42:47 GMT Taydee said:

As it happens, I know the author, and I will try to get her to send me a PDF of this. I will post an accessible link if I should get one. She will love to know that this many years later so many people are still enjoying her work.

This was my favourite ND/FH fanfiction, along with its sequel and I really missed it! Do send love to the author and if she could share her stories online again!

[Lillian]

Does anyone know where to find a copy of Burnt Bridges? I was thinking of the story recently but this is the only copy I managed to find. Is there more of the story out there?