Chapter One

The alarm clock buzzed. It was 5:45 am. Sean Taylor rolled over, facing away from his wife, Holly. Their marriage was on shaky ground. He suspected she was talking to lawyers, but so far he hadn’t been served, and she had not asked him to leave the house. But he was willing to put their differences aside today. Today was Annabeth’s first day of kindergarten. The thought of his baby girl made him smile, but the thought of her being old enough to start school terrified him. 

He got up from the bed and dressed quickly. He went to Annabeth’s room and knocked on her door. “Wake up, sweetheart. It’s time to get ready for school.” Her eyes fluttered for a moment, before opening wide. 

“Is it school time, Daddy?” She asked sweetly.

“Almost. It’s time to get up and get ready.” Her clothes were carefully laid out over a chair, ready for her to put on. Holly had prepared everything the night before. Sean was surprised, because from his point of view it seemed like Holly didn’t like their daughter very much. Holly was self-absorbed and obsessed with money.

Annabeth climbed out of bed, and Sean left her to go make a quick breakfast. The bus would arrive around 6:45, and the school had asked that both parents be present to meet the bus driver. Sean quickly scrambled some eggs, and mixed a batter for pancakes. He went to check on Annabeth while the bacon was cooking.

Annabeth was dancing in her room. She had managed to get her pants on, but was still shirtless. Sean chuckled. Her walls were adorned with her own artwork, princesses and fairies. The pink comforter on her bed was still mussed.

“Annabeth,” Sean said sternly, “You need to finish getting dressed and make your bed.”

“Sorry, Daddy”, was her reply.

Sean walked into his own bedroom. Holly was still asleep. Sean opened the drapes and blinds, letting in the sunlight. 

“Holly, wake up. It’s Annabeth’s first day of school. You don’t want to miss this.” He left the room.

He went back to the kitchen just in time to keep the bacon from burning. He carried the food to the table, and set three places. 

“Annabeth! Breakfast is ready,” he called out. She came running into the dining room. The two of them sat down and Sean served Annabeth, then prepared his own plate. 

“Where’s Mommy?” Annabeth asked.

“Good question,” said Sean, “I’m sure she’s coming.”

Holly did not come to breakfast, and Annabeth helped Sean clear the table. She got her backpack and laid it carefully beside the door. Sean quickly brushed her hair, then checked his watch. 6:35. He sent Annabeth to brush her teeth, while he went back into his bedroom. Holly had not moved.

“Holly! The bus will be here in ten minutes.” She stirred slightly. “Holly, get up. You already missed breakfast.” Holly opened her eyes. Sean left the room.

He went back to the living room, where Annabeth was in front of the television, watching a cartoon and bouncing with excitement. 

“Come on,  Annabeth. Let’s go wait at the end of the driveway. You don’t want to miss the bus.”

“Yay! The bus! I can’t wait to ride the bus, Daddy.”

Sean and Annabeth walked to the end of the driveway. Minutes later, Holly joined them, wearing a robe tied tightly around her waist. Sean paid no attention to his wife. He was emotional, both proud and scared. He remembered his own first day of school, and how scared he was getting on the bus by himself. He had done his best to make sure Annabeth had positive memories of her first day of school. She had the coolest backpack, the newest shoes, in-fashion clothes, hair brushed perfectly. She looked like an angel. But once she stepped onto that school bus, it would be out of his hands. That was the part that scared him.

“I see you left a mess in the kitchen for me to clean up.” Holly remarked.

Sean didn’t make eye contact. “Can we not do this now, please?” He asked.

“Fine.”

Sean saw the bus coming into view. “Annabeth, remember to stay behind the mailbox until the bus stops.”

“Okay, Daddy.” She was still bouncing with excitement. Seeing her so happy warmed Sean’s heart.

The bus stopped in front of them and the driver opened the doors. The driver was an older woman, about fifty, with graying reddish hair. She said, “Good morning. My name is Mrs. Garcia.” She set the parking brake and unbuckled her seatbelt. She stepped off the bus and shook Sean and Holly’s hands. “But you can call me Mandy. And this must be Annabeth. I’ll be your bus driver for this year.”

Sean watched with a lump in his throat as Annabeth climbed the steps onto the bus. Mrs. Garcia boarded the bus right behind her. Sean noticed that there were no other children on the bus.

“Where are the other kids?” Sean asked Mrs. Garcia.

“First stop.” She replied.

Mrs. Garcia directed Annabeth to sit on the front seat of the bus, the area reserved for kindergarten students, then took her place behind the wheel. She buckled her seatbelt, and released the parking brake and closed the doors. Sean watched as the diesel engine whined, and the large bus moved down the road. 

“Now can we talk about the mess you left in the kitchen?” Holly asked.

“No,” said Sean.

As the bus disappeared from view, Sean turned, tears in his eyes, to walk back in the house. That’s when he saw the second bus. Another school bus was approaching their home, yellow lights flashing. Sean stood at the end of the driveway, confused. The bus stopped and the doors opened. A young woman, about twenty-five, sat behind the wheel. She said, “Good morning. I’m Emma Jones. I’ll be Annabeth’s bus driver this year.”

Sean noticed the bus was full of children. The confusion was evident on his face.

“Is something wrong?” Emma Jones asked.

“Annabeth already got on the bus.” Sean replied.

“That’s not possible. We don’t have any other buses near this route.” said Emma.

“Yes, she did, not five minutes ago. The bus driver’s name was Garcia. Mandy Garcia.”

“Sir, we don’t have any bus drivers by that name.”

Sean racked his brain to try and remember the bus number. “It was bus number 19.”

Now Emma looked confused. “Sir, bus number 19 is one of our reserve buses. It only gets used if one of the regular buses breaks down.” She paused, then said, “I think you should probably call the police. I’m sure it’s an honest mix-up, but that’s a reserve bus, and we don’t have any drivers by that name. As soon as I get these kids to school, I’ll come back and check in with you.” Emma closed the doors to the bus, and Sean stepped backwards, dazed and confused. The bus drove away.

Sean was suddenly hit with full-on panic. Where was his baby girl? Who was she with? The idea suddenly hit him that the bus could only be a few minutes ahead, so maybe he could catch it on the road. He jumped in the car and started the engine, without saying a word to Holly, who was still standing in the yard as he pulled out of the driveway. He accelerated wildly, passing Emma Jones and her busload of kids. He swerved back into the correct lane. The school was several miles away, but surely he would catch up to them before they reached it. As he rounded a curve, Sean noticed a school bus, sitting on the side of the road. He slowed as he approached it. Bus number 19. 

Sean slammed on the brakes and parked in front of the abandoned school bus. The doors were open, and he climbed aboard. There was no sign of Mandy Garcia, but he found Annabeth’s backpack on the front seat, where he had seen her sitting only minutes ago. Sean felt dizzy, the lump in his throat was back. His heart was racing. He sat back in one of the seats as he pulled out his cell phone and dialed 9-1-1. “I need to report a kidnapping.” 

Chapter Two

Sean drove back home slowly. He wasn’t even paying attention to his speed, which was well below the posted limit of 45 mph on their rural country road. He pulled into his driveway, and saw blue lights approaching from the opposite direction, the direction both buses had come from. His hands shook with fear, and thoughts of concern for his little girl ran through his mind. The blue lights got closer, and a patrol car pulled into the driveway behind Sean. Holly was sitting on the front porch of the house, coffee in hand. She was rocking back and forth in a chair, a look of shock on her face. Two more police vehicles pulled into the driveway.

An officer approached Sean as he stepped out of the car. “Good morning sir. I understand there has been some kind of disturbance here. Can you tell me what happened?”

Sean’s hands were shaking. “Yes, my daughter, I–”, he trailed off. He swallowed hard, then started speaking again. “We put my daughter on the bus for school, but then another bus showed up, and said there shouldn’t be any other buses. I chased it down, and found it abandoned, my daughter was gone. My little girl has been kidnapped.” Sean broke down in tears. 

The officer led Sean to a chair on the front porch. He spoke softly and gently, as he asked Sean to repeat what had happened. Sean composed himself the best he could, then recounted the story again. The look on the officer’s face was worrisome. 

“It’s highly organized,” he said, “and well-executed. It looks like the work of a human trafficking ring.” The officer, whose name badge read “Det. Joseph Carter”, shifted uncomfortably before he said, “The first forty-eight hours are the most crucial, but if this is an actual human trafficking ring, there’s a good chance we may never be able to rescue your daughter.” Sean collapsed in tears again. Holly gasped.

“Now, that’s just the worst case scenario,” Detective Carter continued, “The best case is a ransom demand. If anyone contacts you asking for money in exchange for Annabeth’s release, you need to let us know immediately. Even if they tell you not to go to the police.”

Holly interjected, “What if it was some pedophile, or something like that, who doesn’t want ransom?”

Detective Carter gave a reassuring smile. “It’s unlikely. This kidnapping is too organized. My instinct tells me that it’s somebody who knows your husband owns a shipping company and is looking for a quick payday. I would bet my ridiculous government salary that you get a phone call demanding ransom by the end of the day today.”

The officers collected a photo of Annabeth for the Amber alert, and left the Taylors sitting on their front porch. Sean pulled out his cell phone. His legs were still weak, and he didn’t dare try to stand. He called his secretary. 

“Hey, it’s Sean. I won’t be in today. I need you to handle any issues that come up. My daughter has been kidnapped.”

“Oh, Sean. I’m so sorry. Is there anything we can do here?”

“Just handle the business, and keep things running. See how much cash we can liquidate. There hasn’t been a ransom demand yet, but I’m expecting one, and I want to be able to get the cash quickly.”

“Yes, sir. We have about a million in the operating fund, but I’ll see how much more I can get together for you.”

“Thank you, Melissa. I really appreciate it.” Sean hung up the phone. Holly still had not moved from her chair, and was rocking back and forth slowly. A crime scene van arrived, parking on the side of the road, and a technician walked up to the porch. 

“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. I’m from the crime lab. We’re going to set up a machine on your phone that will let us trace any phone calls, and record what the kidnappers say.”

Sean nodded absently. The technician continued talking, but Sean didn’t hear what he was saying. His thoughts were with Annabeth, and what she must be going through at that moment. His heart broke when he thought of how scared she must be.

Sean’s thoughts turned to the ransom. He needed to start gathering money. He didn’t know yet how much he needed, only that he didn’t have enough on hand. He jumped up from his chair, and went inside the house, leaving Holly on the porch alone. The officers were still in the front yard, talking amongst themselves, and the crime lab technician was inside the house, working on the telephone. 

Sean grabbed the checkbook out of the kitchen drawer. Naturally, Holly had written several checks that had not been logged yet. Sean sat down at the kitchen table to balance the checkbook. He noticed a check for ten thousand dollars had been written, by Holly, to Van Robinson. Van had been one of Sean’s employees, and quit because Sean refused to give him a pay raise. He was offered the usual 3% raise, but instead demanded 15%. Sean had thought the amount was ridiculous, and refused. Van Robinson was not that good of an employee. Sean wondered if Holly was sleeping with him. It would be the perfect revenge, for a disgruntled former employee to sleep with the boss’s wife. He logged the check, and pushed the matter from his mind. He had more important things to worry about.

Mandy Garcia drove the car carefully down the dilapidated path, behind the abandoned farmhouse. The road was washed out, and rough to drive on. Annabeth Taylor was in the trunk, and every now and again Mandy could hear her cries. The crime had been easy to pull off. Mandy had studied the Taylor family, and knew that Annabeth was getting ready to start school. On the first day of school, Mandy had swiped a bus from the county bus lot, mingling with the dozens of other drivers picking up their buses. Nobody had questioned her, and she drove off the lot without incident. She picked up Annabeth Taylor at her home, and drove about a mile down the road, where the car was waiting. She locked Annabeth in the trunk of the car and drove to the abandoned farmhouse, which was the pre-arranged meeting place. It was in the next county over, and nobody would be looking for Annabeth, or the car, this far away. Not yet.  Here she would get her money, and be done with this whole ugly incident.

As she drove around behind the house, the man startled her. He was standing directly in front of the car. He was holding a black bag, which no doubt contained her money. She parked the car and got out.

“She’s in the trunk” Mandy said to the man. Those were the last words she ever spoke, as the man pulled a gun from his jacket pocket and wordlessly shot her in the head.

As Mandy’s lifeless body hit the ground, the man stepped over her and sat down in the driver’s seat. He put the car in gear and drove away, leaving the body where it fell.

Chapter Three

It had been two days since Annabeth’s disappearance. The police presence at the Taylor house had waned. Detective Carter told Sean and Holly that the likelihood of rescuing Annabeth was slim. Holly remained in her bedroom, behind closed doors, most of the time. Sean was more active, demanding to be kept informed at every step of the police investigation. It had been a tense two days, waiting for the ransom call that never came.

The clues were scarce. The bus had been wiped down, no fingerprints were found. Mandy Garcia had been careful, and cleaned up well. The tire tracks at the scene where the bus was abandoned were contaminated by those of Sean’s vehicle when he found the bus. Detective Carter had asked about enemies, anyone who would want to hurt Sean, Holly or Annabeth. 

Holly could think of no one. Sean, on the other hand, had a list of people. He narrowed it down in his head, and gave the detective three names. At the top of his list was his business rival, Bill Thompson. Sean didn’t think Bill would resort to kidnapping, but he was pretty angry about Sean stealing three clients from him last month. Next on his list was his shipping clerk, Fred Davis. Fred was always talking about robbing a bank, or some other illegal get-rich-quick activity. Sean had dismissed it as tough talk, but he was beginning to wonder. Finally, there was Eddie Lee. Eddie was one of Sean’s delivery drivers, and always talking to Fred about what kind of capers they could pull off. Eddie was pretty sketchy, in Sean’s opinion, and Sean wasn’t convinced that Eddie wouldn’t do something like this.

Of course, there was just one problem with Sean’s list of suspects. All of their motives were money-related. And nobody had called with a ransom demand.  Why had no one called? There was no other motive for taking Annabeth. 

Sean settled uneasily in his chair, watching the technicians pack up the last of the police equipment from their home. They were giving up. Sean felt desperation and fear creeping into his soul. How would he ever find his baby girl? Panic was beginning to set in. He felt his breathing quicken and the tears started again. He forced himself to calm down. As the day passed, Sean felt more and more hopeless.

Sean felt a sudden surge of anger. If the police wouldn’t find his daughter, he would. He would do it himself. He knew the suspect list, and he had a strong feeling one of them was guilty. And Bill Thompson had the money to pull this off.

Sean went to the laundry room. He kept a small handgun above the dryer. He got it, and stuck it in his waistband. Just as he did, his phone dinged. He looked at the message: Unknown Number. It was a video text. Sean sat down to watch the video. It was set in a dimly lit room, but he could recognize Annabeth clearly. He heard her voice, his heart sinking as she cried, “Daddy, please come get me.”

A man stepped into the frame, obscuring Sean’s view of his daughter. “If you ever want to see Annabeth again, deliver ten million dollars in cash, in unmarked bills, to me by Friday. Otherwise, you’ll be seeing pieces of her across town. And don’t even think of telling the police.” The video cut off. Sean did not recognize the voice, and the man wore a ski mask. It had to be Bill Thompson. Ten million dollars was the value of the three contracts Sean had poached from him. Of course, that was the value of the contracts, but Sean didn’t have that much money on hand, not yet. He had only been awarded those contracts last month. It would be another year before he saw that kind of cash. There was no way he would have it in two days.

Sean snapped his phone shut and put it in his pocket. It was time to pay Bill Thompson a visit. Before he could make it to his car, the phone dinged again. He checked it and saw there was another text message, this one from a number he knew. “Need to see you. Come over?” the message said. Sean didn’t feel like receiving any more sympathy, and he felt aggravated that this person had waited until now, at this exact moment, to want to see him. But at the same time, the distraction might keep him from doing anything rash. He felt the gun in his waistband. He texted back “omw.”

Sean steered the car toward town, and soon the apartment complex that was his destination came into view. He parked and kept his head low as he moved through the parking lot to building F. He knocked on one of the apartment doors, which was opened by Caleb Harper. Sean stepped inside quickly and shut the door behind him. Caleb grabbed him by the collar and kissed him passionately. 

“I’ve missed you. I heard about what happened. I’m so sorry.”

Sean ducked Caleb’s next attempt at a kiss. “I’ve missed you too. But I’ve had my hands full. The police are giving up, but I’m not. I’m going to keep looking for her.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

“No. Just stay off everyone’s radar. I don’t know much about how Holly feels right now. I don’t know if she’s going to file for divorce or not. She’s barely left the bedroom all week.”

“So she’s not holding up well?”

“I really don’t know. I guess not. I’ve been on the couch all week. Haven’t even seen her.”

“Aww. I’m so sorry.” Caleb ran his hands across Sean’s shoulders. Sean backed away.

“Not now.” He said. “I’m really not in the mood.”

“I understand,” Caleb said. Sean turned to go. Caleb did not try to stop him. Sean felt guilty. Caleb’s touch felt nice, it was comfortable. Under different circumstances, he would have welcomed Caleb’s advances, but with Annabeth missing, he only felt guilt at being comforted.

Sean sat in his car. He had met Caleb at a charity fundraiser a few weeks ago, and they had started seeing each other shortly afterward. Caleb needed someone to help him with some basic household repairs his landlord had said were Caleb’s responsibility, and Sean had volunteered. The two had bonded while installing a new washing machine, and Caleb had felt comfortable enough around Sean to reveal that he was gay. Sean did not consider himself to be gay, but he felt a strange attraction to Caleb, who gave him more attention than Holly ever did. Sean felt guilty for seeing Caleb, but his guilt was mitigated by the certainty that Holly was seeing someone on the side as well. Of course, Sean didn’t have any proof of that, but he had very strong suspicions. He knew divorce was imminent, but he was hesitant to pull the trigger and file the papers. He hated the thought of seven years of marriage going down the drain, and he didn’t know how the custody arrangements would work out. 

Custody. The thought of the word sent a shiver down his spine. Annabeth was out there somewhere, scared out of her mind. And Sean was just sitting in the car. He started the engine and put the car in gear. 

Chapter Four

Sean drove in silence to Bill Thompson’s house. He decided he was going to ask Bill point-blank if he had anything to do with his daughter’s kidnapping. He rehearsed his angry tirade over and over in his head. When he arrived, Bill had just gotten home from the office. Sean met him in the driveway. 

“Hi, Bill.”

“Sean! Good to see you. I’m sorry to hear about your daughter. How are you holding up?” Sean didn’t count on Bill’s sympathy. His anger melted a little.

“I’m doing ok. In fact, that’s the reason I came by. It seems to me that with my recent business deals, this kidnapping might be money-related. I wondered if you had heard anything that might be useful.” Sean found it hard to stay angry, at least toward Bill. Despite their business rivalry, Bill Thompson was actually a good person. Sean wondered why he even suspected Bill to begin with.

“No. But if I were in your shoes, I would be checking my own house.”

Sean’s pulse quickened. “Bill, do you know something?” He asked.

“Nothing concrete. If I did, I would have gone to the police already. But that Fred Davis you have working for you is bad news. I fired him years ago for trying to embezzle money from me on phony shipments. And that grease-monkey he’s always hanging around with, Eddie Lee, he’s a big-time drug addict and everybody knows it. I just think you should probably start there.”

“I’ll definitely check into them.”

“Hey, why don’t you stay for supper? You look like you could use a good home-cooked meal, and Martha wouldn’t mind setting another place at the table.”

“No, but thanks for the offer. I need to get back home.”

“Okay, buddy. Call me if there’s anything I can do to help.”

“Will do. Thanks, Bill.”

Sean got back in his car and backed out of the driveway quickly. He was nervous and embarrassed about what he had been about to do. He could feel the bulge of the gun in his waistband. He hoped Bill hadn’t seen it. He thought about his other two suspects. Eddie Lee and Fred Davis were at home now. He would wait until morning when he knew they would be at work and he could confront them individually. Sean drove home.

When he arrived home, Sean thought about checking on Holly. He decided to wait, so as to not disturb her, but he resolved that he was sleeping in his own bed tonight. He was sure that she was distraught, but she wasn’t the only one, and it wasn’t fair for him to keep sleeping on the couch just to give her some space. He microwaved a TV dinner, and sat down at the kitchen table by himself. 

After he ate, Sean sat down in front of the TV. A news reporter showed Annabeth’s picture, and reported that the search was ongoing. At least the media was still trying to help. Sean hadn’t heard from Detective Carter, which meant they probably hadn’t had any leads. Sean got ready for bed, and knocked softly on the bedroom door.

When he entered the room, it was dark. He turned on the light switch. Holly wasn’t there. The bed was made, and her clothes were gone. A plain white envelope, labeled “SEAN” in Holly’s handwriting, was propped on the pillow. “That’ll be the divorce papers”, Sean thought to himself. He placed the envelope in the bedside table drawer. He couldn’t deal with that right now. He didn’t even know how long ago Holly left. . 

He switched off the light and lay awake in bed. He felt tired, but sleep eluded him. He tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable, but it was no use. Thoughts of Annabeth ran though his mind. What were they doing with her? How was she being treated? Sean agonized over the unknown until he finally fell into a fitful sleep.

The next morning, Sean woke with his alarm clock. He sat on the edge of his bed, staring into the open drawer of the bedside table, at the plain white envelope. He felt as though he was losing everything: Annabeth and Holly, his entire world. But in a way, he felt as though Holly was already gone, and had been for a long time. 

He showered and dressed, making sure to hide his gun well in his waistband. He felt hungry, and went into the kitchen. The dirty dishes were still left from Monday, Annabeth’s first day of school. Today was Thursday. He had only twenty four hours to either find Annabeth, or come up with the rest of the ransom money. So far he had just under two million dollars. 

He realized on his drive to work that his two suspects, Eddie Lee and Fred Davis, could both be innocent. Where would he be then? He decided it best to try and come up with the remaining cash, just in case. He made a mental note to have his secretary call the bank and make an appointment with the loan officer. He would mortgage his entire company if he had to.  

When he got to work, the first order of business was arranging the money. He told Melissa, his secretary, to call the bank and make an urgent appointment with a loan officer. He then told her to send Fred Davis to his office. 

The man cautiously approached the dog kennel. He balanced the bowl of water in one hand as he fumbled with the latch. She had already tried to escape once, and he punched her to teach her a lesson. He didn’t expect any more trouble, but he was wary. He set the bowl inside the crate and quickly shut the door again, locking it with the padlock. He lit a cigarette and watched as she drank from the bowl. He sat down and stared at her, watching her intently. She hated him, that much was evident. When he tried to pull her from the trunk, she bit him. He used the stun gun on her that time. Over the past two days, she had become less feisty, and cried less for her mama. 

When he finished his cigarette, he stuck it through the wire cage and crushed it out against Annabeth’s skin, as he had done multiple times before. She cried out in pain. A smile curled around the man’s lips. 

Chapter Five

When Fred Davis walked into the office, Sean noticed that he was shaking. He was obviously nervous about being summoned to see the boss. Through the window, Sean saw Melissa wave Fred by and point toward his door. Fred knocked timidly.

“Come in!” Sean called out curtly.

“Melissa said you wanted to see me, sir?”

“Yes, Fred. Come in and have a seat.” 

Fred crossed the room and sat in one of the guest chairs in front of Sean’s desk. Sean paused, patiently, letting Fred sweat a little.

“Fred, it’s common around here to hear you making comments about illegal get-rich-quick schemes. Now, I’m curious if you haven’t actually tried to make some big money in an easy way.”

“What do you mean, sir?”

“What I mean is–” Sean trailed off. He felt anger, but at the same time it was a mixture of sorrow, desperation, and loss that caused the lump in his throat. “What I mean is, what do you know about the kidnapping of my daughter?”

“Oh no sir. I would never, ever have anything to do with the kidnapping of a child. Especially not your child. No, sir, it was not me.”

“Fred, have you heard anything, even rumors, about who might be behind it?”

“No, sir. I would have gone to the police right away. I don’t know anything more than what was told on the TV.”

Sean couldn’t help it. He believed him. “Okay, Fred. You can go back to work now. But if you hear anything, you let me know right away.”

“Yes, sir. I promise.” Fred rose from the chair and crossed quickly to the door. 

Sean reclined in his chair. Before he could think about his next move, the phone rang. It was Melissa, informing him that a loan officer at the bank would see him now, if he could get there in the next twenty minutes. 

He raced out the door. The bank was only five minutes away, but today it felt like thirty minutes. Everything was moving so slowly to Sean. When he arrived at the bank, he was shown into the loan officer’s office. 

“Hey, Mr. Taylor, what can we do for you today?”

“I need eight million dollars,” Sean said. 

“Oh wow. Okay. Let me see what we can do.” The nameplate on her desk read “Shannon Mitchell”. Shannon was typing something into her computer. 

“Okay. It looks like you have a three million dollar line of credit, and by refinancing your business loans, that should give you eight million dollars in cash. But I have to warn you: defaulting on this loan would default all of your loans, and you would lose your business and your home.”

“That’s fine. I understand. Where do I sign?”

“I’ll have the papers drawn up momentarily. Do you mind me asking what the urgent need is for such a large sum of cash?”

“I don’t mind at all. Do you mind if I deflect the question, instead of answering it?”

Shannon stared blankly at him for a moment, then her face turned red. “No, sir,” she responded. She turned away from him to retrieve the papers coming off of her printer. 

“Okay, just sign here, here and here. Initial here and sign here.” She handed him the stack of papers with an x marked beside each spot he was to sign. Sean hastily scribbled his signature on each of the blanks, then handed the papers back to Shannon.

“Alright, that’s all I need. I’ll go get your check now.” She stood and left the room. She returned a few minutes later, with a check for eight million dollars, made out to Sean. He took the check and left her office.

Sean waited in line for a teller to cash his check. When he reached the window, the teller informed him that the bank did not keep that much money on hand. The best she could do is give him four million in cash, and a cashier’s check for the other four million. Sean felt his frustration rising. His time was running out. Tomorrow was the deadline. He told the cashier that four million would be fine. He waited while two cashiers counted out the cash. 

Once Sean had cash in hand, he took his check for the other four million and left the bank. He stopped at a second bank on the way back to the office and cashed the other half of the check. Finally, with eight million dollars in cash on hand, he returned to his office and took the two million in cash out of the safe. He breathed a sigh of relief. He had the full ten million dollars. 

Sean knew that he was bankrupting himself. There was no way he could recover from defaulting on a loan this size, and he knew he would default because the business did not generate enough cash to make the payments. The business would fail, and Sean would lose everything. But he would have his Annabeth back. 

He still had one chance at avoiding the loss of everything he owned. That chance was that Eddie Lee was involved in Annabeth’s disappearance, and he would talk. Instead of calling him to the office, Sean walked down to the shipping bays. There were no workers in the warehouse when Sean walked in. He checked his watch, and realized that they had all gone home for the day. He hoped Eddie was still there.

Sean searched the warehouse, until he found Eddie. He was in the shipping manager’s office, helping himself to the petty cash drawer. Sean watched from outside, silently, as Eddie counted out cash and slipped it in his pocket. Sean stood in front of the door, so that Eddie would be face-to-face with him when he opened the door to leave. His plan worked perfectly, and Eddie jumped backwards, startled, when he realized he had been caught. 

“What are you doing here, Eddie?” Sean asked.

“Umm. Nothing. Just making sure my paperwork is turned in.”

“Don’t you do that in the driver’s lounge? Why are you in the manager’s office?”

“I had some paperwork get lost last week. I just wanted to make sure it was on his desk where he could find it tomorrow morning.”

“Eddie, were you stealing money from petty cash?”

“No, sir! I wouldn’t do such a thing.”

Sean felt his blood boil. First, Eddie had the nerve to steal from him, and now was lying to his face about it. Sean was starting to lose his temper.

“You’re fired, Eddie.”

Eddie’s face turned red. He swung a fist at the side of Sean’s head. Sean stepped backwards coolly, and let Eddie’s swing throw him off balance. Sean landed a punch on Eddie’s nose. Eddie reeled backwards, blood pouring from his face. 

“Get out of my building, and don’t ever come back.” Sean said angrily.

“Fuck you, man. I hated this dead-end job anyway. I hope they kill that little bitch. I hope they rape her, and kill her, and cut her into tiny pieces. I bet the man who took her is fucking her right now.”

Sean lost it. He started blindly swinging punches, each one landing. Eddie hit the floor, but Sean kept punching. Even when Eddie lost consciousness, Sean kept punching. He finally stopped. Eddie lay motionless on the floor, his head and face bloodied. Sean checked for a pulse. Nothing. Eddie was dead.

Chapter Six

Sean felt panic. He’d never killed anyone before. What should he do? Call the police? No, they wouldn’t understand. He’d go to jail for killing Eddie. He had to get rid of the body. He took some plastic from a large roll and spread it on the floor. He rolled Eddie’s body onto the plastic and wrapped it up tight. Then he used duct tape to secure the plastic around the body. He took the indoor water hose and sprayed the blood from the floor. 

Fortunately, the warehouse was deserted, and no one was around to see him. Sean backed his car up to a loading dock and rolled Eddie’s body into the trunk. He went into the office and deleted the video from the security cameras. He locked up, and sat in his car for a minute, wondering what to do.

Sean needed advice, and some help. Caleb would know what to do. Caleb was the only person Sean could turn to right now. He drove to Caleb’s apartment, with ten million dollars in cash and a dead body in his car. He texted Caleb, “Need to see you now. OMW.” He got a smiley face emoji back, followed by an eggplant emoji and a question mark. He simply replied “no”. Caleb texted back a frown emoji.

By the time he reached Caleb’s apartment, Sean was frantic. He ducked inside and closed the door behind him. “I need help. I’m in big trouble,” he said.

“What’s wrong?” asked Caleb.

Sean paced back and forth. He wanted to tell Caleb what he had done, he wanted Caleb’s help. But if he told Caleb, one of two things could happen: Caleb could tell the police, or Caleb would become an accomplice. If he kept his mouth shut, Caleb could deny any knowledge of the crime. Sean faked a smile.

“Nothing. Nothing’s wrong. I just really missed you.” Sean unbuckled his belt and dropped his pants. He saw Caleb’s eyes light up, as Caleb dropped to his knees and opened his mouth. He couldn’t ask questions if his mouth was full.

Sean had difficulty maintaining an erection. It was a problem he’d never had before, especially with Caleb. He attributed it to his current situation, but he couldn’t tell Caleb about that. Should he go ahead and tell the truth, or come up with some kind of lie? When at last he was finished, Caleb stood, wiped his mouth and said, “You want to tell me what’s going on now?”

“Nothing. There’s nothing going on.”

“I’m not stupid, Sean. Something’s up, and it’s not you.” Caleb looked down at Sean’s soft penis.

Sean decided to lie. He said, “It’s Holly. She’s left me. I found divorce papers on the bed last night.”

“But I thought that was a good thing.”

“It is. It is. I’m just a little shaken by it, you know. Especially with Annabeth still missing.” Sean quickly pulled up his pants.

“I understand. I’m here, for whatever you need.” Caleb didn’t look convinced.

“Thank you. I appreciate that.” Sean turned to go.

Sitting in his car, Sean pondered his next move. He had to get rid of Eddie’s body. But where? He racked his brain, and finally decided that the bottom of the lake would be the best choice. He drove out to the lake, and pulled up in front of a closed boat rental. He dragged the body from his trunk, into the first boat he came to. He took a pair of oars from the rack in front of the building, and rowed out to the middle of the lake.

He had been smart about it. He brought rope and cinder blocks with him. He tied the cinder blocks to the body, and heaved it overboard. The plastic-wrapped body sank to the bottom of the lake. “So long, Eddie.” Sean thought, with no remorse at all. He rowed back to shore, and replaced the boat and oars where he found them.

The man approached the cage where Annabeth was being held. He had a bowl of dog food in one hand, and water in the other. She cowered in the corner as he neared, and whimpered. He had broken her feisty spirit. He opened the front of the cage and set the bowls down in front of her. He quickly closed and locked the door, then lit another cigarette. She ate cautiously, because she knew what the cigarette meant. She would be burned with it if she didn’t eat or drink, for sure, and sometimes she was burned with it anyway. The food was nasty. The man had a sadistic smile on his face as he watched her eat the dog food. He pulled out his phone and started recording.

Sean pulled the car into his driveway. He got out and took the bag with the ten million dollars inside. Where could he hide this much money? He didn’t work this hard just to lose the ransom money in a home invasion. He stashed the cash underneath his bed, and placed his gun on the nightstand. He looked again at the plain white envelope with his name written on it, lying in the drawer of the nightstand. He stared at it for a few minutes, then closed the drawer and lay down in the bed.

The man finally had the ransom delivery instructions recorded. Annabeth lay in the cage, shivering and wet. Her arm hurt from the cigarette burns. The man had hit her several times, in addition to putting out his cigarette on her arm again. He used the water hose to spray Annabeth off, and clean up where she had pooped. She had tried to hold it, but she couldn’t help it. She cried as the high pressure water made contact with her body. It left bruises. She cried, and wished her daddy would come save her.

Chapter Seven

The next morning, Sean woke to the sound of his phone dinging. He leapt from the bed and snatched the phone from its charger. It was only Melissa, texting “Need money for payroll.” Sean scratched his head. So this was it. The end of his business. He texted back “Send checks out. Money will be there before they hit the bank.” He didn’t know what else to do.

He dressed quickly and sat in his chair, watching the phone. Finally, around 9:00 am, the phone dinged again. It was another video message from the kidnappers. Sean opened the video and it began to play automatically.

It was the same dimly lit room. Sean could make out Annabeth crying in a large dog crate. She was eating from a dog food bowl. She had burn marks on her arms and face. Sean felt his blood boil. The unknown man stepped into the frame again, a ski mask again covering his face. “Deliver the ransom money to 12875 Old Pulaski Road. Come alone. No police. Leave the bag with the cash on the front porch. Get back in your car and go home. I’ll text you where you can pick up your daughter.” The voice was again mechanically altered. The video ended abruptly.

Sean gathered the cash under his bed and stuffed it all into a large duffel bag. The bag had belonged to Holly, but that didn’t matter now. He carried the duffel bag to the back seat of his car, and before he got behind the wheel, he patted his waistline, and felt the reassuring bulge of his gun.

Sean drove to the address the man had given. It was an abandoned farmhouse, about ten miles from Sean’s own residence. There were no other vehicles nearby, and no signs of people, either. Sean peered in the windows. The interior of the house was bare, with a layer of dust on everything that indicated nobody had been inside the house in years. He walked around back, and looked in the rear windows, seeing the same thing in the back of the house. As he turned to go back to the front porch, he tripped over something in the weeds. He looked down. It was  a body, and one that he recognized. It was the bus driver who had kidnapped his daughter. She had been shot in the center of the forehead.

Sean quickly sat the bag of cash on the front porch and returned to his car. Whoever was behind this kidnapping was a professional. The police had been right. Sean thought he was lucky to be getting Annabeth back at all. He remembered Detective Carter telling him that the kidnapping was too organized, and appeared to be the work of human traffickers. 

He drove back down the washed-out driveway, dragging the bottom of his car several times. Back on the main road, he headed toward home to await the next instructions from the kidnappers. 

Several hours went by. Sean was pacing in the living room of his house, when he heard a vehicle pull into his driveway. He looked out the front window. It was Detective Carter. Sean rushed to the door, and met the detective before he could knock. 

“Mr. Taylor. I’m afraid I have some bad news.”

“What is it? Tell me!”

“We’ve found Annabeth. Her body was left in a trash dump.”

“No, no that can’t be. I just paid the ransom. They said no police, so I did it on my own. I paid the ransom.”

“I’m sorry, sir. We confirmed her identity using the photo you gave us. I’m afraid it’s her.”

“No, no, no no, no!!!” Sean screamed.His face contorted into an expression of pure agony, and the tears flowed from his eyes. His chest hurt, and he felt like he was breathing fire. He felt dizzy, and needed to sit down. Detective Carter caught him before he fell, and helped him to a chair. 

“I’m afraid there’s more. It looks like Annabeth was tortured before she died.” Detective Carter continued.

“Was she raped?” Sean asked angrily through his tears.

“No, thankfully, it doesn’t look like it. But she has been cut and burned repeatedly. It looks like someone cut her with a sharp knife, and put out cigarette butts on her skin. She was stabbed seven times in the chest.”

Sean sobbed, as Detective Carter said, “I’m very sorry for your loss.” The detective showed himself out. Sean sat in his chair, a mixture of emotions swirling in his mind.  Suddenly, he leapt up. He would be damned if those bastards were going to take his daughter and his money. They had reneged on the deal, and killed Annabeth. They weren’t going to get a penny.

Sean raced to the car and sped back toward the abandoned farmhouse. When he arrived, the duffel bag was gone from the front porch. Sean looked around for any clues as to whomever could have been there. He had the eerie feeling he was being watched. Sean looked again at the back of the house. The body of Mandy Garcia still lay in the grass. The house was undisturbed. Sean looked around. There was a storage shed and an old barn on the property. He walked to the shed, which was locked with an old rusty lock. The door looked as if it were about to fall off, and the lock was the only thing holding it in place. Sean turned toward the barn. 

He felt a sudden rush of fear. The eerie feeling he had grew stronger. He must be on the right track. He walked toward the barn. 

Chapter Eight

As Sean strode purposefully toward the old barn, a gunshot rang out. The dirt in front of him exploded. Sean froze, then ran in a zigzag pattern toward the door. He drew his own gun, and stepped inside the shadowy structure. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could make out an older car sitting inside the barn. It was a Ford Escort, and if it hadn’t been washed recently, Sean would have suspected that it belonged with the barn. But this vehicle had been driven recently, it wasn’t covered in dust and dirt like everything else in the barn. No, this was the killer’s car. Sean checked the glove box. The registration said, “Mandy Garcia”. It was registered in the neighboring county. He turned his attention back to the barn. The lofts were filled with hay, the stables empty. Sean found a rickety set of steps leading underneath the barn. 

He walked carefully, bracing himself on the earthen wall to the side of the steps. A single electric bulb lit the small room. Sean recognized the room. This is where Annabeth had been kept. Sean felt a surge of anger as his eyes settled on the large dog crate in the farthest corner of the room. Blood was still visible on the ground underneath. His baby’s blood. 

The sound of wood slamming on wood startled Sean, and he turned and fired the gun. He ran back toward the steps, only to find that the wooden door had been shut. He was trapped. He heard the engine of the car start up and whine as whoever was driving reversed out of the barn. The sound of the car faded quickly.

Sean threw his weight against the door. It cracked, but did not budge. He did it again, and again, until the old door splintered. Sean shoved the pieces out of the way and crawled through the hole. The car, his money, and Annabeth’s killer were long gone.

Sean ran for his car. They might have a head start, but he was going to try to catch up. He had a fifty/fifty chance deciding which way they went, and he might be able to catch up to them on the road. He fumbled with his car keys, and finally got the ignition started. Sean reversed quickly, this time driving in the grass to avoid the washed-out driveway. When he got to the road, there were no other cars visible. Sean turned left, back toward his home.

He accelerated to over ninety miles per hour, more than twice the speed limit. By the time he reached the edge of town, he was traveling at over a hundred miles per hour. Sean eased up on the gas. He hadn’t seen any other cars on the rural road, but now he was getting into traffic. He searched furtively for the red Escort, with no luck. He drove all the way through town, before turning around and going back home.

Sean went into his bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands. His baby girl was gone, he let her killer get away, and his wife had left him, all in the same week. His wife. He had not thought of Holly all day. He opened the nightstand drawer and took out the plain white envelope. 

Dear Sean,

I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am. I felt like I was trapped in a loveless marriage, and you always paid more attention to Annabeth than you did me. I felt like you loved her more than me. It was I who paid Van Robinson to kidnap Annabeth. I orchestrated the whole thing. I never considered that he would want to kill her. I only wanted the ransom money. If you read this letter in time, Annabeth is being held in the barn of the abandoned farmhouse on Old Pulaski Road. Send the police to go get her. You can keep Annabeth and your money. I just want out. I’m leaving, and you can file for divorce, I won’t challenge it. I won’t fight for anything. I just want to be done.

-Holly

Sean’s hands started shaking as he realized he’d had this letter all week. He’d had the most important clue in his daughter’s disappearance the whole time, and could have saved her life. Sean screamed in agony.

The alarm clock buzzed. It was 5:45 am. Sean Taylor rolled over, away from the harsh overhead fluorescent lights. Sean screamed again, feeling the pain and loss all over. Two nurses rushed into the room. 

“Sean, what’s wrong?”

Sean sat up in the bed and rocked back and forth. “My baby. They killed my baby. And my wife was in on it.”

“No, sweetie, it was just a bad dream.”

“No, it happened. They killed my daughter. My wife set it up.”

“Sean, listen to me. You’re at the Sun Valley Psychiatric Hospital. You’ve been here since you were twelve years old. You’ve never had a wife, or a daughter. It was all a bad dream.”

The End