Free The Prime-Time Crime by Franklin W. Dixon Page A

Whalen called after them. “And I don’t want you around WBPT either. I’ll call the police if I see you again. Don’t forget that.”
    â€œWe won’t,” Joe said.
    Half walking, half running, the four teenagers rushed back to the van and climbed inside.
    â€œI don’t believe this,” Frank said once they were safely in the van. “You two clowns almost got us shot back there just because you have some sort of crazy idea that Ted Whalen is guilty.”
    â€œWell, I still think he’s guilty,” Debbie said. “And I really did have lots more questions to ask.”
    â€œI thought you Hardys were supposed to be really brave,” Steve said. “I figured facing a gun would be nothing to guys like you.”
    â€œWe’ll face down guns if there’s a reason to,” Joe snapped. “But we have no real reason to suspect Whalen.”
    Frank revved up the van and started driving away from Whalen’s mansion. “Where’s your evidence that proves Whalen had something to do with Clarence’s disappearance?” he asked.
    â€œWhalen’s conceited and I don’t like him,” said Steve. “Isn’t that enough?”
    â€œNo,” Joe said. “If being conceited were a crime, then the jails would have been full a long time ago.”
    â€œOkay, everybody,” Frank said. “Let’s call a truce. At least until we get back to the TV station.”
    The foursome remained quiet during the drive back to WBPT. Frank swung into the lot and parked the van in a distant corner, where he hoped that Ted Whalen wouldn’t notice it. As soon as they were out of the van, Debbie and Steve headed toward the building.
    â€œYou two stay out of trouble,” Frank warned. “We don’t want to have to bail you out again if Ted Whalen goes after you.”
    Back inside the WBPT building, the Hardys found Marcy Simons pacing angrily around her office, muttering something about Matt Freeman.
    â€œMore problems?” Joe asked. “I hope Matt Freeman hasn’t disappeared, too.”
    â€œNo,” Marcy said, settling down behind her desk. “Just business problems this time. Mart’s asking for double his normal salary to do both ‘Faces and Places’ and ‘The Four O’Clock Scholar.’ I suppose he deserves it; doing two shows is a lot of work. But I hate the idea of bringing it up to Ted Whalen.”
    â€œI gather Ted likes making money a lot more than passing it out,” Frank said.
    â€œYou bet,” Marcy replied. “Ted sees Clarence’s disappearance as an ideal opportunity to cut costs. By having Matt do both jobs, Ted gets two hosts for the price of one.”
    â€œExcept Matt doesn’t see it that way,” Joe said.
    â€œRight,” Marcy said.
    â€œDo you think he’ll get the raise?” Frank asked.
    â€œProbably,” Marcy replied, “but there’ll be a lot of flak. Good talent is hard to find, and it would cost us a bundle just to locate a replacement for Clarence. So even at twice the salary, Matt’s still a bargain. Don’t tell him I said that, though.”
    â€œWe won’t,” Joe assured her.
    â€œWorst of all, the end result of all of this will probably be that Ted will cancel ‘The Four O’Clock Scholar.’ Anyway, that’s really not your problem,” Marcy said. “How’s the search for Clarence coming along?”
    â€œNot too well,” Frank said. “We’ve got some questions for you, though. Are those big guys that Whalen keeps around him really bodyguards?”
    Marcy laughed. “They do look frightening, don’t they? Yes, Ted hired them a few weeks ago. There’ve been lots of nasty phone calls since we started airing that series on organized crime, and Ted got nervous. I don’t think anything’s going to come of it, though. Neither do the police. Anyway, the