Disclaimer: I do not own the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew and I make no money from this.

Happy reading!

Chapter 26 At Alice's Awaiting

"Frank, stop!"

Nancy's shout caused Frank to slam on the brakes. The car slid on the muddy track, coming to rest cockeyed, with the front end off the road.

"What is it?"

"I swear I just saw Craig, but he's gone now." Nancy squinted through the misty rain. "He disappeared into the tree line just below the meadow."

Looking where Nancy pointed, Frank couldn't see anything. Then a flash of movement further up the meadow caught his eye.

"Joe," he said, pointing.

He jumped out of the car and waved at his brother, shouting, "Joe!"

Changing course, Joe headed in their direction, but going was slow across the soggy meadow and he was farther away than Frank had first realized.

Frank leaned down and popped the trunk release as he spoke to Nancy.

"Something is obviously up. I'm going to grab some gear from the trunk and help Joe. You take the car on up to Alice's and make sure everything is ok."

"I want to come with you," Nancy said.

Joe had finally reached them, panting.

"You have perfect timing!" he said with a grim smile.

"What's going on?" Nancy asked as she came to join them at the back of the car, where Frank was rummaging through the contents of the trunk.

"Well, Abe disappeared, and while we were looking for him, Van and I found a Maglite that may have been used to knock Mack out. With it we found muddy clothes – likely Abe's and Sencha's."

"So both of them were in the meadow," Frank said. "Damn."

"Looks like it… but that's not all," Joe said. "Craig came crashing in, said something about it being all his fault, and took off. That's who I was following."

"I thought I saw Craig head down into the forest at the lower edge of the meadow," Nancy said. "That's originally why we stopped."

"Yeah, I had an inkling he was headed toward Champion gorge," Joe said. "That's where this whole mess started, and it looks like that's where it's going to end."

Frank pulled on a dark green rain slicker and then leaned into the back of the trunk again, rummaging through the items stored there. "What do you think we'll need?"

"I don't know," Joe said. "Maybe that rope and a few carabineers. Given the history in that gorge it sure can't hurt."

"Good idea," Frank said, slipping the coil of rope over his shoulder while Joe pocketed the clips. "Hopefully we don't need it, but I want to be prepared."

"Boy Scout." Joe grinned.

Frank ignored the jibe. "We learned some things, too. Apparently, Craig is MJ Champion's son."

"What?" Joe exclaimed.

"I spoke to Fern just a few minutes ago," Nancy clarified. "Apparently the Champion estate has been paying her a monthly stipend ever since Craig was born – hush money to keep MJ's indiscretion from becoming public. She said Craig didn't find out until after Mack's death, but I'm not sure I believe that."

"Sweet Jesus," Joe said. "MJ was a real piece of work. Mack and Craig are the same age. He got two girls pregnant at nearly the same time and one of them was his niece."

"That's my guess, too, which would make Craig and Mack half-brothers," Frank said. "Craig has more at stake in this mess then we ever realized."

Nancy was pulling on a raincoat, and Frank put a hand on her shoulder. "Nan, no. You go to Alice's. Someone has to tell the sheriff what's going on."

She appeared ready to argue with him, but then sighed in resignation. "Ok. But please be careful."

Leaning down to plant a kiss on her lips, Frank gave her a warm smile. "This is almost over, sweetheart. By tomorrow, we'll be on the beach restarting our honeymoon."

Nancy raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm holding you to that, Hardy."

HHHHHHHHHHH

The McClain household was in chaos when Nancy arrived. She found Vanessa in the dining room trying to calm a hysterical Fern while Alice looked on, cheeks flushed and eyes wide with obvious concern.

"Van."

"Oh, Nancy, I'm so glad to see you!" Vanessa said. "Joe's run off after Craig and Abe is missing and…"

"I know."

"Where's Frank?"

"He's with Joe. We saw Craig heading into the woods below the meadow and stopped."

"Thank God," Vanessa said, sinking into a chair.

"Did you call the sheriff?" Nancy asked.

"Yes, he's on his way personally, and Dena is already here. Did Joe tell you what we found?"

"Yes. Where is Sencha?"

"She and Dena went to make a pot of chamomile tea to help calm everyone's nerves. I imagine they're back in the kitchen."

"I'll go check on them."

Striding down the hallway, Nancy's mind was racing. Perhaps Sencha had witnessed what had happened the night Mack was killed. At a minimum, she knew more than she had shared.

Entering the wide open, inviting kitchen, Nancy was met by Dena. "Nancy, it's so good to see you again. Would you mind finishing the tea while I go get the others and have them join us back here?"

Nancy nodded in acknowledgement. Dena motioned to Sencha, who was standing at the sliding door to the back deck, arms crossed, gaze impassive. As Dena left, Nancy approached Sencha.

Sencha spoke without turning. "Nancy, I'm glad you're here. I expect you have some questions for me."

Stopping next to the dignified woman, Nancy put a hand on her shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze.

"I know you're trying to protect someone, Sencha, but you need to tell the truth. You were in the meadow the night Mack was killed, weren't you?"

Sencha's mouth turned down in a tight frown, her eyes glistening.

"Yes."

"Abe was there," Nancy guessed.

Nodding, Sencha swiped at her eyes and turned to face her.

"And so was Craig."

"What happened?"

"I don't know. I didn't want to know. I told Craig to go home and I brought Abe back to Alice's and I made them both promise not to tell anyone that they had been there. Oh, Nancy, this is all my fault!"

Sencha's control crumpled and Nancy wrapped her arms around the woman, making soothing sounds while she sobbed against her shoulder.

As Sencha began to regain some control, Nancy led her to the kitchen table and had her sit down. She then moved into the kitchen to finish the tea that Dena had started. While she was doing so, Vanessa led Fern into the room, followed closely by Dena pushing Alice in her wheelchair.

Fern sank into the seat next to her eldest sister, wrapping an arm around shoulders that were still shaking with emotion.

Nancy assembled a tray, with the tea cups, cream and sugar, and carried it to the table where the women had assembled.

Sencha's crying had abated to soft sniffles, her eyes red-rimmed and sunken in a pale, weary face that had aged noticeably in the few days that Nancy had known her.

After the tea had been distributed and everyone was sipping quietly, Nancy decided it was time to clear the air.

"Sencha," she began gently, "I think it might be easiest if you explained what happened now, before the sheriff and his deputies arrive."

But it was Fern who spoke. "Please don't blame Sencha. In the end, this all started with me." Turning to her sister, she continued, "Sen, I'm so sorry I never confided in you but I was so ashamed. Momma didn't even know."

"This is not your fault, Fern, hush," Sencha said, her voice now calm as if she had reached some kind of acceptance of the events that had brought them here.

Nancy felt a need to make one thing perfectly clear before they went any further. It was a lesson she and her father had recently learned the hard way and it was a truth that she would carry with her for the rest of her life.

"This is not about laying blame. It's about getting to the truth. That's the only way to resolve it and move forward with your lives. You have to trust me on this."

Alice gave a heavy sigh. "The girl is making a lot of sense. It's time to come clean and let the chips fall where they may instead of tying yourself all up in knots trying to hide it."

Fern patted her sister's shoulder and said, "Sencha was just trying to protect me and Craig. She didn't know until recently that Craig was Mack's half-brother – MJ Champion fathered both of them. For many years I was able to keep the secret… even from my own family. When MJ died, the checks stopped coming and it was a relief to put it behind me and pretend that Pete was really Craig's father."

"All those years I thought Wayne had walked away from his responsibilities," Sencha murmured. "I was horrible toward him, and he had nothing to do with it."

Fern explained, "Wayne was my boyfriend at the time. He was sixteen and kind of wild. But we never had sex, Sen. Wayne was devastated when I told him I was pregnant precisely because he knew he couldn't be the father."

"When did MJ rape you?" Nancy asked.

"I used to help Sencha out when she went to clean at the Champion homestead. Usually she was careful to go when MJ wasn't home, but every once in a while, he was home – usually in his study." Fern sighed. "I'm not sure it could really be called rape, I mean I never said 'no.' MJ was a handsome man, very distinguished, and I was flattered when he paid special attention to me."

"Regardless of whether you said 'no,' Fern, what MJ did was statutory rape."

"If I had known…" Sencha murmured.

"That's why I never told you or Momma, or anyone. Colt wondered though. He said Kenzy told him that he suspected his little sister, Gwen, had been raped by his uncle. I knew Gwen – she was a year ahead of me in school – and she had always been one of the good girls, never in trouble, didn't date. So when she got pregnant it was a huge shock. It was after that that Kenzy told Colt he was going to confront 'the old pervert' and find out if it was true. But it wasn't long afterwards that Kenzy and his dad were killed in the fire at the furniture factory. That really scared me."

"And Innes had the fire investigated, right Alice?" Nancy asked.

"Yes. Innes had loaned Ellis Wayne money and suspected arson."

"Based on what Joe found, Innes believed that MJ was responsible for the fire – though the investigator never found any proof." Nancy turned back to Fern. "You said when MJ died the checks stopped. How long had MJ been sending you money?"

"Since before Craig was born. There came a point where I couldn't hide the pregnancy anymore. Unlike a lot of unwed mothers, I didn't get sent away. Instead mom kept me at home. It wasn't like it was a big secret. MJ must have learned of it from someone and put two and two together."

Sencha gasped. "That was why MJ was so insistent about you coming to the house to help me. He told me he had spoken to you and admired your spirit and intelligence. How could I have been so stupid?"

"You're far from stupid, Sen. MJ could be very charming when he wanted to. I couldn't turn down the invitation without appearing rude, so I went and MJ had little trouble getting me alone once I was there."

The sadness in Sencha's gaze as she closed her eyes and shook her head was palpable. She was obviously blaming herself for not protecting her little sister from MJ Champion.

"He told me that he was going to set up what he called a scholarship fund for me at the local bank. He said he'd put money in it monthly to help with the baby. The only thing I had to do was to promise never to tell anyone that he was the father."

"So you accepted and kept your secret until the money stopped?" Nancy asked.

"I promised. And I never told anyone," Fern said. "I also never touched the money. It's still in the account MJ started all those years ago at Champion Ferry First National Bank."

"Then how did Craig find out?" Nancy asked.

"Mack told him," Fern said. "Craig confronted me the day after Mack's death. I told him it was true – all of it. He didn't want to believe it, but it is time we all accepted the truth."

Fern broke down and began to cry. Sencha took her turn comforting her sister.

"What happened the night Mack died?" Nancy asked.

Fern looked at Sencha who was looking at Alice. Alice cleared her throat.

"Sencha and I were relaxing out on the back deck after dinner when we heard the cries coming down the valley, just like I told you. But Abe was not with us."

Sencha sat forward. "I had gone to Mack's and Abe's that morning to drop off a pie. I was worried. Mack had been acting very strangely and Abe was becoming extremely reserved. He hadn't been coming around lately like when he first came home with Mack. It was eerie how much it reminded me of when Mack was a child and began to withdraw."

"Did you know about Lucy?" Nancy asked.

"No," Alice answered. "We didn't learn about Lucy until the night of Mack's death – Abe told us everything then."

"Ok," Nancy said, then redirected, "so you heard yells from further up the valley. Then what?"

"I convinced Alice to let me check it out. I can't explain it, but I suspected it was Abe and Mack and it scared me. I prayed that it was just a bunch of teenagers goofing around…"

Sencha's voice trailed off.

"So when you arrived at the meadow, what did you find?" Nancy prompted.

Head snapping up, Sencha shook her head. "I only saw from a distance. Mack was lying on the ground, and Craig was already helping Abe across the meadow toward the path when I arrived. Craig told me that Mack was out of it, but didn't seem to think it would last. He… he told me to take Abe home. I practically had to carry the poor boy, he was so distraught."

"The child was an emotional mess when Sencha brought him home," Alice chimed in. "He was in shock and once she got him cleaned up we found the bruises. That was when we called Willa."

"Did Abe ever tell you what happened?" Nancy asked.

Sencha shook her head. "Abe refused to talk about it, but he did tell us all about Lucy, and what Mack had been doing. I was so shocked to learn the truth – how Mack had been brutalizing young girls, forcing Abe to watch and… participate. It made me sick."

Nancy sat forward. "Just so we're clear, you don't know who hit Mack or why?"

Sencha grimaced. "I assumed it was Craig – he told me Mack was out."

"But you didn't see anything," Nancy confirmed. When Sencha shook her head, she added, "Did Craig come with you and Abe?"

"No, he said he had his car and would go home. He warned me to lock the doors when we got to Alice's and to call the police if Mack tried to come and get Abe."

"So apparently Craig thought Mack was alive," Nancy said thoughtfully. What the heck happened in that meadow?

"At that time, yes," Sencha said slowly. "But Craig was the one who called the next morning to tell us Mack was dead. We all decided to tell anyone who asked that Mack had dropped Abe off to stay with us for the night."

"And neither Craig nor Abe told you what had happened?"

"No. And I didn't ask," Sencha said. "I… the truth is, I was afraid to know."

Nancy slumped back into her chair. "Well then, I guess we'll just have to wait until they're back to find out."

The bong of the doorbell had Nancy on her feet a moment later. "I'll get it. It's probably the sheriff."

The bong sounded again just as Nancy reached the door and pulled it open. There on the stoop was Sheriff Simpson.

"Evenin', ma'am," the sheriff said, tipping his hat into his hand.

"Sheriff," Nancy acknowledged, and then sucked in a breath when she saw her father and father-in-law waiting behind him. "Dad? Fenton?"

Mr. Drew stepped into the entry and leaned down to drop a kiss on Nancy's cheek. "Hello, honey. I don't suppose I should be surprised to see you here… even after I told you to take the day off."

Nancy cocked an eyebrow at him. "You should know me better than that, Dad. After all, I am your daughter."

"You can say that again," Fenton said. "Now where is our client?"

"I'm not positive, but possibly Champion Gorge. I left Frank and Joe in the meadow above the gorge. Joe had followed Craig there."

"Where's the gorge?" Fenton asked.

Nancy grabbed her rain jacket.

"I'll take you."

Behind her, Nancy heard Sencha's determined voice.

"You aren't leaving without me."

Looking up at the kindly sheriff, Nancy said, "I think it might be best if Sencha came. Abe trusts her probably more than anyone."

The sheriff gave a nod. "I'll drive and you can fill me in on the way. I just have one question. Who hit Mack Champion on the head?"

Nancy looked at Sencha who shrugged, then turned back to the face the sheriff.

"I suspect that it was Abe, but until we find him and Craig we aren't going to be able to sort that out."

Sheriff Simpson gave her a tight-lipped grimace of understanding.

"Well then, let's get a move on."

HHHHHHHHHHH

Abe stood at the edge of Champion Gorge and stared down at the small ledge with its clinging little tree. That little sapling was the only thing that had stopped Lucy from plunging all the way to the bottom - the only thing that had saved her life.

But she was still in a coma – could still die.

Though he wanted to, Abe could not in good conscience blame it all on his father. He could have resisted. He could have refused.

Rubbing his sore midriff, he was reminded what happened when he refused to do what Mack wanted.

But that was no excuse for almost killing Lucy. And besides, Mack was dead now.

Mack was dead.

Abe couldn't decide how he felt about that. Relieved, but at the same time, scared. What would happen to him now? Would the authorities blame him for what had happened to Lucy now that Mack was gone? Wasn't he at least partially to blame?

He certainly blamed himself.

"Abe!"

Turning automatically toward the commanding voice, he saw Craig approaching him. His uncle.

"Abe, come back from the edge."

The edge. Abe turned back to look down at the tree clinging to its tiny ledge on the sheer rock face. The rain was coming down hard now and he could barely make it out in the gathering gloom. He leaned lower, squinting against the water dripping down his face.

One step was all it would take. Just one step and he wouldn't have to worry about what he'd done. He wouldn't have to worry about his future. He slid his left foot closer to the edge.

It would be so easy.

HHH

A/N: Many thanks, as always, to my reviewers! We have company for the weekend, but I wanted to get this posted. I'll PM you all when I get a free moment!

Have a great weekend!