Ship of Secrets Read Free

pointing to the briefcase. “There’s no lock on it. Did you write that down?”

    “Fenton, you’re supposed to be on vacation,” Mrs. Hardy whispered. “No work, remember?” Mr. Hardy just smiled and shrugged.
    The cruise director and the security guards left, and Ricardo went back onstage and told a few jokes to make the audience laugh. Within minutes it seemed everyone had forgotten about the watch. Everyone except Sir Reginald and Mrs. Heartpence.
    “What are we going to do?” Mrs. Heartpence asked. “That watch has been in the family for years. And if we don’t auction it—”
    “Shhh,” Sir Reginald said, holding up his hand. Whatever she’d been about to say, he didn’t want her to mention it in front of everyone.
    “It’s okay, Dad,” their son said. Their daughter had pulled her hair in front of her face. She looked embarrassed that her parents were still yelling about the pocket watch.
    Mr. Hardy and the boys stepped forward. “Did you see anyone suspicious?” Joe asked, looking around at the nearby tables.
    Sir Reginald shook his head. “No one that I can remember.”
    “I’m sure they’ll be able to help you tomorrow,” Mrs. Hardy said, looking at the couple. “Whoever took it couldn’t have gone far.” She shot Mr. Hardy a look that said, Let’s leave this up to someone else.
    But just then Mrs. Heartpence’s eyes filled with tears. “I know I shouldn’t say this, but I’m sorry, Reg. We need to find that watch. If we don’t—” Her bottom lip trembled. She started to cry.
    “What is it?” Mrs. Hardy asked. She held the woman’s hand. Frank and Joe could tell their mother felt bad for her. Mrs. Heartpence seemed like she really did need their help.
    “That watch belonged to Reg’s great-grandfather,then his grandfather, then his father, and now us. And we need to auction it to help pay for our house . . . and Melinda’s and Andrew’s education. If we don’t get it back, we’ll be in serious trouble.” At that, a few more tears fell down her cheeks.
    Sir Reginald looked crushed. Frank and Joe knew then that it wasn’t a question: They had to help the Heartpences find the watch. If they couldn’t solve the case before the boat docked in the harbor on Monday morning, the watch might be gone forever.
    “Please, Mom?” Frank whispered. “Can’t we help them?”
    Mrs. Hardy nodded, knowing it was the right thing to do.
    Mr. Hardy offered Sir Reginald his hand to shake. “I’m Fenton Hardy, and I’m a private detective. These are my boys, Joe and Frank. We’ll get working right away.”
    Sir Reginald looked at Joe and Frank, then at their dad. For the first time since the watch had gone missing, he smiled. “You’d do that for me?”
    “Sure, we would,” Frank said. “You just need to tell us where to start.”



4
The Six Ws
    M r. Hardy looked around the giant ballroom. There was a security camera hanging in one corner. “See that? We might be able to find some clues on there,” he said. “I’ll go check with the ship’s security people. Frank and Joe—you know what to do.” He passed the boys his notebook and pen.
    As his father headed out of the ballroom, Frank flipped to a clean page. Their father had taught them to start every case by listing the six W s: Who, What,When, Where, Why, and How. They called this list the six W s, even though “How” didn’t begin with the letter W . The What was the easiest part. Antique pocket watch , Frank wrote across the top of the paper.

    “What exactly does the watch look like?” Joe asked. He knew it was good to have a very detailed description. That way they could tell the watch from any other one they might find.
    “It’s gold. There’s a chain, and on the back the name ‘Heartpence’ is written in script,” Mrs. Heartpence said.
    Frank wrote down everything she said. “And when was the last time you saw it? Is there a reason you brought it to dinner tonight?”
    “I told him not to,” Mrs.