Second chapter….

Chapter 6

Nancy groaned, trying to open her eyes. Her eyelids felt like weights, and her head throbbed. She tried to lift her hand to her forehead, but found both hands tied together behind her back. As her headache lessened, she realized she was blindfolded, and sitting cross-legged on a cold floor. The plastic feeling make her think it was probably linoleum. She leaned backward and felt the coolness of porcelain through her clothes. Resting her head back as well, she realized she was propped up against a bathtub.

She struggled against her bonds, but to no avail. The knots were tight, and with her ankles tied in such a way, she was locked into the sitting position.

"Why'd you bring her here?" a voice called out suddenly. It was loud but somewhat muffled.

"She saw my face. If we had left her, she could have identified me and that'd be the end of my life," a gruff voice replied.

There was a long pause. "You know who she is. She has connections everywhere. And you kidnapped her in her hometown, probably the worst place. Everyone is going to be looking for her!"

Nancy heard feet shuffling around, and then a creaking sound, as if someone had sat down heavily in a chair.

"Well, what's done is done," the voice continued.

"Actually, there's a bit more to it." The gruff voice coughed nervously. "Did you see the guy she was with?"

"No. Why? Was he a cop?"

The gruff voice coughed a second time. "Worse. Frank Hardy."

A string of profanities rang through the air.

Nancy winced. They knew who she and Frank were.. That should have significantly narrowed down the list of people who had kidnapped her, but that was still an incredibly large list.

Duh, Drew, she chided herself. He came out of your father's office with some files. Carson must be the connection. Nancy was just kidnapped because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Then a sinking thought hit her. If they knew Frank, and the gruff-voice guy had seen them together, that made him all the more dangerous.

I've got to get out of here, she thought. Frank could be in serious danger.

NDHB NDHB NDHB NDHB

Frank shifted uncomfortably on the couch. George sat next to him, holding a cup of hot chocolate. Frank's mug was sitting on the coffee table, right next to the phone, which held his full attention at the moment.

Mick sat in an arm chair close by, quietly watching the two. He had liked Frank when they had all been in Australia, and he didn't completely dislike him now. But his own feelings were confused, knowing that Frank was the fiancé, and of course the kidnapping.

He sipped his hot chocolate, willing the phone to ring, even if it was a kidnapper, demanding ransom or something, just anything to give them a clue or a place to start.

When the phone did finally ring, all three jumped.

Frank picked up - it was Carson. He put him on the speaker phone. "Mr. Drew, Mick Devlin, a friend, and George are both sitting here with me."

"George," Carson sighed. "Thanks for helping out. Frank, are you okay, son?" Though they weren't related at all, Carson had always treated Frank and Joe like sons, being such good friends with their father, and all.

"I'm fine, Mr. Drew, just, well, frustrated." Frank hung his head. "Mr. Drew, I'm so sorry I wasn't able to protect her. If only I hadn't been so surprised, had at the very least been the one to go after the guy, Nancy would be here."

"Frank Hardy, don't you dare blame yourself for this. You and I know Nancy well enough that nothing you might have done would have prevented her from taking off. Unfortunately, Nancy, just like you and Joe, has a reputation for getting into situations without even trying." Carson gave a small, forced laugh. "Just like their fathers."

On the other end of the line, Carson rubbed his temple. "Did you find anything at the office?"

Frank told him about what happened, giving him details. "Oh, and those files. The group of files missing came between Richard Granger and Kristen Hunter. Does that mean anything to you?"

"That's bad. The file that I had asked Nancy to get was in the group. It's for the case I'm working on right now."

Frank's head shot up. "That means that this could all be related to your case. Maybe Nancy was kidnapped just because she was there, and it wasn't actually a part of their plan."

George and Mick had been listening carefully the entire time. But Mick was ready to get the search started. "Mr. Drew, do you have copies of those files anywhere?"

If Frank had super powers, Mick would have been smoking in his seat. George laid a restraining, but comforting hand on Frank's arm, giving it a squeeze. She knew this was hard for Frank.

Carson quickly explained that the only files in that file cabinet were of cases still open. If the case had been closed, for any reason, the paper copies were destroyed. However, he kept digital copies of everything stored in the safe in that closet, and copies in two other secure locations.

But for the cases that remained open, their backups were still on compact discs Carson kept in the safe, as they were constantly being updated.

"I really wish I could be there to help, but this case here is starting to heat up. Unfortunately, I really needed that file. But thankfully, Kimberly, my secretary, keeps everything copied constantly. I'll have her send me that information."

"Mr. Drew," George said, "Could we have a look at that information as well? If this really is related to your case-"

Mr. Drew laughed. "Don't worry, George. I'll make arrangements with Kimberly to give you all full access to this particular file and anything you might need. I wish I was there to help, but I know that my daughter is in the best of hands, and with George there, you'll have her back in no time."

Frank thanked him for his confidence, and promised the same.

"Just keep me updated. If I can do anything else from here, I will. And I'll keep my ears open for anything about Nancy, in case this really is related to my case."

After saying their goodbyes, Frank hung up the phone. He leaned back against the couch, thinking hard.

"So what's the plan, Sherlock?" Mick asked, not trying to be sarcastic, but not surprised the way his question came out.

Frank ignored the tone. "Tonight, we sleep. Tomorrow, we're going to split up. George and I will go to Mr. Drew's office, and then to the police station. Mick, you and Bess, assuming she is available, are going to talk to the businesses around that area. Check to see if they have any security cameras that might have been recording any part of the street or area outside."

Frank looked at Mick, his brown eyes sizing Mick up, debating over his next statement. "I know I can't stop you from doing what you can to save Nancy, so I won't exclude you in this. But just do things my way. Bess and George know the town and the people. Bess should be able to find some information." And keep an eye on you, he thought to himself.

Mick nodded. "Should be fine." He stood up and stretched. "Should we meet in the morning?"

George stood up as well. "Let's meet for a late lunch, after we've had a chance to get more information. I'll call Bess tonight and fill her in." She gave Frank a hug. "Call me if you need anything."

Frank nodded. "Yes, Mother. I'll be fine. See you guys tomorrow."

After Mick and George left, Frank wondered aimlessly through he empty Drew household. It was quiet. He wearily climbed the stairs and paused in the doorway of the guest room.

It was just too quiet. His whole life, the noise of sports, his brother, bombs, guns, explosions, and the like had filled the air. Right now, the quiet almost scared him.

He entered Nancy's room. He sat on her bed and looked around. There were boxes, some empty, some half full, and some already taped shut, everywhere. The closest box looked like it contained photos. He pulled the top album, labeled "Europe Vacation" out of the box and flipped through.

Pictures of Bess and George, all three girls, and Nancy and Mick were placed neatly in the sleeves. His eyes widened. Nancy had once told him a a little about this vacation, but not much detail. A lump formed in his throat. They looked like a perfect couple, tanned, happy, and relaxed. Looking at these pictures was like a knife of jealousy slicing at his heart.

He shoved the album off the bed and put his head on her pillow. "I'm not going to lose you," he vowed. "I'll protect you to the end."

But deep down, he knew that her happiness was more important to him than his own. If, in the end, she chose Mick, he would deal with her decision the best he could.

He closed his eyes, fighting back tears of loneliness, frustration, stress, and anger. "Nancy, I will find you. Please wait for me," he murmured as the succumbed to sleep.

NDHB NDHB NDHB NDHB

There ya go! Two chapters! I'm really digging into the angst bag on this one. I love drama, especially in this situation. Just too many possibilities! So as usual, thank you for waiting (hopefully) patiently for this! Reviewers, have at thee! THANK YOU FOR READING!

Sorry this took so long to upload! The site kept timing out when I tried to upload the chapters and it FINALLY worked!