Hi everyone! Welcome to the new story! Thank you for reading (and hopefully reviewing!) and I really hope you like it. I think it's common knowledge now that I get a little nervous about posting new stuff. But I hope you like it. Drowningnotwaving approached me with the idea ages ago and I have been steadily writing it since. It's set at the beginning of the year. Hugo has abducted Charlie and taken her out on the boat. A lot of the first chapter has been taken specifically from the show (no copyright infringement intended, of course) and then it will go from there, playing out somewhat differently. I hope we never get bored of finding new ways to bring Joey back into the story. And I hope one day the powers that be will also cotton onto the necessity of Joey's return! I hope you like it. Sorry for the ramble! Love, IJKS.

Chapter One

The sun had broken through and chased the night away. Senior Constable Charlie Buckton was still tied up in Hugo Austin's boat. She'd tried to talk to him, tried to find some way to escape but he had a gun and she no longer had hers. She cursed herself for going off alone to the shipping container. The image of what she'd seen there was still burned in her memory and she was sure she was going to die.

"Hugo, whatever it is you're thinking of doing, you don't have to do it," she said when her captor approached.

"I'm sorry Charlie," he said. "But I do."

He reached out and untied her, still keeping the gun trained in her direction. One wrong move and she knew it would be too late. Nobody even knew she was missing. The chances of some kind of rescue operation were unlikely to say the least. No-one was looking for her.

"It's the only way of protecting Martha," Hugo said as Charlie got to her feet. "The only things connecting me to any of this are this phone..."

He tossed it overboard.

"And you."

He pointed the gun more firmly at her.

"I like you, Charlie," he said.

Images of their one night together momentarily flashed through his brain. He'd been after Charlie from the first moment he'd met her but finally giving in to him had been the worst mistake of her life, she'd said. It had cost her the love of her life.

"But I love Martha," he said. "And I'm not putting her in any more danger."

"No, Hugo..." Charlie pleaded, shaking her head.

"Get in the water," he instructed.

"Why?" she demanded.

She had no idea whether she was relieved or distressed at this turn of events. Would drowning be worse than getting shot? Right now, she had no idea.

"So you can swim to that island over there," he said.

She looked behind her. Surely enough, in the distance, she saw an island. It looked so far away. She was a good swimmer but she had no idea if she'd make it that far.

"I'm not going to kill you," Hugo said when she turned back to him. "I'm not that kind of person. Not anymore. But I'm not going to jail either."

"Give yourself up, Hugo," Charlie said, offering one last ditch attempt at saving herself. "I can say that you co-operated and the courts might be lenient."

Hugo shook his head.

"There's still a chance that you could have some sort of life with Martha," Charlie tried.

"No," he replied firmly. "That chance disappeared long before Suzy turned up. There's no turning back."

Charlie swallowed and studied his face and the gun he had aimed at her. There was no way he was going to let her go. She wondered if anyone would ever find her. Nicole had nearly died being trapped on what she thought was the same island after Elliot had attacked her and Geoff. Would she survive it? Would someone come looking? Her only hope really was her boyfriend, Angelo Rosetta but he'd been suspended for punching Hugo. She thought about Ruby. They were building their life together again after the trauma of the last year. And she thought of Joey Collins. Her beautiful image danced before Charlie's mind. All this time she had lived in hope that she might see her again. But if this was the end of the line, Joey would really be gone. Charlie would never have a chance to make it up to her. Feeling sick, she unzipped her boots and stepped out of them.

"This should last you a day," Hugo said, handing her a bottle of water. "When I know I'm safely away, I'll let someone know where you are."

"Hugo, you don't want to do this!" Charlie tried one more time. "Think about it!"

"I've done enough thinking for one night," he said. "So get in... before I change my mind."

Charlie tossed the bottle overboard and hoped it wouldn't sink. She shot him a glare, as if that would solve anything and moved to climb over the side of the boat. He watched her trip and land hard on the floor, seemingly unconscious.

"Nice try, Charlie," he said, still waving the gun in her direction. "Get up! Charlie!"

She continued to lie there with her eyes firmly closed. Annoyed and worried, Hugo stashed the gun in his waistband and bent to check on her. As he went to give her CPR, she grabbed the gun. She'd only had it in her hands for a moment when he'd hit her hard in the face. Dizzy, she struggled to hold onto the gun and he snatched it back off her with ease.

"Very nice try," he said.

Reaching forward, he picked her up and tossed her overboard before hurrying back to the boat controls and speeding away.