Disclaimer: Didn't you read the other chapters? I don't own them…
A/N: I have this up the same day as Chapter 6! I was just so excited about this chapter (it has some of the best moments-- well, I think….)!
Enjoy!
Half an hour later, Nancy, the Hardy's, and a pajama clad Bess arrived at 440 Harvest Crest.
Police cars lined the street, illuminated by the moon, full and bright, with dark clouds snaking over it like wisps of smoke.
A chill wafted around the bungalow.
Rubbing her hands together, Nancy walked towards the open door. Frank followed, with Joe slightly behind, as he and Bess were supporting each other as they walked with their eyes half closed.
Frank caught up with Nancy, and they went through the door together.
Nancy looked around, trying to spot either Officer Stevens or Officer Jacobson.
"Nancy!" She heard a voice from behind. She turned to find Hal walking towards her with a grim expression.
"Hal, what happened?" Nancy asked.
"Well, we got report about an hour ago that there was a murder, here. Chief told me to call you…" Hal said, trailing off as the Chief himself walked up.
"Nancy! Wonderful, now we can start!" Chief Todd said in his booming voice.
"Start…?" Frank said.
"Now, Nancy. Who's this? Was he at your place when Hal called?" The Chief said with a wink.
Nancy's eyes widened and she felt her cheeks grow warm, despite the chilly atmosphere.
Behind her, Frank was giving off a similar reaction.
"No! Well, yes, but he and his brother are here visiting. This Frank Hardy and the blond snoring over there is Joe. I also brought my friend Bess," Nancy explained.
"I don't know how I feel about bringing to innocent people into the case, Nancy…" Todd said, running a hand through his black hair.
"Oh, no, Chief. Frank and Joe are detectives, too. We solved many cases together when we were younger," Nancy said, and Frank nodded.
"Oh, well… alright," the Chief said, not looking very convinced.
"Hi," Frank said, stepping up to shake the Chief's hand. "I'm Fenton Hardy's son, Frank." The Chief looked confused.
"Fenton Hardy? Never heard of him," Todd said.
Frank stared, amazed.
"What's wrong?" Nancy asked.
"That's not the reaction I usually get," Frank said. "Usually, everyone knows Dad."
"Well, the Chief can be a little, um, 'confused' at times," Nancy said, gesturing towards Todd, who was shaking awake Joe.
"Now I say, are you Fenton Hardy's son? You look just like him!" the Chief asked.
Joe mumbled something incoherent, and nodded his head.
Nancy stifled a laugh at Frank's expression.
"What? Joe looks NOTHING like Dad!" Frank sputtered.
Nancy patted his shoulder.
"Let it go," she said, shaking her head.
"So, Nancy. I assume you know that I didn't come here just for a chat," the Chief started, looking serious.
"Chief?" Nancy interrupted gently. "This isn't my apartment."
"Oh, what? Ah, right," the Chief said, looking truly baffled. "Well, it is very late."
"You mean early," Frank corrected.
"Don't sass me, boy!" the Chief snapped. Frank took a step back out of surprise.
"You were saying, Todd?" Nancy prodded.
"Oh, yes. Well, it seems Molly Smith has been murdered. Same way as before, stab to the chest, picture stapled to forehead. It was reported by her long-time boyfriend Jeff Masters," the Chief said, pointing out the horror-stricken young man sitting beside Joe.
"Where is she?" Frank asked.
"Bedroom," the Chief replied, pointing down the hall.
Nancy and Frank exchanged glances before following the Chief's finger.
Lying on top of the bed was a young girl. Her white t-shirt was stained, and her long, waist length red-hair was fanning out around her face.
Nancy's breath caught in her throat. Looking at the bloody picture stapled to Molly's forehead, she saw that Joe was right. The picture had been taken from the opposite direction. She was just too preoccupied last night to notice it.
"It's a shame," came a voice from behind Nancy and Frank. Both of them turned.
Hal was standing there, shaking his head.
"I know," Nancy murmured. Frank nodded in agreement.
Suddenly, Joe's head popped into the doorway.
"Nance? Frank? I need to talk to you guys for a minute," he said before disappearing through the door again.
Nancy and Frank excused themselves and proceeded outside to where Joe and Bess were standing.
"What's up?" Nancy asked.
"I have no idea," Bess said, shaking her head tiredly. Her long blond hair spilled out in waves over a navy blue vest that was covering a similar colored long sleeved shirt. Her legs were covered by silver and blue plaid pajama bottoms. She had her arms crossed, and she was shaking slightly.
Joe was wearing a similar outfit, pajama pants and a hooded-sweatshirt, but he didn't seem cold at all. In fact, his face looked almost red.
"It's that Jeff guy. You know, the dead girl's boyfriend," Joe started.
"Joe! Don't call her that!" Frank scolded.
"Whatever! Well, after you two left, I heard him talking on his cell-phone. He was talking to somebody, telling them he was working late. I mean, come on. Working late? It's three in the morning, who works that late?" Joe said in a huff.
"Is that why you dragged us out here? Seriously?" Nancy asked angrily.
"No! Well, I guess they called him on that, since he said, 'OK, OK! I'm at Molly's place. Yeah, well I guess that's taken care of. Yes, I'll be there tomorrow. I know! 440 Peach Street. Uh-huh, 8 o'clock, I'll be there,' and then he hung up," Joe finished, taking in a deep breath.
"Really? Are you sure that's what he said?" Bess asked in surprise.
"Positive. I think we should go tomorrow. To 440 Peach, I mean," he said.
"I agree," said Nancy. Frank and Bess both nodded their agreement as well.
"Except, there's one thing. Right when he hung up, Bess came up and he saw us. We can't go, or he'll recognize us and get suspicious," Joe said.
"So what? It's just me and Frank?" Nancy asked.
"Looks like it," Joe said with a grimace. When Nancy turned away, he shot his brother a wink, which Frank decided to ignore.
"Well, I guess we should get some sleep before then," Nancy said, leading the way towards the car, with Frank right behind her.
As soon as she was sure they were out of earshot, Bess smacked Joe's arm.
"You fiend! He didn't see us! I came up right after he walked away!" Bess accused.
"Well, maybe I stretched the truth a teensy-bit!" Joe grinned. Bess smiled, too and the two walked arm-in-arm towards the car.
They grinned until they saw Nancy and Frank's faces.
Nancy pointed to the steering wheel. Pined there was a note that read:
More to come!
But that wasn't what was so frightening.
It was the fact all the seats were drenched in blood.
Joe groaned as Bess clamped a hand over her mouth.
"Chief…?" He yelled out, walking back in the direction of the house.
--
It was close to five o'clock in the morning when the police car finally drove them back to Nancy and Bess' apartment. The group walked tiredly up the stairs (the elevator was broken) and barely made it into the apartment.
"Ugh, I'm so tired I think I'm going to dream of sleeping!" Bess grumbled.
"I know what you mean," Nancy said, plopping down on the couch.
They all made their ways towards their bedrooms. Frank paused at the doorway to the pink room. He walked back to living room/kitchen. Nancy was still spread out on the couch.
"Nance? Aren't you going to bed?" Frank asked.
Nancy sat up and shook her head, "I need to think for a little bit."
"And you can't think in your own room?" Frank smiled.
"Well, I can. It's just, um; I don't think my legs will make it!" Nancy answered honestly.
Frank laughed and walked over. He scooped Nancy up in his arms and started to carry her towards her room.
"Oh, you see? This is very useful!" Nancy yawned. Frank laughed quietly and put her down on her bed gently.
"Thank you," Nancy whispered, turning over to go to sleep.
"Anytime," Frank said gently, backing out of her room.
Before the door even closed, she was already fast asleep.
--
The next night, at 7:30 sharp, Nancy and Frank sat in her car outside 440 Peach Street. It was a large building, without many windows. It was brightly lit, but there was no sign.
A large man with a clipboard stood outside the door.
"OK, Frank, Nancy. Attach these microphones somewhere so that Bess and I'll be able to here you," Joe said, handing over to tiny microphones and earpieces.
"Joe, when did you finds the time to get all this?" Nancy asked.
"I packed it," Joe said with a shrug. Frank rolled his eyes.
"Oh! Oh, guys! Isn't that him?" Bess said, pointing her finger towards the direction of the building. They turned to look.
Indeed it was. Jeff Masters was there, talking to the bouncer (?) , who let him in right away.
"I guess that's our cue," Frank said, taking a deep breath and getting out of the car.
Nancy followed, touching her ear. Joe was saying something to Bess, into the microphone by accident.
"Joe! We can hear you!" Frank whispered harshly.
"Oops, sorry," Joe said back.
They approached slowly.
"Sorry, guys. It's married couples only tonight," the bouncer grumbled.
Nancy's mind boggled. If it was married couples only, then how did Jeff get in?
Frank felt disappointment cross his face. He was about to turn away when he heard Nancy begin to speak.
"What makes you think that we're not married?" She asked sweetly, shoving her hands in her pockets.
"Show me proof," the bouncer said, glancing in the direction on Nancy's hands.
Nancy gave a radiant smile before withdrawing her left hand from her pocket, the ring finger adorned with a sparking wedding band.
Frank's eyes widened at the ring. It was the wedding ring Nancy had worn when they were undercover in Egypt!
The bouncer leaned in to study the ring more carefully.
Frank glanced at Nancy face. He could see nervousness in her eyes as the bouncer examined her hand.
"I still don't buy it," the bouncer grumbled. "You two don't look like you're a couple."
Frank's face visibly fell. Nancy's face clouded in disappointment.
"If you two are really married, prove it. Let's see ya kiss," the bouncer smirked.
Nancy gave Frank a nervous side-long glance. She was surprised to see Frank looking confident.
"You don't mind, do ya?" The bouncer grinned.
"Why would I mind? You're just giving me an excuse to kiss the love of my life," Frank smiled, only partially acting.
Nancy was sure her face registered shock, but apparently the bouncer didn't notice.
Taking a deep breath, Nancy turned to face Frank.
"Frank? Nancy, what did he say? Are you in?" Both of them could hear Joe's voice through the earpiece, but neither really acknowledged it.
Slowly, both sleuths leaned in.
Nancy saw it coming, but she was still shocked at the feeling of Frank's soft lips on hers.
Both of them felt sparks and emotion like never before. They deepened the kiss, really getting into it.
The bouncer's gruff voice cut through the moment.
"Yeah, yeah. I get it. Now get in the room or go find your own," he said, pulling aside the red cord.
They both pulled apart, blushing.
"Ah-hem. Was that interference on the line, or were you two just sucking faces?" Joe asked through the device.
Neither one bothered to answer as they entered the club.
--
As soon as they stepped inside the brightly lit room, they could tell that it wasn't at all shady.
Couples sat in bean-bag chairs that were arranged in a circle. Nancy and Frank took two that were the closest to the door.
Nancy scanned the room, immediately finding Jeff. He was seated in a chair next to a blonde woman, who was sitting with her hands crossed in her lap.
"OK, everyone!" Said a loud, high pitch voice. Nancy and Frank could hear Joe snickering.
"Are you on a game show?" He laughed. They didn't answer.
"Well, everyone, welcome to marriage counseling!" Said a large man sitting in a real chair. His voice was very high pitch, sending Joe and Bess on a laughing riot.
"Now before we start, you all need to know, that just because you are in marriage counseling, doesn't mean you don't love each other any more. It just means you've hit a bump on the road of your marriage. But by the end of tonight, I promise that you'll be over the bump, and riding into the sunset!" The man exclaimed flinging his arms out.
Joe and Bess, who had calmed down, were sent back into their laughing fit.
"Now, I'm Jules and I'll be your driver through-out this journey!" said the large man. "OK, starting over here, what's your name and what your problem?" Jules pointed towards the blonde woman the Jeff was with.
"Oh, hi. I'm Anna. This is my husband Jeff," she paused when the group said hi to them.
"Oh, yes, hi. Well, I thought our marriage was just fine, until I found out that Jeff here had a girlfriend on the side," she finished angrily, crossing her arms.
Frank reached up to scratch his nose, effectively covering his mouth.
"Joe? Did you hear that?" He whispered.
"Yep," said Joe's voice.
The group continued to go around the circle, until it reached Nancy.
"Oh, me?" She asked nervously. Jules nodded encouragingly. "Well, hi. My name's Valerie, but you can call me Val. This is my husband, uh, John. We've been married for three months…"
"What? Three months and you're already having problems?" Asked a large man named Ryan.
"Well, no. You see, our marriage life coach said it would be good for our marriage if we went to a counseling to find out other people's problems, and work through them before we actually have a problem like that," Nancy finished enthusiastically, adding a soft southern drawl to her voice.
Frank stared in awe. She had thought of that cover story in less than five seconds!
"I'm sorry, but did you say 'marriage life coach'? Asked Ryan's wife, Bev.
Frank nodded. "He's very exclusive. And he thought of this program himself! Everyone who's tried it had a successful marriage!" The group thought about it, but nodded, finding it probable.
Frank sighed in relief. He could hear Joe laughing over the ear piece, but ignored it again. It was going to be a long night.
--
People began to trickle out of 440 Peach, but most of them stopped to talk to Frank and Nancy.
"Don't worry, dear. It's going to get worse eventually," one lady told Nancy, patting her on the shoulder.
"…and don't let her say no! If you want it, just go for it!" Said a scrawny man with a ponytail to Frank. Frank shot Nancy a pleading look.
Nancy walked over.
"Come on, Johnny-bear. If we don't get home soon, we'll oversleep, and miss the sunrise!" Nancy said, whining slightly.
Frank looked at the man and shrugged, letting Nancy lead him away.
As soon as they were out of earshot, they both burst in laughter. The whole thing was hilarious!
When they saw them approach, Bess and Joe got out of the car.
"He has a wife?!" Bess said loudly.
"Apparently, and that wife, she would have good motive for killing, no?" Joe asked.
"It's plausible," Nancy said. "Killing her husband's girlfriend out of jealousy? Yeah, that makes sense, but what about Heather?"
"I don't know, practice?" Joe said. Bess grimaced.
"Well, let's think about it at home, I don't want to discuss it on an open street," Frank said, walking towards the car door.
"Right-y-o, Johnny-bear," Bess said, climbing in the back. Frank flushed.
"So, Nance--," Joe started.
"Ah-ah, Val," Nancy said jokingly. Suddenly, Joe looked away, not even bothering to finish his sentence. Frank saw the look and recognized it immediately.
He leaned over to where Nancy was, behind the wheel.
"Uh, Nance? Right before Joe's girlfriend Iola died, Joe was flirting with a girl named Val, and Iola noticed. He never had a chance to apologize. I don't think he's ever forgiven himself about that," he explained quietly so that he wouldn't hear.
Nancy gasped, her eyes filling with tears.
As soon as they arrived back, Nancy jumped out of the car, and ran around the car to hug Joe.
"Joe! I'm so sorry! I didn't know, if I did, I never would have said it!" She whispered.
"It's OK, Nance. How would you know?" He said, hugging back.
Nancy pulled back, smiling at him weakly.
They walked side-by-side up to Nancy's door.
She was about to open it, when she heard a thump.
Someone was inside!
A/N: Yeah, Chief Todd has lost a couple marbles... if you catch my drift...
And OK, maybe Jules did, too...
8)
Reviews?
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