Nancy Drew: Mystery of Melbourne Manor

Chapter 1

Twenty three year old Nancy Drew was now living in a small house by herself. Her boyfriend, Ned, had recently graduated college and they were going to celebrate. She grabbed her keys and drove to the small café.
Nancy took a seat inside the café and waited for Ned. Over at the bar, she heard two people talking.
"She cannot go, it's too dangerous." the woman said. She wore a purple tunic and had a scarf around her neck.
"She has to! It is the only way!" a man harshly whispered. He wore a green sweater and wore large glasses that slipped down his red nose.
"No, please Nathaniel! There must be another way!"
" Do you want our daughter back, Margaret? This is the last hope we have."
Nancy didn't even notice Ned sit down.
"Oh, Ned! You startled me! How are you?"
"I'm fine, why were you looking at that couple?" he whispered.
"They were talking about how some woman was their last hope in finding their daughter," she said.
" You always find a mystery, wherever we go,Nancy." Ned said.
Then, the couple walked over to their booth.
"Excuse me, are you really Nancy Drew?" the woman asked.
"Yes I am, Ma'am."
"We have a case for you. Our little girl was kidnapped from our home, Melbourne Manor. Will you help us? I don't think she is going to find her way back alone."
" Your boyfriend can come along, too. If he wants to."the man whom Nancy figured was Nathaniel replied.
Nancy looked over at Ned and he nodded his head.
"We will take the case, when can we come by?"
"Sometime this evening, the sooner, the better." Nathaniel said.
Later that evening, Ned drove as Nancy read the directions that were given to them.
" I have a bad feeling about all this, Nanc." Ned said.
"It's a mystery, just like dozens of others." she said.
"I know, it just seems a bit different. What did they mean find her way back alone?"
"I'm not sure, but we're about to find out." Nancy said as the pulled into a driveway next to the large Manor.
It seemed very kept up from the outside. Flowers grew around the home and the grass was a healthy green. It resembled a dollhouse. The two walked up the large steps and the door opened to reveal Nathaniel.
"I'm glad you could make it. Please, come inside."
The inside was as perfect as the outside. The living room had a fire place and a grand piano. A large staircase led upstairs and the walls were decorated with portraits.
"Let me show you upstairs," he said.
He stopped in front of a door that had a different knob than the others. The others looked more recent while this one looked like it was from the Victorian ages.
"This is our daughter Annalise's room,"
Nathaniel slowly opened the door. The whole room looked Victorian. There were large windows that illuminated daylight. Dolls were all neatly placed by a tea set and toy box. Her dressers all had roses on them and the floors were a gorgeous dark wood.
" This room still has most of the original colors. Annalise loved it. We have lived her since before she was born."
As he walked to the window, he pointed towards a gazebo and boat dock.
"That is part of our property as well, be careful over going there at night."
" The house is very beautiful, but what happened to your daughter? "
"You won't believe me, nobody has. She was playing in her room like any six year old, the door was wide open. My wife, Margaret heard her scream and ran upstairs. The door slammed shut and she tried to open it. That's when she felt something like hands grab her neck. That's why she has on the scarf."
"What happened after that?" asked Ned.
"The door opened and Annalise was gone. We searched her entire room, but found no trace of her."
" We will find her, don't worry Mr. Melbourne. "
"Please, call me Nathaniel, Ms. Drew."
"Alright, you can call me Nancy."
With that, Nathaniel left. Nancy looked around the room while Ned looked out the window.
" That's crazy. How could she just vanish? I wonder if there is secret passages or something. "
"It is an old house, that may be one possible explanation." she said.
"I'll check the closet," he said.
Ned opened the closet door and pushed some clothes out of the way. His hand hit the back of it and he felt carve mark.
"Nanc, can I see the flashlight?" he asked.
Nancy handed him the flashlight. He shined it on the wall and gasped. Carved into the wall were the words,
" COME PLAY.."