A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed. I'm endeavoring to update quicker now, because I'm as eager to read the rest as you! Haha, I'm skimming time off my homework to do this, so it had better be worth it... Well, without further ado, here goes:

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Not even a stick of gum to my name. No, really.

Officers converged on the museum doors, looking for the easiest route to the roof. Other policemen secured the perimeter, looking especially stern under dozens of red and blue flashing lights.

Frank and Vanessa stood still amongst the chaos of sirens and shouting.

"Nancy..." Vanessa gasped, wave after wave of shock breaking over her. She had seen people get shot before, but that never made it any less upsetting. And when the victim was someone she knew, one of her friends... She turned to Frank, eyes brimming with tears.

Frank stood, staring in muted horror at the place Nancy had fallen. The scene replayed in his head, over and over...The crack of the gunshot, her body being thrown backwards and hitting the roof next to Fiona's with a thud... Suddenly Frank bolted towards the building.

Vanessa grabbed him by the arm, barely slowing him. Instead he dragged her closer and closer to the museum. "Wait!" she called. "Frank! We can't go in there!"

"I need to!" Frank answered breathlessly, not stopping. "I need to see her."

"Frank!" Vanessa yelled again. "Hold on, just one minute, please!"

Frank slowed down and turned to her. The intense fear in his eyes rendered her speechless for a moment. "I... Frank, the police wouldn't shoot to kill. They wouldn't kill her if they could help it." She took the opportunity to get a better grip on his shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly. "I'm sure she'll be fine. Maybe just a little scratched up. In big legal trouble, probably, but her dad's a lawyer for heaven's-" She realized she was rambling; as was her habit when she was worried, or under pressure...or lying through her teeth.

An ambulance screamed onto the scene and several paramedics leapt out and carried a pair of stretchers into the building. Frank made a move to follow them. Vanessa kept a firm hold on his arm, digging her heels into the ground. "Van, please." Frank groaned. His composure seemed to be returning, and he fixed a pleading gaze on her. "I just need to... to see her."

Vanessa's heart broke for him. He was obviously hurting more than he wanted to let on. Vanessa had no doubt she'd be just as distraught if Joe were in Nancy's position. "Let's go." she whispered, taking him by the hand. The pair made their way towards the door.

"FRANK!"

Frank spun to face the voice and peered out into the darkness. "Did you... did you hear that?" he whispered.

Vanessa didn't answer; she was crying. She didn't know how, but the figure of one Nancy Drew was sprinting towards them.

Frank ran to meet her and swept her into his arms, pulling her to his chest. She was shaking as badly as he was. "They shot Charity and Fiona." she murmured, stricken.

Charity. That explained it. Sort of. The only thing that registered in Frank's mind was that he wasn't hallucinating; it was really Nancy. "I thought it was you." Frank whispered hoarsely, hearing his own voice crack and hating himself for it.

Nancy pulled back. "Oh, Frank..." Pulling off her black gloves, she raised a hand to his face. "I'm sorry." Slowly, deliberately, she stood on her toes, kissing him gently on the lips.

After a moment, Frank pulled away and stared into her wide blue eyes. Nancy watched emotion flicker across his face; fear, relief, tenderness... and finally settle on anger. "Don't ever-" he started to growl. He stopped suddenly.

"Not going to yell at me, Hardy?" Nancy teased gently.

"No." he replied with a slow smile, the anger ebbing out of his features. That's something Ned might do. "Stuff like that, all that crazy, dangerous stuff you do... it's just what you do. I expect it from you." I love it about you. He added silently. By the way, real coherent sentence, Hardy. Dazzle her with your intelligence.

Nancy laughed softly. "Plus, you've done every crazy, dangerous thing I have, and more."

"You know it." Frank answered, joining her in laughing. And speaking of crazy, dangerous things, I'm not done for the night. Sobering up, he asked, "Are you okay?"

Nancy smiled tiredly. "Just a bit bruised, and some hopefully-reparable nerve damage... I don't think I'm any worse off than you." She added, gently fingering a bruise starting to appear on his cheek. "Why do you ask?"

Frank gathered his courage. "You scared the hell out of me tonight." he admitted. "I think I owe you an equally crazy and dangerous act of daring..." Flashing her a half-smile, he lowered his lips to hers, kissing her with every ounce of romantic tension he'd ever felt for her. She responded immediately, opening her mouth and deepening the kiss.

Ten feet away, Vanessa watched restlessly, arms crossed over her chest. Even a hopeless romantic like herself knew that it would be more practical to continue this little reunion somewhere where they were less likely to be arrested. "Guys?" she asked reluctantly.

Nancy and Frank had pulled apart and both turned to her, flushed and breathless. "Van!" Nancy cried, hugging her friend. "I'm sorry! I didn't even see you!"

Vanessa winked. "Sure... Hey, sorry to interrupt, but do you think we could find Joe, and, you know, get out of here?"

"Good idea." Nancy agreed. "We left Joe out front..." Vanessa started towards the front of the museum; Nancy and Frank followed behind, a bit more slowly. Nancy cocked her head to look at Frank. "...Did you just compare kissing me to jumping off the roof of a two-story building into the bushes below?"

Frank grinned. "Well, did it scare you?"

"Which? The kiss or the roof?"

"The kiss."

"Yes." It scared her a lot. How was she going to face Ned? How could she tell him that she needed to be with Frank? How could she tell him that his suspicions had been right all along, even if she hadn't known it? And worse, what if Frank didn't plan on breaking it off with Callie? If, to him, the past few days had just been part of the harmless flirtation they'd always engaged in?

A commotion arose from the roof. The trio stopped to listen to the shouts of the policemen.

"They're gone!" "Where'd they go?" "What is going on here!"

Vanessa gasped. "Charity and Fiona! They must have gotten away somehow..."

Nancy breathed a sigh. "Those two are trickier than I thought..." Secretly, she was glad they were not hurt; especially Charity, who, after all, had taken her place on the roof back there. She knew she would have been heartsick if they had been shot while letting her escape.

"They tricked us, you know." Frank whispered, as if reading her mind. "The Mirage was a fake; they had Vanessa the whole time."

Nancy's mind absorbed the facts, but she still couldn't bring herself to wish the two thieves harm. "I think they've proved they aren't as bad as they think they are." she replied.

Frank snorted. "Oh yes, they are."

Vanessa jumped as an arm snaked around her waist.

"Hey, beautiful."

"Joe!" Vanessa threw her arms around her boyfriend, who had snuck up on her from behind, followed closely by George.

"George? What are you doing here?" Frank asked.

"Joe called me in." George said. "Something about driving a getaway car..."

"Yeah, I had a plan and needed help. And it would have worked, too, except the police had to come and screw it up."

Nancy smiled guiltily. "My fault. I tripped the alarm."

"On purpose?" her friends chorused incredulously.

Nancy wasn't sure if she could explain just why she had set off the alarm, so she just nodded.

"That was a brave and stupid thing to do." Frank nodded appreciatively.

Nancy was pretty sure he understood what she was feeling. "Well, it got us all out of this mess, didn't it?" she asked.

"We're not out yet." Joe reminded them. "We are standing mere yards away from a museum that was just robbed, wearing all black and talking about alarms. If we don't get out of here, we'll still be arrested!"

"Wait," Vanessa interjected. "Don't we need to give the police our information? This whole incident needs to be reported; maybe they can still catch Charity and the Foxes!"

Nancy, Joe, and Frank looked at each other. Did they really want to report the cat burglars? Yes, they had gotten the teens into this mess in the first place, but they had also gotten them back out, no real harm done...

"They'll be long gone by now." Joe said uncertainly, wondering if he was going soft.

"I'm sure we'll run into them again." Frank replied, nodding to his brother. His eyes conveyed a clear message: we'll let them go... this time.

"And next time," Nancy added, "We'll actually catch them."

"Amen!" Vanessa put in.

George looked around at the sorry sight that was her friends. "You guys look like you could use a vacation." she joked.

The four teens nodded wearily back at her. "You drive home?" Nancy suggested.

"Looks like I still get to drive the getaway car!" George agreed, leading them to where her car was parked several blocks away. "Where to? Your motel here or back to Casa Verde?"

"Casa Verde!" Nancy, Frank, and Joe chorused emphatically, climbing into the backseat.

"Gotcha." George said, turning the key in the ignition. Taking a look in the rear view mirror, she saw Nancy rest her head on Frank's shoulder and close her eyes. She thought of Ned and Callie back at Casa Verde and wondered how these romantic entanglements could possibly work out. No use in upsetting them now,she thought. She trusted Ned and Callie to tell Nancy and Frank about what had gone on during their absence. Neither of them were liars.

Sighing, George turned the car onto the highway. All four of her passengers were already asleep.

A/N: Okay, weird stopping place, I know. Please review; I really don't know what to think of this chapter myself; I need to hear your thoughts and feelings! (Make it worth the time I spent doing this instead of my homework, please...)