A/N: A big thank you to BurnedSpy, max2013, Guest, zenfrodo, Caranath, centaurdy jackson007, Lady Emily, Jackie, ILoveMom, Stork Hardy, bhar, Vinsmouse, and Leya for your reviews! They are very much appreciated. And thanks to anyone reading as well.

Chapter 27

Nancy was showering in the hotel locker room, rinsing the conditioner out of her hair, when Kathy called to her from the adjoining shower.

"I'm finished," she said. "I'll be back in the locker room with the other girls.

"Okay." Nancy closed her eyes as the hot water pulsed down over her. "I'll be right behind you. Stay close to Bess or Emily."

She could hear Kathy's sigh of annoyance echoing off the tile walls. Nancy smiled and continued rinsing her hair. Reluctantly, she stepped away from the spray, turned it off, and reached for her towel.

She'd barely gotten her hair wrapped and her terry cloth robe on, when she heard a high pitched scream coming from the locker area.

What on earth?

Nancy exited the shower room and came to an abrupt stop.

Kathy was lying on the floor in front of the metal lockers.

Unconscious.

OOOoooOOO

Joe bent over the suitcase and lifted out drafts of notes similar to ones they'd found earlier from the stalker. There were completed letters as well, and something that looked like a large photo album. Joe yanked off his pullover, placed it around the book and handed it to Frank. Then he turned back to the contents of Kathy's suitcase.

"Geez, she had this all planned out, didn't she?" Joe carefully tilted the luggage, so he didn't touch the actual notes, but moved them enough to enable him to read them.

Frank let out a low whistle as he opened the album and looked through its contents.

"What's that? Some sort of scrapbook from boarding school?"

"Not exactly." Frank held the album at arm's length. "Take a look."

Joe turned his head and saw himself. Photos, newspaper clippings, articles from magazines...just about every bit of publicity he and Frank had received over the years from their detective work, was showcased in Kathy's album. She'd decorated the borders of the pages with hand drawn hearts and love notes. Joe's jaw dropped.

"She set this whole thing up."

"Just to meet you. You should feel flattered Joe." Frank grinned and pointed to a newspaper article. "She obviously doesn't give a damn about me. She cut me out of this photo entirely just to fit it on the page. See? That's my left arm."

Joe got to his feet and looked over Frank's shoulder as he turned the pages. "What do we do now? We have to confront her."

"Yeah." Frank closed the scrapbook. "Let's think about this first. Maybe call Dad and get some advice from a mental health expert. Something like this has to be handled in the right way."

Joe nodded as he pocketed a few of the notes, then bent down and replaced the false bottom in the suitcase. He zipped it up, put it back in the closet and turned to Frank.

"You know, I almost feel sorry for her."

Frank put his arm around his brother's shoulders.

"This could be the wake-up call her father needs. Maybe he'll finally give her the attention she so obviously craves."

"Maybe. I just didn't think she was this messed up." Joe said, as he walked into the living room and sat on the couch.

Frank went to the bar and picked up the phone. "I'd like to place an international call please." He covered the receiver and looked at his brother. "You have to be extra careful about hiding your relationship with Emily now. No telling what Kathy might do if she found out."

OOOoooOOO

Nancy hurried to Kathy's side and knelt down.

"What happened?"

"I-I don't know." Lauren knelt on the other side of her friend. "We were getting changed as Kathy walked back here and then out of nowhere, this person came up and hit her with something."

Nancy examined the knot on the back of Kathy's head.

"Person? Was it a man or a woman?"

"I couldn't tell. Whoever it was had on a hooded sweatshirt and a ski hat that covered their face." Lauren looked up at Nancy anxiously. "Is she going to be okay?"

Kathy stirred and began to groan. "My head. What happened to my head?"

"Somebody bonked you good," Bess said.

"Did you see anything, Bess?" Nancy asked as she helped Kathy to a sitting position.

Because this could throw a serious wrench into Frank and Joe's theory about Kathy being her own stalker. If she was stalking herself, then who assaulted her? Was somebody else after the senator's daughter? Or had she arranged this whole thing to make it look like she was in real danger when she wasn't?

"No, I was in front of my locker."

"Emily?" Nancy glanced up.

"I didn't see anything either." Emily reached forward to restrain Kathy who was trying to stand. "Maybe you should just sit for a while."

"No." Kathy reached her hand tentatively to the back of her head. "I want to go upstairs. I want Joe."

Nancy sighed. "Okay, fine. But Joe isn't going to be able to do anything for you. I think you need to be examined by a doctor."

"I want to be with him." Kathy struggled to a standing position, grabbing onto Emily to steady herself. "I need him to take care of me."

Nancy looked over her shoulder. "Bess, would you call the front desk and see if they have a doctor on call here?"

Bess nodded as she swung her purse over her shoulder and left.

"I want the same doctor Joe got for Emily and Frank," Kathy protested.

"He's a busy man, Kathy, and he only works for the monastery."

"Then how come Joe called him to come here for them today?"

"Frank and Emily were injured in the monastery. He was the doctor who treated them there."

Kathy sighed. "Fine. Just get me to Joe."

OOOoooOOO

"What did Dad say?" Joe asked when Frank hung up the phone.

"He had some great advice. He dealt with a person very similar to this on a case he had a few years ago." Frank crossed the room to stand in front of his brother. "He said the important thing is not to upset her. She could become violent when provoked."

"Swell." Joe threw his hands up in frustration. "So just how do we confront her and let her know the game is up? Because I'm done here, Frank."

"You need to do it in a way that doesn't make it look like you're out to get her. We can't belittle her or make her feel bad."

At this point, Joe could care less how Kathy felt. She'd lied to him and Frank, led them on a wild goose chase to Europe, and played them for fools. Joe didn't think she deserved any consideration from him at all.

"So pulling out the scrapbook and the notes and saying 'we know what you're up to, you nut job' won't cut it?"

"No. You need to be gentle, Joe. She needs help." Frank eased himself onto the arm of the sofa. "And it would probably be best to do it in private."

"Okay, well she likes nothing better than being alone with me, so that shouldn't be a problem."

"Then let's arrange it so that you tell Kathy, and either me, or maybe Nan, can tell Simone or Louis. We don't know how she'll react to you confronting her with the truth. She may need help right away."

"You mean psychological help," Joe clarified.

"Yes. We also have to make sure Kathy doesn't find out about Emily…even after you've confronted her about her stalking scheme. She's worked up this huge fantasy in her head starring you and her. If she knows you're in love with somebody else...there's no telling how she'll react."

"I don't even want Kathy near Em anymore."

"Well, let's try and get this over with when the girls are finished skiing. Then we can help them with their case. I'm worried about what's going on in that monastery and I don't want Nan going there by herself. Ever again."

Joe grinned. "Don't let her hear you say that. She'll think you're trying to stifle her."

"She's getting better about that. She knows I'm only trying to protect her."

"Ah, but she doesn't need protecting, Frank. Isn't that what she always says?"

Before Frank could open his mouth to respond, the door to the suite opened, and then caught as the chain across it was pulled taut. Joe hurried to unlock it.

Nancy and Lauren stumbled in with a sagging Kathy between them. Tammy followed, her eyes wide with fright, and Bess and Emily brought up the rear.

"What the hell is going on?" Joe demanded.

Kathy pulled herself loose from the two girls and threw herself in Joe's arms.

"I was attacked! Oh, honey, it was so awful. Someone came up to me in the locker room, and before I could do anything, he hit me with something."

Joe looked over his head at Nancy who shrugged.

"I knew I shouldn't have gone anywhere without you," Kathy sobbed into Joe's chest. "Whoever is stalking me is trying to kill me."

What the hell? Someone attacked her? Shit, what if she really did have a stalker? Besides herself.

"Let's get you to your bedroom. Then you can tell me what happened," Joe said, trying to remain upright while Kathy leaned into him.

OOOoooOOO

"She'll be fine," the hotel doctor said to Joe, handing him a bottle of pain medication after he finished examining Kathy. "Just keep an eye on her for the next twenty-four hours and report any unusual behavior."

Joe nodded and set the pills on Kathy's nightstand.

She grabbed his hand.

"You were right, Joe. I'm so sorry I didn't take any of the threats seriously. I'm really scared." A lone tear trickled down her cheek.

He patted her hand. "Frank and I will get to the bottom of this, don't worry."

Joe tried to walk away, but Kathy yanked hard on his arm.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I need to work on your case."

"But can't Frank do that?"

"Kathy, my brother and I are a team. We work together."

"But his girlfriend's here. Can't she work with him? Why do you have to leave me?"

"Nancy has her own case. And I'm sorry, but I can't sit by your side every minute of the day." Joe pried her hand away and stepped back. "I'll only be in the next room."

"But I want you with me. I'm hurt. I need you."

"You need to rest," Joe said firmly. He walked over to the door. "I'll check on you later. Sleep."

Kathy pouted and crossed her arms in front of her indignantly. As she heard Emily's voice in the living room, her eyes narrowed.

Joe noticed.

OOOoooOOO

Frank looked up as Joe walked into the living room. "Is Kathy okay?"

"She's fine." Joe said in a clipped voice. "We need to have a meeting."

"Our room."

Joe nodded and headed that way. Nancy came up behind Frank just as he reached the door.

"Not without me you don't."

Frank grinned and slipped his arm around her shoulders. "I wouldn't dream of it, baby."

They entered the room and Frank closed the door behind him as Joe plopped down on his bed.

"Tell me what happened in the locker room," Joe asked Nancy.

When Nancy finished explaining how Kathy was attacked, Joe shook his head.

"It isn't related to the stalking, but maybe there's something else going on we don't know about."

Nancy looked at Frank. "Do you think the attack today was just something random?"

"I don't know at this point," he said. "Oh, but we did find the proof we were looking for while you were gone. A suitcase with a false bottom filled with drafts of 'stalker' notes and a whole scrapbook dedicated to Joe."

"Really?" Nancy sat on Frank's bed and nudged Joe's foot with her own. "Got yourself a genuine little groupie, don't you?"

"She's a psycho, not a groupie."

"Well, the scrapbook makes you a full-fledged teen idol, you know," Nancy teased. "Did she turn any of your photos into posters? Or a pillowcase?"

Joe glared at her.

"Maybe she has a Joe Hardy t-shirt hidden in one of her drawers," Nancy continued. "After we nail her, let's look for it. Em might want to wear it."

"Shut up," Joe said.

"Don't look so surly, Joe," Nancy said, shaking her finger at him. "You'll never make the cover of Tiger Beat with that expression on your face."

Joe tossed his pillow at her.

"Okay," Frank intervened. "You can tease him later. Right now let's get back to the case."

"Fine, but I'm far from finished," she said with a twinkle in her eye.

Joe rolled his eyes. "So back to the locker room. Somebody just came up to Kathy and hit her on the head? Didn't say anything, didn't try to grab her, just knocked her on the head and ran?"

"That's what the girls said," Nancy replied. "And she was definitely hurt. She was out cold for a few minutes."

"Yeah, she's not faking the lump on her head," Joe agreed.

Nancy shifted on the bed so that Frank could sit next to her. "I think you should hold off confronting her about the notes. See what happens next."

Joe groaned. "Are you kidding me? I can't take much more of this."

"You have the patience of a saint, Joe," Nancy acknowledged. "But what if, in addition to her stalking herself, she really does have someone after her?"

"Nan's right, Joe," Frank said. "Let's see what happens in the next twenty-four hours or so."

"I'll tell you what happens. I become the raving lunatic." He punched his pillow hard before laying back and slipping it under his head.

"Hey, what did you guys find out in the monastery that you wanted to talk to me about?" Frank asked, changing the subject.

Nancy's eyes took on an excited glint that made Frank smile.

"Simone's cryptic message from her novel spells out the name of the town where the monstrance and the statue used to be. You know, where the cathedral burned down?"

"What?" Frank turned to Joe who nodded. "You're kidding?"

"Nope. In fact, it's the first word."

Joe sat up and rummaged through his backpack, pulling out the tablet with Emily's translation written on it. He handed it to his brother.

Frank looked it over again. "But what in the world do these numbers mean? And, why would Simone have this information anyhow?"

Nancy shrugged. "It's weird, isn't it?" She glanced at Joe. "You didn't recognize the man who gave Simone the novel?"

"I only ever saw the back of his head. He had dark hair. That's all I can tell you."

"Do you have a pen?" Frank asked his brother. "I think I may have something here."

"Yeah." Joe shuffled through his pack and handed one to Frank.

Nancy leaned over his shoulder as he began scribbling down the numbers.

"I don't know why I didn't see this before. Maybe because I didn't know that Usanne was a town."

"What?"

Joe stood up and moved to the other side of Frank, sitting next to him.

Frank stopped writing. "What do these numbers look like?"

"No idea," Joe said.

"They're longitude and latitude coordinates."

"Frank, you're right." Nancy sat back. "But for what?"

"Maybe Usanne? Maybe somewhere near there."

Joe gestured to the tablet. "But what about this? The part where it says 'Engenbern, must snowshoe, Pére Jean-Claude, use key that isn't a key'. What does all that mean?"

Frank sighed. "I don't know, but I think we need to get to a map. That way we can at least pinpoint these coordinates. How about the library in the monastery? They must have one."

Nancy shook her head. "I had the creepiest feeling the last time Joe and I were there. Like we were being watched. I think whoever is behind the robberies is still in the monastery. And he's waiting to see what our next move is going to be."

"There's a library here in the hotel," Joe said. "More like a big reading room. I saw it the other day when I was taking Kathy down to the restaurant. I'm sure it has a map of Europe in it."

"Good. Why don't you try and get that information, Joe, as well as anything else you can dig up on either of these cities mentioned in Simone's note," Frank suggested. "Nan and I will head out to the little bookshop I saw across the town square. I'll bet they might have some information on these places that the monastery doesn't."

"What do you mean?" Nancy asked.

"I want to find out if these are tourist type towns, or great places to ski, or if they're just remote villages where nobody goes. Travel stuff, you know. They may even have information on the legends surrounding the monstrance and the statue. Non-official type stuff that the monastery wouldn't want anyone to know."

Nancy smiled. "Like I've said before, you're a genius, Frank Hardy."

Frank's heart skipped a beat at the unabashed adoration in Nancy's eyes.

Joe groaned. "Geez, Nan. Don't make that head of his any bigger than it already is."

Frank chuckled and leaned in to kiss his girlfriend. "Thanks. As you can see, I don't exactly get a lot of positive affirmation from my own flesh and blood."

Joe picked up the notebook and returned it to his backpack as Frank and Nancy headed toward the door.

"Hey guys?" Joe called out.

They turned to look at him.

"You know this means we're implicating Simone in what happened at the monastery, don't you?"

Frank nodded solemnly. "Yeah. I just hope her involvement is peripheral and she had nothing to do with the actual theft of the artifacts."

"Or the attempted murder of Father Bertrand," Nancy added.

"If she did, that would take the only mother figure Kathy's ever had out of her life," Joe said.

"Let's not jump to conclusions." Frank opened the bedroom door. "Find out what you can and then let's meet back here in an hour or so."

Hopefully with some real answers, he thought.

Because he was damned tired of hitting brick walls.