A couple of more modern hospitals had been built in the newer parts of Bayport over the years, but the venerable old Bayport General was still at the edge of the downtown area. It usually handled most of the police calls. Frank also thought that they’d be so used to seeing patients like Colin, they might not ask too many questions.
The hospital was only five blocks from where they had been, so it didn’t take them long to get there. Frank pulled the van into the emergency room parking lot, and he and Joe carried Colin to the entrance.
An orderly going in at the same time got a wheelchair, and together they took Colin into an examination room.
The hospital was either between emergencies or it had been a quiet night, because a doctor came in right away.
A nurse asked Frank if he could give her some information she needed for the hospital forms. Frank tried to be as vague as possible and made sure that the nurse knew that Colin couldn’t pay for this. He told the nurse that Colin had been attacked by unknown assailants, that he was sure that Colin wasn’t going to press charges, and that Colin wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.
“We can’t force you to have any tests,” the doctor was telling Colin when Frank finished with the nurse. “But at least let me clean the wounds and put some medicine on them.”
Colin agreed to that.
Joe used the time to call the Randles and asked to talk to Nella. He told her Colin was all right, but he decided not to go into detail. “Trust me and Frank,” Joe said. “We’re taking care of things. You might also tell your parents that Colin is planning to spend the night with us.”
Thirty minutes later, they were leaving the hospital.
“Next stop, a hot shower and a soft bed!” Frank said.
“Not me,” Colin said. “I have something better in mind.”
Joe looked over at Colin. He thought that some of the swelling in Colin’s face had gone down, but it was still puffy in places. “What?” he asked.
“I want Melanie and her father to see what her boyfriend did to me,” Colin said. “They went too far this time. I’ve got to fight back.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that, Colin. I think it might be better to sleep on it,” Frank said. “We can talk to Dad and see what he’d do.”
“Frank’s right, Colin,” Joe said. “It’s too late tonight to—”
“Stop the van!” Colin shouted.
When Frank didn’t let up on the accelerator, Colin said, “If you don’t stop this van, I’ll jump out. I mean it. I’m going to talk to the Johnsons tonight!”
Frank and Joe looked at each other. They knew Colin was serious. They also knew that they couldn’t let him do this by himself.
“Call Dad,” Frank finally said. “Tell him to meet us in front of the Johnson’s house.”
Joe used his cell phone to call their father.
Some of the Hardy boys’ friends could have expected a lecture if they had called their parents around midnight, but Mr. and Mrs. Hardy trusted Frank and Joe implicitly and knew that they were probably involved in something that had to do with solving a mystery.
Joe explained to Mr. Hardy everything that had happened during the evening.
“Colin wants to confront the Johnsons. He wants them to see what Melanie’s boyfriend did to him,” Joe said. “We can’t talk him out of it, Dad, so we need you there,” he added in a whisper.
Fenton Hardy agreed to come. He told the boys he’d meet them outside the Johnsons’ house in twenty minutes.
When the Hardy boys reached the Johnsons’ house, the neighborhood was all dark, and there were no other vehicles on the street. Frank parked the van at the edge of the Johnsons’ property, under the branches of a big tree that offered a little cover.
Fenton Hardy arrived right on schedule and parked behind the boys’ van. He examined Colin and was stunned at what he saw. “Are you really sure you feel up to this?” he asked.
Colin nodded. “Yes, I want to confront them. I have to do it tonight.”
The four of them walked up to the Johnsons’ front door, and Fenton Hardy rang the bell.
After several minutes, a maid in a housecoat answered. She wasn’t in a very good mood.
“I want to see Mr. and Mrs. Johnson and Melanie,” Colin said. “Now!”
“Do you know what time it is?” the maid demanded.
“Look at me!” Colin said. “This happened because of the Johnsons. Tell them that Colin Randles wants to talk to them!”
The maid let out a big sigh and said, “Just a minute,” and closed the door without asking them inside.
Ten minutes later, the front door opened. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson and Melanie were standing together, silhouetted by a light in the foyer.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Mr. Johnson demanded.
“Take a good look at this young man’s face, Mr. Johnson,” Fenton said. “If my sons here hadn’t found him when they did he might not be alive now.”
“What’s this got to do with me?” Mr. Johnson said. “I don’t know this young man.”
Mr. Johnson’s attitude was beginning to irritate Frank and Joe.
Joe nodded at Melanie. “Your daughter does, Mr. Johnson,” he said.
“We were sitting behind her and her friends at the movies tonight,” Frank added. “We overheard her say her boyfriend had plans for Colin Randles.”
Mr. and Mrs. Johnson looked at Melanie.
“They’re lying, Daddy,” Melanie said. “George wouldn’t do anything like that.”
Mr. Johnson looked back at the Hardys. “Did you see this attack take place?” he asked them.
Joe and Frank shook their heads.
Mr. Johnson turned toward Colin. “Can you identify the person who did this to you?” he asked.
Colin shook his head. “I thought it was Frank Hardy who called me at home. When I got to the building, this guy was waiting for me right inside the alley. It was dark, but he sort of looked like Frank, too.”
“We talked to a homeless man who takes shelter in the building,” Frank explained. “He saw it.”
“You talked to a homeless person? Oh, well, now there’s a voice of authority!” Mr. Johnson said. “I think maybe you two beat Colin up yourself and for some reason you’re trying to cause trouble for my daughter.”
“Now just a minute, Mr. Johnson,” Fenton Hardy said. “You can’t accuse . . . “
“I think Melanie was kidnapped when she was two or three years old,” Colin said, interrupting Mr. Hardy.
Mr. Johnson’s face suddenly went purple. “Either you leave my property now, or I’m going to call the police,” he shouted at them. With that, he slammed the door in their faces.
10 The Randles Leave Bayport
* * *
For a couple of minutes, the Hardys and Colin stood staring at the Johnson’s front door. Finally Mr. Hardy said, “It’s late, boys. We need to get home. I’ve got some thinking to do.”
Frank, Joe, and Colin piled into the van. Colin let out a groan as he collapsed into the seat. Joe did a U-turn and got behind Mr. Hardy’s car.
“I think you’re going to be really sore in the morning,” Joe told him.
“I’m already really sore, Joe,” Colin said. “I probably need to take some aspirin when I get to your house.”
“Mom and Aunt Gertrude will know what to do,” Frank added. “They’re used to playing doctor at our house. Joe and I have been known to get in a few scrapes of our own from time to time.”
When they arrived at the Hardy house, Mrs. Hardy and Aunt Gertrude were waiting for them. It was obvious that Mr. Hardy had used his cell phone to inform them of everything that had happened over the course of the evening.
“Good heavens!” Aunt Gertrude exclaimed when she saw Colin. “You look terrible!”
“You boys need to go on to bed,” Mrs. Hardy said. “Your aunt Gertrude and I will take care of Colin. He can sleep in the guest bedroom.”
Neither of the boys argued. A shower
and a soft bed sounded really good to both of them.
After they had their pajamas on and were in bed, though, Frank said, “I think I’m too keyed up to sleep.”
“Me too,” Joe said, and shook his head. “Can you believe Mr. Johnson, trying to make it seem like we had beaten up Colin and were trying to put the blame on Melanie’s boyfriend?”
“I know!” Frank said. “And if you want to know the truth, I’d take the word of a homeless person any day over the word of Mr. Johnson. He’s one of those men who thinks he owns the world.”
“That’s the impression I got, too,” Joe agreed. “I guess you can’t blame Melanie for acting the way she does.” He yawned and leaned his head back against the pillow. In a couple of minutes, he was sound asleep.
Frank turned out the overhead light. He turned on his beside lamp and read a couple of pages in a book before he, too, decided it was time for sleep.
The next morning, even Frank and Joe weren’t prepared for Colin’s face. It was yellow, purple, black, and blue.
“Do you think you should stay home?” Joe asked. “You’re going to scare a lot of people.”
Colin tried to smile but he hurt so much that he ended up only grimacing. “Maybe I’ll get some sympathy votes,” he said.
“I wouldn’t count on it,” Frank said. “After what I saw last night, Melanie will probably have a really elaborate story concocted that a lot of people will believe.”
“Well, it doesn’t really matter, Frank, because I don’t intend to let anyone, including the Johnsons, stop me this time,” Colin said. “I know what I’m talking about, whether Melanie wants to believe me or not. She’s not who she thinks she is. She was kidnapped when she was little.”
Mrs. Hardy had prepared breakfast. Unfortunately, it was hard for Colin to open his mouth wide enough for food and Frank and Joe were still groggy from a late night, so most of breakfast was left untouched.
The boys grabbed their books—except for Colin, who said that all of his were in his locker at school—and headed out to the van.
When they reached Bayport High School, a crowd had gathered at the spot where Frank usually parked. It was a friendly group, consisting of Chet, Iola, Callie, Tony, and Phil.
When they saw Colin, they all let out a gasp.
“It’s all over school, Colin,” Callie said. “Melanie said you attacked her boyfriend and he had to defend himself.”
Joe looked at Colin. “What’d I tell you?” To their friends he said, “That’s not exactly how it happened.”
“Not exactly,” Frank repeated. As they all walked toward the front door of the school, Frank told them the real story.
“Well, I thought Melanie’s version sounded made-up,” Phil said. “She seemed too interested in making sure that everyone in school heard it.”
“I’ve never seen this boyfriend of hers,” Frank said. “Do any of you know George?”
“He moved here from New York City a couple of years ago,” Callie said. “Mr. Johnson brought him in to take care of the urban renewal property the bank was buying downtown.”
Frank and Joe looked at each other. George would have a key to the front door of the building where they found Colin.
The school day turned out to be relatively uneventful. Most of the other kids either ignored Colin or just gave him a passing glance. Evidently, it didn’t make much difference to those who weren’t Melanie’s friend if Colin had attacked Melanie’s boyfriend or not. George wasn’t a student at Bayport High School, which meant he wasn’t a part of their daily lives.
By the end of the day, when Frank and Joe met Colin at the van, the Hardys had decided that things might start getting back to normal sooner than they thought.
“You’re welcome to spend another night with us,” Joe said, as Frank started out of the parking lot. “We can plan our strategy and maybe even talk about developing our psychic abilities.”
“No. I need to go home. My parents will probably be worried about me,” Colin said. “I’m sure Nella made up some pretty good excuse—she’s good at doing that—but I need to let them know everything that happened.”
“Whatever you say,” Frank said. “But just remember that you’re always welcome.”
Colin thought for a minute. “You know something—my parents probably won’t be home until late, because they’ve been putting in long hours at Mr. Shaw’s hardware store. So if you could drop me there, that would be great. I can go ahead and talk to them about this now. I just want to get it off my chest. I already feel bad about the trouble I’ve caused.”
“We can do that,” Frank said, “but you shouldn’t feel bad about anything, Colin.”
“You’re not the one who’s causing the trouble,” Joe added. “You were just trying to let Melanie Johnson know what happened to her when she was a little girl.”
“I’m still getting those strong feelings, guys. I got them last night when I was looking at her eyes,” Colin said. “I felt them today in school when I was walking down the hall. Melanie was probably nearby. They’re strong enough now that I don’t even have to touch her.”
They rode in silence for another ten minutes until they reached Shaw’s Hardware Store. Just as they parked in front, a police car pulled up behind them. Two officers jumped out and ran into the hardware store.
“I don’t feel good about this,” Colin said. Wincing from pain, he jumped out of the van and ran after the police officers. Frank and Joe followed.
Inside, several kids were milling around at the rear of the store. Frank recognized them as high school friends of Melanie Johnson.
“Mom! Dad!” Colin called. “What’s going on?”
Several of the kids looked up, pointed at Colin, and started laughing. He ignored them and so did the Hardy boys.
While the police officers talked to Mr. Randles, Mrs. Randles hurried over, tears in her eyes, and grabbed Colin. “Oh, Colin, what is this all about? What kind of trouble are you in?”
“I’m not in trouble, Mom,” Colin assured her. “I’m not.” He looked at the Hardys for help.
Frank gave her a quick, but thorough—and for the moment reassuring—explanation.
“What are these kids doing here, Mom?” Colin asked. “This is not exactly where you’d expect to find a lot of high school students.”
“They’ve been in and out all day, and they’ve been robbing us blind, too,” Mrs. Randles whispered. “We finally decided to call the police. We didn’t do it earlier, because we didn’t want any trouble.” A tear rolled down her cheek. “This is a perfect job for me and my husband, and we can do it, too,” she said to the Hardys. “We don’t want Mr. Shaw to think we can’t. But this . . .” She waved her hand toward the back of the store where Melanie’s friends were standing around, giggling.
Joe could tell that Colin was seething. He wasn’t going to let these punks do this to his parents. Just as Colin started for the back of the store, Joe grabbed his arm. “It’s not worth it, Colin. You can’t win this. The police are here now. Let them take care of it.”
After a few minutes, the police officers told the teenagers to leave. They sauntered out, making sure they came by where Colin and the Hardy boys were standing.
“Your parents are in serious trouble. You don’t accuse somebody of shoplifting if you can’t prove it,” one of the kids said to Colin. “But don’t worry. Our lawyers will take care of it.”
He and his friends burst into laughter.
When the last teenager was out of the store, Colin opened his mouth to say something—but his mother started crying, so he hugged her close to him and let her put her head on his shoulder.
“It’s all my fault, Mom. It’s all my fault,” he said. “I should never have said what I did, but I thought Melanie Johnson would want to know that she had been kidnapped.”
Mr. Randles had walked the police officers to the front door and was now headed back to where the Hardy boys were standing with Colin and his mother.
Mrs.
Randles looked up, wiped her eyes, and said, “Are they going to do anything?”
Mr. Randles shook his head. “We didn’t catch any of them in the act,” he said. “So we can’t prove it.”
“Is that all the police said, Dad?” Colin asked.
“Well, that’s all they said,” Mr. Randles replied. He got a disgusted look on his face. “But I got the distinct impression that these were kids the police are used to letting off with a slap on the wrist.”
“You’re probably right,” Frank said. “At school, most of them are usually hanging around Melanie Johnson.”
“She evidently gets them to do her dirty work,” Joe added.
“I don’t remember anything like this happening before,” Frank said. “Usually, the different groups at school get along very well—or at least they tolerate each other.”
“That was before I arrived on the scene,” Colin said, “and disrupted Melanie Johnson’s nice, secure little world.”
“You know, you may have something there, Colin,” Frank said. “This looks like a case of overreaction to me. I think you’ve touched a nerve. I think you’re telling the Johnsons something they don’t want to hear.”
“Please don’t encourage him, Frank,” Mr. Randles pleaded. “We’re trying to get Colin to suppress his psychic abilities and ignore the messages he receives.”
“Can you do that?” Joe asked.
“If you don’t follow up on things, if you just ignore them, then yes,” Mrs. Randles said, “you can make yourself less psychic. Colin knows the trouble his visions cause the family.”
Mr. Randles looked at his watch. “Two hours before we close. We’ve got work to do. Colin, could you spare some time? We need to take inventory. I want to find out exactly what those kids stole from us today.”
“Sure, Dad,” Colin said. He turned to Frank and Joe. “Thanks for the ride. You guys are great. I know I have two good friends here in Bayport.”
“Could you use a couple of extra workers?” Frank asked. “We’d be free labor.”
“We couldn’t do that,” Mrs. Randles said. “You’ve already wasted too much of your time with us.”
The Case of the Psychic's Vision Page 7
