"What are you telling me?" Vince asked one of the uniformed officers standing at his front door.
"I'm saying your wife and children have been kidnapped. This man wants money for each of them."
"So your saying he wants me to by back my family?" Vince asked outraged.
"Yes, I'm sorry that is all we have found so far. You should stay by the phone incase he calls." Vince nodded, went back inside, and sat down by the phone. He couldn't believe how this day had turned out.
~FLASHBACK~
It had started out as any normal day at the McMahon family home. Vince, Linda, Shane, and Stephanie where sitting down to an early breakfast. They had to catch a flight to Austin, Texas for WWE Raw.
"So, what time do we leave?" Stephanie asked her father.
"We are leaving around one. I want everyone packed and ready around twelve thirty though." Vince said. "I have to run out and pick up something. I will be back around twelve."
"Yeah, dad, we'll all be ready by then." Shane said.
A few minutes later the McMahon's finished their breakfast and cleaned the table. They talked about the script they had for the show and some random things. Eventually Shane and Vince started to pack while Linda and Stephanie made lunch. After lunch Vince went out to get what he needed while Shane made sure his mother and sister where ready when his father came home.
~END FLASHBACK~
That was over three hours ago. When Vince returned home with flowers for his wife, it was their anniversary, he had found the front door open. His wife, daughter, and son where no were to be found in the house. As he entered the kitchen he found some blood on the floor and immediately called 9-1-1.
The police showed up a few minutes later. Vince had gotten a text message explaining the man had kidnapped his family and wanted a thousand dollars for each member. That meant he wanted a total of three thousand dollars.
"I don't have three thousand! How will I be able to get them back!" Vince yelled.
"We will come up with a plan. Right now we need to think of something."
"Vince!" Paul, aka Triple H, yelled as he ran in the house. "What's going on?"
"Someone kidnapped Linda, Shane, and Steph. He wants three thousand for the safe return of all three of them. This S.O.B wants me to buy my family back!"
"Look, we will think of something. I found this in my car on the way over. I'm not sure who left it there, but whoever it was knows where Steph is." Paul said handing Vince a video tape.
"Should we watch it?"
"What do we have to lose. It may give use clues." Paul said. Vince put the tape into the VCR and hit play.
The first thing he saw was his family sitting in a tiny cell. Linda and Stephanie had tears running down there faces and Shane had a black eye. Obviously he had put up a fight; not a successful one anyway. He saw three men walk into the room and they were all wearing ski masks.
"Hey, there, Vince. You're bastard son sure has a temper. Takes after the old man I see." the taller kidnapper said.
"Sure does. Maybe he needs to learn a better lesson." The smaller of the men said as he grabbed Stephanie and forced her on the ground in front of him.
"Don't you dare hurt her!" Shane yelled, but was smacked across the face with the handle of a gun.
"Boy, don't you dare talk to us like that!" the medium sized man said.
"How else am I suppose to talk to a bunch of low life bastards!" Shane was hit with the handle of the gun and when he looked back the man, the barrel of the gun was pointed at his head. Vince was proud of his son, but had never been more scared in his life.
"Shane!" Linda said. "Please, just back off."
"Yeah, be a good little boy and do what mommy says." taunted the taller man.
"If you say or do one more disrespectful thing I will blow your brains out in front of these lovely ladies!" the gunman said.
The smaller man was now on top of Stephanie as the others looked towards him after hearing a commotion coming from his direction.
"What are you doing?"
"I wanna have some fun!"
Only two things where running through Shane's head. Stephanie and Linda's well being and how to get them out. He didn't necessarily care what happened to him; as long as he got his mother and sister out. Without thinking Shane launched at the smaller man and tackled him to the ground. He started punching the man in the face; Stephanie had crawled over to her mother and watched as Shane beat the man. Shane raised his fist to punch the man in the face one final time, but he never got the chance. Linda and Stephanie heard something that sounded like a pop; when they looked at Shane he had blood pouring of a hole in his shoulder.
The gunman had shot Shane!
"SHANE!" Stephanie called as she watched her brother fall off the man clutching his shoulder.
"You idiot! Why did you do that?" The smaller man yelled.
"He wasn't going to stop until he beat you to death! What was I suppose to do?"
"He will be no use to us dead!"
'Dead? No, not my boy!' Linda thought determined.
"He will bleed to death! God I don't even know why I hired you two!" The taller man said. The three kidnappers left the cell and the video ended.
Vince stared at the screen in shock. He couldn't get the image of his son being shot out of his head. The kidnapper said he would bleed to death! Vince couldn't live with the fact that his son was dying in an unknown location while his mother and sister watched him bleed to death. And Vince wasn't doing anything to help.
"That bastard shot my son! He shot Shane! I'm going to kill him if it's the last thing I do!" Vince yelled.
"Vince, clam down!" Paul said trying to calm his father-in-law. He was worried about Shane as well, but they needed to stay clam in order to find them.
"Clam down! You want me to clam down! He-that S.O.B, shot my son! My only son! How can I be clam when I know Shane is bleeding to death in some cell with Steph and Linda watching!"
"I know you are mad right now, but if you keep acting like this all of them will be dead. If we want to find them we need to think rationally. If we don't all of them will be dead!" Paul yelled.
"I know I have to think rationally, but it is hard knowing Shane is dying! What are we going to? I do not have three million dollars! I don't even have two thousand! This man is going to kill my family!"
"Vince, listen. When they call tell them that you only have one thousand. I will give you all the money I have to get the others back."
"What if we don't have enough to get all three of them back? How can I chose! I know Shane would want me to take Linda and Steph, but I can't leave him knowing that bastard shot him! Paul, what do I do?" Vince asked.
"Look, we first have to wait for the kidnappers to call. I will go see if I can get some money. Just stay here and don't worry. Shane is strong; he will be fine."
"Okay, but please hurry. I want them back as soon as possible." Paul nodded and went off to see if he could find people to help. After Paul left Vince sat by the phone and he only had to wait a few minutes until it rang.
"Hello?" Vince asked cautiously.
"Do you get my present?" A deep voice asked; Vince recognized it as the taller man.
"You shot my son!" Vince yelled.
"Your son had it coming. Now do you have my money?"
"I only have a thousand. I am working on getting the other two. Please don't hurt my family." Vince begged.
"Hmmm, well your bastard son may need to learn another lesson." the kidnapper said. "He seems to be trying to defend his mother and sister."
"DON'T TOUCH HIM!" Vince screamed into the phone. "Please let me talk to them."
"Fine." the kidnapper held the phone to Stephanie's ear.
"Hello?" she asked scared.
"Steph!"
"Daddy! Daddy please help us! They shot Shane! He was only helping me!" Stephanie cried as she looked at her brother who was lying on the floor next to Linda.
"Okay, that's enough." The taller man put the phone next to Linda's ear.
"Vince, please you have to hurry and find us. These men t-they shot m-my…baby! Please!" Linda cried as she rubbed Shane's head.
"Better now?" the taller man asked.
"Let me talk to Shane." Vince demanded.
"I don't think he's up for talking right now."
"I do not care! Let me talk to my son!"
"Fine." The kidnapper grabbed Shane by the back of his shirt and sat him up. Shane tried to say something, but he was to dizzy to think of anything.
"Shane? Shane-O, are you there?" Vince asked frightened.
"Hey, dad. I protected Steph like you always told me to do." Shane said. Vince didn't like how weak Shane sounded; he was even more determined to find them.
"I know, Shane. I'm so proud of you; you know I love you right?"
"Yeah, dad. I love ya too."
"I need you to do one more thing for me okay? I need you to promise."
"What is it?"
"I need you to hang on until we find you. I don't want you dying on me; you are going to make it through this and you are going to wrestle again."
"I promise, dad." Shane said. The kidnapper let Shane drop back to the floor as he lost consciousness. Linda tried to wake her son, but to no avail.
"Shane? Shane!"
"He's not awake right now. I want three thousand by eight o'clock tonight!" The kidnapper then hung up the phone.
Vince looked at the wall and his eyes fell on a picture of Shane, Linda, and Stephanie. He had taken it the past Christmas. It gave him more motivation to find his family. If Shane was going to die, it was not going to be in a tiny cell in God knows where. Vince walked over to the window and looked out. He saw Paul had returned and he brought Dave Bastita, Randy Orton, and Shawn Michaels with him.
"Vince, any news?" Paul asked as he stepped into the house.
"He called a few minutes after you left. He let me talk to Shane, Linda, and Steph. Linda and Steph wanted me to hurry and find them because they are not sure how much longer Shane can hold out. Shane promised me he would hang on until we found him and I am holding him to that promise. Linda and Steph are not hurt, but Shane is weak. Paul we have to hurry."
"We will help in anyway we can Vince." Dave said. Shawn and Randy nodded in agreement.
"I was able to only get another thousand." Paul said sadly.
"How am I going to chose? Paul, I cant chose between my wife and kids!"
"Vince, maybe they will just give us Shane because he is damaged. They cant really use damaged goods. Try and see if you give them less since they shot Shane." Paul suggested.
"Or they could just kill him." Vince whispered.
"They wont kill him. Just have faith." Shawn said.
The phone had rung again, but this time it was the smaller man. "What do you want!" Paul said into the phone.
"Look. He's still going to kill the guy."
"That guys name is Shane! Why should we believe you?" Vince looked over when Paul screamed his sons name.
"Because I thought he was just trying to scare you guys. I never thought they where going to shoot Shane." the smaller man said.
"You tried to rape my wife!"
"It was only for show. Let me tell you though Shane is tough and crazy."
"We know that." Paul smiled despite the situation.
"Okay. We are in a warehouse off of Sabin Farm Road. You have to hurry."
"We only have two thousand dollars."
"That's okay. He was never going to give Shane back. He has a grudge against him. The guys names are Jonah Anderson and Virgilio Paulino. My name is Topher Baldwin. Please, believe me; I never thought they would go this far."
"Fine, but if this is a set up I will beat you with in an inch of your life!" Paul said.
"You would have every right to do it still, but I am not setting you up. I have to go they are coming." Topher said hanging up the phone.
"Well?" Vince asked.
"He told me where they were. He never thought it would go as far as it did. He told me their names and everything. His name is Topher Baldwin; he said they where going to kill Shane because they have a grudge against him."
"My son would never do anything to them. Where are they?" Vince asked.
"They are in a warehouse off of Sabin Farm Road."
"Let's go!"
"Wait!" Randy called after Vince. "You can't go alone. Take Paul with you. The three of us will hold down the fort here."
"Thank you, guys. For all your help; even though it wasn't much." Randy, Shawn, and Dave nodded. Paul and Vince grabbed the money and ran out to the car.
After a few minutes of driving they made it to the warehouse. There was nothing around for miles. No houses, businesses, no schools, or stores. No nothing. 'How am I going to get Shane to a hospital?' Vince thought.
"How will they know we are here?" Paul asked.
"I guess we call them."
"We don't have the number." Paul reminded him.
"I see you brought a guest." Jonah said.
"Where is my family? I have your fucking money! Now give them back!" Vince yelled.
"Let me see the money." Jonah said.
Vince showed him the money he counted it and saw their was only two thousand. "Looks like you only get two of them back, but I will bring all three of them out."
Jonah went to the back and brung out all three McMahons. Shane was leaning heavily on his mother only half aware of what was going on. Linda was trying her best to support her son, but it wasn't working. When they finally stopped she set Shane down on the ground and knelt next to him.
"You can have your two lovely ladies back, Vince. Don't worry we didn't harm them. Your ill-tempered son is ours though. He wont make it through the night, but when he dies you can have the body."
Virgilio pushed Linda and Stephanie toward Vince and took the money. Paul hugged Steph and Linda. They watched as Virgilio pointed the gun at Shane's head. "Say goodnight." he muttered.
He then pulled the trigger. Vince closed his eyes as the shot rang out. He couldn't help the tears that where now falling down his face. He had just lost his only son Shane because he couldn't muster up another thousand dollars. Vince opened his eyes and saw Shane was still alive! Topher and Virgilio where wrestling on the ground with Jonah shouting at them.
Vince looked over at Paul; who was calling the police. Vince did the only thing he could think of. He ran toward Shane and picked him up in his arms. He ran toward his family and hid behind an old truck. Vince looked down at Shane and slowly kissed his forehead. Shane had kept his promise.
"Shane, hey, wake up." Vince said softly. Shane weakly opened his eyes.
"…Dad…"
"Yeah, your safe now." Vince said. He could hear the sirens; help was on the way. The kidnappers where still to busy wrestling to notice what was going on.
"Help is on the way Shane." Linda said.
"…I d-did wh-what y-y-you…said…" Shane said closing his eyes. It was getting harder for him to breath.
"Shane! Don't close your eyes! Hang in there!" Vince pleaded. He knew his son lost a lot of blood, but God damn it he was going to do anything to help him! The police came and arrested the three kidnappers. Paul told them about what Topher did. He still did not forgive the guy, but it took guts to do what he did.
"D-dad…y-you know I-I-I l-love you r-right?" Shane said.
"Yes, yes, Shane, I do!" Vince said hugging his son tightly. They where still waiting for the ambulance to show up.
"Then you wont be mad if I…" Shane didn't finish his sentence; Vince knew what he meant.
"Shane, you are not going to die! You are strong! You held out this long; you can hold out a little longer!"
"I promised you I would hang on until you found me. And you did." Shane started to cough and tried to catch his breath. Vince looked helplessly at his family. Stephanie was hugging Paul, crying. Paul was hugging her back and had tears streaming down his face. Linda sat next to him with her head in her hands.
"I-I-I'm s-s-sorry. Please…don't…be m-mad…" Shane said. Shane took his last breath and went limp in Vince's arms. His head lolled to the side and his stared at the ground; unseeing, void, blank.
"Shane! Shane, don't do this! Please!" Vince pleaded shaking his son. "You cant do this. I need you Shane! This family still needs you!"
"V-Vince, he-he's gone, isn't he." Linda said. Vince shook his head and hugged his son's body tightly, crying.
A week later a funeral was held for Shane. The world knew what happened as did the WWE roster. The following Monday after Shane's death they held a memorial show for him. No one had anything bad to say about Shane. He touched everyone's lives in some way. Stephanie's was the most touching one.
"My brother died a hero. He saved me from being raped by Topher. I wish I could go back in time and stop him from doing it, but I know my brother would do it time and time again." She chocked on her words, but continued. "He was always defending me. It may not seem like it in the ring, but Shane was kind and would do anything to help. He never left a bad impression on anyone. He hated when people said he was given special treatment because he was a McMahon; truth was he hated it. I wanted to say thank you, Shane. I'm going to miss you."
Vince took Shane's death the hardest. The others took it hard, but not as hard as him. Shane had died in his arms. He had held out just to die in Vince's arms. Vince had cursed out the EMT's when they had finally showed up because if they where faster then Shane would still be alive. But Vince knew his son died a hero; he saved his sister and mother from getting hurt.
'At least I got to see you and talk to you in your final moments.' Vince thought.
"Vince, you ready to go?" Linda asked; Vince nodded. They walked out of the cemetery hand in hand with Steph and Paul behind them. When they got to the entrance of the cemetery Vince looked back at his son's grave and said, "Thank you for your bravery Shane. I will miss you."
THE END!