AUTHOR'S NOTE: I know that this chapter is a lot shorter than the previous ones and i want to apologize to a certain individual (you know who you are;)...) in advance. Sorry, man, I know it's short but I had to! It wouldn't work any other way!! On a more general note: Please, please, PLEASE!! Read and review. I appreciate it.

Chapter 11

Nancy pulled her phone out of her pocket as she exited the police station and hit speed dial 5.

"Yo," George answered on the other line.

"You at home?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, why? What are you up to?"

"Just came from the police station again."

"Caught you whoring again, huh?" George remarked casually.

"Shut up," Nancy retorted with a laugh. "How was dinner last night?"

"Awkward," George responded. "It was a whole lot of me and my dad saying nothing in an attempt not to blow up and tell everyone off, a whole lot of my brother making fun of the things my mom says, and a whole lot of my mother alternating violently between wholesome, stereotypical, 50's-style family conversations with herself, and blind rage and frustration because no one else will participate in her discussions of unimportant crap."

Nancy laughed again. "You want to make a little trip up to Ridgefield?"

"What for?"

"The short answer is that it has to do with Edgar Nixon."

"I'm in. What about Edgar Nixon?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you on the way up."

"Fine," George pouted. "Why don't we go in my Jeep? It's got snow tires and it's safer than the Porsche. Weather Channel said it was snowing up by there. You going to tell Bess?"

"Yeah."

"Tell her not to be a pussy," the brunette said and hung up.

Nancy scoffed at the cousin rivalry and held down speed dial 6. Bess picked up much more civilly.

"Hi Nance," she chirped.

"Want to go to Ridgefield?"

"Ridgefield? What's in Ridgefield other than a bunch of snow?" Bess asked.

"Edgar Nixon. Maybe. You want to come? George is coming along," Nancy said, not planning to mention her parting words.

But she didn't have to. She heard Bess sigh exasperatedly. "You told her that you were going to call me?"

"Yeah."

"Tell her that I'm going and that I am not a pussy. I'll be ready in half an hour."

"Whatever," Nancy laughed. "Later."

Nancy got home, just managed to defrost when she heard a honk. She grabbed her coat and her bag and rushed into George's Jeep. She had the heater on full and the music loud.

"Bess ready?" George yelled over the music instead of lowering it.

"She should be," Nancy replied and sat back as George roared over to her cousin's house.

She pulled into the driveway and honked. Nothing happened. She honked again, but Bess still didn't appear. Finally, George held down the horn for a good 30 seconds straight, but Bess still didn't show up. George sighed and fidgeted, exasperated.

"Damn you, Bess," George muttered, lowering the music. "She's probably fixing her dumbass hair."

"I didn't know Bess had ass hair," Nancy said, sending George into a laughing fit.

Bess emerged at last, glaring at her cousin through the windshield and hopped into the backseat. George roared onto the highway and headed for Ridgefield.

"What the hell took you so long?" George asked.

"I was on the phone with Dave," Bess said, a slightly dreamy tone in her voice.

"Dave Evans?" Nancy asked.

"That's why you kept us waiting? Because you were having phone sex with that football player?" George accused, outraged.

"I was not having phone sex. Dave actually called with a message," Bess said, smacking her cousin. "For Nancy."

"For me?" Nancy said, surprised.

"Yeah, for you. From Ned. Ned tried calling you, but you weren't home and you weren't answering your phone. And then he had to go take a test in one of his classes, so he wasn't going to be able to talk to you until a lot later, so he asked Dave to call. Anyway, the point is, remember that coach? The one whose last name is Smith Drew?"

"Yeah, yeah," Nancy said excited, turning around in her seat and to look at the blond, who smiled enticingly.

"Dave was told to call and tell you that her first name is Nancy. You found her!"

"Ah! God, that's so great," Nancy exclaimed, jumping in her seat.

"So what's with this trip to Ridgefield? What does Edgar Nixon have to do with it?" George asked.

"But I wasn't-" Bess started.

"But I wha... huh… not caring," George interrupted. "Spill it Nancy."

Nancy told the girls everything that had happened since they had left yesterday. She told them about her talk with Mrs. Wilson, about how Bates-Jones had blown her and her father off, about the suspicions that she and Mr. Drew shared, about how Tommy had come over with a shoe, then she told them Ira's tale in detail, and about her meeting with Chief McGinnis. To finalize, she brought out a sheet of paper with an address, saying that this was where Edgar Nixon lived.

"Oh God," Bess said, going pale.

"What?" Nancy asked, not too concerned. It had started snowing, slowly getting harder and harder as they entered the town of Ridgefield. Bess was a little paranoid and Nancy figured that she was worried about the snow and George's driving.

"What Dave told me," Bess said, bringing the girls around. "There was more about Nancy Smith Drew."

"What about her? Get it out already," George snapped impatiently.

"Hey, you were the one who cut me off in the first place," Bess retorted, annoyed.

"What about Nancy Smith Drew?!" Nancy practically yelled.

"They found out where it was she went in such a hurry…" Bess said melodramatically.

Nancy's gut dropped and she had a strong feeling the she wasn't going to like what was coming.

"Nancy Smith Drew went to Ridgefield."

There was a thick and loaded silence as all three girls thought through the possibilities of what this could mean. Nancy took in a deep breath and prepared herself mentally.

No. She didn't like what was coming at all.