Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

If you told Nancy Drew that at 22 years old she’d be getting married, she probably wouldn’t believe you. At 18 she would’ve uncomfortably chuckled at the thought of having a little chapel wedding, getting a house in the suburbs with a white picket fence and living a quiet, stereotypical life. That’s just the thing though, 18 year old Nancy Drew never would’ve expected she’d be getting married to Frank Hardy of all people, and thus the previously mentioned aspects of a ‘traditional’ wedding and life would be thrown out the window.

When she started dating Frank, wonderfully awkward, just as swayed by mystery and thrills as she was Frank Hardy, Nancy started to not mind the idea of marriage and a wedding so much. In fact, she could still remember all the times over the last four years that she thought he was going to get down on one knee in some way-too-public place.

First, it was when he had to tie his shoe in the middle of Bayport mall, and then when Nancy didn’t notice she’d dropped something and he bent down to pick it up. And of course, when they’d seen a movie together in the small River Heights cinema, he’d knelt right in the middle of the aisle. At that time, he’d given her a smile and a cheeky excuse about how his chair was squeaking and he wanted to see why.

Every time he’d done that, especially the last time (for the excuse had been so pathetic Nancy was convinced he was going to do it, but chickened out) she felt her heart pounding loudly in her ears. There was just something about the thought of Frank wanting as badly to spend the rest of his life with her as she did that made Nancy need to fan her face after every one of those false alarms.

Then, on the day after her 21st birthday, Frank had come to visit her in River Heights again. Nancy almost didn’t pay attention to him when he got down on one knee in the middle of a park. She would never forget how she nearly walked away, or how he reached out and grabbed her hand to stop her. The rest of that day had been unforgettable too. The way she knew her eyes were blown wide, and the way he gazed up at her with a light blush dusted on his cheeks. Frank ran his thumb over the back of her hand, and fumbled around in his pocket for a while with the other.

“Um, Nancy…” He had said, trying not to stutter on her name. Nancy couldn’t hide the shock on her face when Frank finally pulled out the small black box.

“We’ve um…” He cleared his throat, something lodged in it,

“We’ve known each other for so long, and I want you to know I’ve enjoyed every minute of it, even before we were together. You’ve always made me feel okay to be me. And I’ve always loved watching you be you.” Frank seemed to gain confidence the more he spoke, even if the blush on his face was growing darker.

“Truth is, I love you. I’ve always loved you. Oh, well you know that.” He finished that sentence muttering to himself, like he had gone off script or something. Nancy found herself smiling wide, waiting to see what else he would say. She squeezed his hand reassuringly, as if to let him know it didn’t matter if he went off script, or whatever.

“I know it’s been difficult with the long distance… But I think what it’s made me realize is that I can’t wait for the day where I never have to leave your side.” Frank popped open the box with one hand, his other never leaving Nancy’s as he held the gorgeous ring up closer to her. He was smiling now too, his eyes glistening while he stared up at her.

“Nancy Drew, I want that day to be as soon as possible. Will you… Would you marry me?” He asked, and Nancy tried not to let the tears that were forming spill over her waterline.

“Oh, Frank…” She swooned, placing a hand over her mouth and shaking her head in disbelief. It was all horribly cliche, but Nancy was surprised how much she loved it. Frank had such a way with words, and he summed up just about all of her feelings in those words, too. There were so many things they’d have to consider after this, and Nancy’s head hurt while racing through them, but if Frank was kneeling before her feeling this certain, well, she was sure she had to be too.

Not to mention, her heart was back in her ears and she was ecstatic that this moment had finally happened.

“Of course I’ll marry you. God, I just want to-” Nancy dropped onto her knees in front of him, wrapping her arms tightly around the back of his neck. Frank almost dropped the ring, but his own arms found her waist and his chin rested neatly against her shoulder. He let out a long, shuddered breath, and Nancy could imagine he was relieved and crying, though he wouldn’t admit to the second thing.

It was then that Nancy made a proper decision.

If it was him, maybe marriage wouldn’t be so bad.

Frank immediately called his parents, who had evidently been involved in the whole thing. Nancy tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, walking up next to Frank to eavesdrop on the conversation. She was eager to hear what Fenton and Laura would say, and yet she was also antsy to get home and tell her her own dad. Nancy wondered if Frank had done the old fashioned thing and asked Carson for his blessing.

Nothing weird about dad’s disposition lately… Nancy thought to herself, though she briefly considered the idea that Carson had put on an act just so she wouldn’t suspect there was something up. She had suspected something, but that was beside the point.

Frank excitedly told his parents the news, and Nancy smiled when she heard Joe trying to talk over Fenton. He asked a million questions, all that could’ve been answered if he stopped to listen. Laura and Fenton, along with Joe in the background, also congratulated Nancy,

“We’re planning a trip down to River Heights very soon to get it all sorted out.” Fenton Hardy said soberly into the phone, and Nancy heard Laura scoffing amusedly,

“Don’t stress them out, dear.”

“Yeah, dad. Let’s just go with the flow.” Joe chimed in after his mom. Nancy thought it was sweet that they would come all the way out to River Heights just to plan a wedding.

“Go with the flow…” Fenton grumbled, “There will be a lot to plan and-”

“Fenton...” Laura chided before continuing for her husband,

“We know how it’s been. Don’t worry about having to plan long-distance.”

After a few more confusing back and forths with a failing connection, Nancy and Frank ended the call with the knowledge that the rest of the Hardys would come to visit within the week. Soon, they rushed off to tell Carson Drew the news.

When Nancy had opened the front door to the Drew home, she saw her dad hurriedly taking a seat on the living room couch. Carson crossed one leg over the other, reaching for a convenient newspaper on the table next to him. Nancy felt a smile spread across her face as she walked inside, Frank timidly ducking in behind her.

“Hey dad,” She began, her smile turning more impish while watching Carson give her an innocent glance. To anyone else it would’ve looked like he didn’t expect them to come in. Too bad his daughter was a seasoned detective.

“Welcome back, you two.” Carson replied with a smack of the newspaper opening in front of him. Nancy shot Frank another grin, who chuckled silently in response. Carson reeked of a person who was trying too hard to act casual.

“Dad…” Nancy’s tone this time was accusatory, but when she met eyes with her father, he gave her a lighthearted look,

“...Jig’s up?” He asked, folding the newspaper he wasn’t reading and placing it down. Frank cringed slightly at the loud click of the latch when he closed the front door, and turned to face Carson with his own version of a smile.

“She said yes.” Frank chimed with an awkward jazz hand toward Carson. With Frank Hardy, one always got a little bit of that awkward charm. Carson didn’t seem to mind though, in fact, he nearly jumped out of his seat to approach them and give his daughter a tight hug.

“Come here, Nance…” Carson said thoughtfully as Nancy returned the hug. She couldn’t stop smiling, and even felt emotion rise up in her. Soon the father-daughter pair pulled apart, Carson resting his hands on either one of Nancy’s shoulders. Nancy saw the way Carson’s eyes glossed over slightly. Clearly he was feeling the same as her.

“I only.. Well.. I just wish Kate could see you now.” The pang of surprise in Nancy’s chest at the mention of her late mother was quickly comforted by a squeeze to her shoulders, and another embrace from Carson.

“...Me too.” Nancy hadn’t meant to whisper, but she did. A tear slipped from her eye, which she wiped away over her father’s shoulder. After that, she only hugged him tighter. Her mom may not have been able to see everything she’d accomplished, but Nancy felt so grateful for the way Carson had been there for her over the years. He was the one person she knew had to be at the wedding, no matter what it looked like.

“I’m so proud of you..” Carson said as they pulled away from each other with meaningful smiles. And then, as if he had just remembered something, Carson stretched his arms out to the side with his eyes set on Frank this time,

“And of course, you too Frank.”

Frank gave Nancy a worried glance, who once again suppressed an amused grin. She tilted her head to the side in the direction of her dad, and Frank feigned a delighted chuckle as he returned Carson’s gesture of a hug.

“Thanks, Mr. Drew.” Frank replied, stepping back from the hug as soon as it was deemed appropriate. Nancy and Frank disappeared upstairs quickly after that.

“You and my dad have really bonded.” Nancy teased while closing her bedroom door behind them. She watched Frank take a seat on her bed, entirely too big for it. They didn’t spend a lot of time there, and so something about Frank sitting in what was essentially her childhood bedroom made Nancy blush. Frank chuckled a bit, more at ease when he wasn’t facing Carson Drew.

“Well we did have, like, a five hour conversation before he gave me his blessing.. But he’s definitely warmed up to me.” He explained. Carson and Frank never had a bad relationship, per se, but at first he had been noticeably off-put by the lack of Ned Nickerson around their house. It was something Nancy and Frank, too, felt looming over them whenever they hung anywhere in River Heights together. Despite the familiar guilt Nancy noticed was creeping into her mind, she gave Frank a grin and sat next to him on the edge of the bed,

“That’s good to hear.” She reached her hand over to Frank’s, intertwining their fingers. He looked down at her, keeping their fingers locked but bringing his arm over her head and around her shoulders.

“This feels crazy, right?” Nancy tilted her head up just enough to meet his eyes with hers,

“It’s so crazy. Steady living has never really been my forte.”

“Same.” Frank replied with a breath of amusement. There was a pause between them, before they both broke out into a smile, and Nancy leaned her head further back in laughter,

“Marriage isn’t going to change a thing, is it?” She asked, still staring up at Frank with her head back against his arm. He leaned down slightly, their lips meeting in a tender kiss,

“Doubtful.” He said against her lips. Their kiss continued, long and sweet with short ones in between, until Nancy’s back was to the mattress and Frank was hovering above her. He pulled his head back, gazing down at her with half a smile,

“I mean, come on. Nothing’s better than finding clues and running for my life with you by my side.” Frank’s voice was lower this time, and Nancy giggled a little. She lifted her hand to rest the pad of her thumb against Frank’s bottom lip,

“I guess we do make a lot of people mad..”

“Oh yeah we do-” Whatever Frank might’ve said after that was lost between them when Nancy hooked her arms around his neck and kissed him again.

The mood between them rapidly shifted, the kiss becoming hot as Nancy teased her tongue against Frank’s teeth. She fingered through the hair on the back of his head, and he shifted until their bodies were pressed properly together, his thigh slotting between hers.

They became lost in each other, as they so often did, for what felt like eternity.

Frank was the first to come to his senses, yanking his head backwards before Nancy had a chance to undo the third button on his shirt,

“Hold on a second-” He cut himself off with a hasty breath, sitting up onto his knees and running a hand through his hair that threatened to stick straight up.

“What?” Nancy complained while she forced herself onto her elbows.

“We can’t.”

“Why?” Nancy almost pouted, but she didn’t need to, the word sounded disdained enough. Frank was blushing as she tried to reach for the button on his shirt that had been ripped from her fingertips. He clasped the wanting hand in his own,

“First of all, your dad is downstairs.” Frank offered a reasonable explanation, which made Nancy falter for only a second,

“Pillows are soundproof~” Nancy practically sung, and the blush on Frank’s face traveled down to his neck,

“And…” Frank spoke louder to drown out any refutes, “aren’t we supposed to wait until the honeymoon?” Now that left Nancy stunned for a while, until she smiled,

“You’re really going traditional, huh?” She chided, as if Frank couldn’t get any more red.

“Well, fine.” Nancy easily freed her hand from his grip, and yanked him down toward her by the front of his shirt,

“But can’t we start tomorrow…?” She spoke softly into his ear, and Frank let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding,

“...Well…” He was nearly convinced, until they both heard some shrill sound from downstairs. It didn’t quite sound like screaming, more like excited yelps, followed by footfalls coming up the steps to the second floor. Nancy smiled again as Frank rolled off of her, allowing her to stand up,

“You win this round, Hardy.” Nancy said as Hannah Gruen, her housekeeper, practically burst down her bedroom door to give her excited congratulations on the engagement. Frank discreetly fixed the buttons on his shirt, and ran his hand through his hair before giving Hannah another patented awkward grin.

***

A lot happened next, in what felt like very quick succession. In reality it all took a very long time to get everything planned, but once they set a wedding date it was as if everything needed to be done at once. The venue was the most difficult to secure, but they had settled on a nice outdoor venue in Sedona, Arizona. When Nancy and Frank had seen the pictures, they decided it was too gorgeous not to get married among all the red rocks. The rest of the wedding planning had been stressful, but otherwise uneventful, despite the fact that it had taken over a year to get it all squared away.

That brings us back to 22 year-old Nancy Drew, reminiscing about all the previous events on the street of the River Heights shopping district with Bess and George.

With only about a month until the wedding, there was only one thing left on the checklist.

Acquire a wedding dress.

They were definitely cutting it close, but Nancy had been so busy dealing with everything else that she had forgotten about the dress part.

Bess was the one with the idea to combine the dress-hunting and bachelorette party. Nancy didn’t have many people outside of Bess and George that she would want at such an event, and so she was fine with that plan. She knew that Frank was off at his own bachelor party with Joe and some other friends that had come out for it. Once they found the perfect dress, Nancy was determined to enjoy herself that night.

There was a little part of her, however, that became increasingly worried the closer they got closer to the wedding date. Nancy knew she’d never had a vacation left uninterrupted by chaos and mystery, let alone a big event. Just once, she wanted a day without any of that, only a quaint little ceremony, with no trouble to interrupt it.

If I’m lucky, today will go fine too. Nancy thought, feeling just a little desperate.

“I can’t believe out of the three of us, Nancy’s the one getting married first.” George spoke as she jerked open the door to the dress shop. Nancy was jolted out of her thoughts, looking to Bess, who was rolling her eyes with a smile,

“I know.” She tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder and walked inside. Looking back at Nancy and George, she added with a bit of a mumble,

“Maybe if Joe plucked up the courage and asked me…”

“Oh Bess, you’ll scare him away if you keep talking like that.” George interjected as she held the door open for Nancy. That comment earned a sigh from Bess, who evidently agreed.

“I guess you’re right… I just wish he’d be a little bit more serious after all this-” Bess stopped herself mid-sentence once the door closed behind Nancy and the three of them were inside the shop.

“There I go again. Enough with my troubles and let’s find our bride a dress!” Bess’ mood switched to playful, her arm swinging around Nancy’s shoulders and bringing her further inside. Nancy smiled to herself, she was definitely right in choosing Bess as the maid of honor.

“You two are the best-”

Before Nancy finished her sentence, and before the trio could get any further inside the dress shop, the bell on the door chimed as someone else entered. Bess’ mood once again soured, and Nancy even felt her stomach flip flop a little when they saw Deirdre Shannon walk in.

Deirdre was someone who didn’t like Nancy too much, and undoubtedly the feeling was mutual.

“What on Earth is she doing here?” Bess muttered unfavorably. Nancy ran a hand through her red hair and sighed.

"So much for no trouble…"

Chapter Text

“Deirdre…! What brings you in here?” Nancy tried to cover the shock of seeing her adversary with a layer of civility. She and Deirdre had never really seen eye to eye, and Deirdre was also really good at driving Nancy up the wall. Nancy was determined, however, not to let that show, especially on a day as special as this one.

“Why are you talking like you’re trying to sell me something?” Deirdre replied with a scoff and a grin. Already Nancy fought not to roll her eyes in response.

“I wasn’t.” Nancy couldn’t stop her voice from dropping, annoyance creeping up in it.

“Yeah. Obvi. You should stick with detective work.” Deirdre’s high voice was condescending as always. She pulled out a compact mirror to fix her hair, swiping her fingers through her bangs and adjusting the headband that sat in the dark locks. At Nancy’s side, Bess was crossing her arms and giving Deirdre a glare,

“Did you come here just to piss us off, Deedee?” Bess tried to match the snark that was being thrown in their faces. Deirdre’s eyebrow twitched slightly at being called ‘Deedee’, but quickly brushed it off with a snap of her compact closing.

“I dunno, is it working?” Deirdre mimicked Bess’ stance with her arms crossed, her body bent forward slightly. Bess groaned in exasperation, throwing her hands up in the air. Nancy reached for Bess’ arm and touched it lightly in an attempt to calm her down. She knew her friend was trying to defend her, but the way this was escalating didn’t exactly fit in with her plan for no trouble. Nancy looked back at Deirdre, who had just finished a laughing fit at Bess’ expense.

“Listen Deirdre, if you’re just here to poke fun-”

“Relax, Drew. For once, I’m here to help.” Deirdre shot a glance at George, and it was then that Nancy realized how silent her other best friend had been during the whole interaction. She watched as Deirdre strutted over to George,

“Georgie here invited me.” She linked arms with George.

“Georgie?” Bess was in disbelief, and Nancy’s mouth even threatened to drop at the nickname. George chuckled, scratching the back of her head awkwardly but evidently not pulling away from Deirdre’s grasp,

“You know how useless I am when it comes to fashion.” She mumbled. Bess and Nancy’s eyes slowly widened at the sight of George Fayne, sheepish and blushing for what felt like the first time in their whole lives.

“Isn’t that why I’m here?” Bess argued, once again tucking her hands beneath her arms in frustration. Deirdre smiled in a way only a mean girl could,

“That’s funny, Bess.”

“Deirdre.” George interrupted, earning a lighthearted hip bump from the girl she had just scolded. Nancy watched the interaction carefully. Over the years, she had noticed how close George and Deirdre had gotten. Judging by the blush on George’s face, Nancy could only guess how their relationship had developed. Bess seemed to be either oblivious to the situation, or willfully ignorant because of her hatred for Deirdre. Deirdre’s next words had Nancy convinced of the latter,

“Look. Like it or not, I’m with George, and here to stay. So you might as well get over it.”

“Stop throwing insults at us and maybe I will.” Bess held her ground, but Nancy and George were concerned about the looks they were beginning to receive from others in the dress shop.

“Take it easy, both of you.” George glanced at Nancy with guilty eyes,

“I’m sorry, Nance. I should’ve cleared it with you first. It’s just, Deirdre is really good with fashion, and I thought it would be a chance for us to all be civil with each other.” Nancy heard the increasing desperation in her friend’s voice, and any anger she felt toward Deirdre was slowly dissipating.

“I understand, George. I’m okay with it, if everyone else is.” Nancy explained with a kind smile, although she elbowed Bess a little too hard to get her to agree.

“Fine…” Bess muttered, jutting a hand out toward Deirdre.

“Truce?”

Deirdre looked down at Bess’ hand, another teasing grin on her face,

“Seriously?” She mocked. George shot her a look,

“Hey. Behave.” She said sharply, but when Deirdre looked back at her, the grin stayed,

“Fine~” After giving George a wink, she shook Bess’ hand. They pulled away from each other quickly, and Nancy clapped her hands together a little too loudly,

“Alright, perfect. Now let’s find a dress before they kick us out!”

The four of them began to scour the racks for any dress Nancy might like. Somehow Nancy had ended up walking down one of the aisles of dresses with Deirdre.

“So, what did you do to Ned?” Deirdre’s left-field question was met with a blank glance from Nancy,

“I thought you’d be done bringing him up every five seconds, what with that speech about being with George and all.” Nancy busied herself with looking through the racks as she responded. Anything to keep Deirdre from getting under her skin.

“Well, yeah. But all the times I bothered him and he never told me the dirt. I’d love to hear it from a primary source.” Deirdre said with an innocent smile, though her voice had a fake lilt to it. Nancy rolled her eyes into the dresses,

“Let’s leave it in the past? Please?” Nancy hadn’t meant to sound so upset over it, but what she did to Ned before they broke up was the worst thing she’d ever done in her life. She never wanted to treat another human like that ever again, and in the back of her head she longed to fix it. Over the years they had become civil acquaintances- that one person you nod your head to at the grocery store but didn’t talk to- and it hurt Nancy to know they could never really be friends again.

But she also knew what she had done was unforgivable. Cheating was unforgivable. All Nancy could do now was not do the same thing to Frank, and respect Ned’s obviously stated boundaries.

“Touchy. It was really bad, wasn’t it?” Deirdre broke into Nancy’s thoughts with no hint at stopping her interrogation. Nancy fully faced her this time, crossing her arms and giving her a hard look,

“Yes, Deirdre. It was bad. I hurt him, and I’ll never live that down. But it's over, and so are we. He’s living his life, and I’m living mine. So please, live yours and stay out of our business.” Nancy explained sternly, and Deirdre’s eyes actually widened some in surprise. It was as if she had realized she’d gone too far, and shouldn’t have mentioned Nancy’s messy break-up in the middle of wedding dress shopping. Deirdre paused before giving a curt nod, and turning back to face the dress racks.

The two were silent for a few minutes afterward, side-stepping down the aisle, the only sound to be heard was the squeaking of the hangers on the metal racks. Well, that and Nancy’s heart beating in her ears. She was mad, and embarrassed, and yet she wished she hadn’t made a big scene like that.

“So…” Deirdre broke the awkward silence, pulling a dress from the rack in front of her and scrutinizing it,

“What kind of dress do you want? You seem like the type to wear something a little modest…” Deirdre trailed off once again. That statement added annoyance to the anger already rising in Nancy’s chest. It didn’t help that the dress Deirdre pulled out had long sleeves, decorated with lace. Or the fact that she was kind of right. Nancy swallowed in hopes of appearing calm,

“...Maybe.” Nancy replied nonchalantly, trying not to eyeball the dress, which was, even more annoyingly, pretty to her. Deirdre smiled wide in her direction,

“You love it, right?” Immediately she held the dress up to Nancy’s frame. The flowery decorated lace spilled from the tight sleeves into the bodice and down the front of the dress. The skirt went to the floor, and had quite a bit of fabric to it, but didn’t puff out the sides too much. The only cheeky thing about the dress was the v-neck, which plunged just enough to leave the right person staring.

Nancy could picture Frank’s reaction, and it made an insuppressible smile appear on her face, not to mention the dress seemed to fit her style just right.

“Possibly.” Nancy was still trying to be casual about it, but her expression no doubt gave her up. Once again her negative feelings melted away.

She hadn’t realized that Bess and George had snuck up on them as Deirdre began to run a finger through Nancy’s wavy red hair. Nancy watched curiously as Deirdre’s eyebrows scrunched up like she was thinking really hard about something. Bess gasped at the dress that Nancy wasn’t even wearing yet,

“Oh my god, Nance. It’s gorgeous!” Bess fanned her face as her eyes gazed all over the white fabric. George chuckled a little,

“I think she should try it on first. What do you think, Deirdre?” 

“Oh please, she obviously loves it. Hold this-” She shoved the dress against Nancy’s chest, now using both her hands to play with Nancy’s fiery locks,

“I’m already picturing what we can do with your hair. A few clips, a few flowers, Frank won’t be able to keep his eyes off you.”

“He already can’t.” Bess mumbled amusedly in response. George grinned at Deirdre’s odd and sudden interest,

“Aw, Deirdre, you do care.” She swooned dramatically, to which Deirdre rolled her eyes,

“Quiet, you. Nancy needs my help. I’m basically doing a public service.” Deirdre pulled her arms away from Nancy’s hair, whipping her head away from George’s gaze.

“Right. Thanks Deirdre.” Nancy said sarcastically. She was also entertained by Deirdre’s behavior, and couldn’t help but wonder if it was her adversary’s own way of apologizing for what she said before. Deirdre smiled at her,

“You’re welcome! Now let’s get a dressing room. We’re screwed if we have to get this thing tailored.” Nancy was quick to agree, considering how short on time they were, and the four of them went off to badger someone for a fitting room.

***

Frank sat at the bar of a dingy River Heights pub, watching his brother order copious amounts of alcohol. After briefly checking his wristwatch, he confirmed his suspicions that it was still barely after 5 pm. It was a bachelor party, sure, but Joe had to know Frank wasn’t exactly the party type. Hell, he would’ve been fine just going out for coffee in the middle of the day and calling it a party.

“Joe, is anyone else besides Chet coming to this thing?” Frank leaned his elbow against the bar top, his cheek glued to the palm of his hand as Joe collected a few beers. The younger Hardy brother placed the drinks down between the two of them, and sloppily shrugged his shoulders,

“Probably not.” Joe replied offhandedly before putting his lips to his first beer bottle. Frank rolled his eyes with an exhale of a laugh and grabbed a bottle for himself. It was ice cold, but he neglected to drink it right away. Besides Frank’s neutral feelings toward parties, his opposition to drinking was something that disappointed his brother. It was amazing Joe had even convinced Frank to set foot inside the bar, let alone hold a beer in his hand.

“Then why are you getting so many drinks?” Frank decided he probably knew the answer to that question, and yet he asked anyway.

“Because it’s a party, dear Frank. You know what that is, right? Or did the anti-fun fairy suck the definition right out of you along with your ability to let loose?” Joe very casually berated him, licking his lips with another sip of his drink. Frank rolled his eyes, swatting in his brother’s direction,

“Shut up. We can’t go overboard, Joe. One of us needs to stay sober and be a designated driver so that-”

“Blah blah blah. Those aren’t party words!”

“Joe…”

Before Frank could argue any further, they both heard the door chime behind them. Frank looked over his shoulder, using the door opening as an excuse to put the beer down and rub the condensation off on the front of his shirt.

“There’s Chet!” Joe announced excitedly as Chet Morton, one of the Hardy Boys’ best friends since childhood walked inside the bar. Chet looked about as out of place as Frank felt, fixing his glasses and pulling at his sweater while he walked toward them with a smile.

“Hey fellas.” Chet greeted them, a bit timidly, but that was normal for him. Frank gave Chet a pat on the back, gesturing for their friend to sit between him and Joe. Chet did so, carefully eyeing the pile of beers Joe had ordered,

“Um, congratulations on the engagement..!” He told Frank. It had been the first time they’d seen each other since Joe shared the news and invited him to the party.

“Thanks, Chet. Glad you could make it.” Frank replied genuinely. They exchanged some small talk back and forth, telling each other stories of what their lives had been like for the past year. The Hardys had spent so much time in River Heights, it would have been easy to fill the whole night with talking and reminiscing.

But of course, Joe wouldn’t have let that slide.

Once there was a break in the conversation he slid his arm around Chet’s shoulder, shaking him back and forth while holding a beer in front of his face.

“Who thinks they can drink more than me?” He asked, mischief in his gaze and a smirk on his face. Chet immediately looked nervous, and Frank rolled his eyes in response.

“Ignore him, Chet. I’m not giving into your little contest, Joe.”

“Come on, Frank. One drink at least, yours is probably warm by now!” Joe pointed toward the bottle sitting in front of his brother, the earlier condensation dripping onto the bar top. Frank glanced down at it, letting out a bereaved exhale as he grabbed the beer.

“Alright, if it’ll get you off my back.” Frank brought the bottle to his lips as if going for a drink. Joe seemed pleased, and so was back to convincing Chet to a drink-off. Chet, despite his earlier nerves, was apparently growing interested in the idea of letting loose for a change. The two of them began an admittingly entertaining contest to see who could drink more beers without tapping out.

Frank watched, grinning against the bottle and tipping it back to fulfill his one-beer quota. He grimaced at the bitter taste that immediately assaulted his mouth, and instinctively spit it back into the bottle. Glancing over at his brother, who was busy chugging alcohol with Chet, Frank casually dumped his beer into a nearby plant.

He placed the bottle down on the table, wiping his mouth and letting out an exaggerated breath. Joe didn’t seem to notice one way or another, absolutely destroying Chet in their competition. Chet’s glasses were nearly fogging up, he was breathing so hard from drinking without a break. He stared at Joe helplessly as the blonde Hardy brother finished his fifth beer. Joe slammed the bottle onto the table so hard, Frank was surprised it didn’t shatter on impact. He saw Joe give Chet a sleazy grin and scoop up the beer that the latter had abandoned.

“No giving up yet, Chet! Don’t you wanna beat me?” Joe stumbled over his words. Frank rolled his eyes at his brother’s intolerance. Joe loved to drink, but boy was he bad at it.

“Oh boy, I’m gonna end up passed out on a bench in the middle of the street one day if I keep partying with you, Joe Hardy!” Chet exclaimed desperately, fixing his glasses and swiping the bottle from Joe’s hand. Later, all he would win would be a sympathetic pat on the back from Frank, but for now Chet still thought he stood a chance.

Not much longer into the drinking contest, someone else walked inside, the bell on the door once again chiming. It was hard not to look when the place was so small, and Frank wondered who else could possibly wander in that night.

His face instantly paled, and his heart leapt into his throat at the sight of Ned Nickerson standing in the doorway.

“Of course.” Frank muttered, his nerves obvious.

“What, Frank? What’d you- Oh..” Joe trailed off as he followed his brother’s gaze toward the front door. Ned shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket, glancing around the bar as if he were looking for someone.

“Barely seen the guy in years and he decides to walk into the smallest bar in the smallest town in the world.” Frank complained. He turned his back to Ned in hopes that he wouldn’t notice him sitting there.

“Pretty much his hometown.” Joe interjected unhelpfully.

“Shut up. And stop staring at him, I don’t want him to-”

“Hey Ned!” Joe yelled and waved drunkenly in Ned’s direction.

“...See me.” Frank finished, putting his face in his hands. Ned looked over to where he heard his name being called, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He saw Joe and gave a kind smile, which faltered only slightly when he noticed Frank and Chet sitting there as well. Frank raised his head, and put his hand up to acknowledge Ned. 

Joe’s wave turned more into a beckon, and despite Ned’s eyes shifting avoidantly around the room, along with his generally stiff demeanor, he approached the Hardys.

“What are you doing here? Living it up at…” Joe grabbed his phone from the bar, almost dropping it in the process, and checked the time,

“7 o’clock?” He gave Ned a goofy smile, to which he chuckled lightheartedly in response,

“I’m supposed to meet some of my old teammates, we’re catching up.” Ned explained, and Joe nodded overenthusiastically. He got up from the stool he was sitting on, hooking an arm around Ned’s shoulders,

“Oh yeah, guys from Emerson? Did you ever graduate?” Joe asked, making a gesture toward Chet to hand him another beer. Frank groaned inwardly. Joe was making it really hard for him to pretend like he didn’t exist.

“Yeah, yeah I did. Hey, are you okay?” Ned questioned, wrapping an arm around Joe’s middle when he tipped his head back to drink, stumbling slightly in the process. Frank sucked up his pride, and stood from his seat too, walking the short distance over to them.

“He’s drunk, sorry.” Frank offered an arm for Joe to lean on instead, and Ned carefully transferred him over.

“Hey Frank-” Ned began,

“I’m not drunk! I’m partying! This is a party!” Joe announced over him, despite his forehead glued to Frank’s shoulder. He seemingly couldn’t lift it. Frank passed off his brother to Chet as Ned raised his eyebrows up some,

“A party? In River Heights? What are you celebrating?” Ned asked, too innocent for his own good. Frank neglected pulling on the collar of his shirt, lest Ned figure out how uncomfortable he felt.

“Um… Bachelor party.” Was all Frank said, hoping for and also dreading the idea of Ned putting the pieces together himself. It took a minute, but eventually Ned nodded in realization, albeit a little surprised,

“Oh…! Congratulations..” Ned smiled at Frank, who really couldn’t figure out if he was being genuine. All he knew was he felt awful seeing Ned after everything that went down. He couldn’t wait for this interaction to be over.

“Thanks. Don’t blame Joe for not telling you, I told him to keep quiet. I wasn’t sure if… Well if it was appropriate considering…” Frank fumbled around for the right words, but he wasn’t able to find them before Ned replied,

“No worries. It’s water under the bridge. I’m happy for you, and Nancy.” Ned gave Frank a friendly smack on the side of his arm, although it hurt a little more than it probably should’ve.

“Really…?” Frank was having a hard time believing the act.

“I’m over it. If this were some kind of sappy romance book, you’d just be the guy who got the girl.”

More like the guy who cheated with the girl… Frank thought guiltily. Nancy was right about it being difficult to be friends with Ned, let alone look him in the eyes at his bachelor party born of deceit. But if Ned was over it, maybe he’d oughta move on too.

Ned seemed to think the silence between them was his fault, kicking his foot backward awkwardly and tapping his toe against the floor,

“This girl I’ve been seeing she’s uh… really into that romance stuff, books and all that. I don’t really…” Luckily, Joe saved them both from anymore uncomfortable small talk, butting in between them,

“A girl?! You didn’t tell me! How couldn’t you have told me?! You should bring her to the wedding- Well, if you were invited to the wedding- Frank! Invite him to the wedding-!” Frank’s eyes widened as Joe began to talk a mile a minute,

“Joe. I’m not so sure Nancy wants-” Frank tried to mumble discreetly, but Joe continued,

“Or, even better! Ned, since Bess is in the wedding party, come as my plus one…!” Joe’s drunken rambles ceased only for a moment as he stopped to think. Frank put his hand over his eyes.

“...But then Ned’s new girlfriend couldn’t come. Okay, so-”

“Joe, Joe, Joe. Calm down. It’s okay.” Ned cut him short, grabbing him by the shoulders in hopes to still him. Frank wasn’t sure where to go from there. There was a reason they hadn’t invited Ned in the first place, Nancy cringed to herself every time she saw him in public. But maybe…

“Come, Ned. If you want. Bring your girl, have some fun. We’ll save a seat or two.” Frank spoke before his brain was finished thinking about it. There was more than a chance that Nancy would not be happy with his decision, and Frank wasn’t quite sure why he did it. To prove something, maybe, but even then he didn’t know what he was proving.

Too late to turn back, anyway.

Ned seemed surprised, naturally. It was then that Frank considered the idea that Ned wanted no part of Nancy’s new life. He wouldn’t have blamed him, either.

Maybe this was a bad idea after all…

“I’ll think about it. Thanks. Now, uh..” Ned nodded toward the back of the bar, where a bunch of guys in letterman jackets were beginning to holler his name. After a few goodbyes, and by the time Frank had managed to get Joe back into his chair, the door chimed again. Frank’s heart rate spiked. That godforsaken bell had programmed fight or flight in him in only one go.

“Joe~!” A cheery voice squealed, and Joe raised his head from its place on the bar top,

“Wha-?” Bess was on his lap before he could say anything else. Nancy, George, and Deirdre of all people wandered into the bar soon after that, and Frank decided he had officially seen everything that night.

“What are you guys doing here?” Frank asked, perplexed. Nancy seemed equally surprised, walking over to him. Deirdre rolled her eyes, and placed her hands on her hips dramatically,

“What kind of bachelorette party is this? The bachelors are here!” She complained.

“Well, River Heights isn’t very big, Deirdre… This is probably the only bar in town..” George told her, only getting a groan as an answer.

“My guardian angel has arrived…” Murmured Joe, leaning forward to plant a kiss on Bess’ cheek. She giggled, snaking her arms around his neck,

“Oh my god you’re so drunk.”

Nancy looked up at Frank, half a smile on her face,

“I suppose this isn’t so bad.” Frank smiled back,

“I'll say. Let’s party.” Nancy laughed at how the phrase sounded coming out of his mouth, but the group did fall into a swing of lively banter and drinks. Joe had his nose buried into Bess’ neck while she was talking to George from across the room. Frank was a few feet away from them, leaning on the wall and observing the action. Nancy was leaning back against him, holding his arm snug around her. 

"You find a dress?" Frank asked Nancy. She could feel the vibration of his words on her back. 

"Oh yeah we did. Had to beg for quick alterations, and Hannah will probably have to finish it up, but we got it." Nancy explained, and Frank chuckled.

"I can't wait to see it." 

“Hey Frank, by the way…” Joe said, tilting his head away from Bess just enough to see his brother. 

“Huh?”

“I know you didn’t drink that beer.” Joe gave him a wicked grin, and Frank felt his face flush with embarrassment. Nancy glanced up at him, the back of her head resting on his chest,

“Were you bachelors making poor decisions before we showed up?” She quipped, and suddenly Frank remembered that Ned and his football buddies were in the back of the room. His eyes flashed over there, but whatever was going on was even crazier than his own group’s party.

Frank looked down at Nancy again. He knew he’d have to tell her what he said to Ned eventually, but for now, he just gave her a sheepish smile and exhaled tiredly,

“You have no idea…” 

Chapter Text

The day before the wedding, Nancy and her family, Frank and his, along with Bess, George, Deirdre, and Chet headed down to Arizona to get everything situated. They left early in the morning, so they’d have time to check out the venue and carry out the run-through and rehearsal dinner they had planned for that night.

Nancy was the first to walk into the hotel they’d be staying at, carrying her wedding dress over her shoulder. The entirety of the dress was covered, the secrecy of what it looked like obvious to everyone, and yet Frank was stepping on Nancy’s heels trying to get her to let him see it. He was also carrying his suit on his back, equally as hidden to the world as her dress.

“You’re just flaunting it around, Nan. This is torture.” Frank complained, sliding his hand around Nancy’s waist as he did so. He ignored Joe and Chet laughing at him as they walked in from behind. Joe’s suit was carelessly draped over the top of the suitcase he was rolling in, and Chet’s was folded neatly over his arm.

Nancy reached for the hand on her waist with her free one and pushed it away playfully. She looked up at Frank, scanning his disappointed face and giving him a grin,

“Thought you wanted to be traditional?”

“Well, yeah, but-”

“But nothing. It’ll be worth it when you see it. Tomorrow.” Nancy’s tone dropped on the last word, as if to prove how serious she was. Frank groaned so loudly Nancy thought it was funny how much he bore a striking resemblance to Joe at that moment. Frank opened his mouth to beg or retort, but he hardly got started before Hannah Gruen stepped between him and Nancy.

“Nancy dear, give me your dress so I can finish the alterations before next year.” Hannah held out her hands, motioning for her to give up the dress. Nancy looked proudly over at Frank as she pulled the dress off her shoulder and laid it in Hannah’s palms.

“See? Now you won’t be tempted.” Nancy remarked, and Frank huffed in reluctant agreement. Hannah smiled pleasantly,

“You two are just adorable!” She made it a point to pinch Frank’s cheek before walking over to Carson, Fenton and Laura to see if they needed any help checking in. Nancy went to Frank’s side, who blushed at the smirk she couldn’t wipe off of her face,

“Just adorable…” She repeated, pinching Frank’s other cheek a lot lighter than Hannah did. Frank rolled his eyes embarrassedly and gently swatted her hand away.

After Carson and the Hardys had acquired the rooms, they separated into groups to share them. Frank and Nancy would be granted their own room, despite the skeptic looks from their parents. Joe and Bess decided to share a room with George and Deirdre, and Chet lamented the idea of sleeping on a cot in that room too, but went along with it good-naturedly. That left the parents and Hannah with a room, in which Carson offered to sleep on the couch to give Hannah her own space. She agreed, after a bit of humble arguing.

Once they had gotten settled into their rooms, the group went to check out the venue, and complete the run-through of the ceremony...

***

Frank stood face to face with himself in the mirror of the small bathroom in the hotel room he shared with Nancy. The night before a wedding would be nerve wracking for anyone, but especially for Frank Hardy.

He was anxious about the ceremony going well, of course. The run-through had been flawless, but Frank and Nancy’s luck had never been that good. He was worried sick about something bad happening.

Not to mention he was also concerned if the vows he had written were good enough, or if he would trip up on his words in front of everyone- whether his hair would stick up in the wrong place and whether he would spend the whole day trying to smooth it back down.

Frank lifted his hand that was glued to the counter and played with the strands of his dark brown hair, forehead creased with worry. He quickly realized what he was doing, felt a little silly about it, and shot his hand back to its place on the cool granite of the counter.

What the hell is wrong with me? Frank thought. Joe would’ve told him he’d taken down terrorists, murderers, stared down the barrel of a gun without blinking an eye. He’d tell him that he’s the ace detective Frank Hardy, the stoic one, the collected one, hell, the smart one.

He’d tell him to chill out and go with the flow.

So easy for him to say, carefree and careless Joe Hardy.

…It was times like these he wished he was more like Joe.

“Just go with the flow…” Frank said to himself in a whisper, the tightness in his chest making him feel breathless. He repeated the phrase over and over as he reached for the sink faucet, starting up the cold water to run down his face.

Of course, he was excited too. How couldn’t he be? He’d been dreaming of the day Nancy Drew would be forever his for what felt like an eternity. It was just that the excitement was mixing confusedly with the anxiety, adding to the constriction in his chest and making him feel even more out of breath. Nancy always had that effect on him, only now, with everything, all his emotions were threatening to spill out of him.

Frank couldn’t wait until all the wedding professionalism was over, and he could just be with her. He could go back to his life where he wasn’t in the spotlight to all his friends and family, his life where he was doing his job, busting baddies and staring down gunmen, only with Nancy Drew at his side.

Frank turned the water off after managing to calm down some, drying his face and hands off on the towel Hannah Gruen had lent him, and then begged him to keep. He heard Nancy outside the door saying goodnight to her father, who, had they been spending another night at Nancy’s house, would be staying up another hour or so to finish up his work. Tonight, however, Carson seemed beat, and a little emotional at the thought of his only daughter getting married.

Frank smiled a bit to himself, knowing how close Nancy and Carson were. He enjoyed being a part of Nancy’s home life, and she a part of his for the better part of a year. It was as if they were getting to know each other in a whole different way. Frank felt closer to Nancy than he ever had before. He felt special. That alone was enough to quiet the anxiety in his chest for the night, at least. Or so he thought.

Frank waited until it was silent again before stepping out into the room. He knew he was officially on Carson Drew’s good side, but he wasn’t keen on hearing a speech the night before the wedding when he had just calmed himself down. Frank turned the knob and exited the bathroom.

He had spent most of his time sleeping at the Drew house during his stay to plan the wedding. It certainly beat hearing Joe’s snoring every night at the place where his family was staying. Of course, Fenton and Laura Hardy wouldn’t let Frank and Nancy get out of involving them in everything, and so they spent plenty of time at the rental house too.

Frank turned once he entered the room, closing the bathroom door as quietly as possible, in case Nancy was asleep. He silently hoped she was. The only thing more nerve wracking than a wedding was spending yet another night sleeping next to Nancy without touching her. Well, really, it was less nerve wracking and more frustrating.

Because now they were spending the night in a hotel room together, something they’d done many times before. And yet, it had Frank reminded of all the kisses and other intimate moments he’d experienced with Nancy in very similar locations. The memories alone were enough to make him want to recreate every one of those moments all night long.

But he couldn’t.

And it was killing him.

It was your idea. Frank’s conscience chided him. He rolled his eyes to himself. He knew that, obviously he did. He had only wanted their honeymoon to be memorable and worth the wait. Plus, to say he was a little excited to know Nancy would jump him the minute they got to their honeymoon destination was an understatement. So he made her wait.

But Nancy wasn’t very good at waiting, they both knew that. Nancy loved to make it difficult for Frank to keep his word. She always got into bed before him, laying in a very specific way to show off the curve of her hip down to her thigh. Her eyes would trail over him as he sat down next to her, batting her eyelashes and biting her lip just slightly. And then she’d smile at him, so innocent and nonchalant Frank would’ve sworn he’d imagined it all.

But then she’d reach her arm across him to grab something, drag her fingertips across his chest on the way back when she realized it wasn’t there. Once under the covers, she’d let the sheet slide off her hip to again expose her perfect legs, all but concealed beneath those little pajama shorts she knew he loved so much. Top it all off with a kiss on his cheek, her vanilla scent clouding his judgment, and a whisper in his ear,

“...Not tonight?”

It echoed in Frank’s head even now, while he was standing stupidly at the door and looking across the room to see Nancy in her little shorts on the bed. She was laying on her side away from his gaze, peeking into the drawer of the nightstand next to her. When she turned back to see him, she gave him the smile that made his knees weak.

Just one more night. Frank seemed to need to repeat that little mantra in his head more times than the first one.

“You okay?” There was real concern in Nancy’s voice, and it shook Frank out of his trance a little bit.

“Of course. Just nervous you know? For tomorrow.” Frank answered, praying his voice wouldn’t crack at the ripe age of 23. He approached the bed and tentatively leaned his knee on the edge of it. He watched Nancy carefully. She nodded in understanding as she tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear.

“Me too. You really feel it right here.” Nancy moved her hand to her chest. She actually did seem nervous, Frank decided, and sat comfortably down on his side of the bed.

“You said it.” Frank paused, swallowing slightly. He locked eyes with Nancy, and the air between them was full of nerves too. Despite all the planning, they both knew what a big step they were taking. It was quiet for a while, with Frank left to think of what to say next, how to lighten the mood.

“Not getting cold feet, are you?” He quipped finally and cracked a smile. Usually one little gag was enough to get them back on track. But Nancy’s eyes widened enough to be noticed, and she shook her head,

“No! Frank, no.” She answered quickly, and immediately Frank felt bad. Her history with Ned was enough for him to know he shouldn’t have made a joke like that. He reached for the hand on her chest, clutching it tightly in his,

“I’m sorry, it was a joke. A bad joke.” Frank smiled at her again, but Nancy’s eyebrows still knit together,

“I love you.” She said seriously, like she was being accused otherwise. Frank remained lighthearted. With Ned and Callie, both Nancy and Frank had lied about their love, but Nancy had taken it extra hard onto her character. She was different now, loyal and loving, and Frank didn’t doubt her one bit. Nancy, however, felt insecurity seep into her every pore when it came to the way she acted with him.

Their relationship was nothing like the one Nancy had with Ned, or even like the one Frank had with Callie, but once that relationship had become serious, it took some time to convince Nancy she wouldn’t do the same deceitful thing all over again. Frank knew what it must have felt like. He was determined to make her feel otherwise.

He lifted the hand not encased in Nancy’s, and poked her between the eyebrows, right where they were creasing together.

“I know. Don’t worry. And I love you too.” Frank reassured her in every way he knew how, and Nancy laughed a bit, trying her best to look up at where he was poking her. Her eyebrows relaxed, and so did the two of them. They leaned back against the pillows, and Nancy turned on her side again, this time to face Frank.

“You’re so… perfect.” She sighed, and it made Frank’s shoulders shake with quiet laughter,

“We both know that’s not true.” He replied with a smile.

“Perfect for me. I know I’ve been sort of weird, trying to be perfect myself lately… I just-”

“Never want to make the same mistake again. I know. I trust you, Nan.” Frank interrupted her, but it made her smile back at him.

“See? That’s why you’re perfect… I can’t wait to be married to you.” She whispered as she leaned her head forward to kiss his shoulder. Her arm slid across his clothed stomach, and she rested her hand comfortably atop it. Frank wrapped his arm around her in an embrace as well, continuing to smile.

“Me either.” He replied softly. He briefly wondered if he should bring up the whole impromptu wedding invite he gave to Ned, but it was quickly slipping from his mind as he felt Nancy’s kisses fluttering up his shoulder until she reached the base of his neck. He wanted to ignore those, but it was difficult.

“So…” Nancy murmured into his skin as she started kissing up his neck. The hand on Frank’s stomach was traveling downward. Frank felt a shiver threaten to go down his spine, but he attempted to level his breathing as he felt Nancy’s light touch on his skin.

“Nancy..” He warned her, despite his head rolling back and bumping the headboard. Nancy kissed gently until she made it to his jaw, leaving a peck or two there before her lips touched the shell of his ear. She was halfway on top of him, fingers playing with the hem of his boxers and daring to dip beneath it.

“Nancy. Not tonight.” Frank nearly stuttered, using Nancy’s own phrase against her. He tried to sound authoritative, but it just didn’t work. He wanted her, was holding back, and she was well aware.

“...Frank. My darling. Please? Just once?” Frank did shiver at the way she said his name, soft and yearning. Combine that with the ‘darling’ and her hot breath in his ear and Frank Hardy was gone.

“..Okay. Just once.” He echoed a whisper, already reaching for her waist to pull her on top of him. Nancy hummed in satisfaction and stole his kiss as she fingered through his hair. She felt his cock, half-hard beneath her and grinned against his lips. Nancy practically felt the blush radiating off of Frank’s cheeks, too. She would never get tired of making him blush.

Their breaths became heavy between them, and fast. It had been too long, and too tempting, and Frank knew he would kick himself tomorrow but for now he didn’t care that he gave in to her. He just had no choice but to give in to Nancy Drew.

Nancy tugged at Frank’s hair while he tugged at her clothes. She almost giggled at the way he virtually clawed at her, and yet it made her hot too, how bad he wanted her.

“Hold on-” Nancy gasped between kisses, and Frank sat back against the headboard. Nancy tore her hands away from the hold she had on Frank’s scalp and reached for her waistband.

Frank watched eagerly, his eyes following her every move as her thumbs slipped under the fabric. It was too slow, too teasing, but he stopped himself from pulling those shorts down in one swift motion. He refused to look that greedy. If only he knew his cover had already been blown.

Finally, Nancy began to drag the clothing down her legs, barely off her thighs and then-

The phone rang.

It was loud, and it made both Frank and Nancy jump. Nancy pulled her shorts back up, as if she were embarrassed that the phone had caught them. Frank gave her a sheepish smile, and they couldn’t hold back the laughs that were building between them.

“I should unplug that thing.” Frank chuckled breathlessly, and Nancy’s forehead dropped to his shoulder as she laughed too,

“I’m tempted as well.” Nancy complained good-naturedly. She lamented getting off Frank’s lap for even a second, but they both agreed she’d better answer the phone, lest the caller try again to get her attention.

“One second…” Nancy sighed, crawling off Frank and over to the phone that was still blaring on the nightstand. She picked it up, putting it to her ear.

“Hello? This is Nancy Drew. Room…” Nancy stood from the bed as she answered. She looked to Frank, who held up four fingers and two subsequent hand ‘zeros’.

“Room 400.” Nancy finished her sentence with an amused smile, wrapping her finger up in the phone cord as she waited for a response from the caller. Her eyes darted briefly toward the alarm clock next to the phone. It read 11 o’clock. Who could be calling at such a late hour? And to her hotel room?

The other line was quiet. There was no dial tone, and so Nancy assumed they just hadn’t heard her,

“Sorry, is anyone there?” She tried again, and was once more met with silence. When she listened carefully, she thought she could hear breathing.

Okay, creepy.

Frank was understandably confused, crawling across the bed and sitting on his knees with his brows furrowed.

“Is this some kind of prank? Bess, is that you?” Nancy asked, insistent this time. Frank’s face turned serious, and he extended his arm, silently asking for the phone. Nancy glanced at him, but shook her head and held her pointer finger up at him for a second.

This time, Nancy thought she heard some kind of mumbling or talking in the background, but she couldn’t make out any of the words. She opened her mouth to tell off whoever was pulling such a weird horror-movie prank, until a chilling voice spoke on the other line instead,

“...What time’s the party, Nancy?” The voice said, causing Nancy to jump slightly again.

“The party? Who is this?” Nancy demanded, but the receiver had already clicked and the dial tone sounded, telling her whoever had called was no longer there. Nancy found herself still, frozen from shock or confusion or fear she wasn’t quite sure. Frank felt his heart pounding loudly in his chest, his worry of some bad omen back at the front of his mind.

“What happened, Nancy?” Frank asked after a while, as Nancy finally hung the phone up with a click. His tone was solemn, and he couldn’t ignore the way Nancy’s throat bobbed in a swallow.

“A prank, probably.” She told him, an ingenuine smile on her face. Her brows were knit slightly again as she sat down next to him on the edge of the bed. Yeah, no way she believed that.

“...What did they say?” Frank tried to pry, watching Nancy bite the nail of her thumb in thought.

“Nothing, for a while. It was seriously weird.” She explained what happened, how the ominous voice had asked about the ‘party’, and then hung up.

“I didn’t recognize the voice, but it could’ve easily been disguised.” Now the gears in Frank’s head began to turn.

“The party… What party? The wedding?” He questioned with a murmur, and Nancy tilted her head to the side.

“I assume so.” She turned to face Frank, and their eyes met, both full of uncertainty,

“You don’t think anything’s going to happen, do you?” Nancy wanted to know. Frank licked his bottom lip thoughtfully, not wanting to pause for too long. There were a lot of people who might want to wreck one of the happiest days of Nancy Drew’s life, and Frank feared there were equally as many people who might actually carry out some scheme to do so.

“I hope not. Like you said, it’s probably just some cruel joke.” He brushed it off the way she had earlier, and Nancy forced herself to smile again.

“Probably… I’m still going to ask the hotel staff if they know anything about the call tomorrow morning.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything else from you.” Frank gave Nancy a grin as she rolled onto the side of the bed he had just been lying in.

“A detective’s work is never done.” She quipped, getting under the covers, along with Frank.

“I’ll keep an eye out, okay Nance? Nothing’s going to ruin tomorrow for us. Not on my watch.” Frank draped an arm over her, and this time Nancy’s smile was back to being genuine. She closed her eyes, snuggling closer in toward him.

“Then I won’t worry.” She mumbled. Eventually her breathing slowed as it usually did and Frank knew she was asleep. His arm around her tightened, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He closed his eyes, willing for sleep to overtake him.

If only someone could take the burden of his worry too. 

Chapter Text

When Nancy opened her eyes, their hotel room was still shrouded in darkness. It had only been a couple of hours since she had drifted off to sleep with Frank next to her.

A couple hours after they had received a semi-threatening phone call about their wedding.

At least, that’s what Nancy thought it was about.

Despite Frank’s comforting arm around her, she found it easy to toss and turn, and difficult to will herself back to sleep. A million thoughts ran through her head:

Who could have called? What are they planning? Are they going to crash the wedding? Sabotage it? Something worse?

It once crossed Nancy’s mind that it really could be nothing more than determined party crashers trying to scare her.

But she also remembered the way the caller had spoken, toying with her in only one sentence, not to mention how casual they sounded. Like they were acquaintances, or old friends, though Nancy doubted the latter.

Either way, it seemed way too personal for a gatecrasher.

Nancy knew too, that there were enough people who’d want to ruin her wedding to fill an address book. She’d have to narrow down the list somehow, and that started with speaking to the hotel staff about the call.

Nancy’s head swirled dizzily around until the sun barely peaked through their hotel room curtains. As soon as it did, she quickly kicked the sheets off her legs and jumped up from bed.

Frank stirred slightly, groaning and reaching for the sheets that had been thrown halfway off him too. Nancy mostly ignored him, besides a half-smile in his direction, as she made her way over to her suitcase. She hurriedly pulled some jeans out, along with the moss-green horse t-shirt she always got teased about wearing.

Nancy didn’t really care if she got put on blast by everyone in the wedding party for her fashion choices, she was just too eager to head down to the front desk and ask who had been working that night. Once she did that, she’d have to track them down and question them before returning. There was no way she’d miss her own wedding, not even after being threatened. Nancy glanced briefly at the alarm clock, on which the time had just turned to 7 am.

I have until about 11. The thought passed quickly as she began to get dressed.

“Nan…?” Frank mumbled, sliding his hand across the mattress to her side after he had covered himself back up with the sheets. Nancy turned toward him as she pulled the jeans over her hips. Frank’s eyes were still shut until he realized she was no longer with him, and he began to pry his face from the pillow. He blinked slowly, groggily.

Nancy rushed over to him, buttoning her jeans in the process. She almost chuckled at the way his hair stuck up in a hundred different directions, and she smoothed it out, gently guiding his head back to his pillow.

“I couldn’t sleep. I’m going to ask the front desk a few questions, okay?” Nancy whispered as she lightly rubbed the side of Frank’s arm. She pulled away soon after that, yanking her shirt over her head and walking back to her suitcase to continue changing. She heard Frank humming quizzically, and the next time Nancy looked back she saw him beginning to sit up again,

“About the call..? I’ll go too.” He spoke tiredly. Nancy practically had to push him to get him to lay back down.

“That caller’s targeting me, Frank.” Nancy tried to convince him, but Frank only fought against her hand that was keeping him pinned to the bed.

“And it’s our wedding, Nancy. This creep’s got both of us on their bad side.” Nancy huffed a bit, but let him sit up. She walked away from Frank, running a hand through her bedridden hair and collecting her purse. Nancy turned back in his direction with a hand on her hip before he could pull the sheets off his lap.

“I know, but I’ll take care of this. Don’t worry, and go back to sleep. Please?” She hadn’t meant to sound so exasperated, but what Nancy really wanted to do was clear the whole mess up before Frank could bat an eye. She knew him well enough to understand that, despite his mystery-loving brain being more than pleased to take this case on, his anxious one only wished their wedding would go smoothly. Nancy was determined to make it so.

Frank seemed to sense something along those lines, because he laid back down with a deep exhale.

“Alright.. Just tell me what you find out?” He turned on his side, pulling the sheets back up and over his shoulders. Nancy smiled warmly,

“You’ll be the first to know.” She promptly whipped around and started for the door as Frank closed his eyes,

“Nice shirt!” He called out to her before she even reached the handle. Nancy rolled her eyes, tugging the door open,

“Bite me, Hardy!”

Frank grinned amusedly as he heard her leave the room.

***

It wasn’t long until Nancy reached the lobby, and strutted up to the front desk. There was a lone staff member behind it, staring intently at a computer screen in front of him. When he noticed Nancy approaching him, the bored expression he wore turned into a pleasant one.

“Good morning! What can I do for you today, Ms…?” He asked with a wide smile, as if he truly lived to serve. Nancy leaned her elbow against the counter that was slightly too high.

“Drew. Nancy Drew. You helped my party check in yesterday morning.” A look of realization passed over the man’s face this time,

“Oh yes! The wedding party… I apologize, Ms. Drew.” The man this time seemed devastated, as though he had committed a felony by forgetting. Nancy briefly noted how little she’d ever want to work in service.

“It’s no worry. I assume you get a lot of guests coming and going, it’s natural to forget.” Nancy replied with a smile. The worker chuckled with an affirmative nod,

“To tell you the truth, it does get confusing sometimes. Is there something I can help you with?” He asked. Nancy clicked her tongue slightly and leaned further across the desk as if she were trying to level with the guy,

“Well, you see. I think one of my friends pulled a prank on me. Called me in the dead of night. I don’t suppose you saw anyone down here trying to use the desk phone last night?” Nancy tried to sound casual, hoping to keep whatever mystery was at hand on the down low. The last thing she wanted was the hotel getting involved, especially when she had no idea who could’ve placed that call. The man’s forehead creased slightly in confusion,

“The dead of night?” He questioned, most likely attempting to avoid some kind of lawsuit. Nancy let out a breath and shrugged offhandedly without any further explanation. The worker looked concerned more than anything now,

“You didn’t recognize the voice?” Nancy shook her head in response.

“For all I know it could’ve been my next-door neighbor. Your connection isn’t exactly five stars.” She replied with a lighthearted grin, though it seemed to irk the man.

“Well, Ms. Drew. I couldn’t tell you even if I wanted to. I wasn’t on duty last night.” With that, he swiftly returned to his computer, as if to signal that he was no longer in the mood to talk. Nancy tapped her index finger on the top of the desk in brief contemplation, before trying to catch the man’s eye again.

“Any chance you could tell me who was?” She pried a bit, but he wouldn’t budge.

“I’m not allowed to give out that information.” Nancy thought she’d already pushed too far, turning a happy-go-lucky guy into a bitter one in a single conversation. She decided to push further anyway,

“Why not? I mean, it’s just the schedule-”

“Ms. Drew, I have to get back to work. Why don’t you try asking your party if any of them called you?” He started typing away on his computer. Nancy knew she was out of luck for the time being.

“..Right. Thanks for your help.” Nancy reluctantly turned away. She was little more than a few feet from the front desk when she saw Frank walk out of the elevator. Nancy’s expression was a mix of annoyance and amusement. She put a hand on her hip, tilting her head with her tongue in her cheek as she watched him smooth out his black slacks. Evidently he hadn’t noticed her, because he also jutted a hand through his hair, which had yet to be styled.

When Frank did turn, he met Nancy’s gaze with a guilty smile. She silently waited for him to jog over to her.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay in bed?” Nancy began once Frank had made it to her.

“Hey, I gave it the ol’ college try. But did you honestly expect me not to follow you? What if our roles were reversed?” Frank defended as he brushed his fingers around his head again. It was a vain attempt to secure any loose strands of hair that probably would’ve been better subdued with gel.

Nancy chuckled a bit, shaking her head in disbelief. She reached up to fix the top two buttons of his navy blue shirt he had missed when he hurriedly followed her downstairs.

“I guess you’re right. I just didn’t want you to worry.”

“Of course I’m worried! But I’m more determined than anything. Remember what I said last night? This prick’s not getting past us.” Frank looked down at her as she rested her hands against his chest. The annoyance in Nancy’s face faded away, replaced by adoration for Frank and excitement at having another chance to solve a case with him. She just hoped it would only take a few hours to solve.

“Alright, you’re in. Now do me a favor.”

“Anything you want.”

“Go and distract that guy at the front desk so I can snoop on his computer?” Nancy patted the side of Frank’s arm for emphasis as his mouth nearly dropped in response. Although, it quickly turned into a smirk.

“I love you.” Nancy smiled at that,

“I know. Now hurry-” Frank nodded, and walked briskly past her as if they had never been talking. Nancy hung around the elevator, leaning on the wall behind a pillar and eyed Frank. He stood near the front entrance, and Nancy watched as his gaze darted back and forth before he casually elbowed a plant next to him. The ceramic pot it was in broke on impact with the floor, shattering into a thousand pieces with a deafening smash. Not to mention, it was right in the middle of the walkway and easily seen by anyone.

“Oh, I am just such a klutz! Sorry, can you help me clean this up?” Frank pointed toward the man, although it was evident by the look on his face that he was well aware of the incident. Nancy suppressed a smile when she saw Frank pull the guy down with him as he kneeled next to the pieces of ceramic.

Once it was clear he was distracted, Nancy slipped out from behind the pillar and over to the front desk. She grabbed the computer mouse and began to try and locate the staff schedule. Nancy’s eyes trailed over all of the files and programs on the desktop, until she finally came to a folder labeled just that.

Nancy clicked on the folder, and then the document for that week. She glanced up briefly to make sure she wouldn’t be caught, but sure enough Frank was keeping the guy occupied. Nancy scanned the timetable and eventually found the slot where 11 pm fell.

“Eliza Campbell…” Nancy murmured to herself, noting the name that was scheduled. It was no one Nancy had ever heard of, but she knew she just had to find that woman if she were to have any clue as to who left that mysterious phone call.

Nancy clicked out of the timetable, and instead looked for a folder that might hold contact and address information for the hotel staff. At that point Frank and the front desk guy had started to stand up, but Frank had the man’s shoulder in a vice grip, profusely apologizing.

Nancy, feeling just a little frantic, located the right file and pulled out her phone. She didn’t have time to question the legality of her actions as she snapped a photo of the document and once again closed out of the tab. She sidestepped just in time for the guy to bust out of Frank’s hold and turn back toward the desk. He gave Nancy a glance that was full of suspicion as he approached his post. Nancy grabbed a mint from the top of the desk and smiled innocently at him,

“These are free, right?” She asked, not really hoping for an answer as she walked out the front door, where Frank had just disappeared through.

“You get the details?” Frank asked, nonchalantly joining in step with her on the way to the parking lot. Nancy held up her phone with a smile,

“Easy peasy. Hey…” Nancy suddenly stopped walking as they approached the curb. She looked up at Frank, reaching for his arm,

“Can you head back and tell my dad and the others what’s going on? I’ll try and see what this ‘Eliza Campbell’ knows about last night’s phone call.” She asked. Frank seemed mildly disappointed about not going with her, but he also seemed to understand that it’d be more worrying if they both disappeared without a trace on the day of the wedding.

“Alright… Joe would wanna know anyway. I’ll go tell them. Be careful, okay?”

“When am I ever not?” Nancy replied, a cheeky smile on her face when she heard Frank heavily exhale. She pecked a kiss on his cheek before the two of them parted ways.

***

Once Frank was back inside the hotel, he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out, and saw he was getting a call from Joe.

“Dude, where are you?” Frank heard his brother ask as he put the phone to his ear. His voice sounded about as drained as Frank had expected. A strict schedule wasn’t exactly Joe Hardy’s style. Frank almost felt bad for deviating from it himself, but then he remembered they were basically threatened the night before.

“Lobby. Are you at breakfast?”

“Duh. I’m a little concerned you’re not, groom.” Joe paused, his next words coming out playful,

“Were you and Nancy breaking your little tradition? Is that why you’re late?” Frank could hear the smirk on Joe’s face and he rolled his eyes,

“No. I’ll explain when I get-”

“Well then hurry up, we just barely slammed two tables together and I don’t want to get stuck sitting next to Mr. Drew if Nancy doesn’t show up on time.” Joe interrupted in a hushed voice. Frank chuckled a bit,

“Patience is a virtue, Joe.” He laughed louder when Joe audibly groaned and hung up on him. Frank found the hotel restaurant with minimal struggling. It was easy to spot the group, two tables they had slammed together indeed. George and Deirdre were obviously sitting next to each other, with Chet on Deirdre’s other side. Laura sat at the end of that row, with Fenton at the head of the table. He looked slightly confused about being there, but no one seemed to mind. On the opposite side of the table sat Hannah and Bess, with Joe on Bess’ left. He was giving Frank a scowl as Carson Drew sat next to him.

Frank suppressed a smile, which wasn’t hard once he got closer to the table and was reminded of the news he had to break to all of them.

“There he is…” Joe grumbled, and the whole table turned to see. Frank held his hand up in a wave, leaning a palm awkwardly against the back of an empty chair.

“We were starting to get worried.” Laura spoke up, and Fenton nodded in agreement. Carson’s eyes immediately squinted, his eyebrows creasing with them,

“Where’s Nancy?” He asked. Frank gripped the back of the chair a little tighter and let out a sigh,

“Well…”

“Oh no..” Bess lamented from only that one word. Frank didn’t blame her. If you knew Nancy, it didn’t take many guesses to figure out what had happened. She got caught up in mysteries as easily as dust in a vacuum. George leaned an elbow against the table and looked at her cousin,

“Maybe it’s not what you think.” She paused, whipping her head toward Frank again,

“Tell me it’s not what she thinks.” Frank could only look down at the tablecloth,

“It’s what she thinks…” He gave a summary of all the events that had happened up until then, and the table slowly grew solemn.

“Poor Nancy..” Hannah mumbled, her eyes saddened.

“So she’s checking out a lead, then?” Carson asked with a grimace. Frank nodded,

“Yes sir. She wanted me to tell the rest of you so you wouldn’t worry.” He explained soberly. At this point Deirdre had sighed loud enough for the group to turn their heads once again,

“I’m not worried. Who would be stupid enough to cause problems at Nancy Drew’s wedding?” She crossed her arms with an uncomfortable chuckle. George noticed the way she picked at her thumb nail with her forefinger, and how her eyes shifted away from everyone else’s.

“Deirdre-?” George began warningly, until Joe shot up from his seat, throwing down the heavy napkin that had been sitting on his lap.

“There’s gotta be something we can do. Let’s call the venue, beef up security in case Nancy can’t ID this fucker.”

“Joe, language.” Fenton interjected, his first word spoken since Frank had gotten there. Joe whirled around on his heels, mouth agape,

“Dad, are you serious?”

“Joe…” Frank spoke with authority next, hoping to get his brother to calm down, but then Carson stood up too. He threw his napkin onto the table with equal-force, and pulled out his cell phone,

“I think Joe’s right. Let me get in contact with someone.” Carson’s word was ultimately law among the group, as he instructed Joe to do the same as him.

“Let’s keep the rest of this as planned and head down to the venue after we sort this out. We don’t want our mystery caller to get word that we’re onto them.”

“Are we onto them…?” Bess offered unhelpfully. George shot her a look, but her comment was otherwise ignored. Carson and Joe walked a bit away from the table on their phones, right as Frank’s buzzed once more in his pocket.

“It’s Nancy.” He announced, answering soon after.

“Frank.” Nancy said through the receiver.

“Nan, what’d you find out?” Frank plugged his free ear as he tried to find a quieter spot in the restaurant to talk.

“Well, Eliza Campbell said it was definitely a man who placed the call to our room.” Nancy told him. Frank waited for more, but he was met with silence.

“That’s it?”

“Lobbies get a lot of traffic, Frank. But hey, if you think about all the cases I’ve solved, it narrows down the list by, like, half?” She chuckled, before letting out a disheartened sigh. Frank pressed his lips together firmly.

“It’s a start, at least.”

“We don’t have time for it to be a start.” Nancy was beginning to sound less-than-level-headed. Frank had to admit he was feeling just as so. After a pause, he told Nancy about potential extra security, but that there was nothing concrete.

“...Your dad thinks we should just carry on as planned.”

“He knows I’m not very good at leaving it to the professionals…” Nancy trailed off. Frank found himself smiling a bit, despite everything.

“If we get through the ceremony, you can investigate to your heart’s content during the reception.” He said, his smile evident in his words. Frank thought he could hear one in Nancy’s response, too, though it was mixing with uncertainty.

“How generous. Don’t suppose you’d like to join me?”

“Only for the rest of my life.” That little line made Nancy groan, but at least things were more lighthearted between them. Nancy told Frank she’d meet the girls at the venue, and to not wait up for her at the hotel.

“And tell my dad not to worry too much, okay?”

“Nancy, never in my right mind would I ever tell your dad that.” Nancy laughed that time. Frank felt it in his chest.

“Okay, okay. Just tell him I’m alright, and that I’ll be at the venue soon.”

“Deal, Drew.” They hung up, and Frank made his return to the group.

If all went well, the next time he’d see Nancy would be from down the aisle.

But he’d never been one to get his hopes up. 

Chapter Text

“If it were up to me, I would’ve gone with a bolder look.” Deirdre complained as Bess finished up Nancy’s makeup. The girls were sitting in one of the dressing rooms provided by the venue, which was otherwise outdoors. Nancy had gotten used to the blinding lights she was looking into, watching Bess fumble through a makeup bag on the vanity in front of them.

“Everybody knows Nancy likes it a bit more natural.” Bess replied with just a little lip. Deirdre rolled her eyes in response as she leaned back against the wall behind them. She continued to eye Nancy through the mirror, quickly noticing the smallest hint of confliction on her face.

“Nervous, Drew?” Deirdre chided, picking at the edge of the flowery accents on her bridesmaid dress. Nancy’s gaze shifted from her own reflection to Deirdre’s,

“I just can’t get that phone call out of my head. My dad says to just carry on, but what if something really does happen?” Nancy’s eyebrows creased in a usual thoughtful stare, before Bess tilted her chin back toward the light,

“Nancy. Leave me to be the nervous wreck, okay? Or give some of it to Deirdre, or George or Chet, that poor sucker. Spread it out evenly between us all so that you can enjoy this day. Because you’re supposed to be happy. Remember?” Bess’ rant turned from playful to ridiculous to serious all in the span of a minute. When Nancy glanced at her in the mirror, Bess just looked so resolute she had to smile.

“Okay. You’re right. Finish me up, Marvin!” Nancy went still and Bess began hurriedly doing her makeup once again.

“Find out where George is, Deedee.” Bess remarked offhandedly as she brushed a light blush onto Nancy’s cheek. Hannah had gone somewhere quieter to finish alterations on Nancy’s wedding dress, only now they were a little low on time. Done or not, they needed that dress, and so George had volunteered to locate the housekeeper. Deirdre stuck her tongue halfway out of her mouth in retaliation to Bess’ name-calling and checked her messages,

“She’s not answering my texts.”

“Well, text her again! We’re on a deadline here!” Bess demanded, accidentally smudging the eyeliner she had just applied to Nancy’s face.

“Oh, shit. Hold still…” Bess mumbled as she tried desperately to wipe away her mistake, ignoring Deirdre’s laughter behind her.

Moments later, George burst through the door with a panting Hannah Gruen behind her. Bess jumped in surprise and wiped some of Nancy’s eyeshadow off by accident.

“It’s finished!” The housekeeper announced as Bess smacked her forehead in dismay. Hannah bounced into the room with the dress over her arm, and once Bess fixed the makeup disaster, the four of them helped Nancy into her dress. Nancy’s hair had been curled neatly, and pulled away from her face with a few tiny clips that resembled white flowers.

Deirdre was the one to place the veil on top of Nancy’s head, admiring the hairstyle she had painstakingly crafted. She returned to George’s side with an embarrassed flush on her face. George grinned a little at her, slipping a hand around her waist and kissing her warm cheek.

“You know, you were acting a little weird at breakfast. But it’s nice to see you actually care about Nancy.” George leaned down to whisper in Deirdre’s ear, whose face heated up further. She pinned George’s hand in place on her waist, but pushed her head away.

“I just didn’t want her to commit a fashion crime.” Deirdre mumbled back. George only continued to smile.

Nancy stood in front of a floor-length mirror to see her final look. Bess went behind her and ran her fingers through one of the curls to make sure it was in its proper place. Nancy felt the ends of her hair tickling her shoulders. She never imagined she’d feel emotional before the ceremony even began, and it actually scared her to think she might burst into tears at the sight of Frank’s face down the aisle.

“Oh, I promised myself I wouldn’t cry just yet!” Bess suddenly said through tears that were already forming. The smile on Nancy’s face grew as her friend carefully wrapped her arms around her shoulders. Nancy held Bess there for a while, and then she heard sniffling behind her,

“You’re starting a chain reaction I’m afraid.” Hannah noted, fanning her face with one hand while pulling out a handkerchief with the other. Nancy tilted her head to the side, swallowing her own emotion and crossing the room to hug the housekeeper that was more like a mother to her.

“Oh, I love you Hannah.” Nancy spoke softly as the older woman practically sobbed in her arms. Even George had to furiously blink to keep her own feelings in check. Deirdre was the one to grin this time, elbowing her in the side playfully.

There was a knock on the door once the waterworks had barely subsided, and the group heard Carson Drew’s muffled voice from behind it,

“Nancy? It’s almost time. Are you ready?”

Nancy hurried over to the door and opened it. She was met with the sight of her dad wearing a simple dark gray suit he had bought for the occasion. His tie was blue, much like the bridesmaid dresses, along with the handkerchief stuffed into his breast pocket. Nancy couldn’t suppress her smile once again, and Carson’s grin was wide too. He crossed his arms, tapping his finger against his forearm. It looked as though he was contemplating something.

“Dad?” Nancy questioned. Carson’s smile faltered only slightly,

“Nothing. You just look like her. You’re beautiful like her.” Carson’s words came out in pieces, which didn’t happen to him often. Nancy immediately knew he was talking about her mother.

“Thanks dad..” She gave him a hug too, much like the one they had shared the day she had told him about the engagement.

“I’m sure she’s watching.” Nancy quickly followed up in a whisper. Carson’s embrace grew tighter. The rest of the room was fighting tears once more.

Nancy pulled away from the hug, and blotted her mascara with the handkerchief Hannah offered her.

“Alright.” She began, grabbing Carson’s hand and looking toward the group.

“Let’s do this.”

***

Frank was having an extreme case of deja vu. He again found himself standing in front of a mirror, his heart racing a mile a minute and his hands dancing around in his hair.

“Maybe your bad omen is that hair that won’t stick down.” Joe hollered from across the dressing room, grinning self-importantly as he fixed his tie. Frank internally rolled his eyes. He was starting to regret telling Joe about that while they were getting ready.

“Or maybe it’s that suit you’re wearing, Joe.” Chet butted in before Frank with a proud smile. Joe shot Chet a glare,

“You said you’d never mention it. We were all just going to pretend like it wasn’t happening.” He exclaimed dramatically, a piece of his blonde hair falling into his eyes. He had neglected to even style it because, even more than tight schedules, Joe Hardy loathed getting dressed up.

“Nobody ever agreed to that!” Chet argued back, not quite catching Joe’s deluded nature. Frank tried to block them out, his bottom lip stuck between his teeth as he smoothed out his hair one more time.

“I swear to God I’m going to glue it down.” He grumbled to himself. Joe chuckled a little as he approached his brother.

“Can you relax? You look fine. We got some extra security, and we’ll all keep a look out for funny business during the reception.”

“Yeah, Frank. All the bases are covered.” Chet added, pushing up his glasses with a smile. Frank glanced at them briefly, before letting out a breath and tilting his bowtie slightly to make sure it was straight.

“I hate it when you guys are right.” He eventually said. Joe smiled,

“Yeah, we’re smart sometimes.”

“Sometimes?” Chet complained. Joe just shrugged with a wink in Chet’s direction. Frank passed the two of them and grabbed his suit jacket. It was the same as Joe and Chet’s, the bowtie being the only thing that really set them apart.

“You talk pretty smooth Joe. It’s probably why Bess likes you so much.” Frank joked, sliding on the suit jacket. When he turned back to Joe, his brother looked sheepish,

“Well… I guess.”

“You guess? You two are pretty much inseparable when she’s around.” Frank continued, kind of enjoying the way Joe was getting embarrassed.

“It’s true. No offense Frank, but I thought Joe and Bess would’ve tied the knot way sooner than you and Nancy.” Chet interjected. Instantly Joe shoved his hands in his pockets, making a beeline for the door.

“Uh, yeah. I dunno guys. Let’s stop talking about me.” He deflected almost immediately as he flung the door open. Frank’s brows furrowed in mild concern, and Chet just looked like he’d said something wrong.

“Joe.” Frank said, his worry easily showing. Joe swallowed audibly, pausing a moment or two before he gave Frank and Chet his patented, lighthearted smile,

“After you gentlemen.” He gestured theatrically toward the door. Chet and Frank threw each other brief glances, before the former shrugged and the latter sighed, walking past Joe and out the door.

***

The outdoor venue was bustling with guests trying to find a seat to watch the ceremony. The venue itself was gorgeous, among all of the red rocks of Sedona Arizona on a railed cliffside. It wasn’t exactly remote, what with the buildings off to the side to hold indoor ceremonies along with the dressing rooms and other facilities. But the outside area was expansive, covered in tables, chairs, and complete with a wedding arch that was set up near the drop-off into the mountains. There was also a canopy or two shading the place, since nobody there was really used to the Arizona weather.

Joe and Chet came out of the building first and left Frank to wait around its corner for his grand entrance. Chet rushed to his post at the front, waving awkwardly to the people who had already gotten to their seats. Joe, on the other hand, took his time. He glanced around the place, smiling to a few guests including his parents, and some other relatives on Frank’s side of the audience. When he looked over at Nancy’s side, Joe couldn’t help but observe that it was more of a hodgepodge of guests he couldn’t begin to recognize.

Notably, Joe saw some other blonde guy that seemed close to his age, wearing a blue polo and flirting with a girl next to him. Joe didn’t know the guy, but he got the feeling he was an asshole from the way he hung his arm over the back of his chair. If not that, his decision to wear a blue polo to a wedding was evidence enough. Joe briefly wondered if he was accidentally sent an invitation.

A few rows behind the blonde dude was an older woman with red hair piled high on her head, wearing an eccentric dress covered in orange flowers. She was chatting up a man Joe actually did recognize as Alexei Markovic, owner of the River Heights antique store. Frank and Joe had met the guy during one of their escapades with Nancy. Alexei was appropriately dressed for a wedding, and Joe saw him pull out a pocket watch to check the time. Evidently the woman was talking his ear off.

Joe’s eye also caught sight of a man sitting at the back of the audience, despite some front seats still remaining. His hair was styled off his forehead, box-dyed purple and green, and his suit was an electric blue. He wore glasses, also framed purple and he was staring up at the sky, his eyes darting around a mile a minute. The way his knee bounced up and down made Joe think he could almost relate to that weirdo.

How familiar that weirdo seemed…

As Joe made his way toward the aisle to get to his spot, his gaze was drawn toward the sight of someone who had yet to sit down. Joe’s eyes fought not to roll when he realized it was Tino Balducci, the impotent police detective who’d “helped” him, Frank, and Nancy on a case or two. Balducci flipped back the bottom of his suit jacket to put his hand on his hip, his other hand waving wildly as he told a story to the woman next to him.

Wait a second… Joe’s train of thought easily remembered that woman. Tino Balducci was in the process of putting his arm around none other than Lori Girard!

Lori Girard, who had been so desperate to be the only one to take the secret of Jake Hurley’s mine with her that she nearly sealed Nancy up inside said mine. What the hell was she doing there?

Jesus, was Nancy high when she put together these invites? Joe thought mournfully to himself. It then dawned on him that Lori could’ve been the one who’d called Nancy the night before.

But Nancy did say it was a man. Joe nearly convinced himself otherwise, until he realized there was a gullible love-stricken man standing right next to Lori, who just might do her dirty work for her. Joe was about to go over and ask a couple questions, only he heard someone calling out to him before he could,

“Joe!” A familiar voice yelled. Joe whipped his whole body around in surprise when he realized it was Ned Nickerson. The smile on Ned’s face, and the girl on his arm almost made Joe forget everything he was doing. Joe decided he’d pocket the idea of talking to Lori until after the ceremony, and keep an eye on her and Tino in the meantime. He put his attention back on the couple that actually wanted it.

Ned’s suit was black, his tie was pink, and the girl next to him was wearing a form-fitting dress of a similar color. Joe jogged over to them,

“You decided to show up. I’m glad.”

“Yeah, well. I figured you’d be lonely without me.” Ned quipped with a smile. Joe couldn’t help but laugh, and then he gestured toward the girl,

“This must be the lady I haven’t heard enough about.” Joe’s natural charm jumped out, and the girl giggled a little,

“I’m Sophia. When Ned asked to go to his ex-girlfriend’s wedding I almost kicked him. But then he invited me, and I figured it’s fine. I mean, she is getting married right?” Sophia explained, her voice high and animated. Joe remembered Ned said she had been a cheerleader at Emerson.

“Right! Nice to meet you.” Joe responded awkwardly with a chuckle. Sophia seemed nice enough, if not a little high strung. He only hoped he hadn’t made a mistake in suggesting to invite Ned.

I mean, Frank’s the one who agreed. Nancy can be mad at him. I was drunk after all! Joe found himself rationalizing in his head for way too long.

“Well, take a seat-”

“Hey Ned! Burt parked your car, but I’m pretty sure there’s a dent in the fender now.” Someone else interrupted Joe. Two someones apparently, as Joe noticed the double Emerson letterman jackets approaching them. The guy who hadn’t spoken, evidently named Burt, tossed Ned his car keys with a goofy smile.

“My bad. But Dave was distracting me. His big-ass head was practically in my vision.” Burt said, elbowing the other guy. Dave. Ned sighed, dismayed about the car, but then pointed to Joe hopefully,

“The engine took you a couple tries, but how are you with fixing fenders?” Ned seemed to be blissfully ignorant of the fact that he’d brought more than one plus-one.

“Uh. Burt? Dave? I know I’m not exactly a genius. But I do know you’re not on the invite list.” Joe knew very well in fact. If Frank and Nancy hadn’t invited Ned to the wedding, it was highly likely they hadn’t invited his football buddies either. Dave leaned in toward Joe, whispering loudly for all to hear,

“We’re gatecrashing, man. Hey Burt, let’s find a seat.” Dave smacked Burt on the chest and the two of them left before Joe could object. When he looked back at Ned, his mouth nearly dropped at how unbothered he was.

“I’m over it.” Ned had said. Joe was starting to think that wasn’t completely true. Or it was, and Ned was getting even for the fun of it. In retrospect, inviting Burt and Dave was probably the tamest way of getting even.

So much for that extra security...

“Nancy and Frank aren’t going to be happy, you little schemer.” Joe wagged his finger disappointedly in Ned’s direction. Ned shrugged, before his smile turned smug,

“I’m not proud of my actions. Just a little… satisfied?” He gave Joe a pat on the shoulder, and he and Sophia followed Burt and Dave further into the venue.

Joe ran a hand over his face, feeling drained, and the real chaos hadn’t even started yet.

***

Nancy walked with her friends, Hannah, and Carson toward the doors that would lead them to the venue. She was linking arms with her dad, smiling at the thought that they’d be walking just the same in a few minutes, only down the aisle. Suddenly, Carson stopped walking and looked at Hannah.

“Oh! I forgot. Hannah, can you come help me with something real quick?”

“Of course, Mr. Drew!” Carson then turned to Nancy with a smile,

“There’s something I want to give you before you walk. Can you wait just a minute longer while I go get it?” Carson squeezed Nancy’s hand lightly, who nodded in agreement with a grin,

“Just a minute, then? No problem dad.”

“Thanks, kiddo.” Carson gave Nancy a kiss on the forehead before him and Hannah hurried off in the opposite direction down the hallway. Nancy, nosy as always pressed her face against the glass of the door in hopes to see the venue and all the guests.

“Hey, you’re going to smudge your makeup.” Bess whined, but Nancy didn’t seem to hear her. She glanced around the place, smiling at all the guests who’d come to congratulate her. She tried to ignore the idea that one of them would want to ruin it.

Nancy squinted slightly as she tried to get a better view of everyone. Professor Hotchkiss was chatting up Alexei, Brady Armstrong looked like he was trying really hard to comprehend something Henrik Van Der Hune was saying, and Dave Gregory tipped his cowboy hat kindly in the direction of Prudence Rutherford. Nancy was also surprised to see Sonny Joon sitting in the back, his hands drawing a pyramid in the air as he rambled to an arguably interested-looking Henry Bolet.

Nancy’s heart had never felt warmer. The sight of her friends, family and all the people she’d helped on cases meshing together to celebrate her and Frank. She tried to spot more, she wanted more of that feeling.

Bess had come up next to her, joining her in her search for guests. Nancy hadn’t seen, however, that Bess’ head tilted in confusion, her brows creasing deeply.

“Nancy… Is that… Brenda Carlton?”

Nancy’s stomach dropped as she followed Bess’ pointing finger the best she could. Sure enough, the River Heights Channel 9 News Reporter who Nancy had the unfortunate pleasure of dealing with more than once was sitting near the back of the audience as well.

“Don’t tell me you invited her.” Bess added incredulously. At this point George had broken away from Deirdre to join Nancy and Bess by the door. Deirdre stayed behind them, crossing her arms and tapping the tip of her shoe against the floor.

“...I didn’t…” Nancy trailed off, pressing her forehead further against the window. George scoffed a little,

“It’s just like Brenda to gatecrash. How did she even know about the-”

“Girls. Am I crazy or is that Shorty Thurmond over there?” Nancy jammed her finger into the window as she pointed, and sure enough the crazed, treasure-seeking cowboy from Shadow Ranch was leaning up on a table.

“Didn’t you put that guy in jail?” Bess asked, her mouth dropped halfway open. It wasn’t just Shorty, either. The closer Nancy looked around the place, the more people she spotted that A. weren’t on the guest list, and B. definitely had enough motive to want her wedding ruined.

“Elliot Chen, Andy Jason, Helena Berg, hell even Anja Mittelmeier…” Nancy muttered disbelievingly.

“That cute guy from Greece, that cute guy from Japan-” Bess began, earning a smack to the arm from George,

“Bess…” She chided, before smirking a bit,

“You forgot that not-so-cute guy with the bad mustache. What’s his name?”

“Taylor Sinclair…” Nancy answered bitterly, pushing away from the door while shaking her head. She gripped the front of her wedding dress as she paced away from the rest of them.

“We’re sorry for joking around, Nan.” Bess said timidly.

“I just don’t understand.” Nancy replied, and began slowly counting the number of culprits on her fingers.

“Nine people so far. Nine people that I’ve put away during my cases. Why are they here? How are they here? I sure didn’t invite them. Are they all working together? Did one of them make that call last night?” Nancy was beginning to ramble but she was just so confused. Everything about it was confusing. There was no way it could be a coincidence, and they wouldn’t have been able to come without outside help, to say nothing of that stupid extra security she wasn’t even sure had shown up at that point.

Nancy paused in her thoughts as she realized Deirdre had begun to shift uncomfortably on her feet. George noticed too, and soon the whole group had a bad feeling in their stomach. Nancy strode over to her rival, pointing in an accusatory manner,

“You did something, didn’t you? Tell me what you did.” Nancy’s voice came out angrier than she’d wanted it to, but it’d be just like Deirdre to want to ruin her wedding.

“Deirdre. Did you make that call last night?” George added, sounding more hurt than anything else.

“No! No, I didn’t. Drew, stop looking at me like that. I-”

“NANCY! Nancy, come quickly! Something terrible has happened!” A deafening yell interrupted the intense conversation. Nancy looked past Deirdre, her wide eyes seeing Hannah Gruen hiking up her skirt and running a mile a minute toward them. Nancy opted to meet her halfway, as her housekeeper looked about as freaked out as she felt.

“Hannah, what is it? What’s happened? Where’s my dad?” Nancy asked questions faster than her brain could think of them. She allowed Hannah to lean her elbow on her shoulder, and grab her hand in hers. Nancy noticed Hannah was shaking something terrible.

“That’s just the thing! Mr. Drew, your father…” She could barely stutter, her face scrunched up in absolute fear, until she finally burst out,

“Carson has been kidnapped!” 

Chapter Text

“Kidnapped?!” Bess cried out in a breathless word. Nancy hadn’t said anything at Hannah’s exclamation. Her eyes were blown wide and her hand clutched Hannah’s more tightly. It was like she was frozen, and she wasn’t even sure why. Carson often got involved in Nancy’s cases as much as anyone else that was close to her.

Not to mention, it was immediately obvious to her, even then, that whoever had taken him needed leverage against her for something. There would be demands, and Nancy knew she’d have to come up with something real clever to get Carson back without giving up whatever it was they wanted. It was a standard formula, really. She’d dealt with countless kidnappings, and they’d all worked out-

And yet, all Nancy could do was hold Hannah’s hand like a child while her heart stopped and her head raced.

I can’t lose him too.

Not him.

Not dad.

It must’ve been the wedding stress, combined with the phone call and all the talk of her mom. Had Nancy seen herself from across the room, she would’ve known it was silly to be worrying so much. It didn’t change the fact that those were the only thoughts that ran through her mind. In that moment, there was no way she could possibly think rationally.

The only thing that brought her out of her trance was the feeling of Hannah’s cold hand on her cheek. Nancy looked up from the floor and into her face, which was tearstained. Nancy realized a tear had slipped from her own eye too. Hannah's face was also contorted in concern for her, evidently she’d missed some kind of conversation while she was in her own head.

“...What happened Hannah?” Nancy finally managed, needing the details but dreading hearing of them. Hannah swallowed, and her gaze reached the ceiling as she tried to recall everything.

“W-Well… Mr. Drew and I went out to his car, I made a comment about the weather I mean it’s just so hot-”

“Hannah. What about when you got to the car?”

“Oh, right. Well we’d never made it there! The minute we hit the parking lot someone snuck up on me. They threw something over my eyes, and I struggled, but they held it tight. I heard even more struggling, and by the time I had gotten free, they were gone!”

“More than one kidnapper?” Nancy asked, running her thumb comfortingly over the back of Hannah’s hand. The housekeeper shrugged a little, but agreed with her.

“It must’ve been. Carson’s strong, you know? You’d need at least two people to- Oh I can’t say it. It’s just too horrible.” She pulled away from Nancy with a shudder. Nancy watched with softened eyes as Hannah dabbed her own with her handkerchief. She turned, looking at Bess, George, and Deirdre.

“Our kidnappers clearly have an agenda.”

“What do you mean?” George asked. Nancy sighed as she walked toward them. It was then she remembered she was wearing a wedding dress. She begrudgingly pulled the veil off of her head and held it between her hands.

“I mean, this wasn’t just a whim. It was coordinated. Not to mention, they left poor Hannah to be the messenger. They either wanted me to know, or only planned to take one person.”

“Your dad?” Bess spoke up meekly. Nancy nodded.

“I’d say you have a good suspect line-up already.” George put in, making her way back over to the door and looking out at the guests. Nancy was inclined to agree. There were at least nine people who could’ve carried it out, easily.

“That reminds me…” Nancy began, and her eyes narrowed in on Deirdre.

“You were about to confess something of your own, weren’t you Deirdre?” Nancy threw her veil toward her, the plastic headpiece hitting Deirdre in the chest as she caught it. Deirdre clutched it, once again glancing shiftily around the hallway.

“I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. Any of it. Especially not what happened with your dad-”

“That’s not much of an explanation.” Nancy interjected hotly. Deirdre sighed, her hands flinging down to her sides in frustration as she continued to hold onto Nancy’s veil,

“Fine. Alright.” She paused for just a minute. She gave George an eyeful of guilt, before finally looking back at Nancy,

“Remember how I leaked your phone number online that one time?” Deirdre asked.

“Yeah…” Nancy replied with an uneasy swallow.

“Right. I did that, but with the venue, date and time of your wedding.” Deirdre continued, a little too matter-of-factly. George let out an exasperated breath first,

“Deirdre. Are you kidding me?” She sounded angry, and Nancy thought she might’ve been angrier than she was. It surprised her even more, because she never really saw George’s emotion level rise above annoyance. When Deirdre turned to face George, they all got the impression that she might’ve genuinely felt bad that time.

“It was supposed to be harmless-”

“Deirdre, you don’t understand. I asked, no, begged you not to do something like this. But you did it anyway! I just don’t get you sometimes.” George huffed again, crossing her arms and facing the door instead.

“I’m sorry-” Deirdre said to George, and then paused, turning to Nancy instead,

“I’m sorry, Drew.”

Nancy grimaced a bit in response, because as genuine as Deirdre sounded, she couldn’t help but feel like none of this would’ve happened if she hadn’t intervened.

“We don’t have time to pass around blame. We need to figure out what our next move is going to be. Can I count on all of you to help?” Nancy glanced around the hallway that was feeling a little too cramped now. Bess nodded exuberantly, and George and Hannah easily agreed. Nancy saw Deirdre nod too, out of the corner of her eye, still holding the veil tightly in both hands.

“Okay. George, will you call the police? We’ll need their presence if we’re going to keep all our ‘guests’ in one place.”

“You got it Nan.” George pulled out her phone and started walking back toward the dressing rooms. A look of realization passed over Nancy’s face, and she quickly grabbed George’s arm before she was too far away,

“Oh, and get me a change of clothes? This dress isn’t going to cut it.” Nancy shared a knowing grin with George,

“Of course.”

“I’ll go with you.” Deirdre offered, and though George didn’t say anything, she didn’t reject the offer. She shrugged, waving Deirdre with her and soon the two of them disappeared down the hall. Nancy spoke again, thoughtfully, and more to herself than anyone else,

“We’ll need someone to let Frank and Joe know too. That way, they can stall the audience so nobody leaves in the meantime.”

“I’ll do it, Nancy! They’re probably wondering what the hold up is, anyway.” Bess piped in, shooting her hand up into the air. Nancy smiled tiredly at her,

“Thanks, Bess. Hannah, can you come with me to the parking lot? I want to check out the crime scene.” Once Hannah accepted, they went in the opposite direction of Bess, who disappeared through the doors to the outside venue.

***

It took Bess a minute or two to locate Frank around the corner of the building she had come out of. He was leaning back against the wall, staring down at his hands where he was picking slightly at his nails. Bess thought he looked blissfully unaware of the mess she was about to drag him into.

“Frank!” She called out. When he looked up he bore a confused expression, which Bess mostly expected. She beckoned him over to her as she met him halfway. He must have sensed her own worry, because as soon as they got close enough to speak, Frank’s brows rose, familiar forehead creases appearing above them,

“What’s up? Is it time?” He asked, too innocently. Bess felt bad for volunteering to be the one to break his spirits.

“No- I mean. I wish. I mean! It would be, but something’s come up.” Bess stumbled around until she finally settled on something to say. Panic slowly crept up in Frank with every concerning word she spoke.

“Is Nancy okay?” Frank’s voice turned soft.

“She’s fine- Well…” Bess trailed off with a sigh, and ran a frustrated hand through her loose curls.

George would’ve just gotten straight to the point. She reprimanded herself.

“Bess.” Frank reached out and grabbed her shoulder. It was urgent, and yet Bess was left briefly wondering why his touch was so gentle.

“Please just tell me what happened.” He insisted. Bess managed to explain everything that had happened in a few too many words. Once she was sure she hit all the bases: uninvited guests, kidnapping, and Deirdre’s dramatic betrayal, she leaned her shoulder against the scratchy brick of the building next to her. Frank too looked like he needed to sit down, the worry on his face permanent.

“Sounds like we better look into what happened with security. George is calling the police?” Bess nodded affirmatively. Frank rubbed his jaw in contemplation while he pulled at his bowtie.

“Alright… Go check on Nancy. I’ll grab Joe.” He said with an exhale, patting Bess on the back as he passed her. Bess didn’t reply, but Frank did hear her go back inside, presumably to find Nancy. He reached the aisle, where most everyone had sat down and was murmuring to each other. They’d been waiting a little longer than planned, and were getting understandably antsy. Frank caught Joe’s eye from down the aisle, where his brother was standing by Chet off to the side as every good groomsman should be. Joe scratched the side of his head, tilting it a little as if asking Frank what was going on. The lack of bridesmaids should have been a dead give away that something was wrong, if Frank’s face didn’t.

Frank did a little head tilt of his own, only it was more of a ‘get over here’ gesture than anything else. Joe didn’t seem to understand, and he pointed toward a lady at a piano, who was at the ready. After giving Frank a very unhelpful thumbs up, he nodded vigorously toward the woman, who started playing a ballad which would have been lovely. It was just that the last thing Frank wanted was to call attention to the massive audience waiting for a wedding to start.

No. Frank mouthed desperately toward Joe, adding a shake of the head and a frantic wave of his hands to get the music to stop. Some of the guests had turned back toward him, and Frank’s hands shot behind his back with an awkward smile to all of them. He figured he probably looked insane, smiling broadly while giving Joe the widest S.O.S. eyes one had ever seen.

Joe evidently got the message when he saw Frank didn’t start walking down the aisle, along with the ludicrous look on his brother’s face. Joe raced over to the piano, tapping the top of it and the woman abruptly stopped playing. The silence caught the attention of most of the guests, and they whipped their heads back to the front. Now they were all staring at Joe, who had arguably a much better stage presence than Frank. He flashed a less awkward smile at all of them, and approached the microphone,

“Sorry everyone, there’s going to be a small delay…” He glanced over at Chet.

“My best friend Chet’s going to keep you all entertained for a while.” Joe’s plan was wicked, no doubt. Chet was already starting to object, but Joe clapped a hand on his back, whispering harshly into his ear,

“Just vamp for a little, will you buddy?” Chet’s eyes widened even more than Frank’s had, and he made sure Joe knew he thought he was crazy,

“Vamp? In front of all these people-?”

“Thanks Chet, you’re the best.” Joe pushed him lightly toward the microphone, and then rushed up the aisle before Chet had a chance to argue any further. He chuckled too loudly into the mic,

“So… Anybody here from out of town?” Chet felt himself cave in as he realized most of the guests had traveled halfway across the country to be there.

“Right, anyway…”

At this point, Laura and Fenton Hardy had become a little alarmed, rising from their seats as they watched Frank lead Joe away with a rough tug of the arm. Ned too, turned halfway in his seat in wonder.

“The hell is going on?” Joe whispered before they were entirely out of earshot.

“Bad shit, that’s what.” After Frank gave an explanation that took a lot less time than Bess’, Joe ran his hand down the front of his face in utter dismay. Frank undid the buttons on his suit jacket so he could breathe better,

“Let’s go inside. Nancy will be able to give us a better profile of our nine suspects.”

“Ten.” Joe immediately followed up, “I saw Lori Girard prancing around here earlier.”

“Great. Ten.” Frank heaved.

“Maybe eleven. Who knows where Tino Balducci’s loyalties lie.” Joe added after a second. Frank lightly beat his fist against his forehead,

“Jesus Christ this is a mess. Find out what happened with security before I blow a gasket.”

“That would be a sight.” Joe quipped with a grin, pulling out his phone in surrender once he saw Frank glare back at him. The older Hardy brother glanced over at Chet doing bad stand-up comedy as he opened the door for Joe, and they went inside too.

***

Nancy pushed on her knees to stand from her crouched position in the middle of the venue’s parking lot. As far as she was concerned, the kidnappers carried out their plan without a hitch or a trace. Hannah was standing by the door, holding her purse like her life depended on it as she watched. Nancy wiped her hands off on her skirt, promptly smacking her forehead when she remembered she was still wearing the wedding dress.

“Just my luck.” She muttered, holding the skirt of the dress out in front of her to see the black dust from the tarmac she had accidentally smudged all over it. The bottom hem of her dress wasn’t a pretty sight either, powdered black from all the dragging it had done on the ground.

“Hannah?” Nancy turned to face her housekeeper, and some wave of sadness hit her as soon as she did. She swallowed her emotion. There were too many things to be done. She had to ask Hannah more about the kidnappers, figure out any ransom demands, get in touch with the police and then do everything else finding her dad would require. She hoped Bess managed to find Frank and Joe and-

Oh, God, Frank… Nancy couldn’t imagine what he was feeling if Bess told him everything. He was probably worried sick about her, and her dad, to say nothing about how annoyed he might be because of all her past work getting in the way their special day. It was something that had never happened before. They’d always been on the same page, the same insane schedule and now one of the glaring reasons everything had fallen apart with Ned was staring her in the face once more.

“Oh honey…” Nancy heard Hannah’s motherly tone, and felt her arms around her and she realized she must have been crying. Nancy wished she could’ve stopped her tears and her shaking shoulders as she leaned into Hannah’s touch.

“It wasn’t supposed to be like this… Everything was supposed to work out.” Nancy whispered hoarsely. Hannah rubbed circles into her back,

“It will work out dear. You and Frank have something special. This won’t ruin it. And I’m sure his little brain is running a mile a minute thinking of every possible way he can help.” Nancy laughed a bit despite her tears, and held Hannah closer for a moment before pulling away. She wiped each forearm across the corners of her eyes, now also stained black from the makeup that had run.

“You’re probably right.. Thanks Hannah.”

“Of course dear.” Hannah ran her handkerchief over Nancy’s cheeks a few times to clean her face up the best she could. Then she gave Nancy a somewhat cheeky smile,

“You most likely want to know if I can recall anything else about those troublemakers, right?” Hannah winked at Nancy’s bewildered expression,

“You’re psychic.”

“Only when it comes to you, darling. Well, there really isn’t much to tell. Oh, but you might be surprised to know I thought I heard the sound of another woman struggling.” Nancy wasn’t necessarily surprised, but she was interested. That pretty much confirmed there were multiple people involved in the whole thing, if the caller from the night before was a man.

“Let me know if you think of anything else, Hannah.” Nancy and the housekeeper returned inside to try and find everyone else, and by the time they reached the end of the hallway, they saw Frank and Joe standing there by the door. As soon as Frank noticed her, he practically sprinted toward her, holding her by the arms as he started talking at her as fast as an auctioneer,

“Nancy! Bess told me what happened. Are you okay? Well, obviously you’re not. You look beautiful in that dress by the way, dammit I wish I hadn’t even seen it. The surprise is so much better you were really right about that. Say, Joe and I were going to try and get a written profile of all the-” Frank’s eyes widened as he felt Nancy’s hands grab the sides of his face and pull him down toward her. She kissed him hard, her own eyes squeezed shut tight. She would’ve been smiling if her lips weren’t so busy. Joe’s jaw dropped as low as Frank’s wanted to, and then with a smirk he let out a whistle he couldn’t hold back.

Once Nancy pulled away, catching her breath, she said,

“I really didn’t need to worry when it comes to you, Frank.”

Frank didn’t really hear her, he was too busy trying to come back to Earth.

“Huh..? I mean... What?” He stammered, and Nancy was glad to laugh again.

“Cat caught your tongue, Frank?! You were talking so fast a minute ago! I didn’t even know you could do that!” Joe hollered, leaning forward to smack his brother on the arm with the back of his hand. Frank waved his hand behind him in a blind attempt to swat Joe away. He didn’t really want to take his eyes off Nancy. The smile she threw at him was the flirtiest one she’d given all day,

“You were saying something about a profile?”

“Uh… Yeah!” Frank cleared his throat, tugging his bowtie off so it hung around his neck.

“Considering most of us don’t have a clear picture of what these people look like…”

“It’s a great idea, Frank.”

Not much more was spoken between them, for Bess, George, and Deirdre had returned.

“I was trying to find you!” Bess nearly yelled. George interrupted her,

“The police are on their way! There’ll be enough to keep an eye on everyone. I also talked to the owners of the venue, they’re about to move everyone inside.” She told the group. George also made it a point to hand Nancy her t-shirt and jeans.

“We can make up an excuse about the weather, but they’ll start to catch on. We don’t want the kidnappers to make a break for it.” Nancy said as she took the clothes from George.

“I kinda get the feeling they’ll stick around. If there’s a ransom, I mean.” Joe put in.

“You’re probably right, but we don’t want to take any chances.” Frank replied. Right afterward, he looked like he remembered something,

“Oh right. Joe, did you find anything out about security?” He asked, but Joe shook his head,

“No, but I’ll keep trying… Hey, is Nancy the only one who gets to change? I’d kind of like to get out of this thing like, ASAP.” Joe pulled at his tie while he rolled his eyes back in his head to really show off his distaste for the suit. Bess put her hand on her hip and looked him up and down,

“Do you really have to change? This is such a rare sight I wanna stare at you for the rest of my life.” George audibly groaned,

“Stop flirting.”

“I’m alright with it.” Joe interrupted with a grin, getting entirely off track.

“You can’t say that to me anymore now that you have a girlfriend!” Bess argued over him, crossing her arms and sticking her tongue out in her usual fashion toward her cousin. The Hardys were a little perplexed at the mention of George having a girlfriend, but nobody was able to get a word in once they heard the door open. That little hallway was getting quite a traffic jam, was all Nancy thought.

“What the devil is going on Frank? They’re moving everyone inside and they won’t even tell us why.” Fenton Hardy boomed as he walked in. Laura, naturally, was right behind him. She rested a hand on his arm and looked at Frank with much softer eyes,

“Has something happened?”

“Just a little kidnapping case, mom and dad.” Joe answered coolly, still eyeing Bess and adjusting the tie he suddenly loved so much. Once Nancy told them it was her dad who was taken, Laura gasped, and Fenton, seasoned P.I., sighed heavily.

“I thought we prepared for something like this.” He muttered.

“How do you prepare for a kidnapping, dad?” Frank replied, sounding kind of bitter. Nancy was beginning to feel her head spin, with everyone talking over each other. She also felt a little stuck. She couldn’t really interrogate any suspects until everyone was moved and she spoke to the police. Not to mention how hot it was getting in that godforsaken hallway.

“I’m going to get some air and then change out of these clothes…” Nancy murmured to no one in particular, pushing past all the Hardys to get outside. Frank was keen on following her, even if she didn’t want to talk. He knew how overwhelming everything must be for her.

Nancy managed to get outside without ruffling too many feathers, but the minute she did so she stopped right in her tracks. Her eyes widened tenfold and she felt a pang of anxiety in her chest.

Among all of the people moving from their seats to the indoor venue, was Ned Nickerson coming straight for her.

What the hell is he doing here? 

Chapter Text

Nancy immediately turned around upon seeing Ned, darting for the door even when she heard him calling out to her. She was already coming up with a list of polite excuses she could throw his way to get him to leave.

Nancy really didn’t mean to seem coarse, honestly the only rationale she had for avoiding him was her own embarrassment. Not to mention she was surprised, and confused about this whole thing.

What was he doing there? Surely he didn’t forgive her, and surely he didn’t want to be friends with her. Nancy probably wouldn’t either, if she were in his shoes.

Him showing up like that only threw a wrench into what she had thought during the entirety of the last couple of years. That Ned wanted nothing to do with her after everything went down between them. That’s what Nancy had always assumed, and it almost scared her to think that Ned might be trying to break down the wall between them.

Because if he broke down the wall, it would remind Nancy of the person she used to be, the apathetic, cowardly way she used to treat people. Part of her knew running away from him, and refusing to face that side of her was just as cowardly. A louder, more annoying part of her was afraid that if she faced it, she would fall into the same old habits. That was obvious enough, if Frank’s earlier joke about her noncommitment was any proof of that.

Nancy shook her head after all of those thoughts shot through her mind like a bullet. She didn’t know why Ned was there, but she did know that she didn’t have time to find out, or to hash through every piece of her broken psyche. She needed to figure out what the kidnappers wanted, and get her dad back. That was her priority.

And so, with guilt in the back of her mind, Nancy pushed down every complicated thought swimming around, and much like she had for the last four years, avoided Ned Nickerson. She pulled open the door hurriedly, and went back inside the cramped hallway.

She ran into Frank, who was practically halfway out the door as it was.

“Hey, what’s going on?” He asked, catching Nancy by the elbows before she slammed her face into his chest. She glanced up at him, clutched the clothes she had nearly dropped tightly to her body, and then gestured behind her with a nod of her head,

“I don’t suppose you know what he’s doing here?” She sighed. Luckily she missed the equally-guilty look in Frank’s eyes once he peered over her head to see Ned still bounding over to them.

“Um…”

“Nancy, what’s going on? Is that Ned?” Bess came up to them with her eyes blown wide, earning the attention of the rest of the hallway. George had already shot Deirdre a look, arms crossed tightly across her chest. Nancy’s eyes had drifted in that direction too in realization, and Deirdre scoffed, bending her arms at the elbow in surrender,

“Hey, don’t look at me! I’m not responsible for this trainwreck.” She defended, and this time Nancy thought she might actually be telling the truth.

“Then why-?” Nancy didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence because Ned had finally caught up to her, lightly grabbing her by her upper arm. Frank was still holding onto her elbows, and so she was stuck between them.

“Nancy. Glad I caught up to you… I was-” Ned started, pausing only to give a nod to Frank over the top of Nancy’s head,

“Frank.”

“Ned.” Frank greeted back, and the two of them let go of Nancy’s arms. She was glad they did, and lightly pushed past Frank to go further down the hallway. Ned promptly followed her. Nancy felt her eyes roll almost involuntarily out of frustration.

“Nancy Drew, can you wait up?” Ned sounded frustrated too. Nancy exhaled, turning around and opting to stare at his chest rather than his eyes.

“We have enough gatecrashers, Ned.”

“Gatecrashers? But I’m-”

“Really sorry he brought Burt and Dave along then!” Joe cut Ned off and gave him a rough clap on the back. He didn’t have to shoot a glance in Frank’s direction to know that his brother now owed him. Nancy, however, still wasn’t exactly pleased,

“You did what?” She interrupted herself with a scoff and then put a hand to her forehead, “You know what, that doesn’t even matter right now. I don’t have time for this.” Nancy started to turn again, but Ned wasn’t done,

“Nancy, what happened?”

Nancy was already walking away, quicker than before, and this time Joe basically had Ned by the collar to stop him from going too.

“Have someone else explain it to you!” Nancy’s voice rose slightly as she disappeared down the hallway. Ned swallowed thickly, but when Joe let go of him, he didn’t try to go after her. He turned toward the rest of the group, his eyes locking with Frank’s.

“This is my fault.” Frank began, “Nancy’s not… Well I shouldn’t speak for her but…” He continued brokenly to Ned, but he wasn’t making much progress.

“What my brother is trying to say is Nancy’s not as ready to forgive herself as you are.” Joe finished instead. Ned glanced sideways at the younger Hardy brother,

“I never said I was forgiving her. I just don’t want it to be awkward if we see each other on the street or something. I just want everyone to move on.” He sighed, and Frank took a step toward him,

“Believe me. I do too. It’s just… It’s complicated.”

“It always is with her.” Ned muttered. Frank clicked his tongue in mild annoyance at the jab, but didn’t respond. Joe patted Ned on the back once more as if to tell him to calm down, and soon the group took turns telling him everything that had transpired since they’d gotten there.

“That’s real bad news.” Ned put his hand on his chin as he thought about the whole situation, and then looked up at everyone,

“Look, things between Nancy and I might be rocky still, but I’d be glad to help you all out. I can enlist Burt and Dave too.” He explained. Bess couldn’t help but smile,

“Ned has gotten pretty good at detecting over the years.” She put in a good word for him, and Frank chuckled dryly,

“We’ll take any help we can get.”

The group decided they’d meet in front of the indoor venue where they’d put together profiles of their suspects and wait for the police to arrive.

“I’ll grab Burt and Dave, oh and uh… Sophia.” Ned got quieter the more he spoke, ending his sentence with an embarrassed mumble. Frank assumed Sophia must be Ned’s actual plus-one by the way his face was beginning to flush. Joe did what he always did and dragged Ned’s neck down with his arm around the back of it,

“I’ll go with you. You too, Marvin?” Joe said with a grin. Bess gave him a flirty smile and agreed, the trio disappearing outside. Frank asked George and Deirdre to get Nancy, and finally the hallway was empty once he left with his parents and Hannah to the indoor venue.

***

It was quiet between George and Deirdre as they walked toward the dressing room Nancy probably went into. It was just as awkward as when they had strode in silence to call the police. Deirdre knew George was pissed at her, and why shouldn’t she be? It was just rare that Deirdre felt so… bad about it.

“...Are you mad at me?” Deirdre broke the tension between them, noticing George visibly stiffen at her words. She didn’t speak for a moment.

“Miffed.” George replied matter-of-factly, trying to put her hands in her pockets, only there weren’t any on the bridesmaid dress. Deirdre sighed a little,

“So you are.” She tried to confirm. George shrugged.

“You wrecked my best friend’s wedding.”

“I expected some high school losers to show up and knock the punch bowl over, not a band of comic book villains to kidnap her dad.” Deirdre balked, and stuck her hands out to either side for emphasis. George crossed her arms and kept walking,

“It doesn’t matter. You and Nancy are both important to me, and you said you’d make an effort to be nicer.”

“Oh, Georgie but I am ‘making an effort’. My fingers just moved on their own! Besides, I apologized to Drew, didn’t I?” Deirdre sidled up next to George, linking their arms together and resting her cheek against her shoulder. George wouldn’t face her, but didn’t make an effort to pull away either.

“...It’s a start.” George mumbled, and then spoke over Deirdre’s squeal of delight, “But you have to promise you’ll keep helping us, and try harder in the future.”

“I will! Pinky promise and all that gross stuff.” Deirdre got onto her toes and kissed George on the cheek, who couldn’t suppress the smile on her face.

“Now let’s pick up Nancy.”

***

When Nancy arrived in front of the indoor venue with her previous outfit of horse shirt and jeans on, she saw Frank, his parents and Hannah standing by the door. Frank had ditched his suit jacket, leaving him in only slacks and his crisp white shirt, which was becoming less crisp with its bowtie missing and a few buttons undone. Nancy decided she’d better let everyone else change too once the police showed up. For now, besides herself, she needed to keep up the allusion that the wedding was still on, just delayed.

“Hey horse girl.” Frank teased when Nancy, George and Deirdre approached them. Nancy playfully rolled her eyes,

“Shut it, you.” She bit back. Frank then held his hands out in front of him as if to stop a blow coming his way,

“Don’t freak out, but we’re letting Ned in on the investigation.” Nancy’s stomach flip flopped at those words, but she swallowed her feelings and nodded a little,

“Fine. Burt and Dave too I assume?” Nancy asked, earning an affirmative ‘mhm’ from Frank. Just then, Joe came barreling out the door with a whole party of people. Bess, of course, was right beside him, with Ned close behind. Chet was stuck between Burt and Dave with a handkerchief to his nervous forehead. It took Nancy at least two glances to realize Ned had a girl on his hip too. She looked to Frank for confirmation, who definitely seemed like he had forgotten to tell her something.

Girlfriend. He mouthed to her.

Oh. Nancy mouthed to herself.

“Everyone’s inside waiting around, but they’re getting impatient.” Joe said once the doors closed behind all of them. He was also quickly becoming disheveled, his jacket missing and his shirt halfway untucked. Whether it was from the heat or the stress, nobody was sure.

“Then we’ll be quick.” Nancy followed up, standing in front of the group with a pad of paper and a pen in her hands.

“Let’s go over what we know first, and then decide what to do.” Frank offered, and Nancy nodded once more.

“Alright. So, Hannah said at least two people ambushed her and my dad, and that one of them had to be a woman. We also know that there’s a man involved, based on the threatening phone call I got last night.” Nancy told everyone.

“What if it’s more than two?” Bess asked, anxiously twirling a strand of her hair around her finger.

“That’s why we’re questioning everyone. We’ll assume it’s a duo for now, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a small group of them.”

“Yeah, I mean. Look how many of ‘em showed up.” Joe interjected. Nancy agreed.

“That’s my other concern. Right now we have at least ten suspects lined up, all of whom I’ve busted for crimes in the past.”

“That reminds me. Joe, did you find out what happened with security?” Frank wanted to know, and his brother lit up like a Christmas Tree.

“Right! I finally got a hold of somebody. They told me they got a call saying they were no longer needed. Not only did the extra security not show up, but nobody did. That explains why so many people were able to get inside scot free.” Joe was fired up as he explained, evidently annoyed at the whole ordeal. Nancy tapped the side of her pen against her cheek in thought.

“We should find out if they know anything about the person who placed the call.” Nancy said as she wrote down a note. After dotting the pen hard against the paper, she continued,

“Let’s go back to the suspect line up. Like I said, there’s ten, so everybody strap in.” Nancy began to write down virtually everything she said to the group about the suspect profiles including their names, crimes, and basic appearance and personality. By the time she had finished, the profiles nearly filled the whole page. She read out the highlights to everyone:

Taylor Sinclair- theft at Beech Hill Museum, bad mustache, bad tie, irritating voice and personality.

Elliott Chen- carousel horse forgery in New Jersey, artist, spiky hair, and a smooth demeanor.

Andy Jason- animal fur smuggling in the San Juan Islands, nice on the outside but deceiving, prone to strangulation.

Shorty Thurmond- sabotage and thievery in Arizona, bald, tall, gossipy veil over a controlling and dangerous demeanor.

Lori Girard- attempted murder along with thievery in Colorado, blonde, annoying, ditzy and desperate for respect.

Helena Berg- leader of a theft ring in Venice, German accent, blonde, insisted it wasn’t over between us.

Rentaro Aihara- fake hauntings in Japan, traumatized his girlfriend’s family, wears glasses, manipulative, a little pathetic and uses it to his advantage.

Anja Mittelmeier- fake monster sightings in Germany, German accent, vengeful in general but especially toward me, easily irritated.

Brenda Carlton- impersonation, arson in River Heights, being a thorn in my side for many years, definitely hates my guts and has a bad haircut.

Grigor Karakinos- art theft and forgery ring in Greece by association, blonde, charming, blunt.

Nancy had to take a deep breath after reading the list off, and everyone else was exhausted just listening to it.

“So. I’ll take Brenda, and maybe Helena. I’ll see how they act around me, and ask a few questions along the way. Who else wants a suspect? There’s plenty to go around.” Nancy said as she snapped a picture of her list of suspects to send out to everybody.

“I’ve got Lori. Though I can’t say I’m pleased to talk to Mr. Balducci again…” Joe spoke next, rolling his eyes and putting mocking emphasis on Tino’s name.

“Bess could definitely work Grigor. I’ll talk to Andy.” George offered next. Bess pondered the idea of talking to the arguably cutest guy on the list. She glanced over at Joe,

“You won’t be jealous?” Bess asked, her hand on her hip. Joe licked his bottom lip before chuckling silently,

“I’ll be fuming.”

“Good~” Bess teased with a grin, but her eyes told Joe he had nothing to worry about. Burt and Dave offered to take up the challenge of talking with Sinclair, if only they got to make fun of his mustache at the end of it. Chet agreed to talk to Elliott, and Ned said he wouldn’t mind interrogating Anja. That left only Shorty and Rentaro, and once Frank agreed to take last pick, they all looked at Deirdre. She crossed her arms, breathing deeply out her nose,

“Let’s see… A creep, or a nerd..” She tapped her pointer finger against her arm a few times before groaning audibly,

“Guess I’ll take the nerd.” Deirdre said, reluctance in her voice.

“And that leaves me with Shorty.” Frank didn’t exactly sound thrilled at that prospect either, but he was a good sport. Nancy gave him a smile, and so he sort of felt better about it after that.

“Great. If you spot anyone else on the way, be sure to ask them if they’ve seen anything. Witnesses are just as important as suspects-” Nancy was interrupted by the sound of a police siren or two getting closer. Once the cars appeared in the parking lot a little ways away from the group, Fenton Hardy pushed through the crowd to talk to them. Two cops got out of the first car, with the second pair staying in their own vehicle.

The two policeman watched as Fenton approached them, holding up his I.D. in their direction,

“Fenton Hardy, P.I. Thanks for showing up.” He began to tell the cops about the predicament, and Nancy glanced at Frank, who gave her an apologetic look.

“He probably thinks they’ll take it more seriously if he flashes his credentials in their faces…” Frank muttered to her. Nancy rolled her eyes a little,

“I’ve got plenty of credentials myself.” She mumbled back, annoyed. Frank put a hand on the small of her back and leaned his head down by her ear from behind,

“Then go prove it to ‘em, ND.” Nancy felt his voice vibrate and his lips curl up into a smile against her ear. Nancy tried to ignore the way her heart pounded in her red face as he lightly shoved her forward. It always surprised her when he did stuff like that, but she supposed even Frank Hardy could roughhouse.

“Excuse me!” Nancy swallowed her feelings for Frank so that she could speak professionally to the officers.

“My name is Nancy Drew, it’s my father who’s been kidnapped.”

“Ah, Ms. Drew.” One of the police officers spoke authoritatively. “Yes, we’ve got it all taken care of from here. Nobody leaves until we get a head count, and then we’ll see what we can do.” He nearly turned away from her to talk to his cop buddy, until Nancy clicked her tongue,

“‘See what you can do?’ I don’t think it’s wise to let anyone leave. Most of us are from out of state. Besides, I think these kidnappers want something from me.” Nancy caught the officer by surprise, and he put his hand on his hip to prove it.

“What do you mean? There’s been a ransom?”

“Well, no ransom yet. But there’s an awful lot of uninvited guests from my past cases. They most likely want me to do something, and are keeping my dad as leverage.” Nancy crossed her arms over her chest, staring the officer in the eyes as if to size him up. She knew from previous interactions with the police that they weren’t fond of her trying to do their jobs.

“No ransom means we don’t know what the kidnappers want with your father. Besides, we can’t lawfully detain all of these people here. Who knows how long the investigation will take?” The officer still spoke with a calm demeanor, but Nancy could tell he was starting to get as frustrated as she already was.

“You at least have to conduct questioning. And that could take a couple of hours. What if I find a ransom note within that time frame?” Nancy asked, hoping it might somehow convince them to change their mind about keeping people on the premises. The cop sucked in his breath as if to insinuate that he wasn’t quite sure about the whole thing,

“It’d give us a motive, sure. But I’d still have to think about holding all these people in one room.”

“It was supposed to be a wedding, sir. We’ll have provisions, and entertainment. And I’ve solved a kidnapping in three days before, even less than one. Surely-”

“We’re aware of your previous accomplishments, Ms. Drew. Even still. I’d have to make a couple of calls.” With that, the cop turned away from her, and started talking with his partner about getting a few more officers there to carry out the interrogation of all the wedding guests. Nancy huffed to herself, glancing briefly at Fenton, who was being less than helpful. She thought he’d understand how difficult it was to get the cops on a private detective’s side.

Nancy returned to the group, where everyone was standing around waiting for further instruction. She brought them all into a huddle, and said quietly,

“Carry on with the questions, but keep it on the downlow, and try not to make anyone feel too squirrely. If the cops won’t let us keep everyone here once they’re done, we only have as long as their interrogation lasts to get information.”

Everyone nodded in agreement and then dispersed to go ask a lot of questions. Nancy was going over her notes a few times more before trying to find Brenda, and her attention was pulled away by the sound of Ned’s voice.

“Sophie, come on. I’m just going to ask her a few questions about the case, and you can come.”

“I don’t want to come.” A whiny voice complained. Nancy barely looked up from her pad of paper to witness the scene.

“Why do we even have to do this? You left me all alone earlier, and now you’re running errands for your ex-girlfriend?” The voice belonged to Sophia, obviously. She paused, before continuing accusingly,

“Do you still have feelings for her?” She was evidently trying to sound hushed, but not succeeding.

“Her dad’s in trouble, and I happen to have a lot of respect for him. It has nothing to do with Nancy.” Ned was trying harder to stay quiet, even gazing up once to see if anyone was watching. Nancy’s eyes quickly darted back to her paper.

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. She’s not even really speaking to me right now, so you don’t have to worry about that either. Now let’s go? Please?” Ned sounded like he was trying to convince a kid to get ready for school, or take a really hard test. Sophia sighed, but didn’t argue when Ned led them inside of the venue.

“Oh boy…” Nancy said under her breath.

“Oh boy, what?” She heard Frank say from beside her, and she jumped a little because she could’ve sworn he went inside with the rest of the group.

“Ned just seems like he has his hands full, is all.” Nancy held the pad of paper in the crook of her elbow and looked up at Frank, who raised his eyebrows some,

“Sophia?”

“More like Deirdre 2.0.” Frank scoffed out a laugh. Nancy smiled at the sound of it. There was a pause between them. Frank bit his lip slightly while he tried to think of a way to change the subject. He didn’t want to keep the fact that he was the one who invited Ned to the wedding from her, necessarily. He was just afraid she’d be livid, what with all the pressure on her already.

“My uh… my parents are going to keep a lookout for anything suspicious, and I told Hannah to take a breather and sit down.” He told her, and Nancy exhaled relievingly,

“Thanks, Frank. Honestly. You’re the best.” She didn’t seem to notice the guilt exuding from Frank’s pores, and it only made him feel more so.

“I’d better go check on poor Hannah. I don’t think all the stress is good for her. She might want to go back to the hotel to rest the moment she’s able.” Nancy added, and started to head toward the doors inside. Frank stopped her, holding onto her arm,

“What about you? How are you doing?” He spoke softly, and Nancy smiled again.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ve got everything under control.” She let him pull her in toward him as she spoke. Frank wrapped his arms snuggly around her shoulders, pinning her against him.

“I know it. The police really gave you a hard time, though. I guess I’m just worried.” He said, and stared off in the general direction of the cops. Nancy rested her cheek on his chest. She was realizing how nice it was to take a breather herself for a moment and she almost got lost in it.

“I’ve dealt with this kind of thing before… Besides, we’ve got a lot of people on team Nancy. We’ll have this thing solved before they even call for backup.” Nancy heard Frank chuckle a bit, and she closed her eyes. She reveled in the feeling and the smell of him. She wished they could’ve stayed like that forever, but eventually she pulled herself out of his grip.

“Let’s get going. We’re really in a time crunch now.” Nancy gave Frank a grin as she grabbed his hand, and the two of them went inside the venue. 

Chapter Text

The inside venue was bustling with noise and movement when Frank and Nancy walked through the door. The police had yet to begin prowling the place, which was good for them. As soon as they made their presence known, whoever was responsible for Carson’s kidnapping might start to put their guard up. Nancy hoped everyone on her team would be able to catch their suspects by surprise.

Nancy scanned the large room, her eyes landing on a person no matter where they looked. Most of them seemed confused, others patiently waiting while chatting it up. She spotted Brenda sitting alone at a table, a pad of paper and a pen in her hand like always. Nancy studied her face for a moment, watching as Brenda’s own gaze spun around, before taking a few notes.

What is she up to? Nancy wondered. It could be as innocent as writing a new story, though Nancy was sure it would slander her name somehow.

She could see the headline now: Famous Detective Nancy Drew’s Wedding: Flop of the Century. Nancy grimaced a bit with an eye roll just thinking of whatever bullshit Brenda would and could come up with.

She felt a hand on her back, which brought her out of her thoughts. She looked to Frank as he began to speak from beside her,

“There’s Shorty. Here goes nothing.” He said with a swallow.

“He’s gossipy and likes to talk. Play into that.” Nancy smiled a little, her back feeling cold once Frank's palm slid off of it,

“Got it. Good luck.” His response was rushed, since he was already walking in Shorty’s direction. Nancy began to make her way over to Brenda as well, but her eyes were still trained on Frank. She always loved watching that mystery tunnel-vision take him over, the way his brows would furrow and she knew the gears in his head were turning a mile a minute. Not to mention, in his wedding get-up, even without the jacket, he looked pretty good from behind.

Nancy quickly felt embarrassed about her wandering thoughts, and gaze, for she slammed head first into someone. Her head turned and her eyes were met with the back of a bright blue suit. Her face started to turn hot, and the man she had run into whipped around.

“Nancy Drew!” The ecstatic voice of Sonny Joon filled her ears, and Nancy looked up to confirm. Indeed, the alien-obsessed egomaniac who’d lead Nancy on more than one wild goose-chase continued to smile widely down at her. He pushed his purple glasses up his nose while his other hand found itself tangled in his hair. Purple, green, blue, so many bright and clashy colors Nancy had to force herself not to look away.

That’s Sonny for you… Nancy supposed.

“Sonny! I wasn’t sure you got the invitation…” She began, sounding casual while still trying to look behind him to make sure Brenda hadn’t gone anywhere. She trusted Sonny not to blab about this whole thing about as much as she trusted Joe not to steal her fries when she wasn’t looking.

“No?” Sonny answered, his smile turning more into a grin.

“Well, I just sort of figured whatever address I got from you was probably fake.”

“I gave you an address?” Sonny’s hand slipped from his hair and fell to his side.

“You gave me a street name and a mailbox number.” Nancy replied matter-of-factly, and attempted once again to get past him. Sonny did what she regretfully expected and side-stepped so he was still in front of her.

“Oh yeah. You wish I lived near that mailbox.” He said playfully. Nancy resisted the urge to push him out of her way.

“Um.. Right. Sonny, I’m sort of in the middle of something-”

“Wait a minute, yeah. What’s the hold up? You aren’t wearing a fancy dress or anything…” Sonny trailed off, and Nancy thought he actually had a trace of concern in his eyes. She sighed a little, digging her fingers into her own eyes as she considered what her options were.

Well it was really quite simple: tell Sonny, or make up some excuse. Nancy didn’t really think she could trust him, but she’d rather he knew the truth rather than drive some insane rumor himself if she didn’t tell him.

Nancy grabbed Sonny by the arm and pulled him toward the back of the room,

“Keep this on the downlow, okay?” She said through gritted teeth on the way there.

“How far down there? Are internet rumors okay, or is this a mafia you’ll-kill-me-if-I-talk-about-it type secret?” Sonny rambled cheekily once they were safely in the back. Nancy rolled her eyes,

“Sonny. Be serious for once in your life.”

“I’ve been serious-” Sonny was cut off by the feeling of Nancy holding his arm tighter,

“Okay, okay! Fine! Just loosen your iron grip, will you?” He relented, and Nancy let his arm go with an exhale.

“My dad was kidnapped.” Nancy said under her breath, and told Sonny more about the former culprits that had managed to infiltrate the wedding. Sonny’s eyes widened a little as she spoke.

“That’s real bad. What do you want me to do?” He asked. Nancy sighed, glancing behind her to see Brenda still comfortably in her seat.

“Nothing. Just act like you haven’t heard anything, and answer any questions the police ask you.”

“Now Nancy, you know I’m not good at following directions. Come on, let me in on your little squadron-”

“Fine.” Nancy barely let him finish his sentence before agreeing. Again, it was easier than having to make sure he didn’t do anything.

“If you want to help, go talk to Helena. I got the impression you’ve met before?” Nancy pointed discreetly toward Helena. Sonny fixed his glasses as he squinted his eyes in an attempt to remember.

“Uh… maybe?”

“In Venice. Just go, she’ll probably remember you. Try to figure out why she’s here, and be subtle? Please?” Nancy grabbed him by the arm once more and started pushing him toward Helena. Sonny shrugged himself out of her grip, giving her a thumbs up,

“You got it, boss.” And then he was gone.

Finally, Nancy thought tiredly, Sonny always manages to throw a wrench in things… And that was definitely something she did not need. There were already enough things that had gone wrong that day.

Surely interrogating a longtime rival would go swimmingly, though.

***

Joe stood leaned back against a wall in the venue, his eyes trained on Tino Balducci and Lori Girard in a corner across the way. He folded his arms, trying to appear casual, which would be easier if he wasn’t stuck in that stupid tux. Well, really, less of a tux since he’d ditched the jacket and tie, but he could still feel the sleeves he’d rolled up his arms digging into the crooks of his elbows. He had opened a few of the buttons too because he swore they were crushing his windpipe the way they were done up to his neck.

Jesus, you’re acting neurotic like fuckin Frank…

He never loved dressing up, but Joe didn’t think he had any particular reason to feel this tense. He and Frank had dealt with plenty of kidnappings and cases at larger scales than a full house wedding.

Ugh, weddings.

Okay, so there was a reason.

Weddings put him on edge. Weird, when one put it like that and didn’t elaborate, but Joe didn’t really want to elaborate.

He’d gone from player fuckboy to loyal lover to Bess Marvin in the span of a few days.

And he wanted to be loyal, god how he wanted to be. He needed to be for the sake of his own sanity.

But he knew Bess, the way she loved her storybook romances, and he knew with Nancy and Frank getting hitched, it was only a matter of time before Bess started to expect something of him.

And old habits die hard. He couldn’t help but feel tense at the prospect of his own wedding.

Why did they need a stupid piece of paper to prove they were in love anyway?

He didn’t feel tied down by Bess, but weddings were just too much, too formal.

Too scary. Too reminiscent of the fact that he wasn’t a storybook prince and Bess would probably realize that someday. Even if she insisted the opposite.

Joe moved his gaze from Tino and Lori, to the opposite side of the room where Bess was chatting up Grigor.

God, Grigor looked like the better, more princely version of Joe. He was like if Joe liked wearing stupid suits and styled his hair once in a while.

Bess was smiling at him, Grigor was grinning back.

She put her hand on his arm. Joe knew it was an act to get information, but it made him sick to his stomach. His right hand was itching to take a swing at that asshole.

How could he be so scared to commit, and yet desperate to keep her.

That truly was the question, wasn’t it.

Joe pried his eyes away from Bess and pushed off the wall. He had to get out of his own head and back on task.

Tino was giving Lori a smirk, leaning to say something in her ear. She giggled, or she must have since Joe couldn’t hear them from where he was standing. He snaked through the maze of tables and chairs to get to them, yet another couple he couldn’t escape.

Joe passed one table where he heard Burt and Dave talking to who Joe remembered to be Taylor Sinclair.

“Does it naturally grow in like that or do you trim it?” He heard Dave chuckle as he asked about Sinclair’s mustache. Joe smiled a little to himself. Nothing like making fun of bad guys to put him in the right mood.

Joe approached Tino and Lori’s table, making himself at home in a seat across from them. Tino pulled away from Lori when he heard the chair screech on the floor.

“Tino. Lori. Remember me?” Joe asked, and leaned back in his chair. Lori tilted her head to the side slightly, her brows furrowed in confusion,

“Did we date?” She asked. Joe sighed because she actually sounded serious. Tino looked a little confused too, but he elbowed Lori in realization,

“Nah, nah. He was that amateur detective on that train thing you put together…” He paused, glancing to Joe,

“What was your name again?”

“Joe. Hardy.” Joe told them. Both Tino and Lori seemed to remember him, but their impression wasn’t exactly favorable.

“Oh yeah… You helped that god awful Nadine bust me and got all my credit cards revoked.” Lori complained with a glare and crossed arms in Joe’s direction.

“Nancy.” Joe corrected,

“Whatever.” Lori sighed. She started looking at her nails like she was done talking. Joe tapped his fingertips on the table a few times,

“Come on, Lori. You should at least know her name if you guys crashed her wedding.” It felt like all of them paused, and Lori slowly looked up at him from her nails.

“Listen…” Tino began. Joe waited patiently for an answer.

“Yeah, we weren’t invited… And yeah, Lori still holds a little… grudge. But I thought it’d be good for her, to ya know, move on?” Tino explained in pieces, wrapping his arm around Lori’s shoulders halfway through. Lori rolled her eyes a little,

“You’re just repeating what that stupid therapist said. What good will this do? I haven’t even seen Natalie yet. Not to mention that the whole thing has been stalled. We should just leave, Tino.” The more she spoke, the more upset she became.

“Hey, hey. No. The wedding will get started uh… real soon. So just hang tight.” Joe interjected, eyeing Tino, who began to fearfully rub Lori’s arm,

“Yeah, come on baby. Just another hour or two, and then we can leave. Alright?”

“Fine.” Lori huffed. Joe felt kind of awkward, like he was busting in on their moment even though he was supposed to be subtly interrogating them. He bid them short, uncomfortable goodbyes and then started walking away.

He found Chet, who was hyping himself up to go talk to Elliott Chen.

“Lori and Tino are a hot mess, as I expected. But uh… I don’t really know if they kidnapped Mr. Drew.” Joe said, ignoring the way he practically snuck up on his friend. Chet had a hand over his chest,

“Well, see what Nancy thinks. That Elliot seems kind of intimidating, huh?” He replied, and Joe grinned. He pat Chet on the back a few times,

“You got this. Just like when you vamped in front of everyone. Except this is one guy. Go for it.” He gave Chet one more pat, and then went off to find Nancy or anybody to discuss what the hell was happening.

***

Nancy approached Brenda, who hadn’t moved an inch. She was scribbling incessantly onto her notepad, so disconnected to the world Nancy had to tap the table in front of her to get her attention,

“Brenda.” She said in no particular way. The best way to act with Brenda was straightforward and blunt. She had a habit of twisting words to best fit her stories.

Brenda glanced up from her notepad, the smallest trace of a grin creeping up her face when she saw it was Nancy.

“Nancy Drew.” Brenda replied casually, like there was nothing she could possibly be worried about in that moment.

“Can I sit?” Nancy asked, reaching to pull out a chair anyway. Brenda waved her off as if to say, ‘fine’.

“If that’s what you’re wearing for your wedding, I’d say you’re in for an annulment.” Brenda glanced up and down at Nancy’s t-shirt and jeans. Nancy reflexively tugged at the hem of her shirt, but then played it off by smoothing out the front of it.

“It’s not, for your information.”

“Oh, you know I love information.”

“Yeah, false information.” Nancy said offhandedly, eyes darting down to try and get a glimpse of that godforsaken notepad she was holding. Brenda scoffed out a laugh at the comment, and whether intentionally or not, pulled the notepad out of Nancy’s view. She put it face down on the table,

“I don’t cite incorrect information, and I don’t misquote. Now, tell me you’ll give a statement on how your wedding is falling to shambles before it’s even begun?” Brenda yanked a small microphone off the collar of her blouse and stuck it in Nancy’s face. Nancy knew Brenda was full of it, constantly ripping quotes out of context and bending information just legally enough to pass in the River Height’s newspaper. She was beginning to lose her composure too, with a mic shoved in her face and Brenda’s too-cool demeanor.

Nancy put her hand to the mic, pushing it back toward Brenda,

“I’m not here to be interviewed. I’m here to ask you some questions.” Brenda rolled her eyes, clipping her microphone back to her shirt. Nancy was acutely aware of it as she asked the big-ticket question,

“What are you doing here? You weren’t invited.” She didn’t dare mention Carson’s kidnapping, or the nine other former culprits who were roaming the place either. It’d give Brenda too much ammo.

“You mean it wasn’t an open invitation?” Brenda feigned innocence, Nancy could tell.

“You know it wasn’t.”

“Well, when a date and location gets posted online, and there’s no security at the front door…” Brenda trailed off, and Nancy exhaled frustratedly,

“Those were flukes-” She paused, not wanting to appear as angry as she felt. Brenda had already raised her eyebrow in intrigue.

“Nevermind. It doesn’t matter. I know you hate me, so why did you show up?”

“Can’t a woman have turned over a new leaf?”

“Not if that woman is you. You’ve been scribbling in that notepad for who knows how long.” Nancy was itching to rip the notepad off the table. She wished she wasn’t so riled up, but this was a very high-stakes situation, and Brenda tried her patience anyway.

Brenda tsked a few times,

“Nancy, Nancy. You know how this works. I give you information only if you give it to me in return. And I want to know why the wedding’s been stalled.”

Nancy’s arms were crossed and she chewed the inside of her cheek as she searched for a response. Telling Brenda what happened would be even worse than telling Sonny.

Unless she’s involved. Then she’s just playing innocent to throw me off.

Nancy moved her hands so they were sitting firmly in her lap, clasped together like they would move on their own if she didn’t.

“There was an… incident. And we’re looking into it. That’s all I’ll tell you.” She explained slowly, making sure she was careful with the words she chose. Brenda pouted a little,

“That’s all? So the wedding is postponed or… canceled?” Her pout turned into a grin, her fingers inching closer to the notepad again.

“Postponed, of course.”

“So there hasn’t been a lover’s quarrel?” Brenda quickly followed up, her other hand shooting to the mic, most likely to thrust it in Nancy’s personal bubble again.

Nancy stood suddenly, elbows crooked as she threw her hands up a little,

“No. Stop it, it’s my turn to ask a question. What are you doing here?” Brenda’s eyes widened slightly at the outburst.

“I’m here for a story. The people of River Heights would love to hear about your wedding, as much as I’d rather be nowhere near it.” Brenda said smoothly until a scowl appeared on her face. Nancy exhaled, hands falling to rest on her hips.

The way Brenda was asking her annoying questions as always made her think maybe she was telling the truth. But of course, nothing was for certain. Brenda had tried to ruin her and her career too many times to count over the years. If for nothing but the sake of their petty rivalry, Nancy was keeping her at the top of her suspect list.

What she really wanted to do was take a look at that notepad. She didn’t believe Brenda was scribbling for show.

She’d have to see Brenda’s reaction to the appearance of the police too.

Maybe it’d be useful for all the suspects, but Nancy knew she’d have to dig up everything she could by herself before the police had a chance to burst in.

Once that happened, nothing would bind any of them to stay at the venue.

Nothing except maybe a ransom note…

She was surprised one hadn’t conveniently dropped into her hands yet, but with all the people milling around she supposed it would be difficult.

Unless, there wasn’t a note?

Then why would they kidnap dad? To force me to cancel the wedding? No, they have to want something. They wouldn’t take him without some kind of ransom… right?

It made her wonder why Brenda was asking about the wedding being canceled. Reporter’s intuition for digging up dirt for a story? Or…

Nancy’s head spun around in circles as she strolled away from Brenda without another word. The reporter was speaking to her, trying to reel her back in for more questions, but Nancy was done for now. Any longer and she would lose it.

I really need to relax. She thought. But how could she? There was too much to do, and too little time. Nancy felt so high strung she knew she’d burst eventually. But for now, she had no choice but to push it all down.

I have to, for dad.

That reignited her resolve for the moment. She spotted Hannah, who was also sitting at one of the many tables. Hannah was wringing her hands over and over, a worried expression permanent on her face as she looked fervently around the room. Nancy felt her chest tighten, approaching the housekeeper and taking a seat next to her with a light hand on her shoulder.

“How are you doing, Hannah?” Nancy asked softly. Hannah leaned into her touch a little and let out a sigh,

“I’m just so worried about Carson. I’m sure you’re more worried, dear. But I just… I guess I’m not often in the middle of all this mystery business.” Nancy rubbed her shoulder tenderly and smiled weakly at her,

“We’ve got everything under control, Hannah. If you need to go back to the hotel and rest, by all means do it-” Nancy was cut off by Joe Hardy approaching them,

“Just got through talking to Tino and Lori. I don’t know why I ever thought he’d be able to do her dirty work for her. I’m not even sure they’re doing dirty work.” Joe abandoned all sense of professionalism, sitting up on the table they were at. He lightly pushed Hannah’s purse, which was also on top of it, to the side. Nancy looked behind her at Joe, leaning her elbow on the table,

“You’re sure?”

“Well of course not. But… They just seemed sort of. Stressed. And not in a kidnappy kind of way.” Joe leaned back on his hands and crossed one leg over the other. Nancy noticed he seemed a little distant.

Guess we’re all kind of frazzled today… Nancy thought. She drummed her fingers on the table, thinking about what their next move would be once they talked to all the suspects initially. Her eyes were drawn to Hannah’s purse, tipped over onto its side, courtesy of Joe. Nancy saw a slip of paper sticking halfway out of it.

“Hannah…” She began, reaching for the paper.

“What, dear?” Hannah replied. She watched as Nancy pulled the paper from her bag and scanned her gaze over its writing.

“Did anyone come talk to you?” Nancy’s voice had an edge to it. Hannah shook her head with wide eyes,

“No.”

“Did anyone come near you? Bump into you? Sit at this table?”

“No, no one, Nancy. I swear I didn’t see anyone. What is it?”

Nancy looked up from the paper to see both Hannah and Joe staring at her,

“It’s a ransom note.” 

Chapter Text

Nancy stared at the piece of paper in her hand. Her eyes scanned over the words a thousand times as she thumbed the crease that had folded it down the middle. Joe and Hannah were staring at her wordlessly. Neither of them were sure whether to interrupt her or not, but both were dying to know what the note said. 

But Nancy was in her own little world. 

Whoever kidnapped dad is still here. They were right here. When? Doesn’t matter. We have probable cause. The cops have to take us seriously now- 

“Nancy, hey. If you hold onto that thing any tighter it’ll phase out of existence.” Nancy heard Joe saying, and when she focused her eyes she realized her grip had tightened, the paper crumpling in her hand. She loosened it, swallowing with a grimace of embarrassment. 

“Sorry.” She mumbled as she turned to face Joe, who had gotten off the table to peer over her shoulder.  

“What does it say, dear?” Hannah asked from her chair. Nancy felt the urge to smack herself in the forehead, 

“Right. God. I’m sorry.” She repeated. She had been so wrapped up in what to do next she had completely forgotten that Joe and Hannah couldn’t read the note or her mind. Joe held out his hand with a soft look in his eyes. Nancy returned a hollow smile and gave up the note. She leaned back against the side of the table as she watched Joe scour over the words this time. 

It was a typed note. Small lettering in black ink down the center of the page read: 

Enjoying the party so far? Had you sweating for a while, didn’t we? Don’t worry. We’re not going anywhere and neither are you. We know about the inheritance. We want it. Find it for us, hand it over and we’ll return daddy dearest. You better hurry though. If you don’t find it by tomorrow night, he’ll get what’s coming to him, and so will you. Either way, we want you swimming in regret for what you did to us. 

Good luck. 

“This is cruel.” Joe muttered as he finished reading the note aloud. By the end of it Hannah had started to tremble again, and Nancy was nearly at her breaking point too. 

“They’re messing with me. They have to be.” She replied while she rubbed circles into Hannah’s back. 

“Any idea what they’re talking about?” Joe folded the note in half and handed it back to Nancy. 

“An inheritance…? No. Not really…” Nancy trailed off. All the murmuring and shuffling from the wedding guests was making it hard to think. 

“Well they think you know. Maybe it relates to you?” 

“Me? But I don’t know about any-” Nancy paused when she saw the look in Hannah’s eye. It was a wide look of realization. 

“Do you know something about this, Hannah?” She asked, and Hannah glanced up at her tearfully. 

“I.. Well.. Carson wanted to be the one to tell you. He was so excited when you finally decided to get married..” Nancy furrowed her brows as she listened to Hannah’s words. 

“Excited..? What did he want to tell me?” 

“Oh… Well… Even though he was ecstatic, he still made quite the secret out of it.” Hannah reached out and grabbed Nancy’s free hand. Rubbing the back of it with her thumb, she continued, 

“Here’s what I know. Carson had this old key. He was so protective of the thing, he locked it up in the wall safe in his office. He said no one was to see it but you. That it belonged to Kate.” 

Nancy felt her heart jump at the mention of her mother. It was a confusing ache, sad and excited. She needed to know more. Luckily, Hannah went on, 

“Carson was supposed to give it to you on your wedding day. Kate told him to, I guess it has something to do with this area, that’s why he begged you to hold the ceremony here. I don’t know what the key’s for, or where it leads…” 

“Well this note implies some kind of inheritance.” Joe put in. “Maybe it leads to that. Maybe your mom left you something valuable.” 

Nancy’s mind was swimming again. 

An old key, her mom, a potential inheritance, and the whole fucking state of Arizona. Could she really have left something? How many of those suspects planned this? Took her dad? Why would they want whatever Kate left? Was it all just to make Nancy run frantically around town finding the last connection to her mom, only to force her to give it away just to save her father? 

That sounded about right. And it was cruel, as Joe had put it best. 

“Nancy. What do you want to do?” Joe cut into her thoughts once again. She wanted to bang her head against the wall and nap for a couple of days. But she couldn’t do that. She couldn’t stop, let those stupid culprits get away again. 

She was going to find that key, see where it led and get her dad back. 

“My dad said he was going to get something right before he got kidnapped. It must have been the key, right Hannah?” 

“I can’t imagine it was anything else.” Nancy felt herself smile, hope blooming in her chest for the first time since Carson had disappeared. 

“Then we go get it.” Nancy looked at Joe, “Find Frank and get the key from my dad’s car. I’ll show the note to the police, and hopefully they’ll tell everyone to at least stay in the state until tomorrow. That’s all the time we have, anyway.” 

“You got it, boss.” Joe gave Nancy a briefly dramatic salute before turning to find his brother. Nancy went in the opposite direction, in search of the cops. 

***

Frank couldn’t remember how long he’d been sitting at a table listening to Shorty Thurmond run his mouth. Gossipy and likes to talk didn’t begin to describe the guy. Frank had barely gotten two words in since he went over to him. Maybe he could convince himself he was lulling Shorty into a false sense of security by letting him talk shit about everyone there. 

It’d probably be best if he didn’t find out I’m Nancy’s fiance, though… Frank thought to himself. Shorty was one culprit who knew how to hold a grudge, and if he had anything against Nancy (likely, considering she sent him to prison), then Frank wanted to remain anonymous to him for the moment. 

Unless, of course, he already knew. Did Frank introduce himself at the beginning of this conversation? He couldn’t remember, but maybe Shorty hadn’t been listening. He sure wasn’t now as he was running his mouth. 

“So…” Frank interjected, far from caring about whether he was cutting Shorty off or not, “what brings you here if you hate it so much?” A fair question, he hoped. Shorty clicked his tongue, 

“Well, w- I. can swallow a few years worth of a grudge for good food. Ya know, being a cook and all.” He replied in his southern drawl of an accent. Frank wasn’t even close to believing him. He could think of plenty of other, less out-of-the-way places to get good food. 

Well, Shorty was from Arizona. Maybe it wasn’t as out of the way as he thought? Still a shitty excuse to come to the wedding of someone you vowed revenge upon.

“A grudge. Really? From the way you were talking, it seems a little more than a disagreement gone wrong.” Frank remarked tentatively. Shorty scoffed a little, 

“What do you know?” He paused, but Frank swooped in again before he had a chance to take a breath,

“Um, did you come here with someone? I thought I heard you say ‘we’” Frank decided he’d press his luck a little. Shorty snorted a laugh, scratching the spot above his eyebrow as he thought of a response. 

“No, just me.” He said as he narrowed his eyes in Frank’s direction, “What’d you say your name was?” 

“Fred.” 

Shorty hesitated again, 

“No, I’m pretty sure it was something else.” 

“Frederick, maybe is what I said. Fred, short for Frederick, you know?” Frank was chuckling awkwardly now. 

Way to crack under pressure, Hardy. He thought with a swallow. He wasn’t sure why he was so worried about Shorty knowing the truth. If he was in on it, would he pack up and go home? Surely not. Surely a ransom note would show up. 

Either way, he was saved by Joe, who tapped him on the shoulder, 

“Hey.” He glanced at Shorty, “Howdy.” He added with a grin, and the tip of a fake hat. Frank looked back at his brother, 

“What?” 

“You busy? We’ve got to, uh… find a little something to get this wedding back on track.” Joe was being intentionally ambiguous, Frank prayed. He was quick to smack his legs and stand, 

“We’d better check it out then. Nice to meet you, Shorty.” Frank said with a smile in the cook’s direction. Shorty seemed uncertain, but nodded, 

“You too…” 

“Fred.” Frank pointed jokingly at him as he left with Joe, who was giving him a weird look. 

“Fred?” 

“Don’t ask. What are we doing?” Joe told him about the ransom note, and their theory about Kate Drew’s inheritance to Nancy. Frank was floored by the end of it, when they’d finally made it outside the venue. 

“Jesus, Joe. Where’s Nancy? Where’s the note?” He almost tried to go back inside to find both of them, only to be stopped by Joe’s hand on his chest, 

“Slow down, Romeo. Nancy’s got it under control.” Frank rolled his eyes, 

“I have to make sure she’s okay, Joe.” He said as he pried Joe off of him by the wrist. Joe retaliated by grabbing Frank’s arm and pulling him toward the parking lot, 

“She’s showing the cops. You can talk to her after we do what she told us to do.” 

“Which is?” Frank sighed, but relented as he followed Joe. 

“Break into Mr. Drew’s car and get the key Nancy’s mom left.” They were hardly a few feet from said car when Frank stopped in his tracks, 

“You’re not serious. Break into his car?” That Carson painstakingly drove all the way out here, he wanted to add. 

Joe huffed, stopping and turning to face Frank with a flat look,

“Well he’s not gonna give us his keys.” 

“...Fair point.” 

The two of them then stood side-by-side, staring at the driver’s window of Carson Drew’s BMW. Frank looked sideways at Joe, 

“I don’t feel right about this.” Joe tilted his head toward his brother while he rolled his eyes, 

“Then turn around. Mr. Drew will forgive us when we save his life, and we’re low on time and supplies.” Frank grimaced, but let out a deep breath.

“Fine. Do it.” He crossed his arms, squeezing his biceps with his eyebrows raised in trepidation as he watched his brother grab a sizable rock from the gravel beside the lot. He lined it up with the window.

“...It is a pretty nice car.” Joe grinned as Frank rolled his eyes this time, 

“Just do it!” 

“Doing it.”

Joe reared his arm backwards before slamming the rock hard into the window. 

It shattered almost immediately with a deafening crash. 

***

Nancy managed to track down the police officer she had spoken to before. He was outside giving orders to his men, probably about to tell them to break the seal of secrecy and begin their own interrogation. 

“Excuse me, officer!” Nancy called out to him, and he stopped to face her. 

“Ms. Drew. We’re just about to go in.” 

“By all means, go ahead. I found something you’ll probably want to see.” Nancy held out the sheet of paper, the ransom note, out for him to take. He did with a surprised look on his face, 

“A ransom?” He read it over. Nancy felt her heart beating out of her chest as he did so. He looked up at her, 

“‘We’, huh? So it’s a duo.” 

“Could be more. I want you guys to keep a close eye on these people. I think they’re all viable suspects. I’ve got my people talking to all of them right now. Under the radar.” Nancy pulled out her list of suspects and handed that to the cop as well with a smile. 

“Huh.” The officer hardly got the exclamation out before they, along with the rest of the cops nearby heard an alarm sounding. Nancy held back a grin. Frank and Joe sure knew how to make a scene.

“Car alarm? We got thieves too?” The head officer looked like he was about to go in that direction, but was stopped by Nancy’s hand on his arm, 

“I’m sure it was just an accident. An animal or something.” Nancy said, trying to stall. Sure enough, the alarm eventually cut out, silence surrounding them. 

“See? Now, back to the investigation.” 

“Well. I must say, I’m a little impressed. We’ll hold everyone until interrogation is over, and then put everyone up in the same hotel. No one’s leaving the state until we get this figured out.”

  Yes! Nancy thought excitedly. Everything was going to plan. Hopefully everyone else was getting information from the rest of their suspects, so she, Frank and Joe could start looking for… whatever it was they were looking for. 

“Please let me know if your men come to any conclusions.” Nancy added, though she was almost sure they wouldn’t. Any investigation the cops would conduct would take too long. They had only little over a day to find the ransom and get her dad back. 

“We’ll try our best to find out who took your dad, and get him back without any ransom necessary.” 

“...Thanks.” Nancy’s smile was thin. These things never worked out the way the police predicted. 

Whatever. We’ll handle it ourselves. Like we always do. 

***

Joe exhaled harshly as he finally cut the alarm to Carson’s car. He sat up, pushing the panel beneath the steering wheel closed with a loud clack. Frank had to admit he was impressed. 

“All that tinkering paid off, I guess. Nice job, little brother.” 

Joe breathed out a laugh, crawling across the center console to open the door from the other side, 

“Thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all week.” 

“Hopefully not.” Frank yanked open the passenger door and immediately went for the glove box, popping it open to see if the key was inside. He rooted around the papers and takeout napkins he found there, but there was no key in sight. 

“Hm. Keep looking. It has to be here somewhere.” He told Joe, who opened up the center console and began to dig through CDs. 

“I didn’t know Mr. Drew was a Led Zeppelin kinda guy.” Joe remarked casually. Frank rolled his eyes playfully as he pulled down the sun visor mirror. There was a small picture tucked inside it, and Frank thought for a brief second that it was probably Nancy. 

But no, after he grabbed it and examined it more closely he realized the woman must have been Kate Drew. Nancy’s mom. Frank nearly felt his chest implode. He hadn’t ever really seen a picture of her mom before. Nancy never talked about her either. As far as he knew, she didn’t even talk about her with her dad. Not even after everything that had gone down in Scotland, which Frank had missed, and Nancy had never really elaborated upon. 

Guess there’s a few things I still don’t really know about her… Frank’s mouth twitched into a disappointed frown as he pocketed the photo, but then he suddenly had a hunch. 

“Frank?” Joe questioned once he finished in the console. 

“Check the other mirror.”

Joe obeyed, pulling the mirror on the driver’s side down and yanking his hands back once a small metal key fell from it. It landed on the seat between Joe’s legs and he fished it out, holding it up to Frank with a smile. 

“Is that what we’re looking for?” Frank asked for confirmation, which he received once Joe nodded excitedly. He gave Frank the key, who turned it over in his hands a few times. 

It was old, as described, so covered in rust it was hardly silver anymore. Frank held it closer to his face to see if there was any writing on it. Sure enough, there was a number, and what appeared to be the name of some place. 

“42… And S-H-A… something, B-R.. Dammit. This thing’s so rusted up I can barely read it.” Frank murmured. Joe gave it a shot too, but he didn’t have much luck either. 

“I hope it still fits into whatever it’s for…” He pointed out. Frank sighed, 

“Well it doesn’t matter if we can’t figure that out. God, we don’t have time to go all the way back to the hotel to look into this.” He leaned back against the car seat, biting his lip in contemplation. 

Joe crossed his arms with a breath too. His face scrunched up a bit, and then he slowly turned toward Frank. 

“I have an idea. But you’re not gonna like it.” 

Frank blinked, moving just as slowly to look his brother in the eyes, 

“What?” 

Joe grimaced. Frank started to look nervous. 

“Jesus, what? ”

Chapter Text

Bess never thought sidling up next to a cute guy could be more boring. How could such a thing be true? Grigor was tall and handsome with his blonde hair swept back off his forehead and very good forearms poking out of his rolled-up shirt sleeves. He was also cracking jokes, leaning his hip against the table they were by. She laughed, touched his arm the way she had a thousand times with a thousand guys, only she felt next to nothing about it. 

What she could feel was Joe’s cold stare from across the room. 

He had nothing to worry about, she had so much as told him. The only thing she was thinking while listening to Grigor’s jokes and touching his arm, was that Joe’s jokes were funnier, and he had much better arms. 

But Joe had been acting dodgy lately. It was like some flip switched in him every time anybody brought up Frank and Nancy’s wedding. He became distant, and it bugged Bess to know there was something that was bothering him. Something he was keeping from her.

It wasn’t hard to tell either. Joe Hardy very plainly wore almost every emotion he’d ever had on his sleeve. So why not this one? 

Bess thought maybe it was because it had something to do with her. Their relationship. 

She knew Joe had a reputation as a player, who didn’t? Hell, she had a similar track record. Was it possible he was tired of her? 

After all this time? When he had been so jealous over her he’d decked a guy? When he was currently boring a hole into the skull of the guy she was fake-flirting with right now? 

It didn’t make sense. 

She wanted it to make sense, but Joe wouldn’t talk. 

Bess felt her eyebrows furrow in annoyance at the thought. 

“Alright, so that one didn’t land.” She heard Grigor say through an awkward laugh. 

Shit. Bess thought. Talk about letting your emotions show. 

“Sorry-” She replied, smiling up at him. “I let my head wander. Just kind of worried, I guess.” Lying through one’s teeth was always a good way to get out of a sticky situation, Joe had taught her. Grigor nodded a little, his head on a swivel as he looked around the place, 

“About this? I know. It’s weird. What are they stalling for? The bride and groom up to a little something something ?” He joked with a grin and a wink in Bess’ direction. 

Snooze. Bess wished she could’ve sighed out loud. But one thing was for sure, Grigor was acting very casually for a guy who crashed a wedding. 

Guess it’s time to snoop… 

“Who knows.” She remarked. “Wait a second. Aren’t you that guy that was on the news for that big art heist in Greece?” Blunt and accusatory was another interrogation technique straight from the Joe Hardy handbook. It took Grigor by surprise, 

“Oh. Uh. If you must know, yes. Got caught up in the wrong crowd, paid for my mistakes.” He explained, though this time he seemed a little annoyed. Bess thought that was mildly interesting. 

“Sooo what are you doing here then?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean … Nancy busted you. It was all over TV. I didn’t take you two for friends.” 

“We’re not. It was… Her friend. What’s her name, Deedee?” Bess suppressed a smile,

“Yup.” Was all she said. Her grin showed through a little, but Grigor didn’t notice. 

“Well she posted about the wedding. It was honestly pure luck that I even saw it.” He continued. Bess’ eyebrows furrowed, trying to understand. When she didn’t respond, Grigor sighed a little, leaning closer to her and saying in a quieter voice,

“Truth is, I’ve been trying to get in touch with Nancy since I got out of jail. I’ve been wanting to thank her for exposing Thanos and Xenia and all that.” He told her. Bess kept her expression neutral, but on the inside she felt like jumping up and down. 

This sounds just like the sort of thing Nancy would love to hear! 

“You’re not mad about her exposing you ?” She asked coolly. Grigor shook his head just as easily,

“Nah. Jail really was the safest place for me with Thanos on the loose. Even got out early on good behavior.” 

Bess was always known to side with the pretty guys when it came to mysteries, and she knew it didn’t make her the most reliable source for talking about suspects. But from her side, Grigor didn’t seem very conniving, evil or vengeful. That wasn’t something she could say about all of the other suspects there. Everything he said came across as casual and genuine. 

Nancy would say a cool exterior doesn’t mean there isn’t something sinister going on on the inside. Bess thought reluctantly. Grigor seemed genuine, yes, but he could also be lying. And crashing a wedding was a weird way to give Nancy his gratitude. Bess knew she probably should stay suspicious of him, but it was hard! He was like a golden retriever begging to thank its owner for saving it from the pound!

Besides, the fact that she wasn’t falling head-over-heels for him meant that her reasoning must have been sound. Surely. 

“Look…” Grigor started again, breaking Bess out of her thoughts. “Crashing her wedding was pretty uncool, I’ll admit. Your friend is just hard to track down.” 

Alright, that was fair. Nancy was almost never in River Heights, and even if she was it was for all of two days before she jet-setted off again. But was that really enough to clear Grigor of suspicion? Bess decided she’d definitely have to confide in Nancy on this one. 

“Where is she anyway?” Grigor asked, searching the large venue once more. 

“Um…” Bess began to give some kind of excuse, only she spotted a slew of police officers coming in through the front door before she had the chance. 

“Excuse me, everyone.” One of them said, presumably the ring leader, “This wedding is officially a crime scene. Nobody leaves until we get statements from everyone and give further instruction.”

Grigor had turned at this point, alarmed by the sudden presence of the police. Bess was equally surprised, but watched Grigor carefully. 

“Crime scene?” He shifted nervously, pushing his hip off of the table it was leaning against. 

“No wonder everything’s been stalled.” Bess pretended she had no idea what was going on. Grigor visibly swallowed as his eyes trailed over Bess’ face. 

“...Right…” The hesitance in his voice was obvious. 

He doesn’t believe you. Time to get out of here. 

“I’d better go try and find Nancy. She’s probably freaking out!” Bess laughed awkwardly and steered herself away from Grigor, who was watching her leave with semi-wide eyes. 

***

“Why can’t you do it?” Frank was complaining as he and Joe returned from their breaking-and-entering experience. They approached the steps in front of the door to the venue. Joe happily took a seat on the top one, giving Frank a grin, 

“Because it’ll be funny.” He said. Frank rolled his eyes and planted his hands on his hips as he stared a hole through his brother’s forehead. 

“And if she says no?” 

“Oh, she will.” Joe’s statement was short and confident. Frank’s already intense look turned into a narrow glare. Joe, despite his amusement, did in fact enjoy living, and so he threw his hands up at the elbows in surrender, 

“ And when she does I will pick up the pieces with my natural charm and persuasion.” That seemed to assuage Frank’s annoyance for the time being. With only a deep sigh left to show for it, he pulled his phone from the pocket of his slacks. 

“You’re not allowed to watch.” He pointed at Joe, before he dialed the number, put the phone to his ear and turned away. Joe was quick to pout, but he didn’t argue. 

Joe heard the door to the venue open behind him and he peered over his shoulder. Nancy was coming out, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear as she shut the door. She saw Joe, who gave her half a wave. Immediately she moved toward him, 

“Did you find it?” Nancy asked eagerly, taking a seat next to him on the steps. Joe pointed in Frank’s direction. The older Hardy brother was a ways away with his phone to his ear and his brows creased deep. 

“Oh yeah. Frank has it. Your uh.. Dad’s gonna need a new window on the driver’s side though.” Joe explained, an awkward smile on his face as his hand slowly reached for the back of his neck. Nancy’s eyes widened in surprise, her gaze still fixed on Frank across the way, but she soon smiled too. 

“I’m sure he’ll be happy to have you fix it when this is all over.” 

“Am I getting paid?” Joe quipped, which Nancy’s raised eyebrow quickly answered in the negative. He noticed the way her head practically turned on its own, back toward Frank.

“...I’ll do it for free…” He said offhandedly, and Nancy hummed in amusement. 

“What’s he doing?” She asked, nodding toward Frank. Joe took a long inhale of contemplation. He was sure he was blue in the face by the time he let it out and leaned back on his hands, 

“He’s going into the lion’s den for you.” 

***

Frank’s foot tapped a mile a minute against the tarmac of the parking lot. He moved his phone from his right hand to his left, wiping his free palm off on his shirt. He hated that he was so damn nervous, but he figured he couldn’t really be anything else. Besides, being nervous was second nature to Frank Hardy, so he almost couldn’t complain. Especially when the call connected, and a voice he hadn’t heard in years made itself known, 

“Hello?” Callie Shaw was skeptical as she answered. In one word, Frank was transported back to a different time. When they were younger, and everything had seemed so simple and yet complicated at the same time. When Frank thought he’d been happy until he had Nancy Drew in his arms. The sound of Callie’s voice brought that back too. The way he’d treated her, how she’d looked at him with tearfilled eyes and begged herself to hate him. 

The fact that they hadn’t spoken in years since then. 

No more summers in Bayport with the four of them. Him, Joe, Callie and Iola. 

Now it was just him and Joe. Soon it was going to be him and Nancy and…? 

Not only had Frank hurt Callie, but he’d lost her friendship. He’d lost her trust. 

He didn’t deserve it, and he didn’t know if he could have it back. If he wanted it back.

All he knew was he heard Callie’s soft voice through the speaker and he felt what he felt everytime he thought about it for too long.  

That he wished things had gone differently. That they could all just live and know each other without all the bullshit, albeit bullshit he’d caused. That it felt wrong to have such a broken feeling in his chest while hearing the voice of a woman he thought he’d always know, in one way or another. 

“Callie.” He spoke after what felt like an eternity. “It’s Frank.” 

“I know.” Callie’s tone was even, but Frank thought maybe she was rolling her eyes, or tapping her finger repeatedly against her desk. 

“Right. I didn’t think you’d still have my number.” 

“I deleted it. I just… I know it. Why are you calling, Frank?” Her voice turned rushed, annoyed, all things Frank knew Callie felt on a daily basis. But it caught on his name, even after all the years that had gone by. Maybe because of them. Frank swallowed. It was loud in his ears. His free hand had made it to the inside of his pants pocket, where he fingered the key they’d found in Carson’s car. 

What the hell was he supposed to say to her? 

Please ignore everything that’s happened and do a solid for the girl I left you for? 

Impossible. Joe was right, she’d never go for it. 

Frank swallowed again, a lump forming in the center of his throat. 

This was a bad idea. 

“How are you doing?” He decided to ignore the question for now. Callie clicked her tongue on the other line, 

“We haven’t talked in years. You didn’t call to ask me that.” She saw through his bullshit so fast. It was one of the many reasons why they always ended up letting her in on cases, as much as they claimed to oppose it. 

“You’re right. Just feels kind of scummy to call you up after all this time for a favor.” 

“It is.” She answered simply. Frank grimaced, 

Well it wasn’t my idea. He thought frustratedly. 

“Just… you know how you used to do research for us all the time from back at the house whenever we were in a pinch with a case?” Frank asked. Callie paused a moment before replying, 

“Yeah. It hasn’t been that long you know.” She joked. She actually joked . Frank felt his chest unwind a little. He let out a relieved chuckle. 

“So?” Callie added. 

“So… We’re in a pinch.” 

“You’re on a case? You and Joe?” Callie seemed a little more interested now. She did always have a soft spot for their kind of work. 

“... Y..Yeah. Me and Joe.” He faltered for just a second, but it was too noticeable. 

“And Nancy?” 

Dammit. 

“There’s trouble Callie. It’s her dad. He’s been kidnapped. We’ve got this key, it leads somewhere and I know it’s important. But we can’t read its writing. I thought I’d send you a picture and you tell me what you can drum up.” Frank started explaining quickly before she hung up. She didn’t, not yet, but she did let out a laugh of disbelief, 

“I can’t fucking believe this..” She said in a breath. Frank held his own, he was afraid to say another word. And it was silent. Uncomfortably silent. 

“So let me get this straight.” Callie eventually said, “You want me to take valuable time out of my day to research some key so that Nancy Drew can get her dad back, which is the only reason you called me after four years of radio silence? Do I have that right?” 

Frank wanted to crawl into a hole and die. And he deserved it too. He deserved a verbal massacre. 

“You do. And I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d want to talk to me. But I wouldn’t call if I wasn’t desperate.” 

“Go to hell, Frank.” 

She hung up. 

Frank let out a deep sigh as his hand dropped to his side with the phone still in it. He turned halfway around, peering back to where Joe was still sitting on the steps. Frank’s heart jumped when he saw Nancy sitting beside him. 

How long had she been there? What were they talking about? Had she been watching him? The way her eyes were soon locked with his from so many feet away answered only the third question. She smiled at him, thank god, so Joe hadn’t said anything that had questioned her faith in him too much. 

And yet, he still felt weird. He just wasn’t sure why. Because of the call with Callie? A little. Then he felt the key bouncing around in his pocket as he walked over to them, and a different thought popped into his head, one that had appeared earlier in the car, too. 

Nancy never told him anything about her mom. Nothing about their relationship, or her life, or her death, or anything. Frank knew it was kind of selfish to be disappointed. Nancy had every right not to talk about it, with him or anyone else. 

But she had called Ned in Scotland all those years ago, and he knew. 

God, now you’re being childish, too. Surely Nancy had a reason not to tell him. He just wished he knew what it was. Why had she told Ned then, why hadn’t she called him ? 

Why, when they were so similar, when she told him he was different, that their relationship was special and he knew her better than anyone, didn’t he know this one very important thing about her? 

Childish. He thought again. Stupid. 

He reached Nancy and Joe, who were looking at him expectantly. It was obvious Joe had told Nancy at least some of the details. Frank shook his head disappointedly and it acted as a way to clear his mind too, 

“It’s a no go.” 

“We’ll see about that.” Joe was quick to stand and pull his own phone out from his pocket. 

“Toss me the key.” He requested, his hand outstretched to Frank. Frank fumbled around for it and pulled it out. He was going to hand it over, but then he glanced at Nancy for a second.

“We should let Nancy take a look at it. I’ll give it to you if Callie says yes.” 

“Deal.” Joe agreed with a sympathetic smile. He walked away to where Frank had been minutes prior, leaving him and Nancy alone on the steps. Frank yanked up on his pant legs as he sat in the spot next to her. He held the key out beside him, delicately between his thumb and forefinger. 

“Check it out…” He said softly. She gave him a quick smile before taking the key and looking it over. 

“So you talked to Callie.” Nancy mused while she examined the key. Frank watched as her brows furrowed. He couldn’t tell if it was because of the puzzle that was the key’s lettering, or because of what she’d just said. He kind of wished it was the former. 

“…Yeah.” He said with a tired breath. 

“How was it?” Nancy asked. Frank held back another sigh. He wanted to change the subject, but that never worked with Nancy. 

“A wreck.” He chuckled painfully. Joe had wanted it to be that way, or he would’ve just called Callie himself. 

“She definitely knows how to hold a grudge.” 

“I don’t exactly blame her.” 

There was silence, something massively unspoken between them. Frank knew what it was on his end: he wanted to know more about the inheritance and Nancy’s mom. It was possible Nancy was feeling hesitant because she knew how much she hadn’t told him about that part of her life. He really didn’t want to be that kind of guy though, the one who forced it out of her or backed her into a corner until she locked her heart up tight forever. 

That was the last thing he wanted. 

Maybe her part in the silence had nothing to do with it at all. Maybe it had to do with everything that happened a few years ago. The tension between them and Callie and Ned. Not to mention her dad being in danger. 

It was probably all of those things mixed up in one big frustrating pot. 

“Um, what do you make of the key?” Frank finally broke the silence. He was glad that Nancy leaned her shoulder against his, her head tipping sideways, hovering above the crook of his neck. A few wavy strands of her red hair tickled his ear as she handed the rusted key back to him. 

“Well I sure don’t know what it says. If Callie refuses, we’ll waste a lot of time heading back to the hotel to check it out.” Nancy explained. Frank’s eyebrows raised slightly. 

“…Can I see the note?” It had dawned on him that he was the odd man out in that respect. Nancy shifted, her arm digging further into his as she reached into her back jean pocket to pull out the paper. It was folded twice, Frank noticed when he took it from her. 

“Even if Joe could pull a print off of it, we don’t have the kind of time to look into that either.” Nancy said, watching Frank read the ransom. 

“Tomorrow night?” He exclaimed with wide eyes. Nancy grimaced. Frank immediately felt sheepish, swallowing his panic. He was quickly realizing that wasn’t the best reaction to have when his fiance’s father’s life was at stake. 

“Plenty of time. We’ll figure it out, Nan.” Frank shifted his arm so it was comfortingly snug around Nancy. Her head dropped fully onto his shoulder and she let out a semi-shuddered breath. 

“Yeah.” 

Frank licked his lips as he continued to stare down at the note. 

“...Inheritance, huh?” 

He felt Nancy stiffen slightly against him.

God dammit. Why did you have to bring it up? 

It’s a vital part of the mystery. You kind of have to know. 

“Um… I guess? Honestly, I haven’t gotten a chance to stop and breathe, let alone think about all of this. My dad, he never..” She trailed off. Frank sat stock still hoping she would continue. But of course, Nancy just lifted her head off his shoulder and stretched her arms high into the air. They fell to her sides as she let out a deep sigh. 

“Nancy-” 

“Nevermind. We’ve got work to do. The police have made themselves known, so go change. I have a feeling we’re going to be trekking all over the place for this one.” Nancy stood, looking back at him with a calm smile, as if telling him that everything was alright. It was a stark contrast to the wide-eyed, worried look he was giving her. 

“We’ll tell Joe and the rest of the wedding party too.” As Nancy finished her sentence, Bess emerged from inside the venue and Joe returned from his phone call. The latter looked excited, wagging his fingers in a ‘gimme’ motion toward Frank. The older Hardy brother was shook out of his trance from pure surprise, 

“She said yes?” 

“You know it. Where’s the key?” Joe asked. Frank replied by tossing it to him. He caught it easily, snapping a photo of it from multiple angles to send to Callie. 

“You’re a lucky bastard.” Frank muttered. 

“That’s what they tell me. But nah. She actually likes me.” Joe grinned when Frank rolled his eyes. 

“What’s going on?” Bess chimed in from behind Frank and Nancy. 

“Scavenger hunt, so it appears.” Joe replied, showing her the key before pocketing it once more. They briefly described everything that had happened since the group split up. Bess had a hand over her mouth, eyes glossed over with emotion by the time Nancy had finished. 

“Oh, Nance…” 

“It’s okay, Bess. Let’s just focus on finding this thing and getting my dad back.” Nancy put her hand on Bess’ shoulder appreciatively. Bess nodded a little and paused, before jolting slightly in remembrance, 

“Oh yeah! I have some info on Grigor.” That seemed to pique Nancy’s interest, as well as Frank’s own memory, 

“Shorty too.” 

“Let’s get everyone together and swap notes. Hopefully Callie will have an answer for us by then. I’ll grab the others while you guys change.” Frank noticed how Nancy definitely seemed more vitalized than she had when they were talking. He supposed avoidance and a good mystery always did that for her. Bess and Joe left together after agreeing, and Frank was the last to stand, giving Nancy a kiss on the cheek. 

“See you in a second.” He said softly to her. Nancy responded by reaching up to grab him by the back of the neck and press her lips to his. They pulled away after far too short of a time for Frank’s liking. 

“Thank you.” She whispered into his mouth. It kind of struck Frank’s core, buzzed around in his chest while she rubbed his cheek with her thumb and remained as she left him standing in front of the venue. 

Chapter Text

After a much needed quick change into casual attire, the wedding party found themselves huddled behind the towering back wall of the venue. Fenton and Laura Hardy stayed around the corner, keeping watch to make sure no one heard anything they shouldn’t.

Nancy stood at the head of the crowd. With as many suspects as they had, she was eager to debrief as quickly as possible before she went with the Hardys and Bess to investigate the key they’d received from Carson. Well, Carson’s car.

Once she’d gotten everyone to settle, Frank and Bess told the group about their interactions with Shorty and Grigor. Nancy was inclined to believe Grigor’s story, but Shorty’s was about as far out of left field as one could get. In fact, she wouldn’t buy a word out of Shorty’s mouth no matter how sincere it sounded. She’d be sure to put a big red circle around his name.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he put this whole thing together.” Nancy said a little too hotly as she did, in fact, circle Shorty’s name on the suspect list. Frank, who was peering over her shoulder, placed a comforting hand on her arm,

“Hey, hey. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” His voice was soft, like he was trying to keep the rest of the group out of earshot, but it didn’t stop the hot embarrassment that was trailing its way up the back of Nancy’s neck. She always tended to get like this when it came to kidnapping cases involving her friends and family.

To anyone else it would make sense, but Nancy didn’t like to let emotions trump reason. And Frank and Joe were so good at keeping calm, even if she could feel Frank’s heightened pulse through the hand on her arm. She supposed they were trained for it, and it wasn’t their dad in danger or their mom who’d left them some crazy inheritance like she knew she’d never be able to see her kids grow up and get married-

“Sorry.” Nancy’s response was hushed and quiet. She swallowed, swiping the tips of her fingers across her waterline and rolling her shoulders. Frank’s hand rescinded. She couldn’t turn to see whatever expression was on his face, but she could imagine his eyes were solemn.

He probably thinks he messed up and upset me.

But it wasn’t Frank’s fault. He hadn’t done anything but support her this whole time. Nancy knew he was only trying to keep her calm with his fake rational front.

She was just doing it again. Putting up a wall again. Creeping toward some place she didn’t want to be until it was just noticeable enough, and then pulling back and making it seem like everyone else was wrong for wanting to know.

She didn’t want to do that. She wanted Frank to know her. Every part of her- good, bad, disappointing, whatever. She was ashamed to realize her proclaimed commitment to him, their relationship and a change in herself hadn’t really meant much beyond four years of loyalty.

She was still hiding. She was still lying.

She was still doing those things to him, and to herself.

And she didn’t know how to free them both from it.

“What, um.. What did everyone else get?” Frank’s voice bounced around so loudly in Nancy’s skull that she realized she’d checked out a long time ago. Color rose to her cheeks again. She wanted to step on her brain’s foot so it’d leave her alone for a while.

“Virtually nothing. Andy Jason wasn’t very talkative. But I guess he’s straightened out?” George reported, not sounding totally convinced.

“Keep an eye on him until he heads back to the hotel.” Nancy requested after clearing her throat awkwardly, and then looked to Deirdre, “What about Rentaro?”

“He just talked about dumb puzzles for like 30 minutes.” Deirdre said with an eye roll and a groan.

“Evasive much?” Joe put in,

“Evasive, or seriously boring?” Deirdre retorted.

“For once I agree with you.” Bess spoke up next. As Nancy listened, she made an attempt to look up at Frank. She watched him ask Chet about his talk with Elliott Chen, his eyes staring straight ahead. He was all business now, that was for sure, but she noticed the way he strained not to look at her.

“And then he started whipping out a paint set begging to paint the ceremony!” Chet was finishing his wild speech, which led everyone to confusion about Elliott Chen’s intentions at the wedding. Next, the group turned to Ned and his girlfriend, who was standing a ways behind the group with her hands on her hips.

“We uh.. Haven’t had a chance to talk to Anja yet.” Ned spoke slowly, like his words were attempting to defuse a bomb.

Oh, there’s a bomb alright. Nancy thought to herself as her eyes shifted from Ned to Sophia.

“This is time sensitive, Ned.” She told him. Ned flushed a little. He could’ve been embarrassed, or surprised at the fact that Nancy had actually spoken to him directly. Nancy was a little shocked herself.

“... We’ll get on it.” He said. Finally, Burt and Dave reported their findings about Taylor Sinclair,

“Nothing interesting or funny.” Dave was disappointed, but then Burt smacked him on the arm,

“Wait, dude, that phone call.”

“Phone call?” Joe piped up again.

“Yeah. Uh… Sinclair got a call and told us to beat it. We couldn’t really hear what he was saying but he was all hunched over like this-” Burt leaned forward with a fake telephone to his ear, and a hand on the side of his mouth.

“Pretty suspicious.” Dave finished. Frank and Joe exchanged a dubious glance. Then they both turned to Ned.

“Are your friends pulling our leg or what?” Frank asked before Joe could say anything, crossing his arms. Ned raised his eyebrows,

“They wouldn’t lie about something like that.” He defended. Neither Joe or Nancy were surprised at the way Frank and Ned only took two sentences to start tearing at each other’s throats.

“Hey, it’s all chill. I believe ‘em. But maybe Ned can check it out after he talks to Anja while we’re gone.” Joe looked in Ned’s direction again with pleading eyes, who was quick to nod.

“You got it-” He was cut off by a loud groan from his plus one. Her head was hanging back as she looked up to the sky.

“Ned, come on. I’m tired. If there’s no wedding, let’s just go back to the hotel.” She droned, clearly annoyed. Nancy’s own frustration had reached yet another boiling point. Too many people, too many opinions, and scraps of clues without a hint of something substantial. Besides the key.

“God, this is such a mess.” Nancy whispered to herself. That finally caused Frank to jump into action. He placed his hand on the small of her back without a word, but Nancy felt her heart skip a beat anyway. She thought maybe they’d share a gaze and a smile, which would let her know for sure that everything was okay between them. But then Joe’s phone rang on full blast and all she knew was that they had to get back to work.

The group, including Ned and Sophia, went silent before any serious arguing could occur.

“It’s Callie.” Joe announced, taking the call and beginning to walk away.

“What’s going on?” George asked. Nancy faced all of them again,

“We might have a lead on… something. I’ll fill you all in on the details later. But for now, Frank, Joe, Bess and I are going to follow up on it. Everyone who’s staying here, keep an eye on your suspects until they’re cleared to leave. Follow them back to the hotel too. Do whatever you can to learn whatever you can.”

“Anything you need, Detective Drew.” Deirdre drawled sarcastically. George gave her an eyeroll as the group disbanded. Frank had made his way to Joe already, and so Nancy beckoned Bess over to join them too.

Just as they arrived, Joe put Callie on speaker,

“Alright. Nancy and Bess are here. Tell us what you got.”

Callie appeared to hesitate slightly, before she sighed,

“Your key seems to open a room at a motel in the area. Shadowbrook Motel. The number is 425, but I can’t decipher the letter after it. You might have to check a few rooms.” There was only a brief silence before Frank asked,

“Are they-?”

“Lobby’s open, yes. But you better hurry. Motels like that close earlier than you might think.”

“Thank you--” Nancy began, but was also cut off,

“Whatever, Drew.”
“Callie. Seriously. I really appreciate it.”

“... Yeah. Whatever.” Callie hung up. The four of them were tense once she did so, until Nancy smacked her hands down onto the sides of her legs,

“Shadowbrook Motel it is.”

***

Shadowbrook Motel was probably one of the dingiest locales Nancy had ever been to on a case. Even the cabbie who had taken them there refused to pull into the pothole-filled parking lot. Nancy had a brief thought that maybe Callie had lead them astray on purpose. She wouldn’t be surprised, but the place was open, a dim, billboard-sized sign hanging in front of it and they didn’t have a lot of time. The sun was already a little too low in the sky for her liking, so Nancy figured they might as well give it a try.

Nancy stepped out of the cab first, Carson’s key in her hand as she hopped over a patch of gravel onto the tarmac of the parking lot. Frank, Joe and Bess were right behind her while she traversed the potholes to find the lobby. Joe’s foot slipped on one and he muttered something about public safety. Bess yanked on his arm with a smile on her face.

“Think this is the place?” Frank asked, jogging a bit to catch up with Nancy. She sighed,

“We won’t know until we try the key.” She didn’t want to sound too dire, so she added, “...I hope so.”

“Me too.” Frank replied quickly. They found the lobby and Frank managed to get the door open with a strong pull.

At the front desk was a guy who appeared to be in his mid 20s or 30s, wearing a beige henley shirt under a navy collared one. He was flipping through a magazine while rubbing at the scruff of his beard, his brown hair falling into his eyes as he did so. When he saw the group walk in, he looked up, running a hand through his hair and pushing off his elbow.

“Need a room?” His voice was rough and he cleared his throat once after asking the question. Joe raised an eyebrow,

“Rugged.” He muttered, seemingly impressed. Frank restrained himself from giving him a smack on the arm.

“Not quite.” Nancy spoke up, confident as always. She approached the desk.

“My name is Nancy Drew. You are…” She glanced down at the nametag on the pocket of his shirt,

“Rob?”

“Mhm.” He leaned back in his chair with a creak. Nancy ignored the way he appeared to be carefully studying her and her friends behind her, as well as the ceiling leak she felt dripping onto her shoulder.

“My friends and I have this key.” She placed it down on top of the open magazine on the desk. “It was left for us, and we have reason to believe there’s something important in the room it goes to. We were hoping you might let us take a look?” She finished the story and her question with a smile. Rob the lobby guy glanced down at the key. Nancy felt a pang of unease in her chest when he picked it up and examined it,

“Yeah. It’s one of ours. Pretty old though. Might not fit in the locks anymore..” He trailed off, putting the key back down and tapping his finger against the desk.

“Funny…” He began, looking over the four of them again and then back at Nancy,

“You’re the second person today that’s come askin’ about lookin’ through the rooms.” Rob sounded entirely suspicious, but Nancy’s pulse quickened. Second person? One of the kidnappers? But how, and why would they come down here if they were enlisting Nancy’s help? What was the point of the ransom if they weren’t sticking to it?

“Someone else?” Nancy asked as she swiped the key back from the desk.

“Yeah. He was lookin’ for something too, but he didn’t have no old key or anything. I told him to get lost since the idiot wanted to search the whole place.” Rob explained. He stood up, walking around the desk and causing Nancy to step back with the rest of the group.

“What did the guy look like?” Joe wanted to know. Rob exhaled in contemplation, slipping his fingers through his belt loops.

“Dark hair, clean-shaven, kind of… twitchy?”

“Twitchy?” Bess echoed with a squeamish look on her face. Nancy was confused too. That description didn’t seem to match any of their suspects, at least that she could remember.

“I don’t know. He was just weird. Like I said, I kicked that bastard out. But yall seem like an okay group of kids so I’ll let you look around.” Rob pushed through them to the front door and went outside.

“Not kids, but thanks.” Joe muttered.

“Cool it, Joe.” Frank whispered right back. They followed Rob outside and up some stairs to the second floor. He gestured toward the row of motel rooms, and the flights up to the rest of the floors,

“Check whatever rooms on whatever floors. I can’t guarantee what you’re lookin’ for is still there, though.” And with that, Rob left them to their own devices.

“Alright.” Nancy said with a breath. “Let’s start looking.”

***

They searched every vacant motel room marked 425 on each floor. Nancy stuck the key into what felt like their hundredth lock, and exhaled frustratedly when it didn’t turn.

“It’s always the last one you try.” Joe remarked over her shoulder. He was trying to be helpful and optimistic, of course, but it just drove Nancy up the wall. She rolled her eyes a little and pulled the key from the lock, walking down the hall to go up yet another flight of stairs. Frank watched her walk away, his eyes soft,

“It’s not your fault, Joe. You guys hang back, I’ll talk to her.” He clapped a hand on his brother’s shoulder and then hurried after Nancy. He found her on the next floor, walking toward 425 E.

“Nancy.” He called. She stopped walking and let him catch up,

“I’m sorry.” She said once he did so. They made their way to the door together.

“You don’t need to apologize to me. And Joe? He’ll lick his wounds and move on. It’s no big deal.” Nancy paused again in front of the motel room. She looked at Frank, and he was surprised to see her brows furrowed,

“You’re lying to me.” Frank’s own eyebrows flew up his forehead,
“What?” He replied defensively.

“You could barely look at me back at the venue. You’re upset with me.” Nancy said it like she needed it to be true, like she hated that fact. Frank put a hand to the back of his neck,

“I’m… not upset, necessarily.” Nancy let out another bitter sigh. Frank’s felt his eyes roll involuntarily,

“Why are you upset? Because I’m upset? Which, I’m not, by the way-”

“Frank.” Nancy said his name in a thwarted way, unlike he had ever heard before.

“Okay!” He relented, “I’m upset. Are you mad that I am? Or that I didn’t tell you, because believe me Nancy there are plenty of things you haven’t told me.” Frank’s voice began to rise. Nancy’s eyes widened slightly, but she wasn’t necessarily surprised. In fact, it pretty much just confirmed what she thought before. That he was mad about all the stuff with her mom.

“I know! I’m not.. I just… want you to be honest with me!” Nancy didn’t like any of the words coming out of her mouth, and apparently neither did Frank. He scoffed,

“Me?” His hands flew to his sides and he walked away from her a bit,

“I want to help you Nancy. I want us to be there for each other. And you’ve made it very clear that you want it too.” Frank paused, turning and looking at her with his hands on his hips,

“But there’s this line that you’ve drawn. And how am I supposed to help you, when you’ve made it equally clear that I’m not allowed in? How am I supposed to be honest with you, when every time I start to, you push me away?”

Nancy stood there, dumbfounded. She’d never seen Frank Hardy this angry. She’d especially never witnessed his anger toward her. She didn’t reply. She wasn’t sure she could without blowing up herself.

After the silence grew a little too long, Frank seemed to shy away from her. His voice came out meeker this time,

“...You always said that we had something different. That I understood you in a way someone like Ned never could. So why, Nancy? Why did you tell him about your mom?”

Nancy cringed at the word. Frank felt a jolt go through his own body at the fact that he’d said it. He’d said the childish, selfish thing he’d been thinking right to her face.

And she still didn’t say anything. There was a quiet anger in her glossy eyes, her fists clenched tightly at her sides. The key stung her skin with the way it was digging into her palm.

She knew he was right. Hell, she’d thought the same thing hours ago.

But she was mad. And no matter how much sense Frank had been making before, none of it mattered once he’d brought up Kate Drew.

“I am trying to pick up these pieces she left to find something that I didn’t even know existed to save my father from these people who probably won’t hesitate to kill him if I can’t.” She faced the door, shoving the key in the lock,

“I didn’t ask you to help me, I didn’t ask you to butt into shit you don’t know anything about and I sure as hell don’t need you to pile your shit on top of mine. I have enough to deal with. If you can’t handle that. Then leave.”

Nancy turned the key and the door clicked open. She wished she could’ve celebrated it with him, only she couldn’t look his way. Her chest hurt so bad she thought she might keel over, but she just pushed her way inside and shut the door behind her.

Frank stood speechless in the hallway, watching the girl he loved force him out of this mystery and her life in one fell swoop.

He couldn’t move.

He felt numb.

Like he’d been given a boat load of anesthesia, or was sleepwalking.

The only thought left in his head was that if he was sleepwalking, Nancy was probably out cold.

***

Nancy knew she made a mistake. That much was abundantly clear. She’d made dozens of mistakes and was still paying for almost all of them. She just couldn’t help but think what just happened with Frank was the worst of them all.

But, as was the case with almost every thread hanging off of her since this mystery started, she’d have to cut it off and tear the motel room she currently found herself in apart for any clue she could.

If only she could ignore the fact that she’d left Frank out in the hall after her angry outburst.

She thought she had good reason to be angry. Of course, as she was calming down she was realizing Frank had just as good of a reason. Back at the venue she was boldly proclaiming in her head that she’d love nothing more than to break down the wall between them. But then something got in the way- God, what was it?

Her first instinct was that Frank didn’t understand what she was going through. She had been frustrated, and annoyed at his insistent prying because both of his parents were safe and sound back at the venue. Frank didn’t know what it was like to carry one burden while desperately trying to fight off another.

Or maybe he did?

Nancy sighed deeply as she began to poke around every corner of the dingy room.

No, you’re deflecting. Just like all the petty criminals you deal with on the daily.

Clear your head. Think rationally. Nothing wrong with treating your love life like a case, right?

She breathed out an uneasy laugh to herself.

Carefully, she went through every possible explanation for her behavior. Pride, ego, stress, overwhelm.

All of the above?

And then suddenly,

Fear.

She grimaced.

It was, wasn’t it.

She was afraid. Of talking about her mom, what happened with her, of Frank taking a look inside her aching heart because that was scarier than letting Ned have a glance. And why?

Because I actually love him.

Scared to lose him.

Like mom.

Like dad.

More thoughts that twisted up her chest and the expression on her face.

But Frank had said it himself, she still pushed him away despite all of the love she felt for him.

It made no sense, but she supposed emotions seldom did.

And that bothered her.

Because she could place the fear, and the reasons for the fear, and it still didn’t explain why she neglected to go back into the hallway and explain it all to him.

Push him away before he does it first?

You’ve learned nothing from Ned, have you.

Nancy thought she wasn’t doing a very good job at cutting the thread and focusing on the mystery.

She tore apart the bedding, even lifted the mattress from its frame. She looked in and under everything, including in the bathroom. And nothing.

Okay, so the walls. Nancy began to run her hands over the chipping wallpaper. It was pink, it was flowery and it was ugly. Pieces of it came off in her hands, and she briefly hoped Rob the lobby guy wouldn’t notice. Even still, there didn’t seem to be anything hidden.

Nancy sat back down on the shag carpeted floor with a huff, running a hand through her hair before leaning back on her hands. There was a light, disappointed tug at her heart every now and then as she continued to glance around the room.

Her eyes widened suddenly as she noticed something about the wall at the head of the bed. It was hard to see, hidden behind the frame right above the wall’s baseboards.

The wallpaper was newer, and better yet, an entirely different color. Nancy sat up onto her knees and attempted to pull the bed from its spot. It didn’t budge even a centimeter. She considered going to grab Frank or Joe, but could think of a thousand reasons against the idea.

So she pulled her penlight from her back pocket and lowered herself onto her stomach, crawling under the bed. The dust invaded her sinuses something awful, but she ignored the urge to sneeze as she pointed her light toward the wall. Sure enough, the ugly pink wallpaper had been covered by equally hideous green wallpaper. Nancy reached forward with her free hand, ripping the paper free until it was brick.

There’s gotta be something behind this. Nancy thought, opting to hold her penlight in her mouth as she awkwardly pried a few bricks from the wall. Sure enough, there was a little compartment inside it. Nancy swallowed, bucking up her courage, and reached inside. Her fingers found something solid and pulled it out. Hurriedly, she spit her penlight onto the floor and then scooped it back up, shining the light on the object in her hand.

It was a flip phone. Nancy instantly thought it might be a burner.

After pressing the power button, she shoved her thumb nail between the top and the bottom and opened it. Miraculously, it turned on.

“Yes!” Nancy exclaimed, her smile brighter than the tiny screen before her. Instantly she began to search the phone’s contents. There was almost nothing on it, except for a voicemail from a number Nancy did not recognize. She was quick to play it, putting the small device to her ear.

Her mother’s voice filled her ears.

“Is this a good idea? Do you think she’ll like it?” At first she sounded far away, like she was talking to someone else. Sure enough, she heard her father’s laugh in the background.

“Oh, it’s already going I think. Nancy.” This time, her mother’s words were directed to her.

“I know you’ll think this is strange. Or maybe exciting. Well, you can tell me when it’s all said and done. It’s certainly a grand way of presenting a wedding present.”

“It’s supposed to be mysterious, Kate!” Carson’s muffled voice called to her. Nancy felt tears prickling the corners of her eyes.

“I’m sorry! Well Nancy, by now you’ve found the motel I spend a lot of time in for my work whenever Cathedral pulls me there. I know I can’t talk about it with you, but by the time Carson gives you the key all of that will change. That’s what I want this to be. It’s not just a wedding present. I want to share my life with you in a way I haven’t been able to. Of course, it’s because of your safety-” Kate paused.

“I’m sorry. Again. I’m getting off topic. Are you hungry for more? Your next stop is a bit of a hidden location, but I always loved the smell of the gardenias there. So beautiful, but that’s all I’ll tell you! Good luck Nan. I love you.”

The message ended, and when it did Nancy wasn’t even thinking of the riddle, or where the next location could possibly be. She could only think of the last words her mother had spoken directly to her.

“I love you too, mom.” Nancy’s tears stained her cheeks as she whispered. 

Chapter Text

Joe leaned his back against the wall of the motel hallway, looking at Bess, who was doing the same on the opposite side. They’d been left there after Nancy’s slightly angry outburst. Now they were just waiting for someone to tell them it was okay to follow, or better yet, leave. 

Joe watched Bess, who was biting her thumb nail while staring at a stain on the carpet. 

“...You okay?” He tried. Bess just grimaced. 

“I’ve never seen Nancy like this before.” She replied quietly. 

“I know. Does she talk about.. her mom a lot?” Bess closed her eyes and leaned her head back on the wall, shaking it slowly, 

“Never. I guess it makes sense. It’s just…” Bess paused as she searched for the right words. 

“..Hard to watch her keep that stuff in?” Joe eventually finished for her. Bess picked her head up and looked at him. 

“Yeah.” 

It was quiet between them then. 

“Some wedding, huh?” Joe joked, but then averted his gaze from hers. Bess definitely felt that comment as more of a dig than anything else. She crossed her arms.

“I guess Nancy’s not the only one keeping stuff to herself.” She said with a huff. Joe’s hard swallow could be heard from a mile away. 

But he just shrugged wordlessly. 

“ Seriously ? What is going on with you?” Bess prodded, pushing herself off the wall and taking a step closer to him. 

“Nothing’s going on with me.” 

“Bullshit!” Bess exclaimed. It surprised Joe enough for him to turn his head back to face her. He saw the frustrated crease in her brow, hands firmly on her hips as she looked up at him intently. 

He still couldn’t bring himself to say anything. There was a lot going on, with the mystery, Bess’s best friend having an existential crisis. He didn’t want to upset her by telling her he just couldn’t do this wedding stuff. 

Joe licked his bottom lip tentatively. The longer he and Bess stared at each other, silence and tension clouding them, the more her torqued look started to soften. She stepped back again toward the wall, moving her eyes back to the carpet. 

“Is it me then?” She asked faintly. Joe’s brows raised halfway up his forehead, and his eyes widened plenty, 

“No!” He could say that, easily. 

“Then what, Joe? You never stop talking, but recently it’s like, whenever the conversation’s about us you get weird.” Bess hugged her arms, insistent on keeping her head faced away from him, even when he had nearly closed the gap between them. 

“Bess. I’m sorry. It’s just complicated.” 

“Are you bored? Of me? Of us?”
“Of course not!” Joe was beginning to feel his temper rise. Bess was too, evidently, because she sighed and put a hand to her forehead, running her fingers through her blonde curls. 

“How many guesses do I get before you’ll tell me?” 

“It’s this , Bess!” Joe exploded, gesturing around wildly as if showing off the place. Bess just scrunched her eyebrows in confusion, 

“The motel?” 

“What? No .” Joe huffed, “ This, as in, all the wedding stuff. It’s freaking me out, okay? I hear you talking about all your hopes and dreams for a big fancy white wedding, and I feel all this pressure. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know if I can give you that.” 

Bess shied away from him again, as if she could get any farther with her back pressed to the wall. 

“So it is about commitment?” Her voice was soft as she asked. Joe let out a sigh, his shoulders deflating in on themselves,

“I don’t… think so? I just… I like how we are. And.. I guess.. I’m afraid that if we get married …” The word slipped awkwardly off his tongue as he trailed off, like it was some taboo concept. 

“ What , Joe?” Bess wanted to know. She was dying to know. 

“I’m afraid it won’t be what you want. That you’ll start to notice all my cracks, and you’ll wish you were with some guy like… like fucking Grigor.” Joe ended his sentence with an unhappy mutter, which Bess easily took note of.

“I knew you were upset about him.” 

“I told you I was.” 

“I didn’t know it was this serious because you’re never serious, Joe.” 

There was only a beat before Joe followed up with,

“... I’m serious about you . I’m just scared.” 

Bess had moved from her closed-off position against the wall by now, toward Joe. She rested a gentle hand on his cheek, making sure his eyes stayed fixed on hers. The last time Joe was this vulnerable with her, it was when they first got together and he’d spit out all his feelings in one go. She wanted to make sure he saw and heard what she was about to say. 

“Joey, I’ve been aware of your ‘cracks’ since we’ve met. You’re impulsive, you’re a little too angry, you get jealous very easily…” 

“Not exactly making me feel better.” 

Bess giggled a little,

“Sorry. But didn’t I tell you this already, silly? I’m long past that whole storybook romance thing. I think if I was with some guy like Grigor right now, I’d be bored.” There was another pause as Joe was, shockingly, left at a loss for words. Bess felt herself smile, sliding her other hand over Joe’s palm and intertwining their fingers. 

“ You’re my prince Joe, okay? And God, I wish you’d told me all this sooner. The standards you have for me are just too high.” She lowered the hand on his cheek, giving his shoulder a playful swat. Joe was astounded by her once more. He always was, really. 

“What do you mean?” He asked with a probable dumb look on his face.

“Weddings are nice, and I would love some big romantic evening where we show our commitment and everything. But I don’t need marriage. I just need you.” The smile on Bess’ face grew wider as she spoke, and as Joe’s look turned to one of disbelief. 

“Are you serious?” 

“Of course!” She cried, and it was all Joe needed to grab her by the waist and pick her up a foot off the ground to kiss her. Bess giggled, delighted, against his lips and steadied her arms around his shoulders. Joe’s victory was short-lived however, because Bess pried herself from the kiss and planted the pad of her pointer finger against his nose, 

“And I’m sorry I made it seem like I was pressuring you. But I do mean it about the commitment thing! Something big and just the two of us!” 

“Forgiven, deal, 100%. I know just the thing.” Joe put her back on her feet, only to once again press his lips to hers. The hands around Bess’ waist found their way to her ass as she felt herself being pinned to the wall. She let out a gasp of surprise and laughed again, pushing Joe’s face away from hers and smacking him on the chest with more force this time, 

“You dog!” She chided, 

“I’m kidding.” Joe was quick to say, “I’ll think of something… And believe me, it won’t involve our parents watching us kiss while I wear that god awful tux.” 

“Aww, but I like you in that tux.” Bess complained with a fake pout. 

They leaned in to kiss again, but were interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps coming down the stairs. They barely saw a glimpse of Frank passing the hallway on his way to the next flight. 

“Was that Frank?” Bess asked, confusion lacing her tone. Joe scrunched his brows together, 

“I think so.”

“Nancy’s still upstairs.” Bess commented while Joe bit his lip in contemplation,

“And Frank didn’t seem eager to talk. Something’s up. I’ll go after him, you check on Nancy.” 

“You got it, God I love it when you get all detective-y.” Bess grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and gave him one more firm kiss before jogging off toward the stairs. It stalled Joe, a dumb smile plastered on his face, long enough for her to be gone by the time he raced after Frank too. 

***

Nancy was still beneath the bed of the motel room, staring down at the flip phone she’d just heard her mother speak from. She knew she needed to listen to the message a few more times in order to soak up the clues Kate had left. She needed to figure out where her mom had wanted her to go next, not only as a wedding gift, but so that she could learn more about her life and her work. 

She just couldn’t help but sit there, frozen in stunned silence at the fact that she’d been able to hear her mother’s voice again, speaking directly to her. Nancy hoped wherever the clues took her, she’d be able to hear it again. More words just for her. 

“Nancy?” Bess’s confused voice rang from the doorway behind her. Nancy jumped a little, banging her head against the underside of the bed frame. 

“Bess!” Nancy blurted out from beneath the bed. She shimmied her way out and looked backwards at her friend, an embarrassed smile on her face. 

“I didn’t hear you come in.” She brushed her hair from her face as she turned, sitting on her knees with the phone in her lap. Bess gave her a smile back, 

“You found something I hope. Otherwise I’d be worried about the whole under-the-bed thing.” She joked. Nancy ran a hand through her hair as she stood and dusted off her jeans. She held the flip phone up for Bess to see, 

“This was in the wall. It has clues that will lead us… somewhere else.” To that, Bess tilted her head sideways as if asking to know more. Nancy chuckled sheepishly, 

“My mom was apparently quite creative in the way of wedding gifts.” She told her. Bess’s smile turned a bit sad, but she just nodded. 

“Um… Joe followed Frank outside. He seemed kind of freaked. Did something happen?” 

Nancy felt her stomach lurch at the remembrance of her argument with Frank. She swallowed, mustering up a strained smile toward her friend, 

“You and I are on our own for now, Bess.” 

“But-” 

“I promise I’ll tell you everything. We just don’t have the time.” Bess wasn’t satisfied in the slightest, but Nancy was already heading toward the door and so she glumly followed her out. 

***

Frank sat on the edge of the sidewalk outside Rob’s lobby. When Nancy had disappeared into the motel room after their argument, he wanted nothing more than to follow her right in. Only, his feet wouldn’t go anywhere but the opposite direction.

He couldn’t ignore that he was angry. He’d accidentally let himself boil over and the resulting adrenaline was still coursing through his veins. 

But the pain in his heart that he felt when she’d said those piercing words and shut him out once again was overpowering anything else. 

He’d never known Nancy to be mean. Blunt, and occasionally insensitive, yes. But never mean. Never intentionally malign. 

But then,

I sure as hell don’t need you to pile your shit on top of mine. 

He hadn’t meant to, but he supposed he’d gone and done it. All he wanted was for them to understand each other. 

I have enough to deal with. 

He knew Nancy was hurting too, grieving harder than he could ever truly know or understand. And yet, he’d wanted to try.

In that moment though, she hadn’t wanted him to understand. She’d wanted him gone. She’d wanted him to hate her as much as she hated herself and the way she was feeling. 

If you can’t handle that. Then leave.

It wasn’t a choice. It was an order. 

So he’d left. 

Because if there was one mistake Frank Hardy wasn’t going to make again it was causing Nancy to stare hatefully into his eyes and push him away. 

And maybe, in order to do that, he would have to keep his distance until she was ready to let him in. 

That thought made Frank swallow uneasily as he stared down at his feet against the tarmac, because a part of him knew Nancy liked to take her sweet time with emotional decisions. Sometimes she’d leave them in limbo for so long one could wonder if there would ever be resolution.

The other part of him thought if she really loved him enough to marry him, she’d choose. Whether he liked the decision or not. 

“Frank!” Joe was calling from the stairs suddenly, jumping down from the second step with a worried crease in his brow. Frank sighed, sitting up a little straighter and swiping at his eyes. It was a lost cause. Joe would figure out what happened in two seconds. 

“I saw you dart down the stairs. I thought you were being chased by Michael Myers or something,” His brother continued as he reached his side, “But you’re just sitting here. What’s up?” 

Frank was right about Joe knowing in an instant, because as soon as he turned to look at him, his expression gave himself away. 

“Um..” Frank’s voice cracked, alluding to the fact that he’d been crying. He cleared his throat. Joe looked about as sick as Frank felt. 

“We… fought.” 

“You and Nancy?” 

“Mhm.” 

Frank described what happened in a little more detail, his voice broken up by agonizing silences. He didn’t know how to explain without breaking down, but he managed to get the words out. 

“I don’t think she wants to see me right now. I don’t even know if she wants our help with the case anymore.” Frank sighed. Joe was kneeling beside him now, putting a comforting hand on his back, 

“Well you know we can’t quit.” Joe said with a smile. He hoped it’d lighten up the mood a little, but Frank just replied bitterly, 

“I don’t know. You didn’t hear her.. And the way she looked at me, oh God Joe-” Joe watched his older brother cut himself off with a sharp inhale as he lifted shaky, clasped hands to his lips. Joe had seen his fair share of Frank’s worry since they were old enough to walk and talk but this time he was practically trembling against his palm. 

And rightfully so. Nancy Drew was a driving, almost necessary force in Frank’s life. She was his to need for so long and she completed him. Joe knew one of Frank’s biggest fears was losing her. Well it was happening, right before his eyes and it was his fault so it seemed. 

What could he do?

How could he possibly do anything other than listen to her, watch her go and lose her ? 

Because, as Frank had thought moments earlier, anything else would only push her further away from him. 

And it forced Joe to watch his brother, one of the most stoic, composed and strong people he had ever known unravel right before him. 

“Frank…” He said delicately, rubbing circles against his shuddering back, “Let’s breathe, okay? Nothing’s set in stone. Nancy’s going through a lot right now, you know that. That’s probably all it was. Stress.” Joe wasn’t exactly sure of that. 

“Stress.” Frank repeated shortly, as if trying to convince himself of the fact. He didn’t believe Joe one bit, but somehow the words made his shoulders relax some. 

“The point is. She’ll come around. I know it. And I also know that even if we have to do it from opposite sides, we’re not dropping Nancy’s case.” 

“Joe…”

“You don’t want to.” 

There was only a brief pause. 

“...I don’t.” Frank relented.

“Then come on, Sherlock!” Joe patted his brother on the back with a little more force and stood up, “If Nancy and Bess are going to follow up on whatever she finds in the hotel room, you and I will head back to the venue and see if we can dig anything new up about our suspects.” 

Frank glanced up at Joe, and then to the sky where oranges and pinks were melding into a gorgeous sunset. He smacked his knees and stood up with a sigh, 

“Then we’d better get going before the cops send everyone over to the hotel.” 

“Hotels are my favorite place to snoop!” Joe proclaimed with a cheeky smile. Frank managed to crack one in return, until he suddenly felt something slam roughly into his back. 

It was a person, he quickly figured out, since a pair of arms wrapped around his middle and tackled him onto the ground. 

“What the-? Get off of him!” He heard Joe yell as the stranger obviously searched for something on Frank’s person. 

“ Where is it ?” The deep voice coming from whoever was on top of him aggressively demanded. Frank wished he could see what they looked like, but he was stuck on his stomach and struggling. He blindly thrusted his elbow backward in an attempt to catch them off guard. 

He had no luck, except for the fact that Joe had naturally jumped into action, 

“The hell are you talking about?!” Joe reached for the assailant’s arms. He was forced back by a gleaming knife in their hand, which was being swung dangerously in Joe’s direction. The tip of the knife grazed his shirt, catching the fabric and sliding easily through it before Joe had fallen onto his ass. 

Joe barely had time to get back on his feet when he heard Bess and Nancy flying down the steps beside them. The attacker seemed visibly put off by this, and so scrambled off of Frank before running toward the street. Frank reached for their ankle, barely missing it as Joe ran after them too. 

“What the heck is going on?!” Bess called as she and Nancy approached him. Nancy didn’t meet Frank’s eye, in fact she headed toward Joe, who was walking back to them with his hands on his hips. 

“Frank got jumped.” He said, clearly out of breath, “This was one of my favorites!” He added with a disgruntled mumble and fingers pinching his ripped shirt.

Their assailant had gotten away. 

Bess helped Frank stand as Nancy spoke,

“That doesn’t make any sense. Why would the kidnappers attack you guys? The ransom note clearly said they wanted us to find my mother’s inheritance and deliver it. They have no need to intervene.” She crossed her arms with her eyes glued to a spot of the tarmac. 

“It wasn’t really an attack. They were looking for something.” Frank told them. Nancy chose to keep her gaze where it was, but her eyebrows did pull closer together in thought. Joe put his hands on his hips, exhaling slowly as he turned to look at her, 

“What did you find in the room?” 

Nancy showed him the flip phone and briefly explained the clues in its voicemail. Frank was left to listen over his brother’s shoulder and it bothered him. 

“They must have thought Frank had the phone.” Bess piped up. The others agreed, but it left them all puzzled. Nancy had been right, the kidnappers had no need to steal the clues if they were betting on her to find it. She thought it must have something to do with the other person Rob had mentioned, who had come to Shadowbrook Motel in hopes to search the rooms. 

But who were they ? How did they know about the inheritance? Why did they want it? Better yet, why did the kidnappers want it? 

Well, Nancy could answer the last question easily enough. In this case it came down to revenge and money, all while trying to make her feel as shitty as possible. 

It was working, obviously. 

“Did you see what they looked like?” Nancy asked. She saw Frank shake his head out of the corner of her eye. 

“But based on build, and the force of that shove he gave me? I’d say it was a man.” He replied.

Joe told Bess and Nancy that he and Frank would return to the venue while they looked into the phone clues. Nancy gave a hesitant nod, and soon they were off. 

She watched Frank go with a lump in her throat, which she swallowed painfully. 

Nancy flipped open the phone again, navigating her way to its voicemail with Bess beside her. Her friend was eyeing her worriedly. Nancy didn’t have time to notice. 

She pushed play on the voicemail, listening intently to her mother’s words for a second time. 

Are you hungry for more? Your next stop is a bit of a hidden location, but I always loved the smell of the gardenias there. So beautiful, but that’s all I’ll tell you! 

Nancy began to pace the parking lot quietly in an attempt to pick out the important words from the clue. It was obviously a riddle, or a code. 

“Tell me what we’re looking for, and I’ll help.” Bess broke into her thoughts, and when Nancy looked up at her, she saw her standing there like it was her life’s mission to help her solve this case. Nancy grinned just a little bit, 

“What stands out to you about the message? Just the riddle part.” 

“Well… the obvious thing is that it’s hidden, right?” Bess asked. Nancy clicked her tongue in response, 

“You’d think so, but I don’t believe mom meant it literally. I think ‘hidden location’ is a reference to the name of wherever she wants us to go.” 

“....Restaurant?” Bess suggested after a while.

“You picked up on that too, huh?” Nancy smiled, “Now, ‘hungry for more’ was a little too obvious, mom.” 

“Okay, so it’s some kind of secret restaurant full of flowers?” Bess groaned as she tapped on her forehead in deep thought, “This is just too cryptic, Nancy!” 

Nancy bit her lip in thought, 

“Hidden… Secret… Gardenias…” She pivoted suddenly, heading back toward the lobby and tugging the door open. 

“Rob.” Nancy said as soon as she saw the lobby guy, “Are there any restaurants around here that have to do with the word ‘hidden’, ‘secret’, or ‘flowers’?” 

Rob flipped boredly through his magazine and shrugged, but he did point to a table in an alcove by the front desk, 

“Check the tourist guide.” 

“Lovely.” Nancy mumbled sardonically as she approached the old pamphlet. 

“Think it’s likely there’s anything in there from before 1912?” Bess joked in a whisper. Nancy suppressed a smile in response, flipping through the pages. There were dozens upon dozens of popular Sedona locations in that booklet, none which matched the clues her mother had left. Nancy felt her face dropping disappointedly as she began to reach its end. 

Finally, however, Nancy noticed that the last two pages were stuck together. She rubbed them between her fingers until they came loose, and scanned them. 

“There!” Nancy exclaimed with a broad smile, a little too loudly, for even Rob jumped at the sound. She pointed to a listing on the final page, 

“The ‘Secret Garden Cafe’” Bess read the words above Nancy’s fingertip. They made eye contact and shared a smile, 

“Sounds right to me.” 

“Think they’re open?” Bess asked, but Nancy was already out the door, 

“You check. I’ll call a cab. Even if they’re closed we’ll have to get in somehow.” 

Bess swallowed hesitantly before following Nancy back into the parking lot. 

***

The silence between Nancy and Bess in their cab toward the Secret Garden Cafe was striking. Now that all of the action had settled, and they’d figured out the flip-phone clue, Nancy and Frank’s argument was weighing heavily on both of them. Nancy knew she promised to tell Bess what happened, and her friend was playing with a strand of blonde hair like she really wanted to know.

Sure enough, Bess couldn’t stop herself from talking about it, 

“You and Frank couldn’t even look at each other…” 

Nancy’s heart jumped. Had Frank really been avoiding her eyes the same way she had? 

“...He couldn’t either?” She asked. Bess pressed her lips together solemnly, 

“He just looked… dejected when he tried.” 

Nancy grimaced this time. The cab fell quiet again, until Bess asked, 

“Is this about Ned?” 

“ Ned ?” Nancy was bewildered. She hadn’t given Ned a thought since they’d left the venue. 

“...Isn’t that what you were arguing about?” Bess prompted again. She definitely didn’t sound like she was kidding, but Nancy couldn’t understand where she got that idea from. 

“...Because Frank invited Ned. To the wedding.” 

It took a second for Nancy to process what she’d said. 

“He what?” 

“Well, Joe too.” Bess remarked offhandedly. Then she paused as she saw Nancy staring, mouth halfway open and her eyes widened in realization, “Oh. He didn’t tell you.” 

“Bess…” Nancy leaned her head back against her carseat, prepared for a patented Bess Marvin rant, 

“Joe didn’t really tell me a lot about it! He was all drunk and excited about the fact that he’d gotten Ned to come. And that Frank agreed to it.” 

In hindsight, Nancy didn’t feel as floored as she probably would’ve if she and Frank hadn’t had a world-breaking argument that day. Sure, it irked her that Frank agreed to invite Ned Nickerson to their wedding when she could barely look at the guy, but now that there might not even be a wedding-

Suddenly Nancy felt sick. 

Is that what she was considering? Canceling the wedding? Surely, not because of one argument that she definitely regretted, albeit was still coming to terms with. 

But then, Frank hadn’t been able to look at her. 

Frank had done exactly what she told him to do.

He left. 

Maybe Nancy didn’t have a choice anymore. Maybe she’d truly wrecked it with him. 

“Nancy?” Bess interjected again, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I really wasn’t supposed to know either, but Joe blabbed, and Frank was going to tell you himself-” 

“It’s fine, Bess. After everything that’s happened, it seems kind of silly to be angry about it…” She told Bess what had happened. How Frank wanted to know more about her, and her mom. How he’d been angry, almost jealous at the fact that she hadn’t wanted to tell him. How he blew up at her, and she blew up at him, and she wasn’t sure where that left them. 

“Oh, Nan.” Bess put her hand over Nancy’s with a sympathetic gaze. Nancy tried not to let the gesture cause her emotions to boil over, especially since they were in the back off a cab,

“Do you want to talk about it?” 

At that moment, the cab arrived in front of the cafe, and Nancy sniffed, pulling her hand away from Bess’s. 

“Later. This is important.” 

“Nancy, come on-” Bess was interrupted by Nancy paying the cabbie and getting out. 

Nancy looked at the small building in front of her, the smell of gardenias infiltrating her senses. Back to the case, as always. 

Except she couldn’t get Frank out of her head. The argument. The way they looked at, and spoke to each other. 

She really wasn’t sure where that left them.

Chapter Text

Ned was in over his head. 

Nancy, Bess and the Hardys had just left to go follow up on a lead, one which they’d refused to tell the group anything about, much to Ned’s annoyance. 

That left the rest of them without much of a leader, aside from Fenton Hardy. But he was busy dealing with the police, and so Ned watched as the rest of his and Nancy’s friends wandered around the venue like headless chickens. It wasn’t that he didn’t think they were smart, no, there were plenty of capable people in their little investigative team. It was just that none of them were really the leading type, except Ned, who had been captain or co-captain of every sports team he had ever been on. 

So that left him to keep track of eleven suspects and everyone’s notes about each of them while Nancy was away.

He wasn’t sure why he felt so responsible for his side of things. Sure, he hadn’t been lying when he told Sophia he had a lot of respect for Nancy’s father, and he certainly wanted to see him return safely. But he had no obligation to play team captain while Nancy was busy. In fact, he was the least qualified to do so ever since they’d cut ties so many years ago. 

Ned didn’t even know why he’d shown up to the wedding in the first place. Something about Frank’s invitation had seemed appealing, the idea of everyone just moving on from the drama that had happened back then. Ned was thoroughly interested in such an idea, despite having the best reason of them all to feel bitter about it. 

It wasn’t that he wanted to be friends with Nancy, or Frank, he just wanted peace, and he figured four years of a guilt trip was good enough for him. He also figured with Frank inviting him, maybe he and Nancy thought the same thing. 

But of course, the wedding was turning out to be an overall sour experience, even without the whole kidnapping thing. The satisfaction he’d felt letting Burt and Dave gatecrash was turning mild too, especially considering there were so many other uninvited guests. Not to mention Sophia had been upset since they’d arrived, and Nancy was obviously not happy about them being there either. That was puzzling. Ned supposed maybe Frank hadn’t really thought his invitation through. As much as he kind of enjoyed picturing the older Hardy brother squirming uncomfortably while his fiance tore him a new one about inviting her ex, it didn’t really fit in with Ned’s plan of letting the waves settle. 

Either way, there he was playing Nancy Drew’s errand boy again. Well, at least he had something to do besides listen to Sophia complain. 

Because boy was she complaining. 

This food sucks. 

I don’t like her dress. 

That guy’s suit is tacky. 

You should’ve worn a different color tie.

Fix your hair, you’re embarrassing me.  

I agreed to a wedding, not an episode of CSI. 

How much longer do we have to stand around? 

Can we leave soon?

I thought she was your EX-girlfriend. 

Ned was beginning to reach his boiling point. He’d tried explaining a million times to Sophia that this wasn’t the kind of situation where they could just leave even if he hadn’t told Nancy he’d help, even if he wasn’t forcing himself to be team leader. She didn’t seem to understand the concept of a crime scene, or a commitment, or a promise that you were over your ex-girlfriend. 

Was he always so grated by the sound of her voice? 

No, when they’d first gone out he remembered loving the sound of it. He remembered tripping over his own feet in a hurry to ask her to be his girlfriend after three weeks. 

And she told him to buy new hair products and cologne because his weren’t up to snuff, insisted he up his wardrobe so she could be seen in public with him. All with a smile, and that lighthearted laugh he’d fell for. 

So he’d done it, all of it, because… 

Sitting there in that venue, listening to her drive him up a wall, he was beginning to wonder why he’d been so eager. 

Further back in his head was the thought that he needed to tear himself away from her for two minutes to talk to Anja, the suspect from Nancy’s case in Germany. 

Because the case was priority Catching the people responsible for the kidnapping was priority. Getting Carson to safety was priority. 

I told Nancy I would do this . 

I’m not about to pawn it off on somebody else . 

I have to do it . 

Ned paused his own train of thought and started a new one. 

Wait. 

What was that?  

I “have” to do it?

Why?

“What are we supposed to be doing again?” Sophia was asking him, casually breaking into what was probably his most important thought process of the evening. 

“ What? ” Ned paused, realizing he’d sounded a bit short. He swallowed thickly, and then continued with a sigh, “ I’m supposed to talk to Anja over there. Can you wait here while I do it?” He nodded in Anja’s direction, feeling a pang of anxiety in his chest when Sophia crossed her arms and huffed, 

“This again?” 

“Yes, this again. Things don’t magically go away just because you stop talking about them.” All Ned could think when he said that was how true those words were. 

“And maybe we could stop talking about them if you’d just let me do what I have to do.” 

There it was again. The have to. Ned tried not to exhale frustratedly, but it was hard when everything that popped out of his mouth was just reminding him of his earlier thoughts.

Sophia wasn’t happy with his statements, either.

“Ned, come on. This is stupid.” She lamented. Ned agreed, but for a completely different reason. He sighed again, 

“Just… give me a second. I’ll be right back.” He started walking away, trying not to turn around and run to her as soon as he heard the griping begin again. 

Luckily, Anja was suddenly feet away and he needed to think of a way to talk to her, so that preoccupied his brain for a bit. 

Pretend you know her? 

That’ll never work. She’s from Germany, and you’re American cheese. 

True enough. But what else? 

Fate chose for him as he, stuck inside his head, ran straight into her, 

“Hey, watch where you are going!” The German accent was what stood out to Ned first, that and how angry Anja sounded as she turned to look at him. Ned gave her an awkward smile, his gaze darting toward the table she was standing by. She had been going through her purse, and its contents had fallen out with the collision. 

“Sorry about that. There’s just so many people here.” 

“Ja. What are you, like a waiter or something?” She asked, looking him up and down with an unimpressed look. 

“Or something. We’re uh.. Very sorry about the stall in the wedding.” Anja rolled her eyes at that, 

“Whatever.” She quickly gathered up her purse contents and stuffed them back inside. Ned thought the juxtaposition of her words and actions was kind of interesting.

Anja might have tried to flee after that, but she paused instead, expression suddenly lighting up, “I hear rumors about a kidnapping. Is that true?” 

Ned’s eyebrows raised. At that point, the police were milling about the place, getting statements from every guest. Had they not interrogated her yet? 

Either way, she didn’t seem too concerned about their presence. Could that make her innocent? Or was it too convenient? Ned would have to know more, he supposed. 

“...Apparently. The bride’s father.” 

“Uh huh.. I see.” Anja mumbled, and her eyes suddenly narrowed in on Ned’s face. He tried not to be alarmed, but a thought did cross his mind that maybe she’d recognized him somehow, that this group of culprits had done more research about Nancy’s life than he’d thought. 

“So! How well do you know Nancy?” Ned decided to plow further ahead into danger, regardless of whatever the facts may have been. He hated that Nancy instilled that in him. 

Anja shrugged in response, 

“Not very well.” An obvious lie. 

“Where’d you meet?” 

“Germany. Obviously. She was just a tourist I exchanged pleasantries with.” Anja waved her hand back and forth as if to brush off her own statement. 

“She must’ve liked you enough to invite you to the wedding.” 

There it was. The little twitch in Anja’s eye that told Ned they were no longer small-talking. 

“...I guess.” 

“The police are here, you know. Didn’t you see them?” 

“What are you insinuating?” Anja was starting to get defensive. Ned tried not to smile, putting his hands behind his back innocently. 

“Nothing. They’re just getting statements. If you don’t give them yours soon, you might look like you’re hiding something. You’re not, right?” He said, tacking on the last bit jokingly. Anja stared at him, whole body facing toward him at that point. Ned looked toward her purse, which was left abandoned on the table beside her, for just a second.

Now or never. Ned thought. He hooked an arm through one of Anja’s, which were bent at the elbows while her hands were stuck to her hips. He then brushed past the table, taking her with him. With his free hand, he grabbed her purse and put it behind his back, while beginning to push Anja ahead of him, 

“Excuse me, officer!” 

“What are you doing, you dimwit?!” Anja muttered angrily as they got the attention of one of the police officers. Ned just gave her a smile, 

“Doing what a ‘waiter’ does best. Serving his guests.” 

The officer approached them, and after Ned told him Anja was next in line to have her statement taken, he scurried away with her purse clutched to his chest. 

Ned burst outside, a heavy sigh leaving him once the doors were safely closed behind him. He felt like he’d aged 10 years from that interaction alone. He was starting to remember why detective work wasn’t his forte. 

Ned went around the back of the building, on the off chance Anja would try to find him outside, and leaned against the wall. He slid down it until he was squatting, and dumped the purse contents out onto the red, dusty ground. 

There better be something in here. 

A tube of lipstick, a compact mirror, wallet, sunglasses, and something wrapped up in a shoddy white napkin. The napkin wasn’t from the venue, it looked too worn down, not to mention low-quality. 

Ned unwrapped it to see what was inside and was quick to roll his eyes. 

A snickerdoodle from catering. 

“You’re kidding me.” He muttered. He’d stolen a woman’s purse for no reason, and had nothing to tie her back to the kidnapping no matter how questionable she might have been acting. 

Ned stared down at the stupid cookie, picking at the corners of the napkin as he did so. 

And then he noticed something peeking out from under the cookie. It looked like ink. 

Some kind of message written on the napkin? 

Ned grabbed the cookie and tossed it to the side for the birds, before flattening out the napkin the best he could and holding it close to his face. 

480-555-6278 was written in slanted lettering. 

A phone number, obviously. 

Not outwardly suspicious. Until he called it. 

“Marty’s Party Protection Services. My name is Marty, how can I help you?” 

Ned’s head jerked slightly in surprise. 

“Protection services. Like security?” 

“Yeah, man. Bouncers, suits, whatever. You have an event you need covered?” Marty asked, his nasally voice harsh against Ned’s ear. Ned thought for a second. 

“Um… No. But can I ask about a wedding your services were requested for?” 

Marty sighed, 

“You can. I’ve had a lot of trouble with weddings the last couple of days.” 

Bingo. Ned thought to himself. 

“So I’ve heard. I wanted to know about Nancy Drew and Frank Hardy’s wedding security.” 

This time Marty let out an exasperated groan, 

“You people again? First I get you security, then you want more security, then you call me last minute and say you want no security at all. What is it now? You want me to employ the secret service?” 

Ned ignored the comment. Someone had told security to scram, they had that much figured out already. Anja having the phone number was enough to implicate her, but not enough to prove anything. Plus, there were definitely more people involved. 

“Do you remember anything about the person who called and canceled?” Ned asked after briefly wetting his lips. There was silence as Marty thought for a moment, 

“It was a woman. European I think. She said she was a member of the wedding party.” 

“And you took her word for it?” 

“She was very insistent! Now listen, I got work to do. Do you need security or not?” 

“No, that’s fine. Thanks for your time.” Ned hung up and leaned over slightly to shove his phone in his pocket. His thumb nail made it between his teeth as he thought about the conversation. 

A European woman. It could have been Anja, especially with the phone number in her purse. But Ned also remembered the existence of Helena Berg, the culprit from Nancy’s case in Venice, Italy. She was German too, and very vengeful, if Ned remembered correctly. 

We’ll have to find a way to confirm it, whether it’s one or both. 

He knew Nancy would be curious about the handwriting on the napkin as well. Ned didn’t really think it looked all that much like a woman’s penmanship, but he knew it wasn’t that simple. 

He let out a deep sigh as he put Anja’s things back in her purse. She was going to be suspicious when she found it on a random table in the venue. Ned would be sure to tell Nancy about that too. 

Well, at least he followed through. Maybe he could let Nancy know he’d done his part and that was that. 

Jesus. Ned thought to himself, bereaved. Nancy, Nancy, Nancy. 

Forget doing his part, all he was really doing was showcasing that he was still nothing but a one-trick pony who only knew how to try and please Nancy Drew. 

That left a bitter taste in Ned’s mouth.

How had it been four years without so much as a word to her, and he was still doing it?

He’d moved on, that much was true. 

He’d proven it when he’d asked Sophia to be his girlfriend. 

Oh. 

Is that why he’d asked her? 

Is that why he’d bought new clothes, new cologne, changed everything just for her?

To prove something? 

Earlier, Ned had thought that his boiling nerves had been because of the high-stress environment. Now he was thinking maybe it was because he’d found himself sitting with another girlfriend whose priorities came first, while he dealt with the priorities of the ex-girlfriend who had done the same thing. He was realizing that he had been so desperate to prove that he’d moved on, that he hadn’t really proved anything at all. 

He was falling back into old habits. 

Once he’d successfully gotten out of the venue, again, unscathed, he found Sophia sitting on the front steps. He almost didn’t want to get her attention. 

“...Hey.” He said as he sat down next to her. Sophia planted her chin in her hands and showed him the back of her head. Naturally, she was upset he hadn’t dropped everything and comforted her before. 

All Ned could do was sigh again. 

He pulled out his phone in hopes to send Nancy a text about what he’d found out. That piqued Sophia’s interest, evidently, since she slowly turned back toward him to take a peek at his screen. 

“...What are you doing?” She asked, guarded. Ned glanced at her while he formulated his text, 

“The Anja interrogation went pretty well. I’m telling Nancy so she can follow up on a few things.” 

Sophia’s arms found their way to a crossed position on her chest. 

“You still have her number?” 

Shit. 

“You told me you broke up on bad terms.” 

“We did.” 

“You told me this whole thing wasn’t about her.” 

“It’s not. ” 

Ned wasn’t sure about that one. Sophia knew it. She stood, gripped her own arms tightly and started to glare at him, 

“She doesn’t want you back.” 

Ned abandoned his phone and stood too. They were on an equal playing field now. 

“I know . I don’t want her to want me.” Ned defended. 

“Could’ve fooled me.” Sophia shot right back. 

“I’m not trying to fool you! I’m trying to please you. Everything I’ve done has been for you, Sophie.” 

“If you really wanted to please me, if you really loved me, you would’ve taken me back to the hotel the minute this whole stupid mystery thing started.” 

“One thing! One thing I don’t do, and suddenly I don’t love you? What is this then?” He gestured to the lapels of his suit, “What is this, and this, what are these, Sophia?” He pointed to his hair, smacked himself against the neck as if that would make the cologne visible, lifted his foot off the ground to show off the too-expensive shoes he was wearing. 

“You’re a fucking asshole. Go run back to Nancy.” Sophia muttered. 

“That one’s getting old.”

“Then why don’t you just admit it instead of blaming me?” Sophia faced him again with a hateful glare. 

Ned's chest was aching with anger, but that question startled him a little. It felt like there was a dam in his chest threatening to burst.

He hesitated before responding, 

“... I may have been acting how I did when I was with her. I might be fucking up in that way, yeah.” 

“I knew it!” Sophia scoffed. Ned spoke over her, 

“But she’s also the reason that I’m realizing I’ve had enough of this. ” He gestured between them and took a few steps toward her. 

And the dam exploded. 

“I’m sorry that I didn’t realize I was putting Nancy on a pedestal. I’m also sorry that it made me fall head over heels for a girl who only likes me if I do what she says.” 

Sophia’s eyes were widening as he spoke, but the emotion behind them was vague. 

“I’m sorry I was so desperate that I bought this ugly suit for you, that I let you dress me up like a Ken doll just so you would like me. But did you ever even like me, Sophia? I practically flipped myself inside out to be your perfect boyfriend, but it was never enough for you! When is it enough for you? When I do nothing but stand by your side and follow your every command?” The air between them was tense, and silent. Ned was staring her down. Sophia didn’t answer. She stood there, frozen with her lips sealed tight. 

“Huh? Nothing to say now?” 

Still not a word, with the same, wide-eyed expression on her face. She could’ve been surprised, scared, could’ve thought he was having a nervous breakdown right in front of her. Ned didn’t really care. He was sick of being yanked around. How many times would he be yanked around before he learned his lesson? 

When she still didn’t answer, he nodded, and shrugged out of his suit jacket, shoving it into her hands, 

“I may not have learned my lesson after Nancy, but I sure as hell will after you.” 

And then he walked straight past her. He didn’t know where he was going, he didn’t know if he was going to keep playing team leader, help with the investigation, pack up and go home. 

But whatever it was, it was going to be his choice. 

***

Nancy stood on her tiptoes, peeking through the tall window of the door to the Secret Garden Cafe. 

“It’s closed, alright.” 

If the gigantic Sorry, We’re Closed sign wasn’t enough, the darkened room, and all the chairs on the tabletops sure gave them that impression. 

Nancy immediately hopped over the small gate to the right of the door, into a patio with more tables and chairs. Pushing past a few of them, she started around the side of the building, a timid Bess following behind her, 

“Nancy!” Bess began in a harsh whisper, “What are you doing?” 

“I told you in the cab. We have to get in, even if it’s closed.” 

 “We can’t just break in!” Bess insisted. Nancy paused and looked back at her best friend. 

“I know it’s bad. Okay? I know we shouldn’t, but we don’t have time to wait. The kidnappers gave us until tomorrow night, and look around!” She gestured toward the sky, where the sun was halfway hidden on the horizon. As if to prove her point further, a gust of wind whipped their faces, hot day slowly turning to cold night. Bess looked at Nancy with a guilty expression on her face. Nancy let out a sigh and put a hand on her friend’s shoulder, 

“I’m sorry. Why don’t you keep watch? I’ll pop in, look around, and pop out. Easy peasy.” She implored. Bess’s face twisted up in sheer agony of the decision. Nancy lightly shook her shoulder,

“Bess. Please.” 

“Okay! Okay. Fine. Just hurry.” Bess finally relented. Nancy nodded resolutely and resumed her search for a way inside the cafe.

Eventually she found a window in the back, next to a dumpster. Bess was trying the back door while Nancy examined it. 

“Locked, of course.” Bess mumbled. Nancy almost smiled. 

She tugged at the bottom of the window, but it didn’t budge. Nancy huffed, placing her hands on her hips. 

“Got anything on you?” She asked over her shoulder to Bess, who immediately started looking through her purse. 

“Nail file?” 

Nancy waved her hand in a gimme motion, before trying to jimmy the file between the sill and the pane. She managed to slide it in, and with a strong push on the file she heard a sharp crack. 

The window had popped open, and the file had snapped in two. Nancy glanced back at Bess sheepishly. Luckily, Bess smiled back, 

“Needed a new one anyway.” 

Finally, Nancy pushed open the window and climbed inside. She clicked on her penlight and started looking around the place. 

If her mom had hidden something here, a clue to find her inheritance, Nancy thought a booth would be the obvious choice. Kate had said she visited Sedona a lot for her spy gig, so it wasn’t as if she worked at the diner. Nancy played her light along every wall, table, cushion and floor tile around the booths, until her gaze fell on something at one of the last ones. 

Nancy slid into the booth, eyeing one of the wall tiles closer, to ensure they weren’t playing tricks on her. 

But she was right. 

On the wall, above the caddy of condiments on the table, were some initials carved into it, 

K+C

Nancy gently ran her fingers over them, halfway starstruck. 

“Kate and Carson, no doubt…” She whispered in wonder to herself. There was something about sitting in a dark, empty diner booth where her parents no doubt spent a lot of time that made Nancy’s chest twist up. 

There was only one problem. No clue. 

Nancy exhaled, leaning her head against the cool wall tiles. She tried to pry the tile off, but it was stuck tight, and she doubted her mom would have wanted her to break it open. Plus, it was too derivative of the last clue. 

She stared down at the condiment caddy. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized there was something else carved into the wall below the initials. She pulled the caddy out from its place against the wall to see it clearly, and her heart really jumped that time. 

+ Nancy too. 

She didn’t even have time to be emotional about it. 

If my name was hidden behind the caddy, then maybe…

Nancy reached around and ran her fingers along its smooth, plastic backing. They quickly brushed up against something that felt equally plastic. It seemed to be taped pretty strongly, but Nancy was able to pull it off with a swift tug. 

When she examined it, she saw it was a small flower in a square of lamination. It was bright pink, very obviously some kind of desert flower. Turning it over, she saw something written in black sharpie on the back, 

About a mile from the venue! 

Nancy smacked the flower against the palm of her hand, before carefully returning the condiment caddy to its place. Then she promptly climbed back through the window, much to Bess’s relief. 

The sun was very close to setting at that point, and Nancy bit her lip in contemplation. 

It probably wasn’t safe to go out into the desert at night, especially with just her and Bess alone. And Bess wouldn’t allow it, no way no how. Nancy just wasn’t sure she wanted to face the Hardys so soon. 

If it were up to her, she’d just go by herself. 

But Bess wouldn’t allow that either. 

“Nancy?” Bess asked in trepidation. It felt like the hundredth time that day she’d been so nervous. Nancy could relate. 

“What’s wrong?” Nancy replied, instantly alert. 

“There’s someone over there.” Bess’s voice was barely there now. Nancy scrunched her brows slightly, trying to follow her gaze since Bess didn’t dare point. 

Sure enough, in the shadow of a tree there stood the figure of a man. 

“Okay. Creepy.” Nancy couldn’t stop herself from saying. Bess squeaked.

“Who is that?” 

Nancy didn’t know. The figure seemed awfully familiar, though. 

She paused. 

“The guy who jumped Frank.” Nancy said out loud. But she hesitated again. No, it wasn’t just that. There was something else about that guy that she knew, she just couldn’t place it. 

“Oh god, Nancy. Why is he following us?” 

Again, Nancy wasn’t sure. 

“There’s no way to sneak up on him. He probably knows we’re watching him. We’re practically at a stand-still with this guy.” Nancy muttered. Bess was quick to grab her arm. 

“Don’t freak out. Let’s just call a cab, and head back to the venue. Worst case scenario, he follows us.” 

“And then?” Bess whispered. 

“Well.. We’ll find out.” Nancy said with an uncomfortable chuckle. She lead Bess to the street, a good distance from the guy. 

And then she hailed a cab back to the venue once again, despite the waning sun in the sky.