Abduct verb take a person away illegally; kidnap. Abduction noun, abductor noun [from ab-, + Latin ductum = led]
Abduct verb carry off, kidnap, seize, snatch (informal)
He'd kept the books.
As odd an opening line it might be for a story of family, hardship and a six year imprisonment in what the homeless see as pure luxury, it's what I'm going with. Who 'I' am is none of your direct concern. The books are.
He'd put them in the front seat of his van - the books – after he'd dumped the bags that had held them in three different spots. He could vaguely remember the covers – Maths something, Biology something and My Little Pony something. But remembering such precise information was not important at that point of time.
He needed to get back to his family.
This is now your direct concern - forget the books until they are mentioned again.
Dianne had sent them to him – safe, alive and smiling - a gift of the She-God herself. As this goes further you'll realise who 'Dianne' is if you're bright enough, if you don't, you'll have to wait until the light of the answer even brighter and in your face. But she's currently only just so important.
Jason, Shaun and Kate were with him again, and he'd never let them leave him. His family was together again. They just didn't know it yet, but he'd convince them.
He wanted to help them. But they were where they were as a punishment. It was their own fault. He hoped they'd learn and never make the mistake of thinking of him as a stranger again. He wasn't, he was their father.
Now, your direct concern is the very of the sentence I just gave you to read. If you are able to pick up what is wrong with it then good for you, if you cannot you must have some feeling of suspense. That feeling will not be needed with any luck.
Now shift your concern, once again.
He stepped out of his van to open the gate. Just an old, one way, chicken wire laced thing with rusted hinges – nothing special or concerning. He gave a small nod of acknowledgement to the dogs sitting around making no effort to acknowledge him. He drove into his yard, too big for neighbours and a secluded forty minute drive from town. An hour and a half away from where heaven dropped his gifts.
His house really did look small plonked in the middle of his well trimmed paddock. It made it all the more perfect in his mind. Though his mind was not what it used to be.
He flicked the lights of his basement kitchen on, taking in the mess he'd left behind. Nothing broken really, just food and a couple of bowls smashed across the floor. It really depends on what you perceive as messy. He chose to ignore the specks of blood. Shaun should learn to listen a little better.
He dished out the food for his dogs, tossing in last night's leftovers and set them on a tray to carry out. Eight bowls were hard to carry with two hands. His eyelids dropped and his head rocked forward every now and then. He'd had a long day. This, you should find concerning.
He set the food down in the grass. A dog sneezed in acknowledgement as he turned and trudged back to the house.
He locked every door in the house, every window – any means of escape. Locking his door behind him, he fell on his bed and sighed in content as he drifted into sleep.
xx-xx
Kurt sighed as he flicked through his text book. Biology could be a real bore and his headache wasn't helping in the slightest. He should've been in class, but he opted to cut it instead and just study in a back part of the school where the janitors keep their things and have a smoke during breaks. It was old and it smelled a little off, but it was quiet and he was alone. The only way to get to it via car was through a maze of back roads and into the janitor's parking lot, paved and pretty like any other parking lot in the school.
Figures the only shitty part of the school was the part no one could see.
Kurt didn't see him come up from behind. He didn't think anyone was there until he was pulled back off the bench, a hand over his mouth and an arm across his chest.
"Calm down," he whispered into Kurt's ear as he struggled, "I'm not going to hurt you!"
Kurt couldn't believe this was happening to him. This happened in movies and crime shows to other people. He kept putting up a fight as he dragged him away into the back of a van and was pinned to its cold floor.
"Please..." was all he could mutter before his own tie was shoved into his mouth. He hadn't even noticed it was taken off him. Duct tape was wrapped around his head two or three times. It didn't really needed to be done, but Kurt figured he was in such a rush the he had just used the last of it on the roll.
That was going to be a bitch to get off.
It all felt to ridiculously rushed. The cable ties keeping his hands behind his back were done up too tight and dug into his skin, the ties around his ankles were too loose and annoyed him. He left Kurt in the back of the van for a couple of minutes before dumping his books in the front seat and driving off.
"Don't worry buddy, we'll be home soon."
Some instinct Kurt didn't know he had made him scream and kick nothing. He imagined the cutthroat words he'd be saying, but could only morph them into muffled screams and moans. He knew there was no point to it but he needed something to do. He slid around the van and tried to ground himself with no avail. At some point he'd managed to wriggle his feet out of the cable ties – not that it really mattered.
"We're here, Shaun" he muttered, before stepping out of the car to get him.
Kurt put up a fight, got a couple of kicks in. But he was slung over his shoulder anyway and carried into the house. Kurt took in everything around him... nothing. This guy was going to kill him and bury him somewhere in the field.
He was too scared to cry. He brain couldn't even compute to say 'Oh, fuck!' to itself let alone cry, it only had the time and energy to kick and scream.
"Come on buddy," he mumbled almost reassuringly, "if you don't calm down, I'll only ground you."
'He has a sick kink!' Kurt thought to himself, thrashing a little more almost throwing him off balance.
He opened a door and started down the stairs to the basement.
'Fuck, rape dungeon, fuck!'
When the lights flicked on he saw the poster image of a four person home. The same shit you'd see in display home pamphlets. A big open room, couch and widescreen TV, a modern kitchen, table for four and three doors.
"Your rooms the middle one Shaun" he said. Kurt could hear the grin on his face. But he wasn't really concerned by that.
As quickly as he'd dropped Kurt on the bed, he'd left, pausing only to say "I'll be back tonight with Jason and Kate. Be good, no parties alright?"
'... the fuck!'
He started yelling and screaming, even though he knew no one could hear him. But he had already left and locked the door behind him.
Even with all this around him, car posters, girl calendars, the single GP clad bed under him, the tears slowly slipping down his cheek and his laboured breathing only one thought circled his brain.
'Who the hell is Shaun?'
xx-xx
Blaine walked, a lot. If he had a free period he'd get changed and walk. Just around, with his i-pod in. He was half on a search for Kurt, whom no one had seen since the start of classes over three hours ago. Not answering his phone.
He tried not to worry. Kurt was probably just having one of his shopping days or something.
He didn't think that what happened would've happened. Damn i-pod, he hadn't even noticed the van trailing him or how it'd pulled up in front of him. Not until he stepped out.
"Sir, can I help you?"
"In the van," he said, nodding his head to the back of the van.
"I'm sorry, but what?"
"In. Now!"
It was safe to say Blaine was shitting himself. He'd walked down one of those streets where everyone who lives there works and weren't home. No one was going to know this was happening. No cars other than his van were to be seen and Blaine suddenly started to feel sick.
He pulled out a gun, a small one, but it was big enough to pull Blaine out of his haze. A swift fist collided with his face and another shout got him into the van. He noticed his shifty movements, checking over his shoulder every couple of seconds.
Blaine looked up from his feet as he stepped in the van. Sitting in front of him was a girl, five or six, looking scared as all hell.
There went any big plan of turning around and punching him when he put the gun down.
This was someone's child sitting in front of him. He wouldn't have minded if it were just him and he got hurt, but he couldn't put that girl at risk.
Blaine's brain was being overactive with different scenarios of escape so he didn't put up much of a fight. A couple of thrashes, child friendly curses as it were – but he let him tie his hands and stick a strip duct tape over his mouth anyway.
"Don't worry guys, we'll be home soon. Shaun's waiting for us."
His mood had changed. Blaine couldn't pick what it was exactly, but was less menacing and calmer. He dug through Blaine's bag, pulling out his books and chucked the bag out onto the road.
Blaine didn't understand the logic in tying his hands in front of him. He could open the back door to van if he really wanted to, not that he approved of the idea of jumping out of a moving vehicle.
He reached out and beckoned the girl to come to him when he left for the driver's seat. She'd lost the terrified look from her face and had replaced with a blank stare. Blaine took in the hesitant shifts of her green eyes, her too pale skin; skinny neck and big mass of wavy blond hair which only made her look skinnier. She didn't like people, obviously, and this experience was going to help that.
She slowly took off her pink cardigan, peaking glances at him and crawled over to Blaine. Gently as she could, she pressed the cardigan against his bleeding nose.
He took hold of the cardigan and motioned for her to take the tape from his mouth. She hesitated slightly, picking at the corner before getting a firm grip and peeling it off.
"What's your name?" Blaine whispered, quietly enough so he couldn't hear. She kept silent, eyebrows twitching in what looked to be confusion before returning to the same blank expression.
'Ok then...'
The girl took the cardigan from Blaine, tilting her head to see if it had stopped bleeding, which it pretty much had. She folded it and sat it in her lap. It was only bloody on the right shoulder and she kept her eyes dead set ahead of her, her blank mask slipping on.
Blaine sighed, contemplating whether or not to pick at the tape around his wrists with his teeth. She seemed to sense this and looked up to him, shaking her head slightly.
'Kurt's right. Anyone can read you like a book.'
Kurt... damn.
This had to be a bad, bad coincidence.
Or it wasn't and they both were seriously fucked.
"Shit..." he muttered, not missing how the girl's eyes darted to him and she bit her lip. "Sorry."
She didn't say anything, but her expression was a little more thoughtful and upset.
They sat like that for what felt like an eternity, just next to each other, silent, unmoving – unless there was a bend in the road and they'd slide into the other.
As the ride got rougher, Blaine could sense they were almost... there. Where there was? His guess was as good as yours. She seemed to sense it too, her shoulders stiffening and breathing quickening.
"I'm sure Shaun's been wondering where we've been," he said casually as he opened the back door to the van.
'This is it' Blaine thought 'He's going to kill us.'
He pitied this Shaun fellow.
He grabbed Blaine by the back of his head and pulled the girl by her wrist and led them to a house. Blaine stole a glance at her as they got closer to the house. She looked panicked and was holding her breath of too long at a time. He let go of her briefly to unlock the door.
The basement was more like the centre of the house. Like a teen retreat, the adults would have upstairs and the kids down. Sure there was a kitchen and a whole family set up upstairs, but Blaine knew they wouldn't be up there.
Hell, he wasn't even sure how long they'd be down here.
"Shaun's in his room and I need to have a talk to him. Kate, go with Jason to his room."
He gave them a forceful push to the door on the far left. The girl closed the door behind them, stealing a glance at him staring down the middle door.
"That's not my name," she whispered, resting her forehead against the door. "Kate is a dumb name..."
"My names Blaine, not Jason."
"... Jane."
"You're right, Jane is a lot nicer than Kate..." he mumbled to her, "Hey, can you help with this tape?"
Mutely, she walked over and peeled the tape off. He flexed his fingers and nodded her thanks.
"You will respect me dammit!"
The yell was followed by a muffled scream and various other noised you'd hear when you're listening to someone getting there arsed kicked through the wall. More yelling, crashing and screaming followed, Jane clutched her cardigan.
"I am you father! You'll show me the respect I deserve!"
A slam of the door gave the signal that he'd left and they could walk out. But Jane stood stiff and Blaine hesitated at leaving her alone.
"Come on, we should make sure he's alright."
xx-xx
Today was the day. She was going to leave. Her parents wouldn't care. She knew it.
She'd only packed what she needed - a sandwich, a juice box, biscuits, a couple of toys and her favourite book.
'World, here I come!'
Her mother hadn't noticed her step out. She was on a break from school work so she could eat and her mother could look after the baby.
She wanted to go to school, with all the other kids. But her parents always said they didn't want her to take a wrong path because of the influence of others. It didn't make sense to her, so she just nodded and continued to pick at the tofu thing in front of her.
The first thing she was going to do was get a burger. She'd been saving up, so she had loads of money.
Jane picked at the sleeves of her cardigan. She loved the thing, even if her parents didn't. Her parents were vegans and had a thing against wool.
She kinda, maybe, tried to love her parents but they never asked her 'Do you want to not eat meat?' She at least wanted to try it and then decide. Tofu was gross as.
"Hello."
Jane jumped and turned to the man standing over her. She'd stopped in a local park for a snack and a rest. She'd been walking forever.
She turned from him and went back to her biscuit. The TV said you shouldn't talk to strangers, and not only did she not know him but he was really weird.
She'd done this before, walk out of the house and just wander and have people ask her if she was lost. She just ignored them and walked off. But then her parents always seemed to find her.
"Hey, do you want something better to eat? Come on, I'll buy."
She eyed him; this guy looked nice and reminded her of her dad. Every other time she went walking nothing bad would happen like the TV said it would. The TV had to be lying.
Maybe he'd buy her a burger.
Jane kept silent, letting him take her hand. She looked around; no one was paying attention to them. They walked for a little until they reached a side street. He opened the door to the van and looked down to her, gripping her hand until it hurt.
"Here, you just wait in the van while I get you your burger" he said, taking her bag. She stepped into the empty van and sat down, watching as he closed and locked the door. He walked to the passenger door and put her book on the seat and then left. She didn't know how long he was gone, but when he returned he had her burger, with chips and a Coke.
Her mother and father would be so mad if they knew she was doing this. But it all tasted so good, her parents were so weird.
He sat in the front seat and waited for her to finish. He took her rubbish and put it in a box at the foot of the passenger seat.
She felt a pang of panic when he didn't offer to let her out of the van and when she didn't see her bag anywhere. The fear didn't fully settle in until he started to drive off.
"We're just going to pick up Jason, ok Kate?"
'How'd he know I wanted a burger? I didn't talk to him! The TV said don't talk to strangers!'
She didn't get it. The TV said not to talk to strangers, and if it said anything else she'd must of stopped listening and focused on drawing or something.
Everybody lied to her. Her parents, her TV and now him.
'And my names not Kate.'
Maybe her mother had called him to pick her up, but she still wasn't going to talk to him.
"You alright back there?"
She nodded and avoided looking at him.
The van started slowing down until it came to a stop and he got out of the car mumbling,
"Jason, it's been too long."
She saw him slip it into his pocket, a small silver gun. Like a water pistol, just really shiny. She knew what those did.
They made the meat her parents hated so much.
The back of the van opened and in stepped a guy. He looked surprised and angry to see her; she just didn't want to deal with another stranger.
He started tying the guy up and she heard some words she knew her parents wouldn't want her to hear.
"Don't worry guys, we'll be home soon. Shaun's waiting for us" he said, throwing the guy's bag out and taking his books.
'Maybe he'sjust likes to read and doesn't want us to tell people he's a nerd and will let us go if we promise to not tell.'
But she still wasn't going to say anything.
The guy looked at her and asked her to go to him with his hands. Jane really didn't want to make him mad but she did it when she knew he wasn't paying attention to them.
As much as she loved her cardigan, the hate she felt for seeing someone else bleed over powered that by a long shot, so she moved it to his face and waited for him to take it. He, again with his hands, asked her to take the tape off his mouth. She didn't really want to. She had images in her head the skin would come off, stuck to the tape. Like paper.
But it didn't. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. She was learning that had to be good.
"What's your name?" he asked, handing over the cardigan.
She didn't know how to answer. It was confusing. Her name was Jane, but he called her Kate. What if she got it wrong? That and she still didn't want to talk to strangers, even if this guy had messed up like she did.
She looked down at her cardigan. Ruined. But for a good cause, maybe her parents would buy her a new one because she was so nice.
She peaked a glance at the guy, seeing he was staring at the tape on his wrists. She shook her head slightly, wondering if the skin on the wrists would tear off like paper.
"Shit," she bit her lip and glanced at him. Her dad would be so mad at him for saying that around her. "Sorry."
She didn't want her dad yelling at the guy. At least he was nicer than him.
"I'm sure Shaun's been wondering where we've been."
Shaun. Just another stranger.
He gripped her wrist too tightly, dragging her along while taking too big steps for her to keep up with out struggling. She held her breathe when he let her go. She saw the dogs when she got out of the van and she hated dogs.
The basement was a lot different from the one back home. Hers was full of boxes and spider webs. This was nothing like the creepy ones in Scooby-Doo.
"Shaun's in his room and I need to have a talk to him. Kate, go with Jason to his room."
He gave her a push, right in the spot on her back that made her cringe when someone pressed on it. She closed the door behind them, hating the way her knees felt weak. She didn't say anything, why was this happening?
"That's not my name; Kate is a dumb name..." The guy couldn't be that bad. He seemed to not like this just as much as her.
"My names Blaine, not Jason."
It didn't sound like a name someone bad and mean would have. Maybe she could talk to him...
"... Jane."
"You're right; Jane is a lot nicer than Kate... Hey, can you help with this tape?"
What would happen if she did? Would he grab her? She didn't think the situation could get worse. But she helped him and nothing happened. She could definitely talk to him.
"You will respect me dammit!"
Jane froze. A fight. She really didn't like those, they never ended well and he sounded mad. She blocked it out as best as she could, holding her cardigan so tight her fingernails dug into her palms.
"I am you father! You'll show me the respect I deserve!"
"Come on, we should make sure he's alright."
Her head shot up as Blaine started to open the door. She couldn't do anything but follow and keep her feet on the ground. She hadn't notice Blaine stop as they walked around the bench top.
"Oof... Blaine?" She peeked her head around Blaine's legs and saw another guy. She wanted to throw up. He had his knees pulled up to his chest and was resting his head there.
She stepped past Blaine, who seemed too scared to move. She knelt beside the guy and rubbed his shoulder a little. His hands were tied behind his back with the things her father used to keep parts of the car together. She looked up at Blaine and saw something she didn't want to see.
Blaine looked scared, confused and really, really mad. Did she do something wrong? Maybe she should've waited for him to move.
"Blaine?" she said, with a flinch and voice full of fear. The new guy's head shot up and he seemed to just break down. He had a bleeding nose like Blaine did, and a cut just under his eye.
"Kurt..." he didn't take long to get moving. Jane handed over her cardigan and Blaine started to wipe the blood Kurt's face gently, "Jane, can you find a pair of scissors please?"
She nodded mutely, catching Kurt's eye. He looked really sad and confused.
People seemed to be making a lot of mistakes today.
The kitchen drawers were perfectly set out and she didn't need long to find said scissors. She didn't wait for Blaine to tell her what to do; he was to fixated on peeling the tape from around Kurt's head. She cut the plastic thing away and gasped at his wrists. The tie had dug into his skin and made it all red and bloody. Kurt didn't seemed to notice; he just took her hand and kept his eye shut tight as Blaine tried to peel the tape from the back of his head.
"I'm so sorry," Blaine muttered. He sounded really angry, but not the angry that scared her. It was the safe kind of angry.
"Kissing it isn't going to make it better, is it?" she asked, in an uncertain voice. She wasn't just talking about the bruises, the cuts, the wrists. Her mother said kissing it would make it better.
What was she meant to kiss?
"...I don't think so," Blaine mumbled, pausing from his work to give her a sad look. Kurt shook his head.
When the tape was finally off of Kurt's head, it's was Blaine's turn to want to throw up, Jane could see it all over his face. Kurt spat out a tie and gasped for air, all the while sobbing.
They hugged and Jane was left to the side, lonely.
Just like home.
xx-xx
You know what should be your direct concern, right?