Before intermission was over Jim was alerted to Emma’s disappearance.  Martin hurried to his side and whispered in his ear.  Jim was furious.  Jesus Christ!  How did it happen?  When?  He continued questioning Martin who hadn’t witnessed her disappearance until he managed to break through the milling crowd to get to Jim.

Taking Jemma’s hand he held on then leaned toward Sarah and Jake, “We have to go, now.”

“What is it?  What’s wrong?”

“No time to explain, let’s go.”  Between him and Martin, they hustled the family to the waiting car.

Jemma stopped short, “Where’s Emma?”  Panic filled her eyes. “Emma!” she called loudly.

“In the car, please, Jenna.” Once they were inside and Martin was at the wheel, Jim explained his concerns.

“I found this.”  He held up the note Emma had left behind.  “It indicates Julie had been abducted and Emma was to meet up at the airport with the sender of the note.”

“Jessop!  Jessop’s got Emma?  What about Julie and…”

“The others are fine.  My men are with them now.  It was a ruse to get to Emma.”

“Oh my god!” Jenna shook and tears filled her eyes.  “This can’t be.  She didn’t just go with them did she?”

“I’ll find out more when I get back to base.”

“Does Nathan know?”

“He does, yes.  He’s the prime target of course.  They’ve used Julie to get Emma to get to Nathan.”

“Is he on his way?”

“Yes, he’ll be here in 12 hours or so.  He was half way to Maryland when I informed him of the situation.”

“I don’t know whether to be relieved or scared.  They could get him too.”

“Nathan can take care of himself.  I’m sure it’s Jessop and his cohorts and once they contact Nathan, he’ll place a tracking device on his body that I can follow.  We’ll get them both home safely.”  He pulled Jenna close and hugged her.

Jake and Sarah held onto each other, fear in their eyes, but a look of hope when Nathan’s name was mentioned.

No sooner had she skidded to a stop by the double doors at the far end of the airport than two men appeared, each grabbing an arm and hustling her through them and into a waiting car.  Emma took note of their appearance committing each to memory.  She couldn’t get a clear look at the driver as the divider between them was up.  No one spoke.

Emma asked where they were going but other than a sneering look in her direction, they completely ignored her presence.  The only time she was on their radar was when she moved.

They finally told her to put her head down and placed a black bag over it and she could see nothing at all.  She took a couple deep breaths in anticipation of what was to come.  One of them pushed her upright again as they continued wherever they were headed.

Emma determinedly listened hoping to glean their whereabout from anything she could hear.  Unfortunately, the music they were playing was blasting and she couldn’t hear a thing and the ride was comfortable and smooth telling her little about speed direction or impediments like railway tracks or speed bumps that could assist with a direction.

It seemed like hours before they finally stopped and as one man got out the other gave her a shove in his direction and she slid across the seat and out.  Both of her arms were grabbed in vice-like grips and she was impelled forward nearly losing her footing on the uneven ground.  She got the feeling they wouldn’t care whether she fell or not but someone said something in a muffled voice and their grip tightened and they hauled her up several steps.

She was suddenly surrounded by the fragrance of flowers, African Violets if she wasn’t mistaken … a hot-house of some sort.  As she was dragged along, the smell of potting soil and fish meal assailed her nostrils.  She was halted abruptly turned and shoved onto a chair.

“Emma, at last, we meet.  How wonderful.  I knew you’d come.  Your Achilles heal is family, of course, why wouldn’t it be.  Nathan’s is you.”

“I take it that’s why you’ve abducted me.  Where is Julie?”

“Safely ensconced in her family’s arms, I’m sure.”

Emma’s sigh of relief was audible.  “I see that pleases you.”

“I can’t say I’m not relieved.”

“No, my dear, you were my target.  Having you means I hold all the cards.”

“It simply means you have me.  Nothing more, nothing less.”

“You underestimate your worth, Emma.  That doesn’t sound like the woman I’ve come to know.”

“You know nothing about me.”

“Oh but I do, dear Emma. I have made it my goal to study you, to know everything about you.”  He rattled off several facts that anyone could obtain, her life was practically an open book.  Minus a few chapter’s she’d recently added such as the self-defence Nathan had correctly instructed her on.  Her journalistic and photographic memory added a perception he’d never understand.  Knowing her family was safe and sound was all that mattered to Emma.  She could handle herself.

“You’ll remain here in these humble surroundings until Nathan comes for you.  Relax.  You are among friends!”  he laughed at his own joke thinking himself quite amusing.

“Of course we’ll have to make some adjustments.”  With that, her arms were lifted and shackles placed on both wrists.  “Should you require the amenities, they are to your left, please feel free to use them.  I’m not completely without heart.”

He turned and left and Emma listened to his receding footsteps until the nearly silent swish of doors indicated he’d left.  The black bag was ripped off of her head and she blinked until her eyes became accustomed to the light which was minimal at best.  She watched her two captors saunter toward the far doors and they too disappeared.

Time to take stalk.  The shackles were solid with five-foot chains attached giving her some room to move. Indeed there was a bucket should she require it and a long table with planting implements, nothing more.

The family decided on an outing and along with Jim headed out for the evening to see James Hunter six, a soul-blues band from Essex, England, touring and recording for more than a decade.  It was hinted that Allen Toussant, Sharon Jones or Van Morrison may be in attendance since all three were avid fans. Jenna was a fan and had been for years and since everyone loves music, they were all as eager to attend the event as she was.

Heading out, their discussion was animated as they entered the limo.  Jim was attending alongside them and Martin would drive and stand guard.  Jim attended to all the protection before they left and double checked as they drove to the event.

Settling into their seats, they talked were talking in hushed tones even though many hadn’t taken their seats as yet.  Excitement ran high, the air filled with the electric anticipation that filled the room.  The lights dimmed twice signalling the group was about to take the stage and everyone scurried to their seats while exchanging muffled.

The show began with an introduction, which proceeded with great fanfare and humour and had the audience completely involved.  Before long the group began and silence reigned, you could have heard a pin drop.

It was just before the first intermission that a note landed on Emma’s lap.  She quickly scanned the area but due to the number of people milling about, it was impossible to tell where it came from.  Turning her attention to the note, she slowly opened it, half dreading what she might find.

It read, “If you want to see Julie again, meet me at the airport now!  You and only you. I’m a man of my word, you should know that by now.”  Emma’s hands shook as she valiantly attempted to appear calm and not let her feelings show.  Inwardly she was quaking.  Dear god in heaven, not Julie!  How the hell had he managed to get to that delightful baby?  What of her parents? A thousand questions flittered through her mind, the least of which was how to notify Nathan without causing havoc panic and dire consequences.  Uppermost in her mind was the threat.  She couldn’t allow anything to happen to that sweet baby!

Turning to Jenna she whispered, “Ladies, I’ll be right back.”  Jenna nodded and turned her attention back to Jim while Jake and Sarah were chatting with a couple they were acquainted with from back home.

Emma made her way to the washroom, then scanned the area looking for Martin.  He was surrounded by a crowd of people, his eyes trained on the family.  He obviously hadn’t noticed her departure so she hustled toward the entrance and on outside.

Flagging down a cab, she gave the driver instructions to head to the airport and prayed she was doing the right thing.  It took forty-five minutes to arrive, traffic was heavy, bumper to bumper and she barely breathed the entire trip.  She tossed cash at the driver and raced into the airport.

The moment she was inside she noticed a sign that read, “Emma Banks!”  Making a bee-line straight for the sign she said, “Yes, I’m Emma Banks.”  The sign holder handed her an envelope and turned away.

The note’s instructions directed her toward the far end of the terminal.  Emma wasn’t thinking clearly, simply reacting out of fear.  Her journalistic thought processes halted.   All she could think about was somehow getting to sweet innocent Julie and freeing her.