"So, what did your dad say?" asked Helen as she slid into the front seat of Nancy's car. It was Sunday morning after church and Nancy was picking Helen up to go to Lilac Inn for their tea party with Mrs. Alexandra.

Nancy laughed. "Well you didn't wait long to ask that, huh?"

"Oh come on Nancy, I'm dying to know! What did your dad say?"

Nancy grinned, her blue eyes sparkled. "He said yes! And before you say anything else, I went ahead and called Mr. Baum. He and his girlfriend will be showing up at seven tonight."

"Yes!" said Helen. "And what about your present?"

"Oh, Dad thinks that I'm getting him one of Mr. Baum's photos for his office for Father's Day. I figured I would wait to give the case to him should he not find anything. Hannah has offered to help pay Mr. Baum if I don't have enough money to cover it."

"Aw, that's swell! Hannah's so sweet!"

Nancy smiled. "Yeah, she is. I really wish I could do something extra special for her, for everything she's done for us."

Helen patted her hand. "I don't think she would want much. Just knowing you and your father are safe are plenty enough for her, I think. But if you do think of something, let me know. I'll help however I can."

"Thanks Helen, you're the best!"

"Only the best for the best," said Helen with a grin.

Nancy chuckled. "You girls are out to spoil me, I tell you."

Helen scoffed. "After everything you've done for us? You've more than earned it. I can't thank you enough for taking care of the mystery at Twin Elms. So, I'll do whatever it takes to help you in whatever way I can." She chuckled softly. "And that might include whatever mystery Mrs. Alexandra would like you to solve for her."

Nancy glanced at Helen out of the corner of her eye before turning back to the road and biting her lip. "Yeah, about that …"

Helen blinked. "What? Are you going to tell her no?"

Nancy quickly shook her head. "Oh no! It's just that … I think I already know what the mystery is, and, well …" Nancy paused. Thinking back on finding Francis Baum's wallet. There was that nagging at the back of her mind again. It seemed conveniently placed, almost like he was expecting someone to pick it up. Just not Nancy perhaps, but possibly Mr. Faber. Was that it? Was that what was nagging at the back of her mind?

Helen broke into her thoughts. "Nancy?"

Nancy's lips curled downwards into a frown. "Please don't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you. I have to verify it, but I'm pretty sure this is what Mrs. Alexandra's mystery is going to be about. When I was looking through Mrs. Alexandra's purse for identification, I saw a picture of a boy in her wallet."

Helen's eyes widened and she gasped. "You think the boy is missing and she's going to want you to find him?"

Nancy slowly nodded her head. "I think so, I could still be wrong, but I think so."

"Well, I think that's a tall order, even for you. But I'm sure you can do it. Maybe even get the Hardys to help," Helen quickly added with a smirk.

Nancy didn't even flinch at the mention of the Hardys. "See, that's the thing, I might already have found him."

Helen blinked in confusion. "What? What do you mean?"

Nancy let out a deep breath. "I mean, I think I saw the exact same picture of that little boy in Mr. Baum's wallet. And he does look like an older version of that little boy, but …"

Helen gripped the arm rests. "Say what? He had the exact same picture?" she exclaimed.

"I think so, I want to be absolutely sure. That's why I'm telling you. You can help me verify that it is the same picture."

"But I'm not going to be at your house tonight when Mr. Baum comes over with his girlfriend!" said Helen.

"I know, I know, maybe you can look at it at a later time, but I just needed to tell someone about this and, well … and I have a feeling something's not right."

Helen blinked. "What do you mean something's not right? The guy practically shows up at Mr. Faber's store not long after you saw the picture! The coincidence is amazing!"

"That's just it, I don't think it was a coincidence. I'm beginning to wonder if Mr. Baum wanted Mr. Faber to find his wallet specifically."

"Well yeah, Mr. Baum might have known that Mr. Faber knew Mrs. Alexanda. He couldn't find Mrs. Alexandra, so he went to Mr. Faber and, hoping he can break it to him gently, he dropped the wallet so that Mr. Faber would be the one to find it. But instead you found it." Helen scoffed. "There doesn't have to be a mystery behind everything, Nancy, come on."

Nancy pursed her lips. "Maybe, but something still doesn't seem right, Helen. I don't like it. And that's another reason why I'm telling you this. If I'm wrong, you can rub it all in my face. But if I'm right …" She huffed. "Well, let's just say Dad's drilled it into me to always have a witness."

Helen nodded. "I understand that, but Nancy, this is really easy! I mean, I understand wanting to verify that the picture is the same, you had other things on your mind when you were looking through Mrs. Alexandra's things and might have missed a detail or something, but if it is the same, why, you're the luckiest girl alive!"

Nancy chuckled nervously. "I don't know if luck has anything to do with it."

Helen crossed her arms. "Well it was thanks to you that Lilac Inn and Twin Elms were saved, and you got really lucky there, that's for sure."

"I am grateful for how fortunate I have been," said Nancy, "but I don't want to push my luck nor claim that it's all luck." Her eyebrows furrowed as she parked the car at Lilac Inn. "All the same, I think it wise that we proceed with caution. Even if what you say is true, there's still a nagging at the back of my mind and I can't ignore it." Nancy turned off the engine before placing her hand on Helen's arm. "So please, not a word of this to anyone, not unless I say so."

Helen gave a firm nod. "I promise. Never fear, I won't tell anyone this secret, even if they torture me!"

"Well, I certainly hope it doesn't come to that."

"Oh, me too. Torture is dreadful! And so outdated too."

Nancy laughed. "And I hope it stays out of date. Come on, let's not keep Mrs. Alexandra waiting."

"Oh definitely not!" said Helen. She ran her fingers through her hair to give it a bit more floof before grabbing her purse and exiting the car. The two walked into Lilac Inn and went straight to the dining room. The two gasped in surprise and with delight at the sight before them. Two tables were pulled together and set up in the far corner with a full, gorgeous, antique tea set. Lilacs were scattered around the room, filling the room with a soft, sweet scent. Mrs. Alexandra was already sitting at one of the tables, folding napkins while Anna was pouring tea. She glanced up and smiled at Nancy and Helen before standing up and holding out her hands to them.

"Hello! I'm so glad you're here!"

Nancy smiled as she took her hands and squeezed them. "How could we miss it? Besides, we wouldn't have seen this gorgeous tea set! Where did you get it?"

Mrs. Alexandra gave a mysterious smile. "It's a family heirloom, been in the family for generations. So please be careful with it."

"Are you kidding?" said Helen. "I'm afraid to use it! Not to mention that it looks too pretty to be used."

Mrs. Alexandra laughed. "Oh, trust me when I say it's been used a lot over the years."

Nancy's eyebrows furrowed as she glanced at the designs on the tea set. It looked like there were birds sitting on flowering branches. "Are those lilacs?"

A faraway look came into Mrs. Alexandra's eyes as she picked up an empty tea cup. "Why yes, they are. And yes, this is the reason why I chose to come stay at Lilac Inn. There's just a feeling of home about a place wherever lilacs are in abundance."

"Oh!" Nancy and Helen turned at the exclamation. Ida was standing in the doorway. She had on a cute, pink floral dress. She waved. "You're here!" Ida turned and shouted down the hall. "Izzy, Emily, they're finally here! Told you they would come when you started figuring out where to put that sculpture!" she added with a laugh. A moment later Emily and Izzy joined her and the three walked towards the table.

"Isn't this tea set just adorable?" exclaimed Ida as the girls sat down.

"Yes, and I bet this has been said a lot, but it is almost too pretty to use," said Izzy.

Mrs. Alexandra chuckled as she sat back down. "Yes, many many times. I had just told your friends before you came in here that they have been used many times. As you can see, they are holding up just fine."

"None of them have ever been broken?" asked Emily as she picked up her cup.

"Oh, a few pieces have been broken over the years, but they were either replaced or easily fixed." Meanwhile, Anna had served them all little sandwiches and cookies that had lilacs instead of chocolate chips. She gave a little curtsy to Mrs. Alexandra before leaving the room. Mrs. Alexandra held out her hands to the girls. "Please enjoy," she said.

"Mmm, these look and smell delicious!" said Ida before taking a bite out of the sandwich.

"They are!" said Izzy after swallowing her bite. She quickly took another bite and hummed in satisfaction.

"I'm glad you enjoy them," said Mrs. Alexandra. "And I really want to thank you all again for your kindness." She glanced at each of the girls in turn, but her eyes seemed to linger on Nancy a little longer than the rest.

Nancy leaned forward, taking the hint. "Mrs. Alexandra, was there another reason why you wanted to see us?"

Mrs. Alexandra pursed her lips for a moment before letting out a sigh. "You really are a good detective, there's nothing that gets past you. Yes, there is." Mrs. Alexandra glanced down at a piece of paper in her hands. Nancy wondered if it was the picture of the little boy. "It is a sliver of hope, but it is the only hope I have left, and it would bring me great happiness if you could help me in this matter. I understand that you are but a young woman and America is a large country, but, maybe, just maybe, you can help me find someone I've been … someone I've been looking for for the past twenty years, my grandson, Michael."

"Who?" chorused Nancy's friends. Nancy merely watched Mrs. Alexandra. She glanced again at the paper before sliding it across the table towards Nancy. It was the picture of the little boy, and there was no doubt in Nancy's mind now that it was the exact same picture that she had seen in Francis Baum's wallet.

Mrs. Alexandra let out a breath. "My … my family were important people in Europe. Unfortunately, that came with making enemies of other important people." She paused slightly, tears springing to her eyes. "My grandson and I were the only ones to make it out alive," she whispered, "along with Anna and Michael's nanny. Loyal civilians helped us out of the country and to France. That's where we got separated as Nada and Michael were able to get to America first while Anna and I had to wait. Mr. Faber had been here for some time and offered to take us in. Michael's nanny knew that and would have come here. I was going to head this way myself, but then I found out that our enemies were following me in an attempt to find Michael, so I stayed away until they stopped looking." Her eyebrows furrowed and she frowned. "But when I got here, I find out from Mr. Faber that they didn't show up. So Anna and I have been searching through orphanages, looking for him, wondering if his nanny had passed away. But now that he's an adult, he would be moving about freely." Her frown grew deeper. "Provided … provided he's still alive." Mrs. Alexandra glanced between each of the girls again before her eyes fell solely on Nancy. "Yet I fear going to the police or making my search public as I'm sure our enemies are still looking for us and out to destroy him. Which is why, though I know this may seem like a large task, I turn to you for help. Mr. Faber has done all that he can do in the matter. And he already takes such good care of me that it feels s o wrong to ask him to do more than he can. Besides, the two of us have been looking for so long, maybe it's time for some fresh eyes."

Helen nudged Nancy. "See, told you!"

"Sh!" said Nancy.

Mrs. Alexandra glanced between them. "Oh, it was that obvious that I was going to ask you to solve a mystery?" She chuckled. "Yes, I'm sorry, but I am at my wit's end and would really like to know what happened to my grandson."

Nancy let out a sigh before picking up the picture. "Mrs. Alexandra, there's actually another reason for that, but first … would your grandson have a copy of this photo?"

Mrs. Alexandra blinked. "Yes," she replied slowly. "It was to be one of several means of identifying him."

"What are the other ways to identify him?"

"A toy lamb, his baby blanket … why do you look so concerned? Is this too hard for you?"

Nancy frowned. "I'm more concerned with how easy this was."

Everyone glanced at her. "What are you talking about?" whispered Mrs. Alexandra, her knuckled white from gripping the arms of her chair.

Nancy looked directly at her. "Mrs. Alexandra, I saw this exact same picture, in the wallet of a man who went to see Mr. Faber yesterday."

Mrs. Alexandra's face went white. "You're, you're sure?"

Nancy nodded. "I'm absolutely positive."

"Oh!" Ida jumped up. Mrs. Alexandra had fainted!

(Author's Note: Hello my rosy readers! Thank you so much for being so patient! It's been one thing after another, next month looks like much of the same. I have done more travelling in the past year than I have ever done in my entire life. And there's another trip, I think two, actually, planned for next month, one for my brother's graduation and one for the family reunion. Man, it's just been nuts to say the least. Plus, trying to get some work done on my original stories. Phew! Things are getting into more of a routine now, so that's getting better, but there's still so much travelling, and so many other things practically demanding my attention, plus work is getting busy since spring semester is ending and we're gearing up for the summer semester. So, yeah, things are going to have to get refigured. Since I don't have a deadline to keep working on the Road, the Fairy, and the Boxcar for the contest, I can go a little slower on that and figure out a few more details that I need for it, so it's going on the back burner for now. Anyways, just wanted to give you a heads up on what's going on since things are going to take a little longer to get uploaded. Thanks for your patience, and for reading! Hope you're having a wonderful day! God bless!)