Fright Wave

Fright Wave Read Free

Book: Fright Wave Read Free
Author: Franklin W. Dixon
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get going!" Joe insisted.
    ***
    A few minutes later Jade and the Hardys were sitting in an old army surplus, camouflage green jeep. Jade was driving, and Joe sat next to her. Frank had to share the backseat with a surfboard. The sun beat down on their heads. If the jeep had ever had a convertible top, it was long gone.
    "What do you do if it rains?" Frank asked.
    Jade shrugged. "I get wet."
    The wind whipped through her hair as they rumbled down the road, and Joe realized he was staring at her.
    He tried to think of something to say - again. He frowned slightly and cleared his throat. "There's something I need to know," he began.
    Her green eyes sparkled. "Just ask," she responded.
    "If this is Oahu - Where's Hawaii?"
    "Hawaii is the name of the state - and the biggest island in the chain," Jade explained. "But most of the population lives here on Oahu."
    Joe noticed that they were headed inland, toward the lush, green mountains that shot up behind the city of Honolulu and hemmed it in. "You know," he said, "I have no idea where we are or where we're going. How about you, Frank?"
    "Haven't a clue," Frank admitted.
    "We're on the Pali Highway," Jade said. "It goes over the Koolau Mountains to Kailua on the other side of the island."
    "You seem to know the island pretty well," Frank observed. "Have you lived here all your life?"
    "Just about," she replied. "My father and I moved here when I was only two."
    "Just the two of you?" Frank prodded.
    Joe saw a troubled look pass over Jade's face. He put his hand on her shoulder. "Don't pay any attention to him," he told her. "He collects information like other guys collect comic books. He'll keep asking questions as long as you keep answering."
    "It's all right," Jade replied. "I don't mind talking about it. We moved here from California right after my mother died." She paused for a moment. "I'm not sure how she died, and I don't know why we ended up in Hawaii.
    "Not that I'm complaining," she continued, her smile slowly returning. "Not too many folks get to grow up in paradise!"
    They had been moving steadily higher into the mountains. Jade pulled off onto an access road that didn't go very far before it dead-ended in a small parking lot.
    "End of the line!" Jade shouted, bringing the jeep to an abrupt stop and jumping out.
    Frank and Joe were right behind her. Frank stopped to look around. To the east and west rose the Koolaus, completely covered in a carpet of green growth. To the north and south blue ocean could be seen beyond the green.
    Frank turned to say something to Joe but saw that his brother had followed Jade to a concrete platform. It was very out of place right there and more than a little ugly. Something obviously seemed to be holding their interest, and Frank jogged over to see what had captured their attention.
    As he came up next to Joe, he said, "So what's the big - " He stopped in midsentence, sucked in his breath, and whispered, "Oh."
    They were standing at the edge of a cliff that plunged almost a thousand feet straight down. The sheer side of the cliff was completely covered in green. Frank strained to make out the bottom.
    "This is Nuuanu Pali," Jade said loudly. She had to raise her voice because of the wind gusting around them. "Pali is the Hawaiian word for 'cliff.' We're standing above the Nuuanu valley. Down there" - she gestured - "is Honolulu. And over there" - she pointed in the opposite direction - "is Kailua, on the other side of the island."
    "Nice view," Joe shouted over the roar of the wind. "Maybe we should come back on a nice, calm day, though."
    Jade laughed. "The trade winds rip through here from the Kailua side almost constantly, trying to find a way through the mountains."
    "I think I can see Waikiki Beach," Frank ventured, "and the hotel where we're staying."
    "Yeah, and this wind is probably strong enough to carry you all the way back there," Joe observed. "If you get a good running jump and then flap your arms real hard ..."
    Frank took

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