A/N: Sorry for the delay, guys – Christmas week was CRAZY! I should be back on schedule now, though. Please enjoy and REVIEW! Oh, and thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter 10 as well. :P

The Ghost of Emerson Campus

Chapter Eleven

Ned's eyes fluttered open. He saw nothing but darkness, closed them and tried again. He could see nothing. He heard movement from a few feet away, the click of a light switch being flipped, and suddenly, he was blinded with a harsh, white light. He clamped his eyes shut, groaning at the sudden change.

A soft laugh. It sounded cruel, taunting. Ned tried once again to open his eyes. As his weary eyes adjusted to the bright light, he saw a man standing over him. The man had a halo of red hair surrounding his head.

Despite how disoriented he was, Ned knew who this was in a second. Crosson.

Bess, George, and Nancy drove along the highway toward Emerson College. "Nancy, I don't get it," Bess said. "Why are we going back there? There's nothing that'll help us find Ned."

"Maybe not," Nancy said from the driver's seat, her eyes flickering to the passenger seat for a quick second. "But there's some stuff I want to check out-we never really got to finish talking to the students because of the attempted hit-and-run. If we find out why Ned was in that accident in the first place, or what the initial plan was, it might clue us in to where Crosson's holding him. If not, at least we can get Burt and Dave to help us on our search."

George shrugged from the backseat. "You're the ace detective, Miss Nancy Drew, so tell us what to do."

Nancy smiled slightly, despite her worry. George was always one to cheer her up.

"Hello, Mr. Nickerson," Zapp Crosson said, smiling down at the stretcher that Ned was lying on, immobile. The teen squinted up at the villain, pain written on his handsome features.

"Wh-" he started to talk but couldn't get the words out. Everything hurt.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, my dear friend," Crosson smiled, retrieving a glass of water from a nearby coffee table. He put it to Ned's lips, and the boy, ravished with thirst, drank until it was gone. "There, are you feeling better now?"

Ned glared at him, unable to move for the pain. "Where's-Nancy?" he croaked out, his voice dry and cracked.

"Oh, your little girlfriend is fine," Crosson assured the distraught student, malice in his every word. "Her worry for you is a little overbearing though. Just got off the phone with her, actually. She's just sitting around at the police station. Waiting for the pigs to find you. Not even worried enough to try and find you herself."

"You're-lying," Ned whimpered, the pain growing too much to bear.

"Now, Ned...I may be a kidnapper, thief, and murderer, but if there is one thing I can say for sure, I'm no liar."

Ned let out a gasp as a searing pain took over his body from the accident. He blacked out.

"Nancy! Bess! George! We thought it'd be a while before we saw you again," Dave said, a sad smile on his face. "How's everything going? Any sign of Ned?"

Nancy shook her head sadly. "Only that Crosson is holding him somewhere and plans to nurse him back to health just so he can kill him."

Burt cringed. "That guy is one twisted-"

"Sorry, Burt. Virgin ears here," Bess said, covering her ears, a playful smile on her face.

Nancy nodded. "Burt's right. But it doesn't matter. Have you guys found out anything else that might help us?"

"I don't know...maybe. Since Ned's been hurt, more people have reported seeing a strange, almost hypnotizing light in the woods."

Nancy's eyes sparkled. "Really? Any tales of the college kid I saw?"

"No...but we have a theory on that. It could have easily been anyone here, told that if they distracted your car they could earn a few quick bucks. There are a few guys here that meet your description and are short on finances."

Nancy nodded excitedly. "Like who?"

"Well, there's Terry Lee, Jordan Mitchell, and Gage Brannet. They're the ones that first come to mind. All muscular, all tall with dark hair and eyes, and all running low on money. D'you think you could recognize him again if you saw him?"

Nancy nodded. "Definitely."

"I'll take you to meet Terry first," Dave said.

The five friends headed to Terry's dorm with bated breath. Ned's fate depended on the outcome of these interviews!

When Ned woke up once again, he was in darkness. But he could sense someone looming over him. "Who's-there?" he muttered, knowing the answer before the words even escaped his mouth.

He heard the click of a gun as Crosson hissed, "Changed my mind, Nickerson. That Drew girl's on my case so I figure I'd better kill you and skip town. Say goodbye to living, buddy, because it's time for you to die...like you should have a long time ago."

A/N: Again, sorry for the wait but this chapter was a tad longer than usual, so maybe it made up for it? Lol. xD Please review and chapter 12 will be up in a week! :)

~Emachinescat ^..^