When Joe got back to Nancy's room, Doctor Mars was there talking to her.
"Please tell me I'm free to go." Nancy said.
He was looking over her chart. "I don't see why not. All of the tests came back normal and everything went all right last night. I just want you to start taking it easy."
"Thank you so much, Doctor Mars." Nancy said, smiling.
Doctor Mars smiled back at her and then looked at Frank. "I mean it. She needs to take it easy."
"I'll make sure that she does." Frank said.
"Good. I'll go sign the release papers and be right back." Doctor Mars said and left her room.
Nancy got out of bed and went into the bathroom to change into her regular clothes. When she finished, Doctor Mars had returned with her discharge papers.
"Take care of yourself, Nancy." he said. "I want you to return to the doctor in two weeks to get that cast removed."
"I will." Nancy promised.
The nurse brought in a metal cane and Doctor Mars handed it to Nancy. "In the meantime, I want you to use this to move around. You don't need to be applying that much pressure to your leg. And I want you to call me or come back if you have any problems at all." He held out a business card to her.
Nancy took it and looked at it. "Thank you again, Doctor."
Doctor Mars smiled warmly at her. "You're quite welcome."
Frank and Joe helped Nancy to the car since she refused to be wheeled out in a wheelchair. She stretched out on the backseat while Frank and Joe sat up front.
"You've been quiet for too long now, Joe." Nancy commented. "What's up?"
Joe was actually smiling. "I just had a very interesting phone call."
"Well, spill it already." Nancy said. "And please tell me it's something good."
"It is." Joe said. "I had a phone call from one of Dad's friends up in Maine. His name is David Miller–he's a detective up there. We sent an email to him about Eric. He said he asked around and it seems that Eric wasn't on his best behavior while he was working there."
"What are you talking about?" Nancy asked.
"He had several arrests on his record–trespassing, petty theft, and some other minor stuff. We'll have more details when I get the case files tomorrow." Joe said.
"Where's the good news, Joe?" Frank asked.
"Patience is a virtue, brother." Joe said.
"Patience took a vacation and won't be back for another two weeks." Frank said.
"Get to it already, Joe." Nancy said.
"Geez, have you guys ever heard of building suspense in a story?" Joe asked.
"Joe!" Nancy and Frank said in unison.
"Guess not." Joe commented. Nancy raised her hand as if she was about to slap him up side his head. "Eric was arrested on suspicion of murder." He said quickly.
"You're kidding." Frank said.
Joe shook his head. "Nope.Detective Milleralso told meEric has a sister in Holly Springs."
"Holly Springs?" Nancy repeated.
"Yeah. Why?" Joe asked.
"Holly Springs is where that missing persons came from." Nancy said.
"Really?" Joe asked, intrigued.
"Well, that certainly makes things a little more interesting." Frank said.
"And it can't be a coincidence." Nancy said.
"You're right." Frank agreed.
"Do you guys have a map?" Nancy asked.
Joe opened the glove compartment and pulled out a folded map of Pennsylvania. He handed it to Nancy and she folded it out across her lap. She saw that Holly Springs was two counties over.
"Hey, Frank. Take a detour." Nancy said. "We're going to Holly Springs."
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In an hour and a half, Frank was driving down a residential neighborhood. He stopped in front of a nice, small white house with blue shutters.
"Hereit is." Frank said.
Nancy, Frank and Joe walked up the sidewalk to the door and Frank rang the doorbell. A young woman with long, dark hair and blue eyes opened the door, followed by a black pug. She looked at them, confused.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
"Yes." Nancy said. "Are you Eric Warren's sister?"
The woman nodded. "Yes. My name in Veronica. Who are you?"
"My name is Nancy Drew. And these are my friends, Frank and Joe Hardy. May we come in?" Nancy asked.
Veronica eyed them warily. But then she stepped back and let them in. She led the way to the living room, followed closely by her little dog.
"That's a cute dog." Nancy said. "What's his name?"
"That's Roscoe." Veronica answered, smiling. "You can pet him if you'd like."
Nancy held out her hand to him and he sniffed it. He then started to wag his tail and let Nancy pet him.
"Can I get you anything to drink?" Veronica asked.
"No, thank you." Frank said for them.
Veronica sat down on a small recliner. "So, what has Eric done now?"
Nancy, Frank and Joe exchanged uneasy glances.
"Did I say something wrong?" Veronica asked.
"No." Nancy said. "I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to come right out and say it. We think Eric may be involved in a murder."
If Nancy was waiting for a surprised reaction from Veronica, she didn't get one. Instead, Veronica just shook her and head and gave a small chuckle.
"You're not surprised by this." Nancy said. "How come?"
"Nothing my brother does surprises me anymore." Veronica said. "I learned that years ago."
"What do you mean?" Frank asked.
"My brother has been in trouble since the day of his graduation. Our parents were killed in a car accident eight years ago and I've had to take care of him. He took it hard and ever since he's been in one form of trouble or another." Veronica explained.
"Has he gotten help?" Joe asked.
"Are you kidding?" Veronica asked. "I've tried so many times to get him the help that he needs. We have been through so many doctors that it's not even funny. He would see them a few times and then just stop. He would say that he was better and then land in trouble again."
"Do you think he was better?" Nancy asked.
"I think it's going to take a long time for Eric to get better." Veronica answered sadly. "He would get upset every time I brought the subject up. So I thought it best if I just dropped it altogether. When he's ready to talk and get help, he'll let me know."
"Has Eric ever been violent towards anyone?" Nancy asked.
"I suppose you heard about the arrests up in Maine?" Veronica asked. She didn't wait for them to answer. "He told me that he had nothing to with that murder. And I believed him. My brother has never hurt anyone before. But after you told me he may be involved in another murder, I just don't know."
Veronica then finally noticed Nancy's leg. "Did he do that to you?"
Nancy shook her head. "I had a car accident."
"Nancy witnessed him kill another woman. When he found out that she knew, he threatened to do the same to her." Frank explained.
"Oh, Nancy!" Veronica gasped. "I am so sorry."
"It's okay." Nancy smiled to reassure her. "We just don't want him to hurt anyone else. The police still aren't sure that a murder has been committed. They're still looking for evidence, but haven't found any so far."
"I don't want him to hurt anyone else either. And I'll help any way that I can." Veronica said. "He doesn't come around town that much and when he does he stays with me. But like I said–I've pretty much given up on Eric. Don't get me wrong though–I love my little brother. He's the only family that I have left. But I cannot keep bailing him out when he's in trouble."
Nancy smiled. "I understand." She stood up and walked over to the mantle where several pictures stood.
"Is this your family?" she asked, pointing to one.
Veronica stood up beside her. "It was taken a week before my parents were killed."
Nancy looked at the others and did a double-take when she came to the last one.
"Is that Luke Medina?" Nancy asked.
"Yeah. He's a good friend of mine." Veronica said.
Nancy looked at the girl in the picture that was standing beside Luke. The girl looked vaguely familiar...and that's when it hit her.
"Veronica, who is that girl in the picture with Luke?" Nancy asked.
"Oh, that's my best friend. She was the one who actually introduced me to Luke. They actually dated for a few years." Veronica explained.
"What's her name?" Nancy asked, dreading the answer.
"Her name is Madelyn Fields." Veronica said.
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