That afternoon, Joe and Ashley met at the basketball court before heading to the ice cream store. They both ordered ice cream sodas and sat down in a booth.

"This is nice," Ashley said.

"It is."

At that moment, Matt came over to the table. He placed his hands on the table. Joe saw marks Matt’s right hand that looked like scratches. Matt looked at Ashley and said, "We need to talk."

"Later, Matt. I’m busy at the moment."

"We have to talk."

"I will call you later. It can wait. I know it can."

"Fine." Matt turned and walked away.

Joe watched Matt walk away. He noticed Matt was wearing blue sneakers with a blue star on them. Joe looked back at Ashley. Joe asked, "Is Matt your boyfriend?"

"No. He’s just a good friend."

"He seems like he owns you."

"He watches out for me. He’s like a big brother."

"He seems more like a jealous boyfriend than a big brother."

"That’s just the way he is." Ashley leaned forward. "Matt has been upset since the break-up with Debbie. But she was at fault for that. She used Matt and then tossed him away like a paper towel. He was devastated and figured Debbie should pay."

"Would Matt really try to get back at Debbie?"

"He would try. He gets what he wants."

"How far would he go?"

Ashley looked down at her soda. Joe realized Ashley’s silence told him Matt would go far. He could also tell that she knew a lot about Matt and that he was capable of anything.

Ashley finally looked at Joe. "Joe, I’m sorry. But I think I should go check on Matt."

"That’s okay," Joe said. "I understand."

"Thanks, Joe." Ashley got to her feet and left.

Joe sat there for a moment. He knew trouble was coming. He had to let Frank and Nancy know what he found out from Ashley. He knew their time was running out.

* * * * *

Frank was at the hotel in his room. He was sitting on his bed with his notebook open in front of him. He had been trying to figure out when their assailant would make the next move.

At that moment the door opened and Joe came in. Frank asked, "How did it go?"

"I know who is involved."

"Who?"

"I think is has to be Matt."

"Why do you think that?"

"Matt’s angry. He didn’t like the break-up with Debbie. He’s willing to do almost anything to get even with her."

"Where did you get all this?"

"From Ashley."

"I’m not sure you can trust her. She may be helping Matt."

"It’s possible the information is wrong, but it could also be right."

"Did you come up with anything else?"

"Well, Matt does have a short temper. He demanded Ashley to talk to him. Ashley told him later, but ended up going after him."

"He seems controlling."

"Frank, what were the shoes Nancy saw?"

"They were white with a blue star. Why?"

"Matt was wearing a pair like that today."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, but that’s not it. Matt had a scratch on his hand. I wonder if Nancy scratched her attacker."

"I don’t know. But the only way to find out for sure is to ask her." Frank got to his feet.

"Frank, where are you going?"

"To see Nancy."

* * * * *

Forty-five minutes later, Frank and Joe approached Debbie’s house. As they walked up the sidewalk, they saw Nancy sitting on the steps. As they got closer, Nancy asked, "What’s up?"

"Nancy, did you scratch your attacker?"

Nancy was quiet for a couple minutes. "I did scratch my attacker. The hand covered my mouth. I reached up and scratched it. Whoever it was should have a scratch on their hand."

"You also said the person wore a pair of white sneakers with a blue star on the bottom, right?"

"That’s right, Frank."

Frank looked at Joe, who said, "I saw Matt wearing a pair of those sneakers earlier. He also has a scratch on his hand."

"Are you sure, Joe?"

"I’m sure."

"Then Matt is involved."

"Unfortunately, the scratch and the sneakers are not enough proof," Frank said.

"You’re right. He could come up with several reasons why he has the sneakers and how he got the scratch." Nancy looked at Frank. "We’re running out of time."

Frank sat down beside Nancy. "If the computer was right, there’s going to be trouble at the school tomorrow. We should probably convince Debbie to stay home so she won’t get hurt."

"You’re probably right," Nancy said. "We don’t know what’s going to happen."

"Where’s Debbie?" Joe asked.

"She’s inside."

"I’ll go talk to her." Joe climbed the steps. "I’ll convince her to stay home."

"Okay," Nancy said.

Once they were alone, Frank looked at Nancy as she asked, "Do you think the trouble is going to be bad?"

"I don’ know. What I do know is that we need to be cautious tomorrow. We know Matt is up to no good, but we could be wrong."

"I hope we’re not." Nancy looked away from him.

Frank watched Nancy shift her gaze down to her hand. He knew she had more than the case on her mind. He knew she was thinking about Ned.

Frank asked, "Have you talked to Ned since you arrived?"

"Just on Monday night when I got here. We haven’t talked since."

"Is there a problem?"

"I’m not really sure. I guess I thought married life was supposed to be different."

"Why do you think it was supposed to be different?"

"I thought it was supposed to be more romantic than when you’re dating. But I don’t see it happening. Our engagement was more exciting."

"Have you talked to Ned?"

"He’s too busy. He comes home from work and sits on the couch. We don’t do anything together anymore." Nancy sighed. "I miss the way things used to be."

"I think you need to talk to Ned. That’s the only way you’ll solve this problem."

"You’re right," Nancy said. She looked at Frank. "Thanks for listening."

"No problem. I’m glad I was here."

* * * * *

The next morning, Frank, Joe and Nancy met outside before heading into the building. Debbie had agreed to stay home. She said that she would stay there until she heard from the three of them.

As they stood there, Nancy said, "Debbie is at home and her dad is with her. They’ll be waiting to hear from us."

"All three of us need to keep our eyes open. Anything can happen."

"There is also a possibility that Ashley is involved," Joe said.

At that moment the bell rang. Nancy looked at Frank and then Joe. She said, "I’ll see you at lunch.

Frank and Joe nodded. All three of them went inside.

All morning long, Nancy was on her guard, expecting the unexpected. She watched everything going on around her, waiting for something to happen. Nancy headed to the cafeteria for lunch. She hadn’t seen Matt or Ashley all morning.

She saw Frank and Joe were already seated at the table. Bypassing the lunch line, Nancy hurried over and sat down beside Frank, putting her purse on the back of the chair. She asked, "Anything happen?"

"Nothing," Frank replied.

"It’s been quiet," Joe said.

"Have either of you seen Matt or Ashley?"

Frank and Joe shook their heads. Frank said, "They’re nowhere around. Neither of them are in school."

"How do you know?"

"I saw the attendance sheets. Both of them are on the absent list."

"Well, then," Joe said leaning back in his chair, "there’s nothing to worry about. Nothing is going to happen."

Nancy looked around the cafeteria. She had an uneasy feeling. She had a feeling they weren’t out of the woods yet.

All of a sudden, she heard a gun go off. Nancy slid to the floor. She saw Frank and Joe were also under the table with her. She looked under the table trying to figure out where the shot came from. She could see two people standing by the cafeteria doors. All the other students were also on the floor.

"I know you’re here, Nancy."