One False Step Read online

  Mr. Hardy nodded. “I promised Detective Rodriguez I’d think about it, so that’s what I was just doing,” he said. “What was it you boys needed to talk to me about?”

  Frank told Mr. Hardy about Aérocirque and their plans to go to Philadelphia to attend some of the performances.

  “Have you talked to your mother?” Mr. Hardy asked.

  Frank and Joe grinned.

  “She said it was all right with her if it was all right with you,” Joe said.

  “Well, you’ll need a place to stay, so I’m going to call Mario Zettarella,” Mr. Hardy said.

  “Who’s that?” Frank asked.

  “He’s an acquaintance of mine in the Philadelphia Police Department,” Mr. Hardy said.

  “We could just rent a hotel room, Dad,” Joe said. “We don’t want to put people out.”

  “Nonsense,” Mr. Hardy said.

  “There are going to be five of us altogether, Dad,” Frank added. “That’s a lot of people to have as guests.”

  “The Zettarellas have five sons,” Mr. Hardy said. “They’re all grown now, but Mario told me the last time I talked to him that he and his wife missed having them around.”

  Mr. Hardy picked up the telephone and dialed a number. Within minutes, the arrangements were made. “Thanks, Mario, and we hope to see you and Gina in Bayport one of these days.” When he hung up the phone, Mr. Hardy added, “It’s a good thing I called. Mario said that tickets to the Aérocirque performances are almost impossible to get, but he’s on special detail for all the shows, so all five of you guys can go with him.”

  “Great, Dad!” Frank said. “Well, I guess this is a good example of how things always happen for a reason.”

  “Let’s go next door and tell Matt,” Joe suggested.

  • • •

  On Friday afternoon after school, Frank and Joe picked up Matt, Chet, and Tony.

  “We’ll head on over to I-95,” Frank said as they left the city limits of Bayport. “That’s the fastest route to Philadelphia.”

  “I’m hungry,” Chet said. “Do you think we can stop somewhere to eat?”

  Matt looked over at Chet. “Are you serious? We haven’t been on the road for more than ten minutes.”

  “I know, I know,” Chet said, “but riding in a car makes me hungry.”

  “It really does, Matt,” Joe said. “You should hear Mrs. Morton talk about all their family trips when Chet and Iola were kids.”

  “It always took them twice as long to get where they were going,” Frank said.

  “That’s why we brought along a cooler of food,” Joe said. “We’re prepared.”

  “You guys are great,” Chet said. He looked over his shoulder. “Pass it up here.”

  “It’s too big, Chet,” Frank said. “Matt, lean over the back seat and get Chet one of those turkey sandwiches on top.”

  “And something to drink, and some chips,” Chet added.

  “This is making me hungry too,” Matt said. “Is it all right if I help myself?”

  “Sure! That’s what it’s there for,” Joe said. “Mom packed enough for an army. I could hardly lift the cooler to get it into the back.”

  “There’s the interchange ahead of us,” Frank said. “I-95 goes right into Philadelphia. According to Dad’s directions, we need to exit onto the Pennsylvania Turnpike, get off at the Hatboro exit, and then drive south a few miles to Willow Grove.” He looked at his watch. “We should get to the Zettarella’s house in time to go with Detective Zettarella to tonight’s performance of Aérocirque!”

  • • •

  Highway construction in New York and New Jersey and a fifteen-vehicle pileup with no serious injuries just before Frank reached the Pennsylvania Turnpike cut their scheduled arrival time closer than Frank would have liked, but Mr. Hardy’s precise directions made the difference. They arrived in front of the Zettarella’s house on Haverford Lane at 5:30.

  “Great job, Frank,” Matt said.

  “I’m hungry,” Chet said. “I wonder if we’re in time for dinner.”

  “I only ate half of this banana,” Tony said. He handed it to Chet. “I’ll pass,” Chet said, grimacing.

  Just then the front door opened, and a man who looked like a professional football player started toward their van.

  “I hope that’s Detective Zettarella,” Matt said. “If it’s not, we’re in trouble.”

  The man smiled and waved at them.

  Joe hopped out of the van. “Detective Zettarella?” he said.

  “In the flesh,” the man said, grabbing Joe’s hand and shaking it vigorously. “But you’re not going to spend the whole time you’re here calling me ‘Detective Zettarella.’ It’s Mario, okay?”

  Joe grinned. “Okay, Mario,” he said.

  Frank had come up behind Joe. He introduced himself and the rest of the boys.

  “Well, Gina, my wife, has fixed a quick meal for us,” Mario said, “so let’s go inside, because we really do need to leave by six.”

  Everyone followed Mario into the house.

  “Wow! That smells wonderful!” Chet said. “I’m starved.”

  “You ate most of the food from the cooler, Chet,” Matt said. “I’m amazed you have room for anything else.”

  “Oh, don’t worry, Matt,” Tony said. “Chet’s stomach is a bottomless pit.”

  “I hope Mrs. Zettarella didn’t go to a lot of trouble,” Frank said. “We could have just snacked at the circus.”

  “Trouble? Not at all,” Mario said. “Your father probably told you that we reared five boys, and even though they’ve been gone from home for several years, Gina still misses cooking for a big crowd. When I told her the five of you were coming to stay with us for a few days, she immediately went grocery shopping, and she’s been in the kitchen ever since. I haven’t seen her this happy in years!”

  Mario introduced everyone to Mrs. Zettarella, who gave them each a big hug and told them to call her Gina.

  After they had all washed up in the guest bathroom, Mario said, “Okay, boys, let’s dig in, and then we’ll head on over to the stadium.”

  Just then Mario’s cell phone rang. He identified himself, then, after a couple of minutes, said, “Well, that’s too bad. I thought it might lead us somewhere. Okay. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Anything wrong, dear?” Gina asked.

  “No, it’s just that high-rise robbery downtown,” Mario said. “We thought those marks on the railings of the balcony might lead somewhere, but it was a dead end.”

  Frank shot a questioning look at Joe.

  “I saw Aérocirque’s first Philadelphia performance last night,” Mario said, “and you all are in for an amazing treat.”

  “Matt saw them in New York, but it’ll be the first time for the rest of us,” Tony said. “We can hardly wait!”

  Frank was looking forward to the performance too, but the high-rise burglary suddenly seemed more interesting.

  3 The Mystery of the Missing Acrobats

  * * *

  Just then a horn sounded in front of the Zettarella’s house.

  “Our ride’s here, kids,” Mario said. “It’s two hours before the show starts, but I need to be at the stadium early to check out the security. It’ll also give me time to introduce you to some of the performers and to show you what goes on behind the scenes.”

  Gina popped open a plastic container of moist towelettes. “I’ll make hand-washing easy for you, boys,” she said with a smile.

  Chet gave her a big grin. “My mother would be proud of me,” he said as he took one of the towelettes and wiped his hands. “Thanks, Gina.”

  “Well, when our boys were at home they were constantly coming and going,” Gina said, “so I tried to make life as simple for them as possible.”

  “Some people might call it ‘spoiling,’ dear,” Mario said with a smile.

  “I don’t care what some people might call it, Mario,” Gina said, smiling. “A mother has the right to spoil her sons.” />
  “If you don’t watch it, boys, you’ll be forced to have breakfast in bed while you’re here!” Mario said. “When our boys were home, it was more like a hotel with room service than a house.”

  Gina winked at Frank and Joe. “Ask Mario how many times a week he gets breakfast in bed,” she said. “Then ask him how many times he’s refused it.”

  Frank noticed Mario blushing.

  “Oh, okay, I give up,” Mario said. The horn outside honked again. “We have to go. Bill’s going to wonder what’s taking us so long.” He kissed Gina. “You win, dear. We’ll see you after Aérocirque.”

  “Have fun, but be careful, boys,” Gina said. “When I think about all those helicopters flying around that stadium, I get very nervous.”

  “We’ll be careful,” Frank assured her.

  Mario led the way out of the house.

  A white van was parked in front. On the side it read PHILADELPHIA POLICE—SPECIAL FORCES.

  “Wow! Some wheels!” Joe said. “I wish our van looked like that.”

  Frank nodded.

  Mario got in the front seat beside the driver, and the rest of them climbed into the back. Mario quickly introduced Bill, the driver.

  “Are we going to have a problem here?” Bill asked.

  Joe thought he sounded really irritated. He looked at Frank and raised an eyebrow.

  Frank gave him an almost imperceptible nod. That’s a strange question, he thought.

  Mario shook his head. “No,” he said. “Why?”

  Without responding, Bill pulled away from the curb and headed out of the neighborhood.

  When they reached Highway 263, Bill turned the van north.

  “Aérocirque is performing in a brand new stadium just north of Warminster. It was built for several high schools in the area,” Mario said. “It’s not very far from here.”

  On the way, Mario talked about how hard it was to get tickets to see Aérocirque. “They’re going for two hundred dollars apiece,” he said. “Almost everyone in the metropolitan Philadelphia area wants to see it, but unfortunately only people with lots of money can get the tickets now.”

  “That doesn’t seem fair,” Joe said.

  “Why not?” Bill said, finally breaking his silence. “It’s all about making money.”

  What’s this guy’s problem? Joe thought.

  “It wouldn’t surprise me if tickets were going for a thousand dollars a pop by the time Aérocirque reaches Los Angeles,” Mario said, looking at Bill. “That’s the last city on their tour. You could never pay that kind of money on a cop’s salary. It makes me bitter sometimes.”

  Joe looked over at Frank. He could tell that his brother was also surprised at how much anger they were seeing from Bill, and now Mario, too. It was making him really uncomfortable.

  “I wish I could think up something to make that kind of money,” Chet said.

  “You and me both,” Bill said.

  Frank noticed he glanced at Mario before he said it.

  “Mario, I don’t mean to pry, but right before we left you mentioned something about a burglary in a high-rise apartment building in downtown Philadelphia,” Frank said. “We were talking to a friend of ours at school on Friday, and she was telling us about a high-rise apartment burglary in Manhattan last week. The New York police are stumped too.”

  Mario looked at him. “Really? Well, I guess the same kinds of crimes happen in big cities,” he said. “These crooks got in through the French doors on the balcony.”

  “That’s what happened in Manhattan, too,” Joe said. “The police found some scratches on the railing around the balcony that they couldn’t explain.”

  “Now, that’s strange,” Mario said. “We found some scratches we couldn’t explain either.”

  “Mario, I don’t think it’s a good idea to . . .” Bill started to say, but Mario waved him off.

  “Sounds to me like some kind of gang is making its way around the country,” Matt said.

  “Have you checked the police reports in other cities to see if they’ve had similar robberies?” Frank asked.

  “No, we haven’t yet, although that’s something we usually do if we can’t find any clues on our own. Since we’re just barely at the beginning of our own investigation, nobody has gotten around to that yet,” Mario said. “It sounds to me that these two crimes are similar enough that it might be a good idea to go ahead and do it.”

  “That must be the stadium up ahead,” Tony said. “I see some really bright lights.”

  “It is,” Bill said. “We’ll be there shortly.”

  Just then Joe heard a loud whirling noise over the van, and within a few seconds two black helicopters flew into view.

  “Wow! For a minute, I thought they were going to land on top of us,” Chet said. “They look like a couple of birds fighting over their territory.”

  “That’s one of the things they do in the show,” Matt said. “Once or twice when I was watching, I was just sure they were going to hit each other.”

  “I think we’re in for a thrilling night,” Joe said. “This is going to beat any action movie I’ve seen lately!”

  “I agree,” Frank said.

  Bill drove into the stadium parking lot and pulled the police van into a reserved spot.

  “There’s another practice field on the other side of the stadium. You can’t see it from here, because it’s hidden behind the press box, but that’s where the acrobats work on last-minute details before the performances,” Mario said. “I need to make sure everything’s all right. I thought you’d like a look at what goes on behind the scenes. How about it?”

  Everyone agreed that was a great idea.

  Several more helicopters began whirling above them as they made their way around the stadium.

  “You can feel the excitement in the air, can’t you?” Matt said. “I’m glad we got to come to this.”

  “I’m glad you suggested it,” Joe said. When they reached the practice field, Frank saw two of the black helicopters hovering just a few feet above the ground. A wire was stretched between them, and two acrobats were walking the wire toward each other.

  “What are they going to do when they meet?” Joe asked.

  “Watch,” Matt told him.

  As the two acrobats continued walking toward each other, the helicopters began to rise slowly. One acrobat appeared unsteady for a minute, but he finally regained his poise and continued along the wire.

  When the acrobats finally reached each other, one slowly squatted on the wire. The helicopters were now at almost the same height as the top of the press box. The acrobat who was still standing suddenly jumped over the squatting acrobat and landed smoothly on the other side. The squatting acrobat stood up and continued toward the other helicopter.

  When the acrobats reached the opposite helicopters, they untied the wire, let it fall to the ground, got into the passenger seat, and the helicopters flew away.

  Frank let out his breath. “Wow!” he said. “I can hardly wait to see that again!”

  “Me too!” Joe said.

  “That’s just the beginning,” Matt said. “It gets even better!”

  “Matt’s right,” Mario said. “These acrobats have nerves of steel.”

  With Mario in the lead and Frank and Joe right behind him, they all started toward a big tent in one corner of the practice field. It took them about ten minutes to get there.

  A couple of police officers were standing at the entrance.

  “Everything okay?” Mario asked them.

  “Yes, sir,” one of the officers said.

  Mario introduced the Hardy boys and their friends to the two men. “I’m going to give the boys a behind-the-scenes tour,” he said. He looked at his watch. “I’ll check out the security in the stadium on the way to our seats.”

  Both police officers nodded.

  Once inside the tent, Frank saw that it had been sectioned off, with acrobats in different-colored costumes practicing their routines on trapezes
hanging from scaffolding or on wires just a few feet above the ground.

  “Aérocirque has different teams which perform different acts,” Mario said. “Over there, you have the trapeze artists, who fly from trapeze to trapeze under hovering helicopters.”

  “I didn’t get to see those in New York,” Matt said. “I hope they perform tonight.”

  “On the other side of them, you have some more aerialists, like the ones you saw earlier,” Mario said, “but these guys have to be steady enough to catch other trapeze acrobats who fly through the air and land on their shoulders.”

  Joe looked at Mario. “Are you serious?” he said. “It sounds like they defy gravity.”

  Mario nodded. “You have to see it to believe it, Joe,” he said.

  “This tent is closed to spectators! Get out!”

  Frank turned at the sound of an angry and accented voice. A man in tight-fitting green spandex was watching them, hands on hips.

  “It’s all right,” Mario said. He showed the man his badge. “I’m Detective Zettarella. I’m in charge of security.”

  “We need water. We need lots of cold water,” the man said, ignoring Mario’s badge. “You and your boys need to get us some cold water now.”

  Mario gave the acrobat a hard look. “You have us mixed up with the caterers,” he said. He looked around. “Why don’t you ask that young lady over there, the one in red? She can help you.”

  “You go ask her!” the acrobat screamed. “I am an artist, and I don’t have time to waste arguing with you.”

  Frank could tell that Mario was about to explode, so he stepped in. “I’ll go,” he said. “I could use a cold drink myself. Where do you want the water sent?”

  Now the acrobat had a smirk on his face. “Over there!” he said. He pointed to a far corner of the tent, where other acrobats dressed the same way he was were lining up to leave the area. “Hurry!” With that, he turned and ran to rejoin his troupe.

  “How arrogant!” Joe muttered. “Who does he think he is, anyway?” He turned to Frank. “Why did you agree to do that? He treated you like his personal servant.”