Chapter Twenty-Nine

It was after six p.m. when a cab dropped Nancy and Frank at the Palms Resort. Nancy stepped out of the cab feeling a little tipsy. Two margaritas would do that to a person.

Nancy remembered the night Bruce and Bridget had come stumbling into the Palms Resort dining room. To put it bluntly, Bridget had been drunk that night. But then, she'd had four margaritas. Nancy couldn't imagine drinking four. Two had made Nancy unsteady on her feet. Not that she regretted it. She was feeling no pain and felt a sort of benevolent generosity toward the world and mankind in general.

Frank paid the cab driver then turned and took Nancy by the elbow. He gently guided her to the wooden path that threaded its way past all the Resort's bungalows.

Nancy snuggled close to Frank and rested her head on his shoulder. We had worked, Nancy reminded herself as she and Frank strolled along the wooden path.

After dinner and over those second margaritas, she and Frank had read through the newspaper articles and had discovered something significant. Nothing earth shattering, but something worthy of note.

The first article had proclaimed John Highsmith to be a hero.

Today a local man is being hailed as a hero, the article said. Mr. John Highsmith came home last Monday and found his wife unconscious and unresponsive. Mr. John Highsmith attempted mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on wife for approximately 10 minutes. When he realized his efforts were not working, Mr. Highsmith called for an ambulance.

Mrs. Maria Highsmith was taken to the hospital and immediately admitted to the ER. Doctors later told reporters that Mrs. Highsmith had accidently taken an overdose of pain medication. Apparently, Mrs. Highsmith had recently fallen off a ladder and sprained her left ankle. She was taking powerful pain medicines. Doctors declined to name the exact medications.

Doctors stabilized Mrs. Highsmith and pumped her stomach. She is said to be resting comfortably and recovering from her ordeal. She is expected to make a full recovery and will soon be released from the hospital.

Doctor Villa spoke to reporters this morning and said that Mr. Highsmith's actions had saved his wife's life.

According to Doctor Villa, if Mr. Highsmith had not come home when he did and had not performed CPR, it is highly likely Mrs. Highsmith would be dead.

"Mr. Highsmith's quick actions bought her time," Doctor Villa is quoted as saying. "The fact Mr. Highsmith called for an ambulance, and it arrived so quickly, also played a part in saving his wife's life."

Oh yes, Nancy thought as she and Frank neared Bridget's bungalow, Mr. Highsmith had been a hero. Something she thought he liked – being a hero. Sadly, less than six months later, Maria Highsmith was dead.

Bridget, Greta Swan, and Mr. North sat on the porch of Bridget's bungalow.

Frank waved to them and called out, "Good evening, folks."

Greta and Bridget returned the greeting, "Good evening."

Mr. North said nothing. He sat in a rattan chair looking out-of-sorts and grumpy. In other words, his usual mood.

Greta and Bridget were cheerful.

"Any word on Jeremy?" Frank asked.

"He's fine," Greta Swan said. "He should be released from the hospital tomorrow. He had a collapsed lung."

Frank, of course, knew that. He and Nancy stood on the path and faced the group.

"He'll have to take it easy for several weeks," Frank said. "If there's anything you need let Nancy and me know. We'd be glad to lean a hand." Frank's comments were directed more towards Greta and Mr. North.

It was Greta who answered, "Thank you so much for the offer, Mr. Hardy. Either myself or Mr. North will certainly let you know if we need assistance. We might, you know. I expect Mr. Hill will have to take it easy for several weeks."

"I expect he will," Frank said. He had no firsthand knowledge of collapsed lungs nor how long they took to heal.

Bridget called out, "Are you two going to dinner later?"

"No," Frank said, "we had dinner in town." He'd almost said, at the Mexican restaurant you and Bruce recommended, but thought the memory might be too painful for Bridget.

Bridget looked momentarily disappointed at the fact Nancy and Frank would not be her table mates, but she quickly recovered. "Greta and Mr. North have kindly asked me to dine with them and I accepted." Bridget smiled at her guests then turned back to Nancy and Frank. "I have to pick my mom up at the airport at ten tonight."

"Would you like someone to tag along?" Nancy asked.

Bridget shook her head. "No, thanks. Greta has already offered to go with me."

Bridget looked over at Greta and Greta beamed. Nancy smiled at the two women and thought, Greta is enjoying the companionship of a woman close to her age. Good for her. She needs to get away from Mr. North occasionally.

Mr. North, however, did not appear quite so pleased with this new development. He was accustomed to having Greta Swan all to himself and at his beck and call. He'll get over, Nancy surmised. Bridget and her mother would leave in a few days and life for Mr. North would return to normal.

"Well, if there's anything you need," Frank said, "you all have my phone number and Nancy's."

"We'll call if we need you," Bridget promised and she and Greta waved good-bye.

Mr. North sat stoically, looking evermore grumpy.

Nancy and Frank waved back and headed along the path. Life for them would soon return to normal, too. Soon, they would fly back to River Heights, Illinois and to their detective agency.

It would be sad to leave this place, Nancy thought as she glanced around. It was truly lovely here. A true paradise. The sand, the beach, palm trees and flowering shrubs. Nancy particularly liked the flowering shrubs. Their delicate scent was pleasant and soothing. Each morning she looked forward to that wonderful scent greeting her. Lucky for her those particular shrubs were abundant around the resort.

She and Frank came up alongside of Gary and Lana's bungalow.

"They're lucky," Nancy said to Frank.

"Why?"

Nancy stopped and pointed. "They have those beautiful flowering shrubs all along their porch railing."

Frank knew how much Nancy admired the flowery shrubs. She had mentioned it on more than one occasion. "So they do. If we ever come here again I'll be sure to request a bungalow with flowering shrubs."

Nancy smiled up at him. "I would like that."

The door to the bungalow opened and Gary stepped out. He walked over to the railing and peered at the ocean. Then he noticed Nancy and Frank standing on the wooden path.

"Oh, hi. Heading to dinner?"

"No," Frank said, "we ate in town. We're headed to our bungalow. We might stop in later at the dining room."

"Oh," Gary said, "well, Lana and I probably won't stay late. There's no band tonight."

Frank pulled a face. "That's a disappointment. Well, if we don't see you later, have a nice evening."

"Same to you," Gary said and turned at the sound of Lana shutting the bungalow door.

Lana was lovely in a calf-length flowing summer dress. She walked over to Gary and he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her on the cheek.

Such a sweet picture, Nancy thought as she and Frank waved to the couple and continued on.

Frank took Nancy's hand and nudged her in the shoulder. "Now, what are you thinking about?"

Nancy tilted her head up and frowned at him. "Who says I'm thinking about anything?"

Frank gave a short bark of laughter. "You, Miss Nancy Drew, are always thinking. Well, except maybe when you're sleeping. Did I ever tell you, you sleep like a log?"

Nancy rolled her eyes and shook her head. She didn't mind Frank kidding her. Actually, she liked it. Once upon a time, it had been Frank and Joe kidding each other – rather often – at the office. Now it was Frank, and even Joe, who got in the occasional ribbing of Nancy. To her, it meant she was officially accepted as a member of the Hardy brothers' team. She smiled at the thought. That was exactly what she wanted to be – a full-fledged member of the team.

"To answer your question," she said, "I was thinking what a pretty picture Gary and Lana made on their porch. Standing there with the setting sun in the background, beautiful, flowery shrubs surrounding them, the quaint bungalow providing the perfect backdrop."

A perplexed frown furrowed Frank's brow. Nancy's answer was not what he'd expected. It was rather romantic and he was unsure as to how to respond. "Umm, yeah, that's quite a picture."

They approached their bungalow and climbed the stairs to the porch. This small abode had become 'home' and they were glad to be back.

Frank slid his key into the door. Over his shoulder, he said, "I'd like to read through those newspaper articles again and look at the pictures with the magnifying glass we bought. What about you?"

Nancy nodded. "I was thinking of doing the same things. First though, I'm going to make some tea. Would you like a cup?" She needed the tea, needed to clear her mind and dim the effects of the margaritas.

Frank held the door open. "Yeah, sounds good."

# # # #

Nancy and Frank sat at the dinette set in the kitchenette area. Frank had the magnifying glass out and was looking at the newspaper photos.

Nancy sipped her tea and reread the second article. It, too, had praised the husband. Called him a hero just as the first article had. The second husband wasn't named John Highsmith. Of course not, the killer had changed his name. To the outside world this was a different man in a different town. Nancy felt it important to note that the second town was a mere 185 miles from the first town. Not a great distant, but enough distant to allow a man (a killer) to start anew. The money from the insurance policy would have supported him for a while. At least until he could acquire a new wife and plot her demise.

And it had not taken the killer long to find that new wife. Nancy noted the dates of the two articles. Only three years separated them.

Nancy read the second article yet again.

Local officials are calling Daniel Jones a hero. Daniel Jones and his wife, Amanda, were recently on their honeymoon when disaster struck. The young couple was spending a week on the coast at a popular resort. According to Mr. Daniel Jones, who gave local officials an account of what happened, the newlyweds had decided on a late afternoon swim in the ocean.

Mr. Jones said all was well until the couple reached deeper water. That was when Jones realized his wife was far behind him and struggling. He immediately turned back and swam to her rescue. He said she went under several times before he got to her and she was nearly unconscious by the time he reached her.

Mr. Jones got his wife to shore and fortunately for him, a crowd of onlookers had gathered on the beach. One spectator had the foresight to call 9-1-1. An ambulance arrived shortly. Mrs. Jones spent a night in the hospital for observation and was released early the next day. She credits her husband with saving her life.

"Hmm," Nancy mused. "One day he saves it and another he takes it."

The couple is pictured in front of their home. Mr. Jones told reporters that he and his wife were happy to be home and despite the one bad day, they had enjoyed their seaside honeymoon.

Nancy leaned back in her chair and took another sip of tea. She wondered if the couple had come to this resort. There were only two resorts in this relatively small seaside town.

Frank laid the photo and magnifying glass down and looked across the table at Nancy. "This photo is better than the other one, but I still can't identify the man in the picture. The best I can say is, there's something familiar about him."

Nancy pulled the photo closer and picked up the magnifying glass. She studied the photo while Frank drank his tea.

Yes, she thought, there was something familiar about the man. Was it the way he stood? He had an arm around his wife's waist. Both husband and wife smiled happily for the picture. Something tugged at the edge of Nancy's mind …

The buzzing of Frank's cell phone broke Nancy's concentration.

Frank looked at the caller ID and said, "It's Tim Kincaid. Wonder what he wants?" Frank answered the phone. "Hello. Tim, what's going on?"

Nancy watched as Frank's expression turned to one of concern.

"Sure. Of course. I'll tell her now. I'm sure she won't mind. Have you thought about calling a doctor? Oh, okay. Well, if you're sure. I'll send her now. Bye." Frank laid down his phone and looked at Nancy. "Tim's worried about Molly. He says she's been in bed all afternoon and he can't get her up. He'd like you to check on her."

"I heard you ask about calling a doctor, what did he say to that?"

"Kinda odd," Frank said. "He said he didn't want to call a doctor if it's nothing." Frank shrugged, clearly puzzled by Tim's strange response. "Seems like a lame excuse to me. If your wife's sick, you should call a doctor. I think it's best if you get over there and check on Molly."

Nancy was on her feet and reaching for her handbag. "I'm on my way. You know, Molly was very tired earlier today when she and I were at Bridget's. I was worried about her then. I hope .."

Frank stood and placed a reassuring hand on Nancy's shoulder. His voice was steady and calm, "Just get to her. Let me know what you think. I'm going to the dining room. It's almost dinner time. Tim said he doesn't need my help, but he might change his mind. If nothing else, I can gauge his mood."

"Sounds good. I'll call you as soon as I can."


A/N: Thanks a bunch for the reviews! It's always nice to receive those and see (hear) what people are thinking. You folks keep me on my toes as far as making sure things make sense. We're, oops, N/F are getting closer to catching the killer .. that's all I'm going to say.