Disclaimer: You know what it is...I'm tired of typing it
Nancy grabbed her cell phone out of her purse and quickly dialed Frank's number. She never gave him a chance to say "Hello".
"Get over here, now, Frank!" Nancy said, frantic.
"Where?" Frank asked. Nancy could hear the fear in his voice. "What's going on?"
"Get to the Tribune offices now! I'll be in the lobby waiting for you." Nancy said and hung up the phone. She grabbed the flowers, envelope and her purse and hurried back into the lobby. She saw that Paul was still in the lobby.
"Hey, Nancy. Are you back again?" He asked, smiling at her.
"Yeah. I'm meeting Frank. It must have slipped my mind." Nancy explained. "If he gets here before I get out, will you tell him that I went to the restroom?"
"Sure thing, Nancy." Paul said.
"Thanks." Nancy said quietly. She went into the bathroom. Lucklily, there wasn't anyone in there. She put the items on the counter and looked up at the mirror. God, she was going to be sick. And then she felt a wave of naseau pass over her. She just made it to the toilet before she threw up.
She threw up a couple of times and then went to the sink to wash her face. She just stared at her reflection in the mirror. Why was he doing this to her? Why was he dragging her into his sick world? And how could he be back?
"He couldn't be." Nancy whispered. She was startled by a knock on the door.
"Nancy!" Frank called through the other side.
"I'll be right out." Nancy said. She grabbed a couple of paper towels and wiped her face.
"What's going on?" He demanded. And then he saw her face. "Oh, God, Nancy. Please tell me what's going on." he said quietly.
Nancy saw Paul glance at them. She grabbed Frank's hand and led him to her office. Frank wanted to say more, but thought better of it. He didn't want to make a scene and it was obvious that Nancy didn't want to either.
He kept glancing at her as they rode the elevator up to her office. As soon as the door to her office was closed behind them, he turned to her.
"All right." He said. "Tell me what's going on, Nan."
Nancy threw the dasies on her desk and handed Frank the envelope. She then sat at her desk and put her head in her hands.
"That was in my car, along with the flowers." she said.
"Don't you always lock your car?" Frank asked.
Nancy nodded. "Always."
Frank opened the envelope and tok the picture out. He looked disgusted and glanced up at Nancy.
"Well, that explains why you look sick." Frank said. "This guy's wanting to play games. I want to know why he's picked you." He started to put the picture back in the envelope.
Nancy noticed something on the back of the picture. "He wrote something on the back of the picture." She said.
Frank turned the picture over and read it to himself. He then read it out loud to Nancy.
"'I'm now bored/ I want to play a game/ I can guarantee/ Nothing will be the same.'"
Nancy sighed. Frank just shook his head in disbelief.
"This is great. This psycho wants to play a game. That means he's going to kill again." Frank said.
Nancy turned away and walked to window. She wrapped her arms around herself and closed her eyes.
Frank looked at her back. He hated to see her like this. Whatever she was keeping from him was killing her on the inside. He walked over to her and put his arms around her.
"Come on, Nan. You have to tell me what's going on. It's killing me to see you hurt like this." Frank said, squeezing her reassuringly.
Nancy lay her head back on Frank's chest. "There is a very good possibility that I may know who the killer is."
"What do you mean?" Frank asked, confused.
"It would certainly save you a headache if it turns out to be him." Nancy said.
"Who do you think it is, Nancy?" Frank asked, turning Nancy to face him.
"He's from the same case that I met Rosie. His name is Mike Fitzgerald. I have the file about the case at home." Nancy explained.
"Why do you think it's him?" Frank asked.
"Because everything he did, he signed the name "Cupid" to it." Nancy said.
"Then maybe we should go home and I can look over that file. And then you can tell me everything." Frank said.
"What about the flowers and the picture?" Nancy asked.
"Throw the flowers away. There won't be any evidence on them and to be honest I don't want to look at them anymore. I'll take the picture to the station with me tomorrow." Frank said.
Nancy picked up the flowers and Frank scorted her to the parking garage to her car. He didn't want to leave her alone, so she drove him to the front of the building to pick up his car. He followed her closely until they got home. When they got to the apartment, they didn't see Joe's car.
Frank looked at his watch. "He should have been here by now. He must have gotten held up."
Frank started dinner while Nancy took a hot shower and changed into comfortable clothes. When she got out, Frank was setting the table.
They ate their chicken fetticine and talked about their upcoming wedding. They determined that they needed to double check reservations, caterers, and make sure they had the wedding party gifts. Nancy also had to go to the final fitting of her gown.
After they were done and had cleaned up the dishes, Frank poured them a glass of wine and Nancy went to get the file out of their office. Just when they were about to settle down, the doorbell rang.
Nancy tensed and looked at Frank. He motioned for her to stay put, and he grabbed his gun. He held a finger to his lips and walked to the door. He looked through the peephole and let out a sigh. He put down his gun and opened the door.
"You wouldn't shoot your own brother, would you, Frank?" Joe asked.
Frank let out a long breath. "We're just being cautious." "Because of that murder?" Joe asked.
"Among other things. Come on in. Nancy was just about to let me in on everything." Frank said.
Nancy stood up and gave Joe a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Where's Vanessa?" "She'll be here in a few days. She couldn't get off of work right now." Joe said.
"What took you so long to get here?" Frank asked.
"There were a couple of traffic accidents." Joe said. "You got anything to eat? I'm starving."
Nancy smiled. "Look in the refridgerator. We have some leftovers."
Frank was glad to see Nancy smile. Joe being here would be really good for her.
Joe grabbed some roast beef and some bread. He made a sandwich and then sat down in the living room. Frank handed him the picture that Cupid had sent Nancy.
"Man." Joe said. "This guy has a sick sense of humor."
He and Frank turned to look at Nancy. Nancy sighed and gave a small smile.
"Glad to see that I have an audience." she said. She handed the file over to Frank. He opened the file and skimmed over the notes. "I want to hear everything from you, Nancy." Frank said quietly.
"Okay." Nancy took a deep breath. "Um, it was from a few years back, when I was still going out with Ned." She glanced quickly at Frank. It didn't seem to bother him. "Bess and I went up to Emersom College for Sweetheart Week. That first night we were there, Rosie was attacked and put in the hospital. There was a note on her that was signed 'Cupid'."
"The same name the killer is using." Joe commented.
Nancy nodded. "We figured out that he was targeting the Theta Pi Soroity House. He rigged the light switch in the basement so that when it was turned on, it would electrocute that person. Unfortunately, I was the one who got that little surprise. Then later, he wrote a threatening message on the soroity house, saying that they must die."
"It looks like he meant business." Frank said, looking at a picture of the soroity house with the message.
"It got worse after that." Nancy said. "He cut the brake lines on one of the girl's car. He then sent poisoned chocolates to the girls. All along, I thought it was Rosie's boyfriend, Casey. I finally found out that it was a guy named Mike Fitzgerald. He was always around the girlsm helping them around the house and tutoring them whenever they needed it. He was angry at them because he thought that they had ruined his sister's life by not pledging her into the soroity. He saw that I had figured it out that it was him, and he tried to kill me by putting me in a furnace. I got away from him, damaged the fuse box, and he was caught. As the police were escorting him out he told me that I should have stayed out of it."
"He sounds like he has a lot of problems." Joe said.
"He did. Last I heard, he was at the Schnieder Institute." Nancy said.
"I don't like this, Nancy. If he's the one who's responsible for this, then he could be after you." Frank said.
"Well, check it out. Call the institution." Nancy said.
Frank picked up the phone and dialed information. He was given the number for the Schnieder Institute and dialed.
"Hi. This is Detective Frank Hardy from the Chicago P.D. I'd like to speak to someone in charge, please." He was put on hold. Nancy and Joe just watched him.
In a few minutes, someone got on the line with him.
"This is Dr. Hugh Graham. How may I help you, Mr. Hardy?" a professional voice asked.
"I'm checking to see if you have a patient, Dr. Graham. Mike Fitzgerald." Frank said.
Dr. Graham hesitated. "We really don't like to discuss our patients, Mr. Hardy."
"Detective Hardy." Frank corrected. "And I completely understand that, Dr. Graham. But I am investigating a murder and it would really help me out if you can tell me if Mike Fitzgerlad is a patient there.
Dr. Graham sighed. Frank heard him typing on a keyboard. "Mike Fitzgerald you say, Detective?"
"Yes." Frank answered.
"I'm sorry to tell you this, Detective, but Mike Fitzgerald was released two years ago." Dr. Graham said.
Nancy grabbed her cell phone out of her purse and quickly dialed Frank's number. She never gave him a chance to say "Hello".
"Get over here, now, Frank!" Nancy said, frantic.
"Where?" Frank asked. Nancy could hear the fear in his voice. "What's going on?"
"Get to the Tribune offices now! I'll be in the lobby waiting for you." Nancy said and hung up the phone. She grabbed the flowers, envelope and her purse and hurried back into the lobby. She saw that Paul was still in the lobby.
"Hey, Nancy. Are you back again?" He asked, smiling at her.
"Yeah. I'm meeting Frank. It must have slipped my mind." Nancy explained. "If he gets here before I get out, will you tell him that I went to the restroom?"
"Sure thing, Nancy." Paul said.
"Thanks." Nancy said quietly. She went into the bathroom. Lucklily, there wasn't anyone in there. She put the items on the counter and looked up at the mirror. God, she was going to be sick. And then she felt a wave of naseau pass over her. She just made it to the toilet before she threw up.
She threw up a couple of times and then went to the sink to wash her face. She just stared at her reflection in the mirror. Why was he doing this to her? Why was he dragging her into his sick world? And how could he be back?
"He couldn't be." Nancy whispered. She was startled by a knock on the door.
"Nancy!" Frank called through the other side.
"I'll be right out." Nancy said. She grabbed a couple of paper towels and wiped her face.
"What's going on?" He demanded. And then he saw her face. "Oh, God, Nancy. Please tell me what's going on." he said quietly.
Nancy saw Paul glance at them. She grabbed Frank's hand and led him to her office. Frank wanted to say more, but thought better of it. He didn't want to make a scene and it was obvious that Nancy didn't want to either.
He kept glancing at her as they rode the elevator up to her office. As soon as the door to her office was closed behind them, he turned to her.
"All right." He said. "Tell me what's going on, Nan."
Nancy threw the dasies on her desk and handed Frank the envelope. She then sat at her desk and put her head in her hands.
"That was in my car, along with the flowers." she said.
"Don't you always lock your car?" Frank asked.
Nancy nodded. "Always."
Frank opened the envelope and tok the picture out. He looked disgusted and glanced up at Nancy.
"Well, that explains why you look sick." Frank said. "This guy's wanting to play games. I want to know why he's picked you." He started to put the picture back in the envelope.
Nancy noticed something on the back of the picture. "He wrote something on the back of the picture." She said.
Frank turned the picture over and read it to himself. He then read it out loud to Nancy.
"'I'm now bored/ I want to play a game/ I can guarantee/ Nothing will be the same.'"
Nancy sighed. Frank just shook his head in disbelief.
"This is great. This psycho wants to play a game. That means he's going to kill again." Frank said.
Nancy turned away and walked to window. She wrapped her arms around herself and closed her eyes.
Frank looked at her back. He hated to see her like this. Whatever she was keeping from him was killing her on the inside. He walked over to her and put his arms around her.
"Come on, Nan. You have to tell me what's going on. It's killing me to see you hurt like this." Frank said, squeezing her reassuringly.
Nancy lay her head back on Frank's chest. "There is a very good possibility that I may know who the killer is."
"What do you mean?" Frank asked, confused.
"It would certainly save you a headache if it turns out to be him." Nancy said.
"Who do you think it is, Nancy?" Frank asked, turning Nancy to face him.
"He's from the same case that I met Rosie. His name is Mike Fitzgerald. I have the file about the case at home." Nancy explained.
"Why do you think it's him?" Frank asked.
"Because everything he did, he signed the name "Cupid" to it." Nancy said.
"Then maybe we should go home and I can look over that file. And then you can tell me everything." Frank said.
"What about the flowers and the picture?" Nancy asked.
"Throw the flowers away. There won't be any evidence on them and to be honest I don't want to look at them anymore. I'll take the picture to the station with me tomorrow." Frank said.
Nancy picked up the flowers and Frank scorted her to the parking garage to her car. He didn't want to leave her alone, so she drove him to the front of the building to pick up his car. He followed her closely until they got home. When they got to the apartment, they didn't see Joe's car.
Frank looked at his watch. "He should have been here by now. He must have gotten held up."
Frank started dinner while Nancy took a hot shower and changed into comfortable clothes. When she got out, Frank was setting the table.
They ate their chicken fetticine and talked about their upcoming wedding. They determined that they needed to double check reservations, caterers, and make sure they had the wedding party gifts. Nancy also had to go to the final fitting of her gown.
After they were done and had cleaned up the dishes, Frank poured them a glass of wine and Nancy went to get the file out of their office. Just when they were about to settle down, the doorbell rang.
Nancy tensed and looked at Frank. He motioned for her to stay put, and he grabbed his gun. He held a finger to his lips and walked to the door. He looked through the peephole and let out a sigh. He put down his gun and opened the door.
"You wouldn't shoot your own brother, would you, Frank?" Joe asked.
Frank let out a long breath. "We're just being cautious." "Because of that murder?" Joe asked.
"Among other things. Come on in. Nancy was just about to let me in on everything." Frank said.
Nancy stood up and gave Joe a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Where's Vanessa?" "She'll be here in a few days. She couldn't get off of work right now." Joe said.
"What took you so long to get here?" Frank asked.
"There were a couple of traffic accidents." Joe said. "You got anything to eat? I'm starving."
Nancy smiled. "Look in the refridgerator. We have some leftovers."
Frank was glad to see Nancy smile. Joe being here would be really good for her.
Joe grabbed some roast beef and some bread. He made a sandwich and then sat down in the living room. Frank handed him the picture that Cupid had sent Nancy.
"Man." Joe said. "This guy has a sick sense of humor."
He and Frank turned to look at Nancy. Nancy sighed and gave a small smile.
"Glad to see that I have an audience." she said. She handed the file over to Frank. He opened the file and skimmed over the notes. "I want to hear everything from you, Nancy." Frank said quietly.
"Okay." Nancy took a deep breath. "Um, it was from a few years back, when I was still going out with Ned." She glanced quickly at Frank. It didn't seem to bother him. "Bess and I went up to Emersom College for Sweetheart Week. That first night we were there, Rosie was attacked and put in the hospital. There was a note on her that was signed 'Cupid'."
"The same name the killer is using." Joe commented.
Nancy nodded. "We figured out that he was targeting the Theta Pi Soroity House. He rigged the light switch in the basement so that when it was turned on, it would electrocute that person. Unfortunately, I was the one who got that little surprise. Then later, he wrote a threatening message on the soroity house, saying that they must die."
"It looks like he meant business." Frank said, looking at a picture of the soroity house with the message.
"It got worse after that." Nancy said. "He cut the brake lines on one of the girl's car. He then sent poisoned chocolates to the girls. All along, I thought it was Rosie's boyfriend, Casey. I finally found out that it was a guy named Mike Fitzgerald. He was always around the girlsm helping them around the house and tutoring them whenever they needed it. He was angry at them because he thought that they had ruined his sister's life by not pledging her into the soroity. He saw that I had figured it out that it was him, and he tried to kill me by putting me in a furnace. I got away from him, damaged the fuse box, and he was caught. As the police were escorting him out he told me that I should have stayed out of it."
"He sounds like he has a lot of problems." Joe said.
"He did. Last I heard, he was at the Schnieder Institute." Nancy said.
"I don't like this, Nancy. If he's the one who's responsible for this, then he could be after you." Frank said.
"Well, check it out. Call the institution." Nancy said.
Frank picked up the phone and dialed information. He was given the number for the Schnieder Institute and dialed.
"Hi. This is Detective Frank Hardy from the Chicago P.D. I'd like to speak to someone in charge, please." He was put on hold. Nancy and Joe just watched him.
In a few minutes, someone got on the line with him.
"This is Dr. Hugh Graham. How may I help you, Mr. Hardy?" a professional voice asked.
"I'm checking to see if you have a patient, Dr. Graham. Mike Fitzgerald." Frank said.
Dr. Graham hesitated. "We really don't like to discuss our patients, Mr. Hardy."
"Detective Hardy." Frank corrected. "And I completely understand that, Dr. Graham. But I am investigating a murder and it would really help me out if you can tell me if Mike Fitzgerlad is a patient there.
Dr. Graham sighed. Frank heard him typing on a keyboard. "Mike Fitzgerald you say, Detective?"
"Yes." Frank answered.
"I'm sorry to tell you this, Detective, but Mike Fitzgerald was released two years ago." Dr. Graham said.