When they had finally arrived home, there was someone blocking his driveway. This wasn’t a new problem. Ever since the homeowners next door had turned their property into a rental, there had been one party after another, especially now with the frat boys renting the house.
Thankfully, Hunter’s recording studio was soundproof. If only the cars along the street would disappear.
“You can’t get in the driveway,” Kyle said.
“Thanks, Captain Obvious. I’ll drop you off and see about getting the car parked.”
“You should just go over there and tell them to move.”
“Kyle, just get out and unlock the door. I’m in no mood to try and reason with a bunch of drunk college kids.”
“Whatever!” Kyle said as he slammed the door and began walking up the drive.
Hunter didn’t see the stranger come out from the shadow and pull Kyle away from the lights.
After Hunter found a parking spot two houses down, he exited his car, engaged the alarm, and was wrestled down to the ground by two rather large men.
Hunter felt the duct tape being secured. The men had on dark clothing and their faces were masked. He offered them money to leave him alone. When that didn’t work, he made threats and promised retribution… That hadn’t worked either. His pleas were ignored. Instead, he was tossed into the back of a van. The impact was hard, especially because he couldn’t brace for the landing, or the bony body he landed on.
“Kyle. Is that you?”
“Yes,” he whispered.
“Just hold on. I’m sure someone at the party saw us and will call the police.”
Hunter doubted that was true but he needed Kyle to believe they would be rescued.
Rescued? Who would come to their rescue? Their parents were out of town. His friends were drowning their sorrows, and he didn’t know of anyone who would be looking for him for weeks.
He spent all his work time in isolation. It could be weeks before he contacted the engineer or author. Only when he was partnering with another narrator for dual points of view would he have regular contact. However, his latest project was a solo job, and he wasn’t due to start for another week. No one would miss them until their parents returned… another five days.
“Do you know what they want?” Kyle asked.
“Not a clue. If it’s money, they are going to be sadly disappointed. Why they’d even think I had money makes no sense either.”
“I think they’re looking for me,” Kyle admitted.
“What would they want with you?”
“Shut up,” the man in the front yelled.
Hunter wasn’t sure if it was the driver or the passenger. In fact, he wasn’t sure about many things, including how many captors there were.
“I think you’ve made a mistake,” Hunter tried reasoning once more with their kidnappers.
“No mistake. Just sit back and enjoy the ride,” a man with a British accent ordered.
“Kyle, can you see where we are?”
“No, I have a bag over my head.”
“Me too.”
Five minutes later, the van stopped and Kyle and Hunter were pulled out by two men.
“Move on,” a man with an American accent stated.
A light push was given from behind into a dank smelly room. Hunter had to assume it was also dark, which he couldn’t verify, and that it was possibly a warehouse.