Frank jumped in surprise when a knock resounded on his door the next morning promptly at 9:30 a.m. He gave Joe a questioning look. Joe, who was half-sitting, half-lying on the sofa eating a late breakfast consisting of cereal and toast, merely shrugged. Turning the volume up a notch on the walkman he was listening to, he made it plain that Frank could answer the door.

Frank got up and swung open the door to find himself standing face to face with Nancy. Scanning the hallway in confusion, he turned back to her. "Who..." he started to ask as she smiled and dangled a set of keys in front of him.

"Me!" she chirped, before he could finish the question. "I thought I'd come on over." As Frank continued to stare at her, she triumphantly dropped her keys in the pockets of her khaki shorts. "Well," she continued, pushing back of lock of reddish blond hair from her eyes, "should I wait out here until you guys are ready or can I come in?"

"Oh," he said, stepping aside. "Sure, come on in. I'm getting bad at keeping you standing in the hall, aren't I?" He watched her walk past him. "I thought we were picking you up, though."

"You were," she said, as she swatted Joe's feet off sofa so that she could sit on the other end. "I changed the plans a little." Looking over at Joe, who was watching the exchange between the two with some amusement, she grinned.

"Good morning, Joe," she told him.

Joe swallowed a mouthful of cereal and set the cereal on the end table. "Morning, Nan," he responded. "You're in an awful cheery mood. For a minute I thought I was watching Bess Marvin bounce into the room. Someone must have taken her car out for a test drive today."

"Yup," she said, leaning back against the couch. "Uh, Joe?"

"Yeah?"

She pointed at his chin. "You've got a little milk there."

Wiping his chin quickly, he grinned back at her. "That's what I get for trying to say good morning!"

Frank sat down in the chair across from them. "Nancy, I don't want to come off here as being bossy or overprotective, but..."

"Heaven forbid that might happen," Joe interjected.

Frank glared at his brother. "Did you say something?"

"Yes. And I'm going to say something else. Before you yell at her for driving her own car, think about it first." Joe gathered up his juice glass and cereal bowl, then padded barefoot into the kitchen.

Frank watched him in astonishment. "And this advice comes from the guy running around in Sylvester and Tweety boxers. Tell me again why I'm sharing an apartment with him?"

Nancy chuckled. "Because you care about him. And you've missed him. Boxers and all." Shifting the conversation away from Joe, she inquired. "You were saying something about being overprotective?"

"Oh, right. You do know that if you get pulled over for driving without plates or insurance, Chief Collig's liable to haul you into his office personally to hand you the ticket. You're not exactly his favorite person. I think Joe actually rates higher on Collig's list than you do right now."

"Taken care of," she said waving her hand. "I was sitting on the steps of the local insurance agency when they opened this morning at eight o'clock." Wrinkling her nose, she frowned. "I won't even go into what they charged me! Have one tiny little accident five years ago and they never forget it!" She looked at Frank. "Isn't there a statute of limitations on how long that should be on your driving record?"

"Maybe," Frank said. "Of course, you haven't actually been driving under your own name for the past five years." He looked thoughtful. "Ask Joe. His insurance rates are through the roof. He may know."

Nancy nodded, knowing full well how many cars Joe had wrecked in his short driving career. And that was just the ones she'd heard about from before she’d ended up in California. "I’ll do that. If he doesn’t know, I may call Ned tonight and see what he can tell me. I’m telling you Frank, I feel like I was robbed this morning. Anyway, I went from there to the license bureau where I actually got lucky. I got through that place in less than half an hour." She pretended to examine her fingernails as she added, "I put my new plates on in the parking lot and headed over here."

Frank stared at her. "So I was right. You’ve been driving around Bayport this morning without license plates?"

Nancy gave him an innocent look. "Just to two places. No, make that three. I dropped Laurie off at Callie’s first."

"Callie’s?"

"Yes, Callie’s. I can’t ask your mom to baby sit every day, can I? After all, she does have a life beyond that of her sons’ lives. Callie offered a while back and today I took her up on it, since she's off today. Then I made my rounds." She looked at him for a moment, then said. "Don’t look at me like that. I took a gamble and it paid off!"

Frank just shook his head at her. "I’d forgotten how some days you remind me so much of Joe."

"Must be why you like her so much," Joe’s muffled voice explained, as he came into the room while pulling a t-shirt over his head. "She reminds you of your favorite brother!"

"You’re his only brother," Nancy pointed out. She put a hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh as she got her first look at the front of his t-shirt.

"What?" Joe asked, looking down at the t-shirt. Realizing what he’d pulled out of the drawer, he grinned. "Not professional enough to grill a suspect in, huh?"

Wordlessly, Nancy shook her head. Even Frank appeared to be holding back laughter. Joe stripped the t-shirt off, dropped it on the end table, and headed back to his room. Frank picked up the t-shirt, reading it aloud. "If you can’t beat ‘em, annoy them!" Shaking his head and joining Nancy in laughter, he simply said, "Well, what did we expect? After all, it is Joe!"

After a brief discussion as to exactly how they wanted to confront Maggie with the journal, the trio of friends set out for the home of Maggie Westbrook. Much to Joe and Nancy's amazement, Frank had even suggested that they take Nancy's car. With Nancy behind the wheel. Joe considered making a comment about miracles happening, but after glimpsing the warring emotions that seemed to be playing across his brother's face as he buckled himself into the front seat next to Nancy, Joe opted to stay quiet.

Maggie answered her doorbell on the third ring. Her surprise at seeing the three of them so soon was plainly evident. She held tightly onto the doorknob and regarded Nancy, Frank, and Joe for a minute. Finally, finding her voice, she spoke.

"Well, this is a surprise. I wasn't expecting to see you guys so soon. Where's Vanessa?"

"Vanessa's at work," Nancy replied. She had been chosen to break the ice and get them into the house since she had tenuous friendship with Maggie. "We needed to talk to you, Maggie. Alone." Nancy glanced back at the guys, then continued. "We couldn't discuss this last night with Steven here."

Maggie now appeared puzzled. "Discuss what?"

Joe fought to keep from rolling his eyes. He did not believe that Maggie was that dense for one second. "About Steven's fiancé, Emma. We think we know what really happened to her, but we couldn't say anything in front of Steven. Not until we cleared a few things up."

"How can I clear things up?" Maggie asked, her expression changing once more. Now she wore a more wary, guarded look. Nancy gave Joe a quick frown in a futile attempt to temper his impatience.

"Frank and Joe have talked to most of Steven's friends and coworkers in an effort to get an overall picture of what he's like and how he and Emma interacted with each other," Nancy began. "But, after spending time with you guys last night, we realized that you know Steven better than anyone. You're the one we need to talk too."

Maggie bit her bottom lip, contemplating what Nancy had said. "Oh, all right," she said finally, stepping aside to let them pass. "Come on in. I honestly don't know what I can do to help, but I'll try."

As they settled into Maggie's living room, Maggie asked if anyone wanted something to drink.

Shaking his head, Frank proceeded to take over for Nancy. "No thanks. We just need to ask a few questions, Maggie. I promise that this won't take long."

She nodded and sat down across from him. "Ok," she said. "Ask away."

Frank took out a small notebook that he had been using to jot down notes during the case. "Tell me about the relationship between Steven and Emma. From your point of view," he added.

She shrugged. "It was fine, I suppose. They were in love. I mean, if you're able to work with someone all day and still want to be with them every evening and on weekends, that's got to be love, right?"

"They taught in different departments, didn't they? Different sections of the high school?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, I suppose. But still, they spent a lot of time together. They drove to school together every morning, saw each other on plan periods and ate lunch together. They even helped each other grade papers. Now there's a fun way to spend an evening. Grading your girlfriend's school papers." She glanced up and saw Joe nodding his agreement. Feeling slightly more confidant, she added. "Some days, she even waited for baseball practice to end so that they could drive home together. It was like watching a couple of teenagers," she added, annoyance creeping into her voice.

"Did they ever argue?" Joe wanted to know.

"Well, sure. Sometimes. What couple doesn't argue?" she replied. "I bet you and Vanessa argue occasionally."

"You better believe they do," Frank said, a faint trace of a smile playing along his lips.

"Only so we can enjoy making up," Joe shot back. He looked at Maggie. "How about Emma and Steven? Did they make up quickly after a fight? Or did it take a while?"

She sighed. "They made up pretty quickly."

"Maggie," Nancy asked, "I know you don't want to share private things, but it would really help us if you told us what they fought about. When they fought, of course."

Maggie frowned.

"If it helps," Frank told her, "some of their friends have already shared some stuff. You'd just be confirming what was said." I hope, he thought silently.

"The truth?" she asked quietly.

"The truth would help," Joe responded.

"Sometimes it was over Shaun." She glanced away, and continued talking. "Emma was slowly taking over, taking Sara's place as Shaun's mother. She thought she knew how to raise a child better than...better than Steven did. The last few months, she butted heads with Steven over childcare. She thought Steven was too lenient on Shaun. Not making him eat a balanced diet at every meal. Watching too much TV. Not getting him to bed on time." Frank winced slightly on that one. She looked at Nancy. "He's just a little boy. You have to give them a tiny bit of leeway." She shook her head, a spark of anger appearing in her eyes. "She hadn't been around him since birth, like Steven and I have. She didn't know what was best for him!"

Frank could see Joe straining to keep his mouth shut. "Is that all they fought over?" he asked gently.

She shook her head from side to side. "No. Sometimes, they fought over me, too."

"You?" Nancy said, feigning surprise. "Why you?"

She shrugged. "She thought I spent too much time around Steven. That I had a crush on him or something." Maggie forced a laugh. "Maybe I did in college. But that was a long time ago. We're just friends. It is possible for a man and a woman to be close friends without being romantically involved. Emma didn't understand that."

Frank switched topics on her. "Where did they meet?"

Maggie looked perplexed at the sudden switch. "Meet?" she asked. "At school, of course."

"Before or after Sara died?" Joe questioned.

"Before I think," she said. "Why?"

"There was talk around the school that Sara killed herself because Steven was cheating on her," Frank said.

"No," Maggie said. "Steven wouldn't have cheated on Sara. Not with Emma, anyway. No, that wouldn't have happened."

"But what if it did?" Frank persisted. "What if Emma and Steven were seeing each other behind Sara's back. What if Steven fell in love with Emma? Maybe he told Sara. If he was in love with Emma then, he may have even asked Sara for a divorce."

Maggie's eyes were as wide as saucers now. "No. You've got it all wrong, Frank. If Steven had cheated on Sara, I would have known. I was their best friend for crying out loud! She was just suffering from depression. She needed help, but we missed all the signs. She took her own life! Melissa saw it happen!" She clapped a hand over her mouth, suddenly aware that she'd said more than she meant to.

"We know Melissa was the witness," Nancy said gently. "We've seen the police reports."

Maggie nodded mutely. "It was horrible," she whispered softly, tears coming to her eyes. "First we lose our parents, then Sara's suicide...." She looked at three detectives. "That's why she's the way she is, you know. So many problems to try to work through. She used to be so sweet and good natured."

Frank nodded absently, wanting to get back on track. "Look, Maggie. Here's what might have happened. Steven fell in love with Emma. Maybe he wasn't cheating, yet. But he wanted Emma. So he asked for a divorce. When she said no, he found a way to get free of his marriage. He either drove Sara to commit suicide, or he did it herself. Is that what Melissa saw that day, Maggie? Did she see Steven pushing Sara over the bluffs?"

"NO!" Maggie exploded, tears beginning to fall now. "I'm telling you, Steven Taylor couldn't hurt a fly! Never in a million years."

"Chief Collig seems to have enough evidence to prove otherwise," Frank replied, stretching the truth slightly. "He thinks that Steven killed Emma. What happened, Maggie? Did Emma find out what he did to Sara? Was she going to call the wedding off?"

"No," she repeated, her face streaked with tears. "Nothing like that happened."

"What I don't understand," Joe said, "is how you can cover up what happened. I thought you cared about Sara. And about Shaun."

"Agreed." Frank said. Nancy remained silent, but she stood now and placed her purse at Joe's feet. As Joe bent over to retrieve something from it, she walked over near the entryway.

"Sara was my best friend," Maggie sobbed. "I would have done anything for her, Frank! Anything!"

Frank sat passively on the sofa, listening intently. He didn't respond to her cries, but merely waited to see what else she might say. Flipping casually through the journal Joe had passed to him, he glanced over at Nancy. She leaned against the door with her arms crossed over her chest. Slightly shaking her head, she seemed to be warning him not to push Maggie too quickly.

Maggie looked up at Frank, tears streaking her cheeks. "I don't understand how he could do this! How could he kill two women who loved him so much?"

Frank met Nancy's eyes again. "We don't think he killed them both, Maggie," Nancy said softly.

Maggie's eyes widened as she met Nancy's gaze. Realization flooded through her as she turned back to Frank and Joe. "You think I did it, don't you?"

Recognizing the journal that Frank now held, she stood up quickly. So fast in fact that Joe found himself suddenly on his feet, ready to tackle her if she decided to run. Instead of making a break for the door, she walked over to the window and peered out the curtain. Letting it fall slowly back into place, she hugged herself as she stared at the flowered drapery.

"Where did you get that?" she asked quietly.

"A friend gave it to us," Nancy fibbed slightly. After all, she thought to herself, Joe is a friend.

"I see," she whispered. Turning around, she spoke. "I want you to know, I was only 18 when I wrote that. 18. My head was full of romantic notions and ideas. And I was really into watching "Murder, She Wrote" and reading Mary Higgins Clark mysteries. If you bothered to read the professor's notes, you'll know it wasn't much of a story."

"Not then," Joe said. "But it is now. What we have here is a blueprint for a murder. Tell me, Maggie. Who set it up? You or Steven?"

She looked down at her feet. Sighing, she replied, "Neither, Joe."

"Maggie," Nancy said calmly. "You have to see how incriminating this is. Your story, written eight years ago, describes Emma's murder in great detail. Someone used this story to set up Emma's 'suicide'. Regardless of what happened to Sara, you and I both know that Emma was murdered."

She met Nancy's eyes. "And what if Emma found the book? What if she staged her own suicide around my story, hoping to implicate me or Steven? What if it was some twisted form of revenge?"

"Revenge for what?" Joe scoffed. "For interfering with her ideas on child care? Or for trying to ease Steven away from her and into your own arms?"

"I would never..." she started, but Joe cut her off.

"Let me tell you what I think, Maggie," he said. "You're right. I don't think Steven killed either woman. I think you did them both. I think that you have been in love with Steven since your first date. I think, Maggie, that you were jealous of Sara. She had what you wanted. The perfect guy. I think that the jealous side won out finally and you lured Sara to the bluffs, and pushed her over, figuring that Steven would turn to you for comfort."

Maggie stared at him, her mouth open, but no words coming out.

"That didn't happen, did it? He did ok without you. Oh, sure, he let you help raise his toddler, but that's not the same as leaning on you for emotional support. Emma came along for that, didn't she?"

"So you bided your time. You waited to see if this was going to fall through. When it didn't, you decided you had to get rid of the new competition. Using your own story, you set up another suicide. This time you knew that Steven would be under suspicion, because of Sara's death. This time, it would have to work. He'd need more support than ever!"

"IT DID NOT HAPPEN THAT WAY!" she shouted. "I DIDN'T KILL ANYONE!" Just as she burst into a fresh round of tears, Melissa came flying down the stairs.

"Maggie? What's going on?" she asked anxiously. Seeing Frank, Joe and Nancy, she frowned. "What are you guys doing here? Why is my sister crying? And shouting?"

Nancy turned to Maggie. "What's going to happen if we put her on the stand, Maggie?" she asked. "When the prosecutor puts the pressure on, what is she going to say about the night Sara died? Or the night Emma died?"

"I was out of town when Emma died," Maggie started to say.

"What are you doing?" Melissa shrieked. "Why are you getting her so upset over Miss Lawson's death? She didn't have anything to do with it!" Her voice rose slightly on each word.

Maggie glanced up sharply. "Don't help me out Melissa. You're just going to make things worse. Get out of here. Go over to Becky's house."

Melissa appeared stunned. "You're my sister! Why can't I help? It's my..."

"Go!" Maggie said sharply. "I don't want you involved in this."

Melissa drew in a breath, prepared to argue, but found herself meeting a pair of blue eyes that were staring intensely at her. Grumbling something about no one trusting her to not make a mess of whatever she touched, she grabbed her house key from the hook near the door and brushed past Nancy. Slamming the door, she left the four adults alone.

"You think, you think, you think," Maggie repeated softly, looking at Joe. "Fine, you know what, you're right. Melissa did see someone else with Sara that night. It was me. I did it. I pushed Sara over the edge that night. But it was an accident. We were arguing because she thought I was dating Steven behind her back. Melissa saw me. She's been trying to protect me all this time. There's no need to involve her. She's just a kid, trying to protect the only family she has left."

"What about Emma?" Frank asked.

"That wasn't an accident," she said simply. "You were right, Joe. She was in my way." She wiped her face with the back of her hand. "So where do we go from here?"

Joe stood up. "You need to go to Chief Collig and explain this. We can take you to the station." He looked questioningly at his brother. "Frank?"

"Yeah," he said. "The station." He frowned as he glanced over at Nancy. Now that they had the confession, she was no longer paying attention. "Of course," he said absently, "the first thing Chief Collig is going to tell you do is to call your lawyer."

Maggie slumped in defeat. "I don't have one."

"They'll get one for you," Joe said. "Why don't we go on down to the station now."

She nodded mutely.

Frank glanced in concern at Nancy. She appeared lost in thought. "Nan, we're going now. Maggie confessed. Hello? Earth to Nancy Drew."

Nancy's eyes were still glued on the front door. "I heard her," she said, sounding distant. "Sara. Accident. Melissa. Emma. Police station." She whirled around and met Maggie's gaze. "Quite the last minute turn around."

"Yeah," Frank said, suddenly feeling uneasy about their victory. "Quite."