The Case of the Psychic's Vision by Franklin W. Dixon Page B

dinner, Aunt Gertrude complained about how hard Fenton was working, that he was away from home too much, that he should spend more time in the yard, and that he had promised to fix the window in her bedroom, and he still hadn’t done that.
    Finally, Frank and Joe had a chance to excuse themselves and go to their room. Joe finished uphis homework, and Frank searched the Internet for information for a project in one of his classes.
    Joe looked at his watch. “It’s six-thirty, Frank. If we’re going to follow Melanie tonight, we’d better leave. She’s probably finishing dinner about now.”
    Frank shut down the computer, and Joe shouted to Mrs. Hardy that they were going out for a while.
    Melanie Johnson lived in a part of Bayport that had million-dollar homes. It also had several busy streets that crisscrossed the area, so the Hardys knew they wouldn’t be stopped—if they didn’t act too suspicious.
    When they got to Melanie’s house, they found several cars parked along the curb in front.
    â€œShe may be having a party,” Joe said. “She may not be going anywhere tonight.”
    Frank pulled the van in behind an SUV and turned off the engine and the headlights.
    â€œOr some of her friends could have met here, with plans to go somewhere else, all in one car,” Frank said.
    â€œLet’s hope,” Joe said.
    After a few minutes, several girls came out of a gate that led to the back of the Johnsons’ house. They were laughing about something as they headed down the driveway toward one of the vehicles parked in front.
    â€œDuck!” Frank said to Joe.
    The boys ducked just in time. The vehicle thegirls all piled into was the SUV that was parked in front of the van. Frank hoped he hadn’t parked so close that the driver couldn’t get out.
    The girls must have rolled down the windows of the SUV, because Frank and Joe heard someone mention Colin’s name, which was followed by hysterical laughter.
    Whoever was driving ended up bumping the front fender of the van, but Frank didn’t think it was enough to cause any damage, so he decided not to get out and examine it. He knew he would have a lot of explaining to do.
    The SUV headed down the street at a relatively fast pace. Frank started the van and pulled out after it.
    â€œI think we can stay pretty close to them,” Frank said. “Being tailed is the last thing they’ll be thinking about.”
    Joe laughed.
    The traffic was relatively light, and the SUV had big taillights, so it was easy to keep the girls in sight.
    â€œI wonder where we’re going,” Joe said.
    â€œWho knows?” Frank said.
    They didn’t have to wait long for an answer. The SUV pulled into the parking lot of a multiplex theater. All of the girls piled out and headed up to the box office.
    â€œI hope it’s something I want to see,” Frank said.
    â€œIf it’s a romance, I may just stay in the lobby and eat popcorn,” Joe said.
    â€œI don’t think so. We need to sit as close to them as possible and listen to what they say,” Frank said. “You can ignore what’s on the screen.”
    As it turned out, the movie Melanie and her friends bought tickets for was a comedy that both the Hardy boys had been wanting to see.
    â€œEven if we don’t find out anything tonight,” Joe said, “it won’t be a total waste of time.”
    Frank bought their tickets. He and Joe held back from going into the theater while Melanie and her friends nearly bought out the concession stand and went into the theater.
    The movie was scheduled to start in a couple of minutes. Frank suggested they wait to enter until the movie started, so it would be dark.
    â€œUh-oh,” Joe whispered. “There’s Chief Collig and his wife.” Ezra Collig was the chief of the Bayport Police Department and a friend of the Hardys. “If he sees us, he’ll want to know if