A Message from me: I SURVIVED HURRICANE DENNIS! YAY! Now on with the story...

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Joe looked up from Frank's laptop when Nancy and Frank came into the hotel room.

"That's didn't take too long." Joe said.

"Well, our search may have been narrowed down," Frank explained.

"How?" Joe asked.

"Well, the cufflink apparently belongs to someone with money and power." Nancy said, sitting down on the sofa.

"Then it shouldn't be that hard to find someone like that in Las Vegas." Joe said, sarcastically.

Frank shook his head at Joe. "Don't talk to her like that. She won't listen to you."

"Actually, we start in the most obvious place," Nancy said. "The Saraphina Hotel."

"And allow me to make it a little more obvious," Joe said. "Abby Collins was the star in their main stage show."

"That certainly does connect things," Frank said.

"Now all we have to do is figure out another way over there," Nancy said. "They'll be on the lookout for me after last night's fiasco."

"What about me?" Frank asked. "They haven't seen me."

"It's worth a shot." Joe said.

Nancy nodded. "Sounds good. While you two figure it out, I'm going to lay down and take a nap."

"Are you okay?" Frank asked.

"Yeah, I'm just wiped out all of a sudden." Nancy said.

"You really should think about seeing a doctor," Frank said. "You've been like this for a couple of days now."

"It's okay," Nancy said. "It's probably just exhaustion."

Nancy stood up and walked to her bedroom. She really hoped that it was exhaustion. But she was starting to get a little worried herself. She promised herself that if she didn't feel any better by tomorrow, she would go to a doctor and see what was going on.

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Phil slammed his phone down in anger. He had just called the Exodus Hotel and after he had gone through all of the formalities of explaining who he was, he was told that there wasn't a Molly Adams registered at the hotel. But that was absurd because he had just seen he enter that hotel not thirty minutes ago.

He looked up as a knock sounded on his door.

"Come in," Phil said, gruffly.

"Is that any way to speak to someone at your door?" Stuart Grayson's silky voice said.

"Sorry, sir." Phil said. "It's just been a rough couple of days."

"You're right. It has been a rough couple of days." Stuart said, sitting in the chair across from Phil. He was holding a thick folder in his hands. "But I'm sure that you're on top of things."

"I've had a few leads on the woman. I even spotted her today going into the Exodus with a man. But when I called with her name, they told me she wasn't registered there." Phil said.

"Go there and show them the picture that you got of her. Like you said, she has a memorable face. Someone will recognize her." Stuart said. He threw the folder across the desk and it slid to a stop right in front of Phil.

"What is this?" Phil asked, picking the folder up.

"I thought I would check up on the guy we have going down for this. It's a pretty interesting read, if I do say so myself." Stuart said.

Phil opened the folder and his eyes widened as he read over it.

Stuart leaned back in his seat and watched Phil's expression. "Joseph Hardy, twenty-one years old, hails from Bayport, New York. He has a brother, Frank, who is twenty-three. They're the sons of Fenton Hardy, a retired detective from the NYPD. They have a solid reputation for solving cases all over the world and have done work for a secret government organization called The Network.

"Joe is currently enrolled in college where he is earning a degree in criminal psychology. Frank is now the lead detective for the Chicago PD. Almost a year ago, he married Nancy Drew who pulls double duty as a detective and the top investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune." Stuart recited as if he remembered every detail perfectly.

"So, what does this mean to us?" Phil asked.

"It means that we have trouble." Stuart said. "I think something needs to be done before they're able to pin this murder on us."

"Us?" Phil asked.

"Yes, us," Stuart said. "You're in this as much as I am."

"I told you that you didn't have to kill Abby. She could have been bought off." Phil said, angrily.

"No one can be bought off. As soon as the money was gone, she would have bled me dry until I had nothing left. And besides, who's to say she wouldn't have ratted me out just to spite me?" Stuart said.

Phil looked as if he was going to say something else, but decided against it. Stuart was right, after all. If Stuart went down, he sure as hell would bring him down with him. Stuart had made sure of that fact. He flipped through the thick folder until he came to a photograph. He let out a chuckle, causing Stuart to look up at him.

"You mind telling me what you find humorous in this situation?" Stuart asked.

"I think our problem may have gotten a little easier." Phil said.

"How's that?" Stuart asked.

"You want the woman that we've been looking for?" Phil didn't wait for an answer. He slid the picture across the desk to Stuart. "That's her, except her name isn't Molly Adams. It's Nancy Drew."

A slow smile formed across Stuart's face. "Well, I think it's about time we have a talk with Mrs. Drew."

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Frank watched the bedroom door close behind Nancy with a worried expression. It was bothering him that she wasn't feeling well and that she didn't know why she was felling that way.

"It's probably nothing, Frank." Joe said, causing Frank to tear his gaze away from the door.

"What are you talking about?" Frank asked.

"You're worried that something's really wrong with her–don't be. It's probably just exhaustion, like she said. You know that she works herself ragged." Joe said.

Frank ran a hand through his dark hair. "I know." He looked Joe directly in the eye. " It's just...when you get married, you tend to worry more about that person."

Joe didn't say anything but Frank saw him cringe when he said the word "marriage".

"Why didn't you tell me about you and Vanessa?" Frank asked.

Joe sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "Who told you?"

"Vanessa called Nancy, crying, last night. Why didn't you tell me?" Frank asked.

Joe shook his head. "I don't know–that is an honest answer. I didn't even think about anything but getting as far away from Bayport as fast as I could."

"And look where you are now." Frank commented.

"I know." Joe said. "It was a really stupid move on my part. Sure, I'm up on a murder charge right now, but the thing that really bothers me right now is how much I hurt Vanessa."

"I'm not going to lie to you, Joe." Frank said. "She's really hurting right now. And she really put Nancy on the spot last night. Nancy had to tell her what was going on here. And not to add any more guilt on you, she partially blames herself for all of this."

"Oh, man," Joe said, rubbing his hands over his face. "I really messed up."

"Not to sound like a broken record, but you did." Frank said.

"I guess I should call her." Joe said.

"It would be the smart thing to do," Frank said.

Joe reached for the phone, not sure what he was going to say to Vanessa.

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When Nancy woke up the next morning, she still wasn't feeling any better. Looking next to her, she saw that Frank was still sound asleep. Not wanting to wake him, she quietly slipped out of bed and stepped into the shower, thinking that would make her feel better. It was really bothering her that she didn't know what was going on with her body. She hadn't been sick in a long time and when she did get sick, it had a tendency to really knock her down.

She got out of the shower and quickly dressed. She opened the bathroom door quietly and saw that Frank was still sleeping. She quickly grabbed her purse and walked out of their bedroom, making sure to close the door. She didn't know why, but she didn't want Frank to go to the doctor with her. Maybe it was because she knew seeing him worry would stress her out even more.

Nancy saw that Joe was still sleeping on the couch. She grabbed the pad of paper and the pen by the phone and scribbled a note to let them know what she was doing. She also told them to call her on her cell phone if they needed her. She made sure that she had her key and she left their room. Just as she was about to get on the elevator, she changed her mind and walked to her dad's room, which was a few doors down.

"Who is it?" he asked through the door.

"It's me, Dad." Nancy said.

She heard Carson fumble with the locks and a moment later the door opened. "Nancy, what are you doing up this early?"

"Can I come in?" Nancy asked.

"Yes–I'm sorry–yes, come in!" Carson stepped back from the door and let his daughter in.

"What's going on, honey?" Carson asked, leading her to his small sofa in the sitting room.

Nancy put her purse down and then sat down on the sofa. "Nothing," she said, forcing a smile. "I was just checking up on you. Have you heard anything new?"

"I'm trying to talk to the police and the judge to drop the charges against Joe, but I'm afraid it's not going too well." Carson said, sighing. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Water will be fine," Nancy said.

Carson went to the bathroom to get Nancy a glass of water and then brought it to her. She took a sip of it as he sat next to her. "Something's bothering you. Tell me what it is."

Nancy let out a sigh and put the glass of water on the small coffee table in front of the sofa. "It's nothing, really. I just haven't been feeling well in the last couple of days. Frank's freaked out about it and he wants me to go to the doctor. It's actually where I'm headed this early in the morning."

"Are you worried?" Carson asked.

Nancy shook her head. "Not really. I told him it was probably exhaustion."

"That's very possible with the way that you work yourself." Carson said. "But why isn't Frank with you right now?"

"I didn't want him to come." Nancy said. "He'd just freak out more and it would just drive me crazy. I love him, Dad, but he can get on my nerves sometimes."

"Welcome to married life, honey." Carson said, chuckling.

Nancy gave him a small chuckle. "Just if Frank comes looking for me, tell him I'll be back later. And not to worry."

"I'll do what I can." Carson said. "But you let me know something as soon as you know."

"I will," Nancy said. She stood up, grabbed her purse and gave her father a hug.

Carson followed her to the door. "Like you said, sweetheart–it's probably nothing."

"I know." Nancy said, opening the door. "Thanks, Dad."

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Nancy decided she would be best off if she went to a walk-in clinic since her regular doctor was all the way in Chicago. She pulled up to On-Call Medical Clinic and parked her car in the first available slot. She got out, making sure to lock the doors and pulled open the door to the clinic just as a mother with her small child was coming out. She went up the desk, where she was greeted by a small, kind woman with a warm smile.

"Hello, dear." She said. "Can I help you?"

Nancy smiled at her. "Yes–I just haven't felt good in the last few days and I was just wanting to see a doctor and see if they could tell me what was wrong with me."

"Well, of course!" The woman said. "Let me just give you these forms to fill out real quick–just insurance and general information. Just bring them back to me when you are finished and if you have any questions at all, you can just ask me. My name is Ms. Andrews."

"Thank you," Nancy said, taking the clipboard from her. She found a seat in the corner and quickly filled out all of her information and handed it back to Ms. Andrews.

"Just have a seat and someone will see you shortly," Ms. Andrews said.

Nancy smiled her thanks and sat down in the seat she had occupied before. She sat there for at least forty-five minutes, watching as people walked in and out of the clinic, before a nurse called her name. Shr grabbed her purse and then followed the nurse to the first unoccupied examination room. The nurse took Nancy's stats and then asked her to sit on the examination table.

"So, what seems to be bothering you, Mrs. Hardy?" the nurse asked, sitting on a rolling stool.

"Um," Nancy said, thinking. "It's a few things, actually. Exhaustion, dizziness, loss of appetite, nausea."

The nurse wrote down everything Nancy said on her chart. She then looked at Nancy and smiled. "All right. The doctor will be in to see you shortly."

"Thank you," Nancy said as the nurse shut the door.

Not having anything else to do but wait, she pulled out her cell phone and saw that she had two missed calls. She had turned her phone on silent when she came into the clinic so she wouldn't disturb anyone else. She looked at her call log to see they were both from Frank. She was about to call him back when the door opened, causing her to jump.

"I'm so sorry to startle you," the doctor said. She was a small petite woman who appeared to be in her thirties, with short, red hair. "I'm Dr. Patty Chase."

"No, it's okay," Nancy said, smiling. "I should have been paying attention instead of worrying with this phone."

"I understand completely." Dr. Chase said, smiling at her. "I am firmly attached to mine as well."

Nancy smiled warmly at the doctor.

"Well, Mrs. Drew Hardy–" Dr. Chase began.

"Please, call me Nancy." Nancy said.

"Okay, Nancy...I see that you have several things bothering you today." Dr. Chase said.

"That's me. I can't ever just have one thing wrong with me," Nancy joked.

"Well, that's quite all right." Dr. Chase said, smiling at her. She looked down at Nancy's chart. "Your blood pressure seems to be a little high, but it could be attributed to all of these other things that are bothering you."

"What do you think it is?" Nancy asked, a little worried.

"Well, I have a pretty good idea, but I need to ask you a few questions first." Dr. Chase said.

"Okay," Nancy said, nodding.

"First of all, are you late?" Dr. Chase asked.

"Late? What do you mean?" Nancy asked.

"I mean, have you missed your period?" Dr. Chase said.

Nancy was caught off-guard. "I–Well, now that I think about it, I may be a few days late, but that usually happens with me. It never happens the same time each month."

Dr. Chase made a note in Nancy's chart. "When's the last time that you had intercourse?"

"Excuse me?" Nancy asked, shocked.

"When was the last time that you had sex?" Dr. Chase asked again.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Chase, but I really don't like this questioning. Will you please tell me what's going on here?" Nancy said.

"I'm sorry, Nancy. A lot of women aren't comfortable with these questions. But all of your symptoms are pointing to one thing and I just need to be sure before I tell you." Dr. Chase said.

"Will you at least tell me what you think it is?" Nancy asked.

Dr. Chase nodded. "I think you may be pregnant."

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Author's Note: So, is she really pregnant? I guess we'll find out in the next chapter. That is really cruel for me to make you wait, huh? But it only makes you want that next chapter even more! Mwhahahahah!

I also realized that some of you can't access my email address if you don't have an account with So to make it easier, just email them at You don't really have to give them an excuse, just tell them that you would like to see a name change.