Foreword: Thank you for the five reviews. As I promised, I will update the story when I get five reviews. So here is the newest chapter. This one introduces Nancy and Ned. You'll see that the reason I made this story rated T is because of murder in the story. It's not very graphic, but I decided to make it rated T anyway. Enjoy, and please update!

2

Murder in Florida

A blonde girl was waiting anxiously in front of her three-story house in the peaceful suburb of River Heights. Her height was about five-five and she had a pair of sparkling blue eyes that matched the color of her Ford mustang convertible she liked to drive. She wore light blue dress that matched the color of the sky and had a white purse that matched the color of the clouds. Her name was Nancy Drew. She was a detective. Ever since starting her career as a startling amateur detective at the age of sixteen two years ago, she had been working on numerous cases from kidnapping, fraud, and theft to murder, conspiracy, and false identity. She was now eighteen with a bright future in mind and a glorious day to look forward to.

Usually, Nancy did not wear something so glamorous and uncomfortable to move around in. Her feet were aching because of the shoes she wore with the heels and the dress was too long. She usually wore jeans and sneakers, sometimes shopping at the local mall with her two best friends Bess Marvin and George Fayne to find outfit she liked, and usually never wore skirts unless she was with her attorney father Carson Drew in a party or meeting a client. Usually, she never liked wearing something so flashy, but this was not one of the usual occasions. This was a date.

Like most of the girls her age, Nancy had a steady boyfriend. His name was Ned Nickerson, and their relationship had been going steady so far, even though they stopped seeing each other for a few months because of the campus life Ned had and the detective works Nancy had to work on. But after a while, they decided to get together again and talk for a little while.

So, the day of the date was today. Nancy had been waiting on her porch for more than ten minutes, wearing a white hat in order to block her face from the sun. It was a great morning with less clouds and more sunshine pouring down onto the ground. Ned was to arrive at nine but was not present at ten past nine. Nancy got a little worried and took out her cell phone. Dialing her boyfriend's cell phone number, she waited until she heard Ned's voice. "Hello?"

"What do you mean 'Hello'?" Nancy asked. "Do you know what time it is?"

"Sure. Ten minutes after the time I promised to meet you at your house. But the traffic was pretty bad, so I'm not driving as fast as I want to."

"Okay. I'll wait"—she looked at her watch—"for ten more minutes. If you still don't come, I'll go to the restaurant on my own car. Okay?"

"All right. I'll try to get there before that."

Nancy hung up and looked at the sky. It was already early July. The most recent mystery she solved was about her friend Bailey, who was being framed by an unknown person. But the case ended in such a tragic way Nancy did not want to remember. It seemed like just one of those bad nightmares, but it wasn't. It stayed in her head ever since she came back to River Heights from New York.

As she put her cell phone away, Nancy heard a car approaching. Looking up, she noticed that it was Ned. She smiled and waved, then got into the car.

"So where do you want to go first?" he asked.

"To eat breakfast," Nancy answered. "Hannah told me to eat something in the morning, but I didn't want to ruin my appetite. Besides, I wanted to enjoy the breakfast with you, of all persons."

Ned smiled. "Well, isn't that loyal?" Bending over, he kissed Nancy lightly on the cheek and turned the ignition back on. The car then dashed to the urban part of the town. Nancy lowered the window and enjoyed the warm breeze touch her face.

When Ned's car drove across the Muskoka River on the concrete bridge, Nancy saw the tall buildings that had up to twenty stories high. There were significantly few trees now and the tall buildings took up most of the space. The downtown was where Nancy's father worked and had his office.

"So which restaurant do you want to go to?" Ned asked, turning toward Nancy. "You live here. I'm just a visitor in River Heights. I barely know the way around."

Nancy thought for a moment. She then remembered the delicious breakfast she had in a restaurant her mother used to take her. Even though Nancy's mother died when she was only three, Nancy had a vivid memory of her in her mind, even though she couldn't quite remember her face. She heard from her father that Mrs. Drew used to take her to a restaurant that hired her college friend as a chef. He was very good chef, as Mr. Drew knew, and served delicious dishes and coffee to start your day. He once ate there and was delighted to find coffee with such magnificent aroma and refreshing aftertaste. When Nancy was ten, Mr. Drew brought her to that restaurant and ordered a breakfast meal for kids and she remember loving it and begging her father to bring her there the very next day. She remembered the excellent service and the friendly waiters and waitresses. She remembered the delicious orange jelly and the fruit smoothie.

Nodding, Nancy decided to tell it to Ned. "I know a perfect place: 'Seaside Oasis'. It's located at the corner of Rutherford Street and Baker Avenue."

Ned nodded. "But tell me how to go there," he added.

Nancy pointed out how to get to the restaurant as Ned drove the car. They got to the restaurant after five minutes. It was a fairly small restaurant that had the sign saying "Seashore Oasis: the Freshest Restaurant There Is." Nancy looked around for any parking space that was not taken. As she was searching for a space, a car got out of the parking space right across the street from the restaurant.

"There's one," she said, pointing to the available space. Ned nodded and drove the car skillfully into the small space. The young couple got out of the car and entered the small restaurant. Inside, the restaurant was almost full. Most of the people in there were enjoying a routine breakfast meal. Nancy and Ned were quickly being seated and were placed at the table right next to the window.

Ned looked at the menu and commented, "They are famous for their fruit desserts and fish cuisine." She flipped through the pages. "I heard that they get their ingredients straight from Florida."

Nancy ordered Fruit Shakers and Ham-Egg Traditional. Fruit Shakers was a smoothie that contained strawberries, oranges, and bananas. Even though it might seem strange, Nancy actually thought it tasted great with lemon in it. The Ham-Egg Traditional was just a plate with ham and egg on it, along with salad, bread, and butter. The salad contained lettuce, tomatoes, celery, and slices of apple. Poured on it was the restaurant's specialty sauce, which went well with the vegetables.

Ned ordered Fruit Shakers, which Nancy had recommended, and Burger Cuisine. Burger Cuisine was a hamburger with more vegetable than burger, with the ingredients in the salad Nancy ordered added in between the burger and the bun. Both dishes tasted great, but the smoothie was always Nancy's favorite. She liked how the smoothie was not too sweet and yet it was not too sour either.

As Nancy and Ned finished the breakfast, they saw a middle-aged man come out of the kitchen and smile at them. Nancy waved at the man and got out of her seat. Ned followed her with a questioning expression.

"Hello, Nancy!" the man said, looking at Nancy. "It's great to see you again."

"Same here, Mr. Chandler," Nancy said with a smile.

The man who Nancy called Mr. Chandler asked, "Why haven't you come here in more than a year?"

Nancy blushed, feeling embarrassed. "I've been very busy."

"I know." Mr. Chandler patted her back. "I've read about you in the newspapers. You've been solving quite a few mysteries all around the globe."

"Well, I didn't actually go after mysteries myself. They just come to me."

Mr. Chandler's smile faded. He looked around and noticed Ned. "Why is this lad?" he asked.

"Oh, he is my boyfriend Ned Nickerson," Nancy introduced. Then, turning to Ned, she said, "This is Mr. Kevin Chandler. He was my parents' friend from the time before I was born. He's the chef working in this restaurant."

Nancy then turned to Mr. Chandler. "Weren't you the one who went to Europe to get training? My dad said that you have studied cooking in England, France, Italy, and Spain."

Mr. Chandler chuckled. "Oh, I haven't been in Spain yet, but I have been in England, France, Italy, and Germany. They have the fine cuisine and I have been studying cooking for more than twenty years. Even now, I read recipe books written by famous chefs all around the world."

Then, his expression changed. "Anyway, Nancy and Ned, I would like to talk to you in private. Don't worry. My assistant chefs Gloria Lacombe and Peter Lanoka are very good cooks themselves, and they will be cooking for the guests when I'm gone for a short while. Please, come into my office."

Nancy and Ned stepped into the finely decorated office. There was a window facing the alley, and paintings were hung on the walls. Mr. Chandler went to his office. His expression was serious.

"Nancy, I would like you to investigate a murder case for me."

"A what?" Nancy almost shouted it out, but she managed to keep her voice down. "But…why ask me?"

Mr. Chandler looked out of his window. "Last week, my sister, Christina Stuart, was found dead on a beach just a few miles away from the orange farm from where our oranges were delivered. She fell from the cliff. Christina owned a company that sold oranges, and she sent me oranges every week. She was a great business partner, since I didn't trust the quality of the oranges sold anywhere else. Her orange was much better than the other ones. Using her oranges was one of the reasons my business has been booming."

The gray-haired man paused to take a breath. He was trying to control his voice. "But… she was dead. Police say that she must have fallen from the cliff that was thirty feet tall and broke her neck. When I heard the news from her husband, I was so shocked…" He stopped, a drop of tear rolling down his cheek. "I was also mad. They later found that there were two sets of footprints leading to the cliff. This showed that she must have been pushed from the top of the cliff!"

Nancy gasped. "How could someone do such cruel thing?"

Ned thought for a moment. "So you want Nancy to investigate because you don't trust the police?"

Mr. Chandler nodded. "Yes. The police say they have been doing the best they could, but I doubt that, since there is not a single lead." He looked at Nancy. "Can you take the case? I know it could be dangerous, but I desperately need to find out who killed my sister. Will you do it for me?"

Nancy thought for a moment. She didn't want to get into another mystery yet, but she couldn't let the murderer get away with such a horrid crime. After ten seconds, she nodded. "I will take this case, Mr. Chandler. Could you tell me where to go?"

The middle-aged chef seemed relieved. "I can never thank you enough, Nancy. I will send the plane fare and the address of my sister's home address to you in a few days. I know this might be dangerous, but I can't trust anyone else, not even the police or a private investigator. I trust you because you are the daughter of my best friend, Nancy."

Ned grinned. "If Nancy's going, then I will, too. She has solved many cases, and none of them ended up without a dangerous situation in the end. I'll be Nancy's boyfriend and her personal body guard."

"That's really sweet, Ned," Nancy said, blushing. "I will ask my dad and get permission from him to go to Florida for a 'vacation', since if he knew I was investigating a murder, he would do anything to stop me, even tie me down to the sofa! And could you keep this a secret, Mr. Chandler?"

Mr. Chandler nodded. "Once more, I can't ever thank you enough, Nancy. I appreciate it very much."

Nancy and Ned went out of the restaurant and out into the busy street. As Ned got the car out of the parking space, Nancy looked out the window and saw the sunny sky.

I will enjoy today as much as possible, she thought. After all, our date is not finished yet!

The young couple then went to the movie theater to watch the movie Nancy was itching to see and ate lunch at the nearby café.

The name of the café was "Riverside Coffee", but it didn't just sell coffee. It sold delicious turkey sandwich and cold milkshake. Those two were the ones Nancy ordered. Ned ordered the milkshake with hot dog.

"Oh, I need to go to wash my hands," Nancy said to Ned, rushing into the restroom.

Nobody was in the restroom and Nancy washed her hands in one of the three sinks. The door opened, but she didn't hear the sound. She was about to dry her hands with the paper towel when a hand grabbed her shoulder.

Postscript: One reader who is a Ned Nickerson fan wanted me to put Ned in, so I decided to take her advice. Actually, she's the biggest Ned fan I've ever seen! And thanks for telling me about my mistakes. I fixed the Mr. Frank part and some other parts. I'll update as soon as I either get five reviews or finish the chapter, depending on my mood:-) Anyway, thanks for reading this chapter and I hope you will review the next one as well.